When in Rome...

by Gemma Townley

When in Rome, do as Audrey Hepburn would do. Failing that, run off with your ex-boyfriend, carry suspicious packages through customs, and lie to the person who loves you. . . .

Georgie Beauchamp is totally happy and in love with her wonderful, dependable boyfriend, David. So why does she always daydream about running into her gorgeous ex-boyfriend Mike? It can’t mean she’s still in love with him—especially since the cad dumped her so horribly. As luck would have it, when Georgie’s daydream actually comes true, she is dressed in unglamorous sweats and carrying a curtain rod down the street, while Mike is driving an expensive sports car and looking better than Brad Pitt at the Oscars. She longs to have the glamorous life Mike can offer—and starts to think that he might want her back in his arms.

But when he invites her for a weekend in Rome, Georgie is torn. David has always said he’d take her there for the romantic getaway of a lifetime, but his work keeps him totally tied up. So she must David, all comfort and reliability, or Mike, all flirtation and butterfly-stomachs. The decision isn’t too hard to make, and faster than she can say Vespa, she’s off to Rome with Mike, full of plans to frolic on the Spanish Steps and sip wine in intimate trattorias. But when David shows up unexpectedly, this roman holiday gets a hell of a lot more complicated. . . .


From the Trade Paperback edition.

Genres: Chick Lit, Romance, Fiction, Italy, Beach Reads, Contemporary Romance, Adult Fiction

264 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published February 3, 2004

About the author

Gemma Townley launched her writing career at the age of sixteen with a book review in Harpers & Queen. At Reading University, unimpressed with the official university paper, Spark, she launched a satirical rival, Spank, which she edited for a year before taking over as deputy editor on Spark and features editor on South-East Student.

Gemma is currently head of communications at the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants. She is a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and is studying for an M.B.A. at Henley Management College.

She lives in West London with her husband, Mark and their son.

She is Sophie Kinsella's sister.

Reviews

[Purvika · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't know what to say about the book.

First of all , I absolutely hated George..I mean seriously how can anyone be that Stupid, self-centred, annoying bitch. Am sorry but she was. I don't understand why girls go crazy over these things, I mean hello, one bump and you think he wants you back ? Are you freaking kidding me. Just because of this challenge I read that whole book without skipping, otherwise would have skipped part.

Second is David.. an accountant by profession, I don't understand why it was shown an accountant is no fun. It was totally wrong, I mean it was him That was boring not his job, this whole story was baseless, useless and freaking timewaste...

Third was Oh! So handsome and sexy mike . Urghh, he was the height , seriously , seriously I wanted to punch him straight on face for his behaviour not to mention his arrogance. I am not wasting my time writing much about him cause he is worthless...

That was about characters... Now plot...
There was no plot et all, for some freaking moment I thought this could turn into some serious mafia kind of plot, where the hero:( wait here please be carefull I mean David and NOT mike ) turns up as a secret agent, but nope it was plain and stupid. And there was so nothing in Rome, I mean they did went to Rome and all but it was ROME for goodness sake, Atleast a detailed view could have saved the day, but no... It was all about George George and George... It felt like a personal diary of a freaking 16 year old lovesick teenager than a novel.....

Am sorry but i have nothing more to say..and if you are so bothered about what I wrote then what can I say , patting on your back for such a nice taste in a book ~~~~>>>. >*that was sarcasm my dear *

[Sankrutyayan · Rating 2 out of 5]

The story was pretty much normal and nowhere near Rome. I was duped into thinking that the story would be weaved along the lines of Italy and in Rome, but the whole story happened in London save a weekend. I have been reading lad-lit and I have been captivated by how every guy thinks the same. I wanted to read chick-lit to have some deep insight on how they think, behave, feel. If this is how chick-lit is going to be, I will leave that at this. Seriously, if the author is trying to portray a character to be loathed, she wins. I must say, Georgie is a very horrible as a person. People make mistakes when they do not have a choice, but this idiot Georgie makes mistakes because she is a complete blockhead, a judgmental and annoying fool. If I am not being completely rude, I would say that Mike and Georgie deserve each other. I wanted to slap her at every page she appeared for the first part of the book. In the later part of the book, she came to her senses and started to use her tiny brain for some serious issues than to think about who would take her to Rome so that she could marry him.

