Summer on the Turquoise Coast

by Lilac Mills

It's never too late to start living your life...Nina likes her life exactly as it is. Happy(ish) in her teaching job, and with no love interests on the horizon, she knows she can’t get hurt if she doesn’t rock the boat. But Nina’s octogenarian grandmother, Flossie, has plans to drag Nina kicking and screaming from her comfort zone.

When the two of them arrive in Turkey, Nina’s plans for a quiet holiday are blown out of the water by Flossie’s antics. And that’s before Nina meets lovely and handsome Leo on a trip to the ancient ruins of Ephesus.

Despite her grandmother determined to play matchmaker, Nina knows that holiday romances are not built to last. But there’s something about the turquoise coast – and Flossie’s shenanigans – that compels Nina to loosen up and have some fun…

Perfect for fans of Mandy Baggot and Tilly Tennant, join Nina and Flossie as they learn to let go, enjoy the time they have and maybe even find love in the process.

What readers are saying about Summer on the Turquoise I absolutely LOVED this book! Lilac Mills has such a fabulous lyrical writing style that she magically sweeps us away to picturesque Turkey in her latest novel.' Reader Review

'Great summer read. Hilarious and a surprise at the end. Would recommend.' Reader review

'Brilliant I haven't read a book that's made me laugh like this did for aeons. Well written great story and lots of ahhh moments.' Reader review

'This was an absolute laugh a minute. Lilac Mills certainly makes this one gripping story and you just want to keep turning the page. Fantastic descriptions throughout. I was so sad to see this end and it was over before I realised it... I am looking forward to the next one from this author.' Reader review

'Perfect summer holiday reading, this book is so so funny and incredibly easy to read. I was transported on Flossie and Nina's holiday as a fly on the wall, laughing at their various antics... My only regret is that the book isn't longer, I finished it far too quickly, for it only took me a morning of sitting in the sun to read. I was devouring it with a massive grin on my face and think it's a brilliant romantic comedy.' Reader review

'Witty writing that had me giggling along especially at the inappropriate bits and it definitely put me in a fabulous mood.Then factor in a gorgeous romance that just made this story all the more perfect. Before I knew it I was nearing the end and it was such a shame as I was having so much fun... makes you want to step out of your comfort zone and embrace life!' Reader review

Genres: Romance, Contemporary

279 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 20, 2018

About the author

Lilac lives on a Welsh hillside with her very patient husband and incredibly sweet dog, where she grows veggies (if the slugs don't get them), bakes (badly) and loves making things out of glitter and glue (a mess, usually).
 
She's been an avid reader ever since she got her hands on a copy of Noddy Goes to Toytown when she was five, and she once tried to read everything in her local library starting with A and working her way through the alphabet.

She loves long, hot summer days in the garden, and cold winter ones snuggled in front of the fire, but whatever the weather she's usually writing, or thinking about writing, with heartwarming romance and happy-ever-afters always on her mind. 

Reviews

[Simone ❤️ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the dynamic of Nina & Flossie, they were the ying to the others yang - I really liked the way that Flossie wasn’t your “stereotypical” grandma she was fun and the life of the party, I want to be her when I grow up 👵🏻

As well as the connection between Leo & Nina, I love reading books about holiday romances but I love that their connection didn’t feel forced, it was as the pair were drawn to each other through their love for history. They very much reminded me of the invisible string theory (the theory that we are connected to those that we are destined to be with through an invisible thread) 🧵

The thing I loved most about this book (and all of Lilac’s books) are the deeper meanings within each story, this book is a massive reminder to live your life to the fullest you can because our time here is short & making sure you hug your loved ones just that little bit tighter and not being afraid to tell people how you feel, every single message was portrayed beautifully and they really tugged at my heart strings 💓

[Berna · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story's humor was laughable at first and then it became annoying unfortunately. I found Flossie to be manipulative at times but I liked the romance between the main characters.
Additionally, I really liked the representation of Turkey as a tourism heaven (which really is) for all sorts of touristict themes.

[Svenja · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Sommer, Glück und blaues Meer" erzählt die Geschichte von Nina, einer Singlefrau und Lehrerin, die ihr geordnetes Leben liebt. Doch ihre achtzigjährige Großmutter Flossie hat andere Pläne und zwingt Nina einen gemeinsamen Urlaub in der Türkei auf.

Ninas Vorstellung eines ruhigen Urlaubs wird schnell über den Haufen geworfen, als Flossie eine Aktivität nach der anderen plant. Bei einem Ausflug lernt Nina den attraktiven Leo kennen. Obwohl Nina skeptisch gegenüber Urlaubsromanzen ist, weckt etwas an der türkisfarbenen Küste, Leos charmantem Auftreten und Flossies Überzeugungskraft eine neue Spontanität in ihr.

