I couldn't get past the 21% mark for this book, which was really disappointing because I was so excited to get whisked away to Sicily with Gillian.
At this point in the book, Gillian has discovered that her husband has been cheating on her and every other page is Gillian wallowing. At around the 19% mark she started disparaging her size 18-20 figure and wondering if that was the reason her husband took up with a much younger, super thin, woman.
While it's realistic that a person would wallow after finding out their spouse was cheating on them, but in a book, it really bogs things down.
Also, within a couple hours of this earth-shattering discovery, there's a new love interest introduced and that just seemed ridiculously rushed. The wallowing was too long, the potential love was too fast. I couldn't continue.
By this point in the story, there was no inkling of a plot point to propel the story forward.
My TBR list is too long to keep going with a book that hasn't totally immersed me in its world by this point.
I had such high hopes for a fun romp through Sicily, but that wasn't at all what I got in this book.

Fun, quick and easy escapist story that kept me turning the pages and wondering what would happen next. Readers will be packing their bags, itchy for a trip to beautiful Sicily.

Gillian come to sicily to surprise her husband and get surprise back, her husband cheat on her and got engage to another woman. Near 40, divorce a head, the daughter already work aboard, Gillian doesnt have reason to back to UK. She enjoy her time in beautiful Sicily and try to think the next step. I love how strong Gillian, she ready to move on and glow up and plan what she want to do. The back and forth drama with Mattia really annoy me. I like how Gillian not judge with her friends decision even when she disagree.

Thank you to NetGalley for provide this book, it is pleasure to review this book.

#OneSummerInSicily #NancyBarone #AriaAries #NetGalley #ARC

I really loved the idea of this book and anything tied to Europe, especially a summer in Italy. 🇮🇹 ☀️The cover was so cute so I naturally gravitated towards a summer romance.

However, I found the lead character, Gillian, really hard to connect to.

She was very self deprecating and her negative self talk never really went away throughout the book and there was no real character development for her.

She flies to Sicily to surprise her husband and finds him with another woman. She decides to stay in Sicily for a couple of weeks and I did love the small island setting!

I did like the romantic relationship development with Gillian in the book until the last 15-20%. There was too much miscommunication for me and it was a little cringey when they reunited 😬

Overall, this was set up to be the perfect sweet, summer romance and although it did have a great setting and made me dream of Italy, it felt flat for me character wise and just couldn’t get into 🤷🏼‍♀️

This book gave me insane wanderlust...between the beautiful descriptions of Sicily itself, and the storyline of self love, found family and romance, this book was a lovely summer read. I'll be going through the pros and cons of this book, with no major spoilers ahead. Thank you NetGalley for sending me this book in exchange for my honest review. Without further ado, andiamo!

Pros of One Summer In Sicily by Nancy Barone


Sicily

So, for those of you that have followed me for a while know that a large portion of my family is from Sicily, including my grandparents who taught me the dialect since I was a kid. I loved reading about the Sicilian culture, food, language and just way of living as it made me think of my own family. The way the main character Gillian accepts the Sicilian life as the story progresses is very beautiful, as her new found family shows her the best way to enjoy la dolce vita. I'll read quite honestly anything that's based in Sicily, but it helps tremendously that this story was so loveable and rather than picking on Sicilian and Italian stereotypes, it shows the best parts of the island and the country as a whole. I also love how Gillian is an Italian-Canadian, much like the author and myself. It makes the story so much more relatable, and I love that.


Mattia

Oh boy, did I ever like Mattia. You can't go wrong with an extremely charismatic Sicilian leading man, and Mattia delivered the best book boyfriend lines a woman could ask for. He was patient, encouraging, a little bit mysterious, charming and just overall dreamy. He was the type of male lead to pull for, and quite honestly the complete opposite of another male lead from another Italian based book that I recently read. Mattia had me swooning, as was Gillian! He was very loveable, Ms. Barone did a great job making him so endearing.