But nothing did stop me from reading it till the end. It was well written, it was lucid. I just went on reading expecting that somewhere before the end someone would slap Georgie hard and shove some sense into her. But to my disappointment her mother only slapped her with words and it was something. David is the only comforting prospect of the story and Nigel too. They both love their work. The small adventures of Nigel and Georgie were entertaining to some point. The office part was not boring at all.

The more I try to forgive her for her mistakes and her naivety, the more I am reminded of how utterly stupid she is and how presumptuous she is. I want to punch her in the face and run. Everyone was thinking of the negative consequences of confiding in another which stood as the basic plot and it was entertaining to an extent. I cannot go any further without getting agitated. I stop here.

Punch Georgie in the face and run, someone.

[Ana · Rating 2 out of 5]

Decidi dar uma segunda oportunidade a este livro que tinha arrumado na minha prateleira dos "unfinished". Este livro é bom para ser lido numa época de férias, ideal para uma tarde na praia ou para aqueles dias em que sentimos vontade de ler seja o que for.

[Gabriella · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5 stars

[Auj · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love English fiction 💗

I liked this book a lot. Sophie Kinsella is one of my favorite authors, so when I saw again that Gemma is her sister, I was curious if Gemma was as good as a writer as her sister and what her novels would be like. I don't know why this book gets so much hate besides people typically dislike love triangles and Georgie, our heroine, wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed.

I guess I went in with low expectations. My first thought was why did the heroine sound exactly like Sophie Kinsella's heroines??? I get that Gemma and Madeleine are sisters, but still. Gemma dedicated this book to Madeleine, but I think it could have been hard for her, knowing that her sister is/became so much more successful than her. (I wrote it that way because this book was published in 2004; another reason why Georgie's flat only cost around 500 pounds a month!)

The title nor blurb are so apt; this is the story of what happens when Georgie, now happily the girlfriend of the dependable if boring David, runs into her ex, Mike, a seemingly gorgeous, exciting charming bloke who's now come into a bit of wealth and success. The three only spend a weekend in Rome, and it's not the majority of the novel; I think the author nor her publishers knew what else to title the book. By the end of the novel, Georgie sees her ex's true colors and realizes how great of a guy David is and how he's not boring at all. Mike reminded me of an English guy named Alfonso I used to like, but luckily, Alfonso wasn't as involved in shady financial dealings the way Mike was. (Or at least I don't think so, lol.)

Like I said earlier, our protagonist, Georgie, isn't the brightest light bulb, but I think that helps make the climax believable. If she was smart, there would have had to be another climax, lol.

I would like to read chick-lit with a smart heroine, though I guess Lies and Weddings had Eden, but it wasn't written in first person, so that's what I'm thinking of.

I loved the London references in this book--I'll have to check out St. John's Wood when I return to London because I don't think I've ever been there. Because of this book, I made a new shelf, "English fic", for all the books I read set in England because I read quite a lot and want to track how many books.

I wondered if I was going to finish this book at the gym. When my workout ended, I had started the last page. I read this book so quickly too; it was so easy to get into, so I'll be reading more books by Gemma. I already have The Importance of Being Married from the library, so I'll read that next or soon.

There were a few typos, but I got a few laughs out of the book, so I didn't mind too much.

My biggest complaint besides Georgie not being the most intelligent (and me fearing she was going to lose her job at any moment because she didn't do work half the time!) was that the romance wasn't so satisfying, but again, this isn't a romance novel! I think maybe my next read should be romance because obviously, I'm craving a romance novel, which I haven't read in some time now.

