Book Review: Christmas at Carly's Cupcakes by Jessica Redland

Christmas at Carly's Cupcakes

by Jessica Redland

Amazon US / UK / CA / AU

Christmas at Carly’s Cupcakes is a cozy heartwarming tale of friendship, family, putting the past behind, and embracing the future. 

It’s Christmas in Whitsborough Bay. With fairy lights connecting the shops and cafés on either side of the cobbles, Castle Street seems magical. And in such a magical place, surely Christmas wishes can come true.

Carly Travis, owner of Carly’s Cupcakes, has two Christmas wishes this year. Her first is for her younger sister, Bethany, to focus on the positives in her life, including her Christmas wedding, instead of writing herself off as a failure. Bethany's attempts at cake-decorating aren't going to win any awards, but she’s certainly great with customers. Carly’s second wish is for her best friend, Liam, to come home for Christmas.

When Liam calls to say he’s been granted leave from the army, Carly makes a third Christmas wish. It’s the one she’s made every year since she was a teenager and, if she’s really brave, could this be the year when it finally comes true?

With Liam coming home, the shop having its best year yet, and a wedding to look forward to, it’s shaping up to be the best Christmas ever for Carly. But for Bethany, things are starting to unravel …

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

The bullies called Carly “Bear Trap” thanks to a mouthful of metal, and Liam’s nickname was “Skindiana Bones.” It was one of the reasons he and Carly had become such good friends: outcasts together.

Liam had come up with the genius name, “The Biscuit Bunch,” because the large group of girls had been carbon copies of each other at school, exactly like a packet of biscuits: same haircut, same way of wearing their skirt and tie, same coat, same shoes, same bag … and same merciless bullying.

Before I hug you all goodbye, does anyone have anything else they want to confess? Nobody else tried to play tonsil hockey with Joshua? No? That’s a relief.

‘This isn’t your way of telling me that you really do want to run off with The Chief Biscuit?’ Liam’s expression turned very solemn and, for a moment, Carly’s stomach sank. ‘It’s an interesting proposition… But why would I want biscuits when I can have cake?’

My Review:

I have come to the end of my treasure chest of Jessica Redland books. I may go into withdrawal as I have been gleefully binging on her clever words with great delight. Written in the 3rd person and laced with bright wit and observational levity, this well-crafted story was a quick and engaging read that captivated, entertained, and squeezed the heart. Ms. Redland has such agile word skills and deftly tucks in imaginative and creative details and lush descriptions that elevate an excellent story into an exceptional one. I adore her and fervently hope she is banging away on her next mesmerizing tale, as I am eager to return to my vast collection of quirky friends residing in the quaint village of Whitsborough Bay.

Empress DJ

Author Bio

Jessica had never considered writing as a career until a former manager kept telling her that her business reports read more like stories and she should write a book. She loved writing but had no plot ideas. Then something happened to her that prompted the premise for her debut novel, Searching for Steven. She put fingers to keyboard and soon realized she had a trilogy and a novella.

She lives on the stunning North Yorkshire Coast — the inspiration for the settings in her books — with her husband, daughter, cat, Sprocker Spaniel, and an ever-growing collection of collectible teddy bears. Although if the dog has her way, the collection will be reduced to a pile of stuffing and chewed limbs!

Her passion for North Yorkshire is shared by fellow-writer and great friend, Sharon Booth and, together, they are the Yorkshire Rose Writers.

Jessica tries to balance her time — often unsuccessfully — between being an HR tutor, trying to re-learn how to play the piano, studying towards a Masters in Creative Writing, and writing itself. Who needs sleep?

Social Media Links

Twitter: @JessicaRedland

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JessicaRedlandWriter/

Website and blog: www.jessicaredland.com

Book Review: Charlee and the Chocolate Shop: A Tale of Two Christmases by Jessica Redland

Charlee and The Chocolate Shop

by Jessica Redland

Amazon US / UK / CA / AU

Charlee and the Chocolate Shop is a heart-warming tale of family and friendship.

