Chasing the Italian Dream by Jo Thomas

This was a one-sitting read for me. A book about a second-chance romance with family thrown in, and a dash of women empowerment as an added bonus.
I started it thinking I would pause at some point, but apart from one meal, I kept reading till I (virtually) turned the last page. Our leading lady is our standard harried, overworked lawyer Lucia. The difference here is that she is to set out on her annual family vacation when our story begins. This lets us take a step back and wallow in the descriptions of Lucia’s small home town, her grandfathers Pizzeria and her Grandmothers overflowing kitchen. The physical and mental unwinding for Lucia is almost immediate. You can see it happen, but that peace is not set to last. There are many hurdles to cross before the happily ever after shows any signs of appearing.
The Pizzeria is up for sale, and Lucia does not like where the suggestions are going. She has grown in the last few years as she worked, but she might be looking at her past with coloured glasses. There is more room for her to grow and learn, something we get to watch.
The book is filled with strong women, some fun scenes and some emotional ones. They are all tethered together with some evocative writing that was deep enough to make the reading experience that much better.
I received an ARC thanks to NetGalley and the publishers but the review is entirely based on my own reading experience.