💭 ᴍʏ ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛꜱ:
This was a really enjoyable read. I want to go to Italy now, to explore Positano. I feel like we all need to go there once in our lives. This was such a perfect way to describe the struggles and grief proces of someone losing an important person in their lives. The questions of who you are now without them and what is important in life are at the centre of this book. It was a beautifully written and I loved how Katy developed throughout.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

🤓 ʀᴇᴀᴅ ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ʟɪᴋᴇ:
Italy: the food, the wine and the scenery
To deal with grief
Good character built
Good message

ꜱʏɴᴏᴘꜱɪꜱ:
𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘒𝘢𝘵𝘺’𝘴 𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘥𝘪𝘦𝘴, 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘭𝘦𝘧𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘊𝘢𝘳𝘰𝘭 𝘸𝘢𝘴𝘯’𝘵 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘒𝘢𝘵𝘺’𝘴 𝘮𝘰𝘮, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘱𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭. 𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘸, 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘒𝘢𝘵𝘺 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘴 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵, 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘨𝘰𝘯𝘦. 𝘛𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘴𝘦, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳-𝘥𝘢𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘱 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘮𝘴: 𝘵𝘸𝘰 𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘬𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘗𝘰𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘰, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘵𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘊𝘢𝘳𝘰𝘭 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘳 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘣𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘦𝘵 𝘒𝘢𝘵𝘺’𝘴 𝘧𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳. 𝘒𝘢𝘵𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘸𝘢𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘊𝘢𝘳𝘰𝘭 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘳, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘦.

𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘰𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘱𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘈𝘮𝘢𝘭𝘧𝘪 𝘊𝘰𝘢𝘴𝘵, 𝘒𝘢𝘵𝘺 𝘣𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳’𝘴 𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘵. 𝘉𝘶𝘰𝘺𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘶𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴, 𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘤𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘴, 𝘥𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥, 𝘰𝘧 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦, 𝘥𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘰𝘥, 𝘒𝘢𝘵𝘺 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭𝘴 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘊𝘢𝘳𝘰𝘭 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴—𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘩, 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘵𝘩𝘺, 𝘴𝘶𝘯-𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘥, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘳𝘵𝘺 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘰𝘭𝘥. 𝘒𝘢𝘵𝘺 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴𝘯’𝘵 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘰𝘳 𝘩𝘰𝘸—𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘧𝘰𝘤𝘶𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘩𝘰𝘸, 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘺, 𝘨𝘰𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬.

I just love Rebecca Serle's novels, and this one is no exception!

With an element of the fantasy genre, this story is a gripping tale of grief and finding a way out of the darkness,
And at the same time, it is a beautiful description of Italy - So much so that I'm seriously considering going to Italy for my next holiday.

The only thing I didn't like was the ending - I would have liked Katy to have chosen another path... But nonetheless it is a great and beautiful story.

The setting for this book is phenomenal, Positano, Italy. The hotels, paths, people, food & views described immediately made me hop on to Pinterest to see exactly what it looked like and then onwards through the book I could picture it exactly. I have such a passion for Italy and the coast that I really appreciated this element of the book.
The downside was that just something about this story didn't gel with me, the main character and her way of dismissing her husband felt distant and cold to me. Though clearly in a deep grief for her mother it felt entirely about her and not anyone else's loss or feelings and that almost disdain at socialising & her life etc felt entirely constructed by her own choices and yet she took no accountability for it, so I felt I couldn't connect with her or understand a lot of what she was experiencing.
There's a sizeable plot twist that I don't want to discuss as it's a spoiler, however it really spoilt the book for me sadly. Although I get what the author was trying to do, it just read as very confusing for a long part of the book and that meant I struggled to concentrate on what was happening because it didn't make sense; and then once the truth was revealed it still felt disjointed and missing something that tied it in with a more believable thread. I think this plot would work in a film because visually it would be revealed to the reader subtly, but in a novel it was too much hard work for me I'm afraid.

Sometimes you read a book that is just beautiful. To me this is that book. I was transported to Positano with Katy. I felt her emotions. Her love, loss and grief. Beautifully written. A book to escape into.
Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to see an arc

I loved In Five Years and The Dinner List, they were easily both 5 star reads for me, so my expectations were high! So much that I think I set the bar a bit too high for myself 🙈 don’t get me wrong, I did enjoy this one, but it just didn’t quite hit me in the feels like the other 2 did.

