From the blurb:

Sun, Sea and Secrets …

A week on the sunny Greek island of Kethos is just what Alice Archer needs, even if she has to put up with her difficult sister. Stella’s tantrums and diva-like demands are a fair price to pay for crystal-clear waters, blue skies and white clifftop villas.

When Alice meets Milo, a handsome gardener at the Villa Argenti, for the first time she suddenly feels beautiful, alluring and confident. But is it just holiday magic or will the irresistible pull between Alice and Milo survive against all odds?

It was the cover – or to be more exact, the beautiful blue of the cover – that attracted me to this book. At once I thought ‘Greek islands’, and because I am so very fond of this part of the world, I found myself reading the blurb and then, of course, buying the book.

The setting certainly proved to be a major element of why I enjoyed the book. I could almost taste the cuisines, smell the scents in the air, feel the sun on my skin. I defy any reader not to be swept up in the romance of the setting and secretly wish that they too could go and live on a quiet Greek island with Milo – such a simple, romantic existence:

When he’d returned to Kethos, he’d vowed never to leave again. The bruising, bustling city might suit his three brothers but it didn’t suit him. He would rather walk through an olive grove than a crowd and he preferred a rocky mountain to a shop-line pavement.

I quite understand this perspective, being much more at home in rural Kent and the south coast of France than in a busy city!

I really enjoyed the links in the book with mythology, and the slight mysticism this creates. Also right up my street is the exploration of destiny and fate: do you choose your path, or does some invisible force guide you?

This is a wonderful book for those who enjoy a tale of liberation and growth in a heroine, from under-the-thumb and depressed, to free and loved for herself. It’s also ideal for those who like a physically dreamy but also emotionally attractive hero – Milo certainly delivers on that score.

It’s perhaps not a book for those who like a lot of depth and detail. The character of the sister, for example, is somewhat one-dimensional, and I wish we could have got beneath her veneer and seen from maturity develop for her also. But having said that, I found a lot of poignancy in the relationship between Alice and her infirm father; very moving, and makes you really care for Alice.

Overall, an ideal summer holiday right – light, easy reading and a sweet romance.

Wish You Were Here is available now from Amazon; click on the book cover below to visit the store.