One Italian Summer

At midnight I finished reading “One Italian Summer,” by Rebecca Serle. Katy is grieving the loss of her mother Carol. What makes it worse is they were supposed to go on a mother daughter trip to Positano the magical town off the Amalfi Coast. Carol spent a summer in Amalfi before meeting Katy’s father. Katy’s marriage is also on the fritz as well. Katy embarks on the journey alone. Positano is as beautiful as you can imagine it. One day Katy sees her mother in the flesh only she’s thirty years old, the same age as Katy is now. Katy doesn’t understand how it’s all happening but she meets a version of her mother who she didn’t know. I enjoyed this novel while I know Rebecca Serle is an established author, this is the first time I read from her and I’m glad I did. While the book was a little slow at times it didn’t ruin the novel for me.

Pros

I love the setting obviously it is Italy after all. I can picture the ocean, the sand, The Poseidon Hotel which is an actual hotel the food etc. Rebecca Serle has a gift of making her words flow. The twist toward the end about how Katy met the thirty year old version of her mother was amazing! My favorite quote comes while Katy and Carol are chatting and Carol gives her great advice that we can all use. That the same set of circumstances, beliefs, actions that get you to a moment won’t get you to what comes next. That if you want a different outcome, you have to behave differently. That you have to keep evolving.

Cons

There wasn’t much I disliked. The book might have been slow at times but not slow enough to where it would ruin the story. I did feel Katy and Carol acted selfishly in some ways and I wished Katy’s husband had gone after her a little earlier. Other than those dislikes I enjoyed it.

Overall

Overall I enjoyed the novel. Not only is it about grieving and loss and the beautiful Italian coast, it has a unique premise about having one more chance to be with someone in their younger years and knowing that they at one point didn’t have all the answers to life and that they were just like us. This book is also a testament to how we will make mistakes but if we don’t make choices or take the plunge how will we know or learn? We don’t know all the answers and we never will. If we really want things in our lives to change we have to take that plunge which is working for what we want and evolving and growing in this journey called life. Thank you Rebecca Serle for this gem of a novel.