Ich hatte anfangs Probleme mit Nina, weil sie schon sehr humorlos rüberkommt. Ich habe nicht wirklich Verständnis aufgebaut, aber ich wurde ihr gegenüber tolerant und habe akzeptiert, dass sie etwas zu anständig für die verrückte Flossie ist.

Lilac Mills gelingt es, die Schönheit der türkischen Riviera und die Dynamik zwischen den Charakteren lebendig zu schildern. Die Erzählung ist leicht und humorvoll, geprägt von Themen wie Selbstfindung und Liebe. Ninas Entwicklung und ihre wachsende Bereitschaft, sich auf das Leben einzulassen, sind inspirierend und ermutigend. Die Stimme von Aileen Wrozyna passt perfekt zu der Urlaubslektüre.

Das Ende muss nochmal extra erwähnt werden, weil ich fand, dass die Autorin hier mal einen außergewöhnlicheren Weg gewählt hat.

[Renee Ward · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Summer on the Turquoise Coast” by Lilac Mills follows Nina and her Grandmother as they go on holiday together in Turkey. Nina is concerned for her grandmother's safety and wants to make sure she doesn’t break a hip or have any medical emergency while on vacation. Once they arrive at their destination Nina is sure her grandmother is starting to have dementia and is embarrassed by both how she dresses and what she does. Nina was shocked when she discovered that her grandmother Flossie picked the resort for single people aged 30 - 45 interested in making matches during their vacation. Nina is a very conservative person who doesn’t like to take risks but her grandmother has other ideas for her. This is a cute story of how Nina moves outside of her comfort zone and even finds a nice young man to hang out with.

[Lucy McLaurin · Rating 3 out of 5]

In my opinion this is a chick lit book designed to be read on a beach in a hot country!

Nina’s fun-loving grannie persuades her to accompany her on holiday; only for Nina to discover they’re booked into The Aphrodite Hotel which lives up to it’s name as it is booked for holidays for singles between 30 and 45 - criteria which neither Nina or Flossie meet.

Flossie is determined to make mins losen up and enjoy herself … and start living her life …

[Trina Dixon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is not my usual genre, I'm not a fan of sickly, sweet predictable chick lit novels. But I was suggested a summer novel in my online bookclubs lucky dip, so chose this.
I really liked it, I loved Flossies attitude to life, yes I guess if she was your gran you may be annoyed by her behaviour but we only get one chance on this roundabout and she certainly took it

[Meg Huntington · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 🌟 Cute, cute, cute story of a grandmother and 28 year-old granddaughter going on holiday together. Made me laugh, tear up and cheer all throughout

[Nati · Rating 5 out of 5]

When Nina is forced to go to Turkey with her Granny Flossie on vacation she didn't know that she was going to face her life and she realise that she is not living at all but going through life. This is. A story about enjoying everyday as it was the last one and what matters in life, love, family and be happy. Lilac Mills make you laugh out loud, cry and everything in between. You can't put down the book until the end.

[Mrs S Browne · Rating 2 out of 5]

So disappointing!
Having avidly read other Lilac books, I looked forward to this- I persevered in the hope it would improve and to be fair it did get to 2 star.
The characters were just not that likeable - Grannie was amusing sometimes but not enough to make an impression (until the end).
Dragged out and an unnecessary bit was confusing.
Not her best.

[Hayley Marsland · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read quite a few of Lilac Mills books now, but this one has just shot to the top of the list as my favourite so far.

Nina likes her life just the way it is thank you very much, she's relatively happy in her teaching job, there are no love interests to speak of, and as long as she doesn't step out of her comfort zone she can't get hurt.

But Flossie, Nina's octogenarian Grannie, has other plans, which involve dragging her kicking and screaming out to Turkey on a two week holiday.

To say that Nina's plans for a quiet holiday are blown out of the water, is a massive understatement, some of Flossie's antics would put most twenty something's to shame.

There is bar top dancing, an alternative spin on pin the tail on the donkey, and copious amounts of vodka, and that's just for starters !

Then Nina meets handsome Leo on a trip to Ephesus, and despite her Grandmother's attempts at matchmaking, Nina knows holiday romances just don't last.

But there's just something about Turkey and her Grandmother's persuasiveness, that encourages Nina to loosen up and have some fun.

With some of the funniest one liners ( mostly due to Flossie ) I've read in a long time, this book was just brilliant.

I will definitely be reading more from this talented author very soon.

