I enjoyed reading her journey and reading her grow up a little bit and figure out who she is. I think that is a good thing to write about in a teen novel. Lina’s decision making skills need work and her rationale for doing things was fuzzy most times, but she always learned from it. She is a teenage girl that lost her mom and is just trying to figure out what her life is and who she really is without her mom.

She had flaws, but overall, she was good. Sometimes insta-love drives me mad, but it worked for this book. There was definitely some insta-love here, but I didn’t mind it. It wasn’t what Lina expected, but it worked out so well. The whole “Who is my father?” thing is one of the main plot lines of this book, and I adore the way it played out. This is a very mild mystery as well, and I enjoyed that aspect of it. She also finds out things that aren’t so pleasant, and has to figure out how to best handle it. Lina is given one of her mother’s journals from her time in Italy and Lina is able to experience Italy through her mom’s words and experiences. It was her mother’s dying wish for Lina to go and spend time with her father. This story is about a girl named Lina who sets off to spend a summer in Italy after her mother passes away. Sometimes it is more refreshing to read such an easy read, so I have no complaints about the writing. This is for sure more of a teenage novel because our main character is only 16 or 17? The writing reflected that, but it didn’t really bother me. So, reading a book set in this beautiful place was so fun for me to read. If there is one place I desperately want to travel to one day, it is Italy. Thoughts: I adored this book! The wanderlust in me definitely came out while reading this one. Rating: I gave this 4/5 stars on Goodreads! People come to Italy for love and gelato, someone tells her, but sometimes they discover much more. It’s a secret that will change everything Lina knew about her mother, her father – and even herself. A world that inspires her, along with the ever-so-charming Ren, to follow in her mother’s footsteps and unearth a secret that has been kept for far too long. Suddenly Lina’s uncovering a magical world of secret romances, art, and hidden bakeries. But what kind of father isn’t around for sixteen years? All Lina wants to do is go back home.īut then she is given a journal that her mom had kept when she lived in Italy. She’s only there because it was her mother’s dying wish that she get to know her father. Lina is spending the summer in Tuscany, but she isn’t in the mood for Italy’s famous sunshine and fairy-tale landscape.

Love and gelato goodreads