I'm pretty sure I have read every Rebecca Serle book in one sitting and I know I have loved them all. It was no different for One Italian Summer. I always love how Serle adds what I call a little "blip" of magic to her books--it lets us explore coulda, woulda, shoulda. I loved this book. I loved the setting of Positano in Italy. And I loved that the main character, Katy, has to do some serious soul-searching after the death of her mother--and really open her eyes to things happening in her life. This book was emotional, poignant, a little magical, a little tearful, and just plain good.

Thank you Atria Books and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to review this book.

So, about this perplexingly satisfying book, I really, really liked it. The story, the plot was amazingly written and the emotions were conveyed in a way that I felt them with every part of my being. It was I believe exactly what the genre had promised, women’s fiction.
I haven’t read anything like the plot in this book, And I don’t tend to spoil it but let’s just say it leaves readers baffled for a helluva long time. In a good way.
The only thing that I wasn’t getting was the reaction of the character to the impossible occurring, which was nothing more that acceptance. It didn’t elaborate more until the end, which for me, was a bit weird.
Though the ending made up for it. Tied everything together nicely and left you satisfied and blissed.
All in all I laughed and cried. And I kinda fell in love with Italy and Positano.

I read Rebecca Serle’s The Dinner List a few years ago when it was a Book of the Month pick and I loved it. Then In Five Years came out and once again, Serle was able to toy with my emotions once again. At this point she’s an auto-buy author for me and if you need something to tear up to, than her writing will fit the bill.

One Italian Summer follows Katy after the death of her mother, her best friend. Prior to their long planned trip to Italy, her mother succumbs to cancer leaving Katy to deal with the grief that comes with loosing a parent. Reeling from the death, Katy’s started to question her entire life, her purpose, and her marriage. Katy’s life is falling apart, and even though she’ll be going alone, heads out on the long planned trip to try and reconnect with her mother and understand who she really is. While in Positano, Italy, Katy bumps into her mother. At least it’s her mother from 30 years ago and so begins Katy’s journey to learning who her mother was.

Just like in her previous stories, I love that Serle explores the relationships of friendship and families. The characters even with their flaws are likable and extremely relatable. Thankfully, my mother is still alive and we have a great relationship, but it was easy to envision the pain Katy must have been feeling and the way she so easily lost herself with her mother’s passing.

Rebecca Serle has once again crafted an emotionally power and moving story. My favorite aspect of Serle’s writing though is her mix of magical realism with contemporary and powerful stories. I adored this story and can’t wait for another release from Serle!

One Italian Summer is out now! Huge thank you to Atria Books for my advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion. If you liked this review please let me know either by commenting below or by visiting my instagram @speakingof_books.

Rebecca Serle has a beautiful touch with magical realism. Whether it’s dining with special people—alive and dead—in The Dinner List or a five-year journey forward in time in In Five Years, Serle uses these magic premises to wring truth from reality.

She performs that same magic in One Italian Summer. The premise here is (relatively) simple to explain: Katy is grieving the death of her mother and decides to take the trip that they had planned together. She tells her husband that she’s not sure she can be with him anymore, boards a plane, and takes the solo vacation she and her mom, Carol, have been dreaming about for years.

Carol had spent time in the small town of Positano and yearned to show Katy everything she loved about it, so Katy vows to follow the itinerary her mother had set up. Soon, she begins to enjoy small moments in a way she hasn’t been able to since her mother fell ill.

Then, one day, Katy sees her mother. Yes, she’s much younger, but it’s her. And suddenly, Katy feels as if she has a second chance to get to know her mother in a way she never had, to forge a friendship with the woman she loved so much.

Serle explores Katy’s grief, her hope, and her joy so vividly here. There’s laughter, some romance, vivid descriptions of food, and an amazing sense of the Italian landscape. One Italian Summer is a gorgeous, moving book. I absolutely could not put it down.

