Francesca Lombardo’s ‘The Secrets of the Mahogany Chest’ to be Published in English by Foreshore Books.

Foreshore Books, the small press department of Foreshore Publishing, will publish The Secrets of the Mahogany Chest by Francesca Lombardo in spring 2026. The English-language translation rights have been secured for the US, UK, and international markets.

The Secrets of the Mahogany Chest is a literary novel blending memoir-style storytelling with autofictional elements. It tells the moving story of a mother and daughter’s relationship across postwar Italy, 20th-century Rome, and present-day London. At its heart, the novel is a quiet, emotionally resonant meditation on motherhood — not as instinct, but as inheritance — and on female agency within the constraints of family, illness, grief, and societal expectation.

With its emotionally layered voice and dual female perspective, The Secrets of the Mahogany Chest will appeal to readers of Elena Ferrante, particularly The Lost Daughter and the Neapolitan Quartet.

FRANCESCA LOMBARDO is a journalist and author with dual Italian and British nationality, based in London. Working across languages, cultures, and storytelling forms, her articles have appeared in major publications throughout the UK, Ireland, and Italy, including The Financial Times, The Sunday Times, The Telegraph, The Irish Times, Vogue Italia, Il Sole 24 Ore, D Repubblica, Italy News, and many others. She writes on travel, property, cinema, books, the arts, and cultural trends.

After earning a master’s degree in journalism from the London College of Communication in 2005, Francesca spent ten years at Sky Cinema, interviewing international film talent and gaining an insider’s view of the film industry. She currently works in arts communications.