Master chocolatier, Charlee Chambers, has plenty to be excited about as Christmas approaches. She’s moved in with her boyfriend, Darren, and she’s about to open a chocolate shop, following in her late granddad’s footsteps. If only Darren would show more interest in helping her refurbish Charlee’s Chocolates ready for a December opening.

When water starts pouring through the shop ceiling, and Darren can’t be contacted to help, emergency plumber Matt comes to the rescue. From that moment on, Matt does more to support Charlee in achieving her dreams than Darren ever has, and she finds herself drawn to him. But Matt’s engaged and Charlee loves Darren … doesn’t she? And Darren loves her … or at least, she thinks he does, but he's been behaving a little strangely recently.

Then Charlee discovers that Darren has a secret. But so does Matt. And so, it seems, does the woman who abandoned her at birth ...

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

I’d love to say that I ditched a hot date or a big night out but, let’s face it, my 96-year-old great grandma has a better social life than me.

When they’re all together they act like they’re 16 instead of in their early 30s. It’s as though they’ve just discovered alcohol but the world’s supply is about to run out so they need to consume a lifetime’s quantity in one evening.

What was family? Was it shared genes or was it the people who were there for you no matter what?

Oh my God! This means Satan’s Mistress is your half-sister.

My Review:

I fear Jessica Redland has become an addiction; I adore her sneakily wry and insightful writing style. She has created a picture-perfect scene for Christmas magic with Charlee’s tale; imbuing the story with her lovely descriptions, picturesque details, and emotive word choices that scaled all the feels, several times, while also continually plucking at my curiosity. As with all her poignant books, the characters were intriguingly human, realistically flawed and more than a bit damaged, yet endearingly and admirably shouldering through while working hard and putting their best forward. I aspire to achieve the same but know I fall far short of that goal as I am slothfully lazy and well over my lifetime limit of dealing with difficult people.

Empress DJ

Author Bio

Jessica had never considered writing as a career until a former manager kept telling her that her business reports read more like stories and she should write a book. She loved writing but had no plot ideas. Then something happened to her that prompted the premise for her debut novel, Searching for Steven. She put fingers to keyboard and soon realized she had a trilogy and a novella.

She lives on the stunning North Yorkshire Coast — the inspiration for the settings in her books — with her husband, daughter, cat, Sprocker Spaniel, and an ever-growing collection of collectible teddy bears. Although if the dog has her way, the collection will be reduced to a pile of stuffing and chewed limbs!

Her passion for North Yorkshire is shared by fellow-writer and great friend, Sharon Booth and, together, they are the Yorkshire Rose Writers.

Jessica tries to balance her time — often unsuccessfully — between being an HR tutor, trying to re-learn how to play the piano, studying towards a Masters in Creative Writing, and writing itself. Who needs sleep?

Social Media Links

Twitter: @JessicaRedland

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JessicaRedlandWriter/

Website and blog: www.jessicaredland.com

Book Review: Bear With Me by Jessica Redland

Bear With Me

by Jessica Redland

Amazon US / UK / AU / CA 

Jemma has the job of her dreams as curator for the children’s section of a museum in London. She spends each day surrounded by the one thing she’s absolutely passionate about teddy bears. When boyfriend, Scott, shows a genuine interest in her passion instead of laughing at her for “playing with teddies all day”, she knows he’s a keeper.

Returning home to the North Yorkshire seaside town of Whitsborough Bay to celebrate her birthday, Jemma thinks she’s heading for her happy-ever-after when Scott unexpectedly proposes. So, a few days later, why isn’t he returning her calls or responding to her texts?

Julie has always been a wonderful single mother to Jemma and her little brother, Sean. As the owner of specialist teddy bear shop, Bear With Me, and the creative genius behind the successful range of Ju-Sea Bears, she inspires Jemma with her ability to balance a demanding career with home life. So why is the shop now in disarray and why is Sean so upset?

