Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for this ARC.

This is the second book in the Come Away With Me series after "Bring me Sunshine" where the three gals met and formed a friendship last year during a holiday in Greece.

Deedee is a travel agent approaching her 70th year. She is still grieving the death of her husband Joe, but would like to have a birthday party in New York, so she invites Gina and Rosie, both around 50, to accompany her. There she reconnects with Yannis, an old flame who is now a good friend. But even from the grave, Joe has a surprise or three for her, resulting in a trip to the posh Hamptons.

The settings of New York and the Hamptons are described well, with a mouthwatering dose of Greek food added. I had to laugh at the old-fashioned way they tried to find a restaurant though. Just take a picture of the logo and put it through Google Lens! I also didn't like how everyone tried to push Deedee and Yannis together, that felt too forced.

If you feature older characters, there will be topics of aging and grief, but it is handled sensitively here. Rosie has had her story already so she barely featured - I would have liked at least a short update or flashback to the first book! I'm hoping Gina will be the main character of the next book.

This is a feel-good, easy to read escapist romance and an uplifting beach read about female friendship and second chances. The brightly-coloured cover is gorgeous.

3.5 stars

This was a lovely read featuring Deedee, Rosie and Gina who featured in Bring Me Sunshine, one year on and the focus is on Deedee as she approaches her 70th birthday with trepidation. This book takes us to New York although it’s far more about the characters than the sights with Deedee struggling to move on from the death of her beloved husband 4 years ago. This is a thoughtful look at grief and aging but by no means melancholic as there’s plenty of uplifting parts to this not least the banter between the characters. It was lovely to catch up with the characters again although I did feel Gina barely featured as most one to ones seemed to be between Rosie and Deedee although I’m hoping that will lead to Rosie getting her own story! This is a heartwarming read and fabulous to have an older main character who is still so young at heart but it has some depth and perceptiveness too.