A very enjoyable quick read. Read this on my way to Greece and it really was just the thing to put me in the right frame of mind to enjoy the beauty of the small island I was staying at. This book was so joyful as it highlighted the power of friendship, giving, love, and acceptance. Nothing overly complex in this one.

The premise of this book had me ready to dive in, but then as I kept reading, it just got a bit more and more off base/not what I was expecting.

The writing was a bit all over the place, some parts were rushed, some parts lacked development, and honestly, the plot was somewhere?

There were all the ingredients for an amazing story, but somehow this one just missed the mark.

Parts I really enjoyed - the talking about the island/Greece and then the Greek dishes/cooking.

Thank you NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for my DRC.

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

I enjoyed this book a lot. It was great!

The adventure of Jory is a wonderful story of making new friends and trying new things. I was so happy with the progress of the characters and the bits of magic interspersed. I am excited to read Erin's next novel!

Thank you NetGalley & Grand Central Publishing for early access to this book. The magical realism makes for a unique story of travel, friendship and finding. The author did a great job bringing the village and island to life. I loved the characters stories and their unique gifts, how everything and everyone were brought together made for a fun and light summer read.

A charming read taking place on the island of Naxos in Greece … with a bit of magic mixed in. I enjoyed the cooking and travel aspects of this book..

The beginning of this book started nicely with an adventurous young woman arriving at an unvisited, cute, little Greek island… and ended with me feeling a bit cringey. Let me explain.

Jory is a young woman who is always moving around, traveling the world, and apparently, magically bringing a sense of home to everyone she meets. She ends up on a quaint and sheltered little island in Greece where the women of the town have magical gifts, they acquired from their ancestors drinking from a hidden stream. It’s a lot. She is picked up by a very young widow who takes her to her unopened inn and then proceeds to ignore her. The story then steers towards a hunky man who Jory “zaps” with and the rest of a cheesy, romance story ensues.

The pacing in this book was appropriate in some settings, and then wildly hurried in others. The relationships felt simulated and forced. The descriptions of the island were beautiful, but the characters were so difficult to relate to and were deeply uninteresting. It felt like a very first draft of a Hallmark movie.

Content Warning: talk of death and loss of loved ones, sexual content (closed door)

Would I Recommend: I can see people loving this if they want a mechanical romance. However, I have read better books to recommend.

2 Stars

I was so thankful to have the opportunity to read an ARC of The Secrets of the Little Greek Taverna! The cover of this book was magical, and the story did not disappoint. I enjoyed following the stories of all of the characters, but most especially Jory, Cress, and Mago as they worked together to help Cress's dream come true. I zipped right through this book because it was such an enjoyable read!

While the premise made it seem exactly up my alley, it didn't meet my expectations. It has the perfect setting for a cozy fantasy and there were moments when it was a beautiful story about loss, friendship and love however it always felt a bit rushed and out of place. Another thing that took me out of the story were mentions of modern technology and social media - it just didn't fit the vibe of the story.

This is a cute book, but not particularly deep or memorable to me. I love books set in Greece so I was excited to pick this one up. There's a touch of magical realism which is fun too.

Marjory "Jory" St James travels the world, going where she can be of help and then moving on to the next place. When she feels the island of Naxos calling, she leaves her phone and guidebook behind and heads off. She ends up as the first guest at Cressida's guest house, and maybe the answer to what Cressida needs to pull herself up and out of her grief after the loss of her husband. With the help (and hindrance) of some of the other residents, Jory helps Cressida move towards opening her taverna. And what about the handsome man she meets? Is he the one that might make Jory stay in one place?

I never really warmed to any of the characters, I didn't think they were extremely well developed. There were too many of them, and we brush from one to the next without really knowing the depth of their stories. Honestly, I never really liked Jory either. She seemed way too full of herself and used her "calling" as an excuse to not get too close to anyone for too long. The real reasons behind this were brushed on, but never fully fleshed out.

If you're looking for a light, fun beach read, then this is it. Just don't expect anything particularly deep.

This was a feel good book set in Greece. Wonderful descriptions of Greek food and travel. A touch of magical realism and a great focus of friendship.

If you like Chocolát and Like Water for Chocolate, you’ll thoroughly enjoy this debut novel with a vein of magical realism running through it. A few generations back, a group of women in the village of Potamia on the small Greek island of Naxos drank from an elusive spring and magical things began to happen. This is the story of their female descendants.

