Due to COVID this was a book whose release date got pushed back a couple of times so to be honest, I forgot about it for my fall reading! It was supposed to come out in September and I thought it would be a great book to close out of late summer reading with. But then it was pushed out until November and I simply forgot about it until I checked my reading calendar and saw it was time to start reading!
Well….I take that back, I saw it was a Book of the Month pick for November and I was so excited because I knew it was coming up sometime soon and when I checked I was like, oh ya this month! So I immediately started reading!
After reading this one, the desire to travel to Tuscany is so intense that I am ready to drop everything and remove myself to Italy for the remainder of the year! Sadly I am stuck here in rainy Oregon, but reading this one, I could almost feel the Tuscan sun on my skin.
Summary
A trio of second-born daughters set out to break the family curse that says they’ll never find love on a whirlwind journey through the lush Italian countryside by New York Times bestseller Lori Nelson Spielman, author of The Life List.
Since the day Filomena Fontana cast a curse upon her sister more than two hundred years ago, not one second-born Fontana daughter has found lasting love. Some, like second-born Emilia, the happily-single baker at her grandfather’s Brooklyn deli, claim it’s an odd coincidence. Others, like her sexy, desperate-for-love cousin Lucy, insist it’s a true hex. But both are bewildered when their great-aunt calls with an astounding proposition: If they accompany her to her homeland of Italy, Aunt Poppy vows she’ll meet the love of her life on the steps of the Ravello Cathedral on her eightieth birthday, and break the Fontana Second-Daughter Curse once and for all.
Against the backdrop of wandering Venetian canals, rolling Tuscan fields, and enchanting Amalfi Coast villages, romance blooms, destinies are found, and family secrets are unearthed—secrets that could threaten the family far more than a centuries-old curse. (summary from Goodreads)
Review
While I figured I would enjoy this one, I was not prepared for how much I actually loved it. I haven’t read anything by this author before but I now feel like I need her other books because her writing was strong, elegant, and fun with so much heart. I loved her descriptions of Italy and felt like I was right there in the story seeing everything that the characters were seeing and exploring. This book really appealed to the world traveler in me!
I think for me, I liked Poppy the best. This book has a couple of different POVs but I felt most invested in Poppy’s storyline. Poppy and Rico were my absolute favorite and I found myself rushing through the other POV to get back to Poppy and Rico. Emilia was ok and I liked her storyline but I didn’t love it in the way that I loved Poppy. So clearly I was more Team Poppy!
I don’t want to give too much away because this is a book that is simply a must read. It was a wonderful escape and I wasn’t ready for it to be over. I loved it and will gladly read anything by this author in the future! Such a fun novel! Do not miss it if you love time slip, romance, travel/Italy, and elegant writing.
The only side note I will say is this: I don’t know that I loved the title or the cover of this novel though. Both were ok but the title was a little bit lengthy and just didn’t scream ‘read me’. If I had seen this one in the book store it would have been a 50/50 for my on if I would have grabbed it or not which is sad because I might have missed a great story. So basically don’t let the title and bland cover mislead you. This is a great book with so much to love and if you love books with romance and duel stories this is one you will absolutely love!
Book Info and Rating
Paperback, 400 pages
Expected publication: November 17th 2020 by Berkley
ISBN1984803166 (ISBN13: 9781984803160)
Free review copy provided by publisher, Berkley Books, in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and in no way influenced.
Rating: 5 stars
Genre: womens fiction, romance
The Lit Bitch 