The Gift of Cockleberry Bay
by Nicola May
All of our favorite characters from Cockleberry Bay are back in this final, heart-warming story in the series. Including Hot, Rosa Smith's adorable dachshund and his new-born puppies.
Now successfully running the Cockleberry Café and wishing to start a family herself, Rosa feels the time is right to let her inherited Corner Shop go. However, her benefactor left one important legal proviso: that the shop cannot be sold, only passed on to somebody who really deserves it.
Rosa is torn. How can she make such a huge decision? And will it be the right one? Once the news gets out and goes public, untrustworthy newcomers appear in the Bay . . . their motives uncertain. With the revelation of more secrets from Rosa's family heritage, a new journey of unpredictable and life-changing events begins to unfold.
The Gift of Cockleberry Bay concludes this phenomenally successful series in typically brisk and bolshy style and will delight the many thousands of Rosa's fans
My Rating:
‘It always seems to be loving families who lose a parent or a child. I do believe the good die young. ’‘My mum wasn’t that young.’ ‘She wasn’t that good either.’ ‘Oi.’ They both then laughed nervously.
‘I’m internet dating, you see, and there are very few handsome men to be found in this area, as you can imagine.’ She picked up a thick church candle from the shelf and held it at the base with both hands. Danny blinked and cleared his throat.
‘Show me again.’ Rosa held up the grey and white picture. ‘Aw. That’s our baby, that is.’ Josh was beaming. ‘Look to the right, I’m sure I can see a willy.’ Rosa laughed. ‘I don’t ever want to see one of those again if it makes me feel this sick.’
Christmas Eve and the Cockleberry Bay Village Hall had not seen so much activity since the adult version of the nativity play twenty-five years ago, when Joseph had outed his wife for having an affair with the Angel Gabriel; in his hurry to escape the humiliation, the latter got his wings caught in a wise man’s stick and fell off the stage, breaking his ankle.
My Review:
I enjoy Ms. May’s wry comedic humor and she is a wily one as her amusing levity kept my lips twitching with a ready smirk. She is rather sneaky and slipped in jocularity in the midst of other scenes in unexpected places such as when a character was adding their coins to the café’s communal gratuities jar, which was described as “a ceramic burlesque dancer money box that held a sign saying Nice Tips.”
In addition to her clever and playful use of wit, several hefty social and personal issues were tapped and used as a positive platform for dispersal of thoughtful information and awareness, which I always appreciate. Ms. May’s characters tend to be diverse, quirky, deeply flawed, and uniquely intriguing. And despite his stinky breath and proprietary barking, I adore that little Hot Dog, AKA, Mr. Sausage to “where the sky touches the sea.”
About The Author
Her bestselling The Corner Shop in Cockleberry, the 1st book in the Cockleberry Bay series, went to #1 on Amazon and stayed there for an unprecedented 6 weeks.
She classes her novels as ‘chicklit with a kick,’ writing about love, life, and friendships in a real, not fluffy kind of way. She likes burgers, mince pies, clocks, birds, bubble baths and facials - but is not so keen on aubergines.
Follow Nicola May
Website - www.nicolamay.com
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/NicolaMayAuthor
Twitter - https://twitter.com/nicolamay1
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/author_nicola/
Giveaway
Win a signed copy of The Gift of Cockleberry Bay (Open INT)
*Terms and Conditions
Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below. The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will be passed to the giveaway organizer and used only for the fulfillment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data. I am not responsible for dispatch or delivery of the prize.
