I've always enjoyed Sue Moorcroft's books and this was no exception. A perfect summer holiday book to escape with. Set in on an island off the coast of sunny Sicily, Ursula, the main female character is trying to escape her failed marriage and husband. All the usual misunderstandings and frustrations with Alfio who has returned to the island to help his mother. Plenty of secrets unfold along the way with some heartwarming moments with wonderful descriptions of the island and believable characters.

While getting over a marriage breakdown, Ursula spends a summer in Sicily. She is helping out Agata, who is recovering from an operation and is unable to keep her hotel running on her own. Alfio gets his nose put out of joint, when he decides to come back home to help and finds Ursula in the 'best' room. They initially have a frosty relationship.
Ursula's main reason for coming to Italy was to study ceramics and I loved how her artistic flair as a tattoo artist is woven into her designs. Her tutor is very impressed with her skill.
The sights and smells of Sicily are wrapped round you whilst you read. You really imagine that you've taken a holiday yourself.
I absolutely loved this book.

A complex relationship family drama set predominately in Sicily. The author explores contemporary issues through believably flawed characters with insight and sensitivity. The setting is well described, but what makes this so engaging is the family and friendship dynamics and the gentle romance. I like the main characters and their realistic emotional battles to overcome internal and external conflicts and the authentic family relationships the author creates.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

A failed relationship, physical and psychological issues are in the offering for Sue Moorcroft’s latest book. Fear not, there is plenty of opportunity to basque in the sun on An Italian Island Summer, even through the trials and tribulations that life throws at the characters.

An Italian Summer takes readers deep into the lives. Ursula’s life is changing. She is going through a breakup from her husband and the tattoo parlour where she works is closing down, although in heart of hearts, there is a little relief there. She makes some huge decisions and makes the move to an Italian island.
A hotel is found, but isn’t doing very well. It’s ran by Agata and her daughter. Her son had been in Spain and now has had to return, so his life is also in a period of change, except the jobs he thought he was required to be returning to are taken already. Cue some tensions.
It doesn’t all go swimmingly for Ursula either, with that and her ex-husband not being the type to let go so easily.

Complicated lives in a beautiful setting of small hotels, marinas, eateries makes for good reading. The book draws you into all the atmosphere and sites the picturesque island has to provide, as well as the people on it and arriving on it.

It is a lovely book to sit in the great outdoors to read and enjoy summer sun giving heat to your body as the book warms your heart.

This book looks absolutely lovely! It’s the perfect piece of escapism to warmer climates, blue seas and plenty of romance! We first meet Ursula Quinn when she is visiting her parents in Ireland. Her relationship has broken down and she no longer has a job. Her parents try to persuade Ursula to stay with them for a while, but she has other plans – heading to Italy to learn and study ceramics! We also meet Alfio, who has headed home to Italy to help out his mother and sister with running their hotel. Here’s where Alfio and Ursula first meet, and it’s safe to say that Alfio finds his nose put out of joint slightly when he discovers his mother has given Ursula his job!

This was such a delightful read. You can’t help but be drawn into Ursula and Alfio’s storyline straight away. They are both such likeable characters and I loved following their developing relationship! The location sounded amazing, and as I read I could just imagine booking into the little family run hotel to experience all the delights that it and the local area had to offer!

There was plenty of romance between the pages, and lots of friendships, family and life dramas. The supporting characters were all just as likeable, and I loved all the little storylines running through the book. This was a thoroughly enjoyable read which would make the perfect summer book! Would recommend!

This was a nice summer read. Didn’t enjoy this as much as some of Sue’s previous books, I just didn’t quite warm to the characters.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for my review

I love Sue's writing! Two years ago I read and loved Under the Italian Sun where Zia went to Italy and we also met her best friend Ursula. This book, An Italian Island Summer is Ursula's story. I loved her when we first met her, a strong young Irish woman living in the UK and I love her even more know that I have gotten to know her better. I could easily picture being friends with her.

After Ursula's marriage, job and home situation all fall apart she is offered the opportunity to go to Italy for the summer and ends up taking it. Both Ursula, the family she meets there and the whole setting were described so brilliantly that I felt like I had been there. The character development was amazing making me feel what they were feeling through the ups and downs of new adventures, the past trying to catch up with Ursula and family secrets coming out. I couldn't wait to see what both Ursula and Alfio would decide about their careers and futures and whether they could make it together!

