Reviews
Winawer's debut is a detailed historical novel, a multifaceted mystery, and a moving tale of improbable love....Winawer has created a prodigious, vibrant tale of past and present that transports readers and fills in the historical gaps. This is a marvelous work of research and invention., In Melodie Winawer's The Scribe of Siena , neurosurgeon Beatrice Trovato finds herself mysteriously transported to 14th-century Italy. There she uncovers a plot to destroy the city of Siena. With the Black Plague on its way to ravage Europe, will she make it out in time? And does she want to? After all, she's fallen in love with medieval life--and a handsome painter. Like Outlander with an Italian accent., "Winawer's debut is a detailed historical novel, a multifaceted mystery, and a moving tale of improbable love....Winawer has created a prodigious, vibrant tale of past and present that transports readers and fills in the historical gaps. This is a marvelous work of research and invention." -- Publishers Weekly , starred review , "[A] vivid, compelling debut novel....Winawer renders her story in compelling detail, in Beatrice's whip-smart, observant, often sarcastic voice. Supporting characters in both eras--Ben's neighbor Donata in the present day; the sharp-eyed nun Suor Umilt in 1347; Gabriele and his family--are also vivid and endearing. The conspiracy is vital as a plot device, but the more resonant theme is Beatrice's deep love for both her centuries and her heartfelt struggle to decide where she belongs." --Shelf Awareness, Will remind historical fiction readers of Diana Gabaldon's Outlander and Tracy Chevalier's The Girl with the Pearl Earring . Lovers of meticulously researched historical fiction and time-travel narratives will be swept away by the spell of medieval Siena., "Will remind historical fiction readers of Diana Gabaldon's Outlander and Tracy Chevalier's The Girl with the Pearl Earring . Lovers of meticulously researched historical fiction and time-travel narratives will be swept away by the spell of medieval Siena." , "Winawer's debut is a detailed historical novel, a multifaceted mystery, and a moving tale of improbable love....Winawer has created a prodigious, vibrant tale of past and present that transports readers and fills in the historical gaps. This is a marvelous work of research and invention." , The realities of day-to-day existence in 1340s Europe are so viscerally represented that readers will readily accept the fanciful premise., A stunning work of historical fiction, Melodie Winawer's debut novel [is a] story of love, science, politics, and time-travel is worth every last word., "THE SCRIBE OF SIENA is one part historical mystery and one part love story with a captivating dose of art mixed in for good measure. If that weren't enough, it all comes together in that most evocative of settings: Siena, Italy. Winawer's smart debut is a joy to read!" , "Will remind historical fiction readers of Diana Gabaldon's Outlander and Tracy Chevalier's The Girl with the Pearl Earring . Lovers of meticulously researched historical fiction and time-travel narratives will be swept away by the spell of medieval Siena." -- Library Journal , starred review, "[A] vivid, compelling debut novel....Winawer renders her story in compelling detail, in Beatrice's whip-smart, observant, often sarcastic voice. Supporting characters in both eras--Ben's neighbor Donata in the present day; the sharp-eyed nun Suor Umilt in 1347; Gabriele and his family--are also vivid and endearing. The conspiracy is vital as a plot device, but the more resonant theme is Beatrice's deep love for both her centuries and her heartfelt struggle to decide where she belongs." , [A] vivid, compelling debut novel....Winawer renders her story in compelling detail, in Beatrice's whip-smart, observant, often sarcastic voice. Supporting characters in both eras--Ben's neighbor Donata in the present day; the sharp-eyed nun Suor Umilt in 1347; Gabriele and his family--are also vivid and endearing. The conspiracy is vital as a plot device, but the more resonant theme is Beatrice's deep love for both her centuries and her heartfelt struggle to decide where she belongs., "THE SCRIBE OF SIENA is one part historical mystery and one part love story with a captivating dose of art mixed in for good measure. If that weren't enough, it all comes together in that most evocative of settings: Siena, Italy. Winawer's smart debut is a joy to read!" -Meg Waite Clayton, New York Times bestselling author of The Wednesday Sisters and The Race for Paris, The Scribe of Siena is one part historical mystery and one part love story with a captivating dose of art mixed in for good measure. If that weren't enough, it all comes together in that most evocative of settings: Siena, Italy. Winawer's smart debut is a joy to read!, "An engrossing historical epic. Winawer's wide-ranging, romantic story moves apace, yet it has considerable meat on its structural bones, with plentiful details on fourteenth-century Sienese daily life, customs, art, and travel." -- Booklist, An engrossing historical epic. Winawer's wide-ranging, romantic story moves apace, yet it has considerable meat on its structural bones, with plentiful details on fourteenth-century Sienese daily life, customs, art, and travel., "An engrossing historical epic. Winawer's wide-ranging, romantic story moves apace, yet it has considerable meat on its structural bones, with plentiful details on fourteenth-century Sienese daily life, customs, art, and travel." , THE SCRIBE OF SIENA is one part historical mystery and one part love story with a captivating dose of art mixed in for good measure. If that weren't enough, it all comes together in that most evocative of settings: Siena, Italy. Winawer's smart debut is a joy to read! |9781501152252|, "Will remind historical fiction readers of Diana Gabaldon's Outlander and Tracy Chevalier's The Girl with the Pearl Earring... Lovers of meticulously researched historical fiction and time-travel narratives will be swept away by the spell of medieval Siena."
