By Jenna Evans Welch
"Ren?"
He opened his eyes. "Yeah?"
"I promise I'm normally boring."
"I doubt that."
Raise your hand if you've ever wanted to visit Italy:
*raises both of mine*
*jumps up and down*
*flails arms around*
Just me?
Being partly Italian, visiting Italy is a dream--and sadly, the closest I've ever gotten is probably the spot in Epcot's World Showcase. But I have had real, authentic, Italian food.
Obviously, Italy is a dream of mine--but what if it wasn't your choice to go there? What if it wasn't just a vacation? What if it was permanent?
It's not so simple for Lina.
After the death of her mother, Hadley, Lina is taken in by her best friend, Addie, until she is sent to Italy.
Sounds great, right? Well, there is one small catch.
She's going all the way to Florence, Italy, by herself--to live with the man that she thinks is her father.
A man she's never met.
**********
After arriving in Italy, Lina gets the unfortunate news that she has to live in a cemetery.
That's right--in. Howard--her father--is the caretaker of a cemetery that holds the veterans of men in World War II.
Not really a swell reminder of her situation, she tries her best to adapt to living in and exploring Italy while she has the chance--because as soon as the summer is over, she's going home. With Addie.
The only thing keeping Lina here until the end of the summer is her mom's wish about her meeting Howard.
How did she meet Howard, by the way? Lina wonders this herself. Howard's friend Sonia gives her Hadley's journal, written during the time of her life in Italy. But she couldn't really bring herself to open it. The reminder was too fresh.
But soon Lina meets Ren, a half-Italian, half-American who lives a little farther down the road from her. In. A. Gingerbread house.
“Did you guys have to kick out a cannibalistic witch?”
He gave me a funny look.
“You know . . . like the witch in Hansel and Gretel?”
“Oh.” He laughed. “No, she still comes to visit on major holidays. You meant my grandmother, right?”
“I’m so telling her you said that.”
Through the course of their adventures through Italy, Ren helps her decode the mystery that is Howard, while Lina tries to figure out everything about how her parents met that she can.
(Oh, and Ren is TERRIFIED of Howard. That makes things fun.)
Howard seems nice, but there's something about Hadley's journal entries about him that just seems... off.
Especially when she opens the journal to reveal the cryptic words:
I made the wrong choice.
And Lina's determined to find out why.
**********
Overall, I absolutely ADORED this book. It was recommended to me a few times by a couple of friends of mine. It's the first book I really laughed out loud from. Lina's narration of the story leaves you laughing and smiling with her sarcasm and wit.
And Jenna Evans Welch is a MASTER at humorous situations.
I took one. It was a sandwich cookie with vanilla on one side and chocolate on the other. An Italian Oreo. I bit into it and a choir of angels started singing. Did Italian food have some kind of fairy dust that made it way better than its American counterparts?
“Give her more,” Ren said. “She looks like she’s going to eat her arm.”
“Hey—” I started, but then Odette handed me the rest of the cookies and I was too busy eating to properly defend myself.
The book is definitely a coming-of-age type of story and has bits and pieces of affection that are a tad bit farther than kissing. I won't spoil it though.
There's a little bit of language scattered throughout, (in English and Italian) so be careful before you say a phrase.
There's also a little bit of drinking and the main characters end up at a club (that after an incident, they exit as soon as possible).
Overall, 13 & up. Pretty fun book to read growing up. Made me a lot happier reading it and didn't involve a crazy, high-stakes expedition for a mysterious plant in space or something that doesn't seem realistic at all. If you're looking for something to laugh at, I highly recommend!
Happy reading!
~TheBookGobbler
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