There's something so cosy and lovely about a Jo Thomas book, yes it deals with loss and heartbreak but also with community and togetherness, love and so so many yummy descriptions of food!

Thea and her children head to Casa Luna a run down house in Tuscany that her late husband Marco had bought, she knew it was in need of some work but was shocked to see just how much when they arrived. She asks the community to help out and in exchange for the help she and her children become involved in the community kitchen, there is the lovely Giovanni and 3 very competitive nonnas!

When i read a Jo Thomas book i always feel like i have been transported to the setting and now all i think about is visiting Tuscany one day.....oh and did i mention you will crave lasagne after this book? because you will!

A book about finding yourself and recharging your batteries to cope with things that happen in life.

The book deals with heartbreak and lost love how to overcome all the obstacles in the path and come out at the end of with help from other people. It also was nice to see the characters who have been feuding for years to put their differences aside and help the community.

I found the book funny in places. Also how the characters realised that you have to join forces to help the village survive.

The characters worked well together and the story flowed I could not put the book down it was an easy read.

She is back and her new book called A Place in the Sun by Jo Thomas was a perfect beautiful read, just what I needed. I love the way Jo writes and she has a way of pulling you into every book she has written with the way she describes the surroundings, the smells etc especially as this book is set Tuscany, and the way Jo described the landscape, the smells and how the food tastes I want t go there for a holiday.

Thea husband Marco had just died and she is bringing up their children alone. But, several years ago her husband Marco purchased a rundown little house in Tuscany called Casa Luna . When he was alive he intended to do this little house up and then sell it and go back to Cardiff with their profits of the sell. But, the community was so welcoming and friendly he just fell in love with their culture and the way they live day to day. So he never sold it.
Thea has just lost her house and her job, she needs a change and takes her children to Italy to Casa Luna for the summer holidays, to relax and recharge their batteries, but, when they gets there she's shocked by how much work Casa Luna needs to be done to make it liveable and even to sell!
She only has six weeks to fix it up ready to sell! Now, her only option is to ask the tight-knit Italian community for help.

As the summer holiday goes by, deadlines of achieve to get this little house liveable is becoming closer. with grief eating them all up Thea has to be strong and be there for her children as well as managing the renovations.

Thea and her children become involved in the community kitchen and start to work alongside a

Thea Reluctantly Thea steps back into her previous roll to help out a friend, but really is it helping her move on and heal?

In return, Thea and her children become involved in the community kitchen, working alongside In return, Thea and her children become involved in the community kitchen, working alongside handsome chef Giovanni and three very competitive nonnas. - Grandmothers.
In a short period of time, Thea begins to open up to the people around her for the first time in a long while, and she is beginning to wonder whether this small Tuscan town could become a new place to call home?

Then, surprise visitor turns everything on its head

This book was a great Holiday read, a heartwarming story.

2.5 Stars
One Liner: Good premise; rushed writing

Thea didn’t realize the holiday house in Italy would need so much work! Her late husband Marco had bought it for them, but now Thea has six weeks to repair and sell it. She and her children move to the region to get things started. Soon, they are welcomed by the local community, which gives them love, support, and a found family.
The story comes in Thea’s first-person POV.

My Thoughts:
2025 is my year of Italy. This is yet another story set in the country, this time in a cutesy Tuscan village. Given the lovely cover and the author’s vast writing experience, I was hopeful for another heartwarming book about life, love, and second chances.
There’s no denying the beauty of the premise. It has everything you need to make a solid escapist women’s fiction despite heavy themes like the death of a spouse and grief.
However, the writing is so rushed and choppy! While I appreciate the fast-paced narration, it feels like the story just drifted on high tide like a helpless basket carried by the strong current. The reader is left to catch up or watch it happen from a distance with no involvement.
Still, I might have enjoyed it a little more if I could feel something other than mild irritation for the FMC. Sure, she is burned out, still grieving her dead husband, has two kids to care for, and is an independent woman. But… she’s prickly for no reason. Runs away when she should have stood and apologized, and just feels like someone I wouldn’t bother helping. As you can guess, this made it harder to connect with the plot or the supposed romance that’s barely there.
That said, I liked the kids a lot. They were such darlings (and luckily, the FMC was a good mom), and sometimes reminded their mother to be courteous. The kids made the book much better.
It’s the same with the side characters like the three nonnas who seem to have a feud going on. In fact, the supporting characters shine a lot more than the FMC. I wonder if this is due to rushed narration or a gap between the idea and the execution.
The last quarter had more drama, and I couldn’t resist rolling my eyes. It could have worked well if there had been enough space for everything to unfold at a slower pace. Apart from the benefit of saving a reading day (for me), the pace didn’t do the book any favors.
This is my first book by the author, but I think I made the wrong choice. It reads like it was written on a tight deadline and a handful of pages. I’ll check out the previous releases first.

