By Karen Clarke  
Read Feb. 2017
Free copy received from NetGalley.com for in return for an honest review.

Synopsis of the book from GoodReads.com:

Chocolate fudge, butterscotch and raspberry bonbons… treat yourself to some sugary treats, a big slice of friendship and a sprinkling of romance at The Beachside Sweet Shop.

When Marnie Appleton inherited a sweet shop from her grandfather she was determined to do his legacy proud. The shop has been a much-loved feature of the little seaside town of Shipley for years, but now Marnie needs to bring it up to date, and she’s recruited gorgeous new assistant Josh to help.

Marnie gets busy redecorating the shop and choosing delicious new sweets to stock, but things are never that simple: new neighbour Isobel, a fame-hungry blogger, is on a crusade against sugar, and she’ll go to any lengths to secure bad publicity for Marnie’s shop.

Marnie fights back with homemade sugar-free treats, but with her best friend Beth heavily pregnant, her grandmother Celia recovering from an operation, and her very recently ex-boyfriend Alex returning to Shipley with a new love, Marnie has a lot on her plate.

And then there’s Josh, with whom Marnie is struggling to keep her relationship strictly professional…Will both the sweet shop and love flourish?

 

My Review:

To start, this book is a fairly quick read, I read it in a few hours one afternoon.  It’s 267 pages and I read it on my kindle.

Karen Clarke’s writing style is easy to read and flows well. She brings in the quirks of the supporting characters and makes you want to get to know them ALL.

Marnie Appleton is a very lucky woman.. it just takes her a bit to realize it!   Marnie THINKS she wants to travel the world and resents being “stuck” in the small town… or does she?  I was intrigued by this idea and the internal struggle that Marnie was having.  I liked how things moved in the story to help her reach her conclusion.

Some things I wish had developed more were the issue between Marnie, Josh and Josh’s uncle; Isabel’s “problem”; and Marnie’s mother and what happened in the past between her and Harry’s dad.

At the end of the book was a letter from Karen Clarke indicating she would be writing more stories about this town and it’s inhabitants.  I can’t wait to read the next one!!

GoodReads:

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