Villa Fiorita didn’t announce itself. It wasn’t postcard pretty or dramatic. It was old. Elegant in the way only places that had stopped trying to impress anyone could be. Tawny stucco with a blush of age, worn shutters hanging at slightly uneven angles, bougainvillea pouring off the roof like spilled wine. Climbing roses threaded along the stone wall, their blooms crowded around the lower windows and archways. A breeze shifted through the leaves and carried the dry green scent of olive and stone warmed by the sun. Something sweeter lingered underneath. Lucinda stopped. Orange blossom. Her fingertips went briefly to her sternum before she realized she’d lifted them. Strange. She turned, searching for the source, but no citrus trees were in sight.
From Renaissance Italy to the quiet corners of modern Tuscany—and beyond—my stories explore the places that shape us, the women who reshape their world, and the journeys that stay with us long after the final page.
Stories that transport, transform, and invite you to see the world—and yourself—a little differently.
The author whose stories make readers want to book a plane ticket.
Williamaye Jones writes stories that transport readers through history, remarkable places, and the journeys that change us.
Her fiction returns often to Italy—from the political intrigue of the Renaissance to the quiet hills of modern Tuscany—while also venturing into other corners of Europe where history, memory, and landscape become as unforgettable as the characters themselves.
Her work includes the Villa Fiorita novella series, an epic historical novel set in Renaissance Italy, and forthcoming fiction inspired by Europe’s rich history, enduring legends, and women who reshape their world. She also hosts Lust Through the Ages, a conversation series revisiting classic and forbidden texts through a modern lens.
Drawing on more than twenty-five years in publishing, Williamaye speaks on storytelling, structure, publishing, and what makes a novel work. Whether writing fiction, discussing literature, or teaching writers, she believes the best stories leave readers wanting to book a plane ticket—and seeing the world a little differently when they return.
English 
Italian