I loved absolutely everything about this book, the characters, Scotland, the wine, the love interest, the friendships and family ties. A joy to read from beginning to end.

What a great story. A brilliant read. Birdy was an amazing complicated fun character. I just loved how she tried to blag her way through the season at the hotel.. She and Heather had a great friendship and all they both wanted was a family. It was good to read a book that ended neatly and you did not want more

This book was so funny. I couldn’t help laughing out loud. It’s so cleverly written, your just waiting for her to be found out, but hoping she doesn’t. There is something for everyone in this story- humour, romance suspense and a bit of heartache.

The Summer Job is a very entertaining read. The group of characters bring the book to life and make it very funny! The potential romance and idyllic environment of the Scottish hotel just hit me with a rain day read! Loved this book!!

This is a delightful, very well written and very funny book about relationships, truth and lies, finding your place in life. Lovely well described characters, great story, both happy and sad. An overall well deserved 5 stars.

I started this book thinking I would struggle to get in to it and ended up being unable to put it down. What a brilliantly written book covering love, friendship and happiness. Birdy is such a likeable character and her friendship with Heather is so special. The inclusion of the relationship with James is a lovely touch because it doesn’t take over the book, leaving the main focus on the friendship whilst actually not having a huge amount of dialogue between the women. You are rooting for Birdy from the beginning from start to finish! Will definitely be recommending this.

I applied to read this book through Netgalley, and would like to thank them and the publishers for my ARC in exchange for my honest review.

When I initially saw it, I thought it would be a fun, slapstick read, as the premise is about the central character 'Birdy' who blags her way into a sommelier role for the summer at a high end hotel, when her friend Heather, a fully trained sommelier decides not to take the job.

This book was so much more than that though. At the start of the book I didn't think much of Birdie and her choices, she came across as vacuous, lazy and selfish, as she made the wrong choices to suit her own circumstances. However as the book progresses and she starts to realise the consequences of her decision and the impact it could have on her friend, we start to see the 'real' Birdie. I warmed to her character throughout and was rooting for her to have the 'happy ever after' that I felt she deserved.

As the book progresses, we learn of Birdie's childhood and how this could have impacted on the choices she has made throughout her life. We also meet a host of characters, each loveable in their own way, from James the hot chef, Bill the barman and Irene, the grandmotherly boss.

All in all, it was an enjoyable read and I would definitely recommend it. I did feel that the supportive characters were a lovely bunch, and very forgiving! Warning: contains references to alcoholism.

I really struggled with this one. Didn't like the premise that a novice could just walk into a sommelier job by mistake without being found out. The characters were an unlikeable bunch and I thought the use of the words
f**king and c**t inappropriate in a light romantic novel. Couldn't finish it.

This book gets better and better as it progresses. What starts off as a rather whimsical idea, turns into a gripping and moving insight into quite complex issues. The relationships Birdy has with everyone around her are profound and she tangles such a complicated web of lies, while discovering her true self.

This is a fun romance but it is so much more. Fall in love with Scotland and wine and lose yourself in this wonderful book.

Loved it.

I did not finish this. It was a tenuous premise with a ridiculous main character and though I tried to continue I just found the whole plot so eye-rollingly bad. I also worried for James and what he was about to settle for.

This is that rare book - one that lives up to the hype! Once you have got over the initial premise of the story, which basically involves Birdy pretending to be her BFF Heather, you can just settle down and enjoy the narrative. There are some lovely characters and everyone will want to visit Loch Dorn and the surrounding area. Forgive the dreadful phrase, but this is a book about people finding themselves and their place in the world. Wonderful, funny and heart-warming.

Thanks to Net Galley and the publishers for the opportunity to review this ebook.

This was such a good story and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was a really fun read and made me smile a lot but also had an emotional tug from the characters, which I liked. It is well written and flowed nicely at a nice fast pace, with great characters, some funny moments and lots going on. I kept finding myself wanting to find the time to pick it up and see where the story took me.

The characters are all well written and have their own personalities, which blend together to make a fabulous storyline. I did like Birdy, she is so unpredictable and slightly crazy, but as I got to know her, I realised why and that she was a nice person too. I loved the fact that all the characters seemed important to the story, rather than just being there to fill it up.

