Love and Olives by Jenna Evans Welch - ADVISABLE

 

Love and Olives (Love and Gelato, #3) by Jenna Evans Welch, 506 pages. Simon and Schuster, 2020. $19.  

Content: Language: PG-13 (6 swears); Mature Content: PG; Violence: G.  

BUYING ADVISORY: MS, HS – ADVISABLE  

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE 

Liv has plans with her perfect boyfriend for his senior trip, so she is disappointed when she finds out that her father wants her to come to him in Greece.  Liv hasn’t seen her father since she was eight, but Liv’s mother is encouraging her to visit her father and help him with a special project.  When Liv gets to Greece, she is picked up by a cute boy named Theo, who is just as excited about this special project as her dad.  Liv works with Theo and her dad as they compile a documentary about chasing Atlantis, but what Liv realizes is that her father’s search for Atlantis is actually a search for something more. 

I enjoy Welch’s writing because she does the foundational parts of the story so well—great character growth, unique settings and depth in her characters. Love and Olives is the third book in the Love and Gelato series, but this book does stand completely on its own.  My only semi-issue was the length of the book, there was a point where I thought, okay let’s get to the answers. I think middle school and high school kids who are looking for a clean romance with a bit more depth will enjoy this read.  

Reviewer, C. Peterson