What can you do when you have nowhere left to call home?
Port of No Return considers this question and more in a novel that is full of action,
pain and laughter -- a journey you will want to see through to the very end.
Port of No Return considers this question and more in a novel that is full of action,
pain and laughter -- a journey you will want to see through to the very end.
Contessa and Ettore Saforo awake to a normal day in war-stricken, occupied
Italy. By the end of the day, their house is in ruins and they must seek shelter and protection wherever they can. But the turbulent politics of 1944 refuses to let them be.
As Tito and his Yugoslav Army threaten their German-held town of Fiume, Ettore finds himself running for his life, knowing that neither side is forgiving of those who have assisted the enemy. His wife and children must also flee the meagre life their town can offer, searching for a better life as displaced persons.
Ettore and Contessa’s battle to find each other, and the struggle of their family and friends to rebuild their lives in the aftermath of a devastating war, provide a rich and varied account of Italian migration to Australia after World War II.
What can you do when you have nowhere left to call home? Port of No Return considers this question and more in a novel that is full of action, pain and laughter -- a journey you will want to see through to the very end.
Italy. By the end of the day, their house is in ruins and they must seek shelter and protection wherever they can. But the turbulent politics of 1944 refuses to let them be.
As Tito and his Yugoslav Army threaten their German-held town of Fiume, Ettore finds himself running for his life, knowing that neither side is forgiving of those who have assisted the enemy. His wife and children must also flee the meagre life their town can offer, searching for a better life as displaced persons.
Ettore and Contessa’s battle to find each other, and the struggle of their family and friends to rebuild their lives in the aftermath of a devastating war, provide a rich and varied account of Italian migration to Australia after World War II.
What can you do when you have nowhere left to call home? Port of No Return considers this question and more in a novel that is full of action, pain and laughter -- a journey you will want to see through to the very end.
Book Title: Port of No Return by Michelle Saftich
Category: Adult Fiction, 238 pages
Genre: Historical fiction
Publisher: Odyssey Books
Published: July 2015
Available in: Print
Will send books: International
Tour dates: Oct 12 to 23, 2015
Content Rating: PG-13
****
Lately I have been continuing on a quest to read more from Australian authors - there is a talent in that country that doesn't always reach Canada. Thank you to Italy Books Tours for allowing me to be part of this tour and introducing me to Australian author Michelle Saftich.
Port of No Return begins in January 1944 in Fuime, Italy, a small town close to the Yugoslavia border. Told from various pov's the author wrote a gripping story of survival, filled with courage and fear, struggle and heartache. Even after the war ends life doesn't automatically return to what it once was. Those we meet are forever changed, with some no longer present. Many displaced families rebuilt their lives in other countries and even that transition was no easy task.
The author definitely knows her time period, she wrote with clarity and emotion. It wasn't hard to get absorbed into this story, to feel compassion and the injustice this family suffered. The ending left at a place that had me wanting more, my hope that a sequel is in the works so I can read about the next chapter in their lives.
Thank you to Italy Book Tours for providing me with a copy for review purposes as part of this tour.
Buy the book: Amazon Barnes & Noble Chapters/Indigo
Michelle Saftich is a first-time author who resides in Brisbane, Australia. She
holds a Bachelor of Business/Communications Degree, majoring in
journalism, from the Queensland University of Technology (QUT).
For the past 20 years, she has worked in communications, including print journalism, sub-editing, communications management and media relations. She is married with two children.
Connect with the author: Website Facebook Twitter
Tour Schedule:
Oct 12 – Library of Clean Reads – book spotlight / giveaway
Oct 12 – The Bookish and the Romantic - review
Oct 13 – Working Mommy Journal – review / author interview / giveaway
Oct 13 – Bound 4 Escape – review / giveaway
Oct 14 – Library Educated – review
Oct 14 - History from a Woman's Perspective – review / author interview / giveaway
Oct 15 – The Autistic Gamer – review
Oct 15 – Books and Quilts - review
Oct 16 – Diary of an Eccentric – review
Oct 16 - #redhead.with.book – review / giveaway
Oct 19 – Just One More Chapter – review / giveaway
Oct 19 – Italophilia - review
Oct 20 – Jayne's Books – review / giveaway
Oct 20 – NorthernMSW - review
Oct 21 – A Simple Life, really?! - review
Oct 22 – Il Mio Tesoro – review / guest post
Oct 22 – Essentially Italian – review / giveaway
Oct 23 – Roughseasinthemed - review
For the past 20 years, she has worked in communications, including print journalism, sub-editing, communications management and media relations. She is married with two children.
Connect with the author: Website Facebook Twitter
Tour Schedule:
Oct 12 – Library of Clean Reads – book spotlight / giveaway
Oct 12 – The Bookish and the Romantic - review
Oct 13 – Working Mommy Journal – review / author interview / giveaway
Oct 13 – Bound 4 Escape – review / giveaway
Oct 14 – Library Educated – review
Oct 14 - History from a Woman's Perspective – review / author interview / giveaway
Oct 15 – The Autistic Gamer – review
Oct 15 – Books and Quilts - review
Oct 16 – Diary of an Eccentric – review
Oct 16 - #redhead.with.book – review / giveaway
Oct 19 – Just One More Chapter – review / giveaway
Oct 19 – Italophilia - review
Oct 20 – Jayne's Books – review / giveaway
Oct 20 – NorthernMSW - review
Oct 21 – A Simple Life, really?! - review
Oct 22 – Il Mio Tesoro – review / guest post
Oct 22 – Essentially Italian – review / giveaway
Oct 23 – Roughseasinthemed - review
Off hand, the most interesting was venice.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite place in Italy is Florence.
ReplyDeleteThank you Margaret for your beautifully composed review of my novel, Port of No Return. I am glad to hear that you became involved in the story. I can tell you that I am working on a sequel!
ReplyDeleteBest regards
Michelle Saftich
My favorite place in Italy? I loved Florence and Rome, but Siena is the place I'd like to visit again.
ReplyDeleteLove the cover! I've never been to Italy but my ancestors came from Tuscany, so that is an area I'd like to visit. Interestingly, other ancestors were from the area that was Yugoslavia, so this book sounds like something I should read!
ReplyDeletei think I would like Rome
ReplyDeleteFlorence
ReplyDeleteI have never been but I want to visit Florence.
ReplyDeleteSadly I haven't had the chance to make it to Italy yet. However, it is totally on my bucket list! Rome and Venice are at the top of my list for my adventure around Italy!
ReplyDeleteMy favorite place is rome...
ReplyDeleteI love Rome
ReplyDeleteI like Florence
ReplyDeleterounder9834 @yahoo.com
I've never been there but heard many good things about Florence
ReplyDelete