> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://readerswithwrinkles.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Villa Coco BOOK REVIEW - URL: https://readerswithwrinkles.com/villa-coco-book-review/ - Published: 2026-09-11T06:26:09.000Z - Updated: 2026-09-11T06:26:08.000Z - Description: Book Review - Author: Readers with Wrinkles - Tags: Book Reviews, Genre: Contemporary Fiction, Genre: Fiction, Genre: Non-Fiction, Genre: Mystery - **Date Published:** June, 2026 - **Length:** 288 pages—Listening Time: 8 hours 36 minutes - **Genre**: Fiction, Mystery - **Setting:** 1990s (specifically beginning around 1992); in the Italian countryside of Tuscany, primarily within a small village called San Drago - **Awards** New York Times Bestseller 2026; Sunday Times Bestseller 2026; Andrew Sean Greer won the Pulitzer Prize for his novel ***Less*** in 2018 - **Languages:** English - **Sensitive Aspects:** Death and grief, emotional loss and regret, an elderly character’s mortality, romantic and sexual entanglements, class and wealth privilege, deception and possible theft, mild criminal activity/heist elements, alcohol use, cultural fish-out-of-water stereotypes, manipulation or demanding behavior from an employer, references to stolen or questionably sourced art/jewels, anxiety and insecurity, dysfunctional family or relationship dynamics - **Movie** There are currently no announced film or television adaptation deals for ***Villa Coco***. Because the book was published very recently (in June 2026), film rights or development plans have not been made public. - **Recommended for Book Club:** Yes ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/94/9a/949a9f7d-7bf4-49c9-8093-9a1af92098bf/content/images/2026/09/8-STAR.png) There’s something wildly comforting about a book that reminds you life doesn’t politely wrap itself up once you reach a certain age. You know the story: you’re supposed to be sensible now. Make the responsible choice. Stop dreaming so loudly. Perhaps acquire a cardigan and an opinion about lawn care. ***Villa Coco*** by Andrew Sean Greer has other ideas. This is the kind of novel that arrives with sunshine on its shoulders and a mischievous little sparkle in its eye. It’s funny, tender, slightly absurd in the best possible way, and brimming with the sort of romantic possibility that makes you want to book a one-way ticket, order an extravagant lunch, and reconsider every “maybe someday” you’ve been carrying around. By the time I finished it, I didn’t just feel as if I’d read about Italy—I felt as if I’d visited. I could practically taste the wine, feel the warm air on my skin, and picture myself wandering through narrow streets where even getting lost might turn into a good story. And, oh my, I adored the quirky characters. They’re messy, memorable, occasionally baffling, and wonderfully human—the kind of people you might side-eye at first before realizing you’d happily spend an afternoon listening to their secrets over espresso. Greer gives them room to be complicated without making them impossible to love, which is no small feat. At its heart, ***Villa Coco*** also offers a lovely, winking reminder that age really is just a number. Not in the empty, slap-a-quote-on-a-throw-pillow kind of way, either. This book understands that growing older can come with grief, fear, expectations, and a thousand reasons to play it safe. But it also insists that wonder doesn’t have an expiration date. You can still chase beauty. You can still fall in love with a place, a person, a possibility, or even a stranger version of yourself. That doesn’t mean you have to throw a dart at a map and abandon your entire life by Tuesday. But it does mean taking the plunge into something beyond your comfort zone can be more than okay when you know what you truly want. The real danger, ***Villa Coco*** suggests, isn’t making a bold choice—it’s living forever in the fog of indecision, waiting for certainty to knock on the door wearing a name tag. If you’ve ever wondered whether it’s too late to choose delight, adventure, or a little well-earned magic, this book may be exactly the nudge you need. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/94/9a/949a9f7d-7bf4-49c9-8093-9a1af92098bf/content/images/2025/10/BOOK-SUMMARY.jpg) ***Villa Coco*** whisks readers away to the Tuscan countryside, where a young American archivist expects a respectable job cataloguing art—and instead lands in the gloriously chaotic orbit of a ninety-two-year-old baroness with a villa full of secrets, spectacular characters, and absolutely no interest in behaving her age. Broke, uncertain, and determined to finally become a serious adult, a young man accepts a temporary position at a crumbling Italian villa outside Florence. His assignment sounds simple enough: organize and catalogue the sprawling collection of art, antiques, books, and curiosities belonging to the formidable Baronessa Lisabetta—better known as Coco. Naturally, nothing at Villa Coco is simple. Rather than settling into a quiet, scholarly summer among paintings and dusty treasures, he finds himself drafted into the unpredictable daily life of the villa. There are eccentric guests, baffling household