Book Review: The Little Café in Copenhagen

The Little Café in Copenhagen 
by Julie Caplin

Published: February 2018 by Harper Impulse
Format: ebook / paperback
ASIN: B06XWD4MTP
ISBN: 978-0008259747

Summary
Welcome to the little cafe in Copenhagen where the smell of cinnamon fills the air and the hot chocolate is as smooth as silk.

Publicist Kate Sinclair’s life in London is everything she thought she wanted: success, glamour and a charming boyfriend. Until that boyfriend goes behind her back and snatches a much sought-after promotion from her.Heartbroken and questioning everything, Kate needs to escape.

Leaving behind rush hour and late nights in the office for a city break in beautiful Copenhagen, Kate discovers how to live life ‘the Danish way’. From candles and cosy nights in to the easy smiles of tall, gorgeous Vikings and eating your body weight in pastries (ok, that’s just her), the city offers her a new perspective.

Can the secrets of hygge and happiness lead her to her own happily-ever-after?

Review
To the outsider Kate's life looks perfect. She works hard, loves her job and her boyfriend, but when he stabs her in the back and steals a promotion from her things start to change and she re-evaluates what's really important.

As always, Ms Caplin's characterisation is great. I loved getting to know the cast of characters and spending time with them. Kate's attempts to organise the journalists on the press trip was much like trying to herd cats, and just as funny. Ben, the hero, was gorgeous and I so wanted to spend time in cafe Varmé with the wise, all-knowing Eva.

I came away from this book with a warm, rosy feeling and finally understood what hygge is all about.  It felt like I had actually visited Copenhagen by the time I'd finished the book, and it is now right at the top of the list of places I want to go.

If you want to lose yourself in a fun, heartwarming read with some sexy sizzle, try this book. You won't be disappointed.

Rating
Loved this book and give it 5 stars. I can't wait to read Sophie's story in The Little Paris Patisserie.

Thank you Netgalley and Harper Impulse for giving me the opportunity to read it.

T.G.I. Friday

via GIPHY

Book Review: Blueberry Muffins and Misfortune

Blueberry Muffins and Misfortune (Peridale Cafe Cozy Mystery Book 12)
by Agatha Frost

Published: May 2018 by PinkTree Publishing Ltd
Format: ebook (Kindle Unlimited)
ASIN:  B07BPW7TYZ

Summary
When Barker's book launch is ruined by the sudden appearance of a decade-old skeleton, Julia finds herself with another cold case on her hands. It quickly becomes evident that the skeleton belongs to Mabel Crump, the former manager of the library, but with Mabel supposedly having fled Peridale for a new life in Spain ten years previously, how did she end up there, and more importantly, why?

With Mabel's family gathered in Peridale for the ninetieth birthday of her husband, Julia soon realises the Crump family are not all they seem. Did one of the Crumps kill Mabel, or did someone in Julia's family murder the former librarian? Between the skeleton, Barker's sudden rise to author fame, and an unexpected love rival, Julia must juggle the different sides of her life to piece together her most challenging case yet. With secrets and lies spanning back ten long years, can Julia crack the case before everything crumbles around her?

Book 12 in the Peridale Cafe Cozy Mystery series! Can be read as a standalone but will be enjoyed more as part of the series. A light, cozy mystery read with a cat loving and cafe-owning amateur female sleuth, in a small village setting with quirky characters. Written in British English. No cliffhanger, swearing, gore or graphic scenes!

Review
I could not put this book down. Read it in two sittings and absolutely loved being back in Peridale. This time there is a complication to Julia’s love life in the form of a beautiful love rival; a crisis of conscience over blueberry muffins and we meet the Crump family - who are certainly colourful and take dysfunctional to a whole new level.

Rating
Ms Frost gets better and better.  Another 5 star read.

Thank you Ms Frost for providing an Advance Review Copy. 

Book Review: Cupcakes and Casualties

Cupcakes and Casualties (Peridale Cafe Cozy Mystery Book 11)
by Agatha Frost

Published: March 2018 by PinkTree Publishing Ltd
Format: ebook (Kindle Unlimited)
ASIN: B07B6BHQ53

Summary
The residents of Peridale don't like change, so when the famous actress, Candy Bennett, rolls into the village to demolish a historic cottage, things don't go as smoothly as she would have hoped. With the 'Peridale Preservation Society' protesting her plans to build a modern home on the land, things quickly turn sour. Days into the project, Candy's lead builder, Shane, is murdered and the task to solve the mystery once again falls into Julia's lap.

Did one of the protestors kill the builder to make a statement, or was he murdered by someone from within his own team? With the preservation society, the actress, the architect, and the builders all keeping secrets, Julia soon has her hands full gathering evidence, but it's a familiar-looking new arrival in the village that commands her attention. Julia's life is torn apart when she learns of the stranger's true identity, but will she be able to focus on the challenging case before another body turns up? The only certainty is that Julia's life will never be the same again.

Review
A fun, enjoyable read that kept me guessing right up to the final reveal.

This was my first Peridale Cafe book, but that didn’t matter as it was explained who all the characters were and their relationships to each other.

Loved the characters and can’t wait to visit Peridale again.


Rating
I enjoyed spending time with Julia and the residents of  Peridale and give this book 5 stars.

Thank you Ms Frost for providing an Advance Review Copy. 

