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See the Stars by Eleanor Ray #Review

  See the Stars by Eleanor Ray will be  published on February 5th 2026 by Piatkus .  Do you ever feel that life isn't going to plan?   When Alice Thorington collapses in the street after a particularly hellish day at work, she must finally admit to herself that her outwardly happy life - steady relationship, well-paid job, beautiful flat in the city - isn't everything she'd hoped it would be. Burnt out by long hours and living a life that doesn't fulfil her dreams, Alice returns home to Yorkshire.  Her childhood home brings complicated family dynamics, a rediscovery of her passion for stargazing and two new friends: Berti, a boy who finds it easier to count the stars than interact with people, and Matt, her brother's best friend and Alice's teenage crush. With each of them facing their own struggles, can the stars that meant so much to Alice in her past help them to find their way in the present?  Filled with heart and warmth, this uplifting novel...

Summer at the Ice Cream Cafe by Jo Thomas #PaperbackLaunch #REPOST #Book Review



Today is a blogger event day to celebrate the Paperback Publication of Jo Thomas' Summer at the Ice Cream Cafe. To join in, I am reposting my review from its release.

 
The digital version was published on April 27th and the paperback on June 8th. 

 
A dream home

Beca Valentino is ready to escape the city. When she sees the perfect house for sale in her hometown, it seems like fate. Is this her chance to build the foster family she dreams of, on the beautiful Pembrokeshire coast?

A big mistake?

Returning home isn't as easy as she thought, however. Her family's beloved ice cream café is gone - turned into a soulless wine bar by her hateful ex-boyfriend. Reconnecting with her oldest friend, fisherman Griff, isn't straightforward either. And when, instead of the children she expected to take in, two wary teenage boys appear on her doorstep, Beca fears she's made a terrible mistake.

A recipe for change

But an old family recipe book is just the inspiration she needs. Soon, with a little help from friends old and new, Beca is selling mouth-watering homemade gelato from a pop-up café on the beach.

Then disaster strikes. Will the Valentino family legacy be lost forever? Or can Beca create a new recipe for happiness?


 My Thoughts

This must be the ideal Summer read. Set in Pembrokeshire, you can almost hear the sea as you read it and taste that salty sea air. It has a nostalgic feel for anyone who remembers beach holidays in Wales when they were younger as I do. Beca has returned to her childhood village with a plan to create her own home and give something back to society. Surprised to find herself feeling like a visitor rather than a local she looks for all the elements which made it home. As the story develops you see her working out how to integrate back into the place she loves. You also feel for the loss she feels when she remembers her family.

    There are some heartwarming and emotional moments in the story but also some genuinely funny episodes, mainly because of the boys she fosters. With a slow burn romance always in the background, this made for a story I loved reading and I was genuinely sorry when I came to the last page. Full of heart, with sone lively characters and humour, it makes you want to go off in search of that delicious gelato. 

In short: sunny days and ice cream delights 



About the Author

JO THOMAS worked for many years as a reporter and producer, including time at Radio 4's Woman's Hour and Radio 2's The Steve Wright Show. Jo's debut novel,The Oyster Catcher, was a runaway bestseller and won both the RNA Joan Hessayon Award and the Festival of Romance Best eBook Award. Her recent book Escape to the French Farmhouse was a #1 bestselling eBook and in every one of her novels Jo loves to explore new countries and discover the food produced there, both of which she thoroughly enjoys researching.  

Jo lives in Pembrokeshire with her husband and three children, where cooking and gathering around the kitchen table are a hugely important and fun part of their family life.

You can read my review of Jo's The Honey Farm on the Hill here 
Coming Home to Winter Island here  Escape to the French Farmhouse here and Finding Love at the Christmas Market here, Celebrations at the Chateau  here Retreat to the Spanish Sun  here
  
You can follow Jo here:  Twitter   |  Website   |  Facebook

Book link: Amazon UK
   
Thanks to Jo Thomas, Transworld and Anne Cater of Random Things Tours for a copy of the book and a place on the event. 
 

 


 


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