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| A Thousand Days in Venice: An Unexpected Romance | 
 enlarge | Author: Marlena De Blasi
Publisher: Virago Press Ltd
Category: Book
List Price: £8.99
Buy Used: £0.01
You Save: £8.98 (100%)
New (24) from £3.63
Avg. Customer Rating:  17 reviews
Sales Rank: 60865
Media: Paperback
Edition: New edition
Pages: 288
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 7.8 x 5 x 0.8
ISBN: 1741141354
Dewey Decimal Number: 910
EAN: 9781844080205
ASIN: 184408020X
Publication Date: March 20, 2003
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
Condition: **SHIPPED FROM UK** We believe you will be completely satisfied with our quick and reliable service. All orders are dispatched as swiftly as possible! Buy with confidence!
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| Customer Reviews: Read 12 more reviews...
A delicious foodie romance... July 16, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I purchased this book as I adore Italy, I have never been to Venice but it is on my lengthy list! I saw this book and I admit it, I fell in love with the romantic cover! The inside did not disappoint either, Marlena de Blasi creates rich vivid descriptions, conjuring up the smells, tastes and feel of Venice as she writes. Dotted amongst the descriptive text are delicious recipes of Venetian dishes, which I have not tried yet, but plan to.
The earthy sensuality of this novel unravels as you learn the story of an American lady moving to Venice and falling in love with Fernando, a Venetian man she meets. The beautiful thing about this book is the character's ability to take risks....of course some may say this unrealistic, and on one hand I agree, but on the other hand, is that not how we would all love to live our lives? I really fell in love with her in the book and wanted her to fulfil every desire she had, I wanted her to have the wedding dress of her dreams and I wanted her to have exactly want she wanted to eat, relishing in all of the delicious flavours. This book lets you experience her highs and lows and her enthusiasm for life (and love and food!) is quite contagious! I even found myself buying some treats and a good quality Italian vino for dinner 'a deux' after reading this book! If you love this then try Carol Drinkwater's books for a slice of life in the South of France, an equally feel good novel!
 Ripe and runny December 16, 2007
"There will be an iced soup of roasted yellow tomatoes adorned with a pair of anise-grilled prawns ... a wedge of Taleggio - ripe, runny - white figs, and meringues from Maggion at the finish. We dine slowly."
If you liked reading that you will like - or even love - this book. It is dreamy and lush, not quite the real world. Hints of reality do occassionally break through,as in her intermittant longings for the grown-up children she left behind in another country to be with "the stranger".
I would compare it to "Bridges of Madison Country", and I must say I loved reading it and was utterly absorbed by it.
 Worst Book I've Ever Read October 17, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
It is frightening reading this book. The language, the style of writing, her word patterns and her grammar are all utterly appalling. It is drivel. And worse than that, it is monotonous drivel. At one I point I actually thought that if she used one more metaphor I may have to travel to whichever unfortunate town Ms de Blasi lives in and make her eat her book.
This is not a love story, this is an instrument of torture.
You can start to tell a book is really badly written, when all you can hope for the supposed heroine is that she is left crushed and heartbroken by her love affair. Either that or she dies horribly and painfully at the end. Apparently the author is a TV chef and has written food columns and recipe books. Being able to write a cookbook does not give you license to become a novelist. I've written 80,000 words of PhD but I wouldn't dare assume I could automatically churn out fiction. Well, decent fiction at any rate. With that in mind, one hopes that her food is better than her writing or one feels desperately sorry for anyone who's eaten it.
I couldn't finish it. It was talking about my favourite city in the world and I was scared I would end up hating my favourite city because it was describing it so badly. This truly is the worst book I've ever had the misfortune to read and I want that time back.
 Taken away October 10, 2007
Each time i picked this book up to continue my read i was transported right back to a wonderful place. I think a book like this is best for those who have been or are going to Venice, because they will have the need to discover the special places of Venice with De Blasi and stumble across them in their future travels. Being a foodie really helps you along the way. Just loved it!! Half through Tuscan Sectrets....just as good if not better
A Brilliant Read! January 12, 2007
1 out of 3 found this review helpful
This is the most brilliant book, it made me laugh out loud at times, and also brought tears to my eyes. When I read the reviews before I bought it, I was expecting a nice story, something a bit syrupy, but I was very surprised, her writing is really evocative, and if you love Italy, it will make your heart ache to be there. Looking forward to reading her follow-up about Tuscany, which is waiting here on my desk. You will enjoy it!
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