When things are not as you thought they were…

Synopsis

Two sisters she’s never met
A first love who’s impossible to forget…

For Jade, life in Lake Como is la dolce vita. Until her beloved grandmother passes, leaving Jade not just the family’s bustling guesthouse to run, but two life-changing secrets to confront…

The pensione hasn’t just been left to Jade, it’s also been inherited by her sisters – who she had no idea existed. As Erin and Rosalie arrive in Italy, Jade is forced to face the heart-wrenching prospect of sharing her last remaining tie to the woman who raised her.

Jade is desperately trying to hold on to the past, but there’s one person she would prefer to leave firmly behind: her first love, Leo. He’s back in the city that is filled with the memories they once made together. But as Jade fights to take control of her future and her heart, why do all cobbled roads lead back to Leo?

Lose yourself in the first, utterly romantic novel in a brand-new trilogy, filled with new beginnings and second chances. Perfect for fans of Sarah Morgan and Milly Johnson.

My review

While both her parents were quickly in not picking up their responsibilities when Jade was born, she couldn’t have had a better life. Her beloved grandmother raised her into a caring woman, and together they ran with passion the guesthouse, Pensione Three Sisters at Lake Como. Living at Lake Como is for Jade truly living la dolce vita. So when her grandmother passes away, it is obvious that Jade is heartbroken. But the show must go on, and the Pensione needs to run smoothly and Jade is doing everything she can to give her guests the best possible experience. But what Jade does not know, is that she is not the only person the pension had been left to. Because apparently, her father has two other children, Erin and Rosalie. Two sisters Jade had no idea that existed. And now she has to share what was hers and of her grandmother’s with complete strangers. And then there is the return of Jade’s first love, Leo. First love and the man that broke her heart. The last thing Jade needs, is that Leo finds a way back into her life and into her heart. But as there are many shared memories, and Leo is the one that helps Jade out in time of need, can Jade keep her heart locked for not only Leo but also the sisters she didn’t know she had?

I am very easily persuaded if you want me to read a book. Have it as setting a place in Italy and I am in already! 😊 To make it even more persuasive for me, let an author that I know and love, write it, and I am even more hooked!

Although I have to say, that in order for me to truly enjoy a book, there also needs to be a good story of course. And of course Sue Moorcroft absolutely delivered!

With this book, I couldn’t stop feeling sorry for Jade in so many aspects. It all starts upon learning that neither of her parents truly wanted her and they have left her in the care of her beloved grandparents. While Jade absolutely adored her grandparents, and they loved her unconditionally, that sense of rejection, of feeling unwanted is obvious still there. I cannot imagine how it is to feel that kind of rejection. But I could understand and see how loved Jade has been and still was until the very last moment she shared with her beloved grandmother.

I lost my grandparents when I was young, so I can only try to imagine how Jade feels after losing her grandmother, who raised her into the woman she is now. Losing a person you love, is already difficult, but as they were running as a duo the pensione, now the responsibility fall all on Jade’s shoulders. I don’t know how while processing her grieve, Jade is able to run the pensione with a smile for the customers.

If things weren’t difficult already, Jade is shocked by a revelation that turns her whole world upside down. And who wouldn’t be shocked, discovering that not only you have two sisters that you didn’t know that existed, but that you also have to share your home, your memories and your livelihood with complete strangers, people that could even jeopardize everything you have built over the years…

And I have to be honest, I don’t think that my first impression of the new – found sisters was a good one. Obviously, they are also shocked upon discovering to have sisters and they are out of the blue of what to do now. However, and even if both Erin and Rosalie say it with the best intentions, they aren’t always using the most subtle of words, or understanding how at loss Jade is feeling at the moment.

Yet I also need to admit that the more the story progresses the three sisters come to understand each other better, and that Erin and Rosalie understand how Jade is feeling that she could be the biggest loser in this game.

To say that my heart was breaking for Jade would be an understatement. Because while I understood why Gran Mairead did what she did with the inheritance, I could definitely understand Jade’s feeling of betrayal.

And then to have the return of Jade’s first love, the man that broke her heart, was just the cherry on top a cake that isn’t all that delicious at all…

How is it to be faced with the man that broke your heart, left you behind and now returns on the scene? And it is not that Jade can avoid or ignore Leo, as his family and hers were always very close in the past. And even now Leo’s family is always there for Jade, ready to help her out when needed, Leo included.

Just like Jade, I wasn’t all that ready to let Leo in my heart. Because he makes it clear that he is looking for the next adventure, the next investment after his previous failure. But we see that even if Leo in the past had the need, the urgence to go away from Lake Como, now he finds a peace, a calmness home. And let’s be honest, the feelings he once had for Jade resurface very quickly.

What I found truly sweet, was how no matter how much Jade tries to keep Leo at distance, he is there for her as a friend, ready to help her when she needs it. That shows his real character, a gentle, caring person that understand boundaries but also understands when his help is truly needed.

And while Jade in this book is truly struggling with letting people (back) in her heart, because her fear of being abandoned again), there are so many heartwarming moments. Like the Sartori family always ready to help Jade out, to listen to her concerns and worries and give her some advice.

Most important in this book is, at least in my eyes, is the evolution, the growth that Jade is going through. Her world has been turned upside, she is on her own and everything she thought to know has been a lie, truths have been kept from her. Yet throughout the book, we see how (slowly) Jade starts to put her trust back in people, give people a chance. And again slowly, Jade starts to see how change perhaps can be a good thing. Because those changes she had to endure have brought unexpected people (back) into her life. And those people unexpectedly enrich her life, make her understand that even if perhaps not the way she truly desires, she is not alone…

I found this a beautiful story, with also a few painful moments in it. Sue Moorcroft shows us how defeated someone can feel, how alone someone can feel and how painful grief can be. But she shows us also the strength of people, their resilience and how after the rain (or even storm), the rainbow comes. And how more intense the storm is, how brighter the rainbow will be.

This story for sure pulled my heartstrings and all of this in a beautiful, wonderful, mesmerizing setting!