"5-stars are not enough" book alert

 

It’s a fact that favourite book reviews are the hardest to write, so belatedly, here are two of my all-time favourites I read in 2022 and just haven't got around to reviewing until now. My words cannot do either of these justice, so I'll keep it short and sweet but urge you to pick them up and judge for yourself. Very highly recommended!

LESSONS IN CHEMISTRY by Bonnie Garmus

 

I read LESSONS IN CHEMISTRY a few months ago and absolutely adored it. Welcome to Elizabeth Zott, one of the quirkiest, pluckiest and most unique characters I have ever met in a book, supported by the equally enigmatic Mad Zott and dog Six-thirty. Five stars are not enough. One of the best books of 2022 – very highly recommended!

 

THE MARRIAGE PORTRAIT by Maggie O’Farrell

 

Maggie O’Farrell has done it again – like her previous book HAMNET, THE MARRIAGE PORTRAIT was a fascinating window into history, this time exploring the events surrounding the untimely death of Lucrezia de’ Medici, the third daughter of Cosimo de’ Medici, the Grand Duke of Tuscany during the Italian Renaissance. It only took a few paragraphs for Lucrezia to steal my heart, and I was hooked.

 

Written with the heart and poetic beauty that characterises her work, O’Farrell has merged history and fiction so skilfully that the tale takes on a life of its own. And even if some of it has sprung from her imagination rather than truth, it has brought the fate of a young woman at the mercy of her society’s rules back into our focus so her story will not be forgotten. Written with a style so visual that it brought each character to life for me, it was impossible not to be swept away by a tide of emotions whilst reading it. The elaborate backdrop of the Italian palazzo provided both an escape as well as an almost whimsical backdrop that gave the story an otherworldly air where history could be rewritten. I challenge you not to be moved by Lucrezia’s fate!

 

Poetic, magical and utterly captivating, THE MARRIAGE PORTRAIT was one of my favourite books in 2022, and one that has stuck in my mind. Very highly recommended!