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4.09 AVERAGE
4.09 AVERAGE
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This was a typical Milly Johnson and that’s more than OK with me. By typical I mean a nice woman or three who are not appreciated and put upon by their partner, their family, or their employer. Sometimes all three. Often they are even emotionally abused by a narcissist and they are totally under their thumb through most of the book. As the story proceeds they gradually see the light and the true character of the man they once loved. But often, and frustratingly, no action is taken until it’s last straw time. In the course of the book, she will find a good kind man who is truly worthy of their love. But the point is, we look forward to the heroine’s triumph and takedown of the abuser and it is usually massive and exceedingly satisfying. Much of this is true of the story of Polly Potter.
However, in this one, I was happy that Polly had her long-term boyfriend’s number from the beginning of the book. She had been too nice and too tolerant for too long, but she was done. She has been planning on leaving Chris but her plans have been delayed by her role in his sister’s renewal of her wedding vows. Meanwhile, Polly is also unhappy with her employer. She has been taken advantage of and discriminated against ever since the business solutions company she works for as a highly successful and talented consultant was sold. On the day before she plans to leave her boyfriend, she reaches the end of her rope with her boss and walks out. The next day, she follows through with her plan to leave Chris, but on her way to the seaside town she has run to she is mugged, hits her head, and loses her memory and her purse with all of her identification. I won’t mention all of the drama she has to go through on the “wedding” day but wow. I didn’t see that coming.
Anyway, she is taken in by Marielle, a kind and generous retired nurse and finds love with her son, a restaurant owner who is being sabotaged by a large chain restaurant that is moving into the neighborhood. As with all Milly Johnson books, there are plenty of side stories going on alongside our main character’s and as always, they doubled my pleasure in this book.
Even though this has suspense and tension as well as cheers and triumph, it didn’t reach quite the highs of some of her former books. After Polly puts her foot down at home and work, she leaves all that pain behind, and although she loses her memory everything is pretty much smooth sailing for her from there. And I was very happy that she did put her foot down. Sometimes Milly has gone a little too far in putting her long-suffering characters through the ringer. Of course, the upside of all that tension and frustration is the power of the catharsis when it comes. Although it was nice, I also was not as invested in the romance. Teddy was not as interesting as most of her heroes have been.
Even though this has suspense and tension as well as cheers and triumph, it didn’t reach quite the highs of some of her former books. After Polly puts her foot down at home and work, she leaves all that pain behind, and although she loses her memory everything is pretty much smooth sailing for her from there. And I was very happy that she did put her foot down. Sometimes Milly has gone a little too far in putting her long-suffering characters through the ringer. Of course, the upside of all that tension and frustration is the power of the catharsis when it comes. Although it was nice, I also was not as invested in the romance. Teddy was not as interesting as most of her heroes have been.
Milly excels in her characterizations. In this book she shows Polly/Sabrina’s goodness while still making her inner voice funny and likable. Her baddies are sometimes over the top, but I sure get a lot of pleasure in hating their guts. Polly’s boyfriend Chris was just a worm, but hoo-boy his sister Camay (!) was something else. Chris’s son Will was a love and definitely not a chip off the old block. Chris’s daughter Shauna was a teenage menace who did her best to undermine Polly at every turn. Her boss was a typical pig (“Polly put the kettle on”) but her pregnant officemate, Sheridan, was a welcome support and ally. And at the end, Marjorie, the scheming female head of HR was a force to be reckoned with. Luckily she’s a good guy. At her seaside haven, Polly meets the funny and quirky Flick, who is as smart as a whip, and one of the restaurant staff she works with as a temporary employee. Each of them is deftly drawn too. The baddie in this setting is the foolish and avaricious Cilla, Flick’s mother, and her kind protector, Marielle’s, cousin. Milly is pleased to offer some hope and redemption for her at the end thanks to Polly’s very much unsolicited words of wisdom.
No one does Karma like Milly Johnson. As always with Milly’s novels, the good are rewarded and the bad are punished, and in spectacular fashion. Absolutely nothing wrong with that, in my book.
I absolutely loved this gentle, heartwarming tale from Milly Johnson. She writes beautifully, capturing the funny, sad and poignant parts of life. Her characters are real, funny and likeable. Just a fabulous uplifting story and everything you would expect from Milly.
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Probably a 4.5 actually.
Always love Millys books because they are so local to me (I’m in Sheffield) and they make me feel homely. Great story and as always love the Daily Trumpet, Milly is never afraid to not hold back!
Always love Millys books because they are so local to me (I’m in Sheffield) and they make me feel homely. Great story and as always love the Daily Trumpet, Milly is never afraid to not hold back!
funny
lighthearted
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
⎝⎝𝕋𝕙𝕖 ℍ𝕒𝕡𝕡𝕚𝕖𝕤𝕥 𝔼𝕧𝕖𝕣 𝔸𝕗𝕥𝕖𝕣⎠⎠
By Millie Johnson @themillyjohnson
Blurb
Polly Potter is surviving, not thriving. She used to love her job – until her mentor died and her new boss decided to make her life hell. She used to love her partner Chris – until he cheated on her, and now she can’t forget. The only place where her life is working is on the pages of the novel she is writing – there she can create a feistier, bolder, more successful version of herself – as the fictional Sabrina Anderson
But what if it was possible to start over again? To leave everything behind, forget all that went before, and live the life you’d always dreamed of?
After a set of unforeseen circumstances, Polly ends up believing she really IS Sabrina, living at the heart of a noisy Italian family restaurant by the sea. Run by Teddy, the son of her new landlady Marielle, it’s a much-loved place, facing a threat of closure as a rival restaurant moves in next door. Sabrina can’t remember her life as Polly, but she knows she is living a different life from the one she used to have.
But what if this new life could belong to her after all?
I absolutely loved listening to the audio version of this book, especially the funny mistakes published in the Daily Trumpet. It's so funny! 🎺 📰 🗞
🤣 Humorous
😍 Fab characters
🍝 Food of love
🍽 Memory loss to Magic
🫶 Girl power
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ from me!🤓
By Millie Johnson @themillyjohnson
Blurb
Polly Potter is surviving, not thriving. She used to love her job – until her mentor died and her new boss decided to make her life hell. She used to love her partner Chris – until he cheated on her, and now she can’t forget. The only place where her life is working is on the pages of the novel she is writing – there she can create a feistier, bolder, more successful version of herself – as the fictional Sabrina Anderson
But what if it was possible to start over again? To leave everything behind, forget all that went before, and live the life you’d always dreamed of?
After a set of unforeseen circumstances, Polly ends up believing she really IS Sabrina, living at the heart of a noisy Italian family restaurant by the sea. Run by Teddy, the son of her new landlady Marielle, it’s a much-loved place, facing a threat of closure as a rival restaurant moves in next door. Sabrina can’t remember her life as Polly, but she knows she is living a different life from the one she used to have.
But what if this new life could belong to her after all?
I absolutely loved listening to the audio version of this book, especially the funny mistakes published in the Daily Trumpet. It's so funny! 🎺 📰 🗞
🤣 Humorous
😍 Fab characters
🍝 Food of love
🍽 Memory loss to Magic
🫶 Girl power
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ from me!🤓
emotional
hopeful
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No