[Amanda Rosie · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’m all for reading unlikeable characters, but there needs to be some kind of arc. The protagonist (even that’s an exaggeration) is so self-absorbed, hypocritical, and immature it’s unbearable—but the worst part is that she doesn’t come to her own self-realization; her MOTHER has to tell her that her priorities are out whack and that she’s being selfish. Even then, she never fully takes responsibility for anything—doesn’t address the real issues straight on! There aren’t even any positive relationships—every woman Is treated as some sort of threat or villain (except Jane). And literally like no time spent in Rome... a handful of pages, really. Title and cover are so misleading and she described things as “duck egg blue” twice—where were the editors? Ugh. I wanted some Italian escapism during this pandemic.

[Nancy H · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was better than I thought it would be, although I found myself wanting to yell at the main character at times. The plot was a little more complex than just a basic romance, and in that way it was better. I found it hard to believe that the main character could actually be that naïve and unsuspecting, though, so that part was a bit annoying. Overall, though, I am glad I read it.

[L · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a quick, perky chick lit novel that will make you laugh. I enjoyed the antics and the settings. This is a great little vacation book/beach read.

[Jana Heinzelmann · Rating 2 out of 5]

I bought this book for my holiday in Italy. I was going to do a road trip through Tuscany and then spend 4 days in Rome at the end of my trip. I read another book by Gemma Townley before and really liked Little White Lies. Thus, I thought that this book would be the perfect travel companion. The book‘s format was also perfect for traveling because it is really small and light and the text on the back sounded promising.

When I read the title When in Rome - A novel of piazzas and passion I was sure that this book would mainly take place in Rome and would be talking a lot about places in Rome. But after I finished the first 100 pages, the main characters were still in London and not even close to Rome. Of course, a little part of the story then took place in Rome but only for a really short time until the happenings of the story ended up back in London. The story itself also has nothing to do with Rome or Italy for that matter. The main characters could have easily traveled to a different city without changing much of the story. I was really disappointed because I was expecting to get into an italian mood but nothing like that happened. In my opinion, the title for this book has been chosen completely wrong because it promises something that the book is not able to deliver in the end.

Not taking this into consideration and only focusing on the story itself, it is an ok story. Nothing special and nothing totally compelling. It has some funny bits and bobs but many times I really had to force myself to go on reading. It can be considered as a light read for the holidays if you do not want to concentrate on a heavy and complex story. It is something you can read on the beach and get distracted once in a while. Many people might like that but I usually expect something more meaningful and a deeper background when I am reading a book. I need to be forced to concentrate because only then I can truly enjoy a story. If I would not have been in Italy with no possibility to read another book, I would probably not have finished it. The whole time I was waiting for something that would make this story different, unique or just something that would give me a reason to go on reading. I think this story really could have been better.

It is not the worst story I ever read and this book might be the right one for many other people who are just searching for something different in a book then I do but for me it was not really the right read. Also, no matter if the story is good or bad, the title is surely wrong and should not be focused on Rome since that is not reflected in the story of the book.

I am not going to give up on Gemma Townley just because of this since I really liked Little White Lies but I can certainly not recommend this book - especially not for an Italian holiday or if you just want to try out a new author. I hope that her other books will make up for this...

More of my reviews can be found here: http://www.booksaroundtheworld.wordpr...

[Mafi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Peguei neste livro apenas por a autora ser irmã da Sophie Kinsella, a única autora (chick-lit) que me consegue fazer rir às gargalhadas! Mas Gemma Townley não tem o mesmo talento que a irmã, pelo menos para criar histórias e personagens com carisma. Achei a escrita parecida com a da Sophie o que me surpreendeu mas a história é banal e a Georgie não chega nem aos pés da Becky Bloom apesar de as duas serem despassaradas, divertidas e românticas. Pois apesar de a Becky ser infantil, os seus consumos e pensamentos fazem sentido por ela ser assim, com Georgie não, apeanas tem a cabeça nas nuvens pq sim, pois qual será a razão que a leva a ir para Roma com o ex-namorado se tem um namorado perfeito? Apenas nas últimas páginas é que vemos e Georgie agindo como adulta e a tomar as suas próprias decisões, tirando isso o resto do livro é cliché.

