February 2017, Hachette Audible, 10 hours 9 minutes long, Audiobook, Review copy
Content: some romance, humour
Content: some romance, humour
Book summary from Audible who I received this copy from
Flora is forced to move back to the tiny island of Mure from the bright
lights of London. It's tough: even the beautiful landscapes and bright
blue sea can't lift her spirits - she's too busy looking after her dad
and her feckless brothers. Then she chances upon her mum's collection of
recipes and begins to cook her way through it. As she reconnects with
her family and the place she was born, might she also find herself?
Nayu's thoughts
I
had to listen to this twice because the first time I was under the
influence of heavy medication and didn't understand the story. When I
restarted it all made much more sense, and meant I'm not writing how
unlike a Jenny Colgan book it is. Flora doesn't have a major
event happen that starts her off on her cooking journey like the
other Colgan books I've read, not exactly. I liked the randomness of
how she ends up back in the island community she was born in.
She is there because she has to be-if she had a choice she would
never have gone because of a mystery incident which is revealed much
later in the story. It's interesting how an event is perceived to be
a set way by Flora but in actuality not everyone hates her for
what happened.
That's not the only life lesson she learns, but it's a
big one. I loved getting to know how live in a small community can be
for both actual and perceived outsiders. It was interesting how one
outsider had no clue how they were alienating themselves with the
community, that by doing a few easy enough acts they would find it
easier to gain local support for their project. Flora points
this out, as well as unexpectedly enjoying visiting her childhood home which leads
to Great Things Happening. I possibly would have liked a bit more
focus on the cooking side of the story, but overall it's another fun
Jenny read/listen which I will reread/relisten at some point! The
narration was perfect with different characters being distinguished
from their voices (including what sounds like accurare accents).
Find out more on Jenny's website.
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