I enjoyed this book a lot. I loved the Italian setting and I enjoyed the romance. It was a fun quick summer read.

Thank you to @rachelsrandomresources for my copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I’m in Italy this week and absolutely love, who wouldn’t jump at the chance to work here, in a castle, by Lake Como! Anna is just that person, she’s so vulnerable and likeable and I was routing for her all the way through.

Jake, another who’s lost his way in life through no fault of his own, also feels Italy is the best place for him too. The chemistry between these two is electric, steamy and lovely - if you had to pick TeamAnna or TeamJake I don’t think you could.

I loved this book, so cosy and the “will they, won’t they” went on and on 😊 but in a good way. Definitely one I’d recommend, and hope to read more by this author.

So, the premise and the cover for this book totally sold me. I was like, fake dating + set in Europe? Consider me hooked!

Anna's an aspiring chef who follows the rules but it doesn't seem to help her out much when her ex cheats on her. Going back to her childhood home, she meets her childhood nemesis Jake, who's trying to fix his sordid reputation. Lake Como provides a wonderful opportunity for Anna, but can she survive working with Jake to make it through it all?

This was a really solid enemies-to-lovers read. I enjoyed the banter and the premise but would have wished for more maturity from both characters. I think them making assumptions about one another was just really frustrating at times. Jake's behavior to Anna really grated my nerves as well because it felt like he was very childish sometimes.

I think the writing found its home in the latter part of the book without so much repetition but the plot/drama could have been spaced out a little more, in my opinion.

*ARC kindly provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Having read and loved Kathryn’s, The Beach Reads Book Club, I was eager to try some more of her writing. On this occasion she gives her readers a story of enemies-to-lovers, a couple who are fake dating in order to run a castle in stunning Lake Como, Italy. That in itself is reason enough to pick this one up.

‘Hope is what drives us forwards, what keeps us going through the tough stuff.’

The setting for the book is gorgeous, I just wish there had been more written about it. We had visits to the local village, Italian dialogue with the locals and swimming in the lake, however, I would have loved more armchair travel to this stunning destination. The relationships between Jake and Anna with the supporting characters felt very genuine and heartwarming. The two main leads were most definitely opposites but the background stories for them are solid and it added depth to their character arc as individuals. It is the perfect slow-burn romance with loads of chemistry. I loved and related to Anna’s organisation and list making with the banter between the two being top notch.

‘You’re the organised to my chaotic, the sensible to my crazy.’ He kissed her softly on the end of her nose. ‘The calm to my impetuous. You’re strong when I’m weak, smart when I’m stupid. Brave when I’m a coward. And I bloody love every part of you.’

The only drawback was the amount of misunderstanding through miscommunication. The repetitiveness of their insecurities was overplayed somewhat in my opinion with the continual assumptions drawn proved rather exhausting at times. I really liked both main characters with a classic supporting cast but just wish there had been more descriptions of the locale and not so much stomping off!

The Italian Job by Kathryn Freeman is the perfect inbetween read. It is fun, charming with great chemistry and vibes between the two romantic leads. Readers of this genre are sure to fall in love with this book.

‘The job was never the dream. The dream has always been finding someone I love that I want to spend the rest of my life with. You’re my dream.’







This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. The quoted material may have changed in the final release.

Living in a castle on the shores of Lake Como in Italy, sign me up!

The Italian Job is great escapism for this summer, it is full of fun and chemistry.

Anna has been left brokenhearted and is looking for a fresh start when she discovers the dream job, managing a castle on the shores of Lake Como, and living there, except there’s a catch, the job is for a couple. Desperate for the job she enlists her next door neighbour, Jake, even though they have never got on.

The chemistry between the pair sizzles through the pages, and the will-they-won’t-they keeps you turning the pages. The pair are such an unlikely match, Anna being straight-laced and organised whilst Jake is relaxed with a bad boy reputation. They both arrive in Italy with their insecurities, and in between the bickering and the banter they help each other to deal and overcome these.

I was hooked from the beginning and didn’t want to put it down.

The perfect book for your summer holidays!

A castle in Italy? Enemies to lovers? TICK AND TICK for me.
This is the story of Anna and Jake, neighbours who have never really seen eye to eye but now have to rely on each other to make their dreams come true. Anna is cheated on, losing both the love of her life and her job. She is told to find her “dream job” and she does just that – managing a castle in Italy. Her dream job doesn’t come easily though, there is a catch; applicants must be in a couple. Single Anna needs this job and so enlists the help of the last person she ever imagined asking for help.
On the surface Jake is a lad with a past; having spent time in prison for punching someone – he is out and now finds the community not exactly welcoming, although he had his reasons for what he did. He is loyal to those he cares about and is soon showing his true colours. He is looking for an opportunity to prove himself, and when Anna provides and opportunity he must decide if he can handle everything that is to come.
Great characters – both having their own issues and insecurities I found they balanced each other out brilliantly and had a positive effect on the other. Both characters evolved throughout the story, with a nudge or disagreement to help them on their way. There is drama, mishaps and miscommunications as well as romance and some light-hearted moments along the way.
This is the first time I’ve read anything by this author and I don’t think it will be the last. I thoroughly enjoyed the story, think it moved along at a good pace. I liked the characters (well the ones that we are supposed to like – there are some rotters in the mix as you can imagine).
I think this is a perfect summer, holiday read.

I am thankful to @netgalley for letting me read this ARC! The Italian Job was a special read for me because I went to Lake Como right before Covid hit in 2020.

