Book Review: Summer At The Santorini Bookshop by Rebecca Raisin

I’m very excited to be welcoming Rebecca Raisin to Novel Kicks and the blog tour for her latest novel, Summer at the Santorini Bookshop. Happy publication day, Rebecca. 

A Greek island holiday. A fake-dating pact. A chance at true love?

After losing her job as a book scout, hopeless romantic Evie needs a fresh start. So when she hears that her eccentric grandmother has just taken on a small bookshop in Santorini, Evie jumps at the chance to visit her.

But life on the island is not as idyllic as it first seems. Gran has a tempestuous relationship with her landlord and he’s threatening to take the bookshop away from her. So when Gran asks Evie to fake a romance with her landlord’s Greek God of a grandson, Georgios, to keep the family on side, she reluctantly agrees.

As the sun sets on Evie’s Greek holiday, can she save the bookshop – and fake date her way to love?

*****

When Evie loses her dream job as a book scout, she needs to find another one and fast. However, when she’s told to go to Greece to check on her Grandmother, Evie has no choice but to go and besides, she decides that a few days in the Santorini sunshine will do her the world of good. She’s soon embroiled in her Gran’s current predicament made even more complicated when she meets the handsome Georgios.

This is the first novel I’ve read by Rebecca Raisin and I was very happy to be invited onto the blog tour for Summer at the Santorini Bookshop. I couldn’t wait to get started.

First, the cover is very dreamy and makes me want to move to Greece and open a bookshop.

Evie is a wonderful character. She’s very likeable, relatable and funny. This book is told from her point of view and the style of writing endears the reader to her very quickly.

Floretta is both larger than life and an enigma at the same time. She’s certainly had an interesting life.

Georgios sounds very handsome and comes across as a nice guy. Is he too good to be true though?

Adeline and Posy are also great additions despite their sometimes dismissive behaviour toward Evie and Floretta. Roxy is lovely. I’m hoping that a small passage from the book is a hint for a future book with Roxy centre stage. There’s definitely a story there.

The setting… oh the setting. It felt so vivid. I have always wanted to visit Santorini and this novel has made me fall completely in love with an island I have never seen in person. I am now VERY determined to get there one day. The bookshop is a place I could lose a few hours in.

The plot moves along well with a few twists and mysteries along the way. I reached the ‘I don’t want to stop reading,’ status very quickly. I also didn’t see the end coming.

This book is so easy to fall into and is such a wonderful way to escape for a while. It’s full of fun, humour and has more romance than you can shake a stick at. If you’re looking for good book for a holiday or simply want a book that will make you smile, Summer at the Santorini Bookshop is the perfect book for you. I really enjoyed it.

(Thanks to HQ, Netgalley and Rachel’s Random Resources for the advanced review copy in exchange for an honest review.) 

About Rebecca Raisin  –

Rebecca Raisin writes heart-warming romance from her home in sunny Perth, Australia

Her heroines tend to be on the quirky side and her books are usually set in exotic locations so her readers can armchair travel any day of the week. The only downfall about writing about gorgeous heroes who have brains as well as brawn, is falling in love with them – just as well they’re fictional.

Rebecca aims to write characters you can see yourself being friends with. People with big hearts who care about relationships and believe in true, once in a lifetime love.

Her bestselling novel Rosie’s Travelling Tea Shop has been optioned for film with MRC studios and Frolic Media.

Say hello to Rebecca on Facebook, X (Twitter) and Instagram. You can also get more information about her novels at Harper Collins. 

Summer at the Santorini Bookshop was released by HQ on 11th April 2024. Click to buy on Amazon UK, Waterstones, Amazon US and Amazon Australia. 

by

Laura

I’m Laura. I started Novel Kicks in 2009. I wanted a place to post my writing as well as give other writers like me the opportunity to do the same. There is also a monthly book club, a writing room which features writing prompts, book reviews, competitions, author interviews and guest posts.

I grew up by the sea (my favourite place in the world) and I currently live in Hampshire. I am married to Chris, have a cat named Buddy and I would love to be a writer. I’m trying to write the novel I’ve talked so much about writing if only I could stop pressing delete. I’ve loved writing since creative writing classes in primary school. I have always wanted to see my teacher Miss Sayers again and thank her for the encouragement. When not trying to write the novel or writing snippets of stories on anything I can get my hands on, I love reading, dancing like a loon and singing to myself very badly. My current obsession is Once Upon a Time and I would be happy to live with magic in the enchanted forest surrounded by all those wonderful stories provided that world also included Harry Potter. I love reading chick lit. contemporary fiction and novels with mystery.