Sept. 28, 2010
BOOK REVIEW: Anne Fortier's 'Juliet' Melds Ancient Feuds, Historical Secrets, Present-Day Romance Into Exciting Debut Novel
Reviewed By David M. Kinchen
Go hence to have more talk of these sad things.
Some shall be pardon'd, and some punished,
For never was a story of more woe
Than this of of Juliet and her Romeo.
-- William Shakespeare, 'Romeo and Juliet'
Looking for a hefty novel that delivers on many levels, appealing to fans of romance, history, literature --- and featuring a handsome Italian cop named Romeo who drives an Alfa-Romeo? Look no further than Anne Fortier's debut novel "Juliet" (Ballantine Books, an imprint of the Random House Publishing Group, 464 pages, $25.00).
As an English major I was aware of Shakespeare's reliance on historical works for his plays. He drew on many sources for his plays and exercised artistic license in reshaping them into his literary efforts. I didn't realize that there had been several versions of the Romeo-Juliet story, all set in Siena rather than the Verona of his play. Siena, the capital of the province of the same name, was the home of several powerful rival families in the 14th Century, including the originals for the Montague-Capulet feud dramatized by Shakespeare.
Fortier introduces us to Julie Jacobs, 25, heartbroken over the death of her beloved great-Aunt Rose in Virginia. Julie's twin (but not identical, that's for sure!) sister Janice is the beneficiary of Rose's entire estate, much to the dismay of the impoverished Juliet, who makes a living organizing summer Shakespeare camps for young people.
All Julie gets in the will is a key — one carried by her mother on the day she herself died — to a safety-deposit box in the medieval Tuscan city of Siena. Hoping that the box contains a treasure, Julie flies to Italy, where she was born, and is quickly immersed in the tragic world of her ancestor Giulietta Tolomei, reportedly the model for Shakespeare's Juliet. In 1340, still mourning the slaughter of her parents, Giulietta was smuggled into Siena, where she met a young man named Romeo. Their ill-fated love turned medieval Siena upside-down and went on to inspire generations of poets and artists, the story reaching its pinnacle in Shakespeare's famous tragedy.
With its literary allusions, I was reminded of Elizabeth Kostova's 2005 novel "The Historian," as well as a 1993 novel, "The Club Dumas" by Spanish novelist Arturo Perez-Reverte, that was filmed in 1999 by director Roman Polanski as "The Ninth Gate", starring Johnny Depp, Lena Olin and Frank Langella. On another level, "Juliet" reminded me of Dan Brown's thrillers, including "The Da Vinci Code." I found Fortier's characters to be much better realized than Brown's, though, and it wouldn't surprise me to see a big screen version of "Juliet," perhaps with Natalie Portman or Anne Hathaway or Evan Rachel Wood as Juliet.
A major character in "Juliet" is the beautiful city of Siena, which has preserved most of its ancient heritage and has had its historic center declared by UNESCO to be a World Heritage Site. Siena is one of Italy's most visited tourist attractions, famous for its cuisine, art, museums, medieval cityscape and its famous horse race, the Palio. Virtually all these Siena elements play a role in Fortier's novel.
Rather than spoiling the story by divulging any more plot elements, I urge fans of the above noted books and similar works to read Fortier's wonderful debut novel "Juliet." Although its main audience will be women, male readers will enjoy the novel, too.
Author's website: www.annefortier.com
Publisher's website: www.ballantinebooks.com
About the Author
Anne Fortier grew up in Denmark and emigrated to the United States in 2002 to work in film. She co-produced the Emmy-winning documentary Fire and Ice: The Winter War of Finland and Russia and holds a Ph.D. in the history of ideas from Aarhus University, Denmark. The story of Juliet was inspired by Anne Fortier's mother, who always considered Verona her true home...until she discovered Siena.