My favorite stories are told from two perspectives, one past and one present. This book is slightly different being told from two different settings, both Lake Como but one in New Jersey and one in Italy. A book about starting over and second chances, Jess is in the marble business when an unexpected loss hits the family. To Jess, family is everything. The ever dutiful daughter, Jess has to learn of deep family secrets and process that information while coping with her own divorce. I enjoyed this story. It was a slow start for me but I was really invested in Jess and curious to see how her story would evolve. I love all things Italy and Adriana Trigiani's descriptions of Italy were spot on, especially the food. This is a good summer read! Thank you to Net Galley and Penguin Group Dutton for the advanced copy.

Adriana Trigiani always tells a great story, but this is one of her very best! Always true to her Italian roots, this story takes us from Lake Como, New Jersey to the one in Italy. The descriptions of the marble, the architecture, the food and everything else come alive. It’s a wonderful story of a woman who is undervalued who creates her best life - and finds love - in Italy. A true gem!

Jess Capodimonte lives in Lake Como New Jersey, a blue collar town. She is recently divorced from Bobby Bilancia and living in her parents' basement. She is s dutiful daughter and works as a draftsman in the marble business run by her uncle Louie. When Louie passes away, long buried secrets are uncovered and Jess goes to her ancestral home, Carrara, Italy to learn more about the business. She meets Angelo Strazzo, an artist working with gold leaf. As she learns more about the business and Louie's shady dealing are being investigated, she learns to reinvent her life.

I absolutely loved this story by Adriana Trigiani! The main character is incredibly relatable, and you find yourself really rooting for her amidst all the family drama. The book also offers a fascinating glimpse into the world of marble, which adds a unique layer to the story in the beautiful setting of Italy.

If you've never lived near or been part of a rousing Italian family, this is your chance!! Adriana Trigiani's "The View From Lake Como" (out July 8) will give you that experience so vividly that you'll laugh out loud, cry and get downright caught up in the lives of the Barattas and Capodimontes!!

I loved Uncle Louie!! Jess Baratta had my backing from the start and I wanted to strangle her mother Philomena, while at the same time remembering she wasn't so different from all the Italian "mamas" I'd grown up near! This is so authentic that I could hear the raucous talk around the table -- accents and all! Adriana did such a masterful job of setting the scene that I could see them; I could hear them and I took sides!! I even wanted to send a few people "to the Island" myself. (You have to read the book to understand that one.)

Newly divorced from a good (and good looking) Italian boy from the neighborhood, Jess is living in her parents' basement which had been refused as a dwelling by her grandmother. Basically the family cook and bottle washer, Jess learns some things about how her parents handled her life and knows she has to find the real Jess and who she was meant to be. She is working hand in hand with her childless Uncle Louie in his family marble business -- Capodimonte Marble and Stone -- when Uncle Louie decides the two of them need to go back to Italy where he learned first hand about working with marble the old way.

Not used to leaving the lifestyle of Lake Como and north Jersey, Jess is nervous; but some revelations about family and Uncle Louie in particular make her determined to go back to her roots. At this point and in several other spots in the book I wondered when Adriana had picked up intrigue writing!! I had to reread a couple of spots! Wait! What?? THAT person did what?!

Jess's life in Italy is romantic, vivid and educational. It's easy to see things I'm sure Adriana has seen many times. Ahhhh .... andJess's view of Lake Como! I could actually visualize it! I wanted to visualize it! I've never been to any place in Italy but Rome and Pompeii. THIS is the Italy my friends and Adriana know!

A perfect summer read? Yes, but also a great look inside a culture -- both in their adopted home and at their roots. And Jess? Did she grow or settle? You'll have to decide.

Nothing brings me greater joy than a new book from Adriana Trigiani, and her newest romantic comedy, The View From Lake Como (publishing July 8th), has all the elements that made her a favorite of mine.

Jess Baratta finds herself living in her parents basement (which doubles as a bonus kitchen and storage unit when "not housing someone old or newly divorced"). She left her husband Bobby after an unfulfilling short marriage, something her mother Philomena, Bobby, and Bobby's mother cannot comprehend.

Jess works for her Uncle Louie owner of Capodimonte Marble and Stone (family owned since 1924). Philomena is currently feuding with her brother and will not speak to him, which makes Sunday family dinners interesting.

Now that Jess is back home, unmarried and childless (unlike her older sister and brother), she finds her role in the family carved in marble- she is cook, maid, babysitter, and driver. She will transition to nurse and caregiver as her parents age, like the maiden Aunt Giuseppina whom she was named after. I liked what the author had to say about how we can get stuck in our family roles, anyone from a large family will be able to relate to that.

When Uncle Louie tells Jess that she is going with him to Italy to meet with marble manufacturers, Jess is beyond thrilled. This is a dream come true for her! But fate intervenes and Jess now has to deal with things she never imagined.

Adriana Trigiani writes such rich, fully developed characters. I loved how you always know what Philomena is thinking (whether you want to or not), and Uncle Louie is quite the snappy dresser who dotes on his wife and niece. The fact that keeps his Knights of Columbus tux and sword in his trunk because he is always going to wakes made me laugh out loud (and if you know, you know).

Many of us would love to have grown up with both sets of grandparents and cousins on the same street, and the dinner and funeral buffet scenes in The View From Lake Como had me wishing I could pull up a chair and pass the ravioli. (No one writes a family dinner scene better than Adriana Trigiani!)

I also enjoyed learning about the marble artists in Italy. I know I will look more closely at the interior of churches after reading this novel.

