Lizzy Dent’s debut adult novel, “The Summer Job” is the perfect read for anyone who has ever felt lost within their personal or professional life. Blending the foodie charm of Stephanie Danler’s “Sweetbitter” and Emily Henry’s “Beach Read” laughs, Dent has created a hilarious tale of a summer job gone awry.

When Birdy arrives at her new summer job in Scotland she is woefully unprepared for her task, where she is pretending to be her best friend, a top sommelier at a hotel that is working to rebrand itself as a luxury destination. The problem for Birdy is everyone thinks she’s her best friend, Heather, who is actually on vacation with a scuzzy boyfriend in Italy. (Oh, and Birdy doesn’t know the first thing about wine.)

And, of course, Heather doesn’t know that Birdy has taken the job in her place. Juggling a fake identity, an absent chef, her newfound wine studies and a potential romance forces Birdy to take stock of her life and consider what she wants for her future.

After a lifetime of halfhearted pursuits, Birdy is finally finding herself as she studies the wine and bonds with her new coworkers, but how long can she keep up the ruse?

Readers are sure to enjoy the ups and downs of Birdy’s faux sommelier facade as her humor quickly endears her to the other characters despite her many wine snafus.

Whether you’re sipping a red, white or perhaps a sangria, “The Summer Job” makes for an entrancing beachy read that you won’t be able to put down until the final page.

Unfortunately, I DNF at 20%. I was so annoyed by the main character and the whole situation she cooked up I couldn't take it any longer and put it down. This is a it's me, not you kind of situation here. I'm definitely in the minority, so pick it up and see for yourself.

3.5 stars!! This book is aptly billed as a cross between Beach Read and Sweetbitter with a side British/Scottish charm and whimsy. It was such a fun escape, with memorable characters and one I could easily see being cast into a film. Perfect summer read! #TheSummerJob #NetGalley

I enjoyed this book, but it wasn't my favorite. It was light and just what I needed at the time, but will not be recommending to others. Character development was solid, though!

In this debut novel by Lizzy Dent, our leading lady is Birdy, who agrees to give notice for the title occupation on the behalf of her best friend Heather.

However, once she arrives at the Scottish inn where Heather was to be a sommelier, Birdy can't see why she shouldn't take this golden opportunity and simply be Heather for the summer. Granted, she has no experience with wine pairing but the place looks to be a simply set-up vacation spot that won't give her too much trouble.

When Birdy arrives, it turns out that the inn has had a major upgrade and a renowned chef named James is at the culinary helm who expects her to know her vino. Can Birdy manage to be a suitable sommelier and a possible partner in love with James or will more than one summer be ruined?

This story is fizzy foodie fun, with a nice mix of romantic comedy. No doubt you can pair this summer themed story with a great vintage or a savory season of Top Chef.

A fly-by-the seat of her pants woman secretly takes her friend’s job as a sommelier when her friend decides to ditch the job. She finds herself in not a rundown hotel but a posh one requiring her to have skills she definitely lacks. It is the characters working at the hotel plus her determination not to blow it that make this a fun and captivating novel. Plus, there is a love brewing.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

THE SUMMER JOB by Lizzy Dent is one of those books that has you wishing and hoping for the lead while constantly waiting for when it implodes for them. This book too a little while to get into but I found the character development, as well as the food and wine details, to be excellent. I also liked the progression of the storyline and the twists and turns it unexpectedly brought.
I received an Advance Review Copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

To a point, this book is exactly what people are saying it is, cute funny, sweet.  It makes you want to go spend the summer in Scotland and drink good wine. 
But honestly, the main character Birdy is difficult to root for, especially in the beginning.  It's a case of mistaken identities that goes way too far and just makes her come off as an awful human being. SPOILER:  Birdy takes a job as a Sommelier by pretending to be her best friend Heather, but does so behind Heather's back.  She does this because she's not employed, has no place to live since Heather is going to rent her apartment out (that Birdy seems to just stay at rent-free?), and she doesn't want to go back to her parent's or cousin's house (granted with good reason).  But her behavior is just so self-destructive, disrespectful, and selfish that the situations she gets herself in while pretending to be Heather felt more uncomfortable and gross than charming.  It made me sort of look forward to the other foot dropping. 
The shenanigans taking place do make this a quick enjoyable read if you can get over the Birdy hump in the beginning.  I enjoyed all the other characters and even eventually enjoyed the newly improved Birdy, albeit hesitantly.  But this would be a good beach read.   Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC.