Gillian's Journey

I love a good rags to riches story, and Gillian's - as unorthodox as it was - was definitely a climb. After 20 something years of marriage, Gillian finds out that her husband Tony has been cheating and naturally she leaves him, although reluctantly at first as she settles into a life without him. She meets Sandra and Mattia, who take her in and help her get over her recent divorce. Gillian mentions several times that she's a plus sized woman, and that because of that her ex-husband made her feel poorly for it, whereas a certain Sicilian architect never seems to bat an eye at the fact that Gillian is a size 18. She learns to accept her body for what it is and rather than cover up like she's been doing for the longest time, she starts wearing flattering clothes, as well as a trip to the salon to make her feel like a new woman. As clumsy as Gillian is, she's also kind of like a caterpillar that's blossomed into a butterfly after spending so much time in Sicily and gaining some self confidence. She often mentions how she can't believe an attractive man who's heavily desired by basically the entire island is interested in her, and I feel like that just speaks to a lot of the plus sized girls out there who have felt the same thing. Gillian grows and learns to love herself, those around her and the new life she's made for herself, and that alone is a beautiful thing.


Cons of One Summer In Sicily by Nancy Barone


Empty Spaces

I loved this story, however, I found that there were many empty spaces in the book that kind of ran on a bit, but I kept reading of course because I was captivated by the story itself and one of the bigger reasons, I was so curious as to what Mattia's secret was! And so, I read on about minor subtopics that seemed to drag on for a bit, but it kind of made it feel more realistic in a way; like I was reading a journal of someone who actually was living in the book.

Overall, this book was very enjoyable, and I would definitely recommend it to friends, family and readers.

Have you read One Summer In Sicily by Nancy Barone? Do you want to? Let's have a conversation!

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A presto,

Melissa

I really wanted to like this book - it had it's likable moments - but overall I was underwhelmed. I think the main characters experiences are supposed to come off funny, but I found some of them just embarrassing.

It's about a 40-something mom who is looking to bring the pizazz back into her marriage, so steals away to surprise her husband who is in Italy for a conference. They have a grown daughter who seems to take mum for granted and has moved into adulthood starting her life in Europe. Ultimately, the surprise is on Gillian (the wife/mom) when she catches her husband in an affair that's so serious he's looking to move on and marry his mistress, Gillian spirals and one clumsy moment rolls into another. She meets some friends along the way and starts to appreciate and accept herself along the way.

I found Gillian very naive and hard on herself and found this aspect of the character took away from the story. She's constantly doubting herself. I can understand losing yourself along the way of marriage and child rearing, but this character seemed to have no personal boundaries.

Overall, it won't be the first pick I recommend.

#indigoemployee

This book is the perfect beach read. Nancy skillfully writes a lighthearted masterpiece. Gillian is being conned by her husband, and I feel so sorry for her. While this is unpleasant, it's a sad reality, and this book is a good representation of problematic men. I devoured it in a day. It's definitely a book to look out for.

Absolutely fantastic plot! Could not put the book down once I began reading it. Cannot wait for it to be released. Will recommend it to everyone I know!

Not only is this book cover so colorful and fun, but the story of Gillian finding herself again and making a new life after a mishap was heart-felt and warm. I would say this is a fun romance book that jumps right into the story from the start. You see how Gillian takes a hard life event and turns it around, but not without some bumps along the road.

One Summer in Sicily was such a fun read! I loved the romance, the characters and I especially loved the setting. I was able to imagine myself relaxing on the beaches of Sicily and experiencing everything that Gillian was experiencing. I always love stories where the ladies get their mojo back, especially after what Gillian went through with her husband of 25 years! Overall, this is one of those perfect summer reads that I highly recommend.

I enjoyed the read of Gillian going to surprise her husband to find out he is having an affair! Enjoyed how she tries to move on and doing things her way! A good read! Look forward to more from this author.

I liked this book, i did struggle with the first few chapters but it was an interesting story subject. I like the book cover that is what caught my eye.