I loved The View from Lake Como, it's a perfect summer read to toss in your bag as you head to the beach. It will make you smile and laugh out loud at times as Jess attempts to find her place in this world and in her family. Whether you're from a large family or just wish you were, be sure to preorder your copy from your favorite bookseller today.

When it comes to Adriana Trigiani there is not a lot to say except—BUY THIS BOOK! She's an Italian-American storytelling force who never disappoints and always has me anticipating her next book.

Big-hearted family saga along with some self-discovery.
Story at times excruciating within the immediate family setting, but exhilarating once transported abroad.

With thanks to NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Dutton for this e-ARC.

Another absolutely stellar book by Adriana Trigiani is such a treat for the heart and soul. At times laugh out loud funny , this novel is also insightful and heartbreaking but above all, it is hopeful. All types of relationships are explored….among family, friends, the workplace and of course, romantic ones. Whether you have read everything by this author or this is your first foray you will not be disappointed. Highly recommended.

What a fantastic book! The first one I have read by this author but definitely can't wait to read more! The characters stay with you long after you finish the book. Highly recommend!

Thank you to #NetGalley and Penguin Group, Dutton for the digital ARC of The View from Lake Como.

Giuseppina "Jess" Capodimonte Baratta is newly divorced from the man who used to steal her lunches, and is back in her parents’ basement. She feels stuck in her small-town, Lake Como, New Jersey, just as her namesake Zia Giuseppina did. Jess is determined to write her own story, on her own terms.

Unfortunately I only made it 25% of the way through this book before I decided to DNF it. This truly surprised me - I generally enjoy Adriana Trigiani's books, but this one just dragged and I couldn't get into it.

This book!!!!! I have a list of at least 10 people in my family that need to read this book when it comes out in July!!!!!! Being an Italian American who grew up in South Jersey, I could relate to so much of this book. The foods (cavatelli, macaroni, gravy, zepploi, ...) I lost my aunt (the matriarch of the family) last week and having to attend two viewings and a funeral, I could relate to Jess and all that she went through. (down to the Eagle's Wing............sob!!!!). This book is about a 30 something Italian American girl who does so much for her family, that she forgets who she is and what she really wants out of life. It takes a trip to Italy for Jess to find herself and in doing so, he finds love, and a few secrets along the way. Adriana Trigiani is a master class of fun, humor, and emotions all rolled into one! I have read most of her other books and loved them. This by far is my favorite! I can wait to send copies to my family when this book is finally published!

I absolutely adored this. I loved the spirit of rebuilding your life - maybe that is where I am at in life, but this resonated so deeply with me. Trigiani has a way with words and story telling and I look forward to discovering more of her backlist!

I did not like this book. It was so slow. There was so much talk of religion, I just started rolling my eyes every time. The narrator was annoying. The only thing I liked was the LGBTQ+ representation.

I have mixed feelings about this book. I loved the parts of this book that were set in Italy, as the protagonist, Jess, is at her best there. But, when she is in New Jersey and interacting with her family there are so many unbelievable scenes, especially involving her parents. Her journal entries provide a window into past events and highlight how she is exploring her life through therapy. I just didn’t quite get Jess and her actions. The reader is left in the dark about the reasons for the breakup of her marriage for too long, in my opinion. While I understand how this adds suspense, it mostly left me confused. I’ve read and loved all of Adriana Trigiani’s books, and while this was an interesting story, it didn’t engage me quite as much as others have. Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the ARC and the opportunity to provide an honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC of The View from Lake Como. Although I’m usually a huge fan of Adriana Trigiani, I struggled through this one. It was an ok story but perhaps a little too much talk of marble and quarries to truly keep my interest. I do love reading about Italy and Italian families as an Italian American though. Maybe next time more of that, less marble and quarries?

From New York Times bestselling author Adriana Trigiani, a luminous novel about family, reinvention, and the courage to carve out a life of one’s own—set between the blue-collar charm of New Jersey and the timeless beauty of Italy.

Jess Capodimonte Baratta has always played by the rules. Raised in a tight-knit Italian American community in Lake Como, New Jersey, she’s spent her life putting family first—cooking Sunday dinners, tending to her aging parents, and working as a skilled draftswoman in her uncle’s marble business. But after her divorce from Bobby Bilancia—once deemed “the perfect husband”—Jess moves into her parents’ basement, caught between heartbreak and the sinking realization that she’s been living a life designed by others.

Then, an unexpected family loss opens long-buried secrets, forcing Jess to reevaluate everything she thought she knew. With nothing holding her back, she buys a one-way ticket to Carrara, Italy, the legendary birthplace of the world’s finest marble. In the shadow of Tuscany’s majestic mountains, among artisans who have worked in stone for centuries, Jess rediscovers her passion and her power.

Her journey takes her from the marble quarries of Carrara and finally to the shores of the other Lake Como, where she meets Angelo Strazza, a goldsmith whose smoldering personality inspires interest. As Jess learns to shape marble into something lasting, she begins to see herself in a new light—strong, capable, and ready to craft a future on her own terms.

But the past isn’t finished with her yet. The truths she uncovers about her family will change the course of her life—and the lives of those she loves—forever. As familiar as a favorite shirt, the humor, heart, and the generational banter keep the story light and. charming. This is a wonderful story for anyone who is part of a big family.

#TheViewFromLakeComo #AdrianaTrigiani #PenguinGroup #ItalianAmericanStories #SecondChances #FoundInItaly #FamilySecretsAndMarbleDust

I have read every single one of Trigani's books. The stories are usually upbeat, a tad predictable but enjoyable from the get go. Although I ended up liking this one, it started off very very slow and was just not up to par with her prior books