Title: Until Death Do You Part: An American Family Meets Their Sicilian Cousins
Author: Wm. Hovey Smith
Publisher: Wm. Hovey Smith
ISBN: 978-1956161267
Pages: 370
Genre: Romantic Comedy / American Literature
Reviewed by: Jack Chambers
Hollywood Book Reviews
One of the strongest yet most complex groups of people you will inevitably find in life is that of the family unit. Whether it is the family you are born into or the family you make for yourself, family has a way of either being the biggest support system in the world, or the most critical eyes imaginable. The family can even extend far beyond immediate family and close relatives, or to long-extended family members that haven’t been seen or heard from in decades. The discovery of these family members can either be quite exciting, or quite difficult. As Anita Baker once said, “You leave home to seek your fortune and, when you get it, you go home and share it with your family.”
In author Wm. Hovey Smith’s Until Death Do You Part: An American Family Meets Their Sicilian Cousins, the author explores the concept of family against the backdrop of the Italian countryside. When a Louisiana family finds themselves on vacation in Italy visiting relatives, they find their world turned upside down when they are informed that the two oldest sons of the family must wed two women while in Italy, or else no one would leave the island alive. Drawn into the history and culture of the country and the family, the wild and dangerous adventure will bring them into the heart of a Mafia conflict, and through conflicted feelings of love and lust, the family must find a way to escape unscathed before it is too late.
The author did such an incredible job of world-building and crafting a setting that felt alive and visceral in its depiction. The unique balance of humor and wit that the characters have in their interactions with one another was amazing to read, while the action and suspense that the main plot follows will have readers on the edges of their seats. The author really has a great way of crafting a story filled with character interactions that feel intimate and well developed, ranging from one character’s struggle amidst the AIDS crisis and the fear it instilled, to the sudden and tragic murder that introduced a centuries old family feud, and an artist unable to make a name for himself; each chapter of this story was fleshed out and detailed in its depiction.
This is the perfect read for those who enjoy family-driven narratives which also involve international mysteries, suspense, humor, and romantic comedies – all in one. The author’s cinematic quality to the imagery his writing conjures will have readers deeply invested in this story and the characters, and the plot of the novel reads like a true Hollywood film that is just waiting to be developed.
Humorous, action-packed, and suspenseful in the best way possible, author Wm. Hovey Smith’s Until Death Do You Part: An American Family Meets Their Sicilian Cousins is a must-read novel. Twisted and haunting in its delivery yet balanced with lighthearted moments and passionate and heated romance, the narrative will draw readers in deeper and deeper down the rabbit hole until the book’s final pages.