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lucycatten's review against another edition
5.0
This was a case of perfect book at the perfect time. When I can't travel in person, it was absolutely wonderful to be able to travel in the pages of Sue's wonderful book instead. A brilliant story as you'd expect from Sue Moorcroft, but the description in this book is something else and the sense of place is outstanding. I've never been to Malta but I want to now! I swear I could feel the sun, smell the sea and taste the wonderful creations Rosa and her mother create together. I absolutely loved it. A wonderful book to get lost in.
portybelle's review against another edition
5.0
Summer on a Sunny Island? I don't think many of us are going to be experiencing that this year. Yes, I know that Britain is an island but you know what I mean. Luckily, you have this book to whisk you off to Malta and spend a few sunny weeks in the company of Rosa and Zach and some of their friends and family. I feel like I've had a personal tour of Malta with an expert guide. Sue Moorcroft's love of the island and her knowledge really shine through and bring the island and its people to life.
Rosa is getting over a break-up from Marcus when her mum suggests she comes to Malta with her as she researches recipes for her new cookery book. Zach meanwhile is spending time of the island renovating a relative's house and trying to stay out of trouble. Not that he's a bad lad - far from it - but trouble just seems to find him! Both have parents who were children of army families who spent some of their childhood in Malta, just like Sue Moorcroft herself.
I found it rather poignant that early in the book Rosa makes herself a playlist of Zumba videos so she can still do some dancing which is one of her passions in life. She enjoys this connection to home but notes that it wasn't the same as being with her friends and I think we can all relate to that right now. And I think we can all empathise with Zach when he unexpectedly has his entirely family living with him in one apartment!
Sue Moorcroft is skilled at creating complex characters and has excelled again with Rosa and Zach. They both are moving on from their old lives, but just when they are settling into a new life and considering new possibilities it seems that their pasts may catch up with them and throw a spanner in the works. That makes it sounds like there was something really terrible they were both trying to leave behind but that's not what I mean. However, their past responsibilities and connections may mean they can't move on, that their options and possibilities may be taken away. These dilemmas make Zach and Rosa seem so much more than just characters but real people with real problems to resolve.
I can't talk about this book without mentioning the food. Rosa's mum Dory is something of a celebrity chef and is in Malta working on recipes for a new book. And oh my goodness did they have my mouth watering! Fresh and vibrant sounding dishes that I could almost imagine tasting! I really feel we almost needed a supplement to the book with some of the recipes included.
I thoroughly enjoyed my visit to Malta with Rosa and Zach and as always found that Sue Moorcroft has written a thoroughly absorbing and uplifting story with great characters and in such a fabulous setting. Summer on a Sunny Island is the perfect escapist read to have you dreaming of summer holidays and sunny shores when we perhaps can't experience those in real life for a while.
Rosa is getting over a break-up from Marcus when her mum suggests she comes to Malta with her as she researches recipes for her new cookery book. Zach meanwhile is spending time of the island renovating a relative's house and trying to stay out of trouble. Not that he's a bad lad - far from it - but trouble just seems to find him! Both have parents who were children of army families who spent some of their childhood in Malta, just like Sue Moorcroft herself.
I found it rather poignant that early in the book Rosa makes herself a playlist of Zumba videos so she can still do some dancing which is one of her passions in life. She enjoys this connection to home but notes that it wasn't the same as being with her friends and I think we can all relate to that right now. And I think we can all empathise with Zach when he unexpectedly has his entirely family living with him in one apartment!
Sue Moorcroft is skilled at creating complex characters and has excelled again with Rosa and Zach. They both are moving on from their old lives, but just when they are settling into a new life and considering new possibilities it seems that their pasts may catch up with them and throw a spanner in the works. That makes it sounds like there was something really terrible they were both trying to leave behind but that's not what I mean. However, their past responsibilities and connections may mean they can't move on, that their options and possibilities may be taken away. These dilemmas make Zach and Rosa seem so much more than just characters but real people with real problems to resolve.
