Wow!

Thank you Penguin Random House UK for giving me the opportunity to read and review this amazing book!

This was an unexpected joyful and inspirational read.

Birdy wants to escape her humdrum life so takes on a job, in Scotland, meant for her best friend Heather, a sommelier, in a swanky hotel, that wasn’t the dive the website alluded to!
Keeping it a secret from Heather and all her co workers.
The hotel is set near a loch in Scotland and the scene is set for an idyllic location, amazing food, accompanying wines and lots of cringe worthy moments, laughter and tears as well as a handsome chef!

An easy to read book with just enough heart to keep it interesting. Birdy Finch is a bit aimless. She's jobless and soon to be homeless now her friend, Heather is moving to Italy. The answer? Pretend to be sommelier Heather and take up the job she's abandoning in Scotland. What could possibly go wrong? Light and entertaining.

I had such huge expectations for this book and I’m so glad that it was way better than my imagination.

I truly don’t know how to describe it.
It had everything you want in a book of this genre and omg 😍
Those two characters stole my heart and never gave it back LOL

This book was so lovely, lighthearted and fun!

Birdy will have you rooting for her as she stumbles along, gaining confidence and forming a community of sorts with her co-workers. Along the way some secrets will come out which only add to the heartwarming feel of the book. Birdy could have taken a stable job but choose to give it up to work under the Italian sun, perfect escapism.

Would recommend.

I'm a bit late at reviewing this one. I however, thoroughly enjoyed it.
I found it funny, thrilling and touching. I loved the theme of growth in this book. I love how the main character worked so hard and how the story developed. I heard that it was going to be adapted as a series, and I can really see how the scenes could play out so well as a TV series. There was enough humor and anticipation to carry you through to the end. I also loved the emersive feeling of being in the Scottish setting and the inner workings of the restaurant.

This was a fun read, lighthearted, and Birdy, the main character, really made me cringe at times, but she pulled it off - well mostly - it was a joy

it was such a cute summery read. I got lost in the Scottish setting and really connected with the main character Birdy. This book addressed a number of issues whilst still being lighthearted and fun. I also love reading about nice food and drinks so that was a hit for me.

I found the concept of pretending to be your best friend intriguing and at times hilarious. It is definitely worth a read if you enjoy lighthearted reads with a touch of romance and friendship.

This is the perfect book for wine lovers, foodies and those who really enjoy a good romcom!

Birdy doesn't really have a lot going on in her life; a dead-end relationship, no place to call home so when her best friend Heather decides to head to Italy with her boyfriend rather than start the job she's accepted at a Scottish hotel / restaurant in the Highlands, Birdy finds herself pretending to be her best friend for the summer. If that wasn't tough enough, Heather is a well-respected sommelier and Birdy knows very little about wine!

Of course there is love interest for Birdy at the hotel in the shape of a hot chef.

I struggled to get into this book at the start but once I was about half way through, I really started to enjoy it.

This book is in a beautiful setting, feels cosy and has a lovely happy ending.

This is a great debut novel. I thought it was a very fun and light hearted read which had some great characters. The Scottish setting was a great place to escape to. I would definitely recommend picking this book up.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

A fun read and the main character managed to stay relatable despite making a lot of questionable life choices. I enjoyed the Scottish hotel setting and it was an interesting way to find out more about the world of wine, which is pretty much new to me.

Heather and Birdy have been best friends since primary school, Heather is a successful sommelier, but Birdy is struggling to find her place in life, living for the moment and having fun Birdy cannot hold down a job. When Heather is offered a job at Loch Dorn for the summer she accepts, but then decides to go to Italy for the summer and asks Birdy to let the hotel know she will not be taking the job, Birdy decides she will go in Heathers place for the summer, knowing nothing about wine and the hotel having an impressive wine list mistakes ensue. A good book with real heart.

The Summer Job by Lizzy Dent is a deceptively fun and light book perfect for a beach read, but touches on so many important issues along the way.

Birdy was very irritating at the beginning as I really couldn't understand some of the things she did and people she had in her life. But as the story unraveled deep and hidden stories and experiences began to emerge and we finally found the real Birdy. On one hand she is a flighty and immature young woman who does stupid and reckless things but on the other she is so much more.
There are some great characters in this book, real stars and there are some that are so unlovable and irritating I had a hard time tolerating them.
The romance is fulfilling and fun and the book provides that good feeling that we expect from this types of books.

The Summer Job is an impressive and thoroughly enjoyable début.

When Heather opts not to take up a job offer for a sommelier at a Scottish hotel, 31-year-old Elizabeth 'Birdy' Finch, who is currently struggling to find her way through life, decides to pass herself off as her friend and take the job. However, Birdy knows nothing about wine and the sleepy Loch Dorn Hotel she was expecting turns out to be a grand Gothic affair aiming to provide a fine dining experience for guests, with a wine list to match. When she falls for James, the chef she realises she is in way over her head.

