Welcome to my review of The Italian Job by Kathryn Freeman. I first came across this book on the One More Chapter’s One Night In, and it sounded fantastic. I don’t read a tremendous amount of romance but do like it on occasion, and this is one of my favourite tropes, enemies to lovers. The Italian Job is released today so go and grab a copy now.
Dream job. Dream house. Fake fiancรฉ.
A year in a gorgeous Italian castleโฆ
When Anna Robertsโ life implodes, an online search leads her to an ad for the ultimate dream job โ management of a gorgeous castle on the shores of Lake Como, accommodation included. The only catch? Anna canโt do it aloneโฆ
โฆWith the last man on earth sheโd choose!
The castle owners will only accept a couple as caretakers, which means Anna needs a man on her arm at the interview. Enter her neighbour, Jake Tucker. Though Anna and Jake have never seen eye-to-eye, Jakeโs had a rough few years and an escape to Italy sounds ideal. Yet, when they get the job and jet off, Anna and Jake face an unexpected challenge. Pretending to be a couple is difficult โฆ but pretending the tension simmering between them doesnโt exist is quickly proving impossible!
Kathryn started her working life as a retail pharmacist but soon realised trying to decipher doctors’ handwriting wasn’t for her. In 2011, backed by her family, she left the world of pharmaceutical science to begin life as a self-employed writer.
She lives with two teenage boys and a husband who asks every Valentine’s Day whether he has to bother buying a card again this year (yes, he does) so the romance in her life is all in her head.
She can be found at: http://kathrynfreeman.co.uk
Anna has just broken up with her boyfriend after finding him cheating on herโฆ in their bed! So she moves back home with her adored dad and looks for her dream job. She finds it (far too quickly) a live-in position in a castle on Lake Como. The only downside is that she needs a partner as they are looking for a couple.
Conveniently, her next-door neighbour’s son, Jake, her long-time enemy, has just got out of prison and could do with a fresh start. So Anna makes a plan, and they attend the interview together, where they are offered the job with an instant start.
The setting is beautifully described, and who wouldn’t jump at the chance to live in a castle? Anna and Jake make a great show of acting like a couple, but the cracks start to appear just hours after they are left alone, with Jake leaving her alone while he visits the local pub.
The plot continues and is an enjoyable read; it’s well written and paced. Although it has many of the cliches of this trope, you can tell that each person has feelings for the other quite quickly, though neither would admit to it. The number of times the words “groin”, “Breasts”, “sex”, and “cocky” are mentioned a bit too repetitively, and the constant thinking of the other without saying what they think and second-guessing each other gets a little frustrating after a while. However, the obvious happily ever after, the coming together as a couple, and their journey offers a fun read.
The characters were well-developed, and I liked most of them. The evil son of the owners, Nigel, is particularly well portrayed. I disliked him almost immediately. Jake is obviously a hunky, laid back kind of guy. He is confident in himself and has served time defending his family rather than being a thug. Anna is super organised, no doubt traumatised by her mother leaving when she was younger but determined to make something of herself and is confident in her cooking skills, if not her ability to fall in love with Jake.
Overall, this was a quick and enjoyable read. Perfect for the warmer summer days ahead, don’t forget to pack this one to take to the beach with you.
Thanks to Netgalley, the author and publisher for an advanced copy. I have no obligation to review this and all thoughts are my own.
Affiliate Link
Please consider purchasing this book through the link to the left. You wonโt pay any more for your purchase but i will get a very small commission which goes towards paying for the running costs of this blog. Your help is very much appreciated!
| Title | The Italian Job |
| Author | Kathryn Freeman |
| Series | N/A |
| Format | eARC |
| Page Count | 369 Pages |
| Genre | Romantic Comedy |
| Publisher | One More Chapter |
| Release Date | 6th May 2022 |
Click The Cover To Read Amazon’s Sample Today!
2 comments
Such a lovely review – and photo to go with it! Thank you so much for reading and for the kind words ๐
Thanks for your kind comment. I loved reading it so thank you for writing such a wonderful book ๐