To summarize, A Place in the Sun has a good premise but a hurried execution with little character development. The side characters are great, though!
Thank you, NetGalley and Transworld Publishers (Penguin), for the eARC. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

What a gorgeous story, filled with love and friends and family. Thea and her children move to Italy to a small village where her late husband bought a run down house, this story is filled with such warmth and Nonnas! And remember, cook with love ❤️

Jo Thomas has transported me beautifully to Tuscany, one of my favourite places on earth, I can almost feel the heat, smell the fragrant flowers, I can hear the cicadas, I can taste the pasta and the wine.
This was so far from her native Cardiff, a distraught, exhausted Thea tried the large metal key in the wonky lock at the Tuscan villa that her husband had bought for them, bough without her knowledge. When Thea's husband died suddenly, she valiantly tried to keep the restaurant, that they had built together, running but it had proved too much, the only thing that Thea had was the run down, dilapidated villa in a small Tuscan village.
Thea had six weeks in which to renovate the villa and sell, this would probably give her enough money to move back to Wales............the task was immense, she couldn't do it alone and she was too proud to accept charity, she had loved Marcus with all her heart but how could he do this to her and the children.
As this story unfolds, Thea meets Giovanni, a handsome Italian who was also fighting his own demons but is hell bent on saving this beautiful village and it's odd assortment of wonderful people, the old man walking his goats, the three waring nonna's, the school teacher and her children who are escaping her abusive husband and all the people who Giovanni served with food and love.
Thea noticed that the children were playing free, they were enjoying the Tuscan lifestyle but soon they would be leaving, would the two people, one from Marcus's secret past and one from Thea's past, upset her plans, would she acknowledge the attraction to Giovanni or would she hang on to the past that she knows.
This is a lovely, emotional, heart warming story. I received a free copy of this book and my review is voluntary.

Thank you netgalley and publishers for allowing me a copy of this book for my review. I think this might just be my favourite book written by Jo Thomas. We meet Thea and her two young children who have travelled to Italy to view the property her late husband had purchased. Thea has found herself in a financial mess since her husbands passing, so her idea is to tidy up the house and sell it, but there seem to be one or two obstacles to be addressed first. A great location, wonderful characters, especially the nonnas and an overall enjoyable story..

I really enjoyed this quick read set in Italy. Thea has gone back to Tuscany to get her late husbands house ready to sell. Loved reading about the Italian mammas fighting over their lasagne and the life in the small village that the house is in. Thea is confused with the men that’s helping her with the house, but the kids are loving life in Tuscany. This is a lovely feel good read that makes you smile. A perfect 5 star summer read. Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for a copy.

A well written summer romance. Ideal for a hot summer. Lovely feel good story.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK for the advance copy of this book.

I can never resist a new offering from Jo Thomas, and this one is a true gem. Set in Italy, it is a lovely summer read.

What a wonderful story. Right from the very beginning this book hooked me. A wonderful Italian tale wove itself around me, I was completely spellbound by Thea and her children trying to navigate a country where they don’t speak the language fluently, whilst also trying to bravely fulfil her late husbands dream. I think by 40 percent in I was balling my eyes out.

The villagers stories are just as sad as Thea’s and were very moving, Giovanni tries hard to pull everyone together and keep a community spirit going, he is trying to repay the kindness shown to him. Simply moving, that a community that is sad, lonely and divided reached out and supported him in his time of need.

The added twist, which I don’t want to spoil was very cleverly done and really kept the story moving and also, at times the tears flowing.

Some breathtaking scenes, I really felt I was there, watching the goats eat the weeds in the back garden. A fantastic summer read that I simply couldn’t put down.

A very quick read, I finished in a couple of hours. Well written, and easy to get lost in, pace flows well.

The descriptions of the locations were fabulous, I could clearly imagine the village, Casa Luna and La Tavola. The Nonnas were by far my favourite characters, I loved their bickering, and I loved the community feel of the story. The children were all very well written too.

One thing I wasn't too keen on was the romance - I didn't feel the story needed it, and although you could see it happening from the start, it felt a bit tacked on and unnecessary. Personally, I didn't think Thea was ready for another romantic relationship.