demands, missing objects, strange errands, animals with bigger personalities than some people, and a Baronessa who may be in her nineties but is still very much the main character of her own life. Coco is flamboyant, sharp, secretive, and impossible to ignore—and she seems to have plans that stretch far beyond an inventory of old possessions. As the Italian summer unfolds, the young archivist begins to loosen his grip on the carefully controlled future he thought he wanted. Romance complicates his resolve, the villa’s inhabitants pull him into their dramas, and Coco’s past slowly reveals itself to be far more layered than he first imagined. What begins as an odd job in Tuscany becomes an unforgettable season of friendship, longing, self-discovery, and the kind of beautiful mess that can change a person if they let it. With its sun-soaked setting, comic misunderstandings, and charmingly offbeat cast, ***Villa Coco*** is a story about discovering that a life worth living may not look neat, practical, or remotely sensible from the outside. Sometimes the most meaningful adventures begin when you stop trying to control every detail—and say yes to the wonderfully strange invitation in front of you. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/94/9a/949a9f7d-7bf4-49c9-8093-9a1af92098bf/content/images/2025/11/WHY-READ.png) If you’ve been carrying around a reading slump, a stack of emotionally bruising novels, or a quiet little fear that you’ve waited too long to become the person you want to be, ***Villa Coco*** deserves a place on your nightstand. It’s bright, funny, and gently life-affirming without pretending that reinvention is always tidy. Here is why you should read ***Villa Coco***: #### It’s the perfect palate cleanser Have you spent the last few weeks reading bleak literary fiction, devastating historical novels, grim thrillers, or anything involving war, illness, family trauma, and a dog that absolutely should have survived? Same. ***Villa Coco*** is a lighter read with warmth, humor, and Italian sunshine woven into its pages. It doesn’t ask you to prepare emotionally for heartbreak; it invites you to exhale. #### Italy practically becomes a character This is a book for anyone who’s ever looked at a photo of Tuscany and thought, “Yes, I could absolutely abandon my responsibilities for a plate of pasta and a villa with questionable plumbing.” The setting feels lush, dreamy, and transportive. Reading it is a little like taking a literary holiday—no passport, jet lag, or luggage fee required. #### The characters are delightfully quirky The people in ***Villa Coco*** aren’t polished, predictable, or conveniently well-behaved. They’re eccentric, complicated, dramatic, and occasionally ridiculous in the most entertaining way. That unpredictability gives the story its energy, making the villa feel like a place where anything could happen—and probably will. #### It reminds us that age is not a deadline One of the most meaningful things about this novel is its refusal to treat aging as an ending. Coco may be in her nineties, but she is not sitting quietly in the corner waiting for life to happen around her. The book offers a refreshing reminder that desire, curiosity, reinvention, romance, and adventure don’t belong exclusively to the young. #### It gives you permission to want more Maybe you’ve been telling yourself you’re too old, too busy, too practical, or too settled to make a big change. Maybe there’s a dream you’ve tucked away because it felt inconvenient or a little embarrassing. ***Villa Coco*** gently pushes back against that thinking. It suggests that it is never too late to pursue what you really want or create a life that feels more like your own. ### It celebrates taking a leap—without glamorizing indecision There’s a difference between making a brave, slightly terrifying choice and waiting endlessly for a perfect sign. This novel understands that stepping beyond your comfort zone can be worthwhile when you know what you want. It encourages readers to embrace the possibility of change rather than living in a permanent holding pattern, endlessly asking “what if?” instead of finding out. #### It finds magic in the everyday Not every magical life involves a dramatic reinvention, a movie-worthy romance, or a suitcase packed in the middle of the night. Sometimes magic is found in a strange new friendship, a beautiful place, an unexpected invitation, or the decision to let yourself be surprised. ***Villa Coco*** makes a compelling case for staying open to those moments. #### It leaves you with a little more hope The best books don’t always give us answers. Sometimes they simply make us feel less alone in our questions. ***Villa Coco*** is worth your reading time because it offers that rare, lovely feeling: the sense that your story may still have room for pleasure, boldness, absurdity, and joy—no matter where you are in life. