A Taste of Greek Summer follows Lydia, a former chef and current food writer, who takes a work trip to Greece/Corfu and subsequently meets Thanos, a hot Greek chef who inspires her.

The Greek backdrop of this book was lovely and the food descriptions were also great! The two main characters were likeable enough. I did end up getting slightly more invested in the story as it went along.

Ultimately my review of this book is that is was...fine. The writing of dialogue was so different between the British and Greek characters that it almost read as if two authors were writing. The Greek dialogue was actually very distracting to me - it sounded as if the author was writing as if the Greek characters were speaking English even when they were speaking to other Greek people.

Lydia's friend (truly can't be bothered to remember her name right now) was a horrible character and was not redeemed at all in my opinion. I'm usually ready to suspend some disbelief for romance novels but the plot was just a bit ridiculous at times - you're telling me that Lydia travels to Corfu on a work trip but doesn't speak to her boss or anyone else at work at all?? Only to then find out that her friend is actually funding the whole trip and put her on leave (!!!) at work?? and is just immediately forgiven?? Yeah no.

This was a 2.75 stars for me, rounded up to 3. Thank you to Netgalley and Embla Books for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

A Taste of a Greek Summer follows former chef and food writer Lydia as she goes to Greece for a magazine feature. There she meets the Greek hunk Thanos, who is trying to find his way as a chef and guardian to his much younger brother. I thought this book sounded fun as I love descriptions of food and the Greek setting made it all the more exciting!

The descriptions of food did not disappoint, I was hungry for a lot of my time reading it. Thanos was definitely super hot and I liked how his relationship with Lydia progressed through food. I also enjoyed the setting in Greece and got to relive some of my time in the country and the food that I ate, although I sadly had fewer dalliances with Greek men!

Other than that, I found the writing, plot, and characters very, very basic. Caroline was terrible and super annoying to read. The dialogue from the Greek characters felt really stilted and weird. The inclusion of the cooking demonstration and video felt strange and out of nowhere. As the book kept going I found myself looking at the page count to see how much longer I had as I could very much tell where it was going.

Overall, if you are a big fan of romance or want a fun beach read, I recommend this book. 3 stars from me. Thank you to Embla Books and NetGalley for the electronic advanced reader's copy in exchange for my honest review!

I really enjoyed this book. The setting in corfu was amazing and I could almost feel the sunshine coming through the screen! I loved the relationship between Lydia and Thanos and how it developed. Most of all the food was all amazing so be aware that this book will make you hungry! Great read

Firstly I would like to thank the author, publisher and Netgalley for my free ARC.

This is a fun book, full of flavours and scenery giving the reader a heart warming smile and lift of spirits. The author knows her audience, and writes to them, providing extremely readable, transportive stories to fill sunny afternoons.

"I'm important. And I don't know why it feels so awkward to say that out loud." A Taste of Greek Summer is a story about Lydia Broom who feels she is living her second-best life. She left behind her life of working with a world renown chef to writing review of dishes she wishes she could create. Lydia is whisked off to Corfu, Greece with her co-worker and close friend Caroline to work on a special edition of the magazine they work for. Lydia not only discovers delicious food, a closer bond with Caroline, and a handsome Greek man named Thanos, she also discovers who she wants truly be.
This was my first read from Mandy Baggot. This story was a bit slow for me, but it is full of heart and cute moments. There are so many memorable lines and quotes from the story that make you stop and think about your own life. I enjoyed the description of food in this story and it made me want to try new recipes! I liked reading Lydia's growth and backstory. It was a fun light read. Thanks to NetGalley, Mandy Baggot, and Embla Books for the ARC.

A Taste of Greek Summer by Mandy Baggot will whisk you away to the stunning island of Corfu and, in the process, will tempt all of your senses. Lushly descriptive, it will have you falling in love with the beauty and, more significantly, the delectable food of glorious Greece.

Lydia's dreams of becoming a chef have been thwarted, and she instead finds herself writing about the wonderful dishes that she herself longs to create. On assignment in Corfu, destiny will place her in the direct path of Thanos, an aspiring chef of many talents, and a shared love of food will bring them together in such an organic way that it seems only natural to expand their passion well beyond the kitchen.

This story is a love letter to Greek cuisine, and is sumptuous from beginning to end. 3.5 stars

Many thanks to NetGalley and Embla Books for an ARC.

I love this author’s writing so very very much, and so it’s no surprise how much I loved this book. I fell in love with the characters immediately, and the setting of Corfu enhanced the romance and allure of the story! Lucie and Gavin are nurses in the UK and head out on holiday after so many months of treating patients who suffered during the pandemic. When they arrive in Corfu, they are treated to a life and loves they never could have anticipated. And we are treated to a cast of the most wonderful characters, who make us laugh and who make us cry. This is an enchanting novel, filled with hope and optimism…for taking chances and living the best life we can.

