We meet Lina, a 17 year old american girl who is sent to Italy to stay with her father after her mother's death. 
 The loss impacted her deeply and she is doing what she can to pick up the pieces and try to carry on with her life. After the move she gets a hold of her mother's old diary from when she was a student in Florence and Lina sets to discover more about her mother's past. 
 Lina is at times silly and impulsive, but still a relatable character. 
 Her relationship with her father was one of my favorite parts of the book and I hoped there would be even more scenes with them. Howard was easily my favorite character in this novel and his story broke my heart. 
 I didn't enjoy the romance part of the novel as much. Ren is a funny and adorable boy, and while their scenes together were cute, I'd be happier if they just stayed friends. 
 This book already has strong themes of family and loss and I don't think that a romance subplot was necessary to the story - but then again, this is a contemporary YA novel and god forbid that it lacks a romance and a poorly constructed love triangle, right? 
 What bothered me is the predictability of the plot and some very obvious factual mistakes. 
 Here is some nitpicking - Lina is reading her mother's journal where her mom describes how they paid for things in Euros and called each other from cellphones. Back in the 90's when the journal was supposed to be written, Italy still had Liras and not Euros. Also, cellphones were still rare so it's unlikely that Lina's mom, a poor art student in Florence would be able to afford one. 
 Another plot hole was the pace of Lina's reading. The diary offers all the answers that she has been looking for and yet she reads it slowly and instead goes on a wild goose chase. Her slow progress with the diary was very unconvincing and felt like a cheap plot device to move the story forward and create suspense. 
 Other than that, this book is a nice summer read. It transports you to the beautiful Tuscan countryside and the lovely city of Florence, and the descriptions of food are mouth-watering. 
 It is a touching story of family and self discovery, and while not without its faults, it's a fast paced and fun read that many will enjoy. 
 It makes you want to pack up your bags and go for a prolonged trip to Italy. 
 Secret bakeries of Florence, here I come!