Chasing the Italian Dream: Escape and unwind with bestselling author Jo Thomas

It is a perfect summer read. It is romantic and full of warmth. The best of tradition, family, love and food.

The story kept me interested. The conflict among characters was mostly believable though, sometimes a stretch. All in all, it was a pleasing read and ended with a real sense of love. And that is what we need at times. And I wanted to make pizza by the end since it really sounded so good. I will tomorrow !

Sooooo...I miss Italy a lot and REALLY wish I could be there. I had hoped this book would provide a bit of escapism to Italy in this endless pandemic. And it did, in a tiny way. But there were just so many glaring distractions in this novel that just irritated me like crazy and pulled me out of the story again and again. The redundancy is off the charts. The book could be half as long were the author not to repeat the Same. Darned. Details. Over and over and over again. I truly wanted to smack the heroine for her complete idiocy--every time she was thwarted she wanted to blame her estranged husband. I mean GET A CLUE, you dope! Oh and she was so mopey and self-absorbed. Ugh. Blah blah blah blah blah. Also if I had a dollar for every time she woke up, smelled coffee, smelled her breakfast that Nonna made, heard the dude singing. There are many, many, many interesting things happening in small villages in Italy that could be interspersed with each scene rather than the yawning rehashes the author employs. It was almost like the author had a function key in which she plugged in the same ol' same ol' in each scene. The scenes in the kitchen were super redundant. The scenes in her grandparents' apartment were super redundant. This author lacked imagination, though clearly has spent time in small villages in Europe, so has somewhat of a sense of them, so it's unfortunate she failed to convey that capably. Oh another thing--it was deeply implausible that the husband of a supposed good friend of hers in this small village (where everyone knows everyone's business) would die and the heroine would not have heard about it. Puhlease. On the upside, the writing is generally fine enough.

A love story combined with a pizza making competition taking place in romantic Italy. A great diversion from your daily grind.

A real page turner and I can relate to this story having been to Italy several times and stayed in a village not far from Venice lovely storyline.

A really nice book to read not over descriptive not too many characters just a family-type book and being Italian I appreciated it even more hearing the characters Nonno and Nonna such happy memories. Makes you feel like you want to run out and go to your favorite pizza restaurant and order pizza. Oh for the good times!!!!

I did enjoy this book and the twists and turns that took place. My only disappointment was that I knew from the beginning how it would end.

Fabulous story of love and finding your way. Great characters and well written. Made we want to eat pizza in the sun.

Whilst I can't currently get to my favourite Italian restaurant, this book makes me feel im right there. Like a lot of her books, she captures all of your senses, provides rich, well rounded characters you love and fantastic story lines (So much so that I read this in 1 day)If you want a bit of escapism & a trip to Italy without leaving your home, I would highly recommend.

If there is one thing you’re guaranteed of when starting a Jo Thomas book, it’s instant transportation to the destination in question.This time we are taken to Italy with Lucia, born in Wales to Italian parents she takes her annual holiday to visit her grandparents and help out in her Nonno’s pizzeria. There she discovers past love and a new found realisation of where she really wants to be in her life. But will fusty old beliefs really stop her from being right where she should be? Now, having been through over a year of Covid restrictions, this book will have you dreaming of a glass of good wine while sitting in the warm sunshine watching the world go by. All I can think of is sitting in Nonno’s pizzeria, surrounded by lemon trees waiting for my pizza, full of garlicky tomato sauce, bubbling mozzarella and a good tiramisu to follow. Lucia’s story is fabulous but the descriptive powers of Jo Thomas will have you longing for the days we can board a plane and head off for one more slice of paradise.I look forward to Jo’s next destination of choice.

Lucia has reached the point where she knows things need to change in her life, and when she visits her grandparents in their small Italian hometown she begins to feel that this is where she’s meant to be.This story is mostly centred around the family owned pizza restaurant and how they need to find a balance between moving with the times while also appreciating and respecting the local culture. The town definitely has some old fashioned views, especially where women are concerned, and I loved seeing Lucia fight for the respect she deserved, despite being a woman in the restaurant.There are some wonderful characters in this book, my favourite being Lucia’s grandparents - especially her nonna! It highlights the amazing things that can happen when women encourage other women.The reason I gave 3 stars is mostly because I didn’t connect with Lucia very much and honestly found her a bit annoying! In the beginning she kept saying “when I get the promotion” over and over again, and I know the author most likely did this to prove a point, but it was just a bit too excessive. She also kept blaming everything on Giacomo without taking any responsibility herself in some situations. She’d fly off the handle without allowing him to respond, which is something that always bothers me in books!So although Lucia wasn’t the best, it was still a lovely story and very entertaining. The descriptions of the food and the ingredients used were so incredibly detailed. I specifically remember Lucia trying fresh mozzarella while visiting a buffalo farm and thinking the description of her experience was perfectly spot on!

Loved it, read it all in a day. Now I really would like a pizza and a large glass of wine!

Lucia, a business lawyer living in Wales, goes on holiday to stay with her grandparents who run a pizza restaurant in a small town in Italy. They're she heard some unexpected news both there and at home which makes her reconsider her career going forward.The setting sounds idyllic, both the setting and pizzas - the latter had my mouth watering at many points in the book. There is definitely an eclectic cast of characters, from her grandparents, her ex-husband, a lady of the night amongst others. It also brings to life the downside of living in a small community, especially from the story one in Italy which sounds very old fashioned.Overall a book ideal for escapism and to bring some sunshine into our lives during these troubling times. Now where can I get some decent pizza hre in the UK......I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley, however this did not influence my review of the book and I subsequently purchased it on release