The Summer Job by Lizzie Dent

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

So if your friend was running off to Italy, would your first thought be to steal her identity, her summer job, and then keep it all a secret from everyone except the party boy who is and isn’t your boyfriend?

If you are think woah, that’s a lot. Then you aren’t alone and that’s exactly what Elizabeth ‘Buddy’ Finch does.

Birdy now known as Heather goes off to Scotland to be a sommelier for a run down restaurant. Except it’s being renovated and going to an upscale vibe, and she has to learn everything possible about 124 different wines because she is supposed to be one of the best sommelier in England. Okay no big deal. Oh and did we mention the chef is really hot?

The Summer Job is a case of mistaken (aka stolen) identity and through that finding yourself. Heather (Birdy) feels lost and tries to be something she isn’t, but she works hard and she falls hard. I loved all of the Scottish talk and food, and learning all about wine in this book! I laughed many times and loved the journey for each of the characters! This is a great summer (or really anytime) read!

Thank you to @netgalley and Putnam books for a copy of this book for an honest review!

I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

A young woman lies her way out of homelessness into a summer job. Although this novel is somewhat predictable, it is a run and interesting read. The characters are believably flawed and endearing.

Ok so I immediately watched a sommelier doc after reading this haha, I mean wine, Scottish country side, cute Scottish man kinda shy but small town and wants all in, sigh, why can’t book stories happen to me in real life. Overall super cute, took a bit of time to get started but loved it ongoing through her story, I was kinda like come on girl you gotta like do a little bit of research...and then she started to actually put some effort in and I started to really like her more, I feel the tim storyline didn’t need to happen, but I see it as her way to put space out. I love that’s it’s such a summer read! And that cover, so cute, people will buy it in that alone for real, I loved her crush storyline and he was such a cute character, you’re really rooting for him :)

Thank you for the advanced copy !

This fun, escapist rom com has both humor and heart. The magic of Scotland shines and makes me want to spend a summer holed up in Loch Dorn with this delightful cast of characters.

This was a cute romance with a fairly far-fetched plot. The story centers around Birdy, a young woman with a life that is unstable and she has no idea what she wants to do with it. Her best friend, Heather, decides to turn down a job at a Scottish resort in the Highlands. With no place to go, Birdy decides to pretend to be Heather and take the job in her place. The dilemma is that Heather has studied for years as a wine expert and now Birdy must pretend to be the expert and help relaunch the resort's restaurant as the wine expert. Birdy keeps the info from Heather as well as the entire staff. Throughout the story Birdy continues to struggle with the lies and finds herself loving this life that she is living as someone else. Overall it was cute but seemed to miss the mark. I had a difficult time liking Birdy and all of the lying!!
Thank you to Netgalley for providing me an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

3.5/5 stars for this! This didn't quite pick up until about 60% of the way through and to be honest, as someone who was born and raised in the United States and as someone who doesn't drink and knows absolutely nothing about wine, it was a little difficult for me to keep up with what was going on but this is truly a story of acceptance and a journey of finding yourself and I found myself eager to follow along with Birdy's adventure once she had shaken off a lot of her confusion and doubt. It's hard to give this a three-star rating because it truly has nothing to do with the book itself -- it was a result of my own unattachment to the themes of the story but I would recommend this to people who love these kinds of books for sure.

Elizabeth Finch has a problem. She’s lost her job, and her roommate and best friend Heather is going to Italy for the summer with her boyfriend and wants to rent out their apartment. Elizabeth needs a place to stay all summer, and a job wouldn’t hurt either.

Heather and Elizabeth, known as Birdy by her friends, have known each other since grade school. Heather lost her parents when she was young, but that left her with the resources to become a sommelier, and she’s worked hard to become respected in the field. But she hasn’t been able to find the love she has craved. Birdy hasn’t quite found her passion yet. She’s bounced from job to job, focusing on having a good time not getting too serious in relationships.

When Heather offers Birdy her tickets to a wine event, Birdy decides to go with her goodtime boyfriend Tim. She says she’s Heather at the door, and they put on their name tags and enjoy the free booze. But while there, Birdy meets Irene, the woman who Heather is supposed to be working for all summer. It’s a sommelier job at a rundown hotel in Scotland, and Heather had already decided to blow off the job and go to Italy instead.

But Birdy sees an opportunity. She needs a summer job. She needs a place to stay. And Irene already thinks she’s Heather. What would be the harm of going on the Scotland job and being Heather for the summer? How hard could it be?

