I think it's a slight improvement comparing to its predecessor, but there were also some unbelievable plot line, like... forgetting to fridge something then almost lead to mass food poisoning, no human being was harmed, but hounds were... like, it really felt like amateur mistakes I can't really see any real restaurant staff making it, and our main gal certainly didn't acted sorry enough IMHO.

Something I find surprising is that, this book doesn't completely shift focus onto a new couple, our previous couple is pretty much still heavily featured. Consider me extremely surprised when I came across their sex scenes, something I can do without lmao. Alas, the inclusion of them (the people themselves), I have no problem with, and actually appreciated. 3 for probably 3.5.

Also published on:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2198283481

This had lots of potential but fell flat. I'm a sucker for cutesy covers but also for the "women moving to the countryside to start over" trope but this didn't click with me. I didn't feel anything with the romance.

I enjoyed the Second Chance Tea Shop, and looked forward to the follow-up. I wasn't disappointed. It's a strong plot and builds on the characters we met in the tea shop. Lots of romance, intrigue, mystery and threat, with some laughs thrown in too. Ideal feel-good read when it's cold outside and you need a duvet day to ward off that cold.

Thankyou for the opppurtunity for letting me read this book!

I did very much enjoyed this book. The story seems to have some tension and romance at the same time. I think the author did a very well job by putting these elements correctly into the story.
Furthermore, the story did feel real. I felt sorry voor Jonathan and Caroline at the same time, I did their characters are put out nicely.
Caroline is a stubborn, lonely woman who actually doesnt want to be someone elses responsibility. She has her own life, her own struggles to deal with. Jonathan is more or less the same as Caroline. Their stubborness is why its so funny to read their conversations.
Their personality really gets to me, and doesnt need much details to get to know one another.

I loved it, although I figured this book waa supposed to be a second book in a series. I think this book can be put as a standalone as well.

Again, thankyou! I really did enjoy this one!
Why Im not giving it five starts is because mainly, Ive read some others books which in the end I loved more but did had quite the same put together story.

Every girls dream to be let loose running her own restaurant and a hunky boss, what is her secret though?
Imagination can run wild , the guy gets the rough deal but will all turn out as we hope.

Review: Welcome back to Little Somerby! It's good to be back and this time we follow Caroline Hemingway's story.

Caroline is looking for her own happy ever after, especially since Anna has found hers, and so she decides to move to Little Somerby in the footsteps of Anna. With common heartache both women want there happy ever after. 

This book follows on from A Second Chance Tea shop which is lovely as we get to see where some of the characters life's are now and we get to know more about hunky Jonathan who I quite liked and wanted to know more about. Its great revisiting a setting and characters especially if it is well written and executed which this is.   

Little Somerby just keeps on giving. A fantastic read.

This is the second book in the Little Somerby series.I have not read the first book but feel it can be read as a standalone. Cute eye catching cover. The characters were engaging and believable and the story just flowed. Unexpected twists and turns kept me reading!
Pub Date 01 Jan 2018
Thank you to NetGalley and Aria for a review copy I was not required to write a positive review.

Caroline goes to the wedding of her ex sister in law Anna with mixed feelings as she is marrying Matthew because Caroline's brother James died. While there though she meets Matthew's brother Jonathan and had a one night stand..... well she is never likely to see him again is she! Fate has other ideas however and Caroline is soon moving to the west country to set up the new restaurant at the cider farm,... but will her past catch up with her!

An enjoyable light read great for the beach, I hadn't read the first one in the series but it didn't matter at all andI will probably go back and read

A typical book of it's genre - where you know what the ending will be after the first few pages. It is how the story gets there that is interesting. Written with humour the story flows at a good pace. A very enjoyable read.

Okay, the cute cover caught my eye. I never saw view of the cover in the book when reading. First to figure out the character. Caroline is invited to the wedding of ex sister-in-law, Anna. Anna being Caroline’s brothers widow. Really. Not sure what kept me reading. I was more interested in other characters. I didn’t like the ending so, I won’t go there. Maybe I needed stronger cider.

I enjoyed returning to Little Somerby to catch up with some old characters and meet some new ones.
This was a great book, a light read but managed to keep me hooked from the first few pages.
A great follow up to the Second Chance Teashop and can’t wait for the next instalment.

I usually fall for these cute covers & enjoy this kind of MC-leaves-everything-behind-to-start-afresh-in-the-country set-up, and this book sounded really promising, but unfortunately it failed to appeal to me on any level in the end.

The false mysteriousness of the MC, Caroline, was not only over the top (clearly this was not going to be a Mata Hari/Poison Ivy kind of story), but sadly also kept me totally disconnected from her.

