Let's Bust a Recap : Sisterchicks in Gondolas

It's been a few years since I last picked up a Sisterchicks book. I've read almost every novel Robin Jones Gunn has written with the exception of the final three Sisterchicks books, so I put Sisterchicks in Gondolas in the TBR Jar without much hope that I'd actually draw it in the course of the year what with the hundreds of other titles jammed in there. I've been slowly (or not so slowly, hello July 2023!)  making my way through Robin's earlier work again—I've read her books a million times—so I could still get my 2024 fix. Just imagine my delight when this title popped out of the Jar in June. 

(Oh and I may as well take this moment to mention that she has a brand new book coming out in just a few weeks which I preordered back in March so I've been looking forward to that too.)

Anyway, I read Sisterchicks in Gondolas in June and was planning to recap it immediately but you all have this book to thank for my major blog stall. Don't hold it against Robin. It's not her fault. I got it into my head that I'd like to tag on a photo or two of my own Venetian gondola ride to this recap but when I went to plug in my external hard drive, I couldn't get anything off it. (A problem I still have not solved, by the way, so if you're reading this: say a prayer for me. And if you went to Europe with me in 2008, SEND PICS.) 

But can we get to the actual recap? Okay, yes. 

Sisterchicks in Gondolas, published in 2006, is the sixth installment of the eight standalone Sisterchicks books by Robin Jones Gunn. In it, sisters-in-law Jenna and Sue take on Venice after being invited to be the cooks for a small missionary retreat group. They are both coming out of a difficult period of life and neither realize how impactful this trip will be for their emotional and spiritual health. But showing up in Venice means learning anew how to watch for God's goodness and mercy in their lives. From their rooftop sleeping arrangement under the stars, to mattress-surfing down the stairs in their gorgeous palazzo, to haggling in broken Italian, to finding the absolute best gelato—Sisterchicks in Gondolas was a delight. No surprise there. It actually wasn't my favorite of the series—in fact, it was my least favorite so far—but I loved it nonetheless. Robin Jones Gunn has written over one hundred books now, and the fact that she has never once missed with me in the 60+ books I have read so far is such a gift. (If you're curious about the discrepancy between how many books she's written vs. how many I've read: I haven't picked up any of her non-fiction.)

And ughhhhh! I wish there was a picture of me and my college girlfriends on our gondola ride right here, but alas, I'm a disaster with technology. I need my brother (who is currently in Australia!) to come to my house and help me. 

What author never misses for you?