I loved Kate Eberlen’s other books and was looking forward to reading this one. Unfortunately I only reached 25% and didn’t finish the book. I’m sorry to say I didn’t relate to or particularly like any of the characters and so I wasn’t invested in their story. I’m sure this is simply a case of the wrong book at the wrong time and that other readers will love it.

This is my first book by this author and I really enjoyed the story which is set in Italy.
Jessica organises a surprise birthday trip for her best friend Robin and his family and friends and what follows is an unexpected emotional drama packed trip for all.
The characters are well written, I loved Jessica and I just found Robin an irritating character although towards the end I felt I understood him more.
I also liked the way the story was told through the three main characters viewpoints as I really felt this added to the book.
A great read with an unexpected ending which I would definitely recommend.
Thanks to NetGalley, Orion Publishing Group and Kate Eberlen for an advance copy in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

This was very much a character read, told from the viewpoints of Jessica, her long time best friend Robin and his wife Laura. This takes place over 1 week during a holiday to Italy to belated commemorate Robin’s 40th birthday, the celebration of which had been delayed by two years due to covid. On holiday with them are Robins children, his other best friend and Robins brothers and their families and there’s quite a few complexities within the different relationships. The action in this book very much takes place amongst these various relationships rather than events during the holiday itself and there’s quite a lot of soul searching in amongst more uplifting moments. Although some parts of this felt like a natural transition others felt more contrived, I could see the direction Robin’s story was probably heading but it concluded insanely quickly especially taking his family into account. There’s some good characters in this and strong storylines but I think for me personally it would have worked better over a longer time frame but it’s still a decent read.

Life begins at 49, or in this case 42 due to COVID interruptions. This is the story of a group of ‘friends’ and family who go to Italy for a holiday/birthday celebration, it’s really well written and each chapter is told from one of the main 3characters’ perspectives, which makes it especially interesting and readable.
I would never have guessed at the beginning how the story unfolded and who ended up with whom, but it all worked out surprisingly well. There are some funny and some sad parts to the story and the author has captured the feel of Italy really well.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and send my thanks to net galley and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for an unbiased review.