Top critical review
3.0 out of 5 starsTransports you to Italy
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 29 February 2024
This book completely transported me to the Amalfi coast in Italy and I can almost feel the sunshine on my skin and taste that delicious gelato. I adored how much of Italian culture, food and local scenery was woven into this story which was a beautiful read. The focus was very much on Lia and her discovery of her new family, one which she didn’t know existed until recently. Ernesto’s family, for the most part, are welcoming and we see Lia being brought into the fold, getting to know especially her father’s wife and two of their older children. There’s plenty of Italian cooking, family meals, and exploring in this novel and the setting and descriptions seemed absolutely perfect.
I would say the romance seemed to take a bit of a back seat here and though there is something between Lia and Raph, it wasn’t developed in much depth and I sadly wasn’t convinced of the chemistry between them. I liked both of their characters, and I liked Lia’s new family and how boisterous and loud they are - from a small, quiet family myself, the opposite has always appealed and so here I lived vicariously through Lia. The ending felt a little rushed, and whilst forgiving is all well and good, was there ever a genuine apology? There was a misunderstanding and a fallout, and at the finale it was neatly swept under the rug, without the misunderstanding being cleared up and no acknowledgement of how wrong the person was, how hurtful their actions were, or how they understood their behaviour was terrible. And so, I think the ending did one of the characters a disservice and they definitely deserved better.
I received a free copy of this book. All views are my own.