Monday 4 May 2020

Release Day Book Review and Spotlight: Dreaming of Italy by T.A. Williams



Dreaming of Italy by T. A. Williams
Genre: Romantic Comedy / Chicklit / Romance
Publication Date: 4th May 2020
Publisher: Canelo



Up for a dream promotion, Emma won’t let anything get in her way – not even love.
Working for a major Hollywood film company isn’t all glitz and glam. But when Emma gets sent to tour around Italy to scout the perfect location for a new blockbuster movie, she’s not going to complain. Especially when it could make or break her career…
Historical adviser for the project Mark is a distraction that Emma does not need. As they explore the beauty of Italy, Emma starts to fall for the mysterious Mark, and soon finds herself torn between her job and her heart.
From the wild, northern mountains of Piedmont, down the vibrant coast of Cinque Terre and through the rolling hills of Tuscany, Emma’s journey becomes one of self-discovery as she questions her priorities in life.




Sit back and enjoy a virtual tour of Northern Italy with Emma and Richard.

Emma's spent her entire working life in Hollywood working for J.M. Global Productions (JMGP). She's devoted her life to working hard, as she climbs the corporate ladder within the film industry. The sacrifice is her lack of someone significant in her life. When her boss, Dexter tells her she's going to Italy as a location manager, she's both surprised and delighted and embraces the responsibility to find the perfect places to shoot an upcoming blockbuster. Accompanied by Dexter son, Richard, the pair fly to Turin, where life has an unexpected turn for them both.

It's easy to presume what happens to Emma as she's guided around Northern Italy, looking for unique settings for scenes. Yet, the narrative is as surprising as the hidden gems discovered as the perfect backdrops for the film she's working on. The hero, like Emma, is British, not Italian but still sexy and very likeable.

I'm a nerdy reader, so I got my atlas to follow Emma's journey. I've visited some of the more well-known places mentioned therefore I enjoyed revisiting them through the eyes of the wonderful cast of characters. The author does a magnificent job in describing the places visited to bring them alive capturing the essence of what makes them special.

I've always thought brains are sexy, and Mark is a man who is both attractive and intelligent. The historical advisor is a welcome distraction and I enjoyed him getting to know Emma. Their relationship highlights the difficulties couples have to navigate when faced with the geographical challenge of living on different continents. It acts as a catalyst for them both to evaluate their lives and to decide what is important to them.

Overall, this novel ticked all the right boxes for me; a fabulous location, lots of fascinating facts and lastly, a heart-warming romance with a happy ending.

***arc generously received courtesy of the publisher Canelo Escape via NetGalley***



I’m a man. And a pretty old man as well. I did languages at university a long time ago and then lived and worked in France and Switzerland before going to Italy for seven years as a teacher of English. My Italian wife and I then came back to the UK with our little daughter (now long-since grown up) where I ran a big English language school for many years. We now live in a sleepy little village in Devonshire. I’ve been writing almost all my life but it was only seven years ago that I finally managed to find a publisher who liked my work enough to offer me my first contract.
The fact that I am now writing romantic comedy is something I still find hard to explain. My early books were thrillers and historical novels. Maybe it’s because there are so many horrible things happening in the world today that I feel I need to do my best to provide something to cheer my readers up. My books provide escapism to some gorgeous locations and, as a writer, I obviously have to go there in person and check them out first. I love my job…

Twitter: @TAWilliamsBooks