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3.71 AVERAGE
3.71 AVERAGE
A really sweet (see what I did there) book about Rosie who moves from the hustle and bustle of London to a small village to look after her elderly great aunt and sell off her family’s sweet shop. She gets into a few adventures along the way and we also learn her aunts story and how she got to where she is. There are also quite a few amazing facts about various candies! There was a bit of a strange love storyline for a minute there but it did resolve itself thankfully. I really enjoyed the story and Edison is a true treasure and I want a book all about him. Definitely a lovely book with a nice easy story!!!
A one-sentence review: I loved this audiobook!
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Jenny Colgan’s books inevitably lift my spirits and get me deeply involved in her characters’ lives, and Sweetshop of Dreams is no exception.
Rosie is an auxiliary nurse, working busy hospital shifts and living in a small London flat with her boyfriend Gerard, who’s maybe a little too comfortable with their living arrangements. She thinks he’ll propose… eventually… but meanwhile, it’s been years, and he seems perfectly content with the status quo.
But after Rosie’s great-aunt Lilian injures her hip, Rosie’s mother Angie asks her to go stay with Lilian for a little while. Someone needs to get Lilian moved into a care facility and get her ancient sweetshop prepped for sale. And since Angie is currently living in Australia with Rosie’s brother’s family, it falls on Rosie to see to the family obligations in England.
Off Rosie goes to the small country village of Lipton, thinking she’ll be in and out in a matter of weeks. What she finds, though, is that Lilian’s shop hasn’t been opened in a few years, and that Lilian herself is underfed and weak, having stubbornly refused outside help or to leave her cozy little cottage. Rosie dives in, tending to Lilian and cleaning up and reopening the shop — because how can she put it on the market to sell unless she can demonstrate that it’s a viable business?
The longer Rosie stays in Lipton, the more she becomes involved in village life. Even though she sticks out like a sore thumb at first, with her city ways and clothes that can’t withstand the country weather, she eventually makes friends and finds a new purpose in life.
In a dual-timeline approach, we also get little snippets of Lilian’s life during the 1940s, as the young men of the village head to war and Lilian helps her father with the sweetshop. Through these flashbacks, we learn about why Lilian has been alone all these years and what caused the heartbreak she experienced so long ago.
Rosie is a lovely character, upbeat and curious and not afraid to jump in when a pair of hands are needed. Although she’s there for the shop and for Lilian, she also becomes friends with the village doctor, who involves Rosie in his most challenging case — which leads to a whole new set of possibilities for Rosie after she finally dumps her city boyfriend.
I really enjoyed Lilian as a character as well, and found myself so moved by her backstory and her experiences. The book treats Lilian with great respect as she ages, and I found her relationship with Rosie to be just so sweet and lovely.
And the sweetshop!!! Can I just say right now that I’d love to live inside it for a year or so? It sounds so bright and wonderful, full of nostalgic treats and joy and happiness. This book makes village life seem like something idyllic and peaceful and funny and wonderful.
The audiobook narrator, Beverley A. Crick, does a terrific job with Rosie and Lillian, but also masterfully conveys the voices and personalities of the other village residents, from small schoolboy to grumpy old farmers. Listening to this book was such a treat!
Sweetshop of Dreams does include a love story for Rosie, and it’s a good one, but it’s not the sole focus of the book. Instead, this book is a sweet mix of romance, quirky characters, family bonds, and a celebration of community, and it’s utterly enjoyable.
As with the best of Jenny Colgan’s books, Sweetshop of Dreams kept me enchanted by the setting and the people, and left me wanting to spend more time with all of these characters. Luckily for me, there’s a follow-up Christmas book (Christmas at Rosie Hopkins’ Sweetshop), and while I don’t normally read Christmas books, I just can’t resist this one!
Need more?
Jenny Colgan’s books inevitably lift my spirits and get me deeply involved in her characters’ lives, and Sweetshop of Dreams is no exception.
Rosie is an auxiliary nurse, working busy hospital shifts and living in a small London flat with her boyfriend Gerard, who’s maybe a little too comfortable with their living arrangements. She thinks he’ll propose… eventually… but meanwhile, it’s been years, and he seems perfectly content with the status quo.
But after Rosie’s great-aunt Lilian injures her hip, Rosie’s mother Angie asks her to go stay with Lilian for a little while. Someone needs to get Lilian moved into a care facility and get her ancient sweetshop prepped for sale. And since Angie is currently living in Australia with Rosie’s brother’s family, it falls on Rosie to see to the family obligations in England.
Off Rosie goes to the small country village of Lipton, thinking she’ll be in and out in a matter of weeks. What she finds, though, is that Lilian’s shop hasn’t been opened in a few years, and that Lilian herself is underfed and weak, having stubbornly refused outside help or to leave her cozy little cottage. Rosie dives in, tending to Lilian and cleaning up and reopening the shop — because how can she put it on the market to sell unless she can demonstrate that it’s a viable business?
The longer Rosie stays in Lipton, the more she becomes involved in village life. Even though she sticks out like a sore thumb at first, with her city ways and clothes that can’t withstand the country weather, she eventually makes friends and finds a new purpose in life.