Book Review: No One Wants To Be Miss Havisham

No One Wants To Be Miss Havisham
by Brigid Coady

Published: May 2015 by Harper Impulse
Format: ebook
ISBN: 9780008119416

Summary
What the Dickens is going on?

Edie Dickens is a shark of a divorce lawyer. She doesn’t believe in love and she scoffs at happily ever afters, however she’s agreed to be maid of honour for her oldest friend, Mel in two weeks and she still has the hen night to endure. But she has even more to endure when she’s visited by Jessica Marley’s ghost and finds out she must change her ways or end up being damned to an eternity watching other people’s happiness. Edie is visited by the Ghosts of Weddings Past, Present and Future, every Friday night until the day of the wedding. Can she learn from her mistakes in time? And did the ghosts send the hunky new lawyer, Jack Twist, to distract her?

Review
This book is a little special as it recently won the Romantic Novelists' Association's Joan Hessayon Award, and as soon as I started reading it I could see why. It is a refreshing take on a classic story with a heroine you can't help but love despite her huge flaws.

Ms Coady writes with humour and warmth and her characters are a joy to spend time with. Don't get me wrong, at first you want to slap Edie for the way she behaves, but once you get a few glimpses of why she is like she is you are soon rooting for her.

I was hooked by this novel and found myself making excuses not to do the chores so I could read just one more chapter, then another ...

Rating
I thoroughly enjoyed this book from start to finish and give it 5 stars. Well done Brigid.

Thank you Netgalley and Harper Impulse for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

Book Review: The Torn Up Marriage

The Torn Up Marriage
by Caroline Roberts

Published: March 2015 by Harper Impulse
Formats: ebook & paperback

Summary
Why do we hurt the ones we love, and can there ever be a way back?

“The Torn Up Marriage” is about betrayal, complacency, love and loss, and that key instinct to protect your family. But what happens when you tear that family apart? Kate and Michael are about to find out as they cope with the crushing fallout of his affair, whilst trying to protect their two young children. This powerful and poignant novel captures the explosiveness of everyday life and what it is to be human; to make mistakes.

Set in the historic town of Alnwick, Northumberland, with its stunning backdrop of castles, moorland hills and coastline, this relationship story of love and family takes you in a rollercoaster ride of emotions along with Kate and Michael.

Michael’s mother’s battle with breast cancer shatters them all, yet shows them how precious life, love and family is. Can they find a way back and fight for their battered yet enduring love?
So, what would you do if it happened to you? Could you betray? Could you forgive?

Review
I enjoyed Ms Robert's writing style and soon became invested in all the characters. The story is full of emotion as the characters wonder how they got to where they are in their lives.

Kate becomes more and more dependent on alcohol and turns away from her friends after the shock of Michael leaving her. Gradually she starts to pull herself together and accepts that her marriage is over. I liked Kate. She had always appeared tough and in control to Michael, but he sees a different, vulnerable side to her

It is obvious that Kate and Michael still love each other but I wasn't sure, right up until the end, whether Kate would forgive him enough to give them another chance, and I won't spoil things by telling you whether she does.

Rating
I loved the raw emotion of this story and it kept me reading until late into the night. I give the Torn Up Marriage 5 stars out of 5.

Book Review: From Italy With Love

From Italy With Love
by Jules Wake

Published: May 2015 by Harper Impulse
Format: ebook
ASIN: B00SS459DS

Summary
'To my niece I leave the Ferrari GT250… On the proviso that she takes it across Europe to Maranello within the next three weeks. Only on successful completion of the journey to a prescribed route, will the car be hers…’

Home-loving Laurie thinks she’s happy – she has a safe, reliable boyfriend and working in her local library is what she thought she always wanted. That is until she inherits a vintage Ferrari from her eccentric Uncle Miles and the conditions of the inheritance are far from simple. To keep the car Laurie will have to drive across Europe with the gorgeous but unreliable Cameron Matthews as her guide… and Cam’s motives for helping are not all that altruistic.

Cam isn’t particularly thrilled about escorting his late pal Miles’ dull mouse of a niece on this wild goose chase but all he has to do is get Laurie safely to Italy and he’s sure the Ferrari is his.

But Uncle Miles had a few tricks up his sleeve and the route he’s planned takes Cam and Laurie on a road trip they’ll never forget. From sampling the delights of the Loire Valley to the breathtaking beauty of Lake Garda, this is one journey that has more twists and turns than either of them could ever have imagined…

Review
This book hooked me from the first chapter and I settled down in my favourite chair knowing I was in for an enjoyable read. By the end of the story I felt as though I had been on a whistle-stop drive through France and Italy and was completely in love with the Ferrari.

Cam has to be one of my favourite heroes. He is super good-looking, sexy and has a wicked sense of humour, unlike Robert, Laurie's serious boyfriend. I loved seeing Laurie change as the journey progressed and the way she tried things she would never have done before taking on Uncle Miles' challenge.

Miss Wake's forte is her characterisation and I couldn't stop wondering about Laurie and Cam long after I had finished the book.

If you want a fun, holiday read to make you smile, I heartily recommend this book.

Rating
I thoroughly enjoyed Laurie and Cam's story and give this book 5 out of 5.

Thank you Netgalley and Harper Impulse for giving me the opportunity to read it.