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How Fires End
Winner of the Honorable Mention in Fiction for the 2020 Connecticut Book Awards
A dark secret born out of World War II lies at the heart of a Sicilian American family in this emotional and sweeping saga of guilt, revenge, and, ultimately, redemption.
After soldiers vacate the Sicilian hillside town of Melilli in the summer of 1943, the locals celebrate, giving thanks to their patron saint, Sebastian. Amid the revelry, all it takes is one fateful moment for the destiny of nine-year-old Salvatore Vassallo to change forever. When his twin brothers are killed playing with an unexploded mortar shell, Salvatore’s faith is destroyed. As the family unravels, and fear ignites among their neighbors that the Vassallo name is cursed, one tragedy begets another.
Desperate to escape this haunting legacy, Salvatore accepts the help of an Italian soldier with fascist ties who ushers him and his sister, Nella, into a new beginning in America. In Middletown, Connecticut, in the immigrant neighborhood known as Little Melilli, these three struggle to build new lives for themselves. But a dangerous choice to keep their secrets hidden erupts in violence decades later. When Salvatore loses his inquisitive American-born son, David, they all learn too late the price sons pay for their fathers’ wars.
Written with elegiac prose, How Fires End delves into the secret wars of men; the sins they cannot bury; and a life lived in fear of who will reveal them, who will survive them, and who will forgive them.
A dark secret born out of World War II lies at the heart of a Sicilian American family in this emotional and sweeping saga of guilt, revenge, and, ultimately, redemption.
After soldiers vacate the Sicilian hillside town of Melilli in the summer of 1943, the locals celebrate, giving thanks to their patron saint, Sebastian. Amid the revelry, all it takes is one fateful moment for the destiny of nine-year-old Salvatore Vassallo to change forever. When his twin brothers are killed playing with an unexploded mortar shell, Salvatore’s faith is destroyed. As the family unravels, and fear ignites among their neighbors that the Vassallo name is cursed, one tragedy begets another.
Desperate to escape this haunting legacy, Salvatore accepts the help of an Italian soldier with fascist ties who ushers him and his sister, Nella, into a new beginning in America. In Middletown, Connecticut, in the immigrant neighborhood known as Little Melilli, these three struggle to build new lives for themselves. But a dangerous choice to keep their secrets hidden erupts in violence decades later. When Salvatore loses his inquisitive American-born son, David, they all learn too late the price sons pay for their fathers’ wars.
Written with elegiac prose, How Fires End delves into the secret wars of men; the sins they cannot bury; and a life lived in fear of who will reveal them, who will survive them, and who will forgive them.
399 pages, Paperback
First published October 15, 2019
238 people are currently reading
2123 people want to read
About the author
Marco Rafalà
10 books55 followersMarco Rafalà is a first-generation Sicilian American novelist, musician, and writer for award-winning tabletop role-playing games. He earned his MFA in Fiction from The New School and is a cocurator of the Guerrilla Lit Reading Series in New York City. Born in Middletown, Connecticut, he now lives in Brooklyn, New York. His fiction and non-fiction have appeared in the Bellevue Literary Review, Literary Hub, and Italian America magazine. His debut novel, How Fires End, was a 2020 Connecticut Book Awards finalist and honorable mention and won the 2021 Italian American Studies Association Book Award.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 93 reviews
October 30, 2019
3.5
Marco Rafalà’s How Fires End is a transporting story. With exquisite language and storytelling, he brings to life an experience deeply rooted in Sicilian culture and World War II. It unfolds in reverse over the course of three generations and conveys grief, loss, revenge, guilt, secrets, and more.
I struggled to get into this book mostly, I think, because based on the blurb, I expected the setting of How Fires End to be World War II-era Sicily primarily. However, the first half focuses on David, Salvatore’s son, in 1986 Connecticut as he unravels his family history, and I was confused about the overall trajectory of the story. However, with the change to Salvatore’s perspective (and then, later to Vincenzo’s), it all began to make sense to me.
So, I think that with the right expectations, readers of historical fiction could easily love How Fires End. Definitely check it out if it piques your interest.
This review is also posted on Hallie Reads.
I received a complimentary copy of this book and the opportunity to provide an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review, and all the opinions I have expressed are my own.
Marco Rafalà’s How Fires End is a transporting story. With exquisite language and storytelling, he brings to life an experience deeply rooted in Sicilian culture and World War II. It unfolds in reverse over the course of three generations and conveys grief, loss, revenge, guilt, secrets, and more.
I struggled to get into this book mostly, I think, because based on the blurb, I expected the setting of How Fires End to be World War II-era Sicily primarily. However, the first half focuses on David, Salvatore’s son, in 1986 Connecticut as he unravels his family history, and I was confused about the overall trajectory of the story. However, with the change to Salvatore’s perspective (and then, later to Vincenzo’s), it all began to make sense to me.
So, I think that with the right expectations, readers of historical fiction could easily love How Fires End. Definitely check it out if it piques your interest.
