Brilliant read and story line. Although a story, could be true to life. Normal characters with the pressures of everyday. Really well told

I would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read and review The Sicilian Affair by Susan Lewis. Having read many books by Susan Lewis I found this one up there with the best. It had me hooked from the start, I found the characters believable and was intrigued to know more about Catie Mac’s life; I found the need to do this almost addictive. Catie had come to a point in her life where she needed to get away to write her life story, a story she didn’t envisage sharing until she met the enigmatic Giancarlo. She spins a globe and lands on Sicily telling only one other person where she was going and what she was there to do. Having read the descriptions of Sicily it has made me want to visit.

Catie Mac has a past. A past with secrets. One that she has fled the country to escape….

Catie is in Sicily, just for a few weeks as she shouldn’t really be leaving the country. But whilst she is there, she allows her mind to run back the track of her life, all the highs and the many lows. But when she meets the handsome and enigmatic Giancarlo, she starts to open up and share her story with him. But will she tell him just who and what she is hiding from? And what secrets does Giancarlo have of his own?

I love Susan’s books and really enjoyed this one. Her descriptions of Sicily made me want to visit immediately!

A great read. Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read and review.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/review/R3CDMEVU3I7O5M/ref=pe_1572281_66412651_cm_rv_eml_rv0_rv
I haven’t read a book by Susan Lewis for some time and I realise what I have been missing because as this story drew me in I couldn’t put it down, just needing to know more about Catie’s life.

At the very start the reader finds that Catie has recently been released from prison, a shocking fact when it is clear that she is a talented singer who has had an amazing life and performed all over the world. What could she possibly have done to have served a prison sentence?

The story is told from beautiful Taormina in Sicily which is where Catie has run away after her release to think about her life and to write her own story on the advice of a therapist. She needs, for her own sake, to make peace with life events as there have been some incredible low points of loss alongside her successful career. In fact, it is clear that she has sacrificed a lot to have that career and there are regrets that need to be faced before she moves on.

I really loved how the story started right at the beginning when Catie was taken to gigs by her musician Father, Mac and from an early age was encouraged to share her singing talent alongside his band. At the age of eighteen, while singing at a wedding, she sees Lawrence watching her across a crowded room and the pair fall in love. It seems that they are a match made in heaven but will their love story have a happy ever after ending?

As the story gathers pace, it was so difficult to put this book down. As Catie starts to tell her story, she meets the enigmatic Giancarlo who shows her around the island and becomes a party to her story. As the two become closer it becomes clear that Giancarlo may be shocked at her story but equally so Giancarlo may have secrets of his own.

A Sicilian Affair is family drama at its best told over a sweeping time frame of more than forty years with a brilliant cast of characters. What a wonderful book.

I think Susan Lewis gets better and better. I really enjoyed this story and was caught up in the characters and setting. Perfect summer read.

Another fantastic read from one of my all time favourite authors, I was so excited to read A Sicilian affair and it certainly didn’t disappoint!
We meet Catie Mac and follow her as she progresses through life and her career in music, through career highs,relationships, motherhood, grief, estrangement,imprisonment and realisation!
Deciding to write her memoirs, Catie relocates to the wonderfully described Sicily, a most idyllic sounding island full of gregarious characters, wonderful food and a second chance at love and life with the mysterious enigmatic
Giancarlo!
A heartbreakingly addictive, compelling read that is totally heartwarming, emotive and a total joy to read!
Thank you NetGalley for this early read.

I have read quite a few of Susan Lewis’ novels previously and enjoyed them so was keen to read this latest release.

The structure of the story is particularly clever; the narrator is on a trip to Sicily and is relating her life story as an exercise suggested by a therapist to help her come to terms with a number of difficult events in her past. It’s a story within a story, with the main events being in the past but current events in Sicily featuring more and more as it progresses. There are some interesting descriptions of Taormina and tourist sites in Sicily and it makes the reader want to be there. Being transported by the book is the next best thing! The characters are well drawn and relatable and the story moves at a good pace, which I always appreciate.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would recommend it.

Thank you very much to NetGalley and the publisher for a free advance copy of A Sicilian Affair in exchange for an honest review.

This is a book about loss and betrayals, but it is not only a sad story. Towards the end, it becomes a book about newfound love, reunited family, and it gives hope that no matter how dark and painful your past is, you can always rise from it and find happiness again.

I loved the characters and the setting, I am originally from Turin and my father was from Sicily, so for me reading about those places felt a bit like going back home.

I was expecting more of a mystery/thriller, but this turned out to be more a family drama, and maybe that's the reason I could not bring myself to add that final star. However, this is a very good book that I recommend if you like this genre.

