My first title from this author, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. My heart was in my mouth the whole read! If you are looking for a new thriller author, try this! definitly a good recommendation.

I’m sorry to say I didn’t enjoy this book. I found the main character, Lucia was whiny & annoying.
There was a huge amount of repetition, to the point I’d look back a few lines, paragraphs or pages to see if I’d read the same section again but I hadn’t.
The storyline was tedious and contradictory and I just wanted to get to the end.
Thank you to Netgalley & Random House UK, Transworld Publishers for the opportunity to read an advance copy in return for my honest review.

So wanted to like this story as I loved the beautiful descriptions of Italy and of food - it felt heartwarming to read about these in such vivid detail. However, the writing killed the vibe for me as it was just so repetitive. Something would be said/stated then it will be said/stated again 2-3 lines after, and so on this goes throughout (I often found myself pausing to wonder 'Didn't I just read this bit?' because the repetition made me think I was rereading the same part but it wasn't, it was just a repetition...and this kept pulling me out of the story and I couldn't immerse myself in to enjoy it).

Thomas, always whisks you a away somewhere gorgeous scrummy food & scenery in this case Italy.

The strength of female friendship really shines though the story. I really enjoyed it.

This was such a feel good, heart warming read. I absolutely love Italy, it is one of my favorite countries to travel to so any book that is set there I always reach for.

I adored the characters in this book and the connections that they all had. This book was so much more than a second chance romance but about the power of family and community. This was such a heart warming book, it had me smiling so much my jaw ached.

This is the perfect summer read especially if you need one to boost your spirits.

Read on a holiday in Italy and this was perfect. Really enjoyed the story and believed in the characters. Would recommend

Bit of a slow start and wasn’t sure I was going to enjoy it but once it got going it was pretty good. I really enjoyed the descriptions of the scenery and the food and Nonnos pizza place and I thought it was really nice how all the girls managed the kitchen and the things that happened to them along the way. Loved the ending, exactly what you want in this genre of book.

Oh Jo! Another amazing setting and is so vividly described. I often feel as though I repeat myself when I say I feel like I've been transported to the very setting of each of Jo's books, but that's the exact feeling I get. I can sense everything around me. I can hear Angelo singing, hear the Nonna network chattering, see Nonno and his friends playing bocca and smell the fresh pizzas in the forno.

Lucia is fiery, passionate and hard working. She knows what she wants and she goes for it. She also champions the underdogs and her will to succeed is so strong. It also helps that her competitor is her ex husband and she feels like she has a point to prove. Giacomo is actually adorable, not the unfeeling monster that Lucia has built him up to be. He is proud, yes which leads to some miscommunications but he's also passionate and romantic.

The supporting characters were all fascinating. Sophia and Veronica were as different as chalk and cheese but worked well alongside Lucia in the kitchen. Maria wasn't around long enough for me to decide whether to trust her or not, still undecided. Nonna and her group of fellow Nonna's, secretly supplying the pizzeria for Lucia without their proud husbands' knowledge. And Nonno, complaining about his fellow bocce players, friends of his, cheating when pulling exactly the same tricks. A true melting pot of wonderful people, all combining to make a perfect pizza of prose.

This was by far my top read of January, and I have a few more of Jo's books to read as well so I'm expecting to be whisked away on more exotic travels this year without the expense of flights and hotels. Who needs airplanes when you have books like this?

Loved reading this, a great summery read that will have you wanting to be in Italy and eating pasta/pizza , perfect escapism with the perfect amount of romance

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

Everything about this book I loved.

You could really picture the scenery and it makes me want to go to Italy even more. Lucia and Giacomo story was a true romance and I'm glad they got the ending they deserved .

This book definitely has the right title about chasing dreams. No matter what yoy shouldn't let anyone or anything stop you

Jo Thomas is certainly becoming one my favourite easy to read and pure escapism type of author. This latest book I have read of hers is no different. With the weather turning to Autumn here in the UK at the moment it was the perfect time to pull out a book with a cover as inviting as this one.


Lucia our main character is an Italian and Welsh girl who gave it all up in Italy and stayed in Wales to pursue her own career in law. When she leaves her job for her annual visit back to Italy to see family she is excited to catch up with her Grandparents. What she hadn't planned on was arriving to find that the family business was being sold as her Grandfather plans his retirement.


