Review: Six Days in Rome

Title: Six Days in Rome

Author: Francesca Giacco

Publisher: 10th May 2022 by Hachette Australia

Pages: 270 pages

How I Read It: ARC book

Genre:  fiction, contemporary, travel, Italy, romance

My Rating: 4 cups

Synopsis:

Emilia arrives in Rome reeling from heartbreak and reckoning with her past. What was supposed to be a romantic trip has, with the sudden end of a relationship, become a solitary one instead. As she wanders, music, art, food, and the beauty of Rome's wide piazzas and narrow streets color Emilia's dreamy, but weighty experience of the city. She considers the many facets of her life, drifting in and out of memory, following her train of thought wherever it leads.

While climbing a hill near Trastevere, she meets John, an American expat living a seemingly idyllic life. They are soon navigating an intriguing connection, one that brings pain they both hold into the light.

As their intimacy deepens, Emilia starts to see herself anew, both as a woman and as an artist. For the first time in her life, she confronts the ways in which she's been letting her father’s success as a musician overshadow her own. Forced to reckon with both her origins and the choices she's made, Emilia finds herself on a singular journey—and transformed in ways she never expected.

Equal parts visceral and cerebral, Six Days in Rome is an ode to the Eternal City, a celebration of art and creativity, and a meditation on self-discovery.

My Thoughts

If you are looking for something different and a virtual trip to Europe, then this could well prove the ticket. Six Days in Rome is a unique piece of literature with this ancient city playing a major character. Don’t be deceived - this book is far from being a travel journal. It is a sublime reflection on relationships in all its various forms. For sure, there are wonderful descriptive passages on Roman cuisine, locales and the general ambiance. Yet it is equal parts a delve into the lead characters past and her  life in America. 

‘Is this how these six days are going to unfold? Circling strangers, overhearing hints of their lives, imagining what the rest might resemble? Wanting to know them? Not being able to?’

At one level you have Emilia who is dealing with the breakup of her relationship and a trip to Rome that is now solo rather than duo. Emilia is the conduit through which the reader observes and reflects on a plethora of sites, sounds and situations. Emilia takes you on a journey not only through Rome itself (which is wonderful) but also through her life and loves - a reflection on her life and a vast array of experiences from her past. Somewhat of a romance but I rather see some of her encounters as opportunities to challenge and face her past demons. 

‘No one knows me here, and with that, certain things seem possible. Like I’m capable of strength or abandon on this side of the ocean that would be laughable at home. I'm someone else waiting for something new to happen.’

Francesca’s writing is something quite unique. There is no major plot going on here. Rather, this is a person who takes these six days for ambling introspection - her relationships, her family, her job, her future. This is messy and even in the end, nothing is boxed up neatly and placed away. Rather this is prose exploring art, freedoms, love and loss.  I am somewhat torn by this book. On the one hand there is so much to relate to and embrace and yet …. it does jump around and go off on sudden tangents. It may be six days in Rome but there are a lot of days spent elsewhere. 

‘This was a deal I made with myself before coming here: no communicating with anyone from my real life, within reason. The idea was to double down on solitude, in hopes it might teach me something. That maybe, with no outside interference, I could start to see more clearly.’

There is no escaping that this is a beautifully written book. This is a book that makes you pause and ponder, it is character based and one hundred percent reflective. I have many highlights that I will return to and contemplate. There is much on offer here to encourage you to spend Six Days in Rome.

This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. The quoted material may have changed in the final release.