ARC Review: Roman Crazy by Nina Bocci and Alice Clayton

13 Sept 2016

Book Title: Roman Crazy
Author: Nina Bocci & Alice Clayton
Series: The Broads Abroad #1 - Standalone
Release Date: September 13th, 2016
Genres: Contemporary Romance
Avery Bardot steps off the plane in Rome, looking for a fresh start. She’s left behind a soon-to-be ex-husband in Boston and plans to spend the summer with her best friend Daisy, licking her wounds—and perhaps a gelato or two. But when her American-expat friend throws her a welcome party on her first night, Avery’s thrown for a loop when she sees a man she never thought she’d see again: Italian architect Marcello Bianchi.

Marcello was the man—the one who got away. And now her past is colliding with her present, a present where she should be mourning the loss of her marriage and—hey, that fettuccine is delicious! And so is Marcello…

Slipping easily into the good life of summertime in Rome, Avery spends her days exploring a city that makes art historians swoon, and her nights swooning over her unexpected what was old is new again romance. It’s heady, it’s fevered, it’s wanton, and it’s crazy. But could this really be her new life? Or is it just a temporary reprieve before returning to the land of twin-set cardigans and crustless sandwiches?

A celebration of great friendship, passionate romance, and wonderful food, Roman Crazy is a lighthearted story of second chances and living life to the fullest.





Roman Crazy is a slow build, very light on steam, second-chance romance between a beautiful American artist and her long lost Italian lover Marcello. You'll venture thru the eyes of our heroine Avery while she gets her feet wet to all things Italy- including finding Marcello after many years apart. The setting is that of what fairytales are made. It's fairly low on angst and simply travels along her journey of self discovery and finding love again.

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I vacillated a bit while reading Roman Crazy. The story is chocked so full of everything Rome- the people, the Italian food, art, ancient architecture- I could almost taste it! Never personally visiting Italy, the words painted a beautiful picture of not only the beauty of Rome but also the profound romantic nature of its culture. That being said, sometimes those lengthy details almost smothered the love story for me... it "stole its thunder" a bit, per say. Not a ton- but a bit more than I'd like. Or maybe I just really liked the characters and wished for more time with them than exploration.

That being said, I still really enjoyed this book. I felt as if I watched an episode from the Travel Channel and I'm ready to sign up for all the things beautiful Rome has to offer... including Italian men like Marcello. He is tall, dark, and so uber romantic in his lack of English contractions, I swooned!

Avery is starting over in this beautiful city. Having travelled there to get away from a horrible failing marriage, she plans a trip to see her best friend Daisy, but unbeknownst to her, the mas of her past...of her dreams...lives within those same city limits. This is not only a chance for self discovery, getting back to her roots of art, but also rediscovering a past love she thought was long gone...

A successful debut novel for Nina Bocci. Well researched and executed. I look forward to more from both she and Alice Clayton.


Advanced review copy received by the authors in exchange for an honest review.


Nina Bocci

Nina Bocci is a novelist, publicist, eternal optimist, unabashed lipgloss enthusiast, constant apologist, and a hopeless romanticist. She has too many college degrees that she’s not using, and a Lego addiction that she blames on her son.

Alice Clayton

ALICE CLAYTON worked in the cosmetics industry for over a decade before picking up a pen (read laptop).

She enjoys gardening but not weeding, baking but not cleaning up, and finally convinced her long-time boyfriend to marry her.

Now, about that Bernese Mountain dog.

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