The story of Jenna begins on a train ride from Florence to Rome. She's 58, divorced, with a son in college. She has no permanent address. She's been traveling much of her life andâ€”like many

Not a True Story

The story of Jenna begins on a train ride from Florence to Rome. She's 58, divorced, with a son in college. She has no permanent address. She's been traveling much of her life andâ€”like many middle-aged womenâ€”has come to Italy to find la dolce vita and renewal. And perhaps, a lover. Why not? For starters, there's a masseur at a Tuscan villa-hotel, who...well, you'll see. (This story has some racy bitsâ€”just so you know.) As Jenna writes about her travels and shares her stories, she comes to realize how stuck and alone many women feel. The question they ask of her: How do you find the path to the life you want? In this novel (or not), author Rebecca Bricker expands on her 2011 memoir Tales from Tavanti: An American Woman's Mid-Life Adventure in Italy, with humor and candor. The underlying truth of Not a True Story is known to every woman who has dealt with heartache in the face of divorce, an empty nest, illness, the failing health of parents, the death of loved onesâ€”and the longing to find love again. As Not a True Story unfolds, Jenna grapples with these issues, knowing that time is marching on. In her solo journey, she experiences a cathartic reckoning that transcends loss, missed opportunity and unmet expectationsâ€”and discovers a love that bloomed in her old backyard.

Not a True Story