I can't talk about this book without mentioning the food. Rosa's mum Dory is something of a celebrity chef and is in Malta working on recipes for a new book. And oh my goodness did they have my mouth watering! Fresh and vibrant sounding dishes that I could almost imagine tasting! I really feel we almost needed a supplement to the book with some of the recipes included.
I thoroughly enjoyed my visit to Malta with Rosa and Zach and as always found that Sue Moorcroft has written a thoroughly absorbing and uplifting story with great characters and in such a fabulous setting. Summer on a Sunny Island is the perfect escapist read to have you dreaming of summer holidays and sunny shores when we perhaps can't experience those in real life for a while.
cleg11's review
4.0
Thanks to netgalley for the chance to read this book.
Another good read from Sue Moorcroft. When Rosa splits from Marcus she escapes to Malta to help her mom with her cookbook and blog. Whilst in Malta she meets Zack, his sister and niece who live in the apartment upstairs. Will the relationship between Rosa and Zack develop into love or will Marcus and his family get in the way?
Another good read from Sue Moorcroft. When Rosa splits from Marcus she escapes to Malta to help her mom with her cookbook and blog. Whilst in Malta she meets Zack, his sister and niece who live in the apartment upstairs. Will the relationship between Rosa and Zack develop into love or will Marcus and his family get in the way?
paraplybot's review
3.0
En liten gullig story om en 30 nånting hittar om vem hon är som person och arbete.
Dem är på Malta, sommar känslorna kommmer. En massa problem inom familjen. Bor i samma lägenhetshus. Hjälper dem som behöver, han är lite mycket för en snubbe, känner igen sig i honom.
Dem är på Malta, sommar känslorna kommmer. En massa problem inom familjen. Bor i samma lägenhetshus. Hjälper dem som behöver, han är lite mycket för en snubbe, känner igen sig i honom.
travelbooksandmovies's review against another edition
3.0
Summer on a Sunny Island is one of those books I would call light and easy--it’s ideal for a vacation read when you just want to escape. For those books, my enjoyment is usually based on the characters, the plot, and the location.
The characters are the strongpoint here--Rosa, a young British woman is at a bit of a crossroads in her life (she just broke up with her boyfriend and isn’t quite sure she wants to stay in her teaching job), so she heads to Malta to help her mother, Dory, with her cooking career. There she meets the good-looking single Zach (of course), a young British man also at a bit of a crossroads. Both Rosa and Zach are written well for a beach read--they’re realistic and you care about them. And I enjoy the supporting characters--especially Rosa’s Mom, Dory--they provide just enough relief from the main characters and are all relevant to the story.
The plot is fairly standard--boy and girl meet, problems get in the way, boy and girl solve problems. I did think the problems got a little over-the-top in this one (not so much what happened, but that they just kept piling on), but it wasn’t too cumbersome.
And, of course, Malta is an ideal location for this--it’s a sunny island with a very interesting history and a unique combination of cultures. This is probably where I struggled the most with the book, though--I wish there had been more about Malta! There are a few descriptions and a few location “name drops,” but there is just so much history there and so many beautiful sights, I wish the book had offered more of an insight into this especially unique island. (I do realize I might be a little demanding in that area.)
Summer on a Sunny Island is just fine if you’re looking for a light and easy read to take with you on vacation (I listened to it as an audiobook while on a road trip--it’s great for that, too). If you’re really looking for something on Malta, though, we’ll find you something that offers a little more.
The characters are the strongpoint here--Rosa, a young British woman is at a bit of a crossroads in her life (she just broke up with her boyfriend and isn’t quite sure she wants to stay in her teaching job), so she heads to Malta to help her mother, Dory, with her cooking career. There she meets the good-looking single Zach (of course), a young British man also at a bit of a crossroads. Both Rosa and Zach are written well for a beach read--they’re realistic and you care about them. And I enjoy the supporting characters--especially Rosa’s Mom, Dory--they provide just enough relief from the main characters and are all relevant to the story.
