Fast Forward Friday: An Accidental Odyssey, 12/14/21

Hey y’all! In contrast to Throwback Thursday, I like to use Fridays to look forward to an upcoming release that I’m excited about! Today’s is An Accidental Odyssey by K.C. Dyer!
Expected Release: December 14, 2021

Why wait on this one?

• As ALWAYS, a book that takes me places will be on my list. This one is an actual journey around the Mediterranean. While I don’t love boats or sailing, my first trip abroad was to Italy and Greece, so I’m really excited to see them again in this story. 🥰
• This sounds like it will have a dual trope punch o unexpected love and a fresh start. Someone realizing they deserve better than what they have — whether in a relationship, a career, a dream, anything — and then taking the risk to try and go after that something better? Those make me feel so lovely. Bravery inspires me and helps me reflect on my own actions and happiness, and sometimes helps spur me to make changes of my own.
• How much of this will parody Homer’s Odyssey? I don’t know, and I’m not even sure I’d recognize the moments if they happen. But I still hope they happen, just in case I do recognize them. I love having old or classic stories imagined in a new context, or as a callback to a current story.

Summary

Gianna Kostas is on the cusp of a fairy-tale life. Sure, she’s just lost her job, but she’s about to marry one of New York’s most eligible bachelors. On her way to taste wedding cakes, though, things go sideways. Shocking news sends Gia off on a wild journey halfway around the world in pursuit of her ailing–and nearly estranged–father.

In Athens, she learns Dr. Kostas, a classics professor, is determined to retrace Odysseus’s famous voyage. This is a journey her father is in no condition to take alone, so Gia faces a tough decision. When an unexpected job offer helps seal the deal and quash the guilt Gia feels from her disapproving groom-to-be, the journey is on. But as Gia adventures–and eats–her way around the Mediterranean, she discovers that confronting epic storms and ripped surfer dudes might be the easy part.

Along the way, as she uncovers family secrets, finds heartbreak, and learns more about a certain archaeologist with a mysterious past of his own, Gia discovers that fairy-tale endings might be messy and complicated, but they can happen anywhere.