Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Orphan of the Olive Tree
    Orphan of the Olive Tree
    Orphan of the Olive Tree
    Ebook545 pages8 hours

    Orphan of the Olive Tree

    By Mirella Sichirollo Patzer

    4.5/5

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    From two neighboring villas in the heart of the Tuscan countryside to the elegance of Siena; from a world steeped in ancient superstitions to a culture where family honor is paramount comes, this multi-layered novel of the lives, loves, secrets and strivings of two women and their families in the 13th century.

    Felicia Ventura dreams of a happy future raising a family, but her hopes are shattered because of a curse and the casting of the evil eye by her envious neighbor, a dark Sicilian beauty named Prudenza. Prudenza’s envy of Felicia turns into a dangerous, frenzied obsession and she revives an ancient superstition, spreading the rumor that Felicia’s twins were fathered by different men. The scandal destroys Felicia’s marriage. But when Prudenza gives birth to twin daughters of her own, she is desperate to save face and rids herself of one infant, keeping the child’s existence secret. As the years go by, the truth has a way of making itself known. Soon Prudenza’s deception will lead to the unraveling of everything she values in life.

    An absorbing novel about wicked intentions, medieval superstitions, a curse uttered in envy, undisclosed secrets, unstoppable destinies, and two generations of women and the extraordinary event that will vindicate or destroy them.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherXinXii
    Release dateDec 13, 2014
    ISBN9780986843945
    Orphan of the Olive Tree

    Read more from Mirella Sichirollo Patzer

    Related to Orphan of the Olive Tree

    Related ebooks

    Historical Fiction For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      The Corridor Stories

      Sep 1, 2022

      The Corridor Stories
      5 min read

    • Article

      A Book for the Moment: On Helen Weinzweig’s ‘Basic Black with Pearls’

      Jun 1, 2018

      This post was produced in partnership with Bloom, a literary site that features authors whose first books were published when they were 40 or older. 1. In our current moment, a chorus of “nasty women” has flooded social media with grievances. Unfortu

      5 min read

    • Article

      Jude THE OBSCURE

      Jun 18, 2021

      Jude THE OBSCURE
      5 min read

    • Article

      Discarded Wraith Of Apartheid

      Apr 13, 2024

      It’s been years since I read a book that strained the Likability Principle as viscerally as Karen Jennings’ new book, Crooked Seeds. Her previous novel, An Island, was longlisted for the Booker Prize, but I fear the more I tell you about Crooked Seed

      2 min read

    • Article

      Perfect Prose II

      May 15, 2020

      Perfect Prose II
      4 min read

    • Article

      Two Poems by Phillip B. Williams

      Dec 15, 2017

      The masters are yet dead. Wanting to be human,I tried to rewrite The Waste Land. The canon’s reachcasts ruinous light. The masters’ pens breachthis page where, above, my own hand spectates. Babylonrisen, exorcism in reverse, whose nature upended now?

      6 min read

    • Article

      A Symposium On The Mysterious

      Sep 1, 2023

      A Symposium On The Mysterious
      24 min read

    • Article

      100-WORD-STORY COMPETITION Winners

      Aug 16, 2022

      We’ve been delighted by the huge response to our 100-word-story competition. The entries have flooded in thick and fast during the past few months, but while we’ve enjoyed reading every story, only a few can come out on top! You, our readers, voted t

      5 min read

    • Article

      Orlando Spirit Of The Age

      Jun 11, 2019

      Orlando Spirit Of The Age
      5 min read

    • Article

      Tuesday New Release Day: Starring Attenberg, Shelburne, Matar, Ocampo, Pinsky, and More

      Oct 22, 2019

      Here’s a quick look at some notable books—new titles from the likes of Jami Attenberg, Elizabeth Chiles Shelburne, Hisham Matar, Silvina Ocampo, Robert Pinsky, and more—that are publishing this week. The post Tuesday New Release Day: Starring Attenbe

