I adore Rebecca Serle and loved her two prior books, but unfortunately the premise of this book just wasn't for me. The topic of this novel just didn't work for me, and that is certainly not the author's fault. My mother passed away in the beginning of this year and though I tried many times to read this, I just couldn't.

Thank you to the publisher and the author for this arc. I am only one reader and my review has nothing to do with the quality of the writing as this author's writing is superb.

ONE ITALIAN SUMMER by Rebecca Serle:
An author’s love letter to the Amalfi Coast - particularly Positano and its Hotel Poseidon Positano - as well as to a daughter’s devotion to her mother.

Serle also depicts the difficulty children have to see their parents through a different lens, chiefly that of their former youth and past prior to their assumption into the roles of mother or father. The sun-dappled Amalfi coast with its signature oversized lemons and quintessential Italian food & wine also wear the cloak of an additional main character in the novel, as the reader is submerged into the setting’s sparkling blue waters and house topped cliffs. Also of note to the reader: this latest release from Rebecca Serle seems to be a departure from her previous familiar writing style and deviation of the usual type of novel that readers might expect based on her previous several best-selling books. It was evident that this book was different for her and of a very personal nature with her love for what she calls “her most favorite place” definitely shining through, with this story almost a cherished gift from her back to the beloved Positano.

Unfortunately, I never ended up finishing this book. I understand the topic the author discusses heavily in the book (loss of a parent), but this wasn’t to my taste. I gave up at around 30% of the book.

Rebecca Serle definitely has a brand--these magical realism tropes that helps someone discover something they need to apply to their real life. In this story, we have Katy, who is struggling to process the death of her beloved mother, and takes a trip that was intended for both of them to a place her mother loved-Positano, Italy. Katy is questioning everything--her relationship with her parents, her marriage, her whole life--and is looking for answers. The device this book uses is interesting (I don't want to spoil it) and allows Katy to intimately know her mother as a young woman who was trying to do the same things.

My favorite aspect of the story is the remarkable sense of place. I thought Serle did an excellent job making you really feel the Amalfi Coast, and to really ground you in the sights and sounds of Positano. It definitely made me want to go there, and to eat the food!

I did think that this maybe went by too fast though--I wanted more depth, more time after the resolution, more on Katy's marriage, just a bit more emotional heft throughout.

Nice little twist in there that I didn’t see coming. Katy grew on me. Lauren Graham is a great narrator.

I enjoyed this time-bender of grief. When Katy loses her mother—the most important and closest person to her—she doesn’t know how to go on, questioning her purpose, her marriage, everything that has brought her to this moment. So when a trip she planned to take with her mother comes up, she goes alone, to Positano Italy where time folds in on itself and she finds a younger version of her mother nothing like the woman she knew. Spending time with her and a handsome stranger awakens a zest for life she forgot she had, but there are more mysteries and deeper levels of grief to discover.

I really like Rebecca Serle, I also read In Five Years this year and enjoyed it so much. There’s a lot about this book that won me over—her relationship with Adam, the descriptions of food and the immediacy of place, all of it was vivid and magical. But I agree with some criticisms I’ve read (@lattesandpaperbacks among them) that the characters and experiences were a bit shallow, that there could have been more to make her experience a little more accessible, her character more relatable. But on the whole I liked it! You know me! You really have to drop the time travel ball for me to dislike a book.

Thanks to @netgalley for the ARC I finally managed to get to!

Katy has just lost her mother, her greatest and most treasured person/relationship in her life. Feeling lost and adrift, she goes on a trip she and her mom had planned to go on together to Positano, Italy, telling her husband she thinks they need a break. Positano is stunning, and Katy finds something very unexpected while there.

I went into this book not really sure what to expect, I know Serle’s books are marketed to appeal to romance readers but this very much doesn’t fit into that category. It’s a detailed look at grief and the relationships in our lives and how even if you love someone deeply, you don’t always know all of them. I listened to the audiobook of this one which is only 6 hours, and yet took me forever to finish because I really just wasn’t invested in this book or the characters. I didn’t really like Katy, I can’t put my finger on exactly why. And then she made some decisions near the end of the book that made me angry. Definitely an unlikable heroine at least for me. The end tied up all nice and convenient which was nice but overall I was underwhelmed by this entire book.

I really enjoyed this book! Takes place is gorgeous Positano Italy, ahhhhhh, revolves around a woman dealing with the death of her moth, sniff, and, unbeknown to me in advance, has a little bit of magic, yayyyy! I love books about these things.

I don't want to spoil any thing but lets just say live in the moment, ask questions to those you love and listen to the answers, stop waiting, go live, travel to the places on your bucket list, and break out of your patterns and habits, you may surprise yourself.

This book was everything I wanted it to be. It had me turned pages without even realizing. It was so good!

