Summer Strawberries at Swallowtail Bay
Katie Ginger
Rating: 4 stars
Hetty Colman loves her life in the cosy seaside town of Swallowtail Bay, organising children's birthdays, anniversaries and retirement parties. But after her recent break up from long-term boyfriend Ben, she's been searching for something new.
So, when Hetty overhears locals wondering how to return the old strawberry festival to its former glory, she jumps at the chance to relaunch it. There are just two problems - she only has four weeks to organise it and absolutely no where to host it!
When Hetty manages to convince the aloof, yet extremely handsome, John Thornhill to use the grounds of his rundown manor, things start to look up. But as Hetty and John grow closer and Ben tries to win back her affections, can Hetty make the festival and her love life run smoothly at the same time?
Fans of Rachael Lucas, Cathy Bramley and Jenny Colgan will fall in love with this hilarious summer read from Katie Ginger!
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I'm not going to lie, I have been so looking forward to reading another novel by Katie Ginger ever since I read the first book in this series. I absolutely loved it so I couldn't wait to read this one. The cover is so pretty and eye-catching and I love the strawberries and sweat treats that are lined along the bottom! And of course the bright blue sea and colourful bunting gives it a summery vibe. However, it did take me a little while to get into.
I'm not sure why because the location of this book is just perfect. I love the sound of the shops, cafe's as well as the beach and the pub, but I just found it a little slow at first. I didn't fully relate nor warm to Hetty and John at first and this was probably because of all the formalities at their meetings, it just seemed a little bit too high and mighty for my liking. However, once the meetings got out the way, I started to enjoy the storyline a bit more.
Once the story got going, I started to like the characters a little better and was starting to look forward to the food festival myself! It sounded like it was going to be amazing, especially with the funfair and the film screening. I could understand why John was the way he was, he was under a lot of financial and home stress so of course he was going to be a little standoffish. I wasn't a huge fan of his family, they all seemed quite stuck up and quite rude, especially Felix.
What I found a little confusing was Hetty's relationship woes. It was clear for me to see that she had feelings for John, the way she felt a sizzle every time she saw him made it pretty obvious! But, she also still had feelings for ex-boyfriend Ben, who has his own bakery in the bay. I wasn't a huge fan of Ben, simply because he seemed so sure of himself and sometimes just plain cocky. I'm not sure what Hetty see in him, but when he came up to her and was convinced they would get back together, it made me go right off him!
Overall, this was a lighthearted read but unfortunately wasn't my favourite by this author, I'm not sure what it was but it just didn't really hold my attention. I am looking forward to reading her other novels however, as I really enjoyed the first Swallowtail Bay book. Thank you to the publisher for a chance to read an advance copy of this novel via Netgalley, which I have reviewed honestly.
Once the story got going, I started to like the characters a little better and was starting to look forward to the food festival myself! It sounded like it was going to be amazing, especially with the funfair and the film screening. I could understand why John was the way he was, he was under a lot of financial and home stress so of course he was going to be a little standoffish. I wasn't a huge fan of his family, they all seemed quite stuck up and quite rude, especially Felix.
What I found a little confusing was Hetty's relationship woes. It was clear for me to see that she had feelings for John, the way she felt a sizzle every time she saw him made it pretty obvious! But, she also still had feelings for ex-boyfriend Ben, who has his own bakery in the bay. I wasn't a huge fan of Ben, simply because he seemed so sure of himself and sometimes just plain cocky. I'm not sure what Hetty see in him, but when he came up to her and was convinced they would get back together, it made me go right off him!
Overall, this was a lighthearted read but unfortunately wasn't my favourite by this author, I'm not sure what it was but it just didn't really hold my attention. I am looking forward to reading her other novels however, as I really enjoyed the first Swallowtail Bay book. Thank you to the publisher for a chance to read an advance copy of this novel via Netgalley, which I have reviewed honestly.
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