Meet the Roncalli and Angelini families, a vibrant cast
of colorful characters who navigate tricky family dynamics
with hilarity and brio, from magical Manhattan to the
picturesque hills of bella Italia. Very Valentine is
the first novel in a trilogy and is sure to be the new
favorite of Trigiani's millions of fans around the world.
In this luscious, contemporary family saga, the
Angelini Shoe Company, makers of exquisite wedding shoes
since 1903, is one of the last family-owned businesses in
Greenwich Village. The company is on the verge of financial
collapse. It falls to thirty-three-year-old Valentine
Roncalli, the talented and determined apprentice to her
grandmother, the master artisan Teodora Angelini, to bring
the family's old-world craftsmanship into the twenty-first
century and save the company from ruin.
While
juggling a budding romance with dashing chef Roman Falconi,
her duty to her family, and a design challenge presented by
a prestigious department store, Valentine returns to Italy
with her grandmother to learn new techniques and seek
one-of-a-kind materials for building a pair of glorious
shoes to beat their rivals. There, in Tuscany, Naples, and
on the Isle of Capri, a family secret is revealed as
Valentine discovers her artistic voice and much more,
turning her life and the family business upside down in ways
she never expected. Very Valentine is a sumptuous
treat, a journey of dreams fulfilled, a celebration of love
and loss filled with Trigiani's trademark heart and humor.