Love & Gelato is a heartbreaking, yet healing book written by Jenna Evans Welch. The book was published in 2016 and is popular among tweens and teens. It is about Lina, a 16-year-old high school student who spends the summer in Tuscany, Italy after her mom passed away. She discovers that there’s so much more to Italy then she could’ve ever imagined as she follows the directions of a journal her mom left for her.

Love & Gelato is the perfect book for people interested in reading about healing after heartbreak and heartwarming friendships. As Lina uncovers a magical world of art, hidden bakeries, and secret romances, she tries to heal her own heartbreak but ends up in an even deeper situation.

Lina travels through Italy by following a journal that her mom had left for her. In her mom’s entries, she writes about falling in love with someone she names X. Lina and her new friend Ren, go running all around Italy to try to discover who X is.

Soon finds herself stuck in a love triangle with her two new friends Thomas and Ren. She gets herself into a lot of conflict that eventually gets solved. Some readers find this love triangle frustrating, as Thomas, seems to have been character created by the author just so there would be a love triangle.

This book is also a representation of the saying, when things get hard, true friends will be the ones who stick around to support you. Lina’s best friend Addie, who she had left behind in Seattle when she went to Italy, helps her get through her heartache and losses even when they were an ocean apart. Their bond is a real example of what true friendship is.

Overall, the book is a great read for people interested in, well I guess, love and gelato! The author really takes you into the book with Lina and makes you feel all the emotions she feels. Love & Gelato captures the hearts of readers who just want to curl up with a good book and take a trip to breathtaking Italy with the characters.