A Castle in Romagna

Reviewed by Lisa Kisner for Reader Views(2/06)

This book tells the tale of two loves 400 years apart, yet similar in their fate. During a tour of a castle in Italy, a man hears the story of Enzo Strecci, a poet who falls in love with the wife of his host and protector at this castle in 16th century Italy.

The tale is told to him by a friar who is a fellow countryman and ex-patriot. Intertwined in the story of Enzo, however, is the ill-fated love story of the friar and a Communist police captain's daughter in his native in Bosnia. Both men are relentless in their quest for their chosen loves that climax in heartrending outcomes.

These tales mirror each other proving that history repeats itself, especially regarding affairs of the heart. The bittersweet tales are both set in times of change and are told in eloquent, descriptive language and will attract readers for many years to come.

Rebeccasreads highly recommends A CASTLE IN ROMAGNA as a lean & exhilarating tale of two loves, set centuries apart, amid war & peace.

A Bosnian refugee from Tito's war-torn efforts to separate from the USSR, is touring an Italian Renaissance castle when he discovers his Franciscan guide is a fellow ex-patriot who left decades before.

As the monk takes the young narrator through the castle & the story of a hopeless love from hundreds of years ago, he also tells of his own tragic love for a Communist policeman's daughter in his homeland.

A rare treasure that will wrench your heart & linger in your soul. Outstanding!

Collaboratively translated from Croatian by Tomislav Kuzmanovic and Russell Scott Valentino, A Castle In Romagna by Igor Stiks is a novel that shifts in scene between Renaissance Italy and Tito's Yugoslavia, telling parallel yet intertwined stories of love, deceit, and betrayal. History repeats itself, and the enduring nostalgia for the comforts of home pervade this emotional work of literature. A tale richly steeped in passion, and the burning desires that drive humans beyond their limits.