Book Review: The Grand Reopening of Dandelion Café (Cherry Pie Island #1) by Jenny Oliver

Title: The Grand Reopening of Dandelion Café (Cherry Pie Island #1)
Author: Jenny Oliver
Publication Date: 27 March 2015
Publisher: Carina UK

Twitter: @jenoliverbooks
Blog/Website: http://jennyoliverbooks.com/

Rating: 4 out of 5

Synopsis

Home, Sweet Home….?

There’s nowhere more deliciously welcoming…

When Annie White steps back onto Cherry Pie Island, it’s safe to say her newly inherited Dandelion Café has seen better days! And while her childhood home on the Thames-side island idyll is exactly the same retreat from the urban bustle of London she remembers, Annie’s not convinced that Owner of The Dandelion Cafe is a title she’ll be keeping for long. Not that she can bear the idea of letting her dedicated, if endearingly disorganized staff lose their jobs. Plus café life does also have the added bonus of working a stone’s throw away from millionaire Matt and his disarmingly charming smile!

One (shoestring budget) café makeover, a few delightful additions to the somewhat retro menu and a lot of cherry pie tastings later, The Dandelion Café is ready for its grand reopening! But once she’s brought the dilapidated old café back to life, Annie finds herself wishing her stay on the island was just a bit longer. She always intended to go back to the big city…but could island living finally have lured her back home for good?

Perfect for fans of Lucy Diamond, Sophie Kinsella and Cathy Bramley.

The Cherry Pie Island series

The Grand Reopening of Dandelion Café – Book 1

The Vintage Ice Cream Van Road Trip – Book 2

The Great Allotment Challenge – Book 3

One Summer Night at the Ritz – Book 4

Review

Thank you to NetGalley and Carina UK for providing me with a copy of The Grand Reopening of Dandelion Café in return for an honest review.

This was the first of Jenny Oliver’s books that I have read and I can say that I will definitely be going back for more!

Annie White grew up on Cherry Pie Island before leaving the island, many years ago, under a black cloud. Since then, she has worked hard to create a successful life for herself in London, complete with career, home and savings. On his death several years earlier, Annie’s father left her the Dandelion Cafe in his will, contingent on Annie only taking over when the manager, Enid, is no longer able to look after the cafe.

When Enid passes away and Annie returns to the island, she sees the state of the Cafe and quickly realises that she must decide whether to sell the cafe and return to her life in London or whether to re-decorate, re-open and hope that with a bit of improvment it may be possible to turn the cafe into profitable business. Annie doesn’t seem to hold out much hope, however she is determined not to let anyone down and she simply cannot face the prospect of closing the cafe.

Annie is a very endearing and relatable character. Her handsome love interest, Matt, is equally likeable, as are all of the other supporting characters.

The setting of Cherry Tree Island is just adorable and the cover of the book perfectly creates the feeling of that island, with the sea, blue sky, quaint little cottages and the tradditional striped lighthouse. It just puts you immediately into the midset of ice-creams and sandcastles, fish & chips on the beach and friendly locals.

I would have preferred the opportunity for slightly more character development, but there was limited room to do so within such a short book and, overall, this was a very cute and enjoyable book. The characters are appealing, the location is idyllic and the writing is good. The author manages to fit a lot into a short number of pages, including friendships, disagreements, family dramas, love, romance and more than a touch of humour!

I’m now very much looking forward to book 2 in the Cherry Pie Island series.

Buy Links

Amazon UK: Kindle – http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00SBFVRIA

Amazon US: Kindle – http://amzn.com/B00SBFVRIA

About the Author

Jenny Oliver is the author of the Cherry Pie Island series. The first two books in the series – The Grand Reopening of Dandelion Cafe (a short story bestseller) and The Vintage Ice Cream Van Road Trip are out NOW! Mouthwatering, feel-good and perfect for lazy spring days.

Jenny Oliver wrote her first book on holiday when she was ten years old. Illustrated with cut-out supermodels from her sister’s Vogue, it was an epic, sweeping love story not so loosely based Dynasty.

Since then Jenny has gone on to get an English degree and a job in publishing that’s taught her what it takes to write a novel (without the help of the supermodels). She wrote her first book The Parisian Christmas Bake Off on the beach in a notebook that would end up covered in sand each afternoon and damp from the sea. This time the inspiration was her addiction to macaroons, the belief she can cook them and an all-consuming love of Christmas. When the decorations go up in October, that’s fine with her!

Follow her on Twitter @JenOliverBooks or to find out more go to her website jennyoliverbooks.com

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