This review is also posted on Hallie Reads.
I received a complimentary copy of this book and the opportunity to provide an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review, and all the opinions I have expressed are my own.
February 20, 2019
What happens when faith blinds us to our own humanity? How Fires End is part war story and aftermath, part mythology, a lamentation shot-through with melancholy and pathos. Rafalà writes of the fathers and sons and daughters of Mellili, Sicily with such care and tenderness that to read it was like listening to the breathing out and collapse of an accordion—history folding over onto itself, sighing out a mournful story on notes of stone and stars. We yearn with David, grieve with Salvatore, shoulder the yoke of history with Vincenzo, console and heal with Nella, as each tells a story of wars waged, battles lost, and secrets kept.
June 2, 2019
I ended up with an ARC of this book, somewhat at random, not through a giveaway. Meaning I am under no obligation to write a review. I'm just writing a review because I really enjoyed it!
How Fires End is about how a single tragedy can haunt multiple generations of a family, leaving its mark across two continents and many lives. If there's a lesson (and I'm not sure I'd call it a lesson in the "morality tale" kind of sense) it's that keeping the secrets of the past from loved ones—even when done out of protection with the best intentions—allows guilt and revenge to resurface over and over. The family curse only continues because of everyone's attempts to deny their history.
The book uses the Sicilian experience and the Sicilian-American immigrant experience to layer each moment with faith, culture, and food, giving the entire story a deeper texture. The way religious belief influences and colors the story is really wonderful. It's spinning around the specific religious myths and customs of a town handed down through the years, a very personal, familial, and community connection to religion. The community stories and legends are always close to the surface of life, making a history of tragedy (and a presumed curse) harder to escape.
While the story of this family is book-ended by twin tragedies, the book itself doesn’t sink into melodrama or maudlin prose. I tend to be adverse to "tragedy porn," but despite the way this story revolves around personal loss, it's much broader and bigger than that.
I think the best parts of the novel are set during WWII and the post-war years, where the writing manages to merge lyricism and story in a straightforward manner. I struggled a bit with the opening section, partially because the story of the awkward, yearning youth struggling with his coming-of-age is something I've read many times before. Though even in those scenes, there's a tension of secrets-to-be-revealed and historical significance that provide added weight. And then, in the second part, the history of the family comes out and the prose evolves into something both original and expertly-crafted.
I understand why the first section is so necessary. The author starts with the conclusion of the multi-generational tragedy in order to build more depth into the backstory. The whole book is like that, layer upon layer. And then the second two thirds of the book are just amazing, and earn the reader’s prolonged attention.
How Fires End is about how a single tragedy can haunt multiple generations of a family, leaving its mark across two continents and many lives. If there's a lesson (and I'm not sure I'd call it a lesson in the "morality tale" kind of sense) it's that keeping the secrets of the past from loved ones—even when done out of protection with the best intentions—allows guilt and revenge to resurface over and over. The family curse only continues because of everyone's attempts to deny their history.
The book uses the Sicilian experience and the Sicilian-American immigrant experience to layer each moment with faith, culture, and food, giving the entire story a deeper texture. The way religious belief influences and colors the story is really wonderful. It's spinning around the specific religious myths and customs of a town handed down through the years, a very personal, familial, and community connection to religion. The community stories and legends are always close to the surface of life, making a history of tragedy (and a presumed curse) harder to escape.
While the story of this family is book-ended by twin tragedies, the book itself doesn’t sink into melodrama or maudlin prose. I tend to be adverse to "tragedy porn," but despite the way this story revolves around personal loss, it's much broader and bigger than that.
I think the best parts of the novel are set during WWII and the post-war years, where the writing manages to merge lyricism and story in a straightforward manner. I struggled a bit with the opening section, partially because the story of the awkward, yearning youth struggling with his coming-of-age is something I've read many times before. Though even in those scenes, there's a tension of secrets-to-be-revealed and historical significance that provide added weight. And then, in the second part, the history of the family comes out and the prose evolves into something both original and expertly-crafted.
I understand why the first section is so necessary. The author starts with the conclusion of the multi-generational tragedy in order to build more depth into the backstory. The whole book is like that, layer upon layer. And then the second two thirds of the book are just amazing, and earn the reader’s prolonged attention.
October 15, 2019
This savory and captivating novel is a stunning debut. I was engrossed in this story about a rivalry between two families that was sparked during World War II in the small Sicilian town of Melilli. The author uses all of the senses in his descriptions. The story ingeniously begins with the youngest generation of the Italian/American clans in Middletown, CT with the smoldering anger of generations carried upon their shoulders. He then delves into the past, revealing the layers of this story like a fine Italian dish, complex, hearty and delicious, each bite bringing you to the final satisfying conclusion revealing a father's fierce love for his son. In this beautiful story food is a metaphor for love. This tale filled me up.
