I received this as a Christmas present from my mum, and I have to admit I snobbishly didn't read it for several years. In fact it was carted around in a couple of house moves unread (I just can't throw a book away) and was finally about to give it to Oxfam when I was seduced into reading a few pages. It was the shiny cover that did it. The book itself had a lovely feel to this bibliophile that made me want to pick it up. And what a surprise. Yes, it is a chick lit novel essentially, but it's depiction of life in Italy feels very authentic. Having lived in Italy and having an Italian partner, I'm quite interested in depictions of Italy and find most ...  Read the complete review

When someone first reccommended I read this, as a bloke I turned my nose up ! Why on earth, I thought, would I want to read what is so obviously a chick book? Finally persuaded by the apparent descriptions of Rome which I visited last year on honeymoon and the lush details of the cooking involved in the novel (I work as a chef so have a passion for food), finally I decided to give this book a go as so many people I trust were saying how good it was. My friend, Sarah, says this is a very girly book and to some extent this is true. But for anyone who has visited Rome, the locations mentioned in the book will surely spirit you back there and bring back fond ...  Read the complete review