What is your talent?

Synopsis

Escape to the sun and head off to Italy, with the wonderfully warm and ever-so-page-turning Leonie Mack!

TV journalist Lou feels battered and bruised after her divorce from Phil, the father of her daughter Edie. Her confidence and sense of fun have steadily been drained away, and she isn’tsure who she is any more.

When the opportunity arises to accompany Edie on a music camp in Italy for a month in the summer, Lou jumps at the chance for new adventures, new horizons and new friends. The hazy warmth of the summer sun, shining brightly over the stunning Lake Garda, slowly brings Lou back to life. 

Nick Romano, Edie’s music teacher, loves being home in Italy, but coaching his students for their concert in Milan, is bringing back difficult memories. His blossoming friendship with Lou is the perfect distraction, although a summer fling would be easier to conduct without the scrutiny of his mother Greta, not to mention the interference of his extended Italian family.

As the summer passes, full of sunshine and breath-taking scenery, gelato and delicious feasts, Lou and Nick get ever closer. But as the time for farewell creeps up on them, will they be able to say goodbye and leave their memories behind in the Italian sun, or can a summer romance last a lifetime?

Leonie Mack is back with a sizzling, sun-baked love story, perfect for all fans of Mandy Baggot, Jo Thomas and Carole Matthews.

My review

After her divorce from Phil, Lou has been feeling a bit low. Her confidence took a beating, her sense of fun is gone and she just doesn’t know who she is anymore. Being a TV journalist, she sees how everyone has a passion while she sees herself as just being plain.
When the opportunity arises to accompany her daughter Edie on a music camp in Italy, Lou sees this as a chance to try out new things, and find a passion, something she is talented in.
What she didn’t expect is having a blossoming friendship with Edie’s music teacher Nick Romano. But with him remembering difficult memories and an interfering typical Italian family, is a summer fling the perfect distraction? And what will happen once the music camp is over?

Lou is someone I quickly took a liking. You would easily think that being a TV journalist made her an obnoxious character, feeling better than the rest, and spending a lot of time on the way she looks like. But the opposite it true!
Okay, her divorce didn’t do her confidence any good, as she doubts her own abilities and strengths. Yet I did not pity her, but I found myself cheering for her to find herself again.
Even if she is a bit jealous of other people and their talents, and she is on a quest for finding her own talent, there isn’t a thing she wouldn’t do for her daughter Edie. That means also compensating for an absent father, giving Edie the necessary boost of confidence in her abilities. And yes, the irony isn’t lost on me, because she gives her daughter exactly the things she is missing herself.
And joining Edie on a music camp in Italy is just one of those things Lou would do for Edie’s happiness.

I loved reading about how close mother and daughter are, because let’s be honest, it’s not something to take for granted. No matter how low Lou is feeling, Edie’s best interest are her main priority. So if that means staying away from music teacher Nick Romano to avoid complications, she does just that!

Oh, but Nick is not someone you can easily stay away from! Not only the passion he has for music is a real turn on, but also the way he encourages his students, giving them courage before their performances. He knows what to say to the frightened students and the students are doing their best to make Nick proud.
How I wished I had such a music teacher (if I were playing an instrument…)!

Spending time in Italy for me is already special, but seeing how both Lou and Nick are getting closer in such a beautiful setting, it made me totally dream away.
But the beauty was also in seeing how these troubled people dare to talk about their fears, knowing that they won’t receive a snarky remark or that the other person would laugh it away.
Together they dare to overcome their fears, and dare to climb that mountain.

I found this a beautiful story about not only love for other people, but also about loving yourself and seeing yourself just like other people see you. And even if you cannot play an instrument perfectly, or make perfect cheese (this will be clear when you read the book!) everyone is gifted in a way that fits you perfectly!