Juliet by Anne Fortier.

So another new review. I'm taking time out of my homework scheduale to write this, so hopefully it'll be decent.

Juliet is about Julie Jacobs, who, after her Aunt Rose dies, finds out she is not actually Julie Jacobs. She is actually Giulietta Tolomei and she is descended from the Juliet who inspired the most well known play of all time, Romeo and Juliet. She also is given a letter, telling her that her mother left her something in Siena (which is in Italy) and that she advises to go find it. This is where the story begins. Julie (or Giulietta, I suppose I should say) goes to Italy and meets Alessandro Santini and Eva Maria Salembeni. They speak of how Julie/Giullietta is a descendant of the real Juliet Capulet and how the curse - 'a plague on both your houses' - is still at work.

This novel is written in first person AND third person. It sounds a little tricky, but its actually not that hard to get your head around. Despite the fact that ever since ever, I've been told in English class that you shouldn't change the person, or tense it is set in. She does both.

Now, to understand the background story, Fortier writes in both present and past tense. The past being the original story of Romeo & Juliet, and the present is the storyline of Julie Jacobs/Giullietta Tolomei. It is an interesting read, and I was enthralled with it all the way through. It was exceptionally written, and Anne Fortier came across a extremely good plot line. She delved into the historic side of it really well, showing off impressive research.

I found the characters somewhat predictable at some points, but I still really enjoyed learning about them and watching them develop. My only downside to this book was that occasionally, I would get annoyed that the next chapter was a flashback. It's like I was really getting into the present situation, and then we had to do a chapter of going back to 1340 (when Julie/Giullietta's ancestor had the whole Romeo & Juliet scenario). I then got peeved when, once I was so entirely getting into that form of writing and really wondering what was going to happen next, I was left with the present century. It was a similar patten for me throughout, and it got on my nerves occasionally. I suppose you could think of it as a sort of cliffhanger, in some aspects. It doesn't mean that I liked it though.

Overall, I did enjoy the story. It was unique and different to what I have seen when it comes to Romeo & Juliet inspired novels. You not only enjoy the story, but you actually learn quite a bit of historical facts, and at the beginning of each chapter, there is a Romeo and Juliet quote.

If you're into love stories that have a bit of a twist, I suggest this one for you.
Until next time lovelies,
&dftba. xox