      4 min read

    • Article

      Morbidity & the Miniature

      May 11, 2018

      Morbidity & the Miniature
      14 min read

    • Article

      In The Spotlight: Your Writing Genre - Busting

      Apr 4, 2024

      What an inventive lot the WM writers proved themselves to be with the ‘Genre-busting' submission call! The response was terrific, with a postbag full of playful, off-the wall writing that read as if its creators had a gonzo riot mashing up elements f

      5 min read

    • Article

      In Love And War

      Jun 10, 2021

      April 1943 - Krakow, Poland Irena was bent over her needlework, stitching the frayed seam of her skirt when she heard a single gunshot ring out. She jerked and then scowled. After four years of war, she ought to be used to it. Why, the other night a

      11 min read

    • Article

      To Save Arrhinsal

      Nov 1, 2021

      Tolin lives on Arrhinsal, an island that floats in the sky two miles above the land below. One day, while hunting in the maze of tunnels that run through the island’s thick hedges, he encounters a girl who, her sword raised, has turned to face a huge

      6 min read

    • Article

      Five Poems

      Jul 1, 2023

      I’m looking at a photograph of a bearded Romaine Tenney on his hay mowerhitched to draft horses in a half-cut field. Tenney, whose Vermont farm was slatedto be swallowed by Interstate 91, immolated himself, rather than be forciblymoved. My son says,

      3 min read

    • Article

      Elf Quest

      Nov 30, 2022

      Elf Quest
      11 min read

    • Article

      Books

      May 1, 2023

      Books
      6 min read

    • Article

      Michael Crummey

      Sep 3, 2020

      Michael Crummey
      5 min read

    • Article

      The Inventions of Witches

      Oct 30, 2017

      The Inventions of Witches
      7 min read

    • Article

      In The Middle Of Even This: Poetry

      Jan 1, 2020

      To be brought from the bright schoolyard into the house:to stand by her bed like an animal stunned in the pen:against the grid of the quilt, her hand seemsstitched to the cuff of its sleeve—although he wantsmost urgently the hand to stroke his head,a

      7 min read

    • Article

      Concerning The Future Of Souls

      Mar 19, 2024

      As a toddler she had caused a sensation in her family when she announced she wanted to live in a little hole like the ant. Not an ant, the ant. This might have been misheard. She was an easygoing child, not particularly thoughtful and stubbornly inar

      13 min read

    • Article

      Assemblage

      Mar 27, 2018

      TO MAKE HISTORY, gather together a poet and his lover and her stepsister, another poet and his doctor. Send them to the mountains in summertime but have the weather betray them, turn cold and wet, keep them inside near a roaring fire. Provide a book

      5 min read

    • Article

      How to Stop Crying

      Nov 7, 2019

      How to Stop Crying
      7 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Orphan of the Olive Tree

    4.5/5

    11 ratings4 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 4/5
      this book tells the story of two families united by a vow made by the men that their first born children will marry and the fall-out it causes.

      Set in beautiful Tuscany it tells of the conflict between knowing what is right and what tradition tells you to do.

      When Felicia has twin boys the wife of her husband's friend Prudenza decides to re-tell the old story that non-identical twins means infidelity. When Prudenza herself goes on to have non-identical twin girls she is faced with a dilemma and how she deals with it will change both families forever.

      I loved the character of Nanino the little man with a large character who is fiercely protective of his 'family'.