Jake and Anna decide to take a job as castle caretakers where they pretend to be lovers. The vibes are: opposites attract, forced proximity, childhood enemies to lovers. I enjoyed the setting and watching their relationship grow. Two things I wasn’t a fan of were the miscommunications and the way the spice was written. It wasn’t a straight fade to black and but it would be like “and then they kissed” which fell a little flat for me. I thought it was a bit strange that the book focused so heavily on Jake and Anna getting together and then when they got together it was kind of anti-climactic.

Overall, this is a a good beach read!

The Italian Job was a fun enemies to lovers romance that I enjoyed reading. It was a little slow in the beginning but I’m glad I finished reading it. Thank you NetGalley for this arc in exchange for a review.

This was a bit slow in the beginning but it quickly picked up and turned into a fun romance. While the storyline may be typical with the mismatched couple it didn’t stop it from being an enjoyable book. The characters were easy to love and the setting sounded amazing. A great beach read or weekend away read. Fairly quick and entertaining. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the free ebook to read.

I have thoroughly enjoyed Freeman's books in the past. This one, I had a much harder time enjoying. It was fairly predictable. I didn't mind that. The bigger issue for me was the pacing. This took me quite a while to really get invested in. I did wind up enjoying the story overall. This was neither a hit or a miss.

Thank you to the publisher for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinions.

This was a really fun book! I loved the idea of going to Italy and looking after a castle (heck, going ANYWHERE to look after a castle - perhaps I'm getting itchy travel feet and I just want to go exploring). The characters in this book were entertaining and frustrating at the same time (which made for great reading), and I enjoyed the relationship/enemies to lovers trope in this one.

I haven't read any other books by Kathryn Freeman, but I will definitely be checking them out now. Thank you for the review copy!

Thank you NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this book despite a lot of British slang. I had to look up what a few things meant and it kind of took away from the story for me. While the book was predictable, you couldn't help but to love the characters and root for the MC's. There's a lot of internal monologues and the MC's really just needed to talk with each other and a lot of their feelings could have been avoided.

Enemies to Lovers with Fake Dating that takes place in a castle in Lake Como: perfection all my favorite things. Anna and Jake are opposites. Anna is a very play by the rules, organized woman who was raised by a cop. Jake is a bad boy ex firefighter who served time in prison for punching Anna’s Ex. I enjoyed this book but it kept driving me crazy how they would just assume things and had terrible communication like if they just talked it would have solved all their problems.

CW: violence

Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I loved the backdrop of Italy and the summer romance vibes I was getting from the book which makes it perfect if you're looking for something lighthearted to read on the beach. It had one of my favourite tropes: fake dating with a different plot to other books with this trope which I really liked. At times it felt predictable which isn't necessarily a bad thing, I just prefer something that keeps me on my toes. I feel like the characters could have been developed more which would've added more depth to the story. Nonetheless it was an enjoyable read with a good storyline.

The Italian Job by Kathryn Freeman centers on the story of Anna Roberts and Jake Tucker. Anna, being fresh out of a breakup is trying to find a new job while staying at her father’s house. This is where Jake comes into the picture, since his mother has been neighbors with the Roberts for years. Anna and Jake are two people that don’t mix well together, however they will have to try to ignore their differences in order to secure an opportunity of a lifetime… living and working in a castle on the shores of Lake Como in Italy.

While I did enjoy this book, I sadly can’t say that I loved it. It started out really promising with the premise established by the synopsis, and I immediately took a liking to both main characters. My main problem with this book was the constant miscommunication between the characters and how the writing felt kind of repetitive because of how they were interacting with each other. I felt as if I was taking a step further and then one steps back (again)… if you get the drill.

All in all, if you like the enemies-to-lovers trope, the fake-dating one and seeing the characters in a forced proximity situation, you might want to give this book a chance!

*ARC kindly provided by HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I was a little late getting to this one too because I didn't keep track of my release dates! I enjoyed the read well enough but probably not enough to seek out other books by the author. That said, the enemies to lovers and fake dating tropes were done decently well.

Anna has moved back in with her dad after finding her partner in bed with a waitress from his restaurant, where she also worked. No home, no relationship, no job. She finds a posting online to go to manage a castle/summer home on Lake Como in Italy but the ad asks for a couple. She asks her childhood neighbor, Jake, the bane of existence who has had a hard time after his six month stint in prison (long story, it's complicated) to be her fake boyfriend so they can both get out of town and have a chance. He is go with the flow and she is Type A with lists for everything. They drive each other nuts but they get the job and all the time spent together faking a relationship leads to real feelings.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC! The book was released May 6/22 and my review will live in a story highlight called ARCReview on my Instagram.

I ended up enjoying this book more than I thought I would. Didn’t hurt that it is set in a castle on Lake Como! Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

The story is great an all but the amazing descriptions of the countryside in this book left me wanting to visit Italy. *Swoon.* Anna and Jake did not want to be here, not together anyway, but in this adorable fake lovers to will-they-wont-they, you will be rooting for them the entire way.

4/5 Stars

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter, One More Chapter for providing me with an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This made me very nostalgic for my trips to Italy and very jealous that I can't quit my job and move to Italy.
I loved the banter between the main characters, but I didn't like the miscommunication trope. The reasons for their not being together were not authentic to me so it did irritate me watching these interactions.

Overall, this was an enjoyable read but I felt like it just never hit its full potential. It was just lacking something.
It seemed like Freeman was trying to make the characters be extreme opposites. But I never felt like any of their actions matched those descriptions. And neither character seemed to actually ever fully dislike each other. So then getting together, even just as coworkers first, didn't seem like a dramatic storyline.
I did like how supportive they were of each other and it is a good reminder to just say how you're feeling to your partner!
In the end i think some deeper character development or stronger back stories would have made the book really work more.