A Venetian Affair: A True Tale of Forbidden Love in the 18th Century

Reads more like a textbook than a novel, but this does not take away from its fascinating story. I could not help but be drawn in and charmed by Giustiniana and Andrea and found the book hard to put down. It is also nice to see the extensive list of sources and resources that the author used, which hopefully means that the events were thoroughly researched.

Loved this!

The story of the story is as dramatic as the love itself. The only thing I didn't like is that the book is like a theoretical a not like epic love book.

I think Venice is the most romantic city in the world. So, when I heard this book documented a true, Romeo-and-Juliet-style affair that took place in Venice in the mid-1700's, I knew I had to read it. In some ways, the tale of how the author discovered the story was just as interesting as the tale of the young lovers. After his father found and translated moldy old love letters in the attic of...more

I think Venice is the most romantic city in the world. So, when I heard this book documented a true, Romeo-and-Juliet-style affair that took place in Venice in the mid-1700's, I knew I had to read it. In some ways, the tale of how the author discovered the story was just as interesting as the tale of the young lovers. After his father found and translated moldy old love letters in the attic of the family palazzo in Venice, the author pulled them together into a full picture of life there at a time of great change, the final years of the Venetian Republic. The narrative dragged in the beginning, when the multiple letters of the young lovers get repetitive and mostly involve complicated plans to be sure to look at one another across the crowded casino without the girl's mother noticing. There are definite echoes of Pride and Prejudice here, as the mother of the young lady is clearly focused on finding the most advantageous marriage possible for her first-born daugher. For modern women, this part of the story is depressing and one aches to think that for centuries this was the highest pinnacle to which women could aspire. The young man is from one of the most important families in Venice, and becomes a successful politician. The book's canvas expands to include Paris and London, and the author does a great job of weaving in just enough historical facts to keep the narrative grounded but is smart enough to keep the focus on his main characters, and the city in which they spent their formative years.   hide

I found this book while travelling through Europe and read it in a few days while in Italy. It's a beautiful and sad story. Even though the tale is based in a specific time and place in history, it is a timeless love story. I would love to see this made into a film (but done correctly)!

"They kept each other at a safe distance: lovemaking was mostly limited to what their eyes could see and what their eyes could say...the language of the eyes would become all-important... 'Today, my lips will not be able to tell you how much I love you...But there will be other ways...Will you understand what my eyes will be saying to you?'" (29).

Love it! My favorite!!

Great read. Carefully researched and such a romantic setting 18th century Venice in a palazzo along the Grand Canal. I could not put it down.

Reading through the letters of correspondence between Andrea and Giustiniana was a guilty pleasure. I detest invading anyone's privacy but their love is tragic in the sense that society and politics thwarted its consummation. But Mrs. Anna Wynne was the sole person reprehensible for it. Sad...