This post was originally published at Novelicious.com and is now at WritingTipsOasis.com. WritingTipsOasis.com acquired Novelicious.com in June 2022.
Reviewed by Susan Lobban
As soon as Annie steps foot in the Dandelion Cafe she is transported back to the days when she would sit at one of the tables with her dad chatting over a plate of infamous Cherry Pie. Unfortunately, those days have long gone and now that she has made a life for herself in London, she has had no reason to come back to Cherry Pie Island – until now.
Enid, the manager her Dad left in charge, has died and now the cafe’s legacy is in Annie’s hands. Looking around, it’s plain to see that not much has changed since Annie was last there and that is not a good thing. She had no intention of running the cafe, but at the same time she is set against her brother’s money-fuelled plans to build on the land. Her dad must have left his beloved cafe to her for some reason, but in amongst the chipped formica and dirty walls, Annie is finding it hard to what that reason may be.
This book is the first in a brand new series set on Cherry Pie Island, however, rather than being full-length, each part of the story will be published seperately as a novella. Personally, I am not a big fan of splitting books into parts and would prefer to wait for the full novel. However, as I loved Jenny Oliver’s previous books so much I was willing to give this a try. And with the other parts following on fairly quickly – they are set to be published every month – it’s almost like taking continuous breaks from the one book.
Length aside, I did enjoy the premise of Annie returning to take over the cafe that holds such fond family memories for her. Injecting new life into a rundown family business never gets old for me and, in this case, I found that the side stories held just as much, if not more, of my interest. Although, as predicted, just as I was wanted to delve further into certain characters – especially Matt and River – the book ended. It does give you a small taster of what is to come and I could see which characters would play a part further down the line.
In the past I have always read Jenny Oliver’s books greedily and finished them in one or two sittings, but this time I was left wanting more. I like to have my cake and eat it! If you have yet to discover this author, this book will definitely whet your appetite for more.7/10