Jenna Evans Welch's "Love & Gelato" is Worth the Read

Imagine this: you get the chance to go to Italy for the whole summer. It's a once in a lifetime experience, but there's a catch. You have to stay with a random man who claims to be your father who lives in a World War II graveyard. Fun, no? If you can’t imagine this experience, then maybe you should read the novel “Love & Gelato,” by Jenna Evans Welch.

This novel starts off by introducing our main character, Carolina (Lina) Emerson. For the past month Lina's mother has been struggling with cancer and has one last wish for her daughter. She would like to have her daughter stay in Florence, Italy with a man named Howard, who she has expressed is Lina's father. Lina is very reluctant about her mother’s wishes, but she ends up following through with them. Fast forward, Lina is now in Florence and Howard is driving her to where they will be staying. Lina finds out that Howard lives on the grounds of a graveyard where soldiers have passed away during World War II. Lina is not very excited to learn the history of where she has to stay for her whole summer. Once she gets a bit more comfortable with her surroundings, she starts to meet new people such as Sonia, who is the assistant superintendent of the cemetery. Lina also met Howard's friend, Lorenzo, a teenager who starts to become her friend and take her places around town. She lastly met Thomas, who she has a bit of a fascination with.  

During the start of her stay, Sonia gives Lina a journal which belonged to her mother. In this journal it talks about her first experiences in Italy, the hardships of keeping love a secret, and everything she saw and went through during her life. Once Lina reads a few pages, she decides to figure out her mom’s and Howards relationship in more depth and see if she can find the answers to some of her questions: Why did she leave florence? Why wasn’t Howard in the picture? Why did her mom leave Howard? And what was their relationship like?