The Cornish Cream Tea Bus
Cressida McLaughlin
Rating: 5 stars
Rating: 5 stars
Next stop, Cornwall! Hop on The Cornish Cream Tea Bus for a delicious, romantic adventure...
Baking fanatic, Charlie Quilter, is surprised when her late uncle bequeaths his vintage bus to her in his will. Keen to give the bus a new lease of life, Charlie thinks it will be mobile cafe for afternoon tea, and when her friend, Juliette, suggests Charlie comes to stay with her in the picturesque Cornish village of Porthgolow, she's thrilled at the chance of a new start.
Charlie and her cute dog, Marmite, makes new friends wherever their bus stops - except for the sexy but reclusive owner of the posh spa up on the hill, Daniel Harper, who isn't very pleased that her bus is parked outside his lovely hotel.
Has Charlie's Cornish dream developed a soggy bottom? Or can she convince Daniel that her bus could be the start of something wonderful for the little village - and for them?
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I was eagerly awaiting a new novel or series by Cressida McLaughlin, her novels are brilliant and I can never put them down! So when I saw the cover of this on Amazon I couldn't wait to read it. I absolutely adore the colours used - such bright pastels used on the bus, the bright yellow sand, sunshiny blue sky and the cute bunting along the top makes such a lovely cover and makes me want to visit! I also love that at the start of each chapter there is a cute little teacup.
The story itself starts off quite sadly, with Charlie and her dad working on the old bus and feeling quite emotional as they've just lost a loved one. However, you can feel how close they were to Hal and how close they are as father and daughter as well, and it was quite a nice opening. The story gets moving quite quickly, so soon we're enjoying Charlie taking Gertie out for a test run (at being a moving tea room) at a fair, to see how people react. Most of Hal's old friends aren't too impressed, and after a minor disaster strikes, Charlie is left feeling quite deflated. Her boss orders her to take some time off, and so Charlie decides to go down to Porthgolow to visit her best friend Juliette and to get a break away from everything else.
Porthgolow sounded so idyllic and not for the first time throughout Cressida's novels I'm wishing that I could live or visit some place just like that! The story absolutely flew by, and once Charlie moved to Porthgolow I really started loving it and didn't want it to end! I loved each new character, the new location, and everything that was changing with Gertie was just so exciting! I enjoyed reading about Charlie's relationships, with both Daniel and Oliver, and I was intrigued as to who she would feel closer to. Charlie's character herself was really relatable. She seemed like such a genuine and caring character. And I loved reading about her conversations with Reenie. As well as Reenie, there are also other secondary characters that you get to meet and read about, and most of them (with the exception of a few) are all really lovely and a dream to read about.
The storyline itself is really addictive, with each part only taking a few hours to read and finish. It's an absolutely fabulous novel and I urge you to give it a read. Thank you to the publisher for a chance to read an advance copy of this novel, which I have reviewed honestly.
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