Straight off the bat, I didn't like Katy. She was immature, and the mother daughter relationship just threw me off. I wanted to Dnf  this multiple times. I felt bad for Eric because Katy made some selfish decisions. This book just didnt hit the mark.

1.5⭐️

Thank you NetGalley and publishers for this ebook.

Thank you to Atria books for a gifted copy of One Italian Summer!

This is very much a character driven book which I have a hard time with so take this review with a grain of salt. It's a very short book but it felt very slow moving to me. However, I loved the setting of this book and I cannot WAIT to visit Positano someday. Serle brought the location and food to life and she writes time travel/magical realism really well! This is a story about a mother daughter relationship, grief, marriage and finding a way to move forward after the loss of a loved one.

Cute book about mother daughter relationships and finding yourself. I loved the setting of positano and it made me want to go with my mother while I can!

Serle is the queen of all types of love stories 💓 in her latest release ONE ITALIAN SUMMER we are transported to Positano with Katy who is embarking on a mother-daughter trip of a lifetime. Only thing is Katy's mother recently passed after her battle with cancer. Katy decides to fly to Italy anyways, in hopes the trip will give her peace and help heal her broken heart.

This book took me for an emotional ride from cover to cover. Although some may not love the magical realism aspect, it really worked for me here. I'm sure reading ONE ITALIAN SUMMER while in Positano added a lot to the experience for me, especially because the book mentioned so many spots that we visited (and LOVED). It was so fun to read this and picture everything Serle described IRL. This was a really quick (like, the book is actually pretty short in length) but impactful story about mother daughter relationships, family, grief, and the struggle of trying to oneself after a momentous life event.

If you and your mother planned an Italian getaway but then she passed away before the trip, would you still go? Katy does. But when the 30-year-old version of her mother appears in the streets of Positano, Katy learns more about her mother as a carefree woman -- and about herself in the process. This was a very sweet story in theory, but it was certainly imperfect. I think I read this at the perfect point in my life which is why I'm able to see past some of the cliches and moral ambiguity and ignorantly hone in the bigger picture.

I am such a huge fan of this author’s books. There’s something about her writing that I find so distinctive.

When Katy’s mother, Carol, passes away she takes a trip to Italy that they were meant to take together.

There’s a fantasy element to this one, as with all of the author’s books, and normally this is something which doesn’t really appeal to me, but in the case of this author’s books I make the exception.

A beautiful story of love and grief and how these feelings can exist together.

I adored the characters and the story but for me the setting in this one was what stole the show. It was absolutely incredible; the writing was so descriptive that I actually felt I was there, and I immediately wanted to book a trip to Italy!

While this book is beautifully written and incredibly atmospheric, it wasn't up to par with In Five Years. I love Rebecca Serle's prose, but this fell flat for me. Part of it was the improbability of the story and the magical realism within. The world just didn't flow for me. I'll continue to read and support Serle because her books are pure escapism, even when the stories don't quite work for me.

Rebecca Serle has an uncanny ability to make you feel all the feels! One Italian Summer follows a woman who has just lost her mother and decides to take the trip of a lifetime that they had planned to take together. The setting is sublime and, being a lover of food, the descriptiveness of the food and drinks is masterful. I so want to travel to Italy and experience even a small bit of the magic that Serle weaves into this novel. Anyone who has lost someone will feel a bit heartbroken that we can't experience the same. Magical!

4.5/5 ⭐️

I’ve been transported to Italy and I’m not ready to come back.

Katy has lost her mother, who was her best friend and is taking the trip they planned to take together in order to try and grieve her loss and figure out if she wants to remain in her marriage with her husband, Eric. Katy is struggling to cope with her immense loss and is feeling like her life is falling apart without her center.

I thought the relationship between Katy and her mother, Carol, was a tad codependent, but as someone who is very close to her mom as well, I felt it was believable to feel those deep emotions and that ragged pain that comes with a loss of someone so important to you.

I loved the atmosphere Serle brought to this book. I felt like I was traveling alongside Katy and couldn’t get over how real it all felt!

This was my first book by Rebecca Serle and I’m glad I started with this read. I hope there’s more goodness coming from her in the future.

Thank you NetGalley and Publishers for the review copy!

In One Italian Summer we see the impact one woman's death has on her adult daughter. It beautifully portrays the pain one can go through despite the age of a child when a parent passes away. But even more poignantly we see the history of the mother in magical realism when the daughter befriends the younger version of her mother. And secrets are unveiled. In a uniquely written book, Rebecca Serle has given readers great points to ponder about how we are all ducks just paddling like mad under water despite how calm we look on the surface, and the impact that can have on relationships. This makes a terrific book club read for everyone because there are so many nuggets in the book it can relate to many people.

A wonderful summer read. The descriptions of Italy and its experiences provides the reader an armchair vacation with a unique storyline where Katy magically meets the younger version of her mother. For those who are willing to suspend reality.