Love and Gelato, by Jenna Evans Welch, is an exciting book that incorporates interesting information about Florence through an entertaining story. If you are just starting to read and enjoy romance books, this book is a good quick read. There are a few points in the book that are slow but overall, this is the type of book that will absorb you and leave you wondering what happens next. It is a fun way to learn a little about Florence because it incorporates a lot of interesting facts and information about certain sites in the area.

The main character, Lina Emerson, is going to spend the summer in Florence because it was her mom’s dying wish. Lina arrives in Italy to meet her mom’s friend, Howard. Lina is sad to find out that Howard lives at a cemetery and she has to stay with him the whole summer. The last thing she wants is to have a daily reminder of her mom’s death. Howard becomes a father figure to Lina, but she soon becomes suspicious – her mother never mentioned him.

Lina is surprised to find the journal her mother kept through her time in Florence waiting at the cemetery upon Lina’s arrival. The journal is full of mysteries, which leads Lina to question if Howard is her father. Lina spends the duration of the book going to see all the sights her mother described in the journal and learns more about her time in Florence.

Lina is roaming around her neighborhood when she meets Lorenzo, a half-Italian, half-American who goes to the American school she’ll be enrolled in when she makes the decision of whether she will stay in Florence throughout the year. Lorenzo introduces her to a few other students which is when she meets an affluent British boy named Thomas. Lina starts to like both of the boys but doesn’t know who she will pick. Will Lina even stay in Italy?