Lizzy Dent's fun tale gives the reader a wonderful Scottish setting. Along with a fantastic crowd of characters I enjoyed its themes of friendship, starting over and the strong sense of community. Energetic and amusing Birdy is central to the heartwarming story, though the contributions from Irene (her boss and mum to James) and Roxy, a waitress, were also invaluable. The Summer Job is divine, engaging, escapist reading that many will find appealing.

I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my request from Penguin General UK/ Viking via NetGalley and this review is my unbiased opinion.

This wasn't what I was expecting. I assumed a cute romance and while I see that was the aim it just didn't work for me romance wise.
I'm giving this 3 stars, a low 3, because of that side of it. If I ignore that I did enjoy the story. It was a lighthearted, fun read. Something where I could just sit and read and not have to concentrate too much. Which was something I needed in the moment.

The relationship I felt nothing towards. I didn’t care if they ended up together. But I think its because I feel that 90% of the book was focusing on Birdy and her attempt at pretending to be her friend for the job and 10% was the relationship.

Birdy I liked but she didn't wow me. It was nice to see her character growth throughout the book. Seeing her struggles trying to find something, I can relate to that. I hoped she found that missing piece.

The twist with Heather at the end I don't think was really needed. But at the same time it didn't really bother me. Mainly because it was the very end of the book so we don't see much.

This book also deals a little with alcoholism. It wasn't pushed to the front but I am glad the character ends up getting the help they need but is supported by people as well.

Birdy is a thirty something who is somewhat of a lost cause. With no real direction or stability in life she decides to fake her identity as a means of getting a job, and ultimately a roof over her head. What was perceived as a "doss summer job" is in fact a highly professional and skilled role and Birdy is truly out of her depth. Needless to say, she struggles: living a lie is hard to maintain and the truth is always bound to catch up.

This is my first book by Dent and I can say it won't be my last. Beautifully told in the Scottish Highlands, I envisaged each inch of the stunning atmosphere and fell for every character. They all play a crucial part in Birdy's journey- an unexpected soul search.

Humour mixed with romance and an extremely frustrating series of events, I found myself easily turning these pages. It is rare to find an author who seems to so effortlessly draw you into the story, but Dent managed that!

Light, easy read perfect for summer.

Rating 3.5 stars

Heather a wine expert has the chance of a summer job in Scotland but at the last minute decides not to take it and shoots off to Italy with her boyfriend. She leaves it in her best friend, Elizabeth, to let them know shes not coming.

However, Elizabeth takes the job herself as she has no where else to be. She's pretended to be her friend before at functions. Can she pull this off or will she be found out?

Its a cute story, but rather predictable in its outcome though the reason for Heather not going to Scotland was a surprise. Has some romance in there too as Elizabeth falls for the chef, James. It also looks at family relationships, as Elizabeth's dad is an alcoholic and her mum just covers it up. Heather feels she is missing something in her life as she lost both her parents when she was young.I

The writing is good, the descriptions of the landscape is pleasant, the wine and food references interesting - I even learnt some bits! However my pet peeve of using brackets to tell you something was throughout the book.

I received this book from netgalley in return for a honest review.

When Heather decides to pull out of a summer job in the Scottish Highlands to go to Italy with her boyfriend, she leaves best friend Birdy to sort it all out. But, rather than just cancel, Birdy decides to impersonate Heather and have a job for a few months. After all, what could possibly go wrong, aside from the fact that Heather is a well renowned sommelier, and Birdy barely knows her Pinot from her Merlot!

The Summer Job is a delightful romance, as Birdy finds herself falling for handsome James the chef. Whether she could really have been able to pull off the impersonation, even with an alcoholic manager like Bill, is debatable, but it does make for an interesting storyline. Her frantic efforts to learn all the wines and equally frantic attempts to fit into Heather’s uniform, kept the pages turning easily.

A lovely story, perfect for summer.

‘The Summer Job’ is a funny, lighthearted, sweet read.
I thought Birdy was so likeable. I could really sympathise with and understand her actions. Roxy was another favourite character of mine, and I loved her dynamic with Birdy.
I found this book so easy and satisfying to read, it was the perfect book to read after a few heavier novels. Once I got to about 60% of the way through, I finished it so quickly (I stayed up past my bedtime!!!).
I’ve always dreamed of visiting the Highlands, and the descriptions in this book were so lovely, it made me want to visit even more.
Really recommend this one.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

If you are ever considering taking the new summer job of your best friend, while they decide jetting off to Italy with a new boyfriend is a better way to spend the time, then whatever you do, hope they have a nice simple job.