Ursula’s marriage has broken down but sometimes life needs a change Ursula has an opportunity to work in Sicily where she meets Alfio, and although the two do not see eye to eye at first they both have hurdles they need to overcome and they might just be able to do this together.

Moorcroft writes another beautiful read that will make your heart feel that little bit warmer by the end. These are character’s that I really enjoyed reading about, and whom had massive growth throughout the novel.

This author is one of my go-to reads, and never disappoints.

Thanks to netgalley for the chance to read this book.

Ursula Quinn is offered to spend the summer working at a hotel on an island in Sicily following the break up of her marriage. Alfio the son of the family gave up his life in Barcelona to help his mother and sister to keep the hotel afloat. He isn’t happy with the interference from Ursula and she isn’t impressed with his attitude towards her. They begin to spend more and more time together and discover they are good together. Ursula’s past starts to resurface at the same time as an unexpected offer that make Alfio question his future. Can they put their past behind them and work together for a stable future.

I always enjoy a good Sue Moorcroft book and this one is no exception, I loved it!
We meet Ursula Quinn, who is 32, divorced and originally from Dublin, but now living in Brighton, England. The family is gathered in Dublin, so we meet Ursula’s siblings Finola, Sorcha and Caden and their parents Stanley and Colleen.
Meanwhile in Italy, we meet Alfio who is 38. After his father died when Alfio was eighteen, his mother Agata and sister Nanda (a single mum to baby daughter Marilu) have been running the family hotel – the Residenza dei Tringali in Sicily, Italy.
Ursula wants to study ceramics in Italy and ends up working at the hotel.
I’m not going to tell you anything else about the plot, because I want you to read it yourself, but it’s much more than just a romantic novel. There are fascinating family dynamics going on, ex-partners to deal with, a whole load of secrets and a gorgeous stray cat called Camocat.
I’m not keen on books that are set in glamorous locations with rich characters who don’t seen real. But this book isn’t like that at all. Yes, it’s set in a beautiful part of Italy and I enjoyed my literary trip there through this book, but the characters are all authentic, with health issues and relationship problems. I’d love to meet both families and have a good old chat with them, I loved them all.
The ceramics lessons reminded me of The Great Pottery Throw Down, which is one of my favourite programmes, so I really enjoyed that too.
Overall, it was an absolute joy to read – easy to get into, great characters, a beautiful setting, lots going on and it was a book I read in a couple of days, which shows how much I enjoyed it. Here’s to the next Sue Moorcroft triumph!

I absolutely loved this beautiful summer story, which is set in Italy. The main character is Ursula, who goes back to Ireland to help her get over the end of her marriage. She wants to go to Italy, to practice her ceramics, when her uncle gives her the opportunity to go there to help an italian family who have a hotel there. She travels there and meets Alfio and his family, and they all get on well together. However, will this last, since there seems to be something brewing that could cause trouble.

I really loved the setting of this book, the atmosphere, the characters, and the story. I recommend this book highly, as it is just amazing, and it is the perfect holiday read!

Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for a copy of this book.

An Italian Island Summer is a wonderful holiday read that will have you dreaming of going to Sicily to enjoy the summer under azure skies. This book is a standalone read, but as with all Sue Moorcroft there are always a few familiar faces, and in this book Ursula, the main character, was someone who had appeared as a minor character in Under the Italian Sun.

Ursula is such a lovely protagonist, kind and helpful, but with a shattered past life with her ex-husband Stephan. When her job as a tattooist comes to an end she decides to seize the moment and learn how to be a ceramist, using her artistic skills to decorate ceramics. Working in a hotel for room and board, to allow time to attend ceramics classes seems the perfect opportunity so she heads to a small hotel on a Sicilian island. When she first meets Alfio, whose family owns the hotel she finds herself irritated by his grumpy personality, but they soon become friends and a slow burn romance takes place between them.

The path of love does not always run smoothly, and Alfio has a past in Barcelona to address, while Ursula is not only dealing with family issues that are intertwined with secrets, she is also having to contend with an ex-husband who does not want to relinquish the control he had over her.

The location was beautifully described, and it really made me want to head on the next flight to Sicily!

An Italian Island Summer was a fabulous summer read with a sizzling slow-burn of a romance, family secrets and interesting twists along the way.