January 28, 2020
Another terrific debut! The storytelling and writing inside were like reading butter. I felt the first two sections - narrated by David, the son and Salvatore, the father - to be the strongest. There is another section that comes from Salvatore;s friend, Vincenzo's perspective but I felt this part petered out for me. Nella, the sister of Salvatore, ends the book with her start to righting the wrongs of the past in her family for the next generation.
Completely recommend - this is a wonderful family saga that starts post-WWII in Italy and ends in America and looks into how keeping a family's secret can bring pain and suffering into the next generation.
Completely recommend - this is a wonderful family saga that starts post-WWII in Italy and ends in America and looks into how keeping a family's secret can bring pain and suffering into the next generation.
October 15, 2019
This beautifully written novel is about secrets and how they can affect a family through the generations. It's told in three parts - David, the son; Salvatore, the father and Vincenzo, a friend and father figure who helped bring Salvatore and his sister Nella from Sicily to America at the end of WWII. Even though they are a loving family they all struggle with the secrets that they keep from David.
It's very interesting the way that the author told this story -- first we see the outcome of keeping secrets and then we learn the secrets and the reasons for hiding the secrets after the war. The three of them agree that they won't discuss what happened to them in Sicily during the war to the next generation and even though their reasons make sense, the result of that decision is catastrophic and they all learn too late that the price that was paid for their secrets was too high.
This is a story of war and secrets, family betrayals and family curses that can cause irreparable harm when they are carried into the next generation. The writing is beautiful and the descriptions of Sicily are incredible. I highly recommend this beautiful novel about family and secrets.
Thanks to the publisher for a copy of this book to read and review. All opinions are my own.
It's very interesting the way that the author told this story -- first we see the outcome of keeping secrets and then we learn the secrets and the reasons for hiding the secrets after the war. The three of them agree that they won't discuss what happened to them in Sicily during the war to the next generation and even though their reasons make sense, the result of that decision is catastrophic and they all learn too late that the price that was paid for their secrets was too high.
This is a story of war and secrets, family betrayals and family curses that can cause irreparable harm when they are carried into the next generation. The writing is beautiful and the descriptions of Sicily are incredible. I highly recommend this beautiful novel about family and secrets.
Thanks to the publisher for a copy of this book to read and review. All opinions are my own.
January 13, 2020
The characters, history, and generational family drama made this a great read. There was an aspect of one character's motivations that I found a little unbelievable, but it didn't detract from the overall story.
Major perk of this book is learning the Italian for "evil eye".
Major perk of this book is learning the Italian for "evil eye".
October 21, 2019
Marco Rafalà paints a masterpiece with words.
“A dark secret born out of World War II lies at the heart of a Sicilian American family in this emotional and sweeping saga of guilt, revenge, and, ultimately, redemption.”
HOW FIRES END is the debut novel of this stunningly talented author. I had to keep reminding myself over and over that is a debut novel. The writing is superb, and I was quickly drawn into the story of this family.
Written from the perspectives of Salvatore, his sister Nella, his son David, and his friend Vincenzo the story begins in Middletown, Connecticut where the families settled over time. After the shocking ending of the first section, we are then thrown back in time to postwar Melilli, Sicily where nine-year-old Salvatore’s twin brothers are killed by a mortar shell and the lives of two families would be forever changed. Like the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle the reader is able to slowly piece together fragments of the story and eventually unravel the secrets that have affected the families over generations. The book ends in Middletown as the consequence of the long buried secrets is realized.
At times my breath was taken away as I felt the heartaches the Vassallo family endured. I was frustrated with the betrayals and the price that sons had to pay for their fathers’ wars. This is a culture where nothing is stronger than family, yet family can be destroyed by pride and senseless revenge. I kept hoping the families involved would recognize this before being completely destroyed.
This multi-generational story is artfully woven through with the background of the families and descriptions of the Sicilian landscape, the traditional foods and rich culture, and old-world religion. I highly recommend this book and suspect the characters will linger in your memories for some time.
“A dark secret born out of World War II lies at the heart of a Sicilian American family in this emotional and sweeping saga of guilt, revenge, and, ultimately, redemption.”
HOW FIRES END is the debut novel of this stunningly talented author. I had to keep reminding myself over and over that is a debut novel. The writing is superb, and I was quickly drawn into the story of this family.
Written from the perspectives of Salvatore, his sister Nella, his son David, and his friend Vincenzo the story begins in Middletown, Connecticut where the families settled over time. After the shocking ending of the first section, we are then thrown back in time to postwar Melilli, Sicily where nine-year-old Salvatore’s twin brothers are killed by a mortar shell and the lives of two families would be forever changed. Like the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle the reader is able to slowly piece together fragments of the story and eventually unravel the secrets that have affected the families over generations. The book ends in Middletown as the consequence of the long buried secrets is realized.
At times my breath was taken away as I felt the heartaches the Vassallo family endured. I was frustrated with the betrayals and the price that sons had to pay for their fathers’ wars. This is a culture where nothing is stronger than family, yet family can be destroyed by pride and senseless revenge. I kept hoping the families involved would recognize this before being completely destroyed.