The chemistry bw Caroline and her love interest was zero: there was a tired routine & monotonness to both their one-night stand attraction as well as their developing relationship (if you can call it that) and "HEA".

While sometimes the story of the restaurant kept me interested enough to go on, I could not help the strange feeling of detachment from the main characters throughout.

I enjoyed this story which had more depth to it than the cover might suggest and would like to go back and read the first book in this series. This starts with Caroline attending the wedding of Anna and Matthew with mixed feelings. Anna was married to Caroline’s late brother, James and his loss is still difficult for her. She has a one night stand with Matthew’s charming brother, Jonathan and thinks that is it until she’s offered the chance to manage the new restaurant at the cider farm. The chance to break away from her old life and leave behind certain shameful secrets is too good to turn down but things are rarely that simple and many of her problems follow her there. The relationship between Caroline and Jonathan takes time to develop and is often hampered by family issues but in a realistic way because no one falls in love in a vacuum. All around a very enjoyable book.

Moving, uplifting and wonderfully feel-good, Fay Keenan’s Springtime at the Cider Kitchen is sure to brighten up your day!

Caroline Hemingway is delighted that her sister in law Anna had found happiness again after the death of her husband and Caroline’s brother, James. Yet, a part of her cannot help but wonder when it is going to be her turn to find her own happy ending. Happiness has thus far seemed to have eluded her and Caroline is determined to do something about it and shake up her rather boring and uneventful life. Moving out of the rat race seems the logical step, so she packs her bags, leaves her unsatisfying life behind and heads off to Little Somerby. In this idyllic village, Caroline hopes to start afresh, leave the past behind and find herself again – and as luck would have it, there is a job going begging at the cider farm, where she is tasked with opening and running a restaurant in one of the abandoned barns.

Caroline soon learns that life is far from quiet in the village. Her new job is anything but easy, but Caroline has never been afraid of hard work, and when she rolls up her sleeves and starts to immerse herself fully into her new venture, she finds herself accepted by the locals and made to feel welcome by her new community. But the past does have a habit of making itself known when you are least expecting it as Caroline soon learns! And to top it all off, she also has the dishy Jonathan Carter to cope with…

What is Caroline going to do? Is she going to give up and head back to her old life just when things have finally begun to fall into place? Is she strong enough to fight for her right to be happy? Or will she be forever held hostage by her past?

An exceptionally well-written book I simply adored, Springtime at the Cider Kitchen is a wonderful read that I struggled to put down! Packed with wonderful characters that leap off the pages, humour, pathos and heart, Springtime at the Cider Kitchen was a hugely enjoyable read, however, do not be fooled as there is a grittiness to this book that will not only move and haunt readers, but also make them think and ponder about the choices we make and the circumstances we sometimes find ourselves in.

A fantastic read from a writer who is fast becoming a huge favourite of mine, let the sunshine in, pour yourself a glass of something refreshing and enjoy Fay Keenan’s second terrific novel, Springtime at the Cider Kitchen!

I so enjoyed this book, it's a wonderful story with lots of interesting and fun characters but I think I liked it most because it was a little more edgy than many romance books. There was real drama and some shocking scenes, even a couple of genuinely sad deaths. It was more than just a romance it was a good drama. I will have to go and read more of Fay Keenan now!

I really enjoyed this book. It was well written and fun to read.
Recommended.
Many thanks to Aria and Netgalley

What a truly great read this has been. There was plenty going on, with a fair few heartfelt moments throughout plus some sad bits and even a bit of action involving a very bad man.

I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know all of the characters, but especially seeing how Caroline dealt with the changes and obstacles that she had to contend with and how she developed as a character throughout.

I loved the storyline, which was well written. The setting of the book sounded very quaint and I even learnt a bit about the Cider business.

 This is in fact book 2 to the Little Somerby series which can easily be read as a standalone but having read book 2 has made me want to go and read book 1, which is now on my kindle waiting to be read.

This was well written and a little different to normal books but it was fun nonetheless. The story was a little more complicated than normal and some things did seem a little far fetched but it was well written and I enjoyed it overall.

5☆ Charming Rom Com which will leave your tummy rumbling for more!

Springtime at the Cider Kitchen is the second book in the series.
I do believe it can be read as a standalone but seeing as alot of the Characters cross over I would advise you to read -
The Second Chance Tea Shop first.

I thoroughly enjoyed being back in the beautiful village of Little Somerby.
This time round the main focus is Caroline and her running of the Cider Kitchen.

Caroline comes back to Little Somerby to see her sister-in-law 're marry to Matthew the managing director of the Cider Farm.
You see her brother James passed away leaving Anna and her Daughter Ellie to meet and fall in love with Matthew and his daughter Meredith.

