Beatrice’s Fate is the debut novel by Sligo based author, Camilla Galbiati, which published April 26th and is described as ‘a gripping historical romance set in 17th century Italy’. I am delighted to share an extract with you all today so I do hope you enjoy.
[ About Beatrice’s Fate ]
1614, Italy. Nine-year-old Beatrice Locatelli is forced to leave her family, and her beloved mountain hamlet, to move to Bergamo and work as a scullery maid for the Terzi, a noble family. Her future looks bleak until a fortuitous encounter with Eleonora, Lord Terzi’s daughter, changes the course of her life forever.
Ten years later, on a stormy summer afternoon, Beatrice meets Alessandro Lanzi, a young nobleman who saves her life. Despite being attracted to him, at first, she refuses his attentions, conscious of her humble origins and of the social disparity between them; as growing feelings become impossible to resist, will the love that they feel for each other be enough? With circumstances beyond their control, duty and a deadly pestilence raging through Bergamo, can their dream of a life together ever become reality?
‘Beatrice’s fate’ is a powerful story of love, loyalty, friendship, pain and loss. A tale whose plot twists and turns like the tightly clustered streets of Bergamo’s Città Alta. With the foothills of the Alps providing a backdrop as dramatic as her tale, Beatrice will take you there through her incredible journey, and you will not want to leave her side.
[ Extract from ‘Beatrice’s fate’- Chapter 22 ]
It is said time heals everything.
Certainly, what is broken can be repaired, what is destroyed rebuilt, what is wounded cared for, and the sick can be nurtured back to health. However, if a limb is amputated it cannot grow again; nobody, once dead, can be resurrected. Beatrice knew that if her heart had merely been broken, then, with patience and time, it could have been mended. Instead, it had been mercilessly ripped from her chest, crushed to dust, and annihilated the moment she had walked away from Bergamo and from Alessandro.
The truth of the matter was that she had been the forger of her own destiny. Happiness had been within reach if only she had allowed herself to grasp it. Lying in Alessandro’s arms, she had been tempted to follow her heart’s deepest desires, but the voice of her conscience had prevailed. Some days she hated herself for throwing away her chance at love; other days she was certain to have made the right choice by putting her friend’s happiness before her own.
In the weeks following her escape, Beatrice had wept and wept until she had no tears left to shed. She had grieved Maddalena, her friend’s wails and the images of her body engulfed by flames haunting her day and night. She had also suffered for the loss of Alessandro, constantly yearning for his presence, his touch, his kisses. Then, after the desperation, had come the numbness and the surrender. She spent every day of her lonely life in a daze, shrouded by an inescapable fog, unable to feel nothing but deep sadness. Her beautiful hazel eyes lost their glow, her voice lost its joyous lilt, and her lips never bent into a smile.
She pushed herself off the filthy straw bed, where she had spent the night awake and tormented by the memories of her past, and gazed around the small attic room. She sighed as her eyes glided from the dark mould patches on the wall to the leak in the ceiling, water rhythmically dripping onto the termite-eaten floorboards. A sickening smell of stagnant water rose from the canal and seeped through the badly sealed window. The sun was beginning to rise, struggling to pierce through the thick clouds covering the sky on a cold, damp November morning.
Beatrice moved her gaze away from the window and looked at her hands. The skin that had once been soft and delicate was now raw, cracked, and flaky. She lifted them before her eyes and then lowered them again, resting them on her protruding belly. She winced as the child growing inside it suddenly kicked. After she had realised she was pregnant, alone, and far away from the man she loved, Beatrice had considered ending all her suffering by taking her own life. So many times, looking at the dark waters of the laguna, she had been tempted to walk into them and let the current drag her into oblivion. Nevertheless, no matter how desperate she felt, she could not bring herself to do it. She hated Bastiano, despised him and all he had forced her to endure, but the baby she carried in her womb could not be held responsible for the sins of its father. She was condemned to live the rest of her days with a child that would be a constant reminder of Bastiano’s evilness. She pushed the thought away from her mind and prepared herself for a long day, her body already aching after months of hard work.
Beatrice’s Fate – Purchase Link
[ Bio ]
Camilla Galbiati was born in a little town in Northern Italy, about 30 Km from Bergamo. In 2012, aged 22, Camilla moved to Sligo, Ireland, for what should have been a six-month au-pairing experience. The stunning North-West of Ireland has been her home for over eleven years and she considers herself half-Irish. She has had a passion for writing and storytelling since childhood. ‘Beatrice’s fate’, set in her beautiful home country, is her debut novel
Website ~ Camilla Galbiati
