Family ties can be strong. The Sicilian Woman's Daughter shows how four generations of mafia women both protect and destroy. Maria, the protagonist, is a daughter of Sicilian immigrants to the British society. Where Maria herself seems to prefer settling in the UK and marries a local, her mother and grandma still pull. Illustrated in very Italian English, pull. Returning to The Village on Sicily is accompanied by three funerals and no wedding in sight. Women acting as perpetrators and victims of domestic violence, brutal murders, money laundering, alcohol and drug abuse, and adultery.

No matter how many rosaries you say, how faithful you are, there are always excuses to take revenge if that suits you well, Female sophistication and guns, poison, and network connections do the trick. The plot's convincing and rich in local flavors.

Mary (Maria) lives in England with her English husband, she is Sicilian born but has tried very hard to distance herself from her family ties back in Sicily. She has had a successful career and two children who know nothing of her past and is now retired.

Mary reluctantly agrees to accompany her cousin on a visit to Sicily and she decides to go with her husband and adult children, with their spouses. An eventful trip ensues for the entire family as old relationships are reformed.

An interesting insight into the everyday lives of a multi-generational, extended Sicilian family involved in the Mafia.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing an ARC for my review.

I really wanted to enjoy this book. But couldn't get pass the first chapter.

I really like the cover and the idea behind the story.

This was a book that I enjoyed for the most part. I liked the premise quite a bit. I would most likely recommend it.

Maria was born in Sicily and grew up in The Village surrounded by family. Her parents left Sicily when Maria was a teen and emigrated to England. One of her mother's sisters also left The Village and moved to England as well with her children. Maria, now known as Mary, wanted to leave her past behind and assimilated into the culture of England. She was successful in her career, married and had two children, not telling her family about her past or family in Sicily. Mary is now retired and has some time on her hands. Her cousin Susi asks Mary to go and visit her Zia (aunt) and spend some time with her. Mary learns some more of the family history and is drawn into helping her aunt. Mary's husband has always wanted to go to Sicily so Mary decides to take a trip there with her husband and her children and their spouses. Their trip is eventful and old relationships are renewed. When they return home Mary's husband reveals that he is in trouble. Mary needs to find a way to help him. The book makes you wonder how strong family ties really are.

This was a first reads giveaway from LibraryThing.

I think a part of me was expecting so much more from this, until I remembered that it was just a work of fiction, and nothing more. It wasn't supposed to be true telling of a mafia family, and I that was my downfall. I wanted it to be non-fiction. I've been obsessed with all things mafia for a long time, so I had to read this.

It was a good read, but it left me wanting.

This is a crackling good read and it brings to life the Scilian family that Mary/Maria has tried to forget for over 30 years. Mary is married to Humphrey, a banker with two delightful daughters and a grandson. They live in an upmarket apartment and she has just retired from teaching in a series of prodigious schools. Despite her seemingly Englishness as the tale unfolds we learn of her connections to a family of women who are definitely Mafia and of her dreadful childhood of abuse and neglect. She has carefully created her place in society through her looks and intelligence making sure that her Scilian family stays out of her life, that is until she reconnects with Zia her mother’s sister and through helping her she begins to expose dreadfully deeds that have occurred and are still occurring due to the women in her family. Her life is then torn apart by realising that she is just the same as her Scilian family and she needs them to help her when the life of her immediate family is at risk.. A story that will bring alive the heat and the underbelly of life in a Mafia controlled Scilian village.

This was an interesting read about a girl whose family is involved in the mafia and her want to not be involved in it. She goes to England to escape her family ties in Sicily. I found this a quick read.

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a free copy in exchange for my honest and unbiased review of it.

Maria is Siscillian. Not something she is proud of. She can't wait to leave Sicily and move to England. She accomplishes this at the age of eighteen. She's had to go through an arranged marriage, beatings, and being subjected to harsh conditions by her family. She's divorced and has married the man of her dream. She is far from her mafioso family. Yes, Mafioso!! She is in it up to her neck, no matter how much she tries to forget her roots.
It seems like the abusive men of her family seem to be dropping dead or disappearing. And two meddlesome sisters? Well, they're being meddlesome!
At the end of the day, though, family is family!!
I enjoyed reading this book immensely. Even though it's fiction it gave you an insight into what might happen in this sort of family. Plus, you learn great words in Sicilian!!!

Lo Scuro twists and turns to take the reader an interesting ride… hopefully not out to a lonesome part of countryside. Enjoyed how she gradually removed layers of the characters, revealing something here, something there, tweaking interest - and every now and then, adding a dose of fear. Some of these people are not always what they appear to be, so do not pass over what seems to be even a minor character. The only drawback is really that too much was attempted in this book. Character and sometimes story corners were cut to fit the number of words required for the book. I get the feeling that if she had put this into two separate books, the story would have been more riveting.

I enjoyed receiving the novel for a Library Thing early review. I requested it largely due to my marrying into an Italian family and I wondered what I'd see that might remind me of them. Family is family as always and there were many similarities - but yes, mafia families have a unique twist.

This book didn't grab me completely and I put it down a few times.  I like the cover and sometimes that's the eye candy that draws you to a book. 