At the wedding Caroline meets Jonathan (Matthews brother) there is an instant chemistry and they end up in bed together.

Jonathan pursuades Caroline to stay in Little Somerby by offering her a business adventure she can't refuse.... becoming the manager of The Cider Kitchen.

However Caroline always seems to be distracted, like she is running away from something. I loved Caroline's mystique qualities.
But What dark secrets is Caroline hiding?
Why is she so eager to run away from her past?

The on going banter between Caroline and Jonathan was what kept us in suspense.
Caroline played hard to get and Jonathan.... well he a reputation as a ladies man.
But will Caroline succumb to Jonathan's charm again or will she not mix business with pleasure?

Fay captured the very essence of Little Somerby. So much so it felt like i lived there too.
I adored the community life and traditions in Little Somerby, the HoeDown & bucking bronco. The only thing i strongly disagreed with was the Old Somerset Hunt, even if they do call it drag hunting!

Springtime at the Cider Kitchen is a charming story of starting again, finding love, family and friendship, new business ventures, secrets and lies and scrumptious food.

Fay has created such charismatic Characters each one very different but all so relevant and relatable. Not always likeable but definetly memorable.

Throughout the story there are plenty of mishaps and mayhem that left me laughing out loud.
But there is also a hint of a sinister side when things take a dark turn for Caroline and things start to happen that gave me goosebumps & shivers!.

Join Caroline as she tries to put her past behind her and start again.
Who lurks within the shadows is any ones guess. Will Jonathan become her hero or will he just keep disappointing.

You will just have to read it to find out

My only wish was that there was more to Caroline's back story as the small insight we get is juicy and I would of loved more!

I would 100% recommend this book its the perfect read for those looking for a nice easy flowing read, that will hold your attention to the very end.
A Rom Com, with a hint of mystery, plenty of fun, banter, and scrumptious food!

Thank you to Aria for this copy which I reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

Caroline Hemingway is at her late brother's wife Anna's wedding to Matthew. She has travelled across the country from Hampshire to the West Country for the occasion, and we get to meet some of her family members. There is the incredibly cute 4 year old Ellie, one of Anna's daughters, who I immediately took a liking to. The relationship between Caroline and her was lovely to see. Fay Keenan represents the wedding atmosphere well.

After Caroline ends up having a one night stand with Jonathan, (Anna's new brother-in-law) during said wedding, she finds herself in a difficult situation when she is offered the chance to manage the family's new restaurant which will be based on their local food and cider.
Caroline is disconcerted by this because she has a background in running events, but thinks about it when she gets home to Hampshire.

Shortly after, that she finds herself back in the West Country and the new restaurant which is called The Cider Kitchen. This will be her new home and workplace.

Springtime at the Cider Kitchen is a story about new beginnings new relationships and a woman 's quest to move on in life and find where she really belongs. The restaurant itself seemed quite homely and cosy as did Caroline's mezzanine – level home in the same building as the restaurant. The author does a good job of making the story atmospheric.

Although I respected Caroline for her gutsy move to the West Country in an effort to forget about her past and a man (none of which really was explained by the author and most of which was left to the reader's imagination ) I did find that too often she was a little harsh with the people that she met, and a little judgemental of their attempts to help her settle into the area and her new life.

The book is very detailed where the restaurant is concerned but I would've liked more romance. I love the cultural references to the West Country way of life sprinkled throughout the book. I thought that that really enhanced the story. at times though, I felt that it was kind of a bit of a monologue just about the restaurant side of the plot. I did feel that Caroline kind of dominated the story and would've liked to have known more about the other characters. I felt like I didn't really get to know them as much as I would've liked.

I found the book a little hard to get into but once I was into it I was enjoying seeing how Caroline's new life took shape. another thing that I enjoyed throughout the book was the fact that springtime was really ever- present throughout, in that it was the time that Caroline decided to make the change and large move in her life and that spring time is usually seen as a time of hope and new beginnings.
I thought this was a nice touch and well thought out by the author. The cute kittens were ever so sweet and a lovely addition to Caroline's home.

I found the book a little slow and predictable in parts. The contrast between Caroline's Hampshire life as being busier and the West Country life as being slower was shown effectively in the run-up to the move, I thought. The doubting, anticipation and finally making the move were done well although I would have liked some more insight and detail as to how Caroline's past affected her and therefore her decision to move.

Thanks to Fay Keenan and Aria for my eARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I had never read anything by Fay Keenan before this, and am assuming book #1 is Anna and Matthew's story, which I would like to read to have more backstory to these two characters.