Joni Marie Iraci
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Joni Marie Iraci is a creative writer who returned to school in her later years to pursue her love of writing. She’s a retired R.N, who after raising three children, earned a BA in liberal studies with a concentration in literature and creative writing from Sarah Lawrence College and an MFA in creative writing from Columbia University at the age of 65. Her first novel, "Reinventing Jenna Rose, was published by an Indie publisher in 2019 and has been republished as a second edition by Left Coast Lit. It won the Firebird Book Award in 4 categories in 2022. Several short stories are published in online literary journals including, Review Americana, and Quartz Literary. She has two more complete novels. Vatican Daughter is currently in publication by Collective Ink Publishing/Round Fire Books. A third is complete and a fourth is in progress. She taught English Composition as an adjunct professor at Jersey College and assists students applying to college and grad school with their college applications. She resides in New York City and Naples, Florida.
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Vatican Daughter
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Women's Fiction, Thriller
Inspired by the true story of the papal kidnappings of Jewish children in 1859, "Vatican Daughter," is set in Rome and Venice with a brief stop in Magallanes, Chile, and New York City. "Vatican Daughter" propels the reader deep into the heart of Italy. Ensnared by the vivid descriptive language, the reader will be transported to Italy in their mind and will be immersed in the plausible, suspenseful plot. Travel through the cities, taste the food along with the characters, meander along the medieval palazzos of Rome and Venice, sip the wine, explore the countryside, ride the train, step behind the walls of Vatican city, the papal gardens, and imagine experiencing the loss of a child at the hands of men who would go to any means to avoid the exposure of Vatican corruption, papal indiscretion and long buried true life Vatican secrets. It’s the story of a young woman who relentlessly searches for her child coming head to head with the most powerful entity on earth. Vatican Daughter focuses on serious female-centric issues and the controversial Vatican's scandalous and hypocritical behaviors. 
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Reinventing Jenna Rose
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Women's Fiction, Coming of Age
“Reinventing Jenna Rose,”(literary fiction) propels the reader on a fast-paced journey through the life of a young girl who’s determined to realize her self-worth and overcome the trauma of a childhood where she was forced to be the “muse” for her child photographer father’s “art.” Left alone after her parent’s divorce, Jenna uncovers evidence of a grandmother living in New York City. Jenna resourcefully takes herself across the country and lands on the Upper West Side of Manhattan doorstep of her affluent maternal grandmother. A street-smart New York neighbor girl, a quirky therapist, a white German Shepherd and a story-telling grandmother, join forces to help a young woman overcome the hardships of her past and the shattering family secrets that soon come to light. This sad story is infused with humor, New York City street scenes and literary references, while relating a multi-generational family saga and legal thriller. 
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