To be fair though, there were a lot of emotions, I mean the main character, Katy, was grieving the death of her mother, and that really did get to me. The portrayal of her emotions after losing the person she was closest to were so raw and real. And the descriptions of Italy 😍 the locations were so beautiful it made me want to jump on the next flight to Positano. I want to see the water sparkle like it was written, to walk those million steps for that gorgeous view.

And even though I’ve read 2 of Rebecca Serle’s previous books and know that there’s always a surprise element of magic, I still didn’t see that magical change coming 😂

If you’re looking for an Italian summer getaway, you’ll definitely get that in this one!

One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle
4.5/5 🌟

Thank you to @netgalley and @quercusbooks for sending me a copy of this book to read in exchange for my honest take.

I’ve already put it on my future ‘Bookshelf of Favourites’ list.

Being someone who prefers character-driven stories over all else, I will forever be a fan of Rebecca Serle’s writing (hello, auto-buy!)
She doesn’t tell you how to feel about the characters she writes; she lays them out bare, all the ugliness in plain sight, and lets the reader decide how to connect.

Grief was written really well in this book, especially the tricky concept of ‘shared grief’ and the feeling of being so overwhelmed with one’s own, that managing and navigating someone else’s seems impossible.

I loved that the trip to Italy and everything Katy stood to experience was like a gift from her late mother and a way to nudge her in to living her life to its fullest, in the least cheesy of ways.

Without spoiling any part, I will say that several times I got full body goosebumps.
Serle is very adept at incorporating ‘what-ifs’ into your everyday Contemporary Fiction and for that I will always respect her writing.

I found that what drew me most to this story wasn't a 'picture perfect' relationship between mother and daughter.
Rather, the growth we got to see as a result of their mutual understanding that the mistakes we make in life are as valuable as anything else.

Just like ‘In Five Years’ wasn’t your quintessential Romance novel, this isn’t your quintessential lighthearted ‘escape to the seaside’ read.

BUT if you don’t mind a bit of soul searching on the side of your Caprese salad and Aperol Spritz at sunset on the Amalfi Coast, this book will be right up your alley.

#oneitaliansummer is out March 1 📖

#rebeccaserle #netgalley #arc #quercusbooks #booklover #readingtime #bookblog #bookishfeatures #bookphotography #bookworm #booknerd #readmorebooks #bookaesthetic #bookrecommendatio

Lost and adrift following the death of her mother and problems with her husband Katy decides to make the trip to Italy she had been planning with her mother.

As soon as she arrives in Postiano she feels a lightening and can feel her mothers spirit. But then the inexplicable happens, she meets her mother, aged thirty and gets to know the woman she was.

This is a lovely book which deals sensitively with grief and the impact it can have on your relationships with others and also yourself. The setting is beautiful and makes you long for your own Italian holiday. I would recommend.

One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle 3/5 ⭐️

Advanced Reader Copy

Katy’s Mam has passed away from cancer before her time. Nothing bad has ever happened to Katy before. She starts to question everything in her life how can she survive without the closest person in the world to her. Carol knew everything and had all the answers. Before she died they had planned to go to Positano on the Amalfi Coast in Italy and re-visit some of the sites Carol visited in her 30’s. Katy questioning her life choices up to now including her marriage to Eric, decides to go on the trip alone.
Upon her arrival to Positano Katy checks in to the Poseidon a hotel her mother frequented in her youth. In this hotel she feels a connection to Carol once more. Once in Italy she discovers a lot about the carefree person her mother once was as a young woman. Adam Westbrooke a guest at the Poseidon appears in Katy’s life a handsome stranger whom she chooses to spend her time exploring.
I did enjoy this book it wasn’t a chore to read however the Katy at the beginning of the book is all consumed by her grief and it sparked some form of emotion for me. I so adored the descriptive writing in this book about Positano and Italy in general. 100 percent makes me want it as my next holiday destination the food, the wine, the scenery and the sun.
In my opinion the addition of Adam to the story did not bring anything of any value and if truth be told I found it a slightly odd addition to Katy’s journey. I also felt it was a touch too far fetched even for me and normally I can take a story at face value. (Trying so hard not to spoil for anyone)
Out March 1st

One Italian Summer is a beautiful story about the bond between mother and daughter, loss, love and figuring out who you are. A little warning. After reading this book you might feel the urge to immediately book a holiday to the Amalfi Coast.

