This book has been on my Netgalley shelf for far too long and I can’t believe it has taken me so long to get around to reading it.

Birds can be frustrating at times as she makes some terrible decisions, and sometimes, her behaviour is baffling. But she is warm-hearted and generous and desperately searching for fulfilment in her life.

Her decision to head to Scotland and pretend to be wine expert is so crazy, but based on best-friend Heather’s descriptions of a rundown and remote Highland hotel, Birdy think she just might be able to pull it off.

When she gets there, she is clearly massively in over her head. The hotel has had major renovations, and Michelin starred chefs and the stakes are suddenly far higher.

Things get even more complicated when Birdy falls for gorgeous James. And decides she actually loves her fake jib and fake life.

This is a fun read. I was waiting to see how far Birdy would go before she got caught out, which inevitably will. Her friendship with Heather is really constant for her, and she puts it all onto eh line for her summer job.

There are some genuinely funny moments, some that made me cringe and some heart-warming as Birdy finds her passions and discovers that her summer job is more important to her than she ever imagined.

Thank you to Netgalley for my gifted digital copy. I really enjoyed the book and am pleased to have finally ticked it off the tbr list.

oh i really loved this book, every time you picked it up and started reading made me have a smile on my face. Whilst reading i was really rooting for birdy 'heather' and loved her sense of humour and sarcasm. The moral behind the book was touching a person truly discovering who they really are. Highly recommend.

3.5 stars
Despite finding the heroine unlikeable in many instances, there was just something about this book that kept me reading. Said heroine was not really sympathetic...but then just enough to not be a complete 'why did I waste my time on her?' at many points. I wanted to know what was going to happen, and the setting and the food kept me rather enthralled. I don't know what it was - possibly a good balance that kept me just short of wanting to toss this one across the room? But it worked, and I really enjoyed it throughout, despite Birdy, despite Heather who is also a specimen in her own right. I kinda liked Birdy's bawdry humour which hovered just borderline of vulgar sometimes, yes, but didn't really cross the line... Again, there was just 'something' about this book, and I'll credit that to Lizzy Dent's voice and writing
It's funny and irreverent and rather heart-warming especially the more into the story you get. Stick with it, because the start can be a bit off-putting (it's a win you or lose you type of start, I'll admit) but the rest kinda makes up for it

Birdy can't commit to a job or a relationship and when her friend decides to run away to Italy instead of take up her new job, her only thought is to impersonate her and do it for her. There is just one problem; the job is a sommelier and what she thought was a run down old hotel has been transformed into a posh venue and she is way too out of her depth!
I liked Birdy's character even though she was in the wrong and I was constantly on edge wondering if/when she was going to get caught. The rest of the hotel staff were also fun and likable and I liked the friendships she formed even though they all had no clue who she really was. There is also a bit of romance which was cute and the Scottish landscape was a wonderful setting to really en-capture the heart of this story. Overall I really enjoyed the book and how it is all brought together at the end.

Given how much I love a romcom, I have no idea why I left it so long to read this. I'm really glad I got around to it though.
Dent has written a beautiful Scottish romance that filled me with so much love. I flew through this book. I wanted to strangle Tim, hug James and shake Birdie. Having worked in hospitality, the pressure is seriously intense so I think Dent portrayed the MC having to adapt to this situation quickly very well. I'm not a sommelier but I can imagine it's not something that can be picked up easily so I can see why struggles were met.
Overall, I felt the writing was really good, the plot itself was really good and I loved it all.

[potential spoiler!!!!]

The only reason I gave it 4* was because of the twist at the end; when you think about it, James slept with Birdie when she was pretending to be someone else...When you know the ending, you'll maybe understand why I got the ick.

Can someone please get me a one way ticket to Scotland?

I have well and truly fallen in love with the place while following Birdy's undercover adventure into the hospitality sector - I'm also hungry for a pub in the middle of nowhere with great food and wine.

The Summer Job is a fabulous book which I would recommend any time of the year. The imagery within the pages will really transport you faraway from your surroundings and make you wish for Summer. The author has created such a beautiful scenery to go against the chaos of Birdy's masquerading as a sommelier. I don't know the first thing about wine but loved learning alongside Birdy.

At times MC Birdy can be a little infuriating but in the way an old friend would be. Rather than getting annoyed with her character flaws I willed her to discover herself and her passion. I also loved the way the staff came together to create a family and felt they were developed enough to be recognisable. There are also plenty of laugh out loud moments!

