The Wool Over Their Eyes

by Dione Martin

The Wool Over Their Eyes is a story about a bi-racial woman, Natalia Foster, who has been the family secret that was meant to go to her father’s grave. Her life changes when she learns her biological father, Joe Russo – an Italian man she’s never met – is dying of a terminal illness. His immediate family, including his devoted wife, Rosa, know nothing of her existence. With her gray eyes – exactly like Joe’s – she’s living proof of his infidelity, making a mockery of Rosa’s marriage. If his family discovered the truth – that she is not only illegitimate but also Black – family bonds would be shattered. Will she remain the secret or make herself known? In the midst of the drama and pain is also a love story. Natalia must choose between two loves – a long-lost one and a new one. Her ex-boyfriend, Tyler Davis, who captured her heart and connected with her soul, resurfaces. But she meets a handsome doctor, David Duplessis, who’d cared for her father. Just as the relationship begins to blossom, he commits an act that severs her trust and sends her spiraling further into her dark abyss.

310 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 6, 2021

Reviews

[L.K. Simonds · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ms. Martin has crafted an excellent debut novel that primarily chronicles the growth of two women: Natalia, the love child of a recently deceased, larger-than-life Italian named Joe, whom she has never met but wants desperately to know. And Rosa, his unsuspecting (denying?) widow. The story is well told and well written, but the depth and strength of it is the author's insight into many different sorts of interpersonal relationships. The author deftly and believably depicts longing, regret, jealously, racism, and forgiveness throughout the characters' dialogue, actions, and even subtext. Really well done. Highly recommend!

Here are a few passages I especially liked:

"Trouble and torment had a way of taking thoughts hostage."

"The emptiness she felt was profound. She thought it might be contagious, and she didn't want to expose anyone else to it."

"Rosa had detested her child's naivety as she felt her own shrewdness, buried all these years, come to the surface, grasping and grateful for new life."

"When it came to families, she knew all too well hers didn't fall into the category of apologizers. Their blood brimmed with stubbornness."

[Cassandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a complimentary copy.

A huge dose of drama but an overall good way to pass the time. Lots of more drawn out moments.

[Sacha Fortuné · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sacha's Book Reviews Blog

This was my fourth book I chose from the Reedsy Discovery program, for which I am the single reviewer for this new book. This review also appears on Reedsy.

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The Premise
Born out of wedlock as her mother’s shameful secret, Natalia has always wondered about her father — a married man who led an entirely separate life. As a young adult, when she learns he is dying from a terminal illness, she is compelled to take the opportunity to meet him. Unfortunately, she is too late — but their appearance and physical similarities alert his family of their relation.

Tainted by her own hang-ups of love and her mother’s past, Natalia finds it difficult to trust men. As she struggles with her decision to connect with her father’s family, she also faces a dilemma of two possible love interests: a past love looking to rekindle a flame; and a new love who may have his own past to overcome. As her romantic interests develop in parallel with her interaction with her estranged blood relations, Natalia must discover her own strength as a woman to love without fear.

The Pros
This was a beautiful story of race, romance and its implications and representations in the world around us. I loved how we were able to see both sides of the story — the illegitimate child, now a young adult desperately seeking a connection to her roots; and the late wife, roiling with anger at the past betrayal that only emerges after her husband’s death, and frustrated that she is unable to punish him. Instead, she focuses on who she can punish: Natalia, who had no control over the circumstances that led to her existence.

The author took time to craft each character, even the side characters, and all of the relationships were fraught with emotional angst. The tension was well developed, and there were a few scenes in particular that had me on the edge of my seat. Natalia’s and Pamela’s friendship also breathed some freshness and joviality amidst the heavy subject matter, and made me smile.

The Cons
While I enjoyed and appreciated the overall flow of this story, the genre straddled a divide that interweaves women’s fiction and romance… just like Natalia’s biracial background, it was half and half — which ultimately left a bit to be desired on either side.

The burning passion of a typical romance was more muted here as she vacillated between two possible love options; and the emotional overload of a typical women’s fiction was bubbling under the surface, but came up *just* short of fully exploding for me. With the high drama of the set-up, I somehow expected more suspense, more complicated/flawed female characters, or a gut-wrenching twist at the culmination point… but that’s just not the story here.

Conclusion
I really loved the underlying message of growth, change and acceptance — but it just needed a bit of an extra nudge for me to feel that ultimate triumph for both protagonists at the end. Still, there is a lot to love here. This was a well-rounded story with realistic characters, and it is definitely worth the read.

I also think it is an important story for our time, as racism presently pervades every aspect of our lives. While it’s a good read for anyone, I particularly would recommend it for Christian, female readers (especially women of colour) — despite a wee bit of explicit language, this is an excellent pick for that market. Representation matters, and this novel has it in spades; it would certainly hit that mark of leaving you inspired.


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This review also appears on my blog. Visit to read more of my reviews: Sacha's Book Reviews Blog

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