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NetGalley Review of Villa Coco

Posted on June 4, 2026February 7, 2026 by caritagardiner
Screenshot 2026-02-02 at 8.55.37 PM

title: Villa Coco

author: Andrew Sean Greer

publisher: Doubleday

publication date: June 9, 2026

pages: 288

peppers: 2 (on this scale)

warnings: frenetic pace

summary: the unnamed narrator gets a job at Villa Coco. He's supposed to be there to catalogue the contents of the house, but the quirky, ninety-two year old owner of the estate has other plans for him.

tropes:

  • American abroad
  • quirky employer
  • lots of people coming and going
  • other people's beliefs and customs
  • only one room when the car breaks down

what I liked:

  •  some of the humorous, "silly American" moments
  • clever writing (I really thought I'd like this one because I loved Less. Alas, I didn't.

what I didn’t like:

  • frenetic pace and slapstick humor was too much for me

overall rating: 2 (of 5 stars)

As always, you can click on the photo above if you want to buy the book.

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WHAT I DO

I serve as a class dean and teach English to high schoolers at a boarding school in Connecticut. I’ve earned a Bachelor of Arts (Amherst College), an Education Master in Learning and Teaching (Harvard University Graduate School of Education), a Master of Arts in English (Bread Loaf School of English), and most recently a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing with a certificate in the online teaching of writing (Southern New Hampshire University).

As a writer, I hope to capture the complexity and joy of life in the New England boarding school world. On this site, I share what I know about trying to write fiction while deaning, teaching English, coaching, and doing the other tasks associated with helping to raise over six hundred other people’s children.

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Read my recent “Why” Wednesday Blog Posts

  • NetGalley Review of Villa Coco
  • 388. Why Not “Could Potentially”
  • NetGalley Review of You Won’t Forget Me
  • NetGalley Review of The Valencia Expat Club
  • 387. Why Give Speeches
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