This is the author's first book but I will be looking out for more from her in the future. If you are looking for a light, funny read with a lot of heart then this is a really good choice for you.

I would first like to thank Georgia Taylor from Viking (Penguin UK) for sending me an ARC of this fantastic book.

This book was a breath of fresh air! After having read a few crime books I needed something to life my spirits and this book ticked all the boxes. I loved the characters, the plot and of course the romance.

I have been to Scotland many times as I have a lot of family up there, last year we visited the Black Isles and it was beautiful. Lizzy Dent’s description of Skye is vivid, accurate and beautiful, she’s made me want to go back up there and experience it all over again.

From the moment Birdy walked into the restaurant I could see the romance that was going to unfold and I was rooting for it the whole time. I know for some the predictable romance can be too cliché but for me it doesn’t feel like a proper romance unless you have a boy meets girls vibe to it. I loved the relationship between James and Birdy, the chase and misunderstandings were entertaining and made their story all the more special.

I loved the imperfections of the whole restaurant staff, they were like a bunch of Rowntree’s Randoms but as a team they were magic! Bill obviously had his issues but I love the fatherly role he played without Birdy even realising it. Anis and her sarcastic attitude along with the Irene, the mother hen of the group provided laughter and plenty of fun. I even liked Tim a little bit purely for the entertainment!

Birdy was sarcastic, witty, imperfect and loveable. Her candid attitude is what got her through and I had great admiration for how she tackled the challenges the job represented. Her journey was the biggest of them all but I liked how she retained her personality and became more self assured and sensitive.

This was a tale of identity, belonging and findings ones place. Something we can all relate to at one point or another. As an debut adult novel I think Lizzie Dent has knocked it out the park. I laughed out loud, had tears of joy and sadness but was left with a huge smile across my face.

Birdy just can't seem to hold down a job. Her boyfriend is unreliable. Her flat share is ending. She can't go home to her parents. What can she do? She decides to pretend to be her best friend Heather and take a summer job as a sommelier at a hotel in Scotland. the trouble is, she doesn't know anything about wine.
About food and wine, friendship, family and wanting to belong - this is a lighthearted read. It was perfect for the dark and slightly depressing evenings of November. I would also happily read it on the train or on a beach.
Thank you to @NetGalley, the author and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review #TheSummerJob. I think it will do really well and I will certainly look out for this authors next book.

I liked the story of Birdie going to Scotland and taking a job at a hotel while wasn’t actually for her. It’s was funny and exciting to read to how she pulls her way through the job and meets interesting people along the way.

An enjoyable read about love, friendship and family set in magical Scotland.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

Loved this book, who could blame Birdy really? Was willing Birdy to come clean all the way through, love how she managed to wing it ish, and have the chance to find love ish

When someone pretends to be someone else and do a job they have no idea about, then you are set for disaster. Birdy is full of issues and caught in situation of her own making that she knows is wrong, but she doesn't know how to fix it. Painful reading at times, however it does have a nice ending

It feels like I review a lot of chick-lit on here though I don’t feel like I read as much as I used to. Interesting. But I have, once again, found another chick-lit book that I just had to read of Netgalley and that was The Summer Job by Lizzy Dent.

In this book we follow Elizabeth ‘Birdy’ Finch as she takes a job as a sommelier up in Scotland pretending to be her best friend Heather. The problem is that she knows nothing about wine and in this up and coming hotel her lies could cost her everything.

I obviously went into the book knowing that lying was going to be a big theme. But it did still bug me a little. However, where this book improved upon other books like this, is that Birdy does know it’s wrong and deals with the consequences. She might still get a happy ending, but it does make her take a long look at her life and she does have to make up for things. There’s no easy forgiveness and for that I’m grateful.

I actually got through the book super quickly and I really enjoyed it when I did. But after a few hours looking back over the book I realised that though it was an easy read. It was just, okay.

There’s a lot of heavy topics dealt with but that’s nothing new in chick-lit, and it didn’t really make me like most of the characters that much more or even feel that sorry for them. I did love the found family aspect, I just found the characters themselves a little lackluster and not particularly memorable. Which is a shame.

The setting was gorgeous and the romance was okay but overall the book wasn’t anything special. Just a foodie read set in Scotland though one that I’m sure will make others cry in places.

