Customer Reviews

The Wine Seekers

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Set in the early 1900's, Linda Bilodeau crafts a bittersweet and charming tale of a young man's journey from the dreams of youth to the harsh realities of life.

Nicola Romolo's world is shattered when he and his family are evicted from the land they called home for his affair with the landowner's daughter. Bereft but bound by duty to his family, he moves to Naples where his uncle has offered a position. Through this job, he falls in with the local crime family and meets the woman who will become his wife, Maria Amato. Fate conspires against him once more when he rushes to defend Maria from ravishment by the parish priest. In the scuffle, Nicola accidentally kills the priest, who happens to be the brother-in-law of the local Don. Afraid, Nicola and Maria wed, then flee to America hoping to lose themselves in the tide of immigrants who are seeking opportunity.

Nicola finds work aboard the ocean liner and discovers his first love and her new husband are also on board. The two couples' paths continue to intersect from the crowded streets of New York to the lush vineyards of California . In the end, Nicola must choose between the love of the woman he lost and the love of the woman he found.

Reviewed by Mairead Walpole on February 8, 2009

Gianna Silvano is in love with Nicola Romolo, and she wishes to marry him. But the fates have other plans for Gianna. She is to marry another, Santino Callisto.

Nicola Ramolo is planning on asking for Gianna's hand in marriage, but when they are caught making love, her father sends her away and evicts Nicola's family off the Silvano Vineyard. Forced to move to a city to make money to support his family, Nicola leaves his home with a heavy heart and the memory of Gianna still rooted deeply in his mind.

With the fates pushing these two young lovers in different directions, it seems to Nicola he will never find Gianna again. But in their ultimate cruelty the young lovers do see each other again, but they will always be separated by marriage and station. Both Nicola and Gianna have to face many obstacles and hardships in their lives before they will find peace, but will that struggle be more than either can overcome?

This book really shows just how differently people's lives can turn out when all the odds are against them. Linda Bilodeau does a wonderful job of portraying the plight of immigrants, especially Italians to the United States. The Wine Seekers will pull at your heart strings with just how unfair life can be sometimes. This story for the most part was really well written