Sam thought he had his future all worked out. With a promising neurology career, a home, and a devoted fiancée, life was looking good. But now he’s all alone in a strange city, far from everyone and everything he cares about, struggling to rebuild the tatters of his life. Did he do the right thing by running away? What does the future hold and is he strong enough to face it?

Sometimes love finds us when we least expect it. But sometimes love leaves us, just as unexpectedly. When you’ve loved and lost, can you bear to let love in again?

Bear With Me, as all will be revealed …

 My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

Dad hated bears, Mum hated golf, and I was pretty certain they hated each other.


Kirsty begged me to take her back... It was a different technique each time from tears to seduction to pleading temporary insanity because she loved me so much and couldn’t bear being away from me. I never understood that logic. If you miss someone, you send them a text, you look at a photo, you sniff their clothes. You don’t play a game of hide the sausage dressed as a canine.

My Review:

I devoured this engaging and captivating tale, it was full of interesting and heart squeezing storylines that while tragic and angsty, were so well written and expertly tempered with levity and quirkiness that I didn't seem to mind at all. I adored the main characters although there was a period where I wanted to give Jemma a few hard pinches and a much-needed kick to her posterior to dislodge her cranium. The path of this couple's relationship was a zigzag route of false starts and bad timing, and I wanted to groan with frustration for them with each near miss. The writing was easy to follow, informative, well-paced, and held my complete attention throughout. I adored the gradual melding of Flash Gordon/Thor/Indiana Jones and the Deputy Head Bear-Keeper. And I scored two fun new additions to my Brit word list with tiddly which is slightly drunk, and nithered which is used in northern UK and Scotland to describe the effects of extreme cold such as intense shivering.

Empress DJ

Author Bio

Jessica had never considered writing as a career until a former manager kept telling her that her business reports read more like stories and she should write a book. She loved writing but had no plot ideas. Then something happened to her that prompted the premise for her debut novel, Searching for Steven. She put fingers to keyboard and soon realized she had a trilogy and a novella.

She lives on the stunning North Yorkshire Coast — the inspiration for the settings in her books — with her husband, daughter, cat, Sprocker Spaniel, and an ever-growing collection of collectible teddy bears. Although if the dog has her way, the collection will be reduced to a pile of stuffing and chewed limbs!

Her passion for North Yorkshire is shared by fellow-writer and great friend, Sharon Booth and, together, they are the Yorkshire Rose Writers.

Jessica tries to balance her time — often unsuccessfully — between being an HR tutor, trying to re-learn how to play the piano, studying towards a Masters in Creative Writing, and writing itself. Who needs sleep?

Social Media Links

Twitter: @JessicaRedland

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JessicaRedlandWriter/

Website and blog: www.jessicaredland.com

Book Review: Christmas at The Chocolate Pot Café by Jessica Redland

Christmas at The Chocolate Pot Café

by Jessica Redland

Amazon US / UK / CA / AU

A few minutes of courage might change your life…

Emotionally, Tara Porter finds the festive period a challenge. Christmas Day is a reminder of the family she lost, and New Year’s Eve holds bitter memories of the biggest mistake of her life: marrying Garth Tewkesbury. Shunning invitations to celebrate, she seeks refuge in her flat with only her giant house bunny, Hercules, for company.

Professionally, though, it’s the best time of year. Tara’s thriving café, The Chocolate Pot, is always packed. With the café hosting a wedding and engagement party, it’s shaping up to be the café’s best Christmas ever.

When former nemesis, Jed Ferguson, threatens the future of The Chocolate Pot, Tara prepares for a fight. The café is everything to her and she’s not going to let anyone or anything jeopardize that.

