First published 2019
Chi Chi Donatelli meets Saverio Armandonada on the Jersey shore just before World War II. Both dream of singing with the great orchestras of Glenn Miller, Tommy Dorsey, and Benny Goodman. They fall in love, marry quickly, and reinvent themselves as Chiara and Tony for the stage. Their talent opens doors to nightclubs, radio, and television during the Big Band era of the 1940s. Success follows them from dance halls to Las Vegas to Hollywood. Then family responsibilities force an impossible choice. One must abandon their career to raise children while the other pursues stardom. The decision fractures their marriage and reshapes their lives. Set against the backdrop of a traditional Italian family navigating rapid social change, their story unfolds through the popular music that defined an era.
Genres: romance, american-fiction, historical-fiction, 20th-century, adult-fiction, family-drama
Vibes: emotional-atmospheric, intimate, lyrical
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family
Setting: Jersey Shore, Las Vegas, Hollywood
Period: 1940s
Audio CD · Harper