[Jeanette Porcaro · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finished this book in one sitting. It was really cute!! I enjoyed the dramatic life of Gerogie!! Was expecting something different because there is a movie out all when in rome with Kristen Bell but it was a whole different story line. 5 stars!

[Tetty Marlinda · Rating 2 out of 5]

#42 - 2023
Genre: Chicklit

[Leah Tuckr · Rating 1 out of 5]

I absolutely hated this book and then it got good in the last 50 pages but not good enough to rate higher than 1 star. Would not recommend

[Rachel Swords · Rating 2 out of 5]

As a young woman, I've come to realize that there is a distinct pattern in contemporary "chick lit" these days. While this may be stating the obvious, after reading different stories by different authors, they all tend to follow these rules:

1)the main character is an attractive idiot. She is more concerned with her appearance and overall happiness than her job security, financial status, and peace of mind. Inevitably some part of the book will deal with her buying a new outfit, which instantly makes everything better. The contemporary chick lit heroine is self-centered and comes to grips with her lack of intelligence at a crucial moment in the book...only to forget this flaw or have it forgiven later.

2)there are always two guys fighting over her. One is her boyfriend, who is usually dull as dirt, and the other is a 'bad boy,' a temptation of sorts. The heroine always flirts with him and occasionally kisses/has sex with him, only to be remorseful moments later. She might confess all to the boyfriend in the hopes of being instantly forgiven, only to be terribly shocked when the boyfriend gets mad, promptly dumps her, or suggests a break. If any of these happen, a few pages later the boyfriend will be falling all over himself to win back her favor. The bad boy usually disappears from the story without a truly logical explanation. In the rare case that the heroine happens to be married, her husband fulfills one of these roles; most of the time, it is the boring part.

3)the heroine's job is always in an office setting. Following that, the office job usually has her coworkers hating her or -gasp!- dumping loads of work on her. The heroine spends most of her time not doing work at work, and thus hates it when she has to actually do work. She's also ridiculously computer savvy when it comes to email, yet somehow manages to be clueless about any software related to her job. Occasionally the heroine will be rewarded within her story, either by saving the company, getting a better job, or will get fired, only to get a better job days later.

4)there is always a best friend (or friends) whose purpose is to serve as a prop to the heroine's qualities. She may be a rowdy slut, a liar, blunt, or a drunk, but whatever the chosen aspect, the best friend will always pale in comparison to the heroine. The best friend is always honest and tells the heroine what she needs to hear, only to be brutally rejected for being a good pal. Usually the best friend is welcomed back into the heroine's good graces, and trips over herself with happiness and gratitude when such happens.

5)any family members who appear in the book are painted as the comic relief. There's usually a mother who serves as a blithering idiot and has some quirky trait that makes her hysterical (examples: believes in alternative medicine, is a vegetarian, is a sex addict). The father or stepfather is the straight man in the couple, sagely ignoring his wife's silly behavior and always offering some kind of unbeatable advice. Often, when the heroine enlists the help of her parents, it's the father who saves the day, after the heroine and mother's scheme backfires. If there are any siblings, they are painted as lesser figures in comparison to the heroine, often being younger or having unsavory qualities (being -gasp!- married with kids, stealing, unable to handle having a successful older sister).

6)the title of the book is some short, quirky little blurb of cuteness. This is a minor complaint, as a catchy title makes for a sale or checkout, which is good. At the same time, the title often plays on a well-known phrase or name.

To be fair, "The Nanny Diaries" and "The Devil Wears Prada" are two exceptions of the standard chick-lit book following these rules, but they still manage to be enjoyable reads. The "Bridget Jones" series gets an honorable mention for having the parents wise-up and try to help the heroine in a realistic fashion, along with letting the heroine having realistic relationship problems.

All of that said, "When in Rome" is one of the worst chick-lit books I've read. The title is ridiculously misleading; less than 1/4 of the book actually takes place in Rome. The majority of the story is set in London, and either in the heroine's office, her home, or out on the streets of London. Based on the cover description and illustrations, I expected a fun adventure that was set in Rome. If you want that; look elsewhere.