This multi-generational story is artfully woven through with the background of the families and descriptions of the Sicilian landscape, the traditional foods and rich culture, and old-world religion. I highly recommend this book and suspect the characters will linger in your memories for some time.
August 31, 2019
This compelling and beautifully-written book is told in three sections, each presenting a slice of history as seen through the eyes of three Sicilian-American men whose stories tragically intersect. The first part is a coming-of-age story set in the 1980s and centering David, a young man trying to grapple with a local bully who seems to hold a personal grudge against David’s family. The second part switches to Sicily, where we meet David’s father, Salvatore, growing up in Sicily amid war and tragedy, dogged by a family curse that follows him to the shores of the New World, and the final section is told through the lens of Salvatore’s complicated savior, Vincenzo.
I loved the way each of the sections contained layers that built on and helped create a deeper understanding of the others. The scenes in Sicily are so rich in atmosphere and detail—it’s clear that Rafalà has a strong and indelible connection to this land and culture, and he paints such a vivid picture of this world, even in the details that are carried back to the US: the way a father peels blistered peppers; the affectionate colloquialisms the family uses like a secret language.
The novel reminded me at times of Jeffrey Eugenides’ Middlesex (one of my favorite books!) in its depiction of family, identity, cultural displacement, dark secrets, the loss of faith, and the way small decisions can have consequences that ripple down through generations. Highly recommended.
I loved the way each of the sections contained layers that built on and helped create a deeper understanding of the others. The scenes in Sicily are so rich in atmosphere and detail—it’s clear that Rafalà has a strong and indelible connection to this land and culture, and he paints such a vivid picture of this world, even in the details that are carried back to the US: the way a father peels blistered peppers; the affectionate colloquialisms the family uses like a secret language.
The novel reminded me at times of Jeffrey Eugenides’ Middlesex (one of my favorite books!) in its depiction of family, identity, cultural displacement, dark secrets, the loss of faith, and the way small decisions can have consequences that ripple down through generations. Highly recommended.
October 18, 2019
As I started this book I was thinking that I was going to be reading about a Sicilian-family living during WWII, what I got was something so much better. I got a story of a young boy trying to find his way in the world with a father that did not grow up in America. I got the story of a father that had lost so much that all he wanted was to keep his son safe. The secrets that the father was keeping are the reason that they left their home country to come to America and the reason that he fears he will lose all that he loves.
How Fires End is an eye-opening look at how WWII not only affected those who fight in the war but those who lived in the towns that the war passed through. It is a look at a Sicilian family that is torn apart by things out of their control and then left to try to continue living. The story of two families who hold a grudge and have a rivalry that travels from their home country to a new country.
I enjoyed meeting these characters, learning about their lives, and seeing how they manage to live after seeing what they saw, losing what they did, and having to start their lives over in a new country.
How Fires End is an eye-opening look at how WWII not only affected those who fight in the war but those who lived in the towns that the war passed through. It is a look at a Sicilian family that is torn apart by things out of their control and then left to try to continue living. The story of two families who hold a grudge and have a rivalry that travels from their home country to a new country.
I enjoyed meeting these characters, learning about their lives, and seeing how they manage to live after seeing what they saw, losing what they did, and having to start their lives over in a new country.
October 12, 2019
Reading this book was an emotional journey I won’t soon forget. In some ways it was a page-turner because I always wanted to know what happened next. In other ways the complexity of the characters and the beauty of the writing made me want to linger over and reread many passages.
I liked each of the voices of the four main characters who narrated a section of the book: Nella, who begins and ends the book; David, a teenager coming of age in Middletown Connecticut during the 1980s; Salvatore, David’s father who wants to pass on what’s important to him; and Vincenzo, who takes the war orphans—Salvatore and his sister Nella—from Melilli to Middletown after the war.
The story is one of revenge and the fragments and shards of a family and community blown apart by World War II and old-world religious traditions, myths, and persecutions. As the story weaves back and forth between the countries and the generations, the author artfully and skillfully arranges the pieces into a remarkable and transformative absolution.
I liked each of the voices of the four main characters who narrated a section of the book: Nella, who begins and ends the book; David, a teenager coming of age in Middletown Connecticut during the 1980s; Salvatore, David’s father who wants to pass on what’s important to him; and Vincenzo, who takes the war orphans—Salvatore and his sister Nella—from Melilli to Middletown after the war.
The story is one of revenge and the fragments and shards of a family and community blown apart by World War II and old-world religious traditions, myths, and persecutions. As the story weaves back and forth between the countries and the generations, the author artfully and skillfully arranges the pieces into a remarkable and transformative absolution.
October 22, 2019
A beautifully sad debut novel that had me underlining sentences because they were just that good. It’s told in three separate sections ranging from present time to WW2 in the town of Mililli, Sicily. Focusing on the power of how choices in our lives can have a disastrous ripple effect for generations to come. The sounds and smells of the past become alive on the pages, especially in the second section that takes place in the past. But it is the characters that stay with you. Truly a great debut from Marco Rafala, and I can’t wait to see what he will do next.
