Readers' rating:
Publishes
May 14, 2024
336 pages
Genre: Historical Fiction
Publication Information
The bestselling author of The Jane Austen Society and Bloomsbury Girls returns with a brilliant novel of love and art, of grief and memory, of confronting the past and facing the future.
In 1955, Vivien Lowry is facing the greatest challenge of her life. Her latest play, the only female-authored play on the London stage that season, has opened in the West End to rapturous applause from the audience. The reviewers, however, are not as impressed as the playgoers and their savage notices not only shut down the play but ruin Lowry's last chance for a dramatic career. With her future in London not looking bright, at the suggestion of her friend, Peggy Guggenheim, Vivien takes a job in as a script doctor on a major film shooting in Rome's Cinecitta Studios. There she finds a vibrant movie making scene filled with rising stars, acclaimed directors, and famous actors in a country that is torn between its past and its potentially bright future, between the liberation of the post-war cinema and the restrictions of the Catholic Church that permeates the very soul of Italy.
As Vivien tries to forge a new future for herself, she also must face the long-buried truth of the recent World War and the mystery of what really happened to her deceased fiancé. Every Time We Say Goodbye is a brilliant exploration of trauma and tragedy, hope and renewal, filled with dazzling characters both real and imaginary, from the incomparable author who charmed the world with her novels The Jane Austen Society and Bloomsbury Girls.
"Jenner provides an insightful view into Italy's postwar reckoning, and she imbues the novel's many celebrity cameos - including actresses Sophia Loren and Gina Lollobrigida―with authentic flair. Jenner's fans will love this." ―Publishers Weekly
"With warmth and compassion...lush descriptions, vivid period detail, and fascinating personalities, Jenner's cinematic narrative is shot through with both pain and hope." ―Shelf Awareness
"A captivating historical read." ―Bookbub
"The past echoes forward from a female assassin in WWII to the Italian cinema of the 1950s in this stunning novel about the impossible choices we make. Wise and wonderful, this is Jenner's best!" ―Meg Waite Clayton, New York Times bestselling author of The Postmistress of Paris
"Compelling and fascinating! Every Time We Say Goodbye has the magic of a time traveler that enables the reader to live the very rich and complex lives of its characters." ―Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai, author of The Mountains Sing
"Every Time We Say Goodbye welcomes back beloved characters from Jenner's previous novels along with a new fascinating cast in Italy for the production of post-war films. Well-researched and written in a perfect blend of harrowing and heartwarming, this is another fabulous Natalie Jenner novel that historical fiction fans will adore!" ―Madeline Martin, NYT bestselling author of The Librarian Spy
This information about Every Time We Say Goodbye was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Natalie Jenner is the author of the instant international bestseller The Jane Austen Society and Bloomsbury Girls. A Goodreads Choice Award runner-up for historical fiction and finalist for best debut novel, The Jane Austen Society was a USA Today and #1 national bestseller, and has been sold for translation in twenty countries. Born in England and raised in Canada, Natalie has been a corporate lawyer, career coach and, most recently, an independent bookstore owner in Oakville, Ontario, where she lives with her family and two rescue dogs.
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