In a dual-timeline approach, we also get little snippets of Lilian’s life during the 1940s, as the young men of the village head to war and Lilian helps her father with the sweetshop. Through these flashbacks, we learn about why Lilian has been alone all these years and what caused the heartbreak she experienced so long ago.
Rosie is a lovely character, upbeat and curious and not afraid to jump in when a pair of hands are needed. Although she’s there for the shop and for Lilian, she also becomes friends with the village doctor, who involves Rosie in his most challenging case — which leads to a whole new set of possibilities for Rosie after she finally dumps her city boyfriend.
I really enjoyed Lilian as a character as well, and found myself so moved by her backstory and her experiences. The book treats Lilian with great respect as she ages, and I found her relationship with Rosie to be just so sweet and lovely.
And the sweetshop!!! Can I just say right now that I’d love to live inside it for a year or so? It sounds so bright and wonderful, full of nostalgic treats and joy and happiness. This book makes village life seem like something idyllic and peaceful and funny and wonderful.
The audiobook narrator, Beverley A. Crick, does a terrific job with Rosie and Lillian, but also masterfully conveys the voices and personalities of the other village residents, from small schoolboy to grumpy old farmers. Listening to this book was such a treat!
Sweetshop of Dreams does include a love story for Rosie, and it’s a good one, but it’s not the sole focus of the book. Instead, this book is a sweet mix of romance, quirky characters, family bonds, and a celebration of community, and it’s utterly enjoyable.
As with the best of Jenny Colgan’s books, Sweetshop of Dreams kept me enchanted by the setting and the people, and left me wanting to spend more time with all of these characters. Luckily for me, there’s a follow-up Christmas book (Christmas at Rosie Hopkins’ Sweetshop), and while I don’t normally read Christmas books, I just can’t resist this one!
This was such a cute read. Feel good, warm and fuzzy romance set in an idyllic English village. I love that each chapter started out with a bit about English sweets- inspired me to order a basket of vintage sweeties to try some out!
The story moved well between Lillian and Rosie and their present and Lillians past. I love Lillian’s spunk and love the relationship that formed between the two women!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc.
The story moved well between Lillian and Rosie and their present and Lillians past. I love Lillian’s spunk and love the relationship that formed between the two women!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc.
By halfway point, I skipped to the end. Couldn't handle the obvious need for Rosie to break up with Gerard and just get on with her life, and after hearing about it for half the book, wanted to throw it across the room. Lillian wasn't likeable at all, in either time period. Rosie's love interest at the end surprised me because at the halfway point he was still just a jerk patient. So that relationship all came together in the half that I skipped. Most of this book was so predictable that it was a real drag to get to the obvious conclusion.
There is a lot I like very much about this book. Rosie is an auxiliary nurse (so probably comparable in the U.S. to a nursing assistant) who's been working contract jobs; she and her long-time boyfriend Gerard own a place in London and are living a pretty settled life. Then Rosie's mum calls and asks Rosie to help her great-aunt Lilian in a small village in Derbyshire; Lilian, at 87, should probably be in a senior community and something needs to be done with the sweetshop she's run all her life.
The book focuses mostly on Rosie, but there are plenty of flashbacks to Lilian's life during World War 2. Rosie learns about life in a small village, makes friends, contemplates her relationship with Gerard, and takes care of Lilian. As ever, this is really about Rosie finding herself--and throughout, we learn what made Lilian the way she is.
Why only 3 stars? I am generally a Jenny Colgan fan, but I just could NOT get into the romance in this book. Rosie's relationship with Stephen is barely developed. Their interactions didn't lead me to see romance blooming, honestly, and his actions toward the end of the book were a turn-off.
Well, at least Gerard, while an Inappropriate Boyfriend, didn't turn out to be a totally awful person.
The book focuses mostly on Rosie, but there are plenty of flashbacks to Lilian's life during World War 2. Rosie learns about life in a small village, makes friends, contemplates her relationship with Gerard, and takes care of Lilian. As ever, this is really about Rosie finding herself--and throughout, we learn what made Lilian the way she is.
Why only 3 stars? I am generally a Jenny Colgan fan, but I just could NOT get into the romance in this book. Rosie's relationship with Stephen is barely developed. Their interactions didn't lead me to see romance blooming, honestly, and his actions toward the end of the book were a turn-off.
Well, at least Gerard, while an Inappropriate Boyfriend, didn't turn out to be a totally awful person.
The end ... it's why I read books like this. The perfect escape.
I had loved Jenny Colgan's Meet me at Cupcake Cafe, and had wishlisted this one.
Rosie Hopkins gets roped into looking after her ailing great aunt, and settle her business(a sweet shop), by her mother. Of course, nothing is as it seems and Rosie seems set for an adventure of a different kind.
Another sweet offering by the author, a nice, sweet story. A really nice, cute, feel good read.
Rosie Hopkins gets roped into looking after her ailing great aunt, and settle her business(a sweet shop), by her mother. Of course, nothing is as it seems and Rosie seems set for an adventure of a different kind.
Another sweet offering by the author, a nice, sweet story. A really nice, cute, feel good read.
An enjoyable read, slightly slower paced and slower to get going that some of the previous similarly titled books, but the pace picked up and the few twists rounded off well.