{Release Day Review} 365 Days (365 Days #1) by Blanka Lipińska (@AtriaBooks)

The sexy and deeply romantic internationally bestselling novel that inspired the blockbuster movie.

Laura Biel and her boyfriend are on a dream vacation in beautiful Sicily. On the second day of their trip, her twenty-ninth birthday, she is kidnapped. Her kidnapper is none other than the head of a powerful Sicilian crime family, the incredibly handsome, young Don Massimo Torricelli, who is determined to possess her at all costs. Massimo has his reasons. During an earlier attempt on his life, a vision appeared before his eyes: a beautiful woman, identical to Laura. After surviving the attack, he vows that he will find the woman in his vision and make her his own. No matter what.

For 365 days, Massimo will keep Laura captive in his palatial estate and attempt to win her heart. If she doesn’t fall in love with him during this time, he will let her go. But if she tries to escape at any point, he will track her down and kill her entire family.

Soon Laura develops a fascination with her handsome and powerful captor. But as a precarious, risky relationship forms between them, forces outside their control threaten to tear them apart...

​After experiencing the movie on Netflix, I just had to know everything about this story. I wanted a deeper understanding of why the characters made the choices that they did, and I was sure that the book would provide the insight that I craved. But I was just a little surprised by what I found.
 
The spirited Laura Biel of the film was suddenly one-dimensional. Her endless tantrums and materialistic tendencies becoming ever more tiring as the story progressed.  In contrast, the character of Massimo seemed to soften.  His intensity – as well as the chemistry that burned so brightly between them - was somehow lost in the translation.  

“Why do I get the feeling you’re following me?” I asked, crossing my arms.  He raised his right hand and slowly took my glasses off to see my eyes.  It felt like he was taking away my shield.  Suddenly I was out in the open.  “It’s not a feeling,” he said, looking me straight in the eyes.  “It’s not coincidence either.  Happy twenty-ninth birthday, Laura.  May the coming year be the best in your life,” he whispered, and placed a delicate kiss on my cheek.

365 Days could have been vastly different if it had been tailored for a wider audience rather than just adapted from its original Polish version.  Lapińska clearly isn’t a born wordsmith but her work could have been molded into something far more entertaining by the hands of a skilled editor.

​It’s the only time when I can honestly say that I preferred the movie to the book.  And for me, that’s saying something…