This one was cute and I wanted to love it so much. Unfortunately, the story didn't grab me as much as I thought it would. I would definitely try this author again.

Thanks to Atria Books & NetGalley for a digital advance reader's copy. All comments and opinions are my own.

This was a sweet, charming, feel-good comedy that takes place during present day in a small Italian village. The colorful bookcover hints at the entertaining story promised inside. If you like Alexander McCall Smith’s novels, you’ll enjoy this laugh-out-loud small town tale with quirky characters and themes of honesty, faith, and hope.

The publisher’s summary: “Vacuum repairman and self-appointed mayor of Prometto, Italy (population 212) Signor Speranza has a problem: unless he can come up with 70,000 euros to fix the town’s pipes, the water commission will shut off the water to the village and all its residents will be forced to disperse. So in a bid to boost tourism — and revenue — he spreads a harmless rumor that movie star Dante Rinaldi will be filming his next project nearby.”

That “harmless rumor” is just the first of many that Speranza finds himself telling, all because he cares about his village and its future. One thing leads to another as the town believes Dante is coming to make a movie with the villagers included in the cast. Speranza finds himself twisting the truth little by little, not unlike the convoluted plots of Larry David’s sitcom Curb Your Enthusiasm.

This humorous novel is told from Speranza’s point of view, and I found myself chuckling, laughing, and reading parts of this to my husband because it just had to be shared. But in addition to being amusing, author Christine Simon skillfully expresses Speranza’s thoughts in a way that gives depth to this heartwarming story. “Signor Speranza was clearly in a tricky situation. On one side, there was truth. There was truth, and there was also devastation. There was losing the village. There was losing Gemma and Carlotta. There was losing his father’s shop. There was everyone he knew being chased out of their houses. On the other side? Yes, there was a lie, but there was also hope. Was hope not as important as truth?”

Despite his twisting of the truth, Speranza has a strong conscience, especially prompted by the town’s priest. Throughout the novel Speranza consults "The Compendium," a booklet listing the saints and what they specialize in, so he can petition them for a distinctive need. Who knew there was a saint just for plumbing problems?

I loved this endearing debut, and recommend this if you’re looking for a lighthearted and entertaining read.

This book was such a pleasant surprise. When a mayor in a small Italian town needs to come up with a lot of money to make repairs to the town's plumbing, he devises a plan that becomes a comedy of errors. He tells everyone that a famous movie star is coming to town to film a movie. Things get completely out of hand and the next thing he knows, he is putting together an actual movie!
This book is like nothing I have ever read before and I would love nothing more than for this to be turned into a movie (Irony). It is hilarious and a truly feel-good read

This one was a cute light read. Signor Speranza is desperate to save his beloved town and needs to come up with the funding to do it. In an effort to bring in more tourism, he spreads a rumor that a famous actor is shooting a movie in town. The patrons of the town get incredibly excited and all want to help out, and what was a little white lie quickly snowballs out of control. Humorous and witty, it’s hard not to fall in love with the little town of Prometto.

Such a fun book with lovable, quirky characters and absurd situations. A book that just leaves you feeling so good!

Armchair travelers who would enjoy a light, summer read set in Italy, this book is for you. It is a story that is told with heart and humor.

The (very) small town of Prometto, Italy has a big problem. The water pipes need work and work costs money. Unfortunately for the mayor, the patron saint of pipes (who knew that there was one? Not me.) is not answering the mayor’s prayer. The town can’t pay the prospective bill and he doesn’t want the town’s citizens to be relocated. What is to be done? Well, a plan is hatched. I’ll just say that it involves a celebrity actor and maybe a movie. Will things work out? What will happen along the way? Pick this one up to find out. It is a pleasurable g-rated story.

Note: I enjoyed the small drawings that headed up each chapter.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Atria books for this title. All opinions are my own.

This is the kind of book I usually love. However, this one just didn't grab me. I found myself having to reread pages as my mind wandered and the store and characters just didn't hold my attention. A cool premise, but for me, lacking.

An ill-conceived plan to save a small Italian town spirals out of control in this hilarious and heartwarming debut. Signor Speranza is desperate for a miracle. In the opening pages, the de facto mayor of Prometto learns that if the residents can’t raise an enormous sum quickly to repair the tiny town’s ailing water pipes, the citizens will have to leave. Forever. Unwilling to reveal how desperate the situation really is, Sperenza instead starts a rumor that a beloved Italian cinema star will soon arrive in Prometto to film his next movie. He asks an array of the town’s quirky residents to invest in the production, and the situation rapidly escalates as they band together to prepare to welcome their illustrious guest. As Sperenza tells increasingly ridiculous lies to keep his scheme afloat, every inch of progress is quickly undone by a fresh catastrophe. This witty and farcical tale is perfect for armchair travelers, lovers of small town stories, and anyone seeking a humorous escape this summer.

This was a charming read that felt like Spring Time. It was charming and refreshing and light. The characters felt like friends and while parts of this book did feel a bit long, it is worth the read and Italy wanderlust it gave me

This was a sweet little story with a lovable cast of characters and a unique premise. It was humorous and charming and a quick, enjoyable read. It was a bit predictable at times, and it requires suspension of belief, but overall, a sweet story.

