The Villa
Rachel Hawkins
The novel is set, as the title promises, in a villa. Taking place in the city of Orvieto, Italy, located in Umbria, the Villa Aesta has been converted into a vacation rental. Childhood friends Emily Sheridan and Chess Chandler have rented the palace. Emily finds herself looking through the villa's history and discovers it had previously hosted rock star Noel Gordon and several other creative guests in 1974. The novel unfolds across the present with Emily and Chess, and the past with Noel Gordon’s 1970s timeline, reminiscent of the famous villa retreat where Percy Bysshe Shelley, Lord Byron, and Mary Shelley, author of Frankenstein, once vacationed. In the present, Emily and Chess endure their petty dramas, all while set in the hills of Umbria.
An Italian Holiday
Maeve Haran
Set in a Southern Italian villa surrounded by lemons and lemon groves, four strangers are brought together by a mutual friend. The four older women, Angela, Sylvia, Claire, and Monica, are each surprised to find the others at the Italian Villa when they arrive. They don't always get along with each other, either, but during their stay they begin to suspect not everything is as it seems.
Under The Tuscan Sun: At Home In Italy
Frances Mayes
This memoir-turned-hit film chronicles the story of recently divorced Frances as she renovates a Tuscan villa named Bramasole in Cortona, a rural town in Tuscany. In the book, Frances begins renovating the villa with the intent of using it as a vacation home for summers and holidays. As in the film adaptation, she does meet an ensemble of unique people, including Polish laborers, on her quest to renovate the historic home. When the best-selling book was adapted into a 2003 film starring Diane Lane and Sandra Oh, it did take some liberties with the original story, meaning this classic memoir will be a whole new experience even for fans of the film.
The Italian House
Teresa Crane
This historical novel set in the roaring 1920s begins with a young British woman, unhappily married, inheriting a Tuscan villa. Carrie travels to the villa without her husband. There she meets up with her childhood companion, Leo. Leo is also Carrie's first cousin, not that this interferes with their passions. The family mysteries, and taboos, unravel against the scenic backdrop of the Tuscan countryside.
One Hot Italian Summer
Karina Hallie
Author Grace Harper has lost her best friend – and her writing partner. Hoping to restart her creative energy, her book agent Jana Lee invites Grace to stay in a Tuscan villa. The villa, however, belongs to Jana's ex-husband Claudio. Claudio arrives shortly after Grace with his ten-year-old son in tow. Neither Grace nor Claudio want to disrupt the other’s plans, so the three end up staying in the villa together, and like the hot Tuscan summer, things grow steamy.
Ian MacAllen
Ian MacAllen is America Domani's Senior Correspondent and the author of Red Sauce: How Italian Food Became American. He is a writer, editor, and graphic designer living in Brooklyn. Connect with him at IanMacAllen.com or on Twitter @IanMacAllen.