What do readers think of Juliet's Nurse by Lois Leveen? Write your own review.

Books about the little people behind the story are always interesting. A recent book in this vein is Longbourn, the story of the help in Pride and Prejudice. And certainly Downton Abbey taps into this, as well. The character of Angelica, the Nurse, was well developed and her trials and tribulations were plausible and fit with the play's doomed romance theme. I particularly enjoyed the depiction of Verona society and the backstory of the play's characters.

The book failed for me in two parts. The first is "the secret." Given the attention in the book to the importance of everyone knowing their place, I had a hard time believing that Angelica thought revealing the secret would be welcomed by its recipient. It was unclear to me whether this was meant to be a sign that the nurse was a bit unhinged - which would make sense for her actions in the Romeo and Juliet part of the book - or whether the author just needed to flesh that part out.

The second failing was really not the fault of the author but rather the actions of Shakespeare's title characters, inexplicable when seen through the eyes of others. But Angelica's insight into Juliet's final act, "Never suffered and so could not bear the slightest sorrow, the hint of unfilled longing, the least glimmering of loss. And so was lost herself," rang true.

Lois Leveen is a grand, sweeping storyteller, whose passion for the 1300s, particularly the late 1300s in Juliet's Nurse, makes her seem like a time traveler who stayed in Verona for the three years in Part One, and then traveled to the fateful year that makes up Part Two, all from the perspective of a grieving devoted nurse to one Juliet Cappelletti, the very same that some English scribbler named Shakespeare had a crack at.

Leveen has made the late 1300s deeply engrossing, not only through these characters we already know a fair bit about, but also the details of plague-ridden lives in Verona, and the seemingly untouchable wealthy families with ancient, bloody grudges aplenty. One thing's for sure, besides the absolute necessity for time to be set aside for this novel: Pregnancy in the 1300s, as portrayed here, will engender new fascination with nature's process, certainly in wide-eyed, surprised discussions, and most likely a lot of laughter to spare at how much we've progressed.

Angelica and Pietro lost all their children to the plague. Pregnant again only to bear a still born daughter, Pietro sends Angelica off to the household of the rich and powerful Cappeletti family to become the wet nurse for their newborn Juliet.

This is a wonderful book about love and devotion between Juliet and her nurse Angelica who is more of a mother to her than Lady Cappeletti. It also has jousting, rivalry, feasts and suspense. If you liked Pillars of the Earth and World Without End, you will surely enjoy Juliet's Nurse. It is a wonder read.

I enjoyed this book, and the expansion of the character of Juliet's nurse and her back story. The author was exceptionally skilled at breathing new life and motivation into these well-known characters, and I enjoyed finding the "Easter eggs" (familiar quotes from Shakespeare's play) sprinkled throughout the narrative. Lovers of "Romeo and Juliet" and fans of historical fiction will enjoy this book.

I love to read about this era. I really wanted to like this book...and I did like it....but that is all. I didn't like it a lot. I thought the story line kick started well but then began to drag and it limped along until the end. I think there is only so much you can say about someone's wet nurse before the story becomes stale. The characters were slightly interesting but I never developed much of a bond with any of them. It won't keep me from reading a future book by this author.

Lois Laveen's novel "Juliet's Nurse" had an intriguing premise. What came before the fateful day Juliet met her Romeo? Unfortunately I had difficult time staying with the story. It seemed to go on and on without anything happening. I did not like Angelica, the nurse, who's story this was really about. That was a disappointment for me. She was a bit too coarse, in my opinion and she had very little depth. I really wished there would have been much more development of all of the characters and plot line, because I thought the idea for this novel was worth it.

I did enjoy this book more for the detailed description of life in Verona in the 1300s than for the "Romeo & Juliet" part of the story. I love Angelica's down to earth narration and bold observations of the church and nobility. As for the twist, I will let readers discover it by themselves.

This was not a mind-blowingly amazing read, but neither was it bad. I found it interesting, enjoyable, and fairly well-written. The main character was mostly sympathetic, other than possessing what seemed to be a huge blind spot concerning how her charge felt about her. Perhaps that was intended, but it made for some uncomfortable reading moments. If you like Romeo and Juliet, or are interested in historical fiction or 1400's Veronese culture, this is certainly worth your time.