Thoroughly enjoyed this story which was emotional yet light hearted and really embraced the Greek lifestyle

I love Mandy Bagot and this book did not disappoint! The descriptions of Corfu make you want to go there immediately and the development of the romance between Lydia and Thanos was delightful. Would give more stars if I could.

This book follows Lydia, a former chef and Thanos, an aspiring chef. The best part of this story was the food descriptions and descriptions of Greece. The story was good, but at times the plot felt dragged out but also rushed. I wish there was more relationship development between Thanos and Lydia. It felt like they met and were instantly in love.

Thank you NetGalley and Embala books for the latest offering from Mandy Baggot A taste of Greek Summer.
Lydia Broom is a restaurant critic for magazine Luxe living. Many years ago, she herself was a chef until her mentor Mario died and she got fired from the restaurant. She vowed she would never cook again.
So, with work colleague Caroline an opportunity arises to go to Corfu. To write a summer edition of the magazine. So, when she arrives, she is prepared to get straight into the sightseeing and enjoying the lovely weather and tasting the delicious Greek food when she meets Greek God and Chef Thanos. There is an instant attraction not just for the delicious food he cooks that Lydia thinks it's the best she has ever eaten but him too.
As Lydia and Thanos spend time together not only their relationship deepens. Lydia’s love for food and cooking that Lydia has dismissed resurfaces and changes the course of her life for good.
A taste of Greek Summer is another great read from the author and one especially for lying on the beach. It is a light-hearted story and which I enjoy showing the places that you can visit of the island, which made me want to go a book a plane right there. It also had a bit a humour thrown in. I liked most of the characters in this story except for Caroline who I thought was a bit rude. But she came good in the end. 4 stars from me.

This is beautiful throughout. It’s everything you’d expect and hope for from a Mandy Baggot novel and an absolute pleasure to get to know the characters.

A really great story, charming, atmospheric, great characters. Filled me with warmth and spirit. Well written and flowed nicely, was romantic and funny, charming and full of fun. A great read, i really enjoyed it.

Thank you Netgalley and Embla Books for gifting me this ebook in exchange for my review.

I read this super quickly and one of the things I really loved about this book is that it didn't go down the insta-love route. I enjoyed that there was a connection between Lydia and Thanos but rather than insta-love which the author then developed with their relationship through a number of interactions. That both characters explained their attraction to each other and their conflicting thoughts on it through their sections.

I'm a sucker for a romance read and found that the romance in these pages was incredibly sweet-natured. It was also refreshing that Thanos was naturally a very kind and honest male character, don't get me wrong I love a rough and ready leading man as much as the next but Thanos, his ideology, his behaviour, struggles and nature was perfect, exactly what this book needed.

I enjoyed the pace of the book, and the side characters were on point. The one thing I do wish was included is more detail on Lydia's treatment in the past, it's mentioned regularly throughout the book but there isn't any really any depth to it that would have helped me understand Lydia better.

A very sweet and cute romance. With great main and side characters. If you are a romance lover this is definiely worth a read.

Not sure if it was a file/download issue but there were lots of gaps, stop/starts which really ruined the flow. I would love the chance to read a better version as the description of the book appeals to me.

As with many Mandy Baggot books a great beach read with all the ingredients - romance, breakups, friendship, community, a fantastic Corfiot setting and above all food!
I really enjoyed and recommend it.

I know this was a romance, but for me, this was more of a love letter to cooking, and especially Greek cooking. The island of Corfu sounds amazing and I can't wait to visit it someday. I totally understood where Thanos was coming from when spoke of the quest to make money taking over the desire to create good dishes for customers. It's so prevalent in restaurants today. I loved this story and the romance was great, but the cooking descriptions made my mouth water even more.

What a suoer cute book. I absolutely loved it. It was everything I needed in a book right now. Great characters. Beautiful scenery description, and of course a wonderful love story. Can't beat the location too!

I just felt hungry all the way through the book! The food descriptions were so appealing. and appetising. Lydia is a writer for a Luxury magazine and flies to Corfu with the colleague to report on life there. She meets the talented Thanos, a chef who suffers from self doubt.
The way the two of them develop their relationship both with each other and with cooking, is well written
It's a really Summery warm book and I did enjoy it. Thaks to NetGalley for a review copy.

Mandy baggott does it again another amazing book by this amazing author. If you haven't read any of Mandy's books I highly recommend it. They are so much fun, unlifting, funny and adorable. Loved it.