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and look forward to reading more by Lizzy Dent - great debut!

I accepted this book as an e-arc when offered it by the publisher via Netgalley, because I enjoyed Beach Read. This isn't even comparable to Beach Read.

The plotline isn't credible, the main character is so unlikeable, the story didn't ever grip me, and it was a DNF at 30%, there is no way unfortunately I could get past the idea that as a reader I was expected to believe someone with ZERO hospitality experience, could dupe a Michelin star restaurant into thinking she was a sommelier, when in fact she couldn't tell a chardonnay from a merlot. To dupe them when she doesn't even have basic wine knowledge......identity theft, trickery, deceit, lying constantly......just so unlikeable, and unrealistic and ultimately I just got frustrated with all the holes in the storyline.

Thanks to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for the gifted copy. Unfortunately, it just wasn't for me.

Really hoped I would enjoy this but the stress I had reading this waiting for Birdy to be found out just wasn't enjoyable! Also really didn't like her character, the fact that she thought she could impersonate her sommelier friend on a whim, while also thinking that she could still act exactly like herself despite constantly acknowledging how different their lives were, was very frustrating.

I enjoyed this book wasn’t sure if it was for me as it took me a few attempts to get started but i really enjoyed it once I had time to properly read it. A good wee holiday read!

At first glance, The Summer Job is a light, easy romance, but as I read further I realised there are some real issues in amongst the humour and the “will she or won’t she get caught”.

Elizabeth “Birdy” Finch decides to pretend to be her best friend, Heather Jones, a respected sommelier. I mean, how difficult can it be?! Birdy drinks wine! But as she begins to settle in to the hotel’s restaurant, she realises how much she likes everyone, and really wants to do well for them.

I loved this. It made me laugh, gasp out loud, and I wished that I could give Birdy a good talking to! It amazed me that she could keep up the charade and get herself out of some pretty awkward situations.
It’s a great summer read!

A really fun book that I loved reading, the perfect summer read and I one for the beach! I loved the characters and the romance, it was heartwarming

Birdy has made a bit of a balls up and pretends to be someone else in a fancy job at a Scottish hotel. Will she find love when she isn’t who she says she is.
This was a nice gentle read and great for summer. Thank you to netgalley for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

A quick, enjoyable read. Birdy takes the place of her sommelier best friend in a job she’s not at all qualified for, in a newly revamped Highlands hotel with Michelin pretentions. Chaos ensues, along with friendship, self discovery and a bit of romance. I read this on a plane and it was the perfect enjoyable read.

3.5 stars

Very easy summer read of a book.
Birdy accidentally ends up working as a Sommelier in a hotel in Scotland knowing nothing about wine and ends up wanting to help out the hotel and actually enjoying herself - there are some funny passages and lots of bad language ! Fun Easy Read

Birdy is not sure who she is or what she is doing. 30-sonwthing years old, with no career prospects, and a boyfriend who is not quite her boyfriend.

But what if Birdy could pretend to be someone else for a while? Someone with goals, ambitions and a desire to do what they love?

A beautiful and funny story about friendships, about your passions, and finding exactly where you belong.

4 + stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐️

Special thanks to Netgalley for providing me with this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

'The Summer Job' is a funny, heartwarming, unputdownable read which I finished within 24 hours. The characters were instantly loveable and I felt very connected to the main character, Birdy. This rom-com dream was the perfect amount of fun combined with some serious moments and difficult issues which made me love Birdy even more.

I haven't seen enough people talking about 'The Summer Job' and I think it's very underrated and more people need to pick it up. It would make a great holiday read if you're jetting off somewhere this summer! I would definitely recommend you give this a read if you're a fan of Beth O'Leary's work!

I thoroughly enjoyed The Summer Job by Lizzy Dent, it would be a great holiday read, It is fresh and funny and I was completely taken with the main character. I love books where the protagonist is taken out of their comfort zone, Dent is able to show the reader so much through this device. Would highly recommend this one.

A good romantic novel. A bit far-fetched as there is no way someone could pretend to be a wine expert and get away with it, but worth suspending your disbelief and just enjoying the read.

Super fun and relatable, I love a rom-com read and The Summer Job was a great example of the genre. I look forward to reading more of Lizzy's novels!

The Summer Job by Lizzie Dent was a funny, laugh out loud book. I loved it. Loved the great description of Scotland, made me quite homesick. I also loved reading all that goes on behind the scenes in the hotel industry. A great read.