As far as the characters go, Georgie is a terrible heroine. I know her flaws were supposed to be funny, but I never laughed. It was also highly irritating how she was so 'flattered' to be going back and forth between her ex, Mike, and her current boyfriend, David. Any woman with common sense will tell you this never ends well. At the end, when things are rapidly going downhill for her boyfriend, all Georgie can do is assume he's lying to her and that his whole tearful speel about getting arrested and losing his job is just a way of demonstrating his jealousy over Mike. I wanted to slap the living daylights out of her for that. I suppose that's why I enjoyed her realizing how she had screwed up and was an idiot. Moments later, though, Georgie was annoying all over again because her first thoughts were along the lines of "I want my boyfriend back, waaah!" instead of "I screwed up; I should try to fix things for his sake, not mine." Yes, it's human nature to react like that, but at the same time, given the severity of the situation and her involvement, throwing a pity party for herself does nothing for Georgie's likability.

The other characters weren't entirely too bad, but they all pretty much fit the descriptions I listed above.

I did enjoy how the book took a darker turn as far as the conflict and entanglement; besides the silly relationships, there was actually something serious at stake in "When in Rome." Also, the two guys didn't hate each other for the sake of hating each other over the girlfriend; they had legitimate reasons that actually didn't include her. Awesome.

After all of this, you're probably asking, 'well, if you dislike chick-lit so much, why read it?' The thing is, I don't hate chick-lit. As previously mentioned, I enjoyed "The Nanny Diaries," "The Devil Wears Prada," and the Bridget Jones books because they were well-written and actually funny without trying too hard. I keep giving plenty of books within the genre a chance, simply because I like discovering new authors (which is how I found the examples, along with hearing word-of-mouth). The problem is, most of the books just aren't entertaining, or they try too hard to be funny. Or maybe my expectations are too high. Either way, I like chick-lit books as a light-hearted means of escape from time to time.

All in all, skip over "When in Rome." Go watch the movie, "Roman Holiday," which supposedly inspired this book, instead. I plan to, given the intriguing descriptions within the book.

[Ananya · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite a read! I generally don't read reviews before I finish a book but this time I made the mistake of scrolling through a few reader reviews and had mentally already accepted that I will not like the book. But to my pleasant surprise the book held on to my attention and I truly wanted to know if the female lead will be able to sort her life out or not...

Georgie, the female lead is stupid, naive, gullible and haven't we all at some point!? but what doesn't work for her is her indecisiveness and always trusting the wrong person. I love how the author has created two characters that can be the ultimate examples of red flag and green flag each. Though the story was predictable, the characters made it interesting for me. There were times I wanted to hold Georgie by her shoulders and shake her to reality but I guess that's kudos to the author, Gemma Townley for being able to make her so relatable and make the readers feel a kinship with the characters.

It was simple and sweet. Most definitely there are stories with better twists and even I could think of few ways to amp up the drama and the twists that could have taken the story to another level but the icing is in its simplicity... It is a perfect book to start your reading journey as it is easy to follow and interesting enough to keep reading.

[Carla Simoes · Rating 3 out of 5]

I decide to read this book because i'm going to Rome in vacations in 3 weeks and the title of this one caught my attention.

It is the typical romcom book that could easily be transformed into a movie, we get to see the pov from Georgie about her relationship with her current boyfriend, her work and her reunion with her ex boyfriend.
There are parts of this book that i think are so "stupid" for god sake she could not though that way ... it really annoyed me. In general it is a light read where you do not have to thinks a lot and the book you should read when you are in the mood for romcoms.

I gave 2.9 out of 5* to this book and let me just say that i'm in a current reading slump and maybe it was not the best time to read this one. As for Rome there are not many scenes in the city and if as i you would read this book expecting to know something about travels there you could just pass ahead.

