{"product_id":"murder-in-matera-a-true-story-of-passion-family-and-forgiveness-in-southern-italy-by-helene-stapinski","title":"Murder In Matera A True Story of Passion, Family, and Forgiveness in Southern Italy by Helene Stapinski","description":"\u003cp\u003eâ€œA murder mystery, a model of investigative reporting, a celebration of the fierce bonds that hold families together through tragediesâ€¦Murder in Matera is a gem.â€ â€” San Francisco Chronicle \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Tantalizing\" â€” NPR \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eâ€œA thrilling detective storyâ€¦ Stapinski pursues the study of her familyâ€™s criminal genealogy with unexpected emotional results.â€ â€” Library Journal \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA writer goes deep into the heart of Italy to unravel a century-old family mystery in this spellbinding memoir that blends the suspenseful twists of Making a Murderer and the emotional insight of Elena Ferranteâ€™s Neapolitan Novels.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSince childhood, Helene Stapinski heard lurid tales about her great-great-grandmother, Vita. In Southern Italy, she was a loose woman who had murdered someone. Immigrating to America with three children, she lost one along the way. Heleneâ€™s youthful obsession with Vita deepened as she grew up, eventually propelling the journalist to Italy, where, with her own children in tow, she pursued the story, determined to set the record straight.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFinding answers would take Helene ten years and numerous trips to Basilicata, the rural \"instep\" of Italyâ€™s bootâ€”a mountainous land rife with criminals, superstitions, old-world customs, and desperate poverty. Though false leads sent her down blind alleys, Heleneâ€™s dogged search, aided by a few luckyâ€”even miraculousâ€”breaks and a group of colorful local characters, led her to the truth. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eYes, the family tales sheâ€™d heard were true: There had been a murder in Heleneâ€™s family, a killing that roiled 1870s Italy. But the identities of the killer and victim werenâ€™t who she thought they were. In revisiting events that happened more than a century before, Helene came to another stunning realizationâ€”she wasnâ€™t who she thought she was, either.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWeaving Heleneâ€™s own story of discovery with the tragic tale of Vitaâ€™s life, Murder in Matera is a literary whodunit and a moving tale of self-discovery that brings into focus a long ago tragedy in a little-known region remarkable for its stunning sunny beauty and dark buried secrets.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"HarperCollins Publishers Inc","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43009844772927,"sku":null,"price":27.95,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0647\/8626\/8223\/files\/5589023482210.jpg?v=1773661674","url":"https:\/\/bookconnection.com.au\/products\/murder-in-matera-a-true-story-of-passion-family-and-forgiveness-in-southern-italy-by-helene-stapinski","provider":"The Book Connection","version":"1.0","type":"link"}