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kat_rowlen's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Solid 3 star listen. The FMC was a little whiny and pathetic for my taste. Really didn’t like how caught up she was in “belonging” to her mother. Also we never really got an explanation as to how everything happened.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness and Death of parent
mattiedancer's review against another edition
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Writing: 3.75⭐️/5
Rebecca Serle writes almost hard and clear about what hurts. Something in her writing felt a bit distant to me when talking about very intimate emotions, but overall the writing of the novel did not take away from the reading experience, and in fact, felt relatively focused and pointed. I do wish Serle had pushed the writing a bit further, doing a bit more showing rather than telling at the heart of the hardest moments.
Characters: 3⭐️/5
Alright, so at certain intervals all the characters feel real. At other times, they didn’t quite fit. Both Katy’s mom and Katy felt real for the most part. However, the hotel’s staff very much slipped into the novel to be very convenient plot devices. In a similar vein, Katy herself – while a well-developed character – read as extremely juvenile at times. Her obsession with keeping her mom to herself was odd, and her anger at finding out her mother left her as a child (which results in her sleeping with someone who is not her husband almost out of revenge), felt very petulant and small. I understand everyone processes grief differently, but I had a hard time buying into a 30-year-old woman thinking about her mother as “hers” in a very toddler-like way.
Plot: 3⭐️/5
The overarching plot felt interesting, but the details really didn’t feel right. I understand, on a deep level, needing to run away in order to heal from loss and manage grief. However, the way the character then acted as she ran into her mother and started to fall for a stranger in her hotel felt a bit disjointed. In regards to the magical realism, it's also implied that she really did travel back in time, which means she cheated on her husband and decided to never reveal that to him, which, all in all, felt very immature and shitty. Another hold-up I had was the sheer number of details that were so unnecessary. It felt a bit travel journal-ly in the way that Serle chose to recount nearly every meal our MC ate. While I appreciate that as an appeal to travelling to Italy, it felt incongruent with the purpose and theme of the novel.
Who Should Read This Book?
- Those looking for a “lighter” read about death and grief
- Those looking for a bit of summer escapism into Italy with some serious topics
Content Warnings?
Death of parent, grief, death, abandonment, infidelity, sexual content, gaslighting, medical content, terminal illness, chronic illness, cancer
Post-Reading Rating: 2.75⭐️/5
Oh. I guess?
Final Rating: 3⭐️/5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Chronic illness, Cancer, Sexual content, Gaslighting, Death, Medical content, Terminal illness, Abandonment, Death of parent, and Infidelity
valeria_balzan's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I cann t complain about this book because if I got to meet my mother, in the prime of her youth I too would relish it and don't know how to act lol
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Chronic illness, Death, Death of parent, and Terminal illness
cblevz's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
If you personally connect to grieving the loss of a mother/feminine figure in your life, this book will connect a lot more with you than if not. The small “boring” or “slow” moments will feel more important. A very subjective read.
Content Warnings
Minor: Death of parent, Death, and Chronic illness
loftyace's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Death of parent, Terminal illness, and Infidelity
Moderate: Chronic illness
rylin_marie's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
it was pretty good. i was annoyed that i had to skip a few parts at the very end. that’s the reason it’s not 4 stars. i didn’t enjoy the cheating trope but i’m glad everything worked out.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Grief, Sexual content, Cursing, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Chronic illness
faithwingo's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent and Chronic illness
greatexpectations77's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Fun little story of magical realism, but holy goodness does the MC need a therapist to work through the fact that she and her mother were enmeshed. And using a Lorelei Gilmore quote and having Lauren Graham narrate just drives the enmeshment home even more. Also, I'm pretty sure that cheating on your husband even though in your current timeline, you are not married yet is still cheating??? And like? Did it magically make her sex with her husband better? I little too tidy of a tie-up there, for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Terminal illness, Grief, Death of parent, Chronic illness, Cancer, Alcohol, Abandonment, and Infidelity
Moderate: Death and Toxic friendship
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
Flag for anyone who wants to keep away from reading about alcohol - the drinking is near-constant.franklola's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Grief, Cancer, Death of parent, and Chronic illness
stephanieluxton's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
After Katy's mom/best friend passes away due to illness, Katy decides to go on the trip they were supposed to take to Italy together anyway in hopes of feeling close to her mother in a place her mother loved. Shortly after arrival, Katy sees her mother although 30 years younger at her hotel and what follows is a chance to spend more time with a her mother at a different stage in her life.
I didn't like this book as much as I thought I would but it was still enjoyable. I didn't like Katy very much. She is kind of an asshole to everyone around her but she's dealing with grief so I'll cut her some slack. I was low key hoping this would be like Mama Mia but it's not. It's just about Katy stepping away from her old life to try to find herself with the help of a version of her mother that doesn't know her and another man she meets at the hotel. This isn't a romance book but I kind of wish it was and it had the potential to be (minus Katy's super nice husband existing). There's a slight twist in the end that I didn't expect. Overall, I wanted more out of the beautiful setting but it still makes a good beach read.
I didn't like this book as much as I thought I would but it was still enjoyable. I didn't like Katy very much. She is kind of an asshole to everyone around her but she's dealing with grief so I'll cut her some slack. I was low key hoping this would be like Mama Mia but it's not. It's just about Katy stepping away from her old life to try to find herself with the help of a version of her mother that doesn't know her and another man she meets at the hotel. This isn't a romance book but I kind of wish it was and it had the potential to be (minus Katy's super nice husband existing). There's a slight twist in the end that I didn't expect. Overall, I wanted more out of the beautiful setting but it still makes a good beach read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity
Moderate: Death of parent, Chronic illness, Grief, Alcohol, and Sexual content
We already know that Katy's mom dies at the start of the book. There's some shenanigans with a man at the hotel which is a little upsetting because Katy has a nice husband at home.