Love & Gelato

I am giving this a 4/5 stars because I lot this book was hilarious and adventurous. I only took away a star because most contemporaries that are light and fun like this one just don't become a favorite. They are intricately weaved this other books are or share a really important message. It was one of the best fun contemporaries I've read and definitely a favorite for the category.

We follow Lina in this book just after her mom died of cancer and I thought this delt with grieve in a really amazing and accurate way. Even though it's been months since her mother's death she is still grieving and I think it really represents how teenagers feel while losing a parent. I've never lost a parent but I have friends that have so I can see how it is. Also, Lina's inner monologue is so funny. I can't even tell you how many times I laughed out loud while reading this. Lina moves in with her father she never knew she had all the way in Italy. Her dad is amazing and I loved every second of his character. It is amazing to see a great father, daughter relationship even though they just met. There is also a lot of Italian culture in this book. I love seeing Lina go to all of these landmarks, experience the food, and learn to speak the language. Italy is one of the top places I want to visit and this book showed me rightfully so.

She also acquires a journal her mother wrote while she was staying and Italy and got pregnant with Lina. She reads it over the span of a couple days and goes on a hunt to figure out why her mom never told her about her dad until she was dying. She does this with the help of a half Italian, Half American boy she runs across. He isn't a conventional boy, he's a little weird but in a good way. This book has a romance that isn't the stereotypical one. I feel like a lot of cliche moments that would have happened in other books, backfired here.

The writing is okay. I think it matched the inner monologue of the teen character. The only issue I had is that when describing places and clothes I felt like it was a bit like fanfiction on wattpad. It like described it in too much detail and like she was telling you rather then her experiencing it with you.

Overall this is a fun Italian romance (her mom's romance is explored too), with a bit of mystery and lots of gelato!