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A review by lovelymisanthrope
A Winter in New York by Josie Silver
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I heard about this book through Book of the Month.
"A Winter in New York" follows Iris, a woman who is trying to get a second chance in New York City. Following the death of her mother, Iris decides to try to go to places that can help her to feel connected to her mom, and one of the first places she decides to go is a gelato place. This gelato place is famous in the city because they only serve one flavor, and only two members of the family know the recipe at any given time. Except, Iris has a copy of the recipe, and she was under strict instructions from her mother not to tell anyone about it. When Iris finally ventures to the gelato shop, she cannot believe that she finds a family that loves her, a man to fall in love with, and pieces of her mom that she did not know about.
When I started this book, I thought it was going to be a cozy, winter romance, but I do not think it truly is. I think this book is more about Iris's journey to discover things about herself and her mom, and there happens to be a romantic interest. If we took the romantic interactions out of the story, I believe we would still have the same book. That is a big reason I felt it was middle of the road, because I did not have the right expectation going into the novel.
I did not love Iris as a character. Her reasoning for why she is keeping the secrets she does, seems kind of loose to me. I think she could have told Gio about the recipe pretty soon after meeting him, and I think she could have told him about her abusive ex right away as well. She just seemed ridiculous in her logic.
Gio is an AMAZING guy, and I loved seeing him and his daughter together. He is such an admirable single father, and he is doing an amazing job at raising his daughter. I would love to see a novella with just the two of them.
This book was fine, but not what I expected.
"A Winter in New York" follows Iris, a woman who is trying to get a second chance in New York City. Following the death of her mother, Iris decides to try to go to places that can help her to feel connected to her mom, and one of the first places she decides to go is a gelato place. This gelato place is famous in the city because they only serve one flavor, and only two members of the family know the recipe at any given time. Except, Iris has a copy of the recipe, and she was under strict instructions from her mother not to tell anyone about it. When Iris finally ventures to the gelato shop, she cannot believe that she finds a family that loves her, a man to fall in love with, and pieces of her mom that she did not know about.
When I started this book, I thought it was going to be a cozy, winter romance, but I do not think it truly is. I think this book is more about Iris's journey to discover things about herself and her mom, and there happens to be a romantic interest. If we took the romantic interactions out of the story, I believe we would still have the same book. That is a big reason I felt it was middle of the road, because I did not have the right expectation going into the novel.
I did not love Iris as a character. Her reasoning for why she is keeping the secrets she does, seems kind of loose to me. I think she could have told Gio about the recipe pretty soon after meeting him, and I think she could have told him about her abusive ex right away as well. She just seemed ridiculous in her logic.
Gio is an AMAZING guy, and I loved seeing him and his daughter together. He is such an admirable single father, and he is doing an amazing job at raising his daughter. I would love to see a novella with just the two of them.
This book was fine, but not what I expected.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Sexual content