Sisterchicks in Gondolas (Sisterchicks #6) by Robin Jones Gunn

Ciao bella!

SISTERCHICK n.: a friend who shares the deepest wonders of your heart, loves you like a sister, and provides a reality check when you’re being a brat.

When Jenna is invited to Venice for a week of cooking for a small retreat group, she knows just who to take along: her sister-in-law Sue. With her Dallas drawl and wild tangle of red hair, Sue desperately needs her own retreat from the pressures of the past two years…and blessedly for their guests, Sue actually knows how to cook (unlike Jenna)!

With about six words of Italian between them, a map, and a keen appetite for gelato, they puzzle out the lovely city together. During their stay, Jenna and Sue become victims of grace in ways they never expected—starting with their accommodations: a restored fifteenth-century palace on a quiet canal complete with a stairwell perfect for mattress sledding!

Coming out of a time of dark shadows in their lives, these two friends dive into a new season of refreshing and realize that sometimes when serving God, the most important thing to do is just show up…and watch for goodness and mercy to follow close behind. Come join Jenna and Sue over boiling pots of pasta in this lilting gondola-paced adventure!

Discussion guide included

Story Behind the Book

Sisterchicks in Gondolas was birthed after Robin experienced Italy for herself. “In the summer of 2004, I went to Venice with my lifetime fellow Sisterchick from Ireland , Ruby,” she says. “We explored the city with our daughters and discovered the joys of Italian living.” With a splash of humor, grace, and a few zany antics, this latest Sisterchicks release continues to celebrate the unique and timeless bond between women friends. Entertaining and delightful, the story also challenges readers to examine their relationships with one another and with God.

About Robin Jones Gunn

Over the past 25 years Robin has written 82 books with almost 4.5 million copies sold worldwide. To her great delight, Robin’s books are doing exactly what she always hoped to do – they are traveling around the world and telling people about God’s love. She is doing the same. Over the past ten years Robin has been invited to speak at events around the US and Canada as well as in South America, Africa, Europe and Australia.

Robin and her husband have two grown children and have been married for 35 years. They live in Hawai’i where she continues to write and speak in rhythm with her life verse:

“But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the LORD Jesus – the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God.” Acts 20:24."


My Review:

What a delightful book! I felt as if I were there with Jenna and Sue...as least I sure wanted to be.
We are there to cook for for a small retreat group. Besides experiencing Venice through their eyes, we are also privy to listening to Malachi's bible reading. Another gentlemen is from Kiev, and Jenna and his wife have a connection, yes a small world. Can you just picture these two slaughtering the Italian language? Way to funny when they end up with a bunch of nectarines, instead of 2. Watch what they do with the mattresses....besides bringing them up onto the roof and sleeping there. Ah sleeping outside...now I hope there aren't any bugs out at night there. Didn't read anything about bug lotion. The idea is marvelous!
Turns out Jenna really knew what she was doing bringing her SIL Sue....Jenna couldn't cook, and Sue can! Also so loved the relationships they established with the locals at the Bakery...ah Lucia, and Paolo's.
This is a really great feel good read.

I received this book from the publisher Multnomah, and was not required to give a positive review.