This is one of those multi-generational stories and you learn about the women's role in the Mafia families.  One of the main characters is Mary and honestly, I didn't care for her much.  Therefore, it was hard to read about her vengeful side and her actions. There were so many characters listed at the beginning of the book that I thought I may have trouble keeping them straight but that wasn't ever a problem.

One the plus side there is much food mentioned, the kind I like too - rich pasta dishes and bread.  

I received a complimentary digital copy of this book through NetGalley and was not compensated for my review.  I'm sorry I didn't like it more and that's probably why it took me so long to get through it and write a short review.

Who new that living in the Sicilian culture in the 20000 was still so active amongst the villages in Sicily!? This book started a little slow however stick with it and this is an excellent read. Mary married on the second occasion to an English man, Humphrey, lives for 40 years in English culture hiding from her very abusive childhood. She re visits her family in London and becomes embroiled back in the mafia culture with all this involves. There is a real unexpected twist towards the end of this story.. This is full of intrigue and suspense leaving you guessing to the end.

I really enjoyed the book. When I saw the list of characters at the front I thought I Would never be able to remember the names or follow. But once I got into it it was brilliant. I loved the scilian translations.

This book was an ARC from Net Galley. I enjoyed it very much!

The story was pleasing and easy to follow. When I started the book I read all the characters and got very confused and thought I would lose a lot trying to keep everyone together to get to the end of the book, not so. It was written in just such a way that it was easy to follow all the players.

Maria grew up in England and Sicily with a mother who was very mean to her. Her mother would hit and beat her at very change she had. Maria's Aunt Peppina her mother's sister was mean to her also.

Peppina was the reason that Maria was forced into an arranged marriage. She also hit and kicked Maria so badly that Maria lost a kidney. Maria never told anyone about this but kept it bottled up inside her.

The story tells of all the things that the mafia had done in Sicily and brought over to London when another of Maria's aunts moved there. Her name was Zia! She at least helped Maria to get through her life!

The story was very interesting and very easy to follow. I would recommend it to all my family and friends.

From the get-go (catchy title), The Sicilian Women’s Daughter delivers an exciting multigenerational story. I enjoy reading fast-paced novels steeped in cultural drama. This one fulfills my love for mysteries and intrigue.

Linda Lo Scuro weaves the story about the daughter of Sicilian immigrants with layer upon layer of substance. Soak up the history and ride the turbulent waves of discovery as Maria learns about herself and the roles of women in the Sicilian families.

The novel “the Sicilian woman’s daughter” shows what it’s like to wake-up to your heritage and integrate that knowledge into your present life. It’s a must-read for mystery lovers.

An interesting and thought provoking read this one.Mary also known as Maria has two identities - an Italian one and a British one. She now lives in London but returns to the place known as The Village, in Sicily to unpack the mysteries of her past.

She’s living a troubled life, not feeling part of the world she’s now in - She’s known not by her name by many but as “the Sicilian woman’s daughter” and this separation of identities and anonymity is crushing to read about.

Maria tells her story of her Sicily and the image the world has of that place - its mafia connections and how she and everyone from there is tarred with the same brush. As the story takes us on that (very fascinating) train journey across to the island, secrets start to float to the surface, as do the bodies from the depths of the water no doubt.

A fascinating look at the mafia stain on a family of women and what they have to do to survive, bring justice and not be a victim. Thee’s four generations of women’s tories to immerse yourself in and this is a real treat, never too much nor too long. Sicilian words pepper the text as they would the pasta.

An enthralling read on many levels.

Sicilian Mafia Family

Living in London Maria (Mary) has sought to escape her Sicilian roots keeping her family history away from her English husband and her children. However a cup of tea with her Sicilian aunt results in her being draw her back to her roots, and the mafia connections.

Maria tells her story, her memories of her mother, the visits to Sicily and family there. An enthralling glimpse into another world where grandmothers keep a gun close to hand, and it pays to be very respectful to others - who knows what mafia connections they may have. Maria has recently retired, is enjoying life in West London, and uses some of her free time to visit her aunt. In so doing she is drawn into Sicilian plots and intrigues, ranging from making a man love a woman to dealing with a violent husband. Eventually Maria takes her family to visit Sicily, and becomes embroiled in revenge and justice mafia style. Certainly exciting and riveting reading.

The book has a list of characters and Sicilian/Italian words at the front, which I found a little daunting, but in fact I only referred to them on a couple of occasions. Although the book covers 4 generations of Maria's family, it is very clearly written and I was never confused as to who was who. The Sicilian/Italian words used are done so in context, blend in well, and are mostly explained in the main text.

4*s from me, as it was a fast moving book, included plenty of surprises, and gave an insight into different way of life and family ties. The book has left me wondering how much of it is based on the reality of life in some of the regions of this island. Thought provoking!

For some reason I could not get into this book. Even though I really wanted too. It did not capture my attention like many others before. It definitely has a good story line and the characters are notable as well. I might give it another try in a month or two, fingers crossed others like it!

A bit far fetched,but a pleasant summer read liked the development of the characters throughout the book.