My Super Sweet Sixteenth Century by Rachel Harris (Review)

Synopsis:
On the precipice of her sixteenth birthday, the last thing lone wolf Cat Crawford wants is an extravagant gala thrown by her bubbly soon-to-be stepmother and well-meaning father. So even though Cat knows the family's trip to Florence, Italy, is a peace offering, she embraces the magical city and all it offers. But when her curiosity leads her to an unusual gypsy tent, she exits . . . right into Renaissance Firenze.

Thrust into the sixteenth century armed with only a backpack full of contraband future items, Cat joins up with her ancestors, the sweet Alessandra and protective Cipriano, and soon falls for the gorgeous aspiring artist Lorenzo. But when the much-older Niccolo starts sniffing around, Cat realizes that an unwanted birthday party is nothing compared to an unwanted suitor full of creeptastic amore. Can she find her way back to modern times before her Italian adventure turns into an Italian forever?

My thoughts:
Cat's tried to avoid the spotlight all her life, which isn't easy to do with a mother who's constantly gracing the covers of the tabloids with yet another love interest and a father who's successful in the film industry. And with Cat's sixteenth birthday coming up and her future mother-in-law wanting to throw a huge party with MTV and cameras everywhere, Cat just wants to run and hide. Except she doesn't expect to hide in the 16th century.

But thanks to a gypsy, that's exactly where she ends up. Even though she struggles a bit to fit in, she learns a lot about family, friends, and falling in love.

I loved this book. Cat is a character that you can't get enough of. And Lorenzo is the guy every girl wants to date. Between the Italian landscape, Cat's blooming romance, and the great cast of characters that become Cat's new family, this is one journey into the past that I'll take again and again. I can't wait to read the sequel.

Just for fun: If you could go back to any time period in history, which would it be?