Cover Image: The Summer House in Santorini

The Summer House in Santorini

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Member Reviews

Quick and easy to read. This story doesn’t require a bunch of thought or concentrating. Which in my book makes this a perfect beach, long weekend or snow day read.

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I would classify this book as the perfect beach-read. I am a sucker for rom-coms and I was rooting for Anna and Niko. It also didn't hurt that the story was set in the beautiful, fun backdrop of a small island in Greece. More than anything, it makes me want to visit Santorini for adventures of my own.

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A great story set in a lovely setting, plenty of twists and turns to keep you guessing coupled with good characters and romance. Perfect beach read

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Such an intriguing story. I couldn't put it down. Always trying to figure out what she would end up doing.

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Brilliant. This was a well written book that I greatly enjoyed and already plan to recommend. Believable characters and an inticing setting. Some parts were perhaps a little lengthy, but maybe because I was impatient to reach the novels conclusion! Thank you Netgalley for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Great book with lots of twists and turns. Good style of writing and kept me wanting to read more. Enjoyed the characters and the story flowed well

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This book is about a young women’s journey of discovering her estranged father and Greek heritage, with a bit of love sprinkled along the way.

The writing style was right up my street, it was easy to read and follow. I was interested right from the beginning!

I would recommend this book.

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I liked the overall plot but some of the sub plots were full of holes and didn’t add a great deal to the story.

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Anna is a struggling photographer who is waiting for her big break. She works in the gallery of another famous photographer, who also happens to be her boyfriend. Or so she naively thought, until she sees him with another woman. When she confronts him, he fires her. Because she's at loose ends anyway, she decides to head to Greece and fix up the home that her now-deceased father left her and her sister.

Visiting Santorini is a bitter pill for Anna. She hates her father, believing that he left his family to suffer while he returned to his life in Greece. She thinks her Greek grandparents will resent and maybe even hate her. She moves to Greece insecure and heartbroken, but then meets her grandparents, a handsome Greek named Niko and his sister Elena. With the help of Niko and Elena, and his grandfather, Anna begins to discover who she really is and what she really wants out of her life.

This is a fun book set in a beautiful location. The author, Samantha Parks, does a great job of helping us picture the island of Santorini and fall in love with the quirky inhabitants of the island. Some call this a beach read, but truly, I think it's a great book for anytime of year. How about in the middle of winter, when you're tired of snow? (Or maybe in the middle of a COVID-19 pandemic, when you're asked to stay in your homes?)

Great start for a debut author!

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This ARC has been waiting for my review in Netgalley for way longer than I should admit. I picked it up last week before the world exploded and was glad that I did. It took me a little longer than usual to read it, given all of the current distractions and anxiety over what’s happening with closures and the coronavirus, but it ended up being the perfect escape. It was a feel good romance set in Greece, with a bit of emotional backstory to keep it interesting. I’d compare it to a mash up of Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants and The Simple Wild. Loved the Santorini setting. The chemistry between Niko and Anna was 🔥, and that slow burn was so good! If you’re looking for a Greek vacation to take your mind off the current state of things, I’d highly recommend picking this one up.

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I'm a bit in trouble with this review. I loved this book while reading it, but I didn't write down my thoughts right after, and after only a couple of weeks, I have to realize that it didn't really stay with me. It was awesome while it lasted, but that's it. It didn't make a lasting impression.


That being said, I honestly enjoyed reading it. It was sweet, sometimes bittersweet, the characters were loveable, obviously beautiful, as it is apparently a must in the genre, the relationships were cute, and Santorini lived in the story.


What I especially loved was that the island was mostly pictured through its lovely people, and not discriptions of the place itself. That worked for me well. I loved the place with its lovely, loud, beautiful souls.


The love story itself was painfully expectable, but it didn't bother me, I wanted the characters to find their way, no matter that I knew what that way was.

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Loved this book. Great characters, easy read, uplifting, funny, romantic and charming.

Anna and Lizzy are sisters. They haven't seen their father in 20 years when they get the news that he has died and left them his house in Santorini. Anna goes over to sort out the house with the intention to sell it, but a rather hunky Greek man called Nikos puts a spanner in her plans.

A really nice story that is the perfect escapist read.