[Tempestt Sherrill · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok, so I’m going to be totally honest in this review. It was pretty hard for me to get into the book in the beginning because I did NOT like the FMC. I thought she was just awful and I was NOT rooting for her. I forced myself to keep reading and did get invested in the story and seeing where it led. I’m glad I did because it definitely wasn’t what I was expecting and I did ultimately enjoy it. In the end, the FMC did redeem herself, but I’m so serious when I say I disliked her for 95% of the book. Looking back, I think that was kind of the point, for her to have a transformation, but damn I wanted her to be even a little likable in the beginning. I felt like she was so shallow and I had no empathy for her. So, if you get started and you’re doubting, I’d say stick with it because it did turn around for me.
Spice level: 🌶️

[Azzah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked up this book from my sister’s shelf, hoping for something different to read. Honestly, it’s not something I would’ve chosen myself—you wouldn’t normally find this on my shelf.

But lo and behold, I ended up reading it twice in a year! The second time was mostly to refresh my memory before writing this review on Goodreads—but still, that says something.

If you're looking for a light, feel-good read—especially on vacation—this one’s a solid pick. It’s a true chick-lit gem: think romance, a touch of adventure, even a hint of crime. It’s fun, fast-paced, and surprisingly delightful.

Even if the title throws you off (it totally misleads you, haha), just go in with an open mind. You might enjoy it more than you expect—I sure did.

[Krystal · Rating 2 out of 5]

Full disclosure, I skimmed a lot of this book because otherwise, the heroine would have given me a headache to end all headaches. She was really just a bit too much and I am confused why the hero liked her to be honest. She was one of those characters who everyone seemed to think in a certain way about (she's an adult, she's got her shit together, so capable and smart) but as the reader, you're getting her thoughts and know she apparently hasn't progressed beyond a 15 year old who's an idiot about life and really more naive than a 15 year old should even be.

[Heidi Madden · Rating 1 out of 5]

I always feel bad giving a book just one star but this one annoyed me from the very beginning. It held such promise and was such a let down. Maybe I just don't find insipid, shallow heroines who lie to get their way...and then have it blow up in their faces, entertaining. I didn't find it funny at all. It was a STRUGGLE to get through. The fact that I finished it is how it earned the one star. I know you can't give zero but honestly. Don't waste your time.

[Bookish Jyo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn’t think I would like this book when I started reading it. I have never been to Rome and wanted to read this as a part of a reading challenge. But half way through the book, things did become pretty interesting. When you are reading a romance novel, you generally don’t expect such a twist and such a story. I enjoyed the surprise that this book was!

[shadesofwords · Rating 1 out of 5]

Well, that was a total waste of time. The story had literally nothing to do with Rome. The heroine, Georgie, was the most annoying character and the whole book is narrated in her whiny, self-centered, complaining voice. Also, she is super dumb.

I was hoping to have a nice, relaxing read -but this was mind-numbing.

[Roxanna Cross · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5 stars
To me it read as a typical “grass is greener elsewhere” story and George just had test this theory with her ex Mike whose abundant arrogance annoyed me and the author dismal of David because he’s an accountant making assumptions that accountants are boring. Wrong it’s David! In all honesty it’s all the characters and lack of plot that made this book a chore to finish.

[Kayla · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had moments where I really enjoyed reading this and other times where I simply felt a little bored. The main character seemed to be three steps behind everything that was happening. I did really like how things concluded in the ending though.

[Courtney · Rating 2 out of 5]

So the book is okay. It seemed to mimic a Bridget Jones movie a bit too much, and that was distracting. It would be good fo a quick plane/pool read. It takes awhile to get to the Rome part, which is disappointing.

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a light rom-com read. I thought I would enjoy the Italy setting, but that is really a very small part of the book. The story was somewhat interesting, but enjoyment was limited due to the fact that the main character, Georgie, makes SO MANY stupid decisions that it's tough to root for her.

[Jackalyn]

Not worth the time it took to read it!!

Set in London, a mindless story line with lots of strange language twists and turns, and air-head lead characters, reading the book was a total waste of time. I would definitely not bother to read anything by this author again.

[Rupal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun, light hearted chick-lit

[Penny · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you love predictable plots and insufferable characters, then this is the book for you!

[Liz C. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun, light reading