This was my first taste of Mandy Baggot and whilst it was a pleasant and light read which I enjoyed, it just needed a little spark of something more for me.

Becky works in her sister's Cafe, where she isn't really treated the best, nor does her sister take on any of her judgements towards things and quite frankly, she wants more out of life. Being a little more rash and adventurous Becky finds herself hopping on a plane and going to Greece - Corfu, where she'll be house-sitting a villa, but before she even gets there, the plane journey alone becomes an adventure in itself - with an array of problems and it's here she meets Elias....who it turns out wasn't just a fellow passenger when he shows up at the villa.

You're definitely swept away to sunnier climes with the writing, the food is a little mouthwatering and the romance is sweet and fun like you'd expect in this kind of novel, but for me it was the characters and dialogue that fell short. The conversations just felt a little too forced/formal/stilted and the characters were too much on the side of immature and stubborn the whole way through for my liking.

My Greek Island Summer is an enjoyable little weekend escape from the grey skies of Britain at the moment and I know MANY will enjoy it - just due to personal preference it didn't quite work out with me.
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I wasn't sure what to expect from My Greek Island Summer as I haven't read any of the authors other books. Overall I have to say I was very pleasantly surprised. My Greek Island Summer is a light-hearted entertaining read filled with romance, over the top drama and a hilarious cast of characters. This book had me literally LOL. I really hope Petra gets her own story soon!!! Thank you #NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to discover another great author. I"ll definitely be looking for more Many Baggot books.

An enjoyable read, although probably not the best I've read by Mandy Baggot. The ingredients are all there, above all the amazing Corfù - the love for Greece oozes from every line and every scene and as usual makes you want to go there immediately! The characters may be sterotypes but are never a caricature but I'm afraid it all sound a bit like déjà-read. The story and the events narrated are pure fiction; it's hard to believe that so much could happen in such a short time to someone, and this is not a negative aspect per se but I also couldn't warm to the main character (or to any character), Becky as well.
This is an overall pleasant (but not as amazing as I expected) , light, entertaining read, perfect for the forthcoming Summer that I would still recommend.
Thank you to NetGalley, Aria and the author for an early copy.
#MyGreekIslandSummer #NetGalley

My Greek Island Summer, a laugh-out-loud romantic comedy, Mandy Baggot

Review from Jeannie Zelos book reviews

Genre: Romance, Women's fiction

Bah, humbug. Women's fiction. Why? Men write romance, men read romance. 'nuff said...

I wanted to like this story, it sounded perfect for me, and I've enjoyed many books from Mandy Baggot before. However I found the first quarter largely irrelevant IMO, I even went back to check I was reading the right book, it seemed so far removed from the description.
I really wasn't feeling it, didn't like Megan, thought Becky was a pushover and the other two workers a bit of a trope. Still, it got better slowly to first half, and then finally, finally, I fell into the story. That second half had the Greece I wanted, the romance I needed, although I still felt a bit underwhelmed by the other characters and the rest of the story. Somehow it felt like there was too much going on, Becky, her sister and the issues with the business, Greece and Elias' family issues and of course Petra and her problems. I'm usually complaining if there's not enough other parts than just the couple and the romance, but this went a bit too far. IMO. Towards the end it finally all tied up but it felt a little rushed, there was so much to deal with.
For me Elias and Becky needed to be the main story and the others supporting that. I love side plots, they can add so much depth to a story but this time I felt they detracted and took over the romance. I wasn't entirely convinced Elias could change his very entrenched views about romance so easily. As usual though that's just my opinion, reading is subjective and others will feel differently.
I liked it – but its not one I'd re-read, and I did skim read parts because I wanted to get back to the romance.

Stars: Three, one I liked but didn't love.

ARC supplied by Netgalley and publisher

I wasn’t sure what to expect and where this story was going to take me. I was very pleasantly surprised. I was taken to paradise with Becky in the Greek islands and treated to a story of finding yourself, finding love and finding new unexpected friends. One paragraph has stayed with me ‘I don’t want to be needed ........I want to be wanted. This is romance, signed, sealed and delivered.

A sizzling hot getaway to Corfu that I very much needed this stormy February here in the UK. Perfect escapism and lots of drama, fun and quirky characters I completely fell in love with it

Don’t you just love a Mandy Baggot book!?! They are always filled with sun sea and a gorgeous male lead. This one is certainly no different! Prepare to be transported to the sizzling Greek locations on offer in this book to brighten any grey day.

We meet Becky Rose where she is working in her sister’s catering business but she doesn’t want to just be a sandwich maker, she wants more out of life! I dislike her sister Megan because of the way she treats Becky. I would have been tempted to say leave her alone. Becky decides to hop onto a plane to Cyprus to housesit. What more can you ask for when you just have to pay for your flights? Well the drama starts there and when she meets Elias on the plane from London you can see the sparks start to fly. What will happen between Becky and Elias? Well you need to pick up a copy of this glorious book and find out.

I also think Petra is hilarious! Though she obviously has a vibrant personality because she has some demons of her own. The unlikely friendship that develops between Becky and Petra is just beautiful to see. You also can’t help but laugh (along with) Elias’ mother she is just so direct but you can see she clearly has her son’s best interests at heart.

