Summer in Tuscany [Large Print] [Hardcover]

Elizabeth Adler (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 2002

Gemma Jericho is an overworked New York doctor with a handful of a teenaged daughter and a mother who worries that Gemma has no life. So when her mother receives a mysterious letter telling her about an even more mysterious inheritance in Tuscany, Gemma sees her chance: the three of them throw caution and convention to the wind and leave for Italy. Gemma hopes that a change of scenery will bring back the closeness she used to share with her daughter. And perhaps the challenges of living in a foreign country will give her mother something to worry about beyond Gemma's social life.

But what they encounter there is far more distracting than Gemma expected: a crumbling old villa and a town divided. Half the residents believe that Ben Raphael, another American, is the rightful inheritor of the villa. As cultures clash, gossip soars, and intrigue unfolds, Gemma is caught up in the most disturbing and delicious trouble she's ever had. And her summer in Tuscany will change her outlook-and her life-forever.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Veteran novelist Elizabeth Adler (The Last Time I Saw Paris) returns to the Continent with Summer in Tuscany, a cute and painfully predictable romance. Frumpy ER doctor Gemma Jericho is divorced, pushing 40 and none too happy about it. Her mom, Nonna, persuades Gemma and Gemma's 14-year-old daughter to travel to Italy when Nonna learns she has inherited an old villa. But when they get there, another American, roguishly handsome Ben Raphael, has already claimed ownership; of course, romance blooms as they wrangle over the property. Gemma alternately gripes, swoons like a teenager and consumes a lot of gelato; locals behave colorfully; and everyone is paired off neatly at the end.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

Gemma, an overworked ER doctor, her mother, Nonna, a typical Italian widow who spends her week cooking the Sunday supper, and daughter Livvie, a punked-up but well-adjusted teen, are living normal, unexciting lives in New York City until Nonna receives a letter informing her of an inheritance in her childhood village of Bella Piacere. The letter launches the Jerichos into situations both delicious and funny in a novel in which romance is detailed as vividly as the landscape of Tuscany. Gemma becomes embroiled in a mystery with the intriguing Ben Raphael, while Nonna is transformed and charms a man from her youth, and Livvie has a ball with Florence's dashing teens. Adler, author of The Last Time I Saw Paris [BKL Mr 1 01] and many other novels, reveals a deft hand in creating characters to cheer for and settings to dream over in this deeply appealing story of love, family, and the beauty of Italy. Neal Wyatt
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 439 pages
• Publisher: Wheeler Publishing (August 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1587242567
• ISBN-13: 978-1587242564
• Product Dimensions: 9.7 x 6.4 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,792,850 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Elizabeth Adler is a self-confessed romantic, a travel addict and a foodie, all of which she brings to the reader in her novels, along with a tough thrust of suspense and an unfolding mystery that keeps you on your toes. Elizabeth has lived in many countries and when she's not writing spends time discovering even more places to bring to you, with her husband, Richard - still in love after all these years - as are the characters featured in her past three novels, Mac Reilly the Malibu PI and Sunny Alvarez, his lover and side kick. You have to read about them to know them! Elizabeth lives in California and has the ability to take you to all those romantic places she knows so well, Capri, Venice, Tuscany, St. Tropez, Monte Carlo, and of course, Malibu. You will feel you are there, with her, sitting on that Italian terrace, sipping that coffee, smelling the delicious food, savoring the heat and the sunshine and the mystery unfolding for you. Elizabeth is five-three and wishes she were taller, blind as a bat without her glasses that anyway she is too vain to wear, and at 128 lbs till thinking about that diet. She has one daughter, Anabelle who is married to rock musician Eric Avery and two kitties, the Siamese, Sweet Pea who rules the household, and an adorable black cat Sunny.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Delicious Food, Glorious Scenery and Great Characters!, December 23, 2002

By 

Nancy R. Katz "NancyK18" (NJ) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Summer in Tuscany: A Novel (Hardcover)

Leave it to Elizabeth Adler to write one of the best books I've read in the past few weeks. Then again from my earliest days of reading this author with books like Leonie, Peach, The Rich Shall Inherit and The Property of a Lady, Ms. Adler has never failed to entertain me, educate me and even introduce to me to some of the most unforgettable characters. Recently the author has written a couple of books in the romantic suspense genre but it is Summer in Tuscany which is perhaps her most intriguing book recently which blends romance, a bit of mystery and the description of a country I now hope to visit.

