A Perfect Cornish Summer is based in a town on the water called Porthmellow. Sam Lovell is the owner of a catering company and she is the organizer of an annual food festival which was her idea years before. Through the years the festival has continually grown much to the delight of many of the locals, but not all.

When the guest chef pulls out at the last minute and Gabe Matthias, a hometown boy made good offers to step into the role to save the festival, Sam is not too pleased. Their past history was once magical until Gabe up and told the police that Sam's brother Ryan was planning on robbing a store. This put Ryan in prison, Sam upset with Gabe and Gabe leaving town. When Ryan finally did get out of prison he vowed to never return and much to Sam's great sadness she has not seen him in years.

And as with any good love story/mystery we get to meet the comical characters who go along with a small harbor town where everybody knows one another. And most have secrets. Some more serious than others. The highlight of the story is the festival itself, that's where the comedy was at its best and kept a smile on my face. A smile still there even as this sweet story came to it's conclusion.

For fans of The Vicar of Dibley, a series from the BBC in England, you especially will relish the tight knit community and quirky characters which come along with it. The committee meetings are just on place in which I laughed. But most of all you will be pleased with the love and caring for others which occurs in this tiny place near the sea. More please!!

Thank you #NetGalley #Avon #Phillipa Ashley #A Perfect Cornish Summer for the advanced copy. It will be out on April 25.

Dive right into the town of porthmellow and you sure won't want to leave!

This book centres on Sam, the owner of Stargazey Pies and has a dream of starting a festival to help boost the towns trade. Fast forward 11years and this is where the story picks up - the next summer festival on the harbour.

When Sam's old flame heads back to the town he has stayed away from for many years, it is clear to see Sam and Gabe have unfinished business.

Amongst the setting of the Cornish harbour, their is a real community spirit with all chipping in to help the food festival.

This book reflects different difficult situations some of the central residents are facing in their lives and is cleverly woven together.

A lovely, romance filled, easy read with a summer vibe!

Really want to try a Stargazey pie!

Looking forward to the next in the series... Love how the last line in the book is a possible clue! Fingers crossed it is!

A Perfect Cornish Summer by Phillipa Ashley
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

First of all, I had never even heard of Cornwall until this book. But now I feel like I’ve been there and I love it to bits! The small village of Porthmellow has lots of winding roads, angry gulls, small town feel where the community is tight knit, hearing the local band play at the pub, and unpredictable weather due to being bordered by the Celtic Sea.

Secondly, I AM SO READY FOR SUMMER. I want to jump to summer, hop on a plane, and go to a summer food festival in Cornwall now. I love festivals that features food, art, and music! THIS HAS TO HAPPEN.

This was my first book by Phillipa Ashley and it won’t be my last! I really enjoyed her writing style and the book was just a really good feel-good, light read type of romance about lost love and second chances. There characters were likable, quirky, well-developed and I felt like I actually knew the people and I was invested in their lives. There are lot of different characters introduced in the book and they all have their own little story and their own strong personality. Like RIGHT OFF THE BAT in the prologue, we’re introduced to a quirky old neighbor. I wanted to dive into the book and help Sam (the main character) plan the Porthmellow Festival. I felt like I was a part of the community she devoted herself to.

I felt for Sam when Gabe (a man who she has a rocky history with) was invited by Chloe (Sam’s friend) to come back to town to help with the festival. It was awkward. There was tension. The prologue did a really nice job setting the scene and providing background. Learning about Sam and Gabe’s history made me gasp. I was rooting for Sam and Gabe throughout the book. Poor Chloe had no idea there was all of this drama. She is a newcomer to the town trying to move on from her divorce and struggles with her daughter cutting her out of her life. Chloe only wanted to help Sam when she invited Gabe to be the new guest chef after the original guest chef had bailed on the festival. She had no idea how deep his ties were to the town.

I loved going on a journey with all of the characters. It was a well written, charming book.

Thank you NetGalley and Avon Books for an e-ARC of this lovely book in exchange for an honest opinion.

Phillips Ashley is a new author for me. As this is the first in a new series, I was happy to read this and get in at the beginning. She paints a vivid picture of Cornwall and life in a small town there. I had the pleasure of visiting Cornwall 2 summers ago so I could really picture the location. Her chacacters were interesting and the plot somewhat complicated. A nice read!

I really enjoyed my first outing here, well written good little story love line, had me hooked and read in the one setting can’t wait to get into the town again on a second visit

Cute story with some likeable characters.

3.5 stars

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for giving me an arc of this story, this is my unpaid, unbiased review.

What a delightful second chance romance. A perfect read for a cold and gloomy evening by the fire. I especially loved that the characters names were nod to Cornwall. This is the first novel I’ve read by Phillipa Ashley,but certainly won’t be the last.

Sam Lovell lives in the small town of Porthmellow in Cornwall, and organizing the annual summer festival is her biggest job, apart from running her own mobile bakery. This particular year the organizers run into some trouble when their celebrity chef pulls out because of personal issues. Sam’s friend, Chloe, and fellow committee member, contacts Gabe Matthias and he agrees to be the celebrity chef instead. But Chloe is blissfully unaware of the history between Sam and Gabe. Despite their unpleasant parting of ways many years before, the two of them decide that they are perfectly capable of behaving reasonably in each other’s presence for the duration of the festival. Except that once they do lay eyes on each other, they secretly start wondering whether they can get their old magic back.