✨ The Title/Cover Draw:
I absolutely loved In Five Years and was hoping this one was just as good. Thanks to @netgalley and @atriabooks for the opportunity to read this ahead of publication.

💜 What I liked:
Rebecca Serle’s writing style is beautiful. It made me want to be in Italy and experience Positano. You can almost smell the sea and the food. The main character, Katy, is lost without her mother. Will she find herself again during this trip?

😱 What I didn’t like:
Despite the beautiful writing, I did not find myself connecting with Katy or understanding some of the choices she made, even in grief. However, this book has a magical element which made the ending very satisfying to me.

🚦 My face at the end: 🥰

💭 4 Reasons to Read:
1. Decadent food
2. Grief
3. Relaxing beaches
4. Italian landmarks



🕧 Mini-Summary:
Katy’s mom was her best friend. So when she dies, she fights to find who her mother was and how she can cope with the loss.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Received from Netgalley.

💯 For more details on the books we read, be sure to follow me on TikTok (@zaineylaney) or check out our Podcast - Elated Geek!

Although I really liked the setting in Italy and the emotional journey the main character had and it makes me appreciate my own mother even more, this book just didn’t do it for me. I enjoyed prior books more than this by the author. Isn’t the cover pretty, it had that going for it too.

Just ok for me. Still recommended but definitely not a favorite.

Thanks to NetGalley, Rebecca Serle and Atria Books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Available: 3/1/22

Katy loses her mother at thirty and decides to go on the trip to Italy they had planned by herself. Katy has left behind her husband and is mourning her mom, while connecting to the Italy that her mother loved. She then somehow encounters a woman, her same age, and it turns out to be her mother, Carol. She also meets and has an affair with a man at the hotel, all while leaving her previously strong marriage in limbo and completely ghosting her husband.

I love Serle's writing and was sort of on board with the whole "my dead mom is now my Italian friend" time suspension. However, I hated Katy and everything she said and did and really, really hated that she went on vacation and had an affair. This seemed totally unnecessary, and I felt it took away from the true themes of the story. Of course, I loved the Italian food and landscape descriptions and enjoyed the close mother/daughter relationship. I think I was disappointed because this was so close to a win for me. I will keep reading Serle's books but this one was not my favorite.

Thank you to Netgalley for the advance copy for review.

What a luxury, to get swept away in this time traveling journey on the glorious Italian coast! Such a captivating story of a mother and daughter. To say that I enjoyed watching Katy process her grief, seems wrong. But I had a difficult time stepping away from this book. I was so invested in seeing where Katy’s journey would take her with her new friends. I wish I could tag along and see what she sees … and eat what she eats! I did think Katy’s response to finding the photo was a little exaggerated, but after thinking about it I can see the parallel and given her grief, it makes more sense. I was so happy to see the unexpected guest at the end, I was worried that was going to be left unresolved. A very enjoyable and relatively quick read!

Another lovely title by Serle! Engaging, mesmerizing writing. I quickly fell in love with the characters, the time loop, and the locale. One I’ll definitely be promoting via RA!

From page one, our main character Katy was not likable. She’s lost her mother and grieving but she puts her whole identity with being a daughter. I thought that was kind of odd and she seemed too reliant on her mother when she’s almost 30. Don’t get me wrong so am I lol but I felt like Katy didn’t know how to do anything.
On top of this, she simply decides to leave her husband because of her moms death? Apparently she felt this way before but there’s not really an explanation except that her mom is gone. Girl, you gotta give me more than that. I found this quite selfish. I understand everyone grieves differently but Katy isn’t someone I’d want to be friends with. PLUS throwing in Adam into this and I found him creepy to be honest.

The only thing I liked about this were the description of Italy. It made me want to go back and I’ve always wanted to go to The Amalfi coast but haven’t made it there yet! That’s kind of it.. The time travel/magical realism or whatever it was supposed to be wasn’t really explored and Katy kind of went into it too willingly.

