Another adorable book that's perfect for summer! Not to mention I love a fake-dating trope. I loved both Story and Luca - they were great characters and I loved the development!

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a really fun book. I enjoyed it a lot. Reading it made me feel like I was on vacation!

All Roads Lead to Rome is the swoony romance we all need this summer. Set in Rome, this sweet story is reminiscent of old Hollywood romances that have you rooting for the main characters to live happily ever after. Watching Story and Luca,s fake dating relationship develop into something more as they explore Rome, attend glamorous parties and events, and share private moments, is pure joy.

Very cute Roman Holliday retelling! Super fun summer read! The scenery, the comedy, the romance! Such a great time!

Thank you Netgalley and Delacorte Romance for the advance copy! Unfortunately, I really struggled to get into this one. I was really excited for the premise but after reading was pretty disappointed with the execution.

I found the characters to lack the depth I was looking for, even in a YA novel. It just all felt very surface level and while the premise is fun and indulgent I tend to like the characters to be more grounded. I struggled with the way the love interest was written, especially his dialogue. He was supposed to be Scottish but his inflections seemed very American, aside from the odd (and very stereotypical) Scottish phrase.

Overall, didn’t end up being my thing, so I wouldn’t recommend.

I loved this book! This was a nice and sweet romance with emotional depth that drew me in and made me feel for the characters. Story was such an enjoyable main character to follow. I adored her bond with Luca, and it was wonderful to watch him encourage her to come out of her shell. The romance, combined with the trip component and character development, made for a very enjoyable read!

A fun, fake dating YA romance set in dreamy Rome, Italy.

Listen, fake dating is a top five trope for me, so I was super excited going in. I was absolutely hooked at the start by how quickly things moved, and was fully on board for the book.

I appreciated looking into the world of the rich and famous, especially in today's era of social media and the monetization of everything possible. It was refreshing to see addiction and substance abuse talked about so openly by the MCs.

That said, this book felt like the definition for "telling" rather than "showing", with much of the plot being told to the FMC, not actually happening to her. The pacing was off, in that some events that were supposedly incredibly significant for the FMC were glossed over, barely two paragraphs, while other conversations and such were drawn out for pages.

I also had a difficult time with the FMc, Astoria "Story" identifying so heavily as "Not Like Other Girls". It felt as though that was truly her only personality trait besides going to Princeton, living in Italy and being vegan. Much of the story just happens to her, with her agency rarely taking affect or mattering in the slightest. Definitely disappointing that she was reduced to so little in her own story.

I enjoyed this book for the most part and am definitely going to read more of Sabrina Fedel's work, but this isn't my favorite.

A huge thank you to Sabrina Fedel, Random House and NetGalley for the ARC!

For a YA love story, I really enjoyed this! I loved all the references to A Roman Holiday (one of my faves) and I would encourage any one who loves this book to watch that movie! This is the perfect companion! All the places they visited made Roma come to life right from the page.

Cute premise but execution wasn’t quite there. There were a few things that didn’t make sense to me: the need to fake date, the need to hide someone in rehab, the other kids not accepting her. Story herself is OK but the constant “she’s not like other girls” gets annoying. The chemistry wasn’t really there and this seemed longer than it needed to be. I loved the setting but the story just wasn’t for me.

Loved this fake dating rom com set in Rome even though it was no Roman Holiday and we'll dealing with a Scottish hero instead of an Italian one.

All Roads Lead to Rome is a standalone contemporary YA romance. Astoria is looking forward to graduation and enjoying living in Rome. But when she’s photographed with a celebrity, she finds herself in a spotlight she never asked for. She soon realizes that she might have more in common with the flirty celebrity than she ever imagined

This was a super cute read. I really enjoyed Astoria in this book - I feel like her anxieties were relatable and I liked her strength. Luca was such a fun, flirty character and I really enjoyed seeing him evolve throughout the book too. Rome is a beautiful city and I enjoyed that it was a setting for this fun book

Overall this was a four star read. I enjoyed the characters and the story, but would have loved some scenes from Luca’s PoV too! This book does touch on some heavy topics so please check triggers if you’re sensitive. This book did have a YA romance plot but no on page smut, so one flame for spice

A great summer escape read! Story and Luca’s adventures around Rome were so fun. I’m always here for a fake dating scheme.

Astoria is the daughter of an attorney for the American embassy in Rome. She’s looking forward to having a relaxing final summer in Rome before going off to Princeton in the fall. She gets the shock of a lifetime when Scottish royalty ask her to play the part of his girlfriend.

This was overall cute for YA. I like a good fake dating trope and the setting was amazing! I know students who would enjoy a book like this for sure!

I really loved the cover of this one and the idea of a fun time in Rome. I have always wanted to go there.

The book is told from one point-of-view and it comes from Astoria “Story”. She is living with her mom in Rome and will be off to college in the fall. It’s now or never to really see the sights! I really enjoyed seeing where the story went. I always like how paparazzi can cause some issues for celebrities in books and can change one person’s life. Their meeting was cute and very surprising! The scenery and tourists spots they visited made me feel like I was there. I am so ready for a vacation because of this book!

My problem and why this book wasn’t rated higher was the main character. She was fine for the most part but being the “not like other girls” got old and the way she treated people wasn’t any better than how some were treating her. She was better in the beginning but the status of her relationship and social media got the best of her and made her attitude worse in the second half. I get that it’s an important topic to have especially in a world filled with social media, but I just couldn’t stand her ha.

