Lily Morton

The Cuckoo's Call

Sandra Gomes

I really loved this one, Wren is such a brilliant character

Amy Grieve

→4.5

I was genuinely taken aback by this because I didn’t expect to love it so much. I’ve tried reading Lily Morton before and didn’t connect with the story so put it down for another day. Picking up The Cuckoo’s Call was just a mere coincidence. 

You know what they say? Location matters. I’d have to chalk a good 40% of my enjoyment of this book to how well all the settings were brought to life on the page. The story plays out across both Majorca and Venice which was a breath of fresh air. Removed from the cloistered typical British/American city added to the magic of Wren and Mateo’s romance. 

Both Wren and Mateo were amazing characters. Wren’s sunny persona and refusal to let anyone dampen his spirit, despite his tough life. I really connected with that so I’m glad that most of the book was from his perspective. 

One issue I did have with Wren’s characterisation was the constant need in the first half of the book to remind the reader that Wren was, in fact, British. I do understand trying to establish this to the reader but I do have an issue with referencing Boris Johnson, even in jest, at least three times is excessive. I do not need my reading experience tainted by the mention of that total incompetent man child. 

I also loved Mateo, but in a very different way. He was different from your typical brooding male lead who wanted to win over his love interest with presents and grand gestures. He diverged from the domineering older man stereotype, instead being openly communicative and wanted the best for Wren. With the help of the Wren I saw him come out of his shell and realise what really mattered in the end. 

This featured some of my favourite tropes including holiday romance, age gap and rich male lead. All of these tropes were done so well and felt so natural. Was it pretty cheesy? Yes! That’s what we all need sometimes, a low angst holiday romance hasn’t hurt anyone before. 

I really hope that Lily Morton writes a sequel about Enzo because even in the brief time we spent with him I just felt the clawing need to see him happy.

The Cuckoo's Call

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