When Katy's mother dies, she is left reeling. She feels like she has the lost the love of her life. Katy goes ahead on a planned trip to Italy that should have been with her mother and soon starts to feel her mothers spirt all around. That is until she actually sees her mother and begins to get to know her, 30 years earlier. This takes Katy on a journey she never expected and there is a few bumps in the road.

This book was absolutely nothing like I expected it to be. I know Rebecca Serle is known for her magical touches to books but I still never expected it. Katy is a great main character and I think she really needed the journey that she went on in this book.

Now i'm constantly daydreaming of vacationing in Italy and sunning it on Positano beach. I adored the setting of the book and thought it was just perfect.

I rated this book 4 stars and thoroughly enjoyed it. If anything, I wish it was longer!

When Katy’s mother dies, it feels like her whole world is crumbling - taking her marriage, identity and happiness with it. How are you meant to go on when your best friend, your soulmate, is no longer there? The only thing Katy can think of is to go on their planned trip to Italy, the place her mother loved and dreamt of returning to one day. Leaving her almost ex-husband back home, Katy runs off to Positano expecting to feel closer to her mother. What Katy isn’t expecting is to come face-to-face with her mother’s 30 year-old self.

I had such high expectations for this book; I had heard so much about it on Goodreads and seen it on every list of ‘Most anticipated’ books being published this year. Truthfully, I didn’t like this book despite some interesting perspectives on grief and some beautiful descriptions of Italy.

Immediately, I felt disconnected from Katy. She seemed to gate-keep her grief, like it was more significant than her father’s who couldn’t possibly understand what she was going through, and I was uncomfortable with the way she spoke to Eric. Whilst I know that grief is processed in different ways, I just felt so angry with Katy straight off the bat.

Then we got to Italy and I still felt disconnected from her. We met Adam, whose characterisation I liked but who’s development felt stunted. I didn’t understand how Katy accepted seeing her mother’s ghost so quickly, I didn’t understand why Katy didn’t realise things sooner because I had guessed the twist at least by the half-way mark.

Perhaps my biggest issue with this book isn’t the fact it makes no sense at all, but it’s the way Katy’s actions concerning Adam have no consequence. It happens all so quickly at the end that it felt so disjointed from the rest of the book and then the ending comes, and Katy is suddenly healed? I felt completely lost.

One thing to make clear is that this book is Women’s Fiction with a sprinkle of romance. It is focused on the relationship between a daughter and her mother, and the way that the death of this relationship catalyses the dismantling of others. Luckily, this particular grief is very foreign to me but perhaps others would find something more fulfilling in this book than I did.

Rebecca Serle’s knack of how describing Italy is like no other. She really has a talent, the way she describes the views you do get caught up in the moment as if you were there.

This book takes us in Kathy’s journey of grief following her mothers death. Which is emotional at times to say the least.

A true summer read, perfect for a holiday retreat!

The book encompasses the importance of family values as we follow along the story of a woman at a cross-roads in life on holiday in Italy after the premature death of her mother.

Searle perfectly encapsulates the atmosphere and beauty of Italy in beautiful descriptive writing. The pages kept turning as we are drawn into what is a seemingly intimate journey, but one that is openly shared with the reader. We are taken into Katy's life and get swept into the escapism of the small town with lots of opportunities.

The emotional context paired with stunning writing results in a comfortable read that has a purpose and destination. I read this in one sitting!

A stunning and beautiful book! Such an original concept, I really didn’t see quite where it was going at first, but found it intriguing all the same. The pictures painted are amazing and really take you there in your imagination. You can feel the sun, smell the sea and taste the food. Pure escapism.

Katie goes to Italy alone, to complete the trip she and her mother had booked. Her mother, also her best friend has died. She meets Carol, aged 30, who instantly reminds her of her mother. A fascinating story unfolds. A compelling tale, hard to put down and discover the ending.

Thank you so much to @netgalley for the ARC of this beautiful book.

This book was very emotional and so much more than a typical romance book - which is what I was expecting. It included magical realism in such a well written way and focused on the significance of a mother-daughter relationship. I absolutely adored the relationship between Katy and her mother🥺

One of the only things I didn’t rate about this book was Adam😅

I absolutely loved Rebecca Serle’s writing; It was so beautifully descriptive, and it has made me desperate to go to Italy! After enjoying this book so much, I’ve now added Serle’s other books to my wish list and hope to get them asap!

