Love & Gelato by Jenna Evans Welch

Title: Love & Gelato
Series: (standalone)
Author: Jenna Evans Welch
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Date Published: May 3, 2016

Lina is spending the summer in Tuscany, but she isn’t in the mood for Italy’s famous sunshine and fairy-tale landscape. She’s only there because it was her mother’s dying wish that she get to know her father. But what kind of father isn’t around for sixteen years? All Lina wants to do is get back home.

But then Lina is given a journal that her mom had kept when she lived in Italy. Suddenly Lina’s uncovering a magical world of secret romances, art, and hidden bakeries. A world that inspires Lina, along with the ever-so-charming Ren, to follow in her mother’s footsteps and unearth a secret that has been kept from Lina for far too long. It’s a secret that will change everything she knew about her mother, her father—and even herself.

People come to Italy for love and gelato, someone tells her, but sometimes they discover much more.

My Thoughts:

I absolutely love to read books where the main character travels or moves into a new place, and then explores his or her unfamiliar surroundings. Although I love to travel, I haven't had near as many chances to do so as I would like. (Someday, I will see those places on my 'go to' list.) In the meantime, travel abroad books give me the opportunity to live vicariously through the characters!

I have to say the title and the cover for Love & Gelato caught my attention right away. It pretty much screams ITALY! After I finally got it in my hands on it, I dove right in. Although this summer has kept me really busy, I picked up this book any time I could.  I enjoyed the story and the writing so much! I also loved the author's descriptions of Tuscany and of some of the art that can be found there. When the main character, Lina, would see something new, I would also look that place (or food item) up on Google Images, so that I could see it for myself. 

The circumstances that brought Lina to Italy were sad and she did not want to be there. However, I really liked the people that reached out to her and how they were all so real. Some of my favorite moments were those times when Lina would read entries from her mother's journal, and through them, she and her new friend, Ren uncovered a couple of mysteries. 

I don't want to give away too much more, as it would ruin the story. I do know that I will likely reread Love & Gelato at some point, and likely share it with my teenage daughter, as well. I really hope that Jenna Evans Welch writes more YA/Teen books, as I would definitely read them!

By the way, if anyone has any good travel abroad books, I would love the recommendations! :)