The festival and the need for a replacement chef, orchestrated by an ignorant Chloe, worked quite well to bring Sam and Gabe back into each other’s lives. I just feel that there wasn’t enough interaction between the two of them. A whole lot of time is dedicated to the festival, some pitfalls and other organizational issues. And while it is necessary for the plot to include these, I think it was maybe a bit too much. I would have liked to see more of Sam and Gabe together before they finally decided to bury the hatchet. And couldn’t her brother have talked to Sam himself once he had pulled his life back together and explained everything to her?

I wasn’t all that invested in Sam and Gabe getting back together. The story with Chloe and her daughter was a bit more interesting.

Sadly, I have to say this wasn’t the most exciting read, though I did enjoy reading some of the (what I assume are) local Cornish colloquialisms.

I received an advanced copy of the book from Netgalley to review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

A lovely summer read set in Cornwall, a nice web of characters and storylines. This is the start of a new series, so the perfect place to start with this author.

I liked this book. The story and the setting is fabulous. There’s a some intrigue woven in and several storylines converging into a satisfying ending. It’s missing a bit of zing to elevate it above other chick lit reads but none the less a good read.

Uh oh. Chloe, who didn't know the history, invited Gabe to stand in for the big name chef who cancelled on the food festival in Porthmallow. She had no idea of his history with Sam and her family or what this might mean, especially for Sam. Poor Sam- she never expected the food festival, which she started to bring some income to her small Cornish town- to get so big and she never expected to see Gabe again. This is a fun read for fans of small town tales. There are lots of characters, funny dialogue, and a nice second chance romance. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Fans of this genre know what they'll get- a good read- but if you're new to it- just give it up and enjoy!

The first in a gorgeous new series from the author of Summer at the Cornish Cafe. A Perfect Cornish Summer is the first book I have read by Phillipa Ashley. I am glad I decided to try a Women's Fiction for a change as it was a very entertaining, fun filled read.

Summer is on the horizon, and the people of Porthmellow are eagerly awaiting the annual food festival. At least, most of them are... For Sam Lovell, organising the summer festival in her hometown is one of the highlights of her year. It’s not always smooth sailing, but she loves to see Porthmellow’s harbour packed with happy visitors, and being on the committee has provided a much-needed distraction from the drama in her family life (and the distinct lack of it in her love life). When their star guest pulls out with only a few weeks to go, everyone’s delighted when a London chef who grew up locally steps in at the last minute. But Gabe Matthias is the last person Sam was expecting to see, and his return to Porthmellow will change her quiet coastal life for ever. Curl up with this gorgeous novel and savour the world of Porthmellow Harbour.

My parents are British and I visited Cornwall 2 years ago the way this is written I was transported back and could picture it in full colour. The author was good at describing the every day life in a Cornish harbour town, as well as the feelings of the locals and the volunteers with respect to the festival.

I found the characters to be well developed, and multi-dimensional. There were lots of twists and turns and multiple sub-plots to keep you engaged and interested in the outcome. It's the story of a woman, her family, her friends and her community and how they all work together to help one another succeed, despite hard feelings, and past differences. I will definitely read other books by this author.

*I requested and received an advanced readers copy Courtesy of NetGalley and Avon publishing. All opinions are my own.

I love Phillipa Ashley's books and this one is really good as it's engaging, entertaining, and make you feel good.
The setting is amazing, it made me crave to be there, the cast of characters is fleshed out and engaging, the plot hooked me since the first pages.
I look forward to reading the next book by this author.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to Avon Books UK and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

I recieved this book via Netgalley and give it my honest review.
This book is well written and a delight to read, with charming Cornish settings and relatable characters. Food festival and romance a perfect holiday read. It took a little while to get into but still enjoyable. I would recommend this book.

Bit mixed on this loved it 80% of the book, but just felt the ending let it down. I didn’t think the way the MC reacted to the news was believable and everything felt resolved far too quickly when it had been in turmoil the rest of the book. I think it could have been 2 separate books and would have been dealt with better

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

A Perfect Cornish Summer by Phillipa Ashley is the perfect choice for summer read.

Little town of Porthmellow is eagerly awaiting its tenth annual festival and Sam is behind it all. She runs her small but profitable pie store and with the help of locals organizes this event. Although she is happy with her life she still hasn't found her soul mate. Maybe it's because Gabe, the love of her life has betrayed her causing her brother to leave his home forever.
Now, ten years later by chance he is coming back to take part in the festival. Things are never going to be the same.

Lovely, entertaining romance book with lovable, multilayered characters that readers can easily identify with. Gorgeous setting that takes your breath away and mouthwatering food are just adding to the charm.
Beautifully woven love story that surpasses problems, temptations and time.

What an inventive story! I really enjoyed the way the author used imaginative characterization to convey little nuances about the people, and the way that emotions are so vivid and strong - It really makes for a great reading experience! I would definitely recommend everyone read this book :)

Join Sam and her lovable group of volunteers as they work to put on the Porthmellow Food Festival in Cornwall.

A beautiful setting for the annual Porthmellow Food Festival in Cornwall, with a host of unforgettable quirky characters.
Volunteer Sam, instigator and now in charge of the festival, still has to recover from events 11 years ago when she lost her brother Ryan and blamed everything on her then boyfriend Gabe. But Gabe has now returned to his hometown, transformed into a famous chef and still as lovable as ever. Can Sam forgive him?
A great beach read.

A good book is one that keeps me up at night and is read in the car and this book did that for me. My first book by Phillipa Ashley and she did not disappoint. I loved her characters and especially that they were different ages with different backgrounds all meeting however for the Cornish village food festival. Phillipa is a great storyteller and so the book was easy to pick up and put down but you never lost the plot or nuances of each character. So thank you and would love to hear more about these “friends” again.