Valentine: A Love Story Book

I chose this book during February's "date with a book" event at the library. It was wrapped in red wrapping paper and I had no idea what it was. No title. No date of publication. Nothing. I took it home, because it seemed like an interesting idea to borrow something I knew nothing about. As I begin reading I noticed it was well written. It is in fact a fictional story of how St. Valentine came to be. It takes place in old Rome and other cities nearby. It is told by the father of Julia, a beautiful, blind young woman who was placed in the hands of Valentine when she was born. Their lives take on their own paths until they again cross many years later. The descriptions of the cities and the people are lively and give the reader a good sense of the time. The descriptions of the "games" that took place in the giant amphitheatre were disheartening but an accurate description of what "entertained" the people of that time.

I really enjoyed the way that the story was told by Julius, the father of Julia and later the jailer of Valentine. It also incorporated letters that were sent between Valentine and his best friend, Antonius.

I would have never picked this book but I really enjoyed it.