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/94/9a/949a9f7d-7bf4-49c9-8093-9a1af92098bf/content/images/2025/03/SIGNATURE-CHAPTER-1.png) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/94/9a/949a9f7d-7bf4-49c9-8093-9a1af92098bf/content/images/2026/09/greer.jpg) #### Get Andrew Sean Greer Books Andrew Sean Greer’s novels blend sharp wit, heartfelt insight, and wonderfully offbeat characters into unforgettable stories that find humor, romance, and a little magic in life’s messiest moments. Bookshop.org was created as a socially conscious alternative to Amazon, with the goal of helping local, independent bookstores thrive. This is why Readers With Wrinkles supports their efforts. Please join us in this effort by purchasing your next read here. [Purchase Andrew Sean Greer Books on Bookshop.org](https://bookshop.org/lists/andrew-sean-greer-books?ref=readerswithwrinkles.com) [Get audiobook on Audible](https://amzn.to/4gKfyWo?ref=readerswithwrinkles.com) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/94/9a/949a9f7d-7bf4-49c9-8093-9a1af92098bf/content/images/2025/04/RECOMMENDATIONS.png) If ***Villa Coco*** gave you a craving for sunlit escapism, quirky people, unconventional late-life possibility, and a little beautiful chaos, these eight books should be next on your list. They all share some part of Greer’s magic: places that feel like holidays, characters who refuse to live quietly, and the welcome reminder that a meaningful life is not reserved for the young or the certain. Here is a list of books to read next. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/94/9a/949a9f7d-7bf4-49c9-8093-9a1af92098bf/content/images/2026/09/less.jpg) ***Less*** by Andrew Sean Greer A nearly fifty-year-old novelist, reeling from heartbreak and his former lover’s upcoming wedding, accepts a string of literary invitations that send him on a funny, awkward, unexpectedly transformative trip around the world. This warm, witty novel won the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction; the Pulitzer judges praised it as a generous, musical book about growing older and the essential nature of love. If you enjoyed the humor, emotional generosity, and age-is-not-the-end message of ***Villa Coco***, you’ll want to spend time with Arthur Less—another gloriously imperfect character discovering that life can still surprise him. [Get this book on Bookshop.org](https://bookshop.org/p/books/less-andrew-sean-greer/d4bd55112527816b?ean=9780316316132&bkshp-astro=t&ref=readerswithwrinkles.com) [Get audiobook on Amazon Audible](https://amzn.to/4cyQsY6?ref=readerswithwrinkles.com) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/94/9a/949a9f7d-7bf4-49c9-8093-9a1af92098bf/content/images/2026/09/still.jpg) ***Still Life*** by Sarah Winman Beginning with a chance meeting between a young British soldier and an older art historian in a Tuscan villa during World War II, this sweeping novel follows the friendships, loves, losses, and chosen family that grow from one extraordinary evening. ***Still Life*** was a Sunday Times bestseller, a BBC “Between the Covers” selection, and the winner of both the Dymocks Book of the Year and the inaugural InWords Literary Award. Readers who fell for ***Villa Coco’s*** Italian setting, eccentric ensemble, and insistence on embracing beauty will find the same generous, life-affirming spirit here—only richer, deeper, and even more emotionally expansive. [Get this book on Bookshop.org](https://bookshop.org/p/books/still-life-a-gma-book-club-pick-a-novel-sarah-winman/40a7533622785b15?ean=9780593330760&bkshp-astro=t&ref=readerswithwrinkles.com) [Get audiobook on Amazon Audible](https://amzn.to/4rao3O8?ref=readerswithwrinkles.com) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/94/9a/949a9f7d-7bf4-49c9-8093-9a1af92098bf/content/images/2026/09/enchanted.jpg) ***The Enchanted April*** by Elizabeth von Arnim Four very different Englishwomen escape their ordinary lives by renting a medieval Italian castle for a month, where sunshine, gardens, sea air, and unexpected companionship begin to change them. First published in 1922, this enduring classic appears in Erica Bauermeister’s 500 Great Books by Women and remains one of the most beloved novels of restorative Italian escape. If the Tuscan magic of ***Villa Coco*** made you wish you could move into an old Italian villa with a suitcase and a questionable plan, this charming classic is your next passport-free getaway. [Get this book on Bookshop.org](https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-enchanted-april-elizabeth-von-arnim/1942c4f1218ed5b1?ean=9780143107736&bkshp-astro=t&ref=readerswithwrinkles.com) [Get audiobook on Amazon Audible](https://amzn.to/4d7Yt6k?ref=readerswithwrinkles.com) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/94/9a/949a9f7d-7bf4-49c9-8093-9a1af92098bf/content/images/2026/09/unlikely.jpg) ***The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry*** by Rachel Joyce When a recently retired man receives a letter from an old friend, he sets off to post his reply—and keeps walking across England, hoping his unexpected journey might make a difference. The novel was longlisted for the 2012 Man Booker Prize, won the UK National Book Award for New Writer of the Year, and became the bestselling hardback by a new novelist in the UK that year. Like ***Villa Coco***, this is a tender, hopeful story about someone stepping outside a familiar life and discovering that it is never too late for courage, connection, and