Seeds of the Pomegranate - by Suzanne Samuels (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

A gritty story of a woman learning to survive in 20th century Gangland New York

In early 20th-century Sicily, noblewoman Mimi Inglese, a talented painter, dreams of escaping the rigid expectations of her class by gaining admission to the Palermo Art Academy. But when she contracts tuberculosis, her ambitions are shattered. With the Sicilian nobility in decline, she and her family leave for New York City in search of a fresh start.

Instead of opportunity, Mimi is pulled into the dark underbelly of city life and her father's money laundering scheme. When he is sent to prison, desperation forces her to put her artistic talent to a new use-counterfeiting $5 bills to keep her family from starvation and, perhaps, to one day reclaim her dream of painting. But as Gangland violence escalates and tragedy strikes, Mimi must summon the courage to flee before she is trapped forever in a life she never wanted.

Review Quotes

"...A riveting and intelligent novel with a powerful message." -Kirkus Reviews

"In Samuels' impressive debut, an artist reckons with illness and loss while pursuing her career in early 1900s Sicily and New York City....Readers will be satisfied by this nuanced character portrait." --Publishers Weekly

"The diverse company of characters, with all their fears and foibles, are brilliantly rendered. Samuels has created a thoroughly engrossing historical novel from aspects of her own family heritage, weaving complications and danger into the narrative with admirable skill and effective writing. A gripping story, from the first page to the last, and very highly recommended." --Margaret Porter, award-winning, best-selling author of Sequins and Starlight, The Myrtle Wand, and The Limits of Limelight

"...utterly compelling and immersive. Tremendous!" --Déeacute;sirée Zamorano, author of Dispossessed and The Amado Women

"Suzanne Samuels' Seeds of the Pomegranate shows the unpaid labor and lost opportunities for women in a brutal immigrant Italian family, and one woman's determination to create art and a life for herself against all the rules and conventions. In luminous prose, Samuels weaves the myth of Persephone in the Underworld through this tale of art and love surviving repression and familial obligations. A remarkable debut." --Julia Park Tracey, author of Silence and The Bereaved

"Samuels' writing brings these characters to life so vividly that we recognize their dual natures; the good as well as the flaws, even allowing us to conjure a bit of sympathy for the scoundrels....Seeds of the Pomegranate keeps us on the edge of our seats with fast-paced action, clever dialogue, plot twists, and a satisfying ending for Mimi Inglese, at long last." --Lora Chilton, author of 1666: A Novel

"Not since Helen Barolini's Umbertina have we seen a novel by an Italian American woman that so richly explores the immigrant experience from a woman's point of view ... Suzanne Uttaro Samuels, like her protagonist, writes with the heart--bringing Mimi's story vividly, and powerfully, to life." --Dr. Stacey Lee Donohue, Professor of English, Central Oregon Community College

"...A rich debut about immigration, the intersection of art and commerce, and what we are willing to sacrifice for family." --Laura Spence-Ash, author of Beyond That, the Sea

"Samuels' taut story of a young woman's struggle to outwit the relentless darkness of New York's gangster underworld is terrifyingly captivating." --Joan Fernandez, Author of Saving Vincent, A Novel of Jo van Gogh

"Historical fiction as it is meant to be enjoyed: richly detailed, immersive, and compelling." --N.J. Mastro, author, Solitary Walker: A Novel of Mary Wollstonecraft

"...[Samuels'] vivid prose and meticulous research bring alive the precarious life of an unusual woman whose family allegiances entangle her in organized crime." --Carolyn Korsmeyer, author, Riddle of Spirit and Bone

"A beautifully written novel of historical fiction with characters who jump off the page..." --Lisa Montanaro, author of the award-winning Everything We Thought Was True

"...Mimi Inglese gives new meaning to boldness. A good story that champions courage." --Elaine Stock, author of The Last Secret Kept and the Resilient Women of WWII Trilogy