October 29, 2019
Marco Rafalà’s “How Fires End” is a Triumph! It is a powerful ache that you read until you find relief.
Rafalà puts his emotion on the pages; poignant moments shared between the characters and across seas and continents. He literally leaves your heart to cry or pound! All wrapped up in the hope I trust he wants us to believe in.
“How Fires End” is more than a story, it is an absolute truth being shared after generations of secrets.
Do not miss this debut novel, for I am sure this is the first of many evocative, strong, and must read novels by Rafalà.
Rafalà puts his emotion on the pages; poignant moments shared between the characters and across seas and continents. He literally leaves your heart to cry or pound! All wrapped up in the hope I trust he wants us to believe in.
“How Fires End” is more than a story, it is an absolute truth being shared after generations of secrets.
Do not miss this debut novel, for I am sure this is the first of many evocative, strong, and must read novels by Rafalà.
November 2, 2019
Powerful! Well written. Holds your interest right to the end. Rafala’s detail of the towns and events is authentic.
Of the compelling main characters, Nella was the one that stood out. The author wove her story throughout the novel, showing her as a strong, young girl and then growing into a confident, supportive woman of intelligence, kindness and bravery. In the book Nella reveals how secrets impact relationships.
I would definitely recommend this book!!
Of the compelling main characters, Nella was the one that stood out. The author wove her story throughout the novel, showing her as a strong, young girl and then growing into a confident, supportive woman of intelligence, kindness and bravery. In the book Nella reveals how secrets impact relationships.
I would definitely recommend this book!!
November 26, 2019
An epic and deeply empathetic book that uses three narrator/protagonists to tell a fractured narrative family story that originates in Sicily in World War II and unwinds in the Sicilian community of Middletown, Connecticut. Fate, free will, vengeance and curiosity power a story of how rash actions lead to further rash actions until truth puts out a destructive and all-consuming “fire” at long last.
December 31, 2019
This book was so compelling and beautifully written.
January 5, 2020
The characters in this story will remain with me for a very long time. Heartbreaking tale that I could not put down, even when I didn't want to read any more. Wonderful writing that kept me thoughtfully glued to each page.
December 12, 2019
As I read How Fires End, I couldn't help but think of the quote I learned in high school by George Santayana, "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." This book is a beautiful and tragic example of the truth of this statement.
Maybe if David had known and understood the history of his family, through all of the generations, his story might have turned out much differently. Nevertheless, the curse of the Vassallo family appeared unavoidable, at least so long as no one talked about it.
The most remarkable part about this book was its format. When I first began reading, I wasn't entirely sure what I was getting. I thought it was going to be a WWII book set in Sicily, but the opening section was set in America many years after the war. Then the story is slowly revealed in jumps of time and perspective.
Like some other reviewers, at first I was confused about the setting of the book, and this perhaps shaped my reading. Sometimes, this happens and I wonder if the synopsis of the book should be edited. A reader's expectations can alter the way they read a book, and mine certainly did here.
Instead of enjoying a truly unique bit of historical fiction, I found myself looking for the book I thought I wanted. By the time I reached the second section, I couldn't help but feel I had missed the true intention of everything that had come before.
Poignant and gritty, How Fires End is a wonderfully written tale that should be appreciated for what it is, instead of what it isn't. Therefore, I whole heartedly recommend this book to history and fiction lovers alike. You will not be disappointed with what you find in its pages.
Maybe if David had known and understood the history of his family, through all of the generations, his story might have turned out much differently. Nevertheless, the curse of the Vassallo family appeared unavoidable, at least so long as no one talked about it.
The most remarkable part about this book was its format. When I first began reading, I wasn't entirely sure what I was getting. I thought it was going to be a WWII book set in Sicily, but the opening section was set in America many years after the war. Then the story is slowly revealed in jumps of time and perspective.
Like some other reviewers, at first I was confused about the setting of the book, and this perhaps shaped my reading. Sometimes, this happens and I wonder if the synopsis of the book should be edited. A reader's expectations can alter the way they read a book, and mine certainly did here.
Instead of enjoying a truly unique bit of historical fiction, I found myself looking for the book I thought I wanted. By the time I reached the second section, I couldn't help but feel I had missed the true intention of everything that had come before.
Poignant and gritty, How Fires End is a wonderfully written tale that should be appreciated for what it is, instead of what it isn't. Therefore, I whole heartedly recommend this book to history and fiction lovers alike. You will not be disappointed with what you find in its pages.
January 1, 2020
Marco Rafala’s How Fires End is an extraordinary debut novel. Poetic, visceral, and very moving prose. A beautiful tribute to the author’s Sicilian Italian heritage. A sweeping, historical saga of family, fathers and sons, love, redemption, grief, and a coming-of-age narrative, as well. Looking forward to what's ahead from this author.
