This is part of my Summer Reads series where I’ll be sharing book recommendations – a series of “not just cookbooks”.
It’s always great when you enjoy a book so much that you can’t help but hope for a sequel so I was happy to read that one of last year’s #summerreads picks, 24 Hours in Paris, was going to have a follow-up this year! Romi Moondi‘s 24 Hours in Italy was the PERFECT light summer read.
From the publisher:
A new destination, a familiar spark . . .
Two years have passed since Mira and Jake missed their flight and spent a magical 24 hours together in Paris. Sparks flew. Romance bloomed. But life got in the way. When they’re reunited for another whirlwind adventure, will they connect in the same way?
Mira’s living her best life, having started a new chapter by taking a leave from her high pressure corporate position to spend time in Italy. Surrounded by amazing scenery, fantastic food and wine, and endearing locals, her life is nearly perfect—except for the thoughts of what might’ve been with Jake.
While Jake’s career has never been better, the move to California has been less than perfect. Still, he’s got high hopes that seeing Mira at their friends’ destination wedding can right past wrongs. Except travel has never been his strong suit, and his reunion with Mira is punctuated by another, more recent heartbreak.
When the pair collide again on the gorgeous Amalfi coast, the spark they felt in Paris is reignited, but their quest for a happy ending will surely be as rocky as the Italian coastline.
Ok, so if you have read 24 Hours in Paris, you will dive right into Italy. If you have not read the first installment, this does work as a standalone but be warned, you’ll definitely want to read Paris after this one!
I found the characters to be well-developed- with an active storyline over a relatively short time period, you can imagine it’s not easy to establish character personalities and with a beautiful location, we can forgive a lot, but Moondi presents genuine characters who you truly empathise with. Moondi writes about her characters, the locations, the situations, and the food with such passion you are swept along with the story.
It’s a page-turner for sure – I finished this in less than the time it takes Jake and Mira to come to a decision about their relationship! It’s a fun, beach/ summer/ travel read that will transport you to the Amalfi coast (and make you want to book a trip there). I thought that Paris was a tough book to write a follow-up to, but Moondi has elegantly tied up the loose ends that were left hanging at the end of Paris. I’m not wanting to give away too much here but suffice to say if you love a good rom-com, you’ll love this!
I particularly love that there is ONE recipe tucked away at the end of the book – Lemon Pesto Spaghetti, famously consumed in the wee hours of the morning by Mira and Jake who were so enamoured with it that they tried (and failed) to pry the secret recipe from the restaurant. When Moondi described the dish that was her inspiration (from Taverna degli Apostoli) as having “layers of flavor” and it being a bit of “sorcery” I was immediately transported back to a similar experience I had in Italy in 2005.
I have written about this recipe previously (in, errr… 2009 and 2010 – excuse the photography!) and our experience at Pane e Vino.
From that post:
One of our most memorable meals was at Pane e vino, a small restaurant in Todi, tucked off the tourist trail in a little alley. I chose a simple pasta dish that night, infused with lemon and garlic, so utterly delicious in its simplicity that we thought it would be easy to replicate a couple of nights later. We failed miserably! On returning home, I wrote to Gourmet magazine to see if they could obtain the recipe for me.
A few months later, I received the recipe as sent to Gourmet by the restaurant in charming, broken and very literally translated English.
You can check out my recipe for that dish here.
Moondi had a similar experience with her Lemon Pesto Spaghetti and she spent many hours figuring out the recipe so that she (and we, lucky readers) can live vicariously Mira and Jake’s trip over and over again. Of course, I had to make it!
This dish is quick and easy and I loved the technique of making a “kinda sorta” pesto which also became a sauce. I added extra lemon zest because I know the magic lemon zest can bring to a dish but other than that I stuck to the recipe as (charmingly!) written!
I’ll be making this recipe over and over (uses pantry and fridge staples) this summer, travelling vicariously through my kitchen!
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Disclosure: I received a review copy of this book from W by Wattpad. I was not asked to review the book and neither publisher nor the author has reviewed this post prior to publication. Opinions are 100% my own.
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Buy 24 Hours in Italy on Amazon (this affiliate link should bring you to the Amazon store in, or closest to, your country).
For free worldwide shipping, find 24 Hours in Italy on Blackwell’s.
Please note: This post contains affiliate links. I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. This post also contains a Blackwell’s affiliate link. This means that if you click over and purchase something, I will receive a very small percentage of the purchase price (at no extra cost to you). Thank you in advance!
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Buy my books! In the French kitchen with kids and French Food for Everyone: le goûter (after school snacks), le dîner (dinner) and le petit déjeuner (breakfast) are out now! Click here for details and how to order!
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Very nice, interesting post, Mardi. Great read.