***Contains spoilers***

***Scroll to the bottom for my rating***

Several weeks ago, I walked into Thunder Road Books in Spring Lake, NJ, looking for a book to take to Italy with me. The staff quickly convinced me that I needed to get a copy of One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle. I was going to the Amalfi Coast, and this book was set on the Amalfi Coast; what’s more perfect than that? I had seen this book on Instagram and TikTok a ton last year and never got to it, but I’m happy I finally had the chance this year. 

Although I started this book on the beautiful Italian coast while drinking in the sun and some Aperol Spritz, I finished it back at my lovely home in NJ. What is great about having just returned from a trip where the book you are reading is set is that when it is geographically and quite historically accurate, you feel as if you are reliving your trip and can see clear as day some if not all of the locations mentioned throughout the book. It made the return home not as hard because I felt like I was still there. 

This book was very different from others I have been reading lately, but I welcomed the change. It was heartfelt, deep, and so reflective of the stages of grief. I am blessed to say that my mother is still with me, but even still, I cried while reading. If you’ve lost a mother, this book may wreck you emotionally, yet help to heal you of those woes. 

Due to the deep pain and grief that is emulated throughout this book, I did not feel as drawn to it as I had expected. I felt myself fighting to finish because it made me sad, or moments from the book truly turned me off, and I really wasn’t sure if I wanted to know how they would play out. 

The concept of the book was, however, very interesting. Being thrust back in time to meet up with her thirty-year-old mother, Katy was finally able to have the Italian vacation they always spoke and dreamt about together, even though Carol had just passed. Unsure of how it was all happening, Katy tried to ignore the uncertainties and bask in having her mother, her best friend, back by her side. Even as the days went on, she learned more and more about who her mother was before she became her mother. 

With fractures, realizations, heartbreak, and change, Katy returns to the present day, greeted by the husband she thought she had left behind. Taking time to recover from the oddity that was the last two weeks, Katy repairs her relationship with her husband, reminisces on the memories with her mother, and takes the next steps to manage her grief and honor her mother’s memory. It’s a touching story with a warm ending that left me wanting to call my mom and hug her. 

Truthfully, I enjoyed this story, but I did not love it. Books are allowed to make you sad, and I actually welcome a variety of emotions while I read, especially tears if an author is able to, but this one was too sad for me. I loved reminiscing about my trip and the things I had just seen for the first time while reading, but the story left me with an ache in my heart. Because of that, I am rating One Italian Summer 3.5 out of 5 stars. 

As always, thanks for reading! ❤️

Stars: ⭐⭐⭐.5