Originally published: 15 April 2021

Author: Lizzy Dent

Published by: Viking Books

Genre: Fiction

Length: 312 pages

Reading dates: 23-28 April 2021

Have you ever imagined running away from your life?

Well Birdy Finch didn’t just imagine it. She did it. Which might’ve been an error. And the life she’s run into? Her best friend, Heather’s.

The only problem is, she hasn’t told Heather. Actually there are a few other problems…

Can Birdy carry off a summer at a luxury Scottish hotel pretending to be her best friend (who incidentally is a world-class wine expert)?

And can she stop herself from falling for the first man she’s ever actually liked (but who thinks she’s someone else)

Well this was just what I needed…a funny and well written romantic read! Birdy is our heroine – a bit of a drifter, she has never really figured out what she wants to do with her life. She moves from temp job to temp job, staying with her childhood friend and professional wine expert Heather.

When Heather goes with her latest boyfriend to Italy, Birdy has nowhere to live so decides to pretend to be Heather and take her job as a sommelier without telling her. The job offer is for a rundown hotel in rural Scotland so Birdy figures she can blag the role and get free accommodation and food for the summer until she figures out what to do next.

But the hotel isn’t run down. There is a huge relaunch planned as well as a wine festival and suddenly Birdy realises it won’t be so easy.

I loved Birdy! She is immediately likeable but there is depth to her character. She has had a tough childhood living with an alcoholic father and this has made her a little insecure. She certainly likes to speak her mind but she also has a vulnerable side. I loved the way she works hard at the job learning about all the wines so she can get by.

I loved the Scottish setting and the descriptions of the landscape made me want to visit. And as I have mentioned before, any book that mentions food is a winner for me and the descriptions here just made my mouth water (Basically I want to go to a Scottish hotel and eat some seriously fancy food!)

As Birdy lurched from potential disaster to potential disaster I grew to love her! A funny and heart-warming debut, I loved this. A perfect beach read.

Thank you so much to Ellie from Penguin Viking for inviting me on the tour and for sending me a beautiful finished copy of the book. Don’t forget to check out these other awesome bloggers.

About the author:

Lizzy Dent (miss)spent her early twenties working in Scotland in hospitality, in a hotel not unlike the one in this novel. She somehow ended up in a glamourous job travelling the world creating content for various TV companies, including MTV, Channel 4, Cartoon Network, the BBC and ITV. But she always knew that writing was the thing she wanted to do, if only she could find the confidence. After publishing three young adult novels, she decided to write a novel that reflected the real women she knew, who don’t always know where they’re going in life, but who always have fun doing it. The Summer Job is that novel.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/DentLizzy