Thanks to Atria Books and NetGalley for the e-ARC in exchange for my honest, unbiased review.

I liked this book, but sections of it were just too drawn out. I kept putting this book down and reading something else. I'm glad I finished it because I really liked the second half of the book.

This book reminded me of the movie 'The Grand Seduction'. There were a lot of funny and touching parts as one man tries to save their small Italian town.

✨Wholesome. If you want to read a wholesome book that involved the meddling nature of an old Italian man and all of the hijinks he can get into, then read this book! Not only is it laugh out loud funny, but it is heartwarming, and has a great message about—you guessed it—second chances!

✨I would die for Smilzo and Signor Speranza, that is a fact. Carlotta too! An Angel! Literally every character in this book. So glad that I was able to read it.

Published by Atria Books on April 12, 2022

Readers might find themselves yearning for a book that distracts them from the muddy reality of modern life, the kind of book in which a happy ending, however unlikely, is guaranteed. The Patron Saint of Second Chances is a charming story of the old world’s stubborn resistance to the new world’s encroachment. Eccentric characters populate Prometto, Italy, a sleepy village of 212 residents. Prometto is fortunate in that one of its residents leaves or dies when a new child is born, saving it the trouble of amending the population statistic on the village sign.

Giovannino Speranza is the mayor of Prometto. His wife inherited a hotel and he inherited his father’s vacuum cleaner repair business. The hotel has no guests because nobody has any reason to visit Prometto. A steady customer who regularly vacuums up Legos keeps Speranza in business.

Speranza is anguished by the apparent inevitability of the village’s demise, as the water authorities have given the village two months to replace its pipes (currently patched with bubble gum) before its water supply is shut off. Villagers are behind on their taxes and the village only has 200 euros, well short of the 70,000 required to make the repairs. The water authority will not authorize a payment plan because it is clear that Prometto will never have money.

Speranza is inspired after learning that a property owner in another village elevated local property values by spreading the rumor that George Clooney was about to buy a villa. The village economy went wild. Speranza attempts his own version of the scam by dropping the name of Dante Rinaldi, an Italian actor he’d never heard of until his adorning daughter talked about him. A rumor takes hold that the actor will be filming a movie in Prometto. Speranza only needs to find an investor to fund the movie and then divert the investment to pipe repairs. The fact that towns do not produce movies never occurs to Prometto’s residents, who have no experience in such things. Nor would they care, given the life that the rumor breathes into their dying village.

The village’s only wealthy resident, a butcher named Maestro, agrees to make a large investment in the movie, but only if one of his many sons will appear in the film. Speranza sees no choice but to simulate the filming of a movie to satisfy the investor. One setback follows another as Speranza collects and loses money, always ending up short of the 70,000 the village needs to continue its existence. At some point, Speranza must confess to the village priest, who not only forgives Speranza but joins the scheme to save the village.

The Patron Saint of Second Chances is quirky, silly, and very funny. The story follows its own mad logic, making it easy to suspend disbelief in the unlikely plot. Speranza makes an enemy of Maestro, who keeps a wary eye on his investment, making a romance between Maestro’s son and Speranza’s daughter a Romeo and Juliet story. Another love story involves Smilzo, the only character who knows anything about making movies, and the woman he worships, who thinks she is playing the female lead and eagerly awaits the promised appearance of Rinaldi. An ongoing joke involving the world’s largest Pomeranian and the miniature schnauzers who harass him blends with another ongoing joke about real and simulated flatulence. What more could a reader ask from a comedy? The Patron Saint of Second Chances is just about perfect for readers who need an escape from the relentless crush of bad news.

RECOMMENDED

Patron Saint of Second Chances! ✨ || @atriabooks #partner

If you’re looking to do some armchair traveling then I suggest checking out this story from @csimonwrites 🥰 The whole book is full of sweet characters in the charming city of Prometto, Italy, population: 212. Not only will you love the characters, but you are guaranteed to laugh-out-loud at all their crazy antics.

Patron Saint of Second Chances did nothing for my overwhelming desire to travel to Italy and feast on their delicious foods and enjoy their beautiful views. I hope you add this to your reading list today!

Where have you been armchair traveling to this week?

This is a funny, light read. The self appointed mayor of a tiny Italian village must pull off a miracle or his sweet little town is doomed. When the towns pipes go into disrepair Signor Speranza must take action! He concocts a money making scheme to fix the pipes, but it slowly turns into a huge ordeal that he is not sure he can actually pull off!

This book is for anyone looking for a silly, quirky, light read.

Thank you to Atria and NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

“The Lord works in mysterious ways.”

Signor Speranza is in a jam. The entire system of pipes that the village of Palmetto depends upon for its water must be replaced, and it’s going to cost a small fortune. Speranza is the self-appointed mayor, so it’s up to him to solve this problem; but no one has any money, least of all himself, a struggling vacuum cleaner repairman. He cooks up a wild pretext to draw attention and money: a big motion picture will be filmed here, and Dante Rinaldi, the red hot movie star of young women’s dreams, will be in it.