      I highly recommend this book which has a moral aspect to it but doesn't overdo it and lets the story develop gently and realistically. The descriptions of the countryside are very evocative and seem realistic to me.
    • 5/5
      Set in the thirteenth century, this story takes us back to a time of castes, rituals, and superstitions. Women had no rights, and love was an idealism that held little merit. Patzer captures the feel of this period perfectly. We're introduced to two families whose bonds tie them together, even while events tear them apart. I was captivated by this story. I could tell Patzer had done a lot of research and had a firm grasp of the time period. At the same time, the story isn't weighed down with endless facts proving her knowledge. She provides only the details we need, planting the reader firmly in the moment with the characters.While the ending ties things up nicely, it also leaves an opening for a sequel. I don't know whether the author has more planned, but I would happily follow these characters through a second book.
    • 4/5
      This saga of two 13th century Italian families is authentic and dramatic from the opening. Adept at weaving a more and more intricate web of bonds, rivalries, superstitions, and inevitable consequences, Ms. Patzer is a wonderful storyteller. She incorporates the historical context and physical particulars with descriptive ease to transport the reader into beautiful Tuscan exteriors and interiors, the dangerous urban world of Sienna, and the naïve seclusion of a cloister. The novel is well balanced between interesting and believable dialogue that reveals much about its characters while moving the story along, and its lyrical depictions of the countryside, weather, clothes, food, festivals, even the utensils and tools used in cooking and farming. Ms. Patzer’s attention to detail as well as her innate understanding of the novel’s pious and paganistic context, are what, for me, give her writing its distinction.Although at times predictable, it never lacks in anticipation, and proved an enjoyable and affecting read.
    • 5/5
      This is the second title I have read from this author, and I have finally been able to determine why her books work so well for me: craft. Patzer has taken countless hours in research to develop a solid grounding in the time and the people who inhabited it so many years ago. This research then does three flips and a twist, and she is able to put pen to page and craft characters that breathe their essence of time, place and emotion into the story. It is a richly abundant characterization that allows the common elements in each human, despite their time or circumstance to speak to the reader at a subconscious level to create an enjoyable reading experience.

      This story is set in Tuscany in the 13th century – a time rife with superstition and fear, communal intrigue, family secrets and rough living. In an agrarian society, lives are far too busy with the tasks required for survival, family, crops, harvest and a certain version of fitting in is paramount. Women were little more than pawns in the grand scheme, marriages were based on strategic alliances, and to be different is to come against the society and the church: one must conform or become an outcast.

      Following the stories of several different characters, Patzer has successfully created a way to show viewpoints and superstitions, the underlying feuds and interplay between the characters as their choices show how they have progressed, or not, throughout the book. There are betrayals and loves, vengeance and secrets: an entire saga is contained within the pages. Not all of the stories are wrapped up neatly, leaving an opening for a follow-up, but the reader can imbue their own sense of ‘who needs more justice meted out’ after turning that final page.

      If you want a book that will transport you back nearly 1000 years in time, that is redolent with the intrigue and characters who are very modern feeling despite their antiquated beliefs, this most certainly is the book for you.

      I received an eBook copy from the author for purpose of honest review for my Indie Authors Rock promotion on I am, Indeed. I was not compensated for this review, and all conclusions are my own responsibility.

