Christmas has always been a bittersweet time for Tara. With memories of her Mum and Dad before their family was torn apart and she ended up in foster care make celebrating difficult.

Now a very successful owner of two businesses, she is accomplished but lonely. She keeps her friends at arms length and her only companion is Hercules, the house rabbit.

However this Christmas someone from the past is about to re-enter Tara’s life which leads her to question her behaviour, what is the harm of letting people in?

This book is heartbreaking and lovely. I especially like that this is not just set at Christmas time. It spans a whole year in Tara’s life.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again I love Jessica Redland novels and will read anything she writes.

I didn’t know what to make of this book. I was so sure it was going to be a light fluffy read and sure it was in parts but... there is a sub plot based around her sister and her ex husband that was just very uncomfortable for me to read and just felt very misplaced. I actually took a lot longer than usual to finish the book.

I do read books with heavier subject matter but I am usually expecting it and not left feeling blindsided.


I do think the romance in this story was lovely but cosy romance? This isn’t it for me

With the chaos of everyday life sometimes you just need an escape. “Starry Skies Over The Chocolate Pot Cafe” provided me with that today. Running away from the past and focusing on a career only can leave a person lonely. This book explores the options of staying alone and putting oneself out there. As I have come to expect from Jessica Redland, this book was well written with characters that came to life. I found myself giggling out loud in some spots and wanting to cry at others. Great book for a lazy weekend!

This book was quite beautiful. I really enjoyed the evolution of Tara and her back story with her ex husband and foster sister. The only thing I wish is that Jed made more of an appearance alot earlier.

An enjoyable, quick read with a large cast of characters who are all likeable. The ending is a little too sweet but all in all a good story.

This is quite an emotive read dealing with depression, death and foster care but being set in a lovely chocolatey cafe, it gives a festive read. This is part of a series of other books set in the same street in Yorkshire and it's nice to see characters from other books mentioned, but can be read as a stand alone.

Wow Wow Wow. I loved it. A lovely love story. The secret that Tamara had to why she left her husband and family I did not see coming. Nice to have a story where money was not a problem. I loved the description of the cafe and the area

Thanks Netgalley and the Publisher. I really enjoyed this feel good read, great characters and of course chocolate.

This was amazing! It was first from this author and I wasn’t sure what to expect but the beautiful starry front cover lured me in. From start to finish this book had me enthralled - and not always for the same reason. I read with my mouth agape about Taras past at the hands of her foster sister, I ached for her loss as she lost her parents and like Jed I saw her loneliness within herself at the Chocolate Pot Cafe; but then my heart soared as she let people in, she healed her heart and found love again.
Jeds back story was equally as heartbