Recommendations based on "An Italian Holiday The perfect feel-good escapist read"

**Josie Lloyd's heart-warming and joyful new novel, Lifesaving for Beginners, is available for pre-order now!** *** 'Amazing, heartbreaking and inspiring' Jenny Colgan 'A love letter to the power of friendship, honest and uplifting' Jill Mansell 'A fiercely positive story, about the power of hope' Mike Gayle *** Sometimes we need our friends to help us find our feet... When Keira first receives her breast cancer diagnosis, she doesn't want to have to tell her family, or step back from work. She doesn't want to sit in a hospital, or be part of a group of fellow cancer patients. Cancer is not her club. But as she accepts that her health is no longer something she can rely on, Keira finds herself embracing running. And running in the company of a group of brilliant, funny women each going through treatment unexpectedly gives Keira the hope she needs. Because the C-word is not going to define Keira's identity. And with the Cancer Ladies' Running Club cheering her on, she's going to reclaim her life. One step at a time. Life isn't always the race we expected to run but this moving and uplifting novel is full of hope and about love, family, friendship and the power of finding your tribe. ****** 'A wise, warm and wonderful novel ... an incredibly moving, uplifting and hopeful story that looks at the power of finding your tribe. It will make you smile and love life just a little bit more' Adele Parks, Platinum 'Uplifting and positive, you will be cheering them along' Prima 'An honest read that, despite its heart-wrenching topic, will uplift and inspire you' Heat 'Made me believe in life and in love. Hopeful and life-changing' Katie Marsh, author of The Rest of Me 'An amazing story that shows us all the strength of the human spirit and the power of friendship. An inspiration!' Magic Radio

Perfect for fans of Cecelia Ahern and Jojo Moyes, a beautiful and moving story about the unbreakable bond between a mother and daughterBrett's Life List1. Go to Paris2. Perform live, on a super big stage3. Have a baby, maybe two4. Fall in loveBrett Bohlinger seems to have it all: a plum job, a spacious loft, an irresistibly handsome boyfriend. All in all, a charmed life. That is, until her beloved mother passes away, leaving behind a will with one big stipulation: In order to receive her inheritance, Brett must first complete the life list of goals she’d written when she was a naïve girl of fourteen.Grief-stricken, Brett can barely make sense of her mother’s decision―her childhood dreams don’t resemble her ambitions at age thirty-four in the slightest. Some seem impossible. How can she possibly have a relationship with a father who died seven years ago? Other goals (Be an awesome teacher!) would require her to reinvent her entire future.As Brett reluctantly embarks on a perplexing journey in search of her adolescent dreams, one thing becomes clear. Sometimes life’s sweetest gifts can be found in the most unexpected places.

This Is A Story For Anyone Who Has Ever Felt Like They Don't Belong. 'i Really Enjoyed This Book ... Great Observational Comic Gems Within A Fast Moving Story Full Of The Reality Of Despair And Hope In Everyone's Lives' Miranda Hart 'keep The Tissues Close' Good Housekeeping 'a Beautifully Written Debut Novel With Unforgettable Characters And An Irresistible Message Of Redemption And Belonging' Red Magazine 'this Gem Of A Novel Entertains And Moves In Equal Measure' Daily Mail 'heartening And Hopeful' Jess Kidd, Author Of Things In Jars 'mesmerizingly Beautiful' Sarah Haywood, Author Of The Cactus 'an Extraordinary Masterpiece' Anstey Harris, Author Of The Truths And Triumphs Of Grace Atherton 'gutsy, Endearing And Entertaining' Deborah Orr 'absolutely Brilliant' Gavin Extence, Author Of The Universe Versus Alex Woods _____________________________________________________________ Augusta Hope Has Never Felt Like She Fits In. At Six, She's Memorising The Dictionary. At Seven, She's Correcting Her Teachers. At Eight, She Spins The Globe And Picks Her Favourite Country On The Sound Of Its Name: Burundi. And Now That She's An Adult, Augusta Has No Interest In The Goings-on Of The Small Town Where She Lives With Her Parents And Her Beloved Twin Sister, Julia. When An Unspeakable Tragedy Upends Everything In Augusta's Life, She's Propelled Headfirst Into The Unknown. She's Determined To Find Where She Belongs - But What If Her True Home, And Heart, Are Half A World Away? _____________________________________________________________ Augusta May Not Feel Like She Fits In, But Readers Have Fallen In Love With Her... 'what A Brilliant, Brave, Clever Book' Maddy P 'a Beautiful Tale Of Family, Of Loss, Of The Awkward Relationships We Build With Those We Love The Most...a Must Read!' Amelia D 'a Powerful Novel About Fitting In, Loss, & The People You Really Have Connections With' Siobhan D 'the Story Made Me Laugh & Cry In Equal Measure, And Now It's Finished I'm At A Slight Loss As What To Read Next' Laura W

An unmissable novel of love, disaster, heartbreak, and unexpected happy endings, by the bestselling British author of Maybe One Day. “When I was twenty-six years old my world was literally turned upside down and inside out, like a coat pocket being excavated for loose change. It was terrible, and frightening, and it taught me a lot of things I never wanted to know.” Elena Godwin has scrimped and saved for a relaxing dream holiday in Mexico with her handsome but laddish boyfriend Harry. Life has felt a bit less exciting than she’d imagined her twenties would be, and she's hoping the trip will add some sizzle. But on a gorgeous summer evening an earthquake strikes—shattering their peaceful vacation. The trauma changes Elena’s life forever. Ten years later, Elena still can't forget the face of the stranger she met that night—the man who may have saved her life. When they’re suddenly and unexpectedly thrown back together again, Elena starts to uncover the truth around that fateful night, and question whether she should have lived her life differently in the years afterwards. What if it’s not too late?

Snuggle up in your favourite armchair and take a trip across the Irish sea for comfort food, cosy cottage nights and a heart warming romance…Talented lawyer Hannah Campbell is after a change in her workaholic Manchester life – so on an uncharacteristic whim she books herself a place at the world-renowned Killorgally Cookery School in County Kerry. But on her first night In Ireland, sampling the delights of Dublin, Hannah can’t resist falling for the charms of handsome stranger Conor. It’s only when Hannah arrives at her postcard-pretty home at Killorgally for the next twelve weeks that she discovers what happens in Dublin doesn’t quite stay in Dublin…Nestled amongst rolling green hills and breath taking countryside, the cookery school throws Hannah and Conor together again–for better or worse.

Finding your way is never a simple journey…Alice sees the worst in people.She also sees the best.She sees a thousand different emotions and knows exactly what everyone around her is feeling.Every. Single. Day.But it’s the dark thoughts.The sadness. The rage.These are the things she can’t get out of her head. The things that overwhelm her.Where will the journey to find herself begin?

The Unretirement is an uplifting story about the joy of pursuing dreams at any age, full of warmth, heart and community spirit. Meet 65-year-old widow Maggie Lawford. After retiring two years ago and travelling the world with her husband Geoff, she's alone again - and retirement has gone from a never-ending holiday to grief-filled and lonely. Though looking after her gorgeous granddaughter Alice for her high-flying daughter Hannah brings so much joy, Maggie yearns for more. After her ambition of being a chef was deferred forty years ago in favour of a more family-friendly career, Maggie knows it's now or never to chase her dreams. When Maggie and Hannah visit their favourite local Indian restaurant one evening, they are gutted to find the tables all but empty, with a dwindling menu and their old friend and owner Sav at his wit's end. The last straw comes when Maggie hears a cry from the kitchen: she charges in, taking matters into her own hands. Never one to give up without a fight, Maggie resolves to save the beloved but failing restaurant - and with all her years catering for a large family and volunteering for the WI, it's not long before she has a military-grade plan to turn the place around again. After all, Maggie's golden days aren't behind her just yet...

In this #1 bestselling page-turner from "the queen of beach reads" (New York Magazine), a Nantucket novelist has one final summer to protect her secrets while her loved ones on earth learn to live without their golden girl. On a perfect June day, Vivian Howe, author of thirteen beach novels and mother of three nearly grown children, is killed in a hit-and-run car accident while jogging near her home on Nantucket. She ascends to the Beyond where she's assigned to a Person named Martha, who allows Vivi to watch what happens below for one last summer. Vivi also is granted three “nudges” to change the outcome of events on earth, and with her daughter Willa on her third miscarriage, Carson partying until all hours, and Leo currently “off again” with his high-maintenance girlfriend, she’ll have to think carefully where to use them. From the Beyond, Vivi watches “The Chief” Ed Kapenash investigate her death, but her greatest worry is her final book, which contains a secret from her own youth that could be disastrous for her reputation. But when hidden truths come to light, Vivi’s family will have to sort out their past and present mistakes—with or without a nudge of help from above—while Vivi finally lets them grow without her. With all of Elin’s trademark beach scenes, mouth-watering meals, and picture-perfect homes, plus a heartfelt message—the people we lose never really leave us—Golden Girl is a beach book unlike any other.

The No.1 French Bestseller 'stunning And Heart-gripping' André Aciman, Author Of Call Me By Your Name 'a Beautiful, Shattering Novel About Desire And Shame, About Passionate Youth And The Regrets Of Age' Olivia Laing, Bestselling Author Of Crudo Just Outside A Hotel In Bordeaux, Philippe, A Famous Writer, Chances Upon A Young Man Who Bears A Striking Resemblance To His First Love. What Follows Is A Look Back To Philippe's Teenage Years, To A Winter Morning In 1984, A Small French High School, And A Carefully Timed Encounter Between Two Seventeen-year-olds. It's The Start Of A Secret, Intensely Passionate, World-altering Love Affair Between Philippe And His Classmate, Thomas. Dazzlingly Rendered By Molly Ringwald, The Acclaimed Actor And Writer, In Her First-ever Translation, Besson's Exquisitely Moving Coming-of-age Story Captures The Tenderness Of First Love - And The Heart-breaking Passage Of Time. 'it Has Been Years Since Anything Moved Me As Much As Lie With Me. It Will Become A Classic.' Jonathan Coe, Bestselling Author Of Middle England 'an Intense, Unforgettable Novel, Alive With The Ache Of Longing And Loss.' Sarah Waters, Bestselling, Award-winning Author Of The Little Stranger And Fingersmith 'devastating And Tender; This Is The Book I Wish I'd Read When I Was 15, And A Book I'm Glad To Have As A Companion Now' Andrew Mcmillan, Award-winning Author Of Physical 'a Deeply Moving Depiction Of First Love, Both Tender And Elegiac.' John Boyne, Bestselling Author Of A Ladder To The Sky And The Heart's Invisible Furies 'a Tender, Sensuous Novel' New York Times Book Review 'this Novel Can Be Read In A Matter Of Hours, But Its Impact, Like The Love Affair It Details, Will Echo In The Mind' Irish Times

“A beautiful debut, funny, tender, and animated by a willingness to confront life’s obstacles and find a way to survive. . . . It celebrates friendship, finds meaning in difficulty and lets the reader explore dark places while always allowing for the possibility of light. Lenni and Margot are fine companions for all our springtime journeys.”—Harper’s Bazaar, UK  A charming, fiercely alive and disarmingly funny debut novel in the vein of John Green, Rachel Joyce, and Jojo Moyes—a brave testament to the power of living each day to the fullest, a tribute to the stories that we live, and a reminder of our unlimited capacity for friendship and love. An extraordinary friendship. A lifetime of stories.  Seventeen-year-old Lenni Pettersson lives on the Terminal Ward at the Glasgow Princess Royal Hospital. Though the teenager has been told she’s dying, she still has plenty of living to do. Joining the hospital’s arts and crafts class, she meets the magnificent Margot, an 83-year-old, purple-pajama-wearing, fruitcake-eating rebel, who transforms Lenni in ways she never imagined. As their friendship blooms, a world of stories opens for these unlikely companions who, between them, have been alive for one hundred years. Though their days are dwindling, both are determined to leave their mark on the world. With the help of Lenni’s doting palliative care nurse and Father Arthur, the hospital’s patient chaplain, Lenni and Margot devise a plan to create one hundred paintings showcasing the stories of the century they have lived—stories of love and loss, of courage and kindness, of unexpected tenderness and pure joy. Though the end is near, life isn’t quite done with these unforgettable women just yet. Delightfully funny and bittersweet, heartbreaking yet ultimately uplifting, The One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margot reminds us of the preciousness of life as it considers the legacy we choose to leave, how we influence the lives of others even after we’re gone, and the wonder of a friendship that transcends time. From the beautiful cover to the heart-warming story, The One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margot is a book that will touch your soul and make you appreciate the beauty of life. This literary fiction novel is one of the best books of all time, and it's perfect for anyone who loves novels about love, grief, and friendship.