    Book preview

    Orphan of the Olive Tree - Mirella Sichirollo Patzer

    2^book_preview_excerpt.html}˲Fr寀hU=ҘBM#jҦIjD2D]4NՒӸv?e\nlZ'?lm7>`9CMGgS+S0&?Rl];neO\%vPJ5Pq*՗rcEҨka㜇vbYHҵ8M֊{RSt-r2{μhרow?%5EoGS57lYao;\_K^ u{6Mho˰ @o 1dNeJ̎Y~g74ks-Gk]ӄ!%X='lc2ccqDݛ{)c+I0s#09㢸_x=vwm\{i uw_.璻k9w((\s%8 Cq;v\,T]$iv)*paom &f:{^bz 2%lţSLvLjn.>qq'x%{HCS`jo7ߙG59sPo;:?\fm8ζ?kռ+@s=JiK ߏD n-4p?,ӥR CmM`mwu2ܰ/-5=YA":>̈́Ǘ/-R|봚/ǜBuɝ=5R,@ aCg!CivaX[k"1pSO75|C/O,>,v Ζ8,!)PwP,޲3:'WqPE|[}gt+/Yhn"s'5թFв!H4!а~^el:C`eO9,m׵mtV-).j{kZme==֝sGk~)=!6A=`mw1Іsiw_ל ,,M $M G31S,Y;6yA^oRĦXCKOޚ4=~?T_ߥRH쁑W40- 6N|:>7 bfaW?|zthSDLv$oW|ɢiJh6S)|tjq+dT,ukdJ~A.nc]/Yo=Ҝ&Z]Y qz{{3,Ճt+s$]pb ?Y#D} -X/@[UzeaH$)k%)^㺚W:%(@MHMyN&Q2}X99f?7751 C :K&36"Nq >|VI2QlyPQ<);,A ݔm4{&O`4Wǹ M^F#6f5c!4#e.RYpC j<J܄^9?[;K6.ސoNc^w|̒`[ED @{]9m'bhA{L>[ =:Pw[yeQ#+rRӵE.)_g[0ccL4DɃC- {  ~X^ψ,\k$ 7%>N&B(n:7 Y YbNud \U\: =ں۴a IòǪj8G8g'^kZ C@;d[T4d{E;st3f,E\)p#&i6mzoN&՝ zdB7/w{j`Cmyx{"(Zf7A2}pstsKyhcQ)36Y׮X NBӏ腆z)tW Fψ<-}9BM,3W5Z/}'Ӯ pׇ27BD֓Q산XƓԗVMG|述k(WLG[۹KLlڱZ!0(g ܍o04w:~l&#㡁4xxʹ k C13VtFdj}-*Y2LLIg*\5UNPChgWfy\MZY8En~Y:&`J> Oٞ x-\醰څOAi=Vmi]?&2n NbfQZ. f:-Xm 7O#Xh0#C ۋё딉~Kv"4M-eq x +%'\6?s0g"*c={KoL*t9 )`+HR5vɅp450!w lH^ czC%1$u[<")[`{b m4ˬ.uz3aq^7f-mdBG=i'XOl~Z߯SFf(0 {whŽ4혳%ap.cQ&jv}tW E'B  +EAر]nl#w,/h;lKlƪ=ЃE~|onXCZ}*"%*o.X+B`cN7\֕f;zI&t}S%+bsYP^ Q=?sjP)>t˴5 h] (,A'_XgbIIH-z[}`J-p8Pf{#/݉*ꆫ=d9*2ST}b9:?,ÈM ]`%o %]~Y܏jXvʼn fУȇȒo:N_g\^EZ r?i?$.PDN)S@CUT#i|=PRR"#dwvy9 pԳ%S<&SXAA$h>DGezMu̦dB/J7}wqAƐ|S{^, .Die #A[&i\O?lc`2ȤUO0NK-)D7mP+c!}ycc8 [8GǾJV8THnFȓD޽ڴS8,^JKN^^ J%\z&LФH#3 }FAdA]֒`sY dPVdvmgA˖;d^skBzaI-Q/ "9nG6wkd\ڽ}%&PgLij8DK@Yq/`j4|OQioaHsYov"y΍Y׵؛FfLWC6K/=T.Am,A7/C߽'>d}UZJ XU*&bo*VcW`Ǐv?:/C xĐ`k<7/ҥKsp!tbٗێ#zJPWHU]1&cDeF#rqnإ sLq??%~xgK??w . fkf'l%p { G>":̢6-]KscZ!/,2$l#]3fXVT"س||C{'>=IN$AxN^+jsWߖ Ghno 9)=!