Wow! This book was amazing, I loved it.
Maybe I'm a bit biased because I can't resist a book that focuses on the relationship between mothers and daughters.
One Italian Summer tells the story of Kathy who has recently lost her mother, with whom she had a really deep relationship. She then decides to take a trip to Italy, that they were planning on taking together.
Firstly, I loved the way the author describes Italy with such romantic detail that I just feel like I'm there with the characters. Also, I straightway connected with Katy, even though I found her relationship with her mother a bit too much sometimes, but then she is grieving, so I don't think that is so strange.
Towards the middle of the book, the pace slowed down a bit, but it managed to pick up in the last few pages!
Thank you to Quercus Books and Netgalley for providing me a digital arc in exchange for an honest review.

Having read In five years by Rebecca Serle, I expected this to take me on a journey and it definitely did. I also would like to visit Italy now, though it did feel like I was there when reading the read. I loved that Katy got to learn more about her mum on the trip. I would really recommend and can’t wait to buy the physical copy and audiobook. Also loved it started with a Lorelai Gilmore quote which fit the book perfectly. Thank you NetGalley for the chance to read this book before release

When Carol dies, Katy doesn’t just lose a mother, she loses her best friend. Carol is the “great love of her life”. Katy has a co-dependency on her mother that renders her barely able to fend for herself, and questioning her marriage to her kind and loving husband.

So, Katy decides to take the trip to Positano that she and her mother had planned to take together.
Following their planned itinerary, and making some friends along the way, Katy works through her grief and her loss and begins to find herself - at the same time as learning who her mother was as a woman, not just a mother.

I didn’t realise that Serle had a tendency for the paranormal in her writing, I had thought that was unique to In Five Years, so it took me a bit by surprise when Carol appeared – despite being warned of this on the flyleaf. Doh!

I’m not one for mother/daughter bonds in my books but I haven’t been to Italy (it’s on the bucket list!), so living vicariously through Katy was the biggest appeal of this book. Serle’s descriptive writing meant that I could practically taste the food she wrote about and smell the sea air of the Amalfi Coast.

This is a lovely novel that deals with grief and loss sympathetically and poignantly.

Thank you to NetGalley and Quercus for the ARC.

TW: Death of mother

I had to stop and think about this review before I wrote and posted it because otherwise it would have been a chaotic mess of jumbled thoughts.

Most importantly, I really enjoyed this one! Just like In Five Years, Serle writes in a way that flows so well, is easy and very enjoyable to read, and whilst shorter than most novels, she doesn’t waste a word or a page and she doesn’t go writing pages just for the sake of it. Everything in there is exactly what you need.

What I wasn’t a fan of was the codependency Katy had with her mum, but that for me is just a personal life preference. I am super close with both of my parents, and my brother, but we give each other the room to do and be who we are, even if we don’t always agree. We’ll provide suggestions and opinions but we’re never *right* whilst the other person is *wrong* and I felt like Katy didn’t know how to be an adult, or a person in general, without her mum always being the one to make the decision or provide the answers. I don’t think that this is healthy for parent or child, regardless of age. What I did like though, was that over the course of the book, Katy discovered that this had been a hindrance, and realised the changes she had to make for herself. I know that having their relationship be like this was an important point of the book, it just is a personal pet peeve for me is all.

Much like In Five Years, the main character grows into herself throughout the story, and that is the type of character development that I’m here for!

I feel that grief was portrayed so well in this book as was the realisation that we never truly know our parents. We know bits of them and we know the parts of their history that they share with us, but we never truly know them. We have to remember that they are flawed like us, and they had a life and a history before we came along.

Fun fact - I lived in Italy for a year and pre-pandemic, would visit my friends that are like family every year. Reading this book, the descriptions of the views and people and life there just made me miss it even more because it was so realistic, especially the depiction of Naples.

I think Serle is going to be an auto buy author for me - her characters are flawed but go on an journey of growth and development that I enjoy, her writing and descriptions are beautiful, the pace is always spot on, there's never drama just for the sake of it and the length is always perfect, no wasted pages just to hit a word count or page number.