But once she gets there, Birdy realizes she’s made a huge mistake. The hotel is newly renovated and the wine list has greatly expanded since they set up their website. Birdy won’t be able to just show up and fake it. She can either confess that she’s not really Heather and face the fallout from that, including not having anywhere to live. Or she can dig deep and learn enough to get by. Irene likes her, and the bartender Bill is also trying to get her to stay. And she can’t deny that there is a spark whenever she looks at James, the chef.

Does she stay, and risk having to come clean about not being the sommelier with the impressive resume that they were all expecting, or does she just walk away, maybe giving up the chance to find something meaningful for the first time in her adult life?

The Summer Job is a bittersweet story of a young woman figuring out who she is and who she wants to be. With sweetness and spice, acidity and a few nutty top notes, this lovely novel is a flavorful reminder of what happens when you discover a part of yourself you never knew was there. Debut adult novelist Lizzy Dent has taken her experiences in the hospitality industry and given us all a tasting of what it’s like. And in Scotland to boot.

I really enjoyed The Summer Job. I thought it was written beautifully, but I will admit to getting a little bogged down in the middle. I genuinely liked these characters, even Birdy as she was coming in to her own, and to watch her deception grow, knowing the pain that was coming when the truth inevitably comes out, I had a hard time working through my own feelings of hurt and betrayal to forgive her and keep reading her story. But I did, and that means I can recommend that you do it too.

Fans of Sweetbitter will appreciate the similar themes of hospitality, betrayal, and personal growth. But you don’t have to care about wine to enjoy The Summer Job. You can just love a good story with interesting characters, a charming setting, some laughs, some tears, and plenty of good food.

Egalleys for The Summer Job were provided by G.P. Putnam’s Sons through NetGalley, with many thanks.

After the first two chapters, I seriously had to consider whether I even wanted to continue reading. Billed as a romcom, there is little true comedy (or romance) to go on here.

Birdy Finch is messed up and washed out. She has one friend in the world and has disowned her family, whom she claims is more messed up than she is... (And that's saying something!)

Her best friend Heather is equally lost but still manages to hold a job successfully and build a career (and name) for herself as a sommelier. Of course, coming from money and being able to leverage her departed father's name helps. (Although that raised a lot of questions too since she supposedly learned from her father, who died when Birdy and Heather were still little.)

Anyway, Heather decides to run away with Cristian for the summer to see if he might actually leave his girlfriend and "be the one" rather than showing up for a job she's arranged in Scotland. Despite the potential blow to her reputation (one she's worked hard to build), she leaves it to Birdy (a known screw-up) to get her out of the job with her reputation intact.

Rather than doing what she promised, Birdy decides to pose as Heather instead. Despite the fact that she knows nothing about wines (and doesn't even like them!). Heather's reputation, be damned!

There is so little to actually like about Birdy. She's a runaway train that wreaks havoc on the lives of those around her. I pitied her more than I found her funny. And after a while, you really do want a person like that to get the help they need, not to succeed at pulling the wool over everyone's eye.s

I did like the band of misfits she encounters at Loch Dorn but often felt like the things that needed to be addressed were ignored in favor of things of lesser importance.

And it felt like every other word was a gratuitous swear that really wasn't necessary.

I did end up finishing the book and there were definitely characters I liked, or at least felt some sympathy for. But Birdy and Heather weren't at all believable to me. And other than a shag or two, there was very little actual romance involved. So, not certain why it's considered a "romcom" when both of the key components of a romcom were sorely lacking.

I do appreciate receiving a review copy from the publisher, the author and NetGalley.

Harlequin Junkie Recommends!

Like a hearty winter meal with a nip of brandy by a fire, the Summer Job by Lizzy Dent is one you can curl up to and just generally feel all-round satisfied with.

Being left with the task of making a phone call to decline a job offer in Scotland for her best friend Heather, Birdy finding herself homeless and jobless, figures she may as well give the job a red-hot go and thus presents as Heather in her place. Unfortunately for Birdy, she completely underestimates the technical labour and knowledge of a Sommelier, the position for which Heather was employed, and her motivation to take the job for a laugh turns out to be anything but.

Thankfully, Birdy has something of a pragmatic and resilient nature, and remarkably, after a week of total stuff-ups, begins to find her footing in the role to only discover that she is getting herself in way too deep with no real way of backing out. As one event leads to another, a kitchen romance begins to form and Birdy is left wondering if she can truly pull off her deception and bail once the summer is over, considering everything is screaming that this is exactly where she needs to be.

Punctuated with some classic British humour that leaves you laughing at her dry observational wit and cringing at the mess she finds herself in, Birdy’s situational mess is compelling from start to finish. Supported with a cast of unique and utterly adorable characters, Birdy’s real test is to find the bravery to own her childhood damage that acts as a chock-hold to her self-belief. The inherent tension was brilliant despite the technical aspects of wine lists and menus and the pivotal narrative arc was truly unexpected and developed with subtlety.

