Julie and Romeo : A Novel

Romantic and sexual love isn't entirely the prerogative of the young. It can strike at any time, any age, often in unexpected places; and it can cause as big a furore between families as it did between the Capulets and Montagues. Julie Roseman is 60, Jewish, divorced; Romeo Cacciamani is the same age, Catholic, widowed. The families own rival flower shops in Boston (Massachusetts) but the feud between them stretches far beyond simple business competition. No-one can remember how it started or why it is so bitter, but when Julie's daughter Sandy and Romeo's son Tony meet at school and fall in love they're torn ruthlessly apart. Then Julie and Romeo meet at a seminar for failing business-people and another bolt of lightning strikes. Both are horrified. Though the original reason for the hatred between them may have disappeared into the mists of time, the break-up of Sandy and Tony has set it in stone. Star-crossed they might be, but Julie and Romeo cannot give each other up. With balconies in short supply they find other ways of meeting more in tune with the new century; but when their shocked families discover their liaison their reactions are ferocious, physically and commercially. Light-hearted, witty and shrewd, Ray has written a love story to warm everyone's hearts, of any age. The style is assured - the story ripples like a sparkling stream. One wonders why Ray has not been seen in print before. (Kirkus UK)