alelopezelias's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
hannahmve's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
rockobeige's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
danielljgp's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
So stream of consciousness in style that the scene would change without much setup and I got lost several times throughout.
ilonab's review against another edition
3.0
No plot just vibes. Good descriptions of the city and food, but I found it hard to relate and feel for the main character(poor little rich woman with a famous dad who stole her poem for a song when she was seven ).
amandabnolan's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
raeleechoins's review against another edition
1.0
I really wanted to enjoy this. The first chapter was beautiful, but then it became too much.
esbarnard_'s review against another edition
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
overlookingcovers's review against another edition
2.0
TW: Cheating, betrayal
I’d first like to thanks to Grand Central Publishing for gifting me this review copy. I was really excited to read this book, but alas, it wasn’t for me. Perhaps literary fiction is not my thing.
I’ll start with my pros for the book. Firstly, the book definitely made me feel like I was back in Italy. I felt transported back in time to my adventures in Tuscany, and even some faded memories of Sicily. I could feel Emilia’s excitement to be there, and her sense of this being a pilgrimage to explore her life: her ex boyfriend, her relationship with her father, and her parent’s relationship itself. It was an interesting story.
However, this book has A LOT of stream of consciousness. I never did fair well with that in my classes. Stream of consciousness has always felt like “information overload” to me. Personally, I think it leads to a lot of unnecessary information and a whole lot of confusion. So be warned if you want to read this book and also have that feeling!
Lastly, this book would have been a lot better without John. Maybe it’s a hot take, but he served no purpose to me. All he did was exploit the fact that Emilia had SERIOUS daddy issues. I just didn’t see the point of him, and I am a sucker for romance. I understand he was there to talk about life, but I genuinely think the storyline would have been so much better if he was some older guy reflecting on his life and passing down his wisdom. Feelings more spiritual to me- since that is what it seems Giacco was going for.
Overall, an interesting story, but not my cup of… espresso
I’d first like to thanks to Grand Central Publishing for gifting me this review copy. I was really excited to read this book, but alas, it wasn’t for me. Perhaps literary fiction is not my thing.
I’ll start with my pros for the book. Firstly, the book definitely made me feel like I was back in Italy. I felt transported back in time to my adventures in Tuscany, and even some faded memories of Sicily. I could feel Emilia’s excitement to be there, and her sense of this being a pilgrimage to explore her life: her ex boyfriend, her relationship with her father, and her parent’s relationship itself. It was an interesting story.
However, this book has A LOT of stream of consciousness. I never did fair well with that in my classes. Stream of consciousness has always felt like “information overload” to me. Personally, I think it leads to a lot of unnecessary information and a whole lot of confusion. So be warned if you want to read this book and also have that feeling!
Lastly, this book would have been a lot better without John. Maybe it’s a hot take, but he served no purpose to me. All he did was exploit the fact that Emilia had SERIOUS daddy issues. I just didn’t see the point of him, and I am a sucker for romance. I understand he was there to talk about life, but I genuinely think the storyline would have been so much better if he was some older guy reflecting on his life and passing down his wisdom. Feelings more spiritual to me- since that is what it seems Giacco was going for.
Overall, an interesting story, but not my cup of… espresso
socappuccino's review against another edition
2.0
DNF on page 150. It was very slow and I think I was mislead by the summary, I thought it would be a fun and summery read. I did not like the stream of consciousness in this one, we don’t even know what we are reading about anymore. Unfortunately, this book was not for me I guess.