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This was a cute and fun read set on the beautiful island of Santorini. This was a wonderful, quick and enjoyable read for me. I wish I would have been on a beach somewhere reading it. It certainly made me want to visit Santorini so much more than I already do. Although the story was a cute romantic comedy, it did have emotional moments.

Fully enjoyed this book and would give it 4 big stars.

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A fun, cute, summery read, perfect for days laying by the pool or on the beach. A fun story that also manages to incorporate touching moments and solid emotion. Thanks to the publisher and netgalley for the arc.

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The Summer House in Santorini is the book you want to have while you are sitting on the beach.
Anna decides to go live in the island of Santorini and sell the summer home. Nikos helps her renovate the house... and with other things as well. Light-hearted, funny, and emotional, this story is perfect for all the hopelessly romantics out there.

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Nice easy summer read. Light hearted and fun. Would be a great one for your summer holiday. I like this author and enjoyed this book. I now need to go to Santorini asap.

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The Summer House in Santorini is a perfect summer/beach read. It’s hopeful, romantic, heartbreaking and endearing all at once. After inheriting a property from her estranged father, and finding her current life less than satisfactory, Anna heads to the island of Santorini to look at the summer home and get it ready to sell. She is met and befriended by Nikos who helps her with house renovations and ultimately helps her with her direction in life. A cast of likeable characters and beautiful Greek imagery makes this a fantastic read!

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I adored all the descriptions of Santorini, the Greek food, the landscapes and most of all the Summer House itself.

Anna was not expecting to inherit this summer house from her estranged father, who she has been brought up to hate. Much less does she have any desire to go to Greece, meet her paternal grandparents and sort this inheritance out.

But after she discovers her boyfriend cheating on her, and loses her job, off to Santorini is a far better plan.

It's a story of a woman falling in love with not only a man, as there is of course a Greek Adonis figure to drool over, but of her falling in love with a country, although admittedly neither of those are quick.

As Anna renovates the house ready for a sale, she makes some very good new friends, discovers the truth about her father, and starts to learn more about herself too.

A very enjoyable debut novel, and I'm looking forward to seeing what the author writes next.

Thank you to One More Chapter and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

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To be perfectly honest - it took me a bit of time to get around to reading this novel. When I did begin reading - it also did take me a bit of time to get into it. But when I did? I devoured this book! It’s so wonderfully summery and absolutely gives you wanderlust. Nikos and Anna are wonderful together and I thoroughly enjoyed watching as their relationship developed. Throughout the entire novel there’s a bit of an interplay between the past and the present. Not only Anna’s past, but also the past remnants of her parents’ relationship.
Anna has come to Santorini to claim her father’s cottage or “Summer House” that he’s left behind as part of her inheritance. She’s leaving behind a bit of an….awkward… situation with her boss (and ex!). In Santorini she meets Nikos and his cousin Elena and so begins many renovation shenanigans, as Anna begins to renovate her fathers’ cottage to sell, all set against the beautiful backdrop of Santorini’s caldera. And oh my goodness. Yes, you definitely will want to go/go back to Santorini when you visit.

Characters:
I liked Anna as a lead heroine. While I wouldn’t characterise her as your typical ‘strong and determined’ female lead, she certainly had her own characteristics that made her wonderful to read alongside. She’s incredibly creative and passionate, and also longs to find out more about her absent father. Nikos - as far as the typical trope of handsome and charming foreign men goes - was perfect. Despite a poor first impression, Nikos is charming, funny and sweet. The adventures that he brings Anna on are wonderful.

Storyline and Plotting:
Fairly well paced and set. I really loved the prominence of photography and creativity throughout the novel and the way it sets up a life that Anna may have in Santorini. Do I think it’s necessarily the most realistic? Probably not. But that’s okay! I would have loved to see a bit more time spent developing the photography plot line towards the beginning as well. And more time spent on developing Anna’s relationships with her family too!

Overall:
A perfect summer, beach read, particularly if you’ve got some wanderlust!

Note: I was very kindly sent an ARC of this novel by the publisher and the author in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

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I really loved this book. One day I will visit Greece and see all of these places. It was so fun to read and makes me miss summer and go away snow!!

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