Although she doesn’t believe in fate, American Marjory (Jory) finds herself in Potamia after a brochure with a beautiful wooden yacht calls to her. There she meets Cressida, a young widow who owns the guesthouse and taverna (that never opened following her husband’s tragic death) who has a gift for imbuing her baked goods with whatever emotion she’s feeling at the time, her older neighbor Mago who sews stunning garments and other pieces based on the color waves that speak to her and guide her hand, the surly, but beautiful Nefeli who has a sixth sense that allows her to anticipate future events (although she’s incapable of seeing the truth in her own marriage), and a bevy of friendly and quirky villagers who add color and a certain mystique. In this story, this group of women, with help from Jory who travels when inspiration strikes and creates a sense of home wherever she lands, form an unexpected friendship and work together to finally open the taverna and guesthouse. And then there’s the mysterious Shane, the handsome, charming American Jory meets and instantly feels a “sizzle” with.

Over the course of one summer, Cressida moves beyond her profound grief, Mago faces her fears and embraces her future, Nefeli reaches her breaking point, and Jory learns the true meaning of home and wrestles with her instinct to leave. Although the closed door romance between Jory and Shane is the primary one, the focus is on the unlikely female friendships and the over-riding sense of “home.” Personally, I would have preferred multiple narrators (Cressida, Jory, and Mago) rather than third person since, many times, the narrative became bogged down with descriptions, but this was a minor flaw in an otherwise delightful, delicious tale.

We follow Jory to a small Greek village called Patamia where small magic takes place. This was such a fun, cozy travel story. Jory gets a feeling in her gut that tells her to leave and she goes on an adventure. In this adventure she not only makes lasting friends but finds a man with her same need to travel. I loved the relationships that formed and the small village life. The ending tied up everything nicely.
I also really enjoyed the travel guide and places and adventures that the author shared. The recipe at the end was also a fun touch. Overall this was a fun read that I would recommend.

What to expect:
*Adventure
*Found family
*Romance (light)

**Thank you NetGalley, Grand Central Publishing and Erin Palmisano for this arc.

Reading The Secrets of the Little Greek Taverna makes me think of blue skies and ocean breezes. Jory St. James loves to travel. On a whim, she travels to the Greek Island of Naxos to discover friendships, great food, romance, and a touch of magic. I enjoyed reading this book. Thanks to author Erin Palmisano, Grand Central Publishing, and NetGalley. I received a complimentary copy of this ebook. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

Fun read! It went fairly quickly. Greta storyline about friendship, finding your way and romance. Perfect book to read at the beach, on vacation or just for fun.

Thank you to Grand Central Publishing and netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest opinion. This book was amazing. It had the perfect mix of globetrotting, magic, friendship and romance. I felt like I was watching a hallmark movies and mystery movie. I was hooked after the first chapter and I became one with the island and the characters. It had all the pieces I love for a cozy book. It wasn't action packed, but the dialog and story telling are top notch. Can't wait to read more of this author. Put this on your TBR, you're welcome.

I DNF'd this book at 50%.

This book would be a good fit for romance, food, and travel readers.

I could not get stuck into this book. The writing was stilted and dull, and most of the dialogue felt unnatural and didn't flow. The characters all had one main emotion or thought that drove them, and very little else, so it was difficult to connect or care about any of the characters. The main conflicts of the three main characters are resolved halfway through the book. The pacing is so fast, and I wanted more time spent developing the characters' relationships, and personal growth. It feels like big things are happening before you've had a chance to understand the risks, implications or emotions behind them.

My biggest concern with this book is the magical realism element. While the characters all have 'gifts', there is no explanation or exploration of those gifts. You are told what their gift is, but often they don't even know how it works. It didn't feel organic to the story or world, but like something that was shoe-horned in. I would not recommend for readers who are interested in the magical realism genre.

The writing in this novel is very poor, character development is lacking and the plot is difficult to decipher. The location however is spectacular and described to a T.

What a sweet book! I would definitely watch a movie made from this book, these characters and watch it whenever I wanted a cozy backdrop. The fact that I could see the movie made from this book speaks volumes to the character development. There are lots of moving parts and people in this book but they come together to create a beautiful found family. Would highly recommend, especially if you love magical respond and/or have wanderlust that needs to be sated now quickly than you can head on your next trip!

Ms Palmisano must have some magic herself because this book was written so beautifully, capturing locale, food, and emotions perfectly.

An excellent summer read, the descriptions of the island and food alone will have you read to book a ticket to Naxos (it certainly did for me, at any rate!) ❤️

I just fell in love with this during my reading and though I really wanted to find out what happened, I also wanted to read this slowly to savor it.

*for what it’s worth, I’ve always believed that you put your feelings and emotions into whatever you bake or cook.

Foodies and romantics will delight in this one (I’m both and certainly did 😍 ) - I wholeheartedly recommend this debut.



Thank you to Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley for the DRC