As with other Jo Thomas novels she actually takes you to the place. Her beautiful descriptions literally transport me to the destination of choice and I feel like I am sitting front row watching all the characters. Lucia is a likeable character (but not one of my favorite's JT has created) along with plenty of others including Lucia's estranged husband Giacomo.


The plot wasn't particularly surprising but that made it no less enjoyable and I look forward to reading any other books of hers I have yet to read. A definite recommendation from me!

Well, I would have been inclined to get my lawyer's hat on and sue the Welsh law firm for sexual discrimination - clearly being female caused Lucia to be overlooked for her deserved partnership. the dangled string was in order to encourage her to work hard and not go elsewhere - a lure never intended to be reality.
I love Italian food and pasta, But honestly, reading what they were eating for breakfast and lunch and.. I was putting on eight just from the text - Fried pizza - really?!
I wonder? Are there really still places so traditional in ideas and values? If so, I can quite see the frustration of their young women - and who irons socks?! Underwear is bad enough and is done only for really spoilt men, but socks... It clearly shows that the woman just hasn't enough to do that a task has to be invented - and thus emerges the mother-in-law from hell.
A fun story, with enough food mentions to make you hungry. Very hungry. For pizzas and Italian desserts - especially ice-cream.

Lovely feel good book to read. It was a joy to read. Lovely characters. Great plot. The book was charming. Very well written. I’d definitely recommend this book. This author is great and once again she pulled a hit out the bag

I have been a big fan of Jo Thmoas' books for a while now, I absolutely love her feel-good, charming and utterly romantic stories which never fail to put a smile on my face - plus whisk me away on an 'armchair' holiday - and this is no different, this book is glorious, it's full of humour, sunshine, great food and heart-breakingly handsome men. Yes, you know what captured my attention, after all, who doesn't love a smooth-talking Italian who knows how to feed you?
Chasing the Italian Dream is a wonderful story of starting afresh, finding your feet and discovering who you are - not to mention finding that 'the one' has always been there, right under your nose all the time, even if they are an ex.
I liked the flow of the story, the pacing didn't quite keep up with the story in my eyes, I found certain chapters a little on the slow side, and there is a lot of food talk which if you are a foodie that properly won't bother you too much (I didn't me) but some may find it a bit repetitive.
the story is a beautiful and very sweet story, I really liked the characters and how they developed over the course of the story. But what made this for me was the stunning scenery, the descriptions of Italy make you feel as though you have been pulled right into the book and found yourself standing in the Italian sun alongside Lucia.
A warm, lovely and delicious holiday romance!

An easy and light hearted read with lots of beautiful scenery and apt descriptions of food, that literally transports you to Italy as you read along.

The book through Lucia portrays a message to the readers to always do what you love and enjoy doing!

Thank You NetGalley and Random House UK, Transworld Publishers for this ARC!

A nice easy reading book. When Lucia goes back to Italy for a holiday with her grandparents who run a pizza restaurant ,she suddenly realises that this might be where she wants to be and after being turned down for promotion at work she has to decide about her future. When her ex husband comes back into her life things become even more complicated .A lovely location and well written by Jo Thomas and has everything you would want in a story

I loved Chasing The Italian Dream by Jo Thomas. A great book to escape into, I was instantly transported into the warm Italian sunshine eating pizza and drinking wine, that just shows how wonderful Jo is in describing the setting for the book. A fab read.

Chasing the Italian Dream is a beautiful story of going back to your roots and finding love along with the life you had always wanted. 
I liked the ambiance created in the book. I could be easily transported to Italy with the aroma that the words carried. It was a good bit of escape reading where the topics covered were relevant to life, but strung in lines that were easy to read. 
Some sections felt slow and repetitive. I didn't need so many comparisons to food. 
Overall, an okay read.

Although I enjoyed this book i did feel it was a little predictable at times but i enjoyed it immensely nevertheless!
A perfect holiday / lazy saturday in front of the fire kind of read . My thanks to netgalley an erc of this book in return for my honest opinion!

One of the best books I have read. A strong woman who takes on a man's world in Italy.
Well worth the read a real heart warmer