Overall, this was a decent book and I would definitely check out another book by this author.

Story and her mom live in Rome, Italy, and it's the summer before Story is set to head off to college at her parent's alma mater, Princeton University. Her life gets turned upside down when she stops to get gelato and runs right into a celebrity, Luca, and the popstar girlfriend he is trying to keep secret from the tabloids. Luca tells the paparazzi waiting outside they are mistaken and that he was just with Story, his tour guide. But when the paparazzi start following Story at school the next day and suggest they are dating, Luca realizes this is the perfect opportunity to control the narrative. After all, his "real" girlfriend is still in a relationship of her own, and the last thing she needs is bad press before releasing her next album while on tour. Luca tracks Story down and suggests they follow the tabloid's lead, striking a deal that she will act as his fake girlfriend for the remainder of the summer. What follows is a story of friendship, love, summer fun, and personal growth!

This was a really cute romance! The author did a great job showcasing Rome and its history without overwhelming the reader with too much detail. The pacing was spot on, and I was happy with the way the author wrapped up the book! I loved Story's character! From the start, she seemed like a bright, genuine girl who struggled to fit in with the other "dip" kids and kept to herself. It was really nice to see her character grow over time as she came out of her shell and gained the confidence to speak up for herself. As I was reading, this book reminded me of the Lizzie McGuire movie in all the best ways! Overall, I gave this book four stars and would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a fun summer romance with a fake dating trope!

Thank you to Netgalley, Random House Children's, and Delacorte Romance for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion!

All Roads Lead to Rome by Sabrina Fedel was cute, important and just really enjoyable!
This is one of the best romance novels of the year, and don’t you dare miss it!

Thank You NetGalley and Random House Children's/Delacorte Romance for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

Oh my gosh
This book is amazing. The story, the romance, the location, the characters, plus, its a trad published YA novel with zero F words or sexual content beyond kissing!! There is a smattering of other swear words though, FYI.

If you like Aubrey Hepburn, Rome, fake dating, influencers, Roman Holiday, history, swoony MMC, quality and strong FMC, great family dynamics and summer romances that make you sigh, read this book. Its adorable, in case I didnt make this clear.

This was the best YA romance I've read in a long time -- I know I said that recently but this will go down in my all time top 5 of the genre. I couldn't put it down. Such a great fake romance and I absolutely loved the setting and the characters. You will not be disappointed by this one -- so good!!!

All Roads Lead to Rome comes out next week on June 18, 2024, and you can purchase HERE!

Rome is sweltering as it waits patiently for the sun to set over the Spanish Steps. It's the kind of vapid heat that makes me wonder how the lions had the energy to leave their cages, let alone maul anyone.

I'm in John Keats's bedroom, the room he died in, overlooking the sprawling steps below. Horses sweat in the middle of Piazza di Spagna as they wait to give carriage rides, immovable in the small throng of late-May tourists. Most of the passersby don't even know this was Keats's house, despite the enormous crimson plaque on the side of it. They come here for selfies on the famous steps and never give John's shrine more than a careless glance. For me, the Keats-Shelley House is the best part of the neighborhood. I wonder if he stood exactly here, watching the people outside the way I do.

I really enjoyed this book! It was a fun read that brought me back to my recent trip to Rome. It was fun to travel around Rome with our M.C Story and Luca, it was like being there are over again.

Story was a great protagonist. I appreciated her unwavering beliefs, although at times she could be a bit frustrating. It was wonderful to see her character development throughout the book and I liked seeing her come out of her shell.

I will say that the I felt that the book dragged on a bit towards the end.
I found myself wishing the big moment would hurry along so we could get to the conclusion.

Nonetheless, I thought the ending was very satisfying and I really liked this book overall. Thank you, Random House Children’s, NetGalley, and Sabrina Fedel for allowing me the opportunity to review this book!

2.5⭐️ I have not read a contemporary YA romance in forever, mostly because I don’t vibe with those stories anymore. But this one just looked too cute to pass up. So I decided to give it a go, and this one sadly is thrown into that pile of “not my vibe”. It was cute, but it ultimately wasn’t for me.

A couple of things I didn’t enjoy just overshadowed the good things in this book for me. I really dislike when the author explains a conversation instead of people actually having dialogue. I also don’t enjoy when the author skips scenes in the book. For example, the MMC has her graduation but it was half a page long. It was this huge deal, and it was almost completely skipped over. And that happened every chapter. The event starts, and then all of a sudden ends in one paragraph. So all this book was, was explained conversations and situations and that was about it. And honestly nothing really happened in it either. It was almost like the FMC was writing in her journal. Just thoughts here and there and then some conversations. Which frankly made it boring for me to read.

Another thing that was unfortunate was just the characters in general. They were so flat and boring and literally had no chemistry or tension. That is what you need in a book with fake dating, and I just felt like there was none of that.

The whole idea of this book was really cute, fake dating in an Italian setting, but I think it was just poorly executed. But that is just my opinion. You full on could enjoy it cause there were some things that were cute. Ultimately it wasn’t enough for me. I will not be picking up another YA contemporary romance ever again. Probably.

Okay, one last thing to end on a good positive note. The love confession was adorable and the story ended really well for Luca and Story. And I’m grateful this book stayed YA. There wasn’t a hint of spice, so that was a plus. And honestly, the target audience for this book, young adults, would probably eat this story up.

Thank you to Netgalley, the author, and publisher for the complimentary copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.