Carole Matthews (1) (1957–)

This year Carole was awarded with an Outstanding Achievement Award from the Romantic Novelists' Association for 25 novels which have consistently appeared in bestseller lists. This is number 26 and in my opinion is as good as all that have gone before. Having written so many I don't how she manages to keep things fresh, but somehow she does.

In the Cake Shop in the Garden our heroine is Fay, and as per the title she runs a cake shop and cafe from the family home and narrow boat moored on the show more canal at the end of the garden. She is ably, if not always, politely assisted by Lija, a waif like, goth looking Latvian who is a brilliant character. She is the perfect comic and say it how it is foil to Fay's warm but self deprecating personality.

Fay's life revolves around the Cafe, her selfish and bedridden mother, a needy and self centred sister and a rather unexciting boyfriend of 10 years. All this changes with the arrival of the "Dream Catcher" which moors up nearby bringing with it Danny and his dog Diggery. Danny is tall, dark, handsome and Irish, certainly a winning combination for me, as his dog is also a Jack Russell I was also smitten never mind Fay!

His arrival serves as a catalyst in Fay's life and when things get problematic she has major decisions to make and not just about her love life (or lack of it).

This is a great read and not just formulaic Chick Lit dealing with the will they, won't they. It deals with real life issues of family relationships, friendships and self discovery. It has great characters apart from Danny, Fay and Lija there is the wonderful Stinky Stan. I will never eat soup again without thinking about him! If you want a heart warming and emotional read with added cake, then this is your book.

I received an ARC via NetGalley in return for an honest review. show less

Fay Merryweather runs Fay's Cakes from her family home by the canal in Milton Keynes. She also sells cakes from her late father's beloved narrowboat, The Maid of Merryweather. Ably helped by her rude and abrupt, but fiercely loyal, Latvian assistant, Lija, she also looks after her mother, who just won't get out of bed. Fay is basically a doormat but a lovely one, in a relationship with the very steady, Anthony. That is, until the gorgeous Danny Wilde glides up on his narrowboat and rocks show more Fay's world.

This is the first Carole Matthews book I have read in a long time but the title of this book made me want to read it so much and I absolutely loved it. It's certainly made me want to read another by this author. Fay is a lovely character and I wanted to shake her when she was letting people walk all over her. And I can certainly understand what she saw in the young and handsome Danny. Probably my favourite character was Lija, I just loved her attitude.

This book made me smile and also feel the injustice of Fay's life. And who could resist such a wonderful setting. I found myself imagining the tables and chairs by the canal with gorgeous cakes on them. Fabulous book - couldn't put it down. show less

{stand alone. chick-lit, romance} (2008)

Fern works as a barmaid and in between pulling pints at the King’s Head she sings in the pub, accompanied by her best friend Carl. She’s struggling to make ends meet because she also tries to help out her brother Joe who is a single parent to six year old Nathan who has bad asthma. Then she gets a temping job as assistant to world famous opera star, Evan David, and at the same time she and Carl try out for the TV talent show Fame Game.

On the whole, show more I found this a gentle book. I liked Fern’s story and the way her family was described. I can relate to her exasperation with her parents who have been married so long they tend to take each other for granted and one snaps at the other while the other is rather oblivious. She got young Nathan right; he’s not a martyr or annoying or sickly sweet. The ending was a bit of a fairytale and a bit sudden after all her struggles - but that’s why we read, right; for the happily-ever-after.

But I didn’t buy the romance; it seemed shoehorned in afterwards and you can still see the gaps. The obligatory ‘misunderstanding’ was … I’m not sure how to describe it. Flimsy? Non existent? Embarrassing on Fern’s part, yes. But there was no attempt to mitigate it and only a half-hearted attempt to explain it to her and trying to build the suspense by keeping the reader in the dark failed miserably. I could have done without the last chapter, myself. I was hoping, right upto the end, that she’d pick the other one and I really don’t get why she didn’t. There was no reason (apart from surface insta-attraction) or even chemistry shown for her to pick the one that she did.

But I still enjoyed the rest of the story.

(June 2023)
3.5 stars show less

I do love my Brit chick lit so it's no surprise that I really enjoyed this one. I rooted for Ayesha, Sabina, Joy, Hayden & Crystal the whole way through. I quite liked how each of their stories unfurled after first getting Ayesha's story. The cover pulled me in and the summary made this one a definite must read. I worried Ayesha's husband would find her. I hoped for Sabina's first words and wondered what those would be. I hoped Hayden got some help for his anxiety problems because no matter show more how nice the manse he lived in or how lovely the people who resided with him, I wanted him to get out into the wider world again after his terrible heartbreak. I thought Crystal was just a breath of fresh air even with her struggles and as soon as Joy's story of how she came to be living at the house was told, I had all kinds of sympathy and care for her, crankiness and all. I thought they were all endearing and I enjoyed reading about them. It's definitely the sort of book I'd recommend for travel or a long weekend if you're a chick lit or contemporary fiction fan. A satisfying read. show less