My thanks go to Net Galley and Atria Books for the invitation to read and review, and to Seattle Bibliocommons for the audio version that I relied upon to catch me up once I fell behind. This wonderful feel-good novel is for sale now.

At the outset, there is a certain amount of cringe humor involved, and that’s never been my favorite. I wait to see which way the wind will blow, and soon I am cracking up, snickering as I transplant my tomato plants and listen to the audio. Later, when I catch up with the digital review copy, it’s obvious that cringe humor isn’t the main tool in play here.

Over and over again, Speranza and his little town face certain doom; without money for the plumbing, they must all move somewhere else. He’s caught in a lie; then, just as he escapes that trap, another presents itself. He’s not much of a problem solver, and so he turns to every obscure patron saint you can imagine to get him out of this mess. He lights a candle here or there, and before you know it, some random seeming bit of luck comes out of nowhere. But then some other misfortune occurs, and he’s forced to scramble some more. Add into this disorder a young granddaughter, a thuggish butcher with fifteen intimidating sons, and a puppy that’s not yet housebroken, and the chaos is complete.

Ultimately, this is a lovely tale of loyalty and imagination prevailing against terrible odds and an uncaring bureaucracy. This is Christine Simon’s debut novel, and if this is just the beginning, I can’t wait to see what she writes next. I also want to give a special shout out to Tim Francis, who voices the narrative in the audio version. He is the first reader I’ve heard that can speak English with an Italian accent without sounding like Count Dracula. I greatly enjoyed his interpretation of this splendid little book.

Recommended to anyone that needs a wider smile and a spring in their step.

The small village of Prometto, Italy is on the verge of collapse. The mayor must overhaul the water pipes system, or the town will have to all re-locate. With no money, he comes up with the plan to film a movie in his town with famous actor Dante Rinaldi staring in it. The only problem is that he does not have Rinaldi. This whole book is a case of "fake it 'til you make it." Every time Signor Speranza comes close to having the money to fix the pipes, something else goes wrong. Can he save his town?

This book, and the appealing cover, seemed like it would be full of Italian charm. I love the Auntie Poldi series (with similar covers) and I just wanted that sparkle for this one, but it was missing. This is a fun book about a town coming together but there are too many similar characters and it rambled on way to long and it just didn't catch me. I did switch to the audio version which helped me stay engaged somewhat, but this one was not the new favorite I was hoping for. Enjoyable book but lacking in the dazzling Italian charm.

Thank you to Netgalley for the advance copy for review.

I wanted to like this one but it just never seemed to hit right with me. The writing was perfectly fine and the characters were likable, if a bit too cartoonish and one-dimensional for my taste. I think if you're in the mood for a light-hearted romp in a small town, this one could work for you.

Plenty of others seemed to enjoy it so don't let me stop you. I very much believe that if a book interests you in the blurb, you should give it a go regardless of less-than-perfect reviews.


Note: I received a free electronic edition of this book via NetGalley in exchange for the honest review above. I would like to thank them, the publisher, and the author for the opportunity to do so.

4.25/5

The best word to describe my experience with reading The Patron Saint of Second Chances by Christine Simon is delightful. This is a very funny and witty debut novel, and even though I really would have had no idea what it was about unless I read the synopsis, I completely adored it. There are just SO many moments that are truly hilarious, and I could have listened to this a million times. I actually restarted it a few times because I had missed stuff while my attention was on something else, and I could have done that the whole book. I just wanted to keep listening to it and taking in its wonderfulness. So, in other words, I will be buying a copy and I don't think it will ever get old.

The audiobook is really the best way to experience The Patron Saint of Second Chances because the narrator Tim Frances is completely amazing. This is set in a small village in Italy, and he just completely NAILED the accent and the characters. The whole book is told from the viewpoint of the self-appointed mayor himself, Signor Speranza, and I can't imagine having wanted any other viewpoints. Just like some books are filled with unlikeable characters, this one is filled with loveable ones, and I can't even think of anyone in the village that I did NOT like. Even the butcher and all his sons grew on me! There is also a pretty funny part about a Roomba that I had to make my husband listen to. I loved that while this is basically full-blown humor, there are some great emotional moments as well. It is a very different type of book that definitely won't be for everyone, but it sold me, and I think there will be another one set in the same place?! If so, I will definitely be reading it and I hope it will be narrated by Tim Frances again.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This is a delightfully funny book about a small town in Italy based in the hometown of the authors grandparents, Promette. Only 212 population but unless they can come up with a large sum of euros for new water pipes. If they don't get the pipes replaced the town will close do n and all the people will have to move away.. Signor Speranza the mayor is trying to find a way to get the money and passes out a rumor about the big movie star Dante Ronaldo is starting a new project nearby. So then the whole city wants to get a part in the non- existent project.this works so good that Signor Speranza has to start working on bringing this project to life except he wonders what happens when Dante Ronaldi doesn’t show?
Funny writing and very easy reading.
Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for an ARC of this book.
#Netgalley # Atriabooks