change. [Get this book on Bookshop.org](https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-unlikely-pilgrimage-of-harold-fry-rachel-joyce/247cb6915e486045?ean=9780812983456&bkshp-astro=t&ref=readerswithwrinkles.com) [Get audiobook on Amazon Audible](https://amzn.to/4A5dpvP?ref=readerswithwrinkles.com) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/94/9a/949a9f7d-7bf4-49c9-8093-9a1af92098bf/content/images/2026/09/100.2.jpg) ***The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared*** by Jonas Jonasson On his one hundredth birthday, Allan Karlsson decides he has had quite enough of his nursing home, climbs out the window, and tumbles into a wildly improbable adventure involving a stolen suitcase and his own astonishing past. The novel won the Swedish Booksellers Award in 2010, followed by the German Pioneer Prize and Danish Audiobook Award in 2011, as well as France’s Prix Escapades in 2012\. Anyone delighted by Coco’s refusal to become invisible because of her age will adore this gleefully absurd celebration of the idea that adventure does not come with a retirement date. [Get this book on Bookshop.org](https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-100-year-old-man-who-climbed-out-the-window-and-disappeared-jonas-jonasson/e7c07f0e407eb0d6?ean=9781401324643&bkshp-astro=t&ref=readerswithwrinkles.com) [Get audiobook on Amazon Audible](https://amzn.to/4yotBqq?ref=readerswithwrinkles.com) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/94/9a/949a9f7d-7bf4-49c9-8093-9a1af92098bf/content/images/2026/09/elegance.jpg) ***The Elegance of the Hedgehog*** by Muriel Barbery In an elegant Paris apartment building, a brilliant but guarded concierge and a perceptive twelve-year-old girl form an unlikely connection when a new resident recognizes the hidden inner lives both have worked hard to conceal. This international bestseller has sold more than 10 million copies worldwide, was shortlisted for the International Dublin Literary Award, and became a New York Times bestseller. If you loved the secretive depth beneath the eccentric surface of ***Villa Coco’s*** characters, Barbery’s witty, philosophical novel offers a similarly satisfying blend of humor, heart, art, and unexpected companionship. [Get this book on Bookshop.org](https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-elegance-of-the-hedgehog-muriel-barbery/7363bb42ea8a4387?ean=9798889661207&bkshp-astro=t&ref=readerswithwrinkles.com) [Get audiobook on Amazon Audible](https://amzn.to/4gMS1UD?ref=readerswithwrinkles.com) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/94/9a/949a9f7d-7bf4-49c9-8093-9a1af92098bf/content/images/2026/09/brilliant.jpg) **The Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeysett** by Annie Lyons Eudora Honeysett is an eighty-five-year-old woman who has carefully decided how she wants her life to end—until an exuberant ten-year-old neighbor and a stray cat disrupt every certainty she thought she had. Published in the UK as ***Eudora Honeysett Is Quite Well, Thank You***, the novel was shortlisted for the 2021 RNA Contemporary Romantic Novel Award. Readers drawn to ***Villa Coco’s*** message that growing older does not mean life has stopped offering joy will appreciate this warm, funny, tearful, and deeply hopeful story of friendship and second chances. [Get this book on Bookshop.org](https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-brilliant-life-of-eudora-honeysett-a-novel-annie-lyons/5ab9311a7b9d766c?ean=9780063026070&bkshp-astro=t&ref=readerswithwrinkles.com) [Get audiobook on Amazon Audible](https://amzn.to/4hkNlWg?ref=readerswithwrinkles.com) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/94/9a/949a9f7d-7bf4-49c9-8093-9a1af92098bf/content/images/2026/09/room.jpg) ***A Room with a View*** by E. M. Forster During a trip to Florence, a young Englishwoman begins to question the carefully scripted future society has planned for her after encountering a freer, more passionate vision of life and love. Forster’s 1908 classic was later ranked No. 79 on Modern Library’s list of the 100 best English-language novels of the twentieth century. If ***Villa Coco*** made you want to choose desire over hesitation, and possibility over a life spent second-guessing yourself, ***A Room with a View*** delivers that same irresistible Italian invitation—along with a sharp, romantic push toward living more honestly. [Get this book on Bookshop.org](https://bookshop.org/p/books/a-room-with-a-view-warbler-classics-annotated-edition-e-m-forster/294a8165082bbb40?ean=9781954525795&bkshp-astro=t&ref=readerswithwrinkles.com) [Get audiobook on Amazon Audible](https://amzn.to/4AanoAk?ref=readerswithwrinkles.com) --- ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/94/9a/949a9f7d-7bf4-49c9-8093-9a1af92098bf/content/images/2026/09/VILLA-COCO-SIILAR-BOOKS-BANNER.jpg) ****Paid Subscriber Perk!** Love the book we just reviewed? Paid subscribers can now download an exclusive printable list of books with a similar vibe—perfect for planning your next read or curating your book club’s picks. It’s a handpicked, beautifully designed list guide you won’t find anywhere else. 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