The narrative voice followed Birdy and her journey, and whilst this worked for 99% of the story, we were therefore unable to leave her behind for a chapter or two and fall down the big reveal rabbit hole to explore character responses towards the surprising twist. And whilst the ending was perfect happily ever after material, it felt like the resolution was rushed ever-so-slightly because that key arc needed to be explored from the other characters’ perspectives.

Overall however, this is a thoroughly enjoyable read that touches on some powerful themes of self-concept and suggests that whilst we are the sum of our experiences we have the capacity to grow and shift when challenged to be our best selves.

This romcom was a fun read that dealt with some deeper themes. Birdy, a likeable but flawed character finds herself at loose ends when her best friend and roommate decides to skip out on her summer job and travel to Italy in pursuit of love. With no job and no place to stay Birdy decides to pretend to be her friend Heather and take her summer job as sommelier at a Scottish hotel. One of the many problems Birdy faces is that she has no real knowledge of wine. Lies and deceit are the foundation of her new identity and although she works hard to find her footing and do a good job in her role there, things start to unravel.
An idyllic Scottish highlands setting, endearing characters and the chaotic world of hospitality makes for an entertaining escape.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an advance reader copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Birdy has never had steady work nor a steady partner. Coming from a difficult background, it was too easy for her to keep on the move and find something new to do. Heather is the only long lasting relationship she has and somehow she ends up taking over Heather’s job and pretending to be her. What ensues is catastrophe after catastrophe while Birdy learns how to be a sommelier on the fly. A baptism by fire, it’s a learning experience for us as well, I learned so much about wine and about the hills of Scotland. It’s set in Scotland and is so descriptive.

Look everyone, British rom-coms are where it's at. Truly - all the best romances I've read in the past few years have come from British authors, from Mhairi McFarlane to Beth O'Leary to This Time Next Year to so many more. With all of these books, you don't just get a simple meet-cute and typical romance arc - you get complex characters, friendships, and relationships that are real and deep and flawed. These books might all reel you in with a cute premise, but you stay for the character development and growth.

The Summer Job was no exception to this trend. The premise is amazing from the very start: Birdy Finch is a directionless thirty-year-old with no career, a resume showing a spattering of unrelated jobs, and in a few weeks, no apartment to speak of. She's never been successful in work, love, or life, really. Her best friend is Heather, one of England's most talented and brilliant young sommeliers. Although Heather found her passion and has excelled at it, she too has a weakness: her desire for love, which results in a penchant for dropping whatever she's doing in pursuit of some guy who eventually turns out to be a deadbeat.

At the start of the book, Heather has done exactly that - she's been hired as a sommelier for a hotel in an old Scottish estate in the middle of nowhere, Loch Dorn. But she also wants to chase after her latest crush, an elusive Spaniard named Cristian. She decides to forego the job and go after romance, and Birdy volunteers to call the hotel and tell them that Heather isn't coming. But one thing leads to another, and, after pretending to be Heather (with her consent) at the British Wine Awards and running into the manager at Loch Dorn...Birdy decides that she's going to pretend to be Heather for this summer posting. It's some old stuffy hotel in the middle of nowhere and she's done a million waitressing jobs. How hard could it be?

When she arrives, she realizes that this situation is not at all what she expected. The hotel is in the middle of renovations to update, modernize, and glamorize the place. They've hired a Michelin-star winning head chef to direct a new menu, and they're expecting top performance from one of the best sommeliers in the country. Birdy soon realizes she's way in over her head and has to figure something out, through her natural humor, effervescence, and a bit of hard work.

Birdy is a lovable main character, despite or perhaps because of her flaws. Sometimes I wanted to hit my head against the wall with how stupid she could be, but she always manages to do something to save herself. Her struggles are very real, and despite putting herself in a bad situation, you feel for her.

I truly loved the romance in this book. The chemistry between Birdy and her love interest was off the charts, and you really end up rooting for them. However, as is the pitfall with so many romcoms with a premise like this or any premise based on deception, you know that the other shoe has to drop sometime. You just pray that the reveal and reparations will be smooth and easy - and I think this book did a good job of not drawing it out, but also not being unrealistically fast and simple for the level of deception that Birdy almost pulled off.

I really enjoyed this - it was a quick and cute read, with much more depth than you'd expect from a typical romcom. Thank you to GP Putnam for the ARC via Netgalley!