Tara badly misjudged ex-husband Garth and, since then, has refused to let anyone in. After all, if you don’t let them in, they can’t hurt you. But has she misjudged Jed too? Is it possible that he’s not the arrogant, deceitful man from whom she bought the café 14 years earlier? Can she find the courage to find out for sure?

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

Nobody had ever kissed my hand before. I felt like a heroine in an Austen novel, being wooed by an English gent. I had to fight hard not to giggle childishly or say anything stupid.

I’ll admit that there’s a teeny weeny fragment of sympathy for him, but Joyce seems to think the sun shines out of his arse, whereas I just think he is an arse.

I think I may have had an attack of the verbals…


My Review:


Tara was an enigmatic cross between Pollyanna, a “spiky” cynic, and a secretly prolific crafter and hygge enthusiast. She had limited her life space to her business, her giant house bunny, and her clandestine crafting. Her story tugged and squeezed my heart and I adored her, as I have every quirkily flawed character this talented author has introduced me to with this addictive and entertaining series. Each story in this lively and insightfully written series has been delightfully and lusciously detailed with poignant and original storylines and unique challenges for the lovable yet besieged characters to conquer. This story held several added layers of maddeningly paced intrigue that continually poked and prickled my curiosity. I seem destined to read Ms. Redland’s work out of order, yet it makes no nevermind as while her tales are interconnected, they all have strong legs and are quite capable of standing alone, but what is the fun in that? Collect and read them all, and be a better person for it. I have unearthed a fun new addition to my Brit Word list with muggins, which Mr. Google defined as “a foolish and gullible person (often used humorously to refer to oneself).” 

Empress DJ

Author Bio

Jessica had never considered writing as a career until a former manager kept telling her that her business reports read more like stories and she should write a book. She loved writing but had no plot ideas. Then something happened to her that prompted the premise for her debut novel, Searching for Steven. She put fingers to keyboard and soon realized she had a trilogy and a novella.

She lives on the stunning North Yorkshire Coast — the inspiration for the settings in her books — with her husband, daughter, cat, Sprocker Spaniel, and an ever-growing collection of collectible teddy bears. Although if the dog has her way, the collection will be reduced to a pile of stuffing and chewed limbs!

Her passion for North Yorkshire is shared by fellow-writer and great friend, Sharon Booth and, together, they are the Yorkshire Rose Writers.

Jessica tries to balance her time — often unsuccessfully — between being an HR tutor, trying to re-learn how to play the piano, studying towards a Masters in Creative Writing, and writing itself. Who needs sleep?

Social Media Links

Twitter: @JessicaRedland

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JessicaRedlandWriter/

Website and blog: www.jessicaredland.com

Book Review: Callie's Christmas Wish -Still Raving About Rhys by Jessica Redland

Callie’s Christmas Wish

by Jessica Redland

Amazon US / UK / CA / AU

Christmas is approaching and love is in the air at Bay View Care Home. Supervising carer, Callie Derbyshire, is blissfully happy with new boyfriend, Rhys. The tree’s up, the lights are twinkling, and, with the Christmas Eve wedding of one of the residents, Iris, to look forward to, everything is perfect.

Well, almost.

Rhys’s ex has him at her beck and call, yet refuses to let Callie meet their baby daughter. Callie’s ex is intent on stirring up trouble. And Callie’s favorite resident, Rhys’s nanna, Ruby, hasn’t been her usual self since Iris announced her engagement.

Convinced that Ruby’s lonely, especially after discovering the truth about her lost love, Callie’s determined to give Ruby’s romantic story the happy ending it deserves. Ruby might be adamant that the past should be left in the past. But, when it comes to true love, surely a little well-meaning meddling and a Christmas wish or two can’t do any harm. After all, it’s never too late to let love in again. Or is it?

A heartwarming Christmas story of finding new love, and the courage to revisit a love that was lost long ago.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

I’m not about to dump you and if I was, which I’m not, I certainly wouldn’t do it at work two days before Christmas. What do you take me for? I’d do it by text on Christmas Day instead.