I would recommend it to others but it’s not one I think I’ll pick up again myself.

After the delight that was Beach Read earlier this year I’ve been waiting for another feel-good romance with a solid, engaging narrative. And, for the most part, I’ve got to say that The Summer Job absolutely delivered. It follows one summer in the life of Elizabeth ‘Birdy’ Finch who really isn’t sure who she is or what she wants out of life. When her successful Sommelier best friend Heather chases her true love to Italy, it falls to Birdy to contact the summer job Heather was due to take at a Scottish hotel and let them know she won’t be coming. After a case of mistaken identity and egged on by her terrible sort-of-boyfriend Tim, Birdy continues with the charade and heads up to Loch Dorn as Heather. Cue a summer of misunderstandings, secrets and hilarity.

Although Dent’s writing is lovely and her characters are all fantastic, I didn’t immediately settle into the book. That however was probably down to my own innate hatred of stressful situations. From the moment she arrives at Loch Dorn, Birdy is clearly way out of her depth. She has to pair wines for each course of a degustation menu, deal with michelin star chef Russell and discuss wine options with rich, fancy guests. I found myself constantly cringing for her, waiting for the next error and, honestly, feeling furious at her for putting both the hotel and Heather’s professional reputation at risk. This also brings me to my key issue with the book. I love the setting, the whole Sommelier aspect of the storyline is fresh and interesting but I genuinely couldn’t quite buy into the idea that Birdy would have created such a wildly stupid situation. I also simply didn’t believe that she’d get away with it.

That said, the reason I ultimately got sucked into the story was that Dent acknowledges all of this. Birdy, by nature, is spiky and self-destructive. The staff at Loch Dorn do have their doubts very early on and Birdy goes to great measures to allay them. As I said, the setting of the book is glorious. I’ve often heard, particularly in writing classes, that finding a sense of place is so important in creating the world of a novel. Dent does this so well in The Summer Job. The Scottish landscape is beautifully described, with lochs, walking trails, sunrises, sunsets, fishing villages, all of it coming together to build a world I wanted to immerse myself in. The hotel itself was brought to life for me as soon as Birdy stepped foot into the kitchen on day one, with descriptions of exquisite dishes, passionate staff and the aforementioned egotistical head chef Russell. It was lovely to sink into a book set in such a beautiful location and I really enjoyed seeing Birdy’s displacement from city to country.

The romantic storyline was sweet and gentle but despite the fact that it’s introduced very early on, the novel felt fully fleshed out rather than simply built around the will they/won’t they aspect. While I found parts of Birdy’s personality stopped me from warming to her completely, I appreciated the backstory to her and Heather’s childhoods and their subsequent relationship. Sometimes it felt a little forced, like Dent was trying to draw a clear line between each facet of the women’s behaviour and assign a motive in a sort of pop-psychology way, but generally it did aid in explaining exactly what was on the line and why. Similarly, each character at Loch Dorn was well-rounded, with a nice variety of personalities and problems at play, some of which have a role in why Birdy is able to pass off as Heather for so long.

All of this ultimately comes together to create a very readable novel that I found myself desperate to keep picking up. It comes out in Spring 2021 and, while the title suggests a sort of beach read scenario, I’ve been just as happy cosied up this November, sipping my coffee and speeding through the novel. Once I got over the initial stress of what a terrible job Birdy was doing, I started to take pride in her commitment to the role as she realises what an error she’s made but also begins to fall in love with everything about the place and even the job itself. As she opened herself up to learning and to new experiences I couldn’t help egging her on, with the Wine Society event being a particular highlight.

Although I anticipate most readers will have some idea where the story is going I shall avoid spoilers here. Instead I’ll simply say that although I found the ending satisfactory I would have liked it to be slightly more spun out. There’s a fantastic, dramatic scene immediately followed by a ten-week jump to the very end. I felt a little like I’d put a lot of emotion into seeing how the situation panned out and felt a little bit short-changed by this decision. That’s a minor complaint though. I thought The Summer Job was a fresh, comedy-of-errors take on a romance novel and I’ll definitely be recommending it to friends. Thanks to Netgalley for a free digital copy in return for an honest review.