November 20, 2019
"Some called Sicily an island on a sea of light. I thought of it as a fire extinguished, cooled, and hardened into stone..."
This bold and gorgeous "raised fist of a novel" begins in 1980s Middletown, CT, with the story of a teenage boy named David and his immigrant father, Salvatore. When unexplained secrets from the past come between them, the narrative circles back to WWII-era Sicily, where Salvatore was born and suffered terribly during the allied invasion. Lastly, the story is taken up by Vincenzo, a family friend who had his own role to play in Salvatore's exile from his homeland and uncertain arrival in America.
Rafalà makes beautiful use of this intricate narrative set-up, slowly revealing the mysteries of the past to depict the disconnect between generations, the complicated bonds of fathers and sons, and the trauma that trickles down through decades in the aftermath of tragedy. A haunting and heartbreaking triptych about the long-cooled fires in our hearts that smolder and reignite, HOW FIRES END is an astonishing debut by a brilliant new voice.
This bold and gorgeous "raised fist of a novel" begins in 1980s Middletown, CT, with the story of a teenage boy named David and his immigrant father, Salvatore. When unexplained secrets from the past come between them, the narrative circles back to WWII-era Sicily, where Salvatore was born and suffered terribly during the allied invasion. Lastly, the story is taken up by Vincenzo, a family friend who had his own role to play in Salvatore's exile from his homeland and uncertain arrival in America.
Rafalà makes beautiful use of this intricate narrative set-up, slowly revealing the mysteries of the past to depict the disconnect between generations, the complicated bonds of fathers and sons, and the trauma that trickles down through decades in the aftermath of tragedy. A haunting and heartbreaking triptych about the long-cooled fires in our hearts that smolder and reignite, HOW FIRES END is an astonishing debut by a brilliant new voice.
October 30, 2019
My Highly Caffeinated Thought: A multigenerational look at one family and how their lives were intersected with pain, grief, love, and the hope for redemption.
HOW FIRES END is a beautifully crafted story with equal parts heart and anger. Rafalà takes the main four characters within this story and breathes life into them as we are gifted with their personal histories and perspectives.
I believe that what made this story for me was the writing. There was grit to the way the author told his tale, but it was balanced with compassion for the human condition. Rafalà got it. He wrote characters that were three dimensional and well-rounded. They were flawed, and yet they still were looking for hope and redemption. It is their words that kept me reading.
As an Italian American myself, I love reading stories that aren’t littered with mafia references or stereotypes. HOW FIRES END shows the humanity, decisions, and emotions of those within the pages of this book. While reading, I was struck by how grounded and real the story felt — all in all, this a family saga that will not disappoint.
Reviewer Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher and TLC Book Tours in exchange for an honest review.
Highly Caffeinated Rating of… ☕ ☕ ☕ ☕
✦ ✦ ✦ ✦
Follow the Highly Caffeinated Victoria Colotta:
Website | Facebook | Twitter @vcolotta | Instagram | Goodreads
✦ ✦ ✦ ✦
HOW FIRES END is a beautifully crafted story with equal parts heart and anger. Rafalà takes the main four characters within this story and breathes life into them as we are gifted with their personal histories and perspectives.
I believe that what made this story for me was the writing. There was grit to the way the author told his tale, but it was balanced with compassion for the human condition. Rafalà got it. He wrote characters that were three dimensional and well-rounded. They were flawed, and yet they still were looking for hope and redemption. It is their words that kept me reading.
As an Italian American myself, I love reading stories that aren’t littered with mafia references or stereotypes. HOW FIRES END shows the humanity, decisions, and emotions of those within the pages of this book. While reading, I was struck by how grounded and real the story felt — all in all, this a family saga that will not disappoint.
Reviewer Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher and TLC Book Tours in exchange for an honest review.
Highly Caffeinated Rating of… ☕ ☕ ☕ ☕
✦ ✦ ✦ ✦
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October 30, 2019
How Fire's End is more than just another novel about the Italian immigrant experience. It's an exciting story of love, friendship, and how one's family history shapes who we become. I could not put it down.
When I first started the book, I wasn't sure I would connect to the characters, as I did not know much about the Sicilian American experience. But boy was I wrong. The author, Marco Rafalà, does an incredible job of bringing the reader into the story through his use of language (both English and Italian) and by playing with the readers sense of time (both present and past). I also loved how in-depth the author described life in Italy, making you feel as though you were re-living the experiences with the characters.
My only gripe? It will make you hungry! Like with the rest of the book, Rafalà ensures that every recipe is described to the point that you could be eating the fold yourself. It's amazing!
My suggestion, make sure you make a reservation at a delicious Italian restaurant when you're done. Can’t wait to see what’s next for the author!
When I first started the book, I wasn't sure I would connect to the characters, as I did not know much about the Sicilian American experience. But boy was I wrong. The author, Marco Rafalà, does an incredible job of bringing the reader into the story through his use of language (both English and Italian) and by playing with the readers sense of time (both present and past). I also loved how in-depth the author described life in Italy, making you feel as though you were re-living the experiences with the characters.
