Publishers Weekly
03/18/2024
Schillig whisks readers to the beautiful Italian city of Urbino in her effervescent enemies-to-lovers debut. As American law student Ava Graham heads off to a European law seminar, she’s proud to have her life plan on track: “Father-approved job? Check. Mother-requested experience abroad? Golden check. Everyone-approved fiancé? Rapidly approaching platinum check.” But before she boards her plane, her boyfriend surprises her not with a marriage proposal but with the suggestion that they consider her time away as a break from their relationship. When her host parents’ nephew, James Massini, arrives an hour late to pick her up from the airport, he receives the brunt of her bad mood. In the face of Ava’s ire, James, a well-known local photographer and professor of art history, is both infuriated and attracted. After Ava’s program is canceled, the pair are further thrown together when Ava is assigned to be James’s teaching assistant. Schillig lets the sexual tension simmer as Ava and James wittily goad each other, making their compatibility obvious to everyone but the sparring hearts themselves. Readers will be eager for these two supposed opposites to put their fears and differences aside and recognize their true feelings. Schillig should win fans with this one. Agent: Barbara Poelle, Word One Literary. (May)
From the Publisher
Praise for Wish You Weren’t Here:
“Schillig whisks readers to the beautiful Italian city of Urbino in her effervescent enemies-to-lovers debut.”
—Publishers Weekly
“Debut author Schillig envelops [the reader] in the food, art, and scenery.”
—Booklist
“What do you get when you mix Italy, a tantalizing American/Italian dude, a heroine who’s been dumped right before her Italian vacation, some hot, hot nights, and some beautiful architecture? The perfect combination for a rom-com that you won’t want to put down!”
—Catherine McKenzie, USA Today bestselling author of Spin and Arranged
“Schillig’s vivid description of Urbino made me want to book tickets to Italy immediately. A well woven friends-to-lovers romance steeped in Italian culture and art. Brillante!”
—Gillian Harvey, internationally bestselling author of The French Chateau Escape
“Wish You Weren’t Here is transportive and gorgeous, perfectly blending escapism with real and complex characters that were easy to root for. James and Ava’s romance journey is brimming with wit, yearning, and made my heart soar.”
—Tarah DeWitt, author of Funny Feelings, The Co-op, and Rootbound
“Wish You Weren't Here is a soulful yet sexy love letter to the beautiful city of Urbino and the art it inspires. The love story of Ava and James is much like an Aperol Spritz on a warm summer day—refreshing, zesty and bittersweet, all at the same time. You won’t want to miss this one!”
—Liz Fenton & Lisa Steinke, authors of Forever Hold Your Peace