3/5 stars

I wanted to love this book. The synopsis felt promising. Stories based in Italy always feel dreamy to me. I believe Nancy Barone did an impeccable job painting the scene. I felt like I was in Gilly’s shoes, walking the streets of Lipari. I could feel Gilly’s heartbreak upon finding her husband in the arms of another lover. I could feel her dread when trying to find clothing that fit her. I could smell the patisseries and only dream of indulging in the delectable desserts. The picture of Lipari and being in Italian culture was so present. It felt almost magical.

However, while that was amazing… I simply could not seem to get into this story for a few reasons. I believe Gilly may be one of my least favorite main characters that I have read about in the past few years. The constant self deprecation. The never ending commentary about food and her weight began to fuel this book in its entirety. It felt like every other page Gilly was commentating about her weight. It felt relatable for a little while but it became redundant.

I also could not build a connection to any of the characters in the story. I felt there was a major lack of character development in the whole novel. I didn’t find myself attached to anyone. My favorite was probably Diana (aka woofy).

I’d recommend this story to readers who enjoy:
-novels based in Italy
-stories involving a cheating spouse and the finding the strength to overcome it.
-a women rediscovering herself
-cornettos

Sadly, this book was not my favorite but I am happy for those who thoroughly enjoyed it! It paints a lovely picture of Italy and really makes you crave a good cannoli!

Thank you Nancy Barone, Aria and NetGalley for providing me an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you Aries Fiction and Netgalley for sending me this awesome read. What a way to kick off summer. I was excited about this read because Nancy Barone gets down to meat of her books immediately and it keeps me hooked. The interesting story of Gillian a woman who went to Sicily to surprise her husband not only found him cheating but also engaged to someone else! I loved the resilience in starting over and finding new love. A must read.

Thank you NetGalley and Nancy Barbie for this ARC.
I really wanted to love this book but I didn’t.

Gillian finds her husband of 25 years cheating on her. Gillian has a lot to figure out and decides to do it in Sicily. I live a good “finding myself” story.

Not awful at all just not for me.

Not one of my favourites unfortunately. I wasn’t keen on the writing style with lots of extra details put in brackets unnecessarily and I just couldn’t warm to the main character. It was like the author wasn’t sure how old she was meant to be, at times she acted like she was in her 20s and then at others like she was in her 40s or 50s! And I got fed up with her constantly putting herself down about being overweight yet she didn’t care in the next breath. Not one I’d recommend.

Thank you to the publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this arc.

Overall, I don’t feel I was the targeted audience for this book. I felt the writing just wasn’t my ideal style to read. I think the author tried really hard to make Gillian relatable to the audience, and she just wasn’t for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Nancy Barone for this advance readers copy! I saw the cover and the synopsis and knew I had to read it ASAP! 😍

Gillan, a woman looking to suprise her husband on his work trip in Italy, finds out he's having an affair! 😱 She quickly, and forcefully, moves on in life, makes new friends, and chances, all while staying in Italy.

It's such a funny and quirky read, I honestly couldn't put it down. However, I felt like the writing was a bit all over the place and rather redundant. The characters could have used more depth as well, but it still didn't take the enjoyment away

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5477943637

I enjoyed this book! I loved reading about Gillian’s journey and her work to accept and love herself as she is. It is relatable and meaningful.

This is a very sweet second chance rom-com about a woman finding herself after heartbreak. Gillian finds her husband is cheating on her after flying to Sicily to surprise him. Instead of mopping and wallowing in self pity too much, she steps outside her comfort zone and tries new things. Little does she expect to find love and friendship in a new place, new world, but she does.
I loved Mattia as a character, and Sandra. Gillian left room to be desired for me personally, but even still, she was a stronger character than I wouldve been.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher and Netgalley for an honest review.. This was the first time I read anything from Nancy Barone. I will be looking into more of her writings. I will recommend this to all the second chance readers and romance readers.