Reminders of Greece by Francesca Catlow - A Review

Reminders of Greece by Francesca Catlow has such a beautiful, wistful setup: sun-drenched islands, buried family secrets, old love, new love, and a mother-daughter relationship at the heart of it all. There’s real warmth in the story, and the Greek setting is easily its strongest feature — it feels nostalgic, dreamy, and full of longing.

There’s something genuinely moving about two women carrying unspoken truths while trying to protect each other, and I liked the themes of love, loss, identity, and belonging. At times, it really did feel tender and heartfelt.

I kept waiting for it to land with more force. A lot of the emotions were explained again and again instead of just being allowed to speak for themselves, which made some of the bigger moments feel less powerful than they should have. I also found the pacing quite slow, and some of the reveals felt obvious long before they happened. So while I liked the story and connected with parts of it, it never fully swept me away.

I wanted this to hit harder emotionally than it did. However, In the end, this was a warm, atmospheric read with a strong sense of place and a touching emotional core — I just wish it had trusted its readers more and delivered its emotional punches with a little more subtlety.

★★★

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

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