Even with her face scrubbed clear of make-up and her hair hanging damp and limp around her shoulders, she was still really pretty. I’d cruelly been hoping that she needed to be caked in make-up and would be rough as a badger’s arse when she removed it.

Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass. It’s about learning to dance in the rain.

I don’t believe a word she says. She’ll either have a hangover, period pains, or bullshititis.

I love you… Deeper than the ocean, higher than the sky, and longer than time…

My Review:

I love a feisty heroine, especially an elderly one. If I am destined to remain above ground into my eighties I aspire to be as spry and adventuresome as Ms. Redland’s brilliantly crafted octogenarian character named Ruby. I adored her as well as the totality of this cleverly amusing story. I was heavily invested in the characters and well entertained from beginning to end by the humor and poignancy found in the unusual situations and choices made. The storylines were engaging, unpredictable, wryly witty, and highly original. Ms. Redland’s writing is always keenly observant and insightful while simultaneously humorous and thoughtfully discerning. Her quirky characters were intriguing and although they weren’t always likable, I remained curious and interested in knowing more about them. And I picked up three new entries for my Brit word list, with rota – work schedule, grizzling – crying or complaining, and sea fret – fog from the ocean.

Empress DJ

Author Bio 

Jessica had never considered writing as a career until a former manager kept telling her that her business reports read more like stories and she should write a book. She loved writing but had no plot ideas. Then something happened to her that prompted the premise for her debut novel, Searching for Steven. She put fingers to keyboard and soon realized she had a trilogy and a novella.

She lives on the stunning North Yorkshire Coast — the inspiration for the settings in her books — with her husband, daughter, cat, Sprocker Spaniel, and an ever-growing collection of collectible teddy bears. Although if the dog has her way, the collection will be reduced to a pile of stuffing and chewed limbs!

Her passion for North Yorkshire is shared by fellow-writer and great friend, Sharon Booth and, together, they are the Yorkshire Rose Writers.

Jessica tries to balance her time — often unsuccessfully — between being an HR tutor, trying to re-learn how to play the piano, studying towards a Masters in Creative Writing, and writing itself. Who needs sleep?

Social Media Links –

Twitter: @JessicaRedland

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JessicaRedlandWriter/

Website and blog: www.jessicaredland.com

Book Review: Searching For Steven by Jessica Redland

Searching For Steven

by Jessica Redland

Goodreads

Amazon US / UK

B&N

What if you already know your future… but not the path to take you there?

When Sarah Peterson accepts her Auntie Kay's unexpected offer to take over her florist's shop, she's prepared for a change of job, home, and lifestyle. What she isn't prepared for is the discovery of a scarily accurate clairvoyant reading that's been missing for twelve years. All her predictions have come true, except one: she's about to meet the man of her dreams. Oh, and his name is Steven. Suddenly Stevens are everywhere. Could it be the window cleaner, the rep, the manager of the coffee shop, or any of the men she's met online? On top of that, she finds herself quite attracted to a handsome web designer, but his name isn't even Steven... During this unusual search, will Sarah find her destiny?

My Rating:

Favorite Quote:

All that stuff today was just the icing on the cake; it’s all very nice but the cake is the best part and I already have the cake.

My Review:

I have gotten around to all the Whitsborough Bay stories and oddly enough have read the first one last, but it really didn’t matter, they could all stand on their own with independent and strong storylines.  I have enjoyed this series with its quirky cast of characters and their amusing encounters and unique considerations.  I hope there will be more as I enjoy Ms. Redland’s clever humor and engaging writing style.  Her levity balances and tempers the angst and heart-squeezes.  I adored the characters of Auntie Kay as well as Nick and Sarah and found Sarah’s attempts to locate her fated Steven to be pleasantly entertaining.  The premise was original and interesting while the writing was fun and humorous yet also thoughtfully observant and insightful.  And as always, Ms. Redland has provided me with new Brit vocabulary words, this time I have gleaned swot (studious), and pernickety (UK version of persnickety).  

