What was not to love about this book? A beautiful setting, interesting relatable characters and a brilliant story. 100% reccoemnding to others

What a fabulous book by Nancy. Well written with excellent characters, especially Gillian. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

This is the story of Gillian & Tony. Tony is a cosmetic surgeon who is attending a conference in Sicily. Gillian, decides to surprise her husband and fly to Sicily and spend some quality time together since they are having marital problems.

When Gillian arrives in Sicily, she finds out that her husband is having an affair. Needless to say, Gillian was the one that was surprised. She leaves the premises immediately and is distraught..

Gillian befriends Sandra and she stays at her home. She also meets a man named Matta who takes a liking to Gillian and quickly carves her own path to happiness in a place she learns to call home.

This read had some humor, character growth and romance. It also makes me want to go to Sicily ASAP!

I couldn’t enjoy this story because of the writing style.

I’m sure many others will love it, though.

One Summer in Sicily by Nancy Barone is the sometimes sad story of the end of a marriage. It turns out the marriage had been over for years and Gillian hadn’t noticed until she tried to surprise her husband who was currently in Sicily for a conference. Despite her fear of flying, she flew there, got a key to his room, and was preparing herself for a sexy meeting, when the door burst open and in popped Tony, in the arms of another woman, both of whom were tearing their clothing off. She ran out of the hotel room in only the robe she had been wearing and tore down the street, only to narrowly avoid being hit by a jeep, which veered away from her and hit a wall instead. The man was so kind. He picked her up and carried her to his home and his significant other, Sandra. Sandra and Mattia cared for her, got her carryon for her with one outfit in it: her luggage had been lost. Only later did she discover that Sandra and Mattia were not an item, that he had simply been staying there until his place was ready; that Sandra was in love with a married man named Alphonso, and that Mattia was an unspoken-for architect.

One really nice thing about Barone’s novels is that that there is always an underlying thread of humor, no matter how tragic the story. Gillian recovered, slowly, and discovered she didn’t really care. She started to let the sunshine in and see the birds. She adopted a dog, rather, it adopted her, who she discovered in a rundown mansion which she later learned was for sale. She threw caution to the wind and bought it and Mattia went about refurbishing it into a bed and breakfast. Mattia was a gorgeous man, four years younger than Gilly and sought after by every woman from 15-50. He wanted none of them. He appeared to want Gilly, but her self-esteem was so low she couldn’t really believe it. Thus the story went on, the two of them on the outs much of the time because of their refusal to communicate. It was a lovely story: part romance, part coming-of-age. Barone writes characters and situations well and these two were no exception. It was a feel-good story, but it took a while to get to the feel-good part. I enjoyed it.

I was invited to read a free e-ARC of One Summer in Sicily by Aria & Aries, through Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are mine. #Netgalley #AriaAndAries #NancyBarone #OneSummerInSicily

Rating: 3,5 stars ⭐️

This romcom is a perfect read for at the beach!

Gillian flew to Sicily for her husband as a suprise but she found out that he was cheating on her. Gillian decided to stay there and after that, everything changed..

I personally don’t like the cheating trope in books but please give it a try.

Thank you to Netgalley, Nancy Barone and the publisher for providing me with this copy. All opinions are my own.

2.5 stars rounded up to 3. I loved the premise of this book and was so excited for my first NetGalley read! Gillian went to Sicily to surprise her husband only to find out he’d been keeping a big secret from her. Gillian was on a journey to find herself and I was here for it. I loved all the people in the book and they had great character development for such a short read.

My issue with this book is that there was so much focus on Gillian’s weight. There was this underlying idea that she wasn’t deserving of things because she was overweight. I feel like there was much more to the story and this was such an unnecessary part.

A lovely easy read and a pleasure to have been able to do so. The descriptions of the setting of Siicily makes you want to jump on the next plane going there. A very well written novel, a good on e to read when you can laze around and enjoy it. 5 stars.

Thanks to Netgalley and publisher for this ARC

I loved this so much! The scenes of lipari are written so beautifully! I'll definitely be booking a summer trip to Siciliy after reading this gem!

Such a cute read and perfect for the summer! This is my first read from the author but I was immediately intrigued as I started reading!

Cover so inviting - automatically thought perfect beach/summer read
Things don’t go according to plan when Gillian decides to overcome her fear of flying and surprise her husband who’s on a business trip in Sicily.
She discovers her husband with a young Italian woman, devastated she runs out of the hotel, straight into the path of oncoming traffic.
Her injuries are not life threatening and it starts a chain of events leading to her starting a new life in Sicily.
Had vibes of Shirley Valentine - finding the confidence to lead an independent new life away from her husband with even a potential new love interest.
Loved the descriptions of the Sicilian Island of Lipari, sounded idyllic and loved the local community characters who were helping her to build her new life.
Thanks @NancyNBW @ariafiction & @netgalley of the eARC

Gillian is off to Sicily to surprise her surgeon husband, who is there at a conference. It wasn't just her husband who had a surprise that day. Gilly's life is in turmoil & with the help of a new friend Cassandra & Mattia, a rather handsome man, she changes her life.
We could all do with a Mattia in our lives & he turns Gilly's life around.
A lovely summer read that will make you want to visit this beautiful island. Had me hooked from the start. Highly recommended read!