Gemma is a 40 year old emergency room doctor concerned about both her rebellious 15 year old daughter Livia and her 60 year old widowed mother Nonna. Exhausted from her intense life at the hospital, Gemma has little time for a social life other than the traditional Italian Sunday afternoon feast at her mother's house with their small family and a few friends. While Gemma daydreams about changing her life, she feels stuck with her life and finds she has little to look forward to. But then at Sunday dinner, Nonna announces that she has inherited a villa in the town of her birthplace located in Tuscany.
The deceased Count of the villa has left the estate to the surviving family member of a man who saved him from downing many years before. Nonna who left Italy with her parents many years before can't wait to return to her village and take possession of the villa. But first she must convince both Gemma and Livia to make the trip with her. At first Gemma won't even consider the idea but then thinks a summer away from New York may be the perfect opportunity for Livia, Nonna and herself to bond.

Arriving first in Rome, Gemma makes the acquaintance of a gentleman and hois young daughter. Almost immediately, Gemma feels something for this man. These are feelings she has long denied herself. But when she meets up with this man a few days later in Tuscany, he claims that he purchased Nonna's villa and he is now the rightful owner. Now while Gemma's relationship is heating up with this gentelman, the search is on for the owner or the villa or the heir to it.

While I loved the plot and many colorful characters, I think it was the description of Rome, Florence but most of all, the Tuscan region that found me reading late into the night. And when I wasn't picturing the Ponte Vecchio, Colosseum or the streets of a Tuscan village, my mouth was watering from the many wonderful homegrown foods and restaurant meals. There is even the appearance of Luchay, a bejeweled parrot with a wonderful history whom readers of Elizabeth Adler's previous book the Rich Shall Inherit will remember along with his owner Poppy Mallory.

It has been many years since I read my first book by Elizabeth Adler. But now having read and loved Summer in Tuscany I have this great desire to reread all of the books I previously read by this author. And if that isn't enough, I am seriously considering a trip to Tuscany this summer. Where else would I go after falling madly in love with this place after reading this book which takes place there.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Bellisimo! Do Some Armchair Travelling to Italy!, February 27, 2003

By 

Antoinette Klein (Hoover, Alabama USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Summer in Tuscany: A Novel (Hardcover)

If you long for the charm of the Italian countryside and revel in quaint shops and romantic cafes with a foreign flavor, pick up a copy of "Summer in Tuscany." Travel with harried New York physician Gemma Jericho, her Italian-born mother Nonna, and her punk but mannerly daughter to the romantic Bella Piacere when they discover Nonna has inherited an Italian villa. When things seem too good to be true they most often are, and the ownership of the villa seems to be in grave dispute. A hunky Long Island artist appears to have purchased it legally and as the mostly predictable plot unfolds you'll feel Gemma's pain as she loses her heart and soul to the artist while mainly behaving as a lovesick teenager. There is so much local color you'll be reaching for juicy olives and sun-dried tomatoes, deciding to have a grappa with your dinner, and maybe even scouring the stores for the latest Italian import. There's also enough steamy romance to satisfy the passionate soul, but it is Gemma's secret past that really warms the reader to this slightly ditzy American in Florence. It may not be great literature, but it is an entertaining read with charm, romance, and a multi-generational bonding experience to savor.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars go to Italy NOW!, January 3, 2003

By 

mamareadssomuch "mamareadssomuch" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Summer in Tuscany: A Novel (Hardcover)

I normally don't go out of my way for romance~fiction, even though a plot around a love story appeals to me. In this story (an Italian adventure) you will meet Nonna, Gemma (her daughter) and Oliva (Gemma's teenage daughter). Nonna receives a mysterious letter beckoning her to Italy because she has inherited a villa. The journey begins and it is a lavish trip. Entertaining writing ~ too romancey in parts ~ wonderful ending.