My only gripe? It will make you hungry! Like with the rest of the book, Rafalà ensures that every recipe is described to the point that you could be eating the fold yourself. It's amazing!
My suggestion, make sure you make a reservation at a delicious Italian restaurant when you're done. Can’t wait to see what’s next for the author!
October 23, 2019
Oh man. This story is going to haunt me for a long, long time.
This book is simply incredible. Rafala describes the world of these characters with prose so gorgeous I kept re-reading paragraphs again and again. I'm amazed by how well the story seamlessly moves between decades and continents, revealing a family's tragic history piece by piece.
The sights and sounds of these places, and the love and tragedy of this family, feel so jarringly real it takes a long time to get your head back to real life after you close the book. You can still smell the gunpowder and taste the roasted peppers. Your heart still aches from each loss as if they're your own.
Here's a tip for you so you can learn from my mistakes: maybe read this one at home, unless you like ugly-crying on public transportation.
This book is simply incredible. Rafala describes the world of these characters with prose so gorgeous I kept re-reading paragraphs again and again. I'm amazed by how well the story seamlessly moves between decades and continents, revealing a family's tragic history piece by piece.
The sights and sounds of these places, and the love and tragedy of this family, feel so jarringly real it takes a long time to get your head back to real life after you close the book. You can still smell the gunpowder and taste the roasted peppers. Your heart still aches from each loss as if they're your own.
Here's a tip for you so you can learn from my mistakes: maybe read this one at home, unless you like ugly-crying on public transportation.
October 24, 2019
I unequivocally recommend "How Fires End".
This was an immersive read that brings you from WWII Sicily, to 1980's Connecticut, and beyond.
Using the lenses of three main characters (you can argue four), the story weaves through Salvatore's heartbreaking journey to make sense of the seething hatred and profound love that live deep in his marrow.
The souls of each narrator are splayed out with each page. You enter into, and live their deepest secrets, biggest regrets, and unassailable loves - always orbiting around Salvatore's struggle.
"How Fires End" demands a closer look at one's own family story, no matter where in the world that story originates. Be prepared.
This was an immersive read that brings you from WWII Sicily, to 1980's Connecticut, and beyond.
Using the lenses of three main characters (you can argue four), the story weaves through Salvatore's heartbreaking journey to make sense of the seething hatred and profound love that live deep in his marrow.
The souls of each narrator are splayed out with each page. You enter into, and live their deepest secrets, biggest regrets, and unassailable loves - always orbiting around Salvatore's struggle.
"How Fires End" demands a closer look at one's own family story, no matter where in the world that story originates. Be prepared.
October 28, 2019
Moves the Reader in Ways Only an Italian Could (Think Levi & Calvino)
This novel moved me to tears and I could not put it down. I voraciously read from all genres, but by no means am I a connoisseur of any. However, when I recognize true art I feel it and this is just painstakingly beautiful. To bear witness to the story from so many character perspectives was like tasting each note of a finely aged wine. Thank you for sharing your story with us.
This novel moved me to tears and I could not put it down. I voraciously read from all genres, but by no means am I a connoisseur of any. However, when I recognize true art I feel it and this is just painstakingly beautiful. To bear witness to the story from so many character perspectives was like tasting each note of a finely aged wine. Thank you for sharing your story with us.
October 22, 2019
There are some books - the best books - that when I am done reading them they still linger in my head. I want them to go on forever, I feel the need to know more. This is one of those books. It could have been twice as long and I still would want more.
June 18, 2020
In my humble opinion, this book deserves to be among the great family sagas of all time and definitely a winner of several solid awards. Since I said that, I promise you I have never met, conversed with, or was in touch in any way with this author before I read this novel through Amazon’s Prime Reading. My opinions stand solely on the merits of the book. I am going to try write this review without giving much away from its plot because I believe this is a book that has to be read, and I am so very glad I read it.
The author’s storytelling is exquisite to begin with. He doesn’t shy away from the hardness of his characters or their harsh actions, but he also shows their human side while his own empathy for them shines through his words.
The story is told through the viewpoints of the four characters, and therefore, it is in four sections. The first section was David’s, the American-born son of the family. At the end of David’s section, I was shocked at what the author did to him. I had mistakenly taken David to be the only protagonist and viewpoint character. I found out, as I read, that the real protagonist wasn’t David but his entire family.
Then, the characterization is hauntingly somber and yet, caring. Almost all characters in the story are flawed, some because of their own faults but also, because of the culture they reflect, and the author treats that culture with compassion and integrity, unlike the most other stereotypical stories of the same culture that other writers and the movie industry have exploited. What is most important to know is that the hostility and negativity that ran through the veins of the characters, at the end, eased down to some form of forgiveness.