Gillian goes to Sicily to surprise her husband ,but the surprise is on her .Deciding to stay there, her story evolves into a lovely romcom, perfect holiday reading .

This was fun, uplifting, fresh, feel good, put me in a good mood while reading it...what more can you ask for?!

This book just wasn't for me, but I can easily see how so many readers would enjoy this. I will say it gives off those Summer vibes and the descriptions truly make you feel like you have escaped to Italy, but the characters just fell flat and were not relatable enough for me.

Gillian and her constant self=loathing and insecurities (mostly due to weight and age), just took away from the story and really made it hard for me to enjoy her story. I understand her feeling the way that she does due to her husband's affair, but the overall path she takes just didn't give her the growth I crave in a book like this.

Rating: 3/5⭐️

Publication Date: June 8th 2023

Author: Nancy Barone

Review: Off the bat I’m not a fan of the cheating aspect of the book I know it kicks starts everything else but that always turns me off (slightly) BUT good for her on choosing to stay on the island instead of running home after it happened! Insert the beauty we call mattia I think because of mattia Gillian because a whole new person and find who she really is! It is slow in the start but you just have to stick with it for a while and it gets you wrapped in it.

Thank you netgalley and Aria & aries for the eARC in exchange for an honest review #NetGalley #bookstagram #kindle #kindleedition #eread

Gillian, 39, is married to Tony, a cosmetic surgeon. As he is attending a conference in Sicily, she decides to fly there and surprise him. Hopefully, some time together on a beautiful island will be what they need to jumpstart their failing marriage.

When she arrives at his hotel, she gets a key to let herself in but he isn’t there. That’s fine, she will have time to shower and refresh herself before he arrives. When she hears a noise, she looks into the bedroom only to find Tony and another woman ready to make love. Shocked and furious, she runs out. After many tears and some little mishaps, several people take her under their wings and befriend her.

Sandra invites her to stay with her and her friend, Mattia, a successful architect, takes a liking to her. For Gillian to be admired by a man is such a treat. She’s overweight and has been ignored by Tony for so long that her self-esteem is very low. She decides to take her time as she decides what to do with the rest of her life.

This is a cute little novel. I must say that there were some times that Gillian came across as a bit silly, but all in all I think that can be attributed to her naivety. Some great descriptions of the beautiful area and delicious-sounding food. Love the ending as it knitted everything up very well. This is the first book I have read by this author and I look forward to reading more.

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

The Blurb :
Gillian Dobson hates to fly. But when her husband of 20 years goes on a business trip to Sicily, she is determined to rekindle their romance with a surprise trip to the idyllic island of Lipari… big mistake as it turns out he has A.F.C.- Alternative Female Company.
Devastated, she narrowly escapes a car accident, only to meet handsome local Mattia Spadaro. A mix between an Adonis and an Italian George Clooney.
If simply looking at him gives her an electric shock, surely anything more would give her a heart attack? What's worse, they share a wild passion for Sicilian desserts. Just what she needs - another man who's bad for her!


My Thoughts :
We meet Gillian Dobson, having been married for over 20 years and her husband away at a conference on a Sicilian island called Lipari. She decides to take the plunge although she hates flying and makes a surprise visit to see him.
Things take a turn when she finds him there with another woman, upset and not sure what to do Gillian decides to stay on the Island and not return home just yet.
Gillian is dealing with low self esteem, low confidence and body issues but then she meets the handsome Mattia Spadero.
Along with Mattia and the new friends she makes, Gillian starts to grow as a person and finds that there is more to life than what she has been used to.
Although this was a little slow to get into and Gillian was at times very hard on herself, I did find myself engrosed and entertained with the story and wanting to see what happens next.
Nancy Barone has given us some great descriptions of Italy and its surroundings aswell as some drama, some love and a few surprises thrown in.
Looking forward to more from this Author.

3.5 stars
Another fun read from Nancy Barone. I loved seeing Gillian’s confidence grow as the story progressed - she had lost so much self belief in the years before, it was lovely to see some of that come back as she found the old Gillian again.
The Sicillian island sounded beautiful and the community around Gillian did wonders too. A real feel good read

I always love a novel where the protagonist isn’t a twenty-something girl with very little life experience. In Gillian Dobson, the lead character of One Summer in Sicily, author Nancy Barone has given us a brilliantly flawed, mature (but not old) woman. Married for twenty years, she visits Sicily to surprise her husband only to find that the surprise is on her, and it’s not a happy one.

Subsequently we get to see Gillian, who already conquered aerophobia to get to Sicily in the first place, deal with all the issues women deal with when they are in transition: self-esteem, body image, loneliness. While she challenges herself to conquer these issues, it’s the journey that makes the story, and author Barone has crafted an excellent plot.

I enjoyed the language choices the author used, and the way Sicily seemed like a character in the novel. rather than merely a setting. I liked Gillian, and rooted for her. But, speaking as someone who is about to turn 53, forty is not old, especially in today’s world, and the younger woman (the surprise she finds her husband with) is only a few years younger – in her mid thirties. Making Gillian truly middle-aged – mid forties to mid fifties – and/or making the younger woman significantly younger would have given the story more impact and made Gillian even more sympathetic.

Over all, though, this was a satisfying read, and I will happily read more of Barone’s work.

Goes well with: espresso and a cannoli with citron.