THE SUPREME MACARONI COMPANY (Adriana Trigiani)

I am a big fan of Adriana Trigiani, but I didn't LOVE this novel.  It was worth reading, but it was a little flat compared to some of her other novels.  It was almost as if Trigiani was relating a story (which, of course, she is) without engaging the reader with all of the little nuances and details that she usually provides.  It seems as if she skimmed over some major events when I would have preferred to immerse myself in the minutiae.  I wonder if she was under deadline to finish a beautiful story but just didn't have time to pay attention to the characters as much as she usually does?  I wanted more from Valentine.  I wanted to know more about her ambition and how her love for Gianluca really stacked up against her drive to create beautiful shoes, because it kind of seemed to me as if he, the world's ideal man (in my my humble opinion), got shortchanged in this whole marriage business.  He moved to New York from Tuscany (who really does that?) for Valentine's career, leaving his family and business behind, he played house-husband quite a bit, and generally held things together while Valentine did her thing, making time for him whenever she needed something.  The Supreme Macaroni Company is full of memorable characters and has a really interesting premise.  I really liked the story, but I wish it hadn't left me wanting more.