Thea and her two children travel to a remote village in Tuscany where her late Italian husband had bought them a holiday home. After he had died the restaurant that they had owned went under, taking the family home with it, so she decided to do the Tuscany home up during the summer holidays, sell it and find a small property at home using the money. Arriving she finds the home in a dilapidated state, so she starts clearing it up, but at the same time is drawn into the village life.
This is an unashamedly feel-good story set in a beautiful part of the world, full of characters such as the feuding Nonnas and Giovanni, who runs a local kitchen providing for those in need in the village. Things don't go smoothly for Thea, but she does receive support from those in the village. This is the type of book to read when you're feeling a bit down, seeing how things can get better with help from others and you in turn can help them.
I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley, however this did not influence my review of the book.

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

After Thea’s husband Marco passes away suddenly, she’s left to care for their children and continue to run the restaurant.

But, even after everything Thea does to keep the business going, it’s not enough and there’s no other way but to close it. Then she also has to sell her home.

Now, with nowhere to go, remembers that Marco bought a property that needed a lot of work in Tuscany, so she heads there with her children.

On arrival, at Casa Luna, she’s informed that if she doesn’t live in the property or sell it after its refurbished, she will have to pay a penalty and she only has just over a month.

Thea is left with the option to live there herself after everything that needs attention is sorted.

In order to get the property ready, she will need help, and she will have to ask the villagers, but, what will they want in return?

Will Thea begin to let others in and maybe make Casa Luna her home?

I loved the setting, the characters, especially the warring sisters were funny.

I highly recommend this book.

Another fabulous page turner from Jo Thomas.

When Thea takes her children to Tuscany for the summer, her only intention is to find the holiday home her late husband Marco bought on a whim. He died before she had chance to see it and for them to spend time as a family making new memories in it together. She was aware it will need a clean and maybe some odd jobs before she puts it up for sale, but when she sees it, she is shocked and floored by the state Casa Luna is in. How can she do all the work on her own, she doesn't have the money to pay someone to work on the house and to make matters worse it's in the middle of nowhere.

When Thea starts to meet the tight knit local community, she discovers more than friendship, especially when she starts to work in the community kitchen alongside chef Giovanni. In return for her help in the kitchen the locals help her to get the house ready for sale, but does she should she still sell? Could she really stay here, the children are happier than they have been in a long time.
Then a stranger makes Thea question if Marco had been keeping secrets from her?

Absolutely loved this book.

When I think of an idyllic setting, Tuscany easily takes one of the top spots. Perfectly prepared lasagne on a table under a large chestnut tree, a bottle of wine to share, goats (just roll with that one) grazing in the field beyond, a house called Casa Luna to retreat to...

That's not a bad place to be for now, Thea reasons as she packs up her two young children to venture to the only thing that can turn their lives around: a Tuscan villa purchased on a whim 2 years ago by her late husband Marco, one day before he suddenly died. Having lost her love, their restaurant and their home in Cardiff, Thea is determined to sell the house Marco envisioned would be their eventual forever home, and start over back in the UK. Marco, whose head was often in the clouds, didn't mention that Casa Luna is a fixer-upper with a costly and fast approaching deadline. When the roof literally & figuratively collapses in on Thea, she reluctantly takes down some of her own walls, realizing she needs to rely on the small community for help and trust herself to be relied on by its kind-hearted people in turn.

A Place in the Sun is what I'd hoped it would be: a breezy story transporting its reader to a wonderful little Tuscan town, while still gently handling dramatic themes in an uplifting manner. When I finished, I felt all gooey. First and foremost, I was moved by the sense of community. The community of Città del Castagni is small but fierce; Jo Thomas stuck with a few characters and just wrote them with such warmth that (imagining) being in the town itself felt like being wrapped in a big hug. I loved the side plot with the three rivaling Nonnas and their lasagne-packed backstory, and melted at Giovanni's entire...

...well, everything. We don't find out one vital detail about the man until 93%-ish in, but I will gladly spoil this for you: this most perfect man that has ever perfected. Also. Owns. A. Motorcycle. You're welcome.

Giovanni is also a former chef turned construction worker, who (in between fixing whatever needs upping) runs La Tavola, a community kitchen striving to welcome anyone in their time of need or want for company – residents and passers-by alike. He reminds Thea of Marco in the best and worst way possible. Still struggling with the loss of Marco, Thea feels an instant attraction to Giovanni, forcing her to face the final stage of grief. Conversely, Giovanni also reignites the passion she once shared with Marco regarding their work in hospitality – before all it became to her was representative of pain, stress and loss.

