Bella: a novel

by Annadora Perillo, Sally Lipton-Derringer (editor), Joseph Pedro (editor)

What happens when someone unleashes the power of their desire while defying the great law of the Universe? Bella is a tale of love and witchcraft set in the tiny, Italian, star-shaped city of Sabbioneta. Caught in a witch’s spell, a girl dreams of escape. But words of magic have been spoken by someone with power, and the series of events set in motion by the prophecy is bound to continue until the pattern of enchantment is complete. The novel weaves the multigenerational story of a family and the etiology of a curse while delving into themes of romance and redemption, death, resurrection, transformation, and the numinous buoyancy of the spirit. Within this timeless narrative of magic and karma, of sleeping beauties and awakening princesses, the characters are compelled to escape or transcend the convent walls and castle towers of their existence, wars, oppression, and even the bonfires of the Inquisition for which they are destined—because they are women, witches, wizards, dreamers.

“Let the fairest have it.” —E. Nesbit, The Sleeping Beauty in the Wood

279 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 24, 2024

About the author

Annadora Perillo is a novelist and poet. She was born in the home of her grandparents, a palazzo in the ancient fortress-city of Bari, Italy. On her first birthday, she sailed for New York, beginning her childhood in the Bronx where, thanks to her father’s travel business, Italy was never too far out of reach. The world lay at her feet. But life as an Italian-American princess in a large family was laced with blessings and sometimes curses. She found escape in books: transcendence in the power of words. At 17, she went to study in the ivory towers of Marymount College and Richmond College in London, receiving a BA in English and the Gold Medal in Creative Writing from Marymount. She has published and won several awards for her poetry and fiction. Bella was a finalist for the Heekin Foundation’s James Fellowship for the Novel-in-Progress. She is retired from work in Rockland County, NY library youth services, and her home is now on the shores of coastal Carolina, where she lives happily ever after: a reader, a writer, and a dreamer. She has two grown sons (a broom and a cat).

Reviews

[Jelena · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won this book in a goodreads giveaway. Sadly, this book wasn’t for me. It is beautifully written but too descriptive. I also had a problem with the translation. Grammar was off.

[Mary Jean · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hold fast to your broomstick for a wild ride! Bella is an exciting, enchanting journey that transports the reader through time and place, following the consequences of a witch’s curse.
Ms. Perillo takes us on a fantastic tour unlike any other. Accompanied by classic and popular references that add to the richness of the adventure and sumptuous descriptions that awaken all our senses, making us wish the adventure would never end. The loves, losses and jealousies of witches show they share the same desire, heartache, and glory of all us mere mortals. A delightful escape!

[Jan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Spend some time with this magical book. It's a wonderful blend of folklore and contemporary living. It reads like an epic poem, wrapping the reader in its beautiful words.

[Laura Camacho · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am not very experienced with the fantasy genre, but this 1st novel hooked me from the opening paragraph of the Prologue. The characters are rich, the writing carefully executed and…of course…there’s beautiful, romantic Italy on every page. Brava!