For Birdy finds herself in that situation, but Heather is in fact a world class sommelier and Birdy well knows nothing about food or wine, or fine dining or anything else relating to that world.

So trying to pass herself off as Heather is just a tad trickier than she imagined!

There is so much to laugh about in this book, but there are also some more touching storylines throughout too. It's about discovering who you really are. It's a story set in a fabulous Scottish loch location, and I loved some of the mentions of England / Scotland rivalry!

This is more than just a summer job for Birdy, but can she pull it off, and what about her heart when she realised she is falling for someone who doesn't even know her real name. And the antics of her sort of current man are rather amusing too.

Oh and there is a good amount of food talk to tantalise your tastebuds with, and if you are a wine lover, you will love this even more. As Birdy tries to learn the hotel's wine list, and the descriptions of each one, and just what to pair with what!

It's a really entertaining story that will be perfect for a lazy afternoon by the pool or in the garden! I loved it and am really impressed to see it was a debut too.

Thank you to Penguin and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

Elizabeth Finch – but everybody calls her Birdy – is around thirty years old and at the crossroads of her life. She has never held a job for longer, her love life is an utter chaos and she’s somehow flitting through her life. She doesn’t like commitments. She doesn’t do roots. The only constant in her life is her best friend Heather – Heather with structured life and an accomplished career as a sommelier – well, she has worked long and hard to be where she is at the moment. While Birdy was cycling through dead – end jobs… But Birdy is actually happy with her life.
Heather has a new job lined up in Scotland for the summer. But then she decides to follow her heart and travel to Italy with her new boyfriend, asking Birdy to pretty please cancel this job for her. Birdy, being chaotic as she is, forgets and now it’s too late. Seeing as she’s jobless and homeless and the place is supposed to be a run – down, seldom – visited family hotel, Birdy decides to pose as a sommelier – as a Heather! – for the summer. Well, recommending wine can’t be so hard, right? Ooh, Birdy, wrong!

Of course, what happened in the book felt like a comedy of errors. Firstly, it turns out that the hotel is newly renovated and aiming for different kind of customer, which means that, well, it would be better if Birdy knew a little more than the difference between Pinot Grigio and a Chardonnay. The bar manager, Bill, who has employed Heather (can’t he see the difference between Heather and Birdy???), seems to have a drinking problem. Heather has no idea what Birdy is doing. And Birdy starts to develop a crush on Jamie, the sous – chef, no matter how much she tries not to. Then there is the everyday issue of recommending the right wine and the dreading visit of restaurant reviewer… There are tons of things happening in this book, there is not a single moment flat and the story is simply flying forward, turning out into a quick and entertaining read.

To be absolutely honest, Birdy was not my favourite character, especially at the beginning. Maybe I’m too old, or too cynical to completely appreciate her and her ways. It actually made my eyes roll at hers not so subtle tricks when it came to recommending the wine, always asking other people what they would do and I was wondering how long can she pull it through before it starts to feel too old? I think that many lies and simply “doesn’t give a shit” approach made me feel uncomfortable, as well as the pickle she was getting herself into. I think it was done so purposefully, what with us then getting slowly to learn about her past and seeing that she’s starting to try really hard, but nevertheless it felt too forced and too pushy for me. Sometimes less is more. But yes. There is of course much more to her character than meets the eye, what with the issues when she was growing up. Later on she also proved that she can be a hard – worker – she only needs to find the place where she wants to be. She was also caring and it was lovely to see her growing up and realising what it is she wants to do, seeing her falling in love with a place and with people, starting to trust again, making friendships and really helping.
The cast of the supporting characters waswell drawn and truly entertaining, they are colourful, eclectic and vivid and each of them adds their own sparkle to the story.

The setting is absolutely gorgeous and when you close your eyes you’ll easily find yourself in Scotland. The writing style is lovely and nice and easy to follow. The banter is funny, though I had a feeling that the author tries too much sometimes, especially when it came to Birdy – yes, perhaps she tried to cover her uncertainty with smartness and cynicism but it felt too forced. I also felt that the book is a bit repetitive and some parts felt cringy rather than funny or realistic.

It was a lovely book and I can understand the hype around it, however it didn’t work for me as well as for the other reviewers. There is a lot of potential, a brilliant setting, lots of light – hearted banter and things happening and a lovely blossoming romance - maybe I’ve expected too much? No idea, but I’ll be for sure keeping my eye on Lizzy Dent and as soon as there is another book from her, I’ll bet he first in the virtual queue as this story about finding yourself and a place to belong, at first glance funny and light – hearted but underneath the surface with much more to discover, with some deeper issues running through it was interesting, entertaining and like a breath of fresh air.