Thank you Netgalley and HarperCollins for an advance copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Collins for my copy of A Sicilian Affair.
Another wonderful story from the pen of Susan Lewis.
I literally couldn’t put it down, I had to know how Catie’s story ended.
From her young life as a jazz singer to now alone on a Sicilian island trying to make sense of what has happened in the intervening years.
Bring the tissues, coffee and chocolate.
Marvellous.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this exceptional book

you can always expect a good read when its a susan lewis book and though this is a slow burner its full of intrigue and may hit a few nerves but man when you get caught up in the storyline it wont release you till the end

a family drama that keeps on giving and the shocks that are revealed as you read will astound you

catie returns home...... shes just finished serving her prison sentence......

and so the storyline begins at the beginning and though you start to feel frustrated at the pace it all comes together and all is revealed and what a story it is.....

cannot wait for the next susan lewis book

A complicated and tragic life has left a talented singer prepared to cut the bonds of family friends and career for a lengthy period abroad in an effort to escape the memories and heartbreak of her past. Following up on a suggestion she decides to write down recollections of her traumatic life in order to bury the ghosts of her past. .Whilst exploring her new surroundings she meets a charismatic Italian who is both interested in her past and encourages her into a slow friendship burgeoning into a romantic relationship . Readers who enjoy romantic novels , tragic lives, and happy ever after conclusions written using the backdrop of luscious Italian locations will be satisfied on every level. Perhaps a more critical and dramatic emphasis on the shocking events that occurred rather than what at times appeared to be a casual glossing over of heartbreak , deceit and unforgivable treachery. This would have emphasised in a more stark and frightening way, awareness of the horrendous downward trajectory of the protagonists life to enable more depth and surprise at the eventual conclusion. Many thanks to author, publisher and Netgalley for the ARC.

This was a brilliant read from Susan Lewis although for me more saga than thriller, it slightly reminded me of Santa Montefiore. Told in present day when Catie escapes to Sicily to write her life story to help her come to terms with her past this is mostly her story from her eighteenth birthday told as she’s writing it down and also narrating parts to the mysterious Giancarlo who she is finding herself increasingly attracted to. She has a fantastic history with love, loss and betrayal all playing key parts and I loved seeing how her relationships with other characters altered over her lifetime. In current day the setting is stunning and makes for a brilliant contrast and offers escape and hope and such a contrast to her past. This has some great settings both past and present and some fantastic characters, I love the sheer atmosphere of this book and found it a gripping and highly enjoyable read.

This is a beautiful book with vivid characters and a gripping plot, set in the backdrops of Bristol, LA and Italy.

Catie McAllister has always been a talented singer, following her musician father into the business and meeting her true love at a young age and swiftly having a family. The LA lifestyle is not a great mix for the young family and a tragic event pulls them back home to Bristol. Struggles and another tragic loss threaten to ruin their lives and some years later Catie sets out alone for Italy, where she meets and falls in love with a mysterious Italian man.

All the tension of a great family drama, coupled with the beautiful settings and a great plot. Susan Lewis has again written a book that will be enjoyed by her many fans and no doubt attract more.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Free courtesy of Netgalley

Wow what another amazing book by Susan Lewis, it is no secret she is one of my favourite authors but I absolutely loved this book. I have spent all weekend reading it, instead of doing Uni work 🙈

Following the story of Catie Mac, a fantastic Jazz singer, she has left home and gone to Scilly to write down her memories about her life, it has been suggested by her therapist that this would be a good way of facing her past and moving on.

She tells the story of how she first met her husband, right up until present day, with all the heartbreaks and secrets that come with that. Her relationships with her beloved dad, and her difficult mother, her husband and all the drama he brings with him, her children and her friendships.

She meets some of the locals of Taormina, especially Giancarlo, who is very keen to hear her stories.

I could not put this book down, the descriptions of Scilly makes me want to go there, the second book that has made me feel this way. The characters were believable and the book is so well written, with enough secrets to keep you guessing. I didn't want it to end. A full 5* review from me, this is a must read book for this summer. Thank you Susan for another amazing book

Another great read . Susan Lewis writes with such lovely descriptive depictions of the characters and places. I could just imagine being in Sicily in the sunshine. Catie is a likeable character but still with flaws. I was totally immersed in this love story.

I love Susan Lewis books. This one completely absorbed me, for the time I took to read, into another beautiful and tragic world. Her use and description of the surroundings was entrancing. The plot was intriguing and the characters well developed.

Loved this book, set across two time periods filling in Catie's past, a beautiful heartwarming and heartbreaking at times story.

My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book.

Thanks NetGalley and Harper Collins uk. And a huge thank you to Susan Lewis.

If you’ve not read a Susan Lewis book, you are missing out. A Sicilian affair was such a joy to read, it moves seamlessly and is so beautifully written that I could not put it down,

Lovely, modern day love story book, showcasing the delights of Sicily. Extremely well written and a joy to read. Bags of emotions reading the book; from laughter and tears to nostalgia (for the yesterdays, the music and the architecture) and contemplation for the family dynamics being so similar to mine. Thank you Susan Lewis for another fabulously, awesome read.

Thanks to the Publishers and Netgalley for an early review copy.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book.

The novel is the story of Catie and her love for music.

The story had characters that you can relate to as well as twists and turns, which kept you wanting to continue reading to know what happens next.

I loved the setting, there were moments which made you laugh and some that made you sad.

Another fabulous book by Susan Lewis. I can’t wait to see what she writes next.

I highly recommend this book.