What if your life worked out perfectly . . . for someone else?
It's been 18 years since Ava spent the summer on the Greek island of Corfu, but she has never forgotten what happened during those months - or who she left behind.
Now single, estranged from her family, and preparing to wave her daughter off to university, Ava's life seems a million miles away from the one she dreamed about as a teenager - a life now being lived by her sister instead.
When Ava decides to return to Corfu for the summer, she knows she must finally face the place and the people that broke her heart. But with old resentments festering, long-buried secrets lurking, and familiar feelings resurfacing, it looks set to be a holiday that will change all their lives forever. . .
I'd like to thank Jenny at Hodder & Stoughton for inviting me to be a part of this blog tour and my copy of The Summer Trip to review.
One of the things I love about an Isabelle Broom book is that I know I'm going to be whisked away to far-away destinations which for the short period of time whilst reading I can forget about the stresses in my life and instead enjoy the settings through the eyes of the various characters.
The Summer Trip features Ava, and her teenage daughter Rosie, who has been tricked into what she thought was going to be a house swap with her sister Matilda (Mattie) and her husband Niko in Corfu for the Summer. Only if it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is as we discover that her mother has a master plan to try and get her daughters to spend time together and reconcile. And before too long their younger sister Ophelia (Lia) makes a sudden appearance too with her boyfriend followed shortly after by their parents so it looks like Ava's plans for a relaxing break in the sun will be anything but!
At first it's not clear why the sisters aren't as close as they used to be when they were younger and don't see each other that often but it's not long before we discover that Mattie is living the life that Ava once dreamed of. I really felt for Ava as it must have been hard for her to come face to face with the first man she ever loved and deal with all her old memories that resurface as a result of being back in Corfu. But life for Mattie isn't as picture-perfect as first thought either and it's clear that she's got her own issues that she's dealing with. And then there's Lia who is not the gregarious sister they once knew, she's a shadow of herself and it's clear that she's trying to blot out something terrible that has happened to her. Will the sisters be able to help each other heal during their unplanned summer together?
The majority of the storyline is set in the present day following all the family dramas that ensue once the Fox family arrive on the island but there were also chapters from nineteen years ago during Ava's first trip to Corfu providing an insight into her first serious relationship and how everything fell apart. All of the characters were well-developed and relatable with their flaws and issues although there was one that I would have gladly pushed overboard and I'm sure I'm not alone in thinking that!
Over the years Isabelle Broom's books have taken us to many destinations but Corfu is only the place that I have visited myself, although not to Kalami, and the descriptive writing of the scenery and places that Ava visits gave me a real sense of being there alongside her. As for the mentions of food and drink, I constantly found my taste buds watering at the thought of sitting at the family taverna working my way through the menu.
The gorgeous cover might depict an idyllic holiday but there's so much more being explored within the pages of this book, family dynamics, buried secrets and complex relationships are all tackled with sensitivity.
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