Sue Moorcroft writes stories that are romances but so much more. The people,e leap from the page, the setting described so you can see them in your mind, and you always learn something. This time Ursula, friend of Zia in Under the Italian Sun, tells her story. She has left her controlling husband and come to Sicily to study ceramics, helping out in Agata's hotel to help pay her way. At first, Agata's son, Alfio, doesn't seem to like her but gradually they start to get on.
A great summer read, just right for sunbathing by the pool or in the garden.

An Italian Island Summer by Sue Moorcroft

I received an advance review copy for free thanks to Rachel's Random Resources and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Blurb

Will one summer in Sicily change her life for ever? After her marriage falls apart, Ursula Quinn is offered the chance to spend the summer working at a hotel on a beautiful island off the coast of Sicily, Italy. Excited by a new adventure, she sets off at once. At Residenza dei Tringali, Ursula receives a warm welcome from everyone except Alfio , son of the Tringali family. He gave up his life in Barcelona to help his mother Agata with the ailing business, and is frustrated with Ursula’s interference – and she in turn is less than impressed with his attitude. As they spend more time together, though, they begin to see each other in a different light. But what with Ursula’s ex-husband on her tail, family secrets surfacing and an unexpected offer that makes Alfio question his whole life, there’s plenty to distract them from one another. Can she face her past and he his future, and together make the most of their Sicilian summer?

My Opinion

Ursula has lost her job and flat in quick succession due to no fault of her own, so she decided that it is time for a change. In exchange for working in the B&B, she has been offered free accommodation on the island of Sicily. Whilst staying in Sicily, Ursula has the opportunity to learn more about ceramics. Can her summer in Sicily lead to the changes she is looking for?

This was such a lovely read that whisks you away to Italy. This is going to make for a great holiday read. If you have read any previous books by Sue Moorcroft then you will know what to expect from this book.

Rating: 4/5

Ursula took the opportunity to get away from the effects of a broken relationship and head to work in a hotel on a beautiful island off the coast of Sicily. In return for working at Residenza dei Tringali, she got bed and board and in her spare time she pursued a new passion of painting on ceramics. She also had a good relationship with the widowed Mrs Tingali and her daughter, a new mom.

When the Alfio Tringali, moved back to the island, he was initially very standoffish with Ursula but slowly they warmed to each other and began to spend more time together. That was until, Ursula got the terrible shock of seeing her father, newly separted from her Mum, land at Residenza dei Tringali. She realized that there were things happening around her that she had no clue about.

How she copes with this information and how her relationship not just with the Tringalis but with her own family undergoes a whole new perspective forms a part of this story. There’s also choices and decisions that Alfio and his family must make with regard to the hotel and their futures. This throws up a lot of questions about values – family, wealth, interpendence, relationships – dealt with a lot of insight by the author.

A riveting story about a woman finding and reinventing herself and in the process finding love and redefining family.

What a really fabulous summer story this is. Set in a family-run hotel in Sicily, Ursula is escaping an unhappy past and looking forward to spending the summer studying ceramic painting with a Sicilian master. Love isn’t part of the equation at all, but since when did anything go to plan in a holiday romance novel?

Sue Moorcroft has woven a beautifully tangled web of two families here, one Irish and one Sicilian, a combination which was always going to end in fireworks and, as usual, is not afraid to explore some difficult and emotive topics in her writing, but always done with a light and deft touch. It’s a difficult combination to get right when you are trying to do justice to a tough topic but deliver the kind of easy reading people are looking for in a summer book. Sue is an experienced master herself at this, though, as her regular readers will know and her latest book doesn’t disappoint in this regard.

I really enjoyed getting to know Ursula, who we have met as a supporting character in a previous novel, better and her getting her own love story. She is a woman who has been hurt and has thrown up a protective shell around her heart, but it is easy to warm to her regardless because her true kindness is shown in her interactions with the people around her who aren’t potential partners in a romantic sense. And the cat, of course! She is a little bit unconventional and I found that very appealing.

Alfio was always going to be an attractive proposition, just by dint of being Italian, but Sue gives him much more depth than that. There is just as much exploration of the story from his perspective, so we learn all of his motivations and emotions just as deeply as Ursula’s. It is a real story of equal and I was fully invested in their relationship.

