“A twintastic read full of heart and family affairs. This book will make your heart melt quicker than the Amalfi sun could melt your Garibaldi and Mascarpone gelato.” THE BLOSSOM TWINS“A sundae of sensational storytelling.” HEIDI CATHERINEGiovanna Tonioli is a successful stockbroker with a famous sports star boyfriend, but things aren’t as sweet as they seem. When life in the city of Bath goes … city of Bath goes from Vanilla to Rocky Road, she takes herself off to Italy for an ‘Eat Pray Love’ style tour of all things gelateria. What she doesn’t expect to find on her travels is one smooth, hot dollop of temptation that she just can’t shake.
How will her spiteful twin sister react when Giovanna returns to open a rival ice cream parlour? Will Natalia get her just desserts? Or will things become even stickier? All’s fair in love, war and ice cream. Isn’t it?
Marian Keyes meets Paulo Coelho meets Nigella
The Ice Cream Parlour is a mouthwatering tale of fate, family, love and jealousy – with a delectable drizzle of alchemy besides.
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This is the first book I have read by Isabella May. This story takes you to so many beautiful places you feel like you are actually there. This story has a little bit of everything in it, love, family, travel, food, mystery. I loved the characters and how they all relate to each other. This is a very emotional read and also makes you want to go out and get some ice cream. I wish you could actually find all the flavors that are mentioned in this book. It was very enjoyable and a delightful read.
This is the first book I’ve read by Isabella May and I loved it! It’s quirky, funny, sad, and even crazy in parts, but it all pulls together to make this a wonderful way to escape reality for a few hours.
As you read, you go through a whole range of emotions – Giovanna’s family stirred up feelings of rage and helplessness, and handsome rugby-player boyfriend Jeremy made me want to punch him, so I was thankful for some of the nicer characters!
May’s descriptions of Italy are spot on as well – I live in the north of Italy, and I was amazed to find my own thoughts about Italians, and in particular Milan, reflected in the story.
And what can I say about the main feature of the story, the ice cream? Each description is a mouth-watering explosion of flavours that you can actually taste while you’re reading – imagine a mix of Joanne Harris and Nigella Lawson, with their sensual narratives of food taking you into a world that makes your senses tingle with delight.
This is a story of self-discovery that takes you from Italy to England and back to Italy again, with hidden secrets waiting to be uncovered and a love of ice cream bringing together a group of strangers for an unexpected ending. I loved May’s writing and can’t wait to read more of her books! Highly recommend.
Another great book from Isabella May. I’m now waiting for her next book to come out. She writes with wit and charm and her characters are believable and keep you turning page after page to find out what will happen next. From family feuds to delicious ice cream flavours. This book has got it all!
This is the fourth book by Isabella I’ve read and it may just be my favourite (though I am still very partial to River Jackson in The Cocktail Bar!). In this book, we are taken to a series of fabulous destinations that are beautifully described, as is the food. Ice-cream plays a massive role in this book and the mixtures of flavours was spell-binding. However this is not a mere travel guide or foodie guide to Italy, this is a tale that is bittersweet about self-discovery, the quest for truth and revenge. I read this at a rapid rate, enjoying the fascinating characters and riveting storyline. Highly recommended.
This book has to be, without question, the most delectable, mouth-watering treat of a book I have ever had the pleasure to feast my eyes upon. The delicious looking cover is a visual aperitif, stimulating you for the main course within. From the very first sentence, this book pulls you in and wraps itself around you like a soft marshmallow oyster wafer.
The story of Giovanna is one many will identify with; where one sibling just always seem to get the sweeter deal in the family food chain. The favoured sibling who seems to be able to do no wrong even when, in reality, that is all they ever do and it is this unbalance in the scales of love which creates the setting for the tale.
The pace of the book is perfectly measured and the descriptions of the myriad flavours of gelato left this reader drooling like Homer Simpson facing a mountain of doughnuts alongside an ocean of Duff beer. The icy morsels, however, had some stiff competition from the quite astounding portrayal of the Italian locations visited by Giovanna. Oh my… The scent of the sea, the buzz of the city and the soothing ambiance of small towns and villages simply oozed off the pages. Very little imagination was required to picture the chocolate box vistas on Giovanna’s tour,
This is the fourth tasty morsel from Isabella May and her talent for creating mouth-watering tales continues to grow. Each book is – and I don’t know how she does it – better than the last. When it comes to writing foodie fables, Isabella May should flash her Michelin stars with pride.