The plot is fairly standard--boy and girl meet, problems get in the way, boy and girl solve problems. I did think the problems got a little over-the-top in this one (not so much what happened, but that they just kept piling on), but it wasn’t too cumbersome.
And, of course, Malta is an ideal location for this--it’s a sunny island with a very interesting history and a unique combination of cultures. This is probably where I struggled the most with the book, though--I wish there had been more about Malta! There are a few descriptions and a few location “name drops,” but there is just so much history there and so many beautiful sights, I wish the book had offered more of an insight into this especially unique island. (I do realize I might be a little demanding in that area.)
Summer on a Sunny Island is just fine if you’re looking for a light and easy read to take with you on vacation (I listened to it as an audiobook while on a road trip--it’s great for that, too). If you’re really looking for something on Malta, though, we’ll find you something that offers a little more.
bananatricky's review against another edition
3.0
Rosa flees her ex and her ex best friend and goes to Malta to spend the summer with her mother Dory who is writing a Mediterranean cookery book. Their upstairs neighbour is an Englishman called Zach who has fled the UK with his own demons, his sister Marci and her daughter Paige.
You can run away from your problems and your family, but soon they'll come knocking at your door. Soon Zach is embroiled in the troubles of a young man at the youth centre where he volunteers, Rosa is enchanted by Marci's daughter and romance is in the air.
I love Sue Moorcroft's Middledip novels but for some reason I have never warmed to her books set overseas, so shame on me for requesting another one. The first quarter felt all tell and no show, we got a tourist guide to Malta on every page and the stilted way in which each character felt the need to give long detailed back stories for everything was very wearing. There's a scene at a party early on where Zach talks about the youth centre where he volunteers, but he goes into the history of the centre and who founded it and their philosophy, then Rosa says, oh I work somewhere similar in the UK and gives her own long, boring detailed history of the founder etc.
I persevered (although TBH I was just trying to get to 30% before I DNFd) and gradually the characters took over from the author telling, there were multiple plots unfolding and it all started to get better.
Overall, if you don't mind a slow beginning, or have a deep fascination with the history of Malta, this is a charming fun holiday read. Warning your wine and beer consumption is likely to increase as the characters always seem to be sitting on the terrace with a glass of something cold and alcoholic in their hands LOL.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.
You can run away from your problems and your family, but soon they'll come knocking at your door. Soon Zach is embroiled in the troubles of a young man at the youth centre where he volunteers, Rosa is enchanted by Marci's daughter and romance is in the air.
I love Sue Moorcroft's Middledip novels but for some reason I have never warmed to her books set overseas, so shame on me for requesting another one. The first quarter felt all tell and no show, we got a tourist guide to Malta on every page and the stilted way in which each character felt the need to give long detailed back stories for everything was very wearing. There's a scene at a party early on where Zach talks about the youth centre where he volunteers, but he goes into the history of the centre and who founded it and their philosophy, then Rosa says, oh I work somewhere similar in the UK and gives her own long, boring detailed history of the founder etc.
I persevered (although TBH I was just trying to get to 30% before I DNFd) and gradually the characters took over from the author telling, there were multiple plots unfolding and it all started to get better.
Overall, if you don't mind a slow beginning, or have a deep fascination with the history of Malta, this is a charming fun holiday read. Warning your wine and beer consumption is likely to increase as the characters always seem to be sitting on the terrace with a glass of something cold and alcoholic in their hands LOL.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.
annarella's review against another edition
4.0
This is a perfect escapist book, entertaining and engrossing.
I loved the setting and learned some new things about Malta, the cast of characters is well thought and some of them are quite complex, the plot flows and kept me entertained.
I can't wait for the next book by Ms Moorcroft.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.
I loved the setting and learned some new things about Malta, the cast of characters is well thought and some of them are quite complex, the plot flows and kept me entertained.
I can't wait for the next book by Ms Moorcroft.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.