Annie's Secrets of the Quilt Club

Annie's Secrets of the Quilt photo

12 books in this Club

Unravel the riveting mysteries of a secret diary and ancestral quilt.

When you join Annie's Secrets of the Quilt, you'll automatically receive exciting new stories beginning with this book. Frequency of shipments noted by media type. Cancel anytime.

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Meet Sofia Parker, a modern day stay-at home mom who inherits a priceless heirloom quilt. Along with the quilt is a diary revealing the riveting story behind each swatch of fabric -- collected and handed down from generation to generation for more than 500 years. Travel through the diary with Sofia as she immerses herself in each spellbinding mystery, and then sets out to verify the amazing secrets each story reveals.
 
Castle of Whispers takes place in Florence, Italy, in the 16th century. It features the oldest swatch of fabric in the quilt -- reputed to be from the dress worn by the woman who modeled for Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa! Sofia learns that her ancestor, Caterina Vasari, was a simple but skilled seamstress who made the very dress worn for the painting! You won't be able to put down this stunning tale of intrigue, forbidden love, murder and shocking secrets.

Join today to receive of Castle of Whispers and join Sofia on her quest to prove or disprove the secrets the diary reveals about each square in the priceless heirloom quilt -- and how her ancestors played a part in each of these gripping dramas.

The Characters

Sofia Parker is a stay-at-home mom with four children. She loves to paint and she really enjoys baking confectionery masterpieces on the side. One day she hopes to combine these two talents into a business of her own. But she lacks confidence, often feeling overshadowed by her two older sisters and father -- all three hold advanced degrees in the sciences.

But as Sofia loses herself in researching the compelling stories of her ancestors -- other female guardians of the same heirloom quilt -- she begins to feel a connection with her roots ... and is filled with a whole new confidence in her personal identity and creative potential.

Jim Parker, Sofia's husband, is 42, tall, lean and has thick blond hair and blue eyes. He is a math teacher at Cabot Falls High School. He is also a kind man who loves his family and is supportive of Sofia's desire to use her creative talents and open her own business.

Elena is Sofia's late grandmother. Because Sofia's mother died when she was little, Elena was very much the maternal figure in the lives of her grandchildren. Elena surprised everyone by bequeathing the priceless heirloom trunk and quilt to Sofia. But Nonna never did anything without a reason. What old secrets did she hope Sofia would uncover?

Caterina Vasari, 17, and her mother, Vedette, are seamstresses known for their fine smocking, embroidery and beadwork. Caterina is also an aspiring artist. They live together in a house on the village square of Ponte San Vincenti just outside of Florence.

Caterina tries to bear the brunt of the intricate stitching work because her mother has advanced rheumatism. They need both of their incomes to survive, and they especially need the income from the two gowns they have been commissioned to create for Lisabetta, the daughter of the esteemed Donati family.

Caterina is secretly in love with an apprentice winemaker at the Donati's family vineyard and hopes one day to marry him.

Caterina is a direct ancestor of Sofia.

Lisabetta is 16, well-bred, strikingly gorgeous ... and miserable, because her father is forcing her to marry a repulsive nobleman. Her true love is the handsome Gianni Medici ... and Lisabetta wishes she had the courage to defy her Father.

Bertrando is Lisabetta's fiance. He's cruel, foul and more than twice her age. But he is also wealthy. Lisabetta's father is selling her into this marriage solely to shore up the family's dwindling finances.

Handsome and young, Gianni is the secret true love of Lisabetta Donati. He says he will do anything to be with her ... but does that include murder?