Empress DJ

Author Bio –

Jessica had never considered writing as a career until a former manager kept telling her that her business reports read more like stories and she should write a book. She loved writing but had no plot ideas. Then something happened to her that prompted the premise for her debut novel, Searching for Steven. She put fingers to keyboard and soon realized she had a trilogy and a novella!

She lives on the stunning North Yorkshire Coast – the inspiration for the settings in her books – with her husband, daughter, cat, Sprocker Spaniel, and an ever-growing collection of collectible teddy bears. Although if the dog has her way, the collection will be reduced to a pile of stuffing and chewed limbs!

Jessica tries to balance her time – usually unsuccessfully – between being an HR tutor and writing.


Social Media Links –

Twitter: @JessicaRedland

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JessicaRedlandWriter/

Website and blog: www.jessicaredland.com

Book Review: Raving About Rhys by Jessica Redland

Raving About Rhys

by Jessica Redland

Goodreads

Amazon US / UK

Bubbly Callie Derbyshire loves her job as a carer, and can't believe she's finally landed herself a decent boyfriend - older man Tony - who's lasted way longer than the usual disastrous three months. Tony's exactly what she's always dreamed of ... or at least he would be if he ever took her out instead of just taking her to bed. And work would be perfect too if she wasn't constantly in trouble with her boss, The She-Devil Denise.

When the new gardener, Mikey, discovers her in a rather compromising position at work, Callie knows that her days at Bay View Care Home could be numbered. Can she trust him not to tell Denise? If she's issued with her marching orders, who'll look out for her favorite client, Ruby, whose grandson, Rhys, seems to constantly let her down? What does Ruby know about Tony? And what is Denise hiding?

Surrounded by secrets and lies, is there anyone left who Callie can trust?

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

Believe me, I’ve kissed more than my fair share of frogs. And toads. And snakes.

‘Please don’t tell anyone I said rude words. Especially The She-Devil.’ … I’d been hauled into her office only the week before and lectured on the ‘inappropriateness’ of shouting out, ‘Who’s farted?’ during film night. It didn’t matter to her that the residents had found it hilarious… Apparently, ‘The elderly frequently suffer from flatulence issues and staff should know better than to draw attention to it using vulgar language’. Whoops.

I like sugar daddies. Did I tell you about my first one? I was sixteen and he was the fifty-eight-year-old lion tamer at the circus. There was nothing that man couldn’t do with a whip…

My Review:

I have read this series out of order but that doesn’t seem to have mattered as every installment has strong enough legs to stand on its own. I have enjoyed each of the Whitsborough Bay stories that I’ve read and fervently hope that Ms. Redland continues the series into perpetuity. I enjoy her amusing storylines and uniquely vulnerable characters, as most of us in the real world are struggling with something even if the issues appear of no consequence or minuscule to others. Her stories are well balanced with humor, angst, and an interesting and relevant storyline with a few twists and surprises tossed in to keep us alert.

Empress DJ

Author Bio 

Jessica had never considered writing as a career until a former manager kept telling her that her business reports read more like stories and she should write a book. She loved writing but had no plot ideas. Then something happened to her that prompted the premise for her debut novel, Searching for Steven. She put fingers to keyboard and soon realized she had a trilogy and a novella!

She lives on the stunning North Yorkshire Coast – the inspiration for the settings in her books – with her husband, daughter, cat, Sprocker Spaniel, and an ever-growing collection of collectible teddy bears. Although if the dog has her way, the collection will be reduced to a pile of stuffing and chewed limbs!

Jessica tries to balance her time – usually unsuccessfully – between being an HR tutor and writing.


Social Media Links –

Twitter: @JessicaRedland

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JessicaRedlandWriter/

Website and blog: www.jessicaredland.com