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
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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