[Sandra Fritz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ich durfte bereits ein Rezensionsexemplar des neuen Hörbuchs hören! Nia hat ein schön eingerichtetes Leben in England als Lehrerin! Doch jetzt ist ihr Großvater gestorben und kann an der bereits gebuchten Reise mit der Großmutter in die Türkei nicht teilnehmen! Nina muss stattdessen mitfahren und ist erst einmal nicht begeistert! Vor allem als sie vor Ort erfährt, dass sie mit ihreer Großmutter im gleichen Zimmer schlafen soll. Und dann das Benehmen von Flossy, als wäre sie ein junger Hüpfer. Doch ob sie will oder nicht, ihre Großmutter nimmt sie immer zu gewagteren Abenteuern mit und Nina merkt nach einer Weile, dass sie sich gut amüsiert und sie ihrre Großmutter immer besser kennenlernt und auch besser versteht. Und dann lernt sie auch noch Leo kennen und spürt sofort, dass sie auf der gleichen Wellenlänge liegen. Doch jetzt passiert die Katastrophe und ihre Großmutter liegt im Krankenhaus und kämpft um ihr Leben! Was soll sie nur tun? Und was macht sie mit ihren Gefühlen für Leo? Die Autorin hat es wieder einmal geschafft, einen tiefgründigen Liebesroman zu schreiben, der aber auch zwischendurch zum Totlachen komisch ist! Die ideale Lektüre für den kommenden Urlaub! Und auch das Hörbuch ist super umgesetzt!-SandraFritz-magicmouse

[Barry Lillie · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was really at odds with this book, I wanted to say it was terrible but that wouldn't be fair to the author as looking at reviews some people really liked it, I however didn't.
It wasn't the handful of spelling mistakes e.g. Hay Day not Heyday or the use of the American past participle 'gotten' rather than the correct English 'got' that influenced me it was the actual storyline and characters.
Nina is boring and repetitive and so negative she needs shaking up, who really spends their time thinking up negative scenarios rather than taking everything at face value?
Flossie was a caricature, so unreal almost too comic to be funny.
The writing is supposed to be cosy then suddenly Lilac adds some swearing which doesn't work but detracts from the pace and story.
Chapter 14 was pointless and added nothing and the author deciding to get one over on the reader with chapter 35 where she tries to trick us into thinking we know the result only for a random action being thrown into the mix, treated the reader like an idiot.
I apologise for my less than glowing review but I really did find this book a boring, pointless piece of literature.

[jacqueline chapman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Want a funny read had me laughing throughout

Who would want to go on holiday with there gran ? Nina doesn't want to she would rather her gran went to somewhere quiet where old fokes go but Flossie doesn't want that she wants to go to Turkey so that's where they go. Turns out Flossie has booked them in at 30-40 hoilday. I had to laugh at the things Flossie got up to it was like Flossie was the youngest and Nina was the older one . If you want to laugh and have a cry I would definitely recommend this book can't wait to read other books by Lilac Mills.

[belle Higham · Rating 3 out of 5]

i found this book to be very lighthearted, with the relationship between the relationship between the characters and the overall holiday settling it was a really light read :)

i found the relationship development in the book to be really sweet, i just hoped that the book would have more of a focus on that as opposed to the characters relationship with her grandma. but i would still recommend this book if your wanting to read a classic holiday romance :)

[mrs jacqueline d kirby · Rating 4 out of 5]

I did enjoy reading this book and the stories of Flossie and Nina on holiday.
Thought provoking at times in relation to work and living our lives, we do get so caught up in living our daily working lives that we forget at times to have fun.
This book made me think more about my own life and how recently I’ve been so busy just trying to do daily tasks that I have forgotten the fun part and what I love.
Easy beach read with a few small twists.

[sharon burr · Rating 5 out of 5]

Laugh out loud storg


Loved this book, laughed from start to finish.

My kind of humour and loved Flossie. She is my favourite character, so want to be like her when I get older. An amusing read!

[Melissa Gritton · Rating 3 out of 5]

It wasn't a bad read but not a good one either. I found it a bit dry in places and predictable.

[Jill · Rating 3 out of 5]

Light and fluffy read.
Nina and her grandmother, Flossie, go on holiday together.
Flossie is Madge from Benidorm, without the scooter. Nina is quiet and reserved.
What can possibly go wrong?

[Bücherwurm · Rating 4 out of 5]

Herzerwärmende, manchmal peinliche Momente, die aber ein zum lächeln gebracht hat. War eine schöne leichte Geschichte, mit einem super Sommerfeeling.

[Teebie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pleasant enough read. Although personally I found the lead character frustrating.

[Mo Hardy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved Nina & Flossie on their jolly holiday, just shows that age is just a number !