Everything about this story was exactly what I look for in a holiday romance. An exploration of a beautiful part of the world and its customs and history. Well-rounded and compelling characters. Drama and emotion and a dive into relationships of all kinds, not just romantic. And, above all, an entertaining story. Sue Moorcroft has knocked it out of the park again and I have no hesitation in recommending this as the perfect beach read for this summer.

I loved this – loved Ursula, Alfio, grumpy Fabio and even Ursula’s mam (who, if truth be told, brought a lot of what happened upon herself but finally seemed willing to take some responsibility for that … ooh, I’ve digressed!)

So, back to the story – aside from two very lovely and typical families (one in Ireland, the other in Sicily) there was little that might have connected them until Ursula’s uncle “thought” he was helping by getting his niece somewhere to stay and work while she put her life back together again after a tough time. Bless him, but then again, he wasn’t wrong – as you’ll find out when you get pulled into this story as I was.

Beautiful Sicily, characters you’ll want to root for (apart from Stephan) and a charming blend of artisanship, family loyalties and what it means to be part of something that is bigger than yourself.

Thwarted romance, lost opportunities, old grievances and a chance to start afresh are what this story brings to the reader, proof if ever it were needed that there is something to be said for taking that leap of faith, trusting in yourself and sometimes letting your heart rule your head. I enjoyed how the author kept hurling obstacles at her characters, she didn’t make their choices easy, but she did make them believable … and compelling reading to boot. And if you’d never wanted to visit Sicily before, you will after reading this, and if you’re anything like me, you’ll want to read more from this author too.

I love reading a Sue Moorcroft book, I know I’m guaranteed and great read and will feel better for it, An Italian Island Summer takes us to Sicily, my parents have visited here and I know how wonderful the place is, if I didn’t want to go before, I definitely do now ! The story is wonderful, a delight to read and as warm as the weather in Italy, you will definitely be addicted just like me.

Our main characters are Ursula and Alfio, Ursula is a tattooist and also an amateur ceramics artiste. Alfio has given up his career and life in Barcelona to help with his mother’s recovery after illness and to help the family business. Both of them clash initially, but as the book goes on they start to connect and I loved the slow-burn romance between them.

As with any story you know the path won’t run smoothly and there are misunderstandings, issues and a secret ahead, Alfio has a hard decision to make and Ursula although abrupt at the start needs to lead to trust herself. Sue Moorcroft always creates such realistic characters that you connect with and makes you want to delve in and learn more.

An Italian Island Summer is a wonderful piece of escapism , not to say it doesn’t deal with serious issues, but you know you will get a happy outcome, the perfect summer read, as even if you're stuck and can’t get abroad, the weather lets you down, you know you’ll find sun and warmth in the pages of this book.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

After a disastrous marriage break-up Ursula Quinn escapes to the beautiful Italian island of Ortigia in Sicily to take up the offer of boarding at Residenza dei Tringali in return for helping with general hotel duties. This leaves Ursula time to explore her gift for creating ceramics and experiencing tutelage with a talented ceramist. All seems to be going well until Alfio, the son of the hotelier arrives home, and he and Ursula don't get off to the best of starts but gradually the atmosphere between them softens and Ursula soon finds her life heading in an unexpected direction.

I loved the rapport between Ursula and Alfio which helps to bring a real feeling of Italian sunshine to what is, in effect, a lovely, love story. Alongside the romantic element of the story there's also lots of complicated family dynamics to contend with but that's what this author does so well, her characters are always believable with real life issues which sometimes get in the way of life and love. The wonderfully quaint island of Ortigia comes alive in the beautiful descriptions of life on the island. The sights, sounds and aromas of an Italian summer are imaginatively recreated so that it really does feel like you are sitting alongside Ursula and Alfio as they sip ice cool Birra Moretti, relishing the cool of a Sicilian evening.

Beautifully written as all these author's stories are An Italian Island Summer is a perfect summer read, ideal for long, lazy afternoons in the garden.

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Whether you're going on holiday, to the beach, or just sitting in the back garden with your feet in the padding pool...This is the read you need!

Whisked away to Sicily we head to the Residenza dei Tringali, where we meet Ursula Quinn. Ursula's marriage has broken down, so she's come to sunny Sicily to spend the summer working at Hotel Tringali. Would anyone actually turn an offer like that down?

Moorcroft writes wonderful heartwarming, feel-good fiction. Her characters feel like friends and there's always a happy ending instore for us.

An Italian Island Summer is thoroughly enjoyable, easy to read and everything wonderful.