Writers have been busy in recent months, especially the literati yearning for Florence or all those shuttered in medieval palazzos during the darkest days of these pandemic times. This autumn, indulge in one of these many Florence-inspired reads on your flight back to Peretola or ensconced in your armchair. It’s time to welcome back the bookish season with these new Tuscany-centric reads.

Flood footsteps

Angels of Mud (Harbour Books) jumps through time between the interwoven stories of mother and daughter. Readers are immediately transported to Clerkenwell soon after the end of World War II, where they learn Mary’s story about her marriage and the upbringing of her daughter, Cara. Through this narrative, author Vanessa Nicolson, daughter of an Italian mother and British father, paints a vivid picture of women’s lives in one of London’s Italian communities.