Graceless Heart by Isabel Ibañez
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I was excited when I found out there was a new book by Isabel Ibañez who has quickly become a favorite of mine. The hardcover is absolutely gorgeous, by the way.
So why not give it five stars, you ask? Well, I honestly can’t put my finger on it but there was something that felt a bit off.
But let’s start with the good stuff (which there was a LOT of). Ibañez didn’t disappoint with her unexpected surprises (I love being surprised in a story), the lush historical background, the perfect weaving of real historical fact with pure fantasy, a real slow burn romance, the use of Italian in the chapter titles and in parts of conversations that added an extra deliciousness and veracity to the plot.
Ravenna is a great character with a lot of spunk and her relationship with Saturnino was delightful to read. And he was a great morally grey character with a wonderful character arc. Some of the side characters like the Pope, the courier, and Saturnino’s siblings were all well-developed and interesting.
Now for what felt a little off-sync for me. I felt that the ending was rushed. Without spoilers, the fact that Ravenna, the main character, spends chapters and chapters working on something that at the end is done in a wink felt off.
The abrupt changes in attitude of Saturnino in the first half of the book also rubbed me the wrong way. I thought they should have been more subtle or started later in the story.
And let’s talk about the sex scenes. Ibañez is obviously uncomfortable with them even though as spice goes the plot is pretty low on that scale (which I have absolutely no problem with) and she does a good job at showcasing the emotional side of intimacy (my favorite side). That said, I felt as if some of the scenes, which are mostly concentrated in the last quarter of the book, were a bit forced. Almost as if the author felt she HAD to add them to satisfy her readers.
All of this said, I couldn’t put the book down and looked forward to reading it every night. So, I guess its flaws did not deter at all from the fabulous plot. Ibañez remains one of my current one-click authors.
Author Natalina Reis 