I think this author just isn’t really for me unfortunately as I have also read In Five Years and felt the same. Thank you to Netgalley and Atria for an advanced copy of the book.

This book felt like the love child of For One More Day by Mitch Albom and Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. Those are two of my most beloved books, so to say I was enchanted throughout this one was an understatement!

There were parts in the beginning that felt sugarcoated and hard to believe, like how perfect Katy’s mom was and how she felt like her mom was her soulmate instead of her husband. I really appreciated the full arc though and while it was frustrating to read, I could totally see how much her grief skewed her view on everything.

I was absolutely transported to Italy and that was by far the best part of the novel. I now want to go hang out in coastal Italian towns, with the occasional day trip to Naples for pizza. The imagery in this book was impeccable and made me crave all things Italy deep in my bones.

I love this book and I love Rebecca Serle’s writing (though admittedly, this is only my second book by her!). I love when you think it’s predictable and going one way but then it surprises you.

Overall this book was a win for me. It made me so happy, managed to be deep and lighthearted at once, and was a refreshing piece of literary escapism.

This is the first Rebecca Serle book that I have ever read, and while it wasn't a five-star for me, I am definitely interested in reading more of her work. It took me a little while to get into this one, but not because of the writing or the story itself. I think it was because the topic of the loss of a parent was difficult to get comfortable with. But once I got past my initial hesitancy, the book was beautiful. The writing flowed, the descriptions of the Amalfi coast made me want to visit there and never leave, and the growth of the main character, Katy, was so delightful to watch. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for a charming, contemporary literary piece.

Katy is downing in tidal waves of grief. She has lost her mother; her best friend and confidant. Its swallowing her whole – she isn’t sure what she wants anymore, or what to even do. Katy’s father encourages her to go on the trip she and her mother had planned. Katy’s mother had once lived in Italy and she was looking forward to showing her all of her favorite places. In Italy, Katy finds the memory of her mother in every place she visits, as she loosely follows their original itinerary. As she learns to deal with her grief, she discovers that her mother may not be the young woman she thought she was. As her time progresses in Italy, Katy learns to let go, and start living for herself.

Rebecca Serle brought us to the future in In Five Years. In One Italian Summer Rebecca Serle had us visit the past as we journeyed to Positano, Italy. This was a beautiful, emotional, journey dealing with love, loss and finding one’s way. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it.

Thank you to Netgalley and Atria/Simon and Schuster for the opportunity to read and review this book!

Omg this book! At first, I was turned off by the main character’s almost obsessive feelings towards her mom which I understand she was grieving but it felt off. However, I continued reading to come across a wonderful story set in ITALY with some time travel. I liked this a lot, as someone who has a close relationship with their mom, , this was very emotional but done in a way that felt very unique and engaging.

I believe many readers will devour this book, and I recommend it wholeheartedly. As for how I feel personally, I was so intrigued by the concept. This was my first Rebecca Serle book, and it will not be my last. I believe that the author is certainly a talented writer, and I truly feel like I've traveled to Italy! I felt the main character's grief over the loss of her mother. However, I did not find her to be all that likeable. I don't think it's all that healthy to be quite so attached to your parents--certainly not more so than to your spouse--and I do not think she treated her husband well at all. I'll refrain from saying anymore so as to avoid any spoilers. I do enjoy books with a bit of magical realism in them, so as I said, this won't be my last book by this author. I believe that this would be a popular choice in any library.

So why am I not on a plane to the Almafi Coast?

Everything about this book was divine. I love the way Rebecca Serle writes! This is a quick read but so detailed and heartfelt. Just like In Five Years Serle gets to the point and makes you feel all the feels while doing it.

Let’s first talk about the setting. The towns are described beautifully. I’ve always wanted to visit the Almafi Coast and reading this just made it even more so.