As far as the general theme and the lesser themes go, what attracted my attention the most were the feelings of guilt just about by everyone. Although, the deep connection to roots and land, almost like fate, seems to be the main theme that runs through the story, as well the theme of loss and its effect on people, even if Salvatore and Nella tried to break free from that loss and fate with little success.
Most of the story is told not quite chronologically, but retrospectively, as its origins are rooted in what happened to Italian people and specifically to one Italian soldier Vincenzo during the World War II. Even in the parts of the story, where the events are happening in the storytime's now, a reader feels or is carried back to the past, mainly the worship of a saint and a statue.
The first location or the familiar land is Melilli, in Sicily, with its patron saint, St. Sebastian. Later, some of its residents are re-rooted to USA, in Middletown that they call “Little Melilli,” which shows their attachment to their motherland. This attachment is evident in the fact that, when they move to Middletown, their convictions, views, superstitions, and biases also move with them as well as their hostilities and contentions.
The story’s framework is original and masterly and it is written with a wistful prose, in some sections almost poetical. I think these words from the book, hint at its essence quite well: "Loss sets its own clock. It distorts time and memory, makes days and years short and perpetual all at once."
The author’s storytelling is exquisite to begin with. He doesn’t shy away from the hardness of his characters or their harsh actions, but he also shows their human side while his own empathy for them shines through his words.
The story is told through the viewpoints of the four characters, and therefore, it is in four sections. The first section was David’s, the American-born son of the family. At the end of David’s section, I was shocked at what the author did to him. I had mistakenly taken David to be the only protagonist and viewpoint character. I found out, as I read, that the real protagonist wasn’t David but his entire family.
Then, the characterization is hauntingly somber and yet, caring. Almost all characters in the story are flawed, some because of their own faults but also, because of the culture they reflect, and the author treats that culture with compassion and integrity, unlike the most other stereotypical stories of the same culture that other writers and the movie industry have exploited. What is most important to know is that the hostility and negativity that ran through the veins of the characters, at the end, eased down to some form of forgiveness.
As far as the general theme and the lesser themes go, what attracted my attention the most were the feelings of guilt just about by everyone. Although, the deep connection to roots and land, almost like fate, seems to be the main theme that runs through the story, as well the theme of loss and its effect on people, even if Salvatore and Nella tried to break free from that loss and fate with little success.
Most of the story is told not quite chronologically, but retrospectively, as its origins are rooted in what happened to Italian people and specifically to one Italian soldier Vincenzo during the World War II. Even in the parts of the story, where the events are happening in the storytime's now, a reader feels or is carried back to the past, mainly the worship of a saint and a statue.
The first location or the familiar land is Melilli, in Sicily, with its patron saint, St. Sebastian. Later, some of its residents are re-rooted to USA, in Middletown that they call “Little Melilli,” which shows their attachment to their motherland. This attachment is evident in the fact that, when they move to Middletown, their convictions, views, superstitions, and biases also move with them as well as their hostilities and contentions.
The story’s framework is original and masterly and it is written with a wistful prose, in some sections almost poetical. I think these words from the book, hint at its essence quite well: "Loss sets its own clock. It distorts time and memory, makes days and years short and perpetual all at once."
October 27, 2019
A moving and beautifully written book! The story and characters pulled me in. I became very emotionally engaged quite quickly and remained that way until the end and after.
Rafala's gripping writing reveals what it was really like for families and children during World War 2 and the secrets and scars that can continue through and affect generations.
His powerful writing style created vivid images in my mind -- I could see the world on the page come to life. In this book, there is sadness, pain, courage, love and finally hope that when people stop hiding secrets things can change in a positive way.
Rafala's gripping writing reveals what it was really like for families and children during World War 2 and the secrets and scars that can continue through and affect generations.
His powerful writing style created vivid images in my mind -- I could see the world on the page come to life. In this book, there is sadness, pain, courage, love and finally hope that when people stop hiding secrets things can change in a positive way.
February 21, 2022
Deserves a longer review, but in brief, I loved this book!
This is a haunting, deeply moving story of David, a young, Sicilian American boy who strives to navigate adolescence in the shadow of deep family secrets which extend back to World War II and his family's village of Melilli. This is also the story of David's father, Salvatore, and that of Vincenzo, the soldier with a dark past who brings the orphaned Salvatore and his sister, Nella to America.
Full of history and suspense, equal parts family saga and bildungsroman, the characters are as vividly drawn and textured as the setting. You will taste the biscotti and wine.
Highly recommend!
This is a haunting, deeply moving story of David, a young, Sicilian American boy who strives to navigate adolescence in the shadow of deep family secrets which extend back to World War II and his family's village of Melilli. This is also the story of David's father, Salvatore, and that of Vincenzo, the soldier with a dark past who brings the orphaned Salvatore and his sister, Nella to America.
Full of history and suspense, equal parts family saga and bildungsroman, the characters are as vividly drawn and textured as the setting. You will taste the biscotti and wine.
Highly recommend!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 93 reviews