Thomas builds up this no-spice romance by offering us a visualization of how Thea processes having lost Marco (with Marco being a very integral part of the story), and by showing us through Thea's sensations and conflicting emotions just how she comes to develop feelings for someone new. There is a small amount of angst, just enough to keep me (even more) invested in their love story while staying low on actual drama.

At times I felt the book is a little too fast-paced; the story spans around 6 weeks, and when Thomas “skips” over a week for a mini time-jump, that's when I perhaps would have preferred a longer read if it meant more scenes between the romantic leads, or more development of lovely side characters and interpersonal relationships. A friendship between Thea and Catarina (another young mother; she'd left an abusive husband) could have been explored more. A few more scenes with just Thea and her adorable kids (11 year-old Luca and 7 year-old Aimee).

...Giovanni riding that surprise motorcycle of his in the Crete Senesi... two or three times... Ah well. I'll just let that image live rent-free in my head instead. It's fine.

A Place in the Sun is a sweet novel with beautiful, multi-layered arcs for both main characters; the story is emotional but never too heavy overall. Bickering side characters and the community's antics have made me laugh out loud a bunch of times, but the feel-good factor is most convincingly found in a few important takeaways: home is about the people you're with... and it's not the food that matters, but the love (and thus also the company) that goes with it.

**Thank you NetGalley and Random House UK / Transworld Publishers / Penguin for generously providing me with a copy of this book; all opinions expressed are honest, voluntary and 100% my own.**

I enjoyed this book it really had my taste buds tingling, the characters are really well written and very likeable,, the “Nonnas” were very funny, grab this read for your summer holiday

I loved this book. Thea arrives in Italy with her children to visit the house her late husband bought. The story brings together, food, feuds, new family and love. Expect to fancy lasagna after reading this.

Whenever I open a Jo Thomas book I know I am going to be transported to somewhere wonderful, read about mouth-watering food and follow her characters on the road to romance. When we meet Thea and her family though, romance couldn’t be further from her mind. Her husband Marco had died suddenly a couple of years before but just before he died, he had bought a holiday home for the family in a small village in Italy. Arriving there for the first time to spend the school holidays with Luca and Aimee, Thea finds the house in a sad state of repair. It’s not the idyllic place in the sun to relax and recharge she had thought it would be. There’s a very amusing scene early on involving a case of mistaken identity. Poor Thea was mortified but it did make me smile!

Food is always central to a Jo Thomas book and that’s no exception here. Whether it’s the restaurants that Thea and Marco used to run, the community kitchen La Tavola, the lasagnes cooked and shared by the three Nonnas, a cook school weekend or Thea cooking for her own family, you’re never more than a few pages away from reading about some delicious sounding food. Lasagne is a very important dish in this book. It’s a dish that caused a huge family rift and it’s a dish that heals that rift too. If you don’t crave lasagne by the time you have finished this book, I’ll be very surprised. It’s certainly on my menu for this weekend!

As one of the characters says, “food is so much more than cooking something to eat… It’s about the experience, company, conversation, laughter, debate. It’s about inclusion. It’s about feeling part of something.”. In her writing, Jo Thomas creates that wonderful sense of community and family coming together, chatting, laughing and sharing over food.

The characters in the book are fantastic too. Special mention has to be made of the three Nonnas: two sisters and their sister-in-law. They are always bickering and, as I alluded to above, fell out over lasagne! They were such fun to read about with their rivalry and their sharp tongues. I’d love to try any of their lasagnes. The spirit of Marco is ever-present throughout the book which is a comfort to Thea. I particularly liked her son Luca who seemed to have a wise head on his young shoulders. Jo Thomas has filled the whole community with wonderful characters and I enjoyed meeting them all and finding out their stories.

A Place in the Sun is a brilliant story about new beginnings and second chances in a wonderfully sunny location, with family, food, friendship and, of course, love at its heart. A real summer treat from Jo Thomas: don’t miss it!

Let Jo Thomas take you on another Mediterranean adventure: this time to Tuscany where Thea and her children are heading to this holiday house purchased by her late husband Marco. She’s not expecting it to be in pristine condition, but what she does find is worse than she thought. With only six weeks to fix the property up, both time and money are against her so she needs to ask the close knit Italian community for help. In return for their neighbours help, Thea and her children end up working in the community kitchen alongside handsome Giovanni and three fabulous Nonnas. An enjoyable story set against a gorgeous Italian background with some fabulous characters. Thank you to NetGalley, Random House UK and the author for the chance to review.