Now Carol and Katy! This book follows Katy to Positona on a trip she was suppose to take with her mother. However, her mother passed away before the trip happens so Katy goes by herself. She’s in search of finding who she is without her mother. When she gets there though she’s surprised to find a younger version of her mother there.

Their relationship was beautiful and sad and yet so realistic. How often do people adore their parents but realize they don’t really know them to the level they think they do? Katy gets to know Carol in a way that she never got to know her when she was her mother. It’s a beautiful writing of finding closure. And I loved how it talked about decision making being your own choice and not judging others for their choices.

I enjoyed every aspect of this book and how you must own who you are. Highly highly recommend!

Thanks Netgalley and Simon and Schuster for the ARC ebook.

Katy Silver’s mother is dead. The life that she knew as “Carol’s Daughter” is gone. She now must find out who Katy is. There’s no better place to find out who you are other than Italy. What do you do when you travel 30 years into the past to find the younger version of your mother? Forge a friendship and learn that no one who you think they are.

Katy Silver grew up in California with seemingly the perfect family. Her mother, Carol, was her everything, and her father didn’t get in their way. One day Carol gets sick. Everyone rallies together to care for Carol in her last days. Once Carol is gone, everyone must grieve.

Katy decides to take the tip that they planned together. She goes to Italy to experience the youth of her mother’s life. Only Katy didn’t expect that literally.

If you have considered someone perfect, it’s a tragedy to learn that it doesn’t exist.

I love this story so much. It sounds a little Doctor Who with the time travel and all but fits right in.

There is an array of emotions to experience. It’s simply perfection!

Before Covid hit I used to travel regularly to Europe. Remember when I used to travel and bring back all those books for you? Ah, those were the days! Lately I’ve had to do all my traveling through books. This new release by the author of In Five Years took me to the Amalfi Coast in Italy.

"One Italian Summer" by Rebecca Serle is like a picturesque and magical trip to the Amalfi Coast of Italy!

Katy's mother, Carol, has just passed away after a long illness. She was Katy's BFF, her confidant, her best resource for all the right answers. Katy feels completely unprepared to make a decision without her.

They have a mother-daughter trip planned to the Amalfi Coast of Italy. A trip of a lifetime. Two weeks together in Positano, the city where Carol spent the summer before she met Katy's father. Now Katy has decided to go to Positano alone and experience all the magical places Carol has told her about through the years.

When she sees the beauty of the Amalfi Coast, experiences the food, meets the people - Katy begins to heal and feel closer to her mom!

Then she sees Carol. She's thirty-years-old, just like Katy. How can this be happening?

The entire story is told in the first person narrative of the main character, Katy. Through this story she tells the reader about her relationships with her mother, her father, and her husband. There are lots of great characters to like in this story, but for me, Katy wasn't one of them!

I'm not quite sure why I enjoy this one so much with a main character that is so unlikable and, for loss of a better word, pathetic! Her mother left her unprepared? At thirty-years-old? Tough-up, girlfriend!

What I love is the 'magic' within this story. It's everywhere! The food, the fun, the beauty of the sights and sounds of the coastal setting. It was all brought to life by the author's lovely descriptive writing. It really did take me away!

I recommend this book to those readers who are looking for a quick trip to the beautiful, picturesque Amalfi Coast of Italy that can be accomplished in one or two sittings!

3.75 stars rounded up for the magic of Positano!

Thank you to Karlyn at Atria Books for a widget of this ARC through NetGalley. It has been my pleasure to give my honest and voluntary review. The expected publication date is 3/1/22.

I don’t know what I was expecting with this book, but this certainly wasn’t it! I say this in the very best of ways. I wouldn’t say this is a traditional love story, but it really, truly is about love. Finding love within and outside of oneself while overcoming grief and learning to view the world through a motherless lens. The author adeptly touches on the stage of life where we will all eventually become motherless children, and the spiral it sends so many of us on. I’d definitely recommend this book!