#^`kY)6x* ;6]Bnml FB{ K!5L߭wbCMDS6PF)s"hz T* )kg>4`zhxbڅ"EW% w,_ps0^+ƕx{ΌlNӻH7 Hm8P'Ѥ=i w~ΆRL¸:UK" F" Y9'7)׫?Q7i~30@/jpF,Mܔ$&u=vYbDQt!(c[َIW^,@Qҭ չ_:1~ֿ޵䳰 A,q6w3X|0J:U97 g`jz]㰰hfc!np ܿeK^o+ާUP`z_1gnȌЋWq|"Fk{&hָ}6Ya>v1T% LjZ{lQ03KфzПNJ_xzoKqAF#eCkd,zGU(dΠyQCW FQ'$ǴӻWMx dYKctܪri~fygRq`1 |OdU&?d 9iv ٢vÑ$,.ռȭbY, SE^nR"ĶK𾚻jQt~4_W;pѧ;-#IF٬wH+@,g̸xeE߬k0*i0 pDm?ynhZbgrON. qL) hxIs 6Tw-9+,Bdr:Ⴄ3C7ݷI,W_%2[͆"PyVR[pMu}<3~]^[foXC`AǔQc~ޮԂw2D2x@0&=vn;BS92۟,hJ gB<*;s7ryp!r`cjB1qb/l7 =@FT0ħ+sHT;Pupǘ.Dhr!}ױ8Q޶ﱼi8gfS`H57Ы4#3hR7LkN;mR- 4 Mz[+/T.ղGx8̌kjZ[ :o QK!Zh-f5\-@.`̣\@xhAkwΔ+[rA-,t._Y2cT"Bq̬dD! c˳%p j!37(KDڄUf7nÝTHX4>09(WrT~eWfjy=EK;>aH>̆:Ei^2T}wO"6B933$ VȧМɽ|# 3'q=RdGbyz}wX\co{}V_U"F"}ؚ% !G}}koΩK^h@뜣}q>fZ=*"(0W&=`v1dTSO͹ÓD4hM0A\rF^҇{ܕg6}ۇQ~)fsW<%[ѓa~#bTCk'}aޘ}QIy=T#WF%CJhƉGٛKxIc_ f? rž=3&*-_JNfK^0a,E#>{d5z=D7KD'{s M @]=͈N|ЦIW,8,(lq^.8fgTdJFtm1B|Q|b}m_l\U0ٹ,yWIatKGLdrRi@S̕6CSJ)xKuLALN1IL FpMMh`. `\yh<')ؑ TV^^Rpőj040t ~E1[(08 ut$ԋ u.b6j㐔ۡNo #GX`J|z-~=}lNIq2x-Dz)G$~ͨ T$ ՘TתI/ҢEYQvj;3zWs(*JrB8sxAJ{dtӀ8=K8vS'U%saNJ}^In=r/N`  5/fop"x.qp^ =|Ե*A/bz0|Iu\|+GFgct#O\n-Kok $Iy^<5n6];r։"%䤃 h4>caiJɜW|񍪷Q(wtzA?{qX'2ikB9<2rG:OS'[@XdɢE/ԫSjkS>yAgn,@:zzr3<P7ewed.pl@i<~/JM^ A'L8 PŰc`ք~E׀[$H&]v=od @TBڮB,Q. Atszs8tt@*p)A_٤ieqѰ?pԂ>a_btdq?bx̍vF >7"Y\;a]d&LBIDcυyy)KYC"><~W6[|랈\ZGځ|`m4'{%!:;v+uNջDЄ fwd{lYo ojH_X1Vi=ao`Ҥ2ft u=GJgE>2={_US_xwqn40`hk Uw({5p^FȘK0iº_Sh}tX2;*G!j-G;bDr=b}ɗ3k2&{3co`uIx#FO쁣iiMN4)orؘ&w2_1"\}b]4,D@aSuqK.dOu'lvXy>)%'ȯ/?ɒek!2waZvJt"}&4?,))s;jh[%FT`/YCۊ\\G;X?Jwr``LCE-Mԇoe#3_ǥI{z=|S%8pA2xtaRZwM'Pq.ZLQ x r꿣gqu'J]*N<îF!UG ٌ9`uۻ{C=iGevO2j{R]/ÈNɱ4KmY\,T:J}Ԍrfטgb:Au{ V{:i\fE]AOh]^&tT^$iM z7;;1{ # 荱QI;!JSd0hnݞGk|/GkzgWrŀ|UPg eJ#9i$m,\P‘2Q9+ޠKC437QMB)WژPJO䁗d }ͨh+/>B2Eo8K͉Z, Ռ-lxg h '9=94i~m]7tu 3n]|(g,/#JhnzN xճAŖ{䕳=0k~\IWd-MoZ9⡢6gJfWx%#@l a[_4nWՇpDSb&>pl=2ʩdo6d9`7^P 3{ZF֛0cP-;nEQ,r\5{D9al/zTr[)H7D2d^=43KNժ@kh
    Enjoying the preview?
    Page 1 of 1