I am a huge fan of Mandy’s writing so when I seen she was releasing her 20th (yes you heard me!) book I just had to read it asap. Also congratulations Mandy on what will be a huge 20th book success. ‘My Greek Island Summer’ is about friendship but has a huge family theme at it’s heart and you will see exactly why when you read it for yourself ❤️ I give ‘My Greek Island Summer’ a scorching 5*/5* 😊

Thank you to Aria Fiction for an advanced copy of this book via Netgalley.

I really wanted to like this. I mean, I love Greece and Corfu was the first island I ever visited and it’s one of my favourites. I’ve returned many times and always felt at home there. The story sounded promising. After all, house-sitting a fabulous villa, meeting up with a fabulous Greek on the plane. Romance on the cards?

But it was just boring. I think the problem is I have a hard time with the trope of the poor sister who is treated badly by the other sister who ends up with first sister’s boyfriend. It’s been done to death and I really am fed up with it.

I am also fed up with cardboard cut out characters - just stereotypes who never take on a life of their own. The book was too slow and meandering for me; it needed some serious editing. I thought there were too many characters (all undeveloped) and too many words blocking up the story development.

I just could not get properly involved in the story and when a book becomes hard work - it’s time to say bye bye!

Received as an ARC from Netgalley

Mandy Baggot is a talented writer and whenever I'm looking for a lighthearted romantic comedy I refer to her books! If you're looking for an escape, her books are the ones you need to be reading. Not only are you able to travel to a beautiful new place, but your able to connect with her characters on a deep level. I adore her books because of this! I highly recommend My Greek Island Summer. I know many readers will feel the same!

Thanks Netgalley for the digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 3/5

This book is about Becky, who works for her sister for a while and after feeling frustrated because her sister didn't trust her judgement regarding a "business" decision, she decided to do something adventurous for the first time in her life, so she takes a job housesitting in a villa in Greece, but on the way to Corfu, a lot of things go wrong (or right depending on how you see it).She has a lot of problems with the flights and she meets Elias, a lawyer and Petra, a free spirit, and the completely opposite of her.

This was my first contact with this author's writing and I liked it. The writing is really compelling and it got me hooked from page one. The characters are also interesting. Elias is very cute, and Petra, even though annoying at times, it's funny and they were good side characters. On the other hand, her sister annoyed the hell out of me and even thought I tried to understand her, I just couldn't.

Becky is nice and all, but I just couldn't connect with her as much as I should. She also had some funny moments, but most of the time, I felt kind of indifferent towards her, and since she was the protagonist, it was a bit of a problem. The romance was nice as well, but that was it. It wasn't as breathtaking as I hoped it would be.

Overwall, it's a nice book and I recommend it as a light summer read, but it was not an amazing one.

My Greek Island Summer is a fun read. Becky owns a business with her sister, but its in trouble and she has been hiding few things from her. After seeing an ad for a house sitter in Greece, she jumps at the chance to get out of England. The trip to Greece is fraught full of mishaps, but Becky does meet Elias, who is recovering from divorce and slaying his own demons. Many things get resolved in the end. It's a perfect beach read. The cover is super fun.

What a gorgeous read. Mandy Baggott never fails to deliver especial where Corfu is concerned. With gorgeous locations being described in dreamy detail, I felt like I was just there with Elias, Becky and Petra. What an adventure they had before they even reached their destination. I just wanted to pack my case and head off and see these places myself.
So much talk of wonderful sounding food, so well described my mouth was watering! Whether it was Becky thinking about sandwiches or Eleni preparing food, I was hungry throughout.
Becky lands a great job house sitting in Corfu. She wants to relax, enjoy some luxury, swim and hit the beach for two weeks. She meets Elias and neither are quite as honest as they should be.
I love the characters, a variety of people who are funny or stubborn, selfish or immature, carefree and stressed. All looking at making more of themselves, being happy or needing to see ways to change. So much can happen when people learn to accept the past and look forwards.
A read that transports you to another place, with people you’d love as friends. I couldn’t put this one down!

A summer adventure, in sunny Greece. A change meeting, or three. Romance. It sounds like a great mix for an light afternoon read. Unfortunate I didn’t find it so.

I really wanted to like this book, but sadly I didn’t feel any spark. I felt like i was experience this book from behind a window, could see all that was going on but wasn’t really there. I just don’t think this book was for me. And the only bad thing I can say is that this books needs contractions, badly. The conversation were stiff and formal for the lack of them and it made reading a bit stilted.

For anyone who likes chance encounters, summers in Greece and a sweet building romance this book would be perfect for you.

With a storm raging outside this weekend, Mandy Baggot’s new novel My Greek Island Summer was the perfect antidote to the bad weather.

Becky has just landed get dream job house sitting in Corfu. She’s looking forward to a relaxing time laying by the pool overlooking the beach. Elias is returning to his home island of Corfu on business but also hoping to put some demons to rest. By chance they meet on the plane then end up missing their connecting flight so have to stay in Athens overnight. Add in another nightmare flight with an emergency landing in Kefalonia and they finally make it to Corfu. Becky is looking forward to putting her nightmare journey and Elias behind her until her turns up at her villa.

Brilliantly written, I fell in love with the characters straightaway. It will make you laugh, smile and feel very hungry as Mandy describes all of the Greek delicacies.

I would rate this book 4.5 stars. Thank you to NetGalley, Aria and the author for the chance to review.

This book was such a good read, I couldn't put it down! The story and the characters were so well written it felt as if you were actually in the story!