To Sicily with Love is an immersive and beautifully written escape to Sicily. Jennifer Probst masterfully conveys the sights, smells, and flavors of the region, making it feel as if you’re experiencing it firsthand. The characters are relatable and well-drawn, with authentic relationships and emotions that resonate. Themes of grief, family bonds, and self-discovery are woven seamlessly into the story, adding depth beyond just a travel romance. While there is a romantic element, it’s handled with just the right balance—believable and heartfelt without being overly sweet. A wonderful, feel-good read that transports you to the heart of Sicily. A vacation to Italy without the bother of having to get on an airplane. This was the first of Jennifer Probst books that I have read --I’ll definitely be reading more!

This is a perfect vacation read! To Sicily with Love is sweet story full of beautiful locations and food following a grieving daughter who sets out to find out more about her family roots. I enjoyed following Aurora as she heals from some very difficult events in her life. There were so many fun side characters and a sweet romance. I loved visiting Sicily with her. It makes me want to go as I have distant family connections in Sicily and I could relate a bit to Aurora's story. Overall a fun, sometimes emotional read that I would recommend! I look forward to reading more of Jennifer Probst's books set in Italy!

Thank you to Berkley Publishing and Netgalley for the advance read copy. The book releases Feb. 18, 2025!

So much to say about the his book. It was heartwarming and heartbreaking. I lived it. The boyfriend was a little controlling which I felt bad for Aurora. He just rubbed me the wrong way. But Aurora finds something in Sicily that put a smile on my face. It was sweet, but so much going on that was not know.

The way I want summer to get here now after reading this. This was an amazing summer romance filled with entertaining characters, a cute plot, and just enough suspense to keep a person reading. I loved it!

An amazing story of loss, grief and finding herself.
Aurora's life was great, then she lost her father, she got herself up. Then she lost her mother and everything came down, during this time she find out that she has a family on mother side, they live in Sicily. She leave everything and travel to Sicily to meet them and uncover her mother's secret.
When I start to read this book, I didn't like Aurora or her boyfriend, but as the storyline progress, it pulled me in so much, that I couldn't put in back.
It is wonderful story.

Thank you, @authorJenniferProbst and @BerkleyRomance for my free book.

📚 #BOOKREVIEW 📚
To Sicily with Love by Jennifer Probst
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ / Pages: 384 / Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Release Date: February 18, 2025
🥳#HappyPubDay!🎉

Aurora is so busy with work and her fitness-obsessed boyfriend that she doesn’t have time for her friends or her mother. And then her mother dies suddenly and she tries to get over her grief and back to normal as quickly as she can. On a whim, she joins an ancestry site and discovers family on her mother’s side that she never knew existed. In short, she eventually realizes that she can’t fast-track her grief (much to her unsympathetic and patronizing boyfriend’s dismay) and decides to take some much needed time off—away from work and him. She goes to Italy, gets to know her huge Italian family, finds out what exactly happened between them and her mother, and finally indulges in some carbs and a little romance.

I assumed this book was going to be just a sweet little romance set in Italy. It’s so much more than that. This story literally has all the feels plus rich descriptions of the Sicilian coastal lifestyle and all the scrumptious local cuisine. I loved everything about this book and highly recommend it.

Aurora's life takes an unexpected turn when, in the midst of grieving a loss and finding herself living a life she doesn't recognize or understand, she discovers her late mother's Sicilian family. What awaits her is nothing she's ever experienced in her adult life - unconditional love and acceptance. Jennifer Probst paints a picture with her words and as I read, it felt like I was watching a movie. Excellent read with all the things that the best books deliver: complex characters to fall in love with who will stay with me for a long time, a cast of characters who jump off the page and a love story that encompasses a place, a found family and Quint, my new favorite book boyfriend. This one left my heart full to bursting. I loved it and I highly recommend.
WHAT I LOVED: Romantic-Wonderful Characters-Page Turner-HEA

I received a complementary copy of this book and am voluntarily providing my honest review.

Contemporary Fiction • Romance • Italy
Publication Date • 18 February 2025

Happy publication day! Thanks @berkleypub & @prhaudio for the free book and ALC! ‧₊˚🎧⊹

▶︎ •၊၊||၊|။||||။‌‌‌‌‌၊|• Travel to Sicily for a feel good story about what is important in life ˚₊˚⊹♡

Aurora is a life coach with a social media following, successful podcast, lots of clients, a book deal on the way, and a dreamy gym-owner boyfriend. However, when her mom passes away, genetic testing reveals that she has a whole extended family in Sicily that her mom hid from her.

Suddenly Aurora’s life turns upside down in eat, pray, love fashion as she upends her life, traveling across the world on a journey of self-discovery.

🍷Where this book shines is in the food descriptions that had me salivating and drooling, as well as the descriptions of the various markets and attractions: the charm of rural Italy. 🍝🦀🐚 This book was slower paced and although some scenes had me emotional, I did not connect with the main character. However, just because it was not for me does not mean it’s not for you!

‧₊˚⊹♡ Read this one when in the mood for a light, slower pace journey of healing with a no spice romance.

The audiobook was cute with Italian accents as well as actual Italian language. ‧₊˚🎧⊹

TO SICILY WITH LOVE is the fourth instalment in Jennifer Probst’s contemporary, adult MEET ME IN ITALY woman’s fiction series. This is life coach/ motivational speaker/ author American Aurora York’s story line. TO SICILY WITH LOVE is a complete stand alone, and is not connected to the previous instalments.

Told in three parts, from first person perspective (Aurora) TO SICILY WITH LOVE follows in the wake of Aurora York’s mother’s death. Since the death of her father five years earlier, workaholic Aurora York’s relationship with her mother has been strained . Hours after they last spoke Aurora’s mother dies, leaving Aurora grasping with a grief she did not understand. Six months will past, Aurora’s business and promotions begin to fail, and her relationship with fitness instructor James struggles in the face of different objectives but a DNA test will reveal a large extended Italian family, a family she knew nothing about. With the only family she knew dead and buried, Aurora travels overseas where she will find a place to call home, and someone to love.

The world building focuses on the fracture dynamics of a mother and daughter torn apart but secrets and lies. Aurora does not understand her mother’s ongoing grief and loss but Aurora does not have the time to think about anything else except furthering her business and online career. A trip to Italy will reveal years of unspoken heart break and loss but a connection to her mother she never knew existed.

Aurora York will meet her mother’s large extended and boisterous Italian family where secrets reveal words said in anger pushed the family apart. Aurora will meet and fall in love with a young man whose own life spiralled years before but a man who is willing to give love a chance.

TO SICILY WITH LOVE is a story of secrets and lies, grief and loss, acceptance and love. The premise is heart breaking and emotional; the romance is subtle; the characters are numerous, energetic and charismatic.



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Jennifer Probst’s To Sicily with Love is an engaging story on so many levels. It’s a love letter to Italy, big, boisterous totality involved families, fabulous food, customs and culture. It’s about life choices, forms of love, emotional growth, relationships and romance. Simply put, it’s a story to savor. I voluntarily reviewed an advance copy of this book from NetGalley. Most highly recommend.

This was the book I needed 3 months after losing my mom. To be able to escape to. Beautiful town and to go on this journey that shows life can be beautiful after tremendous loss. The Author did an amazing job with description that I almost feel I have visited. 5 stars.

3.5 stars.
This book began with Aurora, a life coach who is go go go all the time. It emphasized it so much it made me question my life. It doesn't help that her boyfriend is also the same way but more extreme, very superficial with no family values. Unfortunately for Aurora life decides to make her slow down as tragedy strikes and all these emotions start to surface whether she likes it or not.

She decides to take a DNA test to see if she has
Any family left and takes a trip to Italy. It was very much eat, prey love. But I had trouble connecting with the characters. I loved where the story was going and it makes you appreciate that it's not always work hard but to enjoy the little things.

Thank you to Net Galley and Berkeley publishing for gifting me this eARC.

Let me start by saying I won this ebook along with another I did not know this was a series and this was book 4 in that series It does read like a standalone and i don't think I was missing anything.

I really have to get one thing off my chest- I hated Jason what a tool.....

Synopsis (Just a bit)

Aurora York had it all loving parents, a steady relationship, and a promising career. But after she loses both parents unexpectedly, she can’t seem to stay on track any longer. Lonely and lost after a public meltdown that threatens her professional credibility, she’s shocked when DNA test results show a blood relative in Sicily. When her cousin reaches out online and begs her to come to Italy to meet everyone in person, Aurora makes the leap.

I won a copy !
My thanks to NetGalley, the author and publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Winsome, tender, and atmospheric!

To Sicily with Love is a heart-tugging, engaging tale that takes you into the life of the grief-stricken Aurora York who, after struggling to regroup after the death of both of her parents, embarks on a journey to Italy to unravel the secrets of her mother’s past and to meet the extended family she never knew she had.

The writing is rich and vivid. The characters are endearing, adventurous, and authentic. And the plot is a wonderful mix of life, love, family, friendship, secrets, light drama, self-discovery, and romance.

Overall, To Sicily with Love is another sophisticated, emotive, compelling addition to the Meet Me in Italy series by Probst that once again highlights her exceptional ability to sweep you away to another place through her passion and knowledge of its food, culture, and landscape.

To Sicily with Love by Jennifer Probst, book four in the Meet Me in Italy series, takes the reader on a journey from New York to Sicily, accompanying Aurora York on her quest to heal after the loss of her mother. Aurora is a driven life coach whose own life falls apart after the unexpected death of her mother. She is struggling professionally and in her romantic relationship. As an only child, she believes she has no living family, but a DNA test reveals that not to be true. Aurora embarks on a trip to Sicily to meet the cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents, and extended family she didn’t know she had.

While some parts were a bit slow, by the time she gets to Sicily and spends time with her family, navigating a new culture, family dynamics and interactions along, as well as the descriptions of locations, helped the story pick up. You get lost in the Italian landscape, descriptions of food, and the importance of family, all while you're sorting through themes of grief, guilt, and self-discovery. There is a romance element to this book, but it takes a backseat to the themes of healing and self-discovery. I really began to enjoy Aurora more as well as the additional characters; especially her relationship with her Boppa. Jennifer Probst has written a wonderful book about rediscovering joy after experiencing profound grief.

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.
#NetGalley #Berkley

A good novel about personal growth and finding joy.
I didn’t like Aurora very much for the first part of the book, especially the way she treated her mother.
I loved the vivid descriptions of Sicily and Aurora’s family. Even cranky Baba covered up his lifelong regret with gruffness.
Quint was dreamy and every girl’s answer to a happily ever after.
Aurora spent a lot of time trying to squeeze herself back into a life size that no longer fit.
I did finally warm up to her but my favorite characters were Catena and Quint.
I think Probst needs to write Catena’s story next!

3⭐️ Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for an advanced copy of To Sicily With Love.

Aurora thinks she has it all together in life, her career and relationship are right on track. She lost her father five years ago and her mother has never really been the same. Then she gets the devastating news that her mother has passed away. She feels lost and finds out she has family she never knew about in Sicily so she decides to go visit and it is life changing for her.

I was not a fan of the female main character at all. I disliked how dismissive she was of her mother when all she wanted was to spend time with her. I disliked her boyfriend at the beginning and how she just followed his lead. The only redeeming thing in this book were the descriptions of Sicily and the descriptions of the amazing food.

When Aurora’s mother dies, her carefully constructed life of control and discipline falls apart. Her relationship with her boyfriend was based on their shared goals of success, until Aurora realizes she has cut herself off from true emotion. Finding out she has an extended family in Sicily, Aurora visits and begins a transformation. I really enjoyed the Italian setting, and the large, boisterous family, but the slowness of Aurora’s self realization was off putting to me. All in all, I did enjoy the book. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Aurora’s journey from grief to self-discovery in Sicily is both heartwarming and immersive, filled with rich cultural moments and endearing family dynamics. The contrast between her fast-paced digital life and the deep-rooted traditions of her newfound relatives adds depth to her emotional transformation. With a touch of romance and the pull of two worlds, this novel beautifully explores the question of where home truly lies.

My Honest Opinions:
This book had me craving a summer holiday in the Italian sun, however that was really where my love for this story ended. I could never really connect with the MFC, and there were so many cringy cliches used that just felt inauthentic and something more akin to a cheesy Hallmark movie (which I’m a fan of in small doses, not something I want to read over 300 pages of.)

If you are looking for a light, breezy book this might be for you, it just wasn’t exactly the type of romance writing that I crave.

Thank you @netgalley and @berkleypub for the e-ARC in order to review and rate this story.

#NetGalley #Berkley #BerkleyPub #RomanceBooks #BookReview #ToSicilyWithLove

I wanted to love this book, but sadly I ended up forfeiting at 60%. The book was filled was too many cliché phrases, horrible American stereotypes (you want me to believe that Sicilians had no idea how weird it would be to put hot dogs on a pizza and call it honoring someone), an insufferable FMC and as someone who is currently grieving over the loss of her father, the grief felt inauthentic. I knew exactly what would happen immediately, and although predictably is a good thing in a romance, it left me incredibly bored. I also hated the whole "motivational influencer" role that just fell flat. When her client had a panic attack about an Oreo and her advice was to be extra careful the next day I literally laughed, and not in a good way. Most motivational/inspirational people I follow would tell you that life is about balance, something our FMC was slacking tremendously and predictably develops throughout the book. However, I just can't imagine a world where someone who gained the fame she did, would be so one dimensional. She also kept mentioning all the lemon and lime art in the shops in Sicily as if those are the only remarkable things she saw. I had to stop immediately at 60% when the FMC unironically said "dreams don't work unless you do". I skipped to the end to see if my prediction was correct, and it was which I'm glad there was a happy ending. If I forced myself to finish this book it would have put me into a reading slump. Reading this book felt like showing up to a job that I hated.