Friday, November 8, 2024

Mona Lisa’s Daughter by Belle Ami

 

Mona Lisa’s Daughter

by Belle Ami

Black Coffee Book Tours

November 5-8

From the bestselling author of THE LAST DAUGHTER and THE GIRL WHO KNEW DA VINCI comes the breathtaking page-turner that will have you reading long into the night…

Acclaimed author Belle Ami, renowned for her poignant World War II epic, The Last Daughter, inspired by her mother's survival of the Holocaust, emerges a captivating saga that transcends the bounds of time. Mona Lisa’s Daughter entwines the fates of two remarkable women against the backdrop of history's glittering peaks and darkest depths.

In the resplendent glory of Renaissance Florence, Leonardo da Vinci meets Lisa del Giocondo, the wife of a silk merchant, forging a friendship that transcends the conventional roles of artist and muse. Their bond yields what many consider the greatest masterpiece the world has ever known, but also harbors a shared secret that must be kept hidden at all costs.

Fast forward four centuries to the dawn of World War II, where in the shadow of fascist rule, fear grips the city of Florence. It is here that young nun Valentina Amati shoulders the duty of safeguarding a hidden cache of letters exchanged between Leonardo and Lisa. However, as the malevolence of Hitler’s Nazis marches ever closer, Valentina finds herself haunted by her own past and ensnared in a perilous web of secrets that threaten not only her life but also the sanctuary she has vowed to protect.

Universal link for the book on Amazon

About the Author

Belle Ami writes breathtaking historical fiction, captivating historical romance, and gripping romantic thrillers. Creating unforgettable characters and crafting complex stories, Belle’s writing reflects the redemptive power of love and the strength of the human spirit. Her series and stand-alone novels include the following:

TIP OF THE SPEAR SERIES: A contemporary, international espionage, suspense-thriller series with romantic elements. Includes the acclaimed Escape, Vengeance, Ransom, and Exposed.

OUT OF TIME SERIES: A continuing, time-travel, art-thriller series with romantic elements. Includes the #1 Amazon bestsellers The Girl Who Knew da Vinci, The Girl Who Loved Caravaggio, and The Girl Who Adored Rembrandt.

THE BLUE COAT SAGA: A three-part serial, time-travel, suspense thriller with romantic elements set in the present-day and in World War II. Includes The Rendezvous in Paris, The Lost Legacy of Time, and The Secret Book of Names.

THE LAST DAUGHTER is a compelling and heart-wrenching World War II historical fiction novel based on the life of Belle Ami’s mother, Dina Frydman, and her incredible true story of surviving the Holocaust. The story begins at the dawn of World War II and follows the Nazi invasion and occupation of Poland, focusing on the Nazi’s six-year reign of terror on the Jews of Poland, and the horrors of the death camps at Bergen-Belsen and Auschwitz, where more than six-million Jews along with other vulnerable innocents were slaughtered.

LOST IN TIME is a riveting and romantic time travel historical romance series published by Dragonblade Publishing that follows three female friends who time-travel from modern-day America to late 19th century London, Paris, and Tuscany where they must unravel an ancient mystery, battle evil, and of course, fall in love.

LION’S DEN CONNECTED WORLD series: LUCK OF THE LYON—A highly successful and beloved series published by Dragonblade Publishing, comprising over 60 novels and novellas. Belle Ami’s LUCK OF THE LYON is one of the most recent installments. A 5-Star reviewer writes: This book had everything: a real hero, a beautiful widow, and, of course, Mrs. Dove-Lyon. If there was a villain, it was the social mores of the day.

NIGHT OF LYONS: A LYON’S DEN CONNECTED WORLD ANTHOLOGY (THE LYON’S DEN) - A selection of novellas by bestselling Historical Romance authors, including my novella: UNMASKED BY THE LYON. “It's a night to remember at the great Mystère Masque at the notorious Lyon's Den where anything goes!”

MONA LISA’S DAUGHTER – A dual timeline historical fiction novel. A 500-year-old secret protects a priceless cache of letters between artist and muse hidden in a convent in Florence. A young nun is sworn to protect the treasure, but secrets from her past come back to haunt her and threaten everything she holds dear.

COMING 2024 – OUT OF TIME SERIES: THE GIRL WHO FORGOT WHO SHE WAS– The fourth book in the series. Alex and Angela will once more attempt to solve a famous art theft. In WWII, a painting by Tamara de Lempicka titled Myrto is stolen by a Nazi from a requisitioned villa in Cannes, France. The painting has never been recovered. Angela is once again pulled in by dreams and psychic visions.

A former Kathryn McBride scholar of Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania, Belle, is also a proud recipient of the RONE, RAVEN, Readers’ Favorite Award, and the Book Excellence Award.

Belle’s passions include hiking, boxing, skiing, cooking, travel, and of course, writing. She lives in Southern California with her family and her brilliant Chihuahua, Giorgio Armani.

Review 

Mona Lisa’s daughter is a phenomenal book. There is no doubt about that. And you get two stories for the price of “one”. The author’s descriptive writing leaves you spell bound with every page. Add the historical settings and the well-known artist Leonardo da Vinci to it, and it gives it a surreal feeling that I seldom experience while reading. 

Two women, two men, and two worlds so vastly different, yet it just makes perfect sense in the plot.

The one woman finds herself in the confines of a 15 century marriage and is the muse of the famous artist who created the Mona Lisa. After six children and the loss of another, Lisa found her drawn to Da Vinci’s, the man. Hours upon hours of sitting for him made them realised how much they have in common. Soon, a deeply found relationship blossomed. When Da Vinci was commissioned to go to another city, they began to write to each other and, in the confines of paper; they discovered the depth of their feelings. These love letters were placed in the watchful care of a nunnery. Soon Valentina Amati joins this nunnery after a sexual assault, and she became the next trustee of these letters. 

Valentina Amati is trapped in the turmoil of a war that devastated the globe. An unwanted pregnancy and a diabolical man. When her daughter was born, she had to return to her village, where she discovered that her mother was busy arranging a marriage with the man that assaulted her. This prompted her to return to where she began the ardent role of rewriting the love letters for future generations. 

In both of their lives, love and romance are frowned upon, yet they are forced to make decisions that would influence the rest of their lives. Hard choices followed them everywhere, choices that tested their love, devotion, and faith. 

This is truly an exceptional story that I can recommend to anyone that loves the Renaissance period, and the different nuances of World War 2. Thank you for the opportunity to read this story.

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Mona Lisa’s Daughter by Belle Ami

  Mona Lisa’s Daughter by Belle Ami Bl...