The Italian Secret is a lighthearted, rollicking novel set in three time periods–1907, 1943, 1948–and travels from the Indian Ocean to Italy and Australia.

The author’s protagonist, Billie Walker, is a wartime investigative journalist who by 1948 has taken over her late father’s private detective agency in Sydney. She was a popular character in Tara Moss’ earlier novels (such as The Ghosts of Paris) and returns in high form in The Italian Secret. But this book is a little different. 

It begins in Leichharddt, a Sydney suburb, in 1907, with a young woman being woken up by loud banging on her door. The woman is the older sister of the boy angrily banging on the door. He has heard that she has become pregnant by her lover, a much older man, and is being sent away in disgrace to the old country (Italy) because being an unmarried pregnant woman in those days was not acceptable. He hates his sister because he does not understand that she loves the man who is the father of her child and they had planned to marry but are now being forced apart. All he knows is that his sister is leaving and he is very sad and blames her for what she did. The next morning the woman is taken away “Goodbye, my brother. I love you. I’ll miss you. I’m sorry,” she says through his closed bedroom door. He refuses to forgive her or to say goodbye.

Author Tara Moss

Their names are not initially mentioned for a reason, but their story plays out throughout Moss’ novel in 1943 and in 1948, when Billie attempts to solve the mystery of The Italian Secret, which has suddenly become part of her own life story.

Billie’s character is polished and fun and beautifully depicted in the 1940s era, smoking her Lucky Strike cigarette exhaled with cool irritation in her office. She had been working on a case for a client, Darlene Elliott, to gain proof of Darlene’s husband’s infidelity. Victoria-based Mosswrites, “She did so dislike it when the husbands showed up like this. She leaned on the edge of the reception desk, wearing her nip-waisted navy skirt and tilt hat with the same ease a soldier might wear a uniform that had seen him through many battles.” Billie is more than ready to deal with the man who barges into to her office “with as much menace as he could summon.”

As a reader, my first impression of these early chapters switched between appreciating good writing and wondering if this was all simply a ludicrous farce? I was conflicted, but once the story took off it became clear that these early chapters are necessary to build tension where every new character entered the plot for a reason.

Billie’s assistants at the detective agency, Samuel and Shyla, are loyal to their boss. There is an undercurrent of tension between Billie and Samuel as he has a lingering attraction for her. Nonetheless, the three of them work well together to solve cases at the agency that come their way, most of which are attempting to find evidence to prove infidelity so their clients can obtain a divorce.  

Tara Moss (photo: Berndt Sellheim)

We are soon introduced to Chief Inspector Hank Cooper, Constable Primrose, and others, all finding their rightful place in both Billie’s private and working life. In addition, we learn again about Billie’s ex-husband, Jack Rake, who she had mourned during the war thinking he was dead, only to discover he was alive all the time and had betrayed her. She was forced to survive that betrayal. 

Two of the most intriguing characters in the book are Billie’s mother, Ella, and her assistant/caregiver, Alma McGuire. Both women are colourful and rather typical for their era whilst also bringing spice to the author’s story.

While Billie is cleaning out her father’s filing cabinets, a job she has long delayed, she discovers some letters her father had saved all signed by a woman called Francesca. They are obviously love letters and they set Billie on a long journey of discovery to Naples, Italy with her mother and Alma, aboard a cruise ship where murder and intrigue continue to surround them.

More interesting characters join the cast on the cruise ship such as the handsome Italian Captain Romano, and Lord and Lady Fettiplace, adding further spice.

Once they arrive in Naples, Billie takes it upon herself to determinedly find the truth about the mysterious Francesca and her daughter Luca, facing danger as she ventures into the underbelly of the war-torn city.  

The story is a mix of humour, conspiracy, sadness, and a family drama that spans decades. It is beautifully orchestrated by a talented writer who describes the horrors of war mingled with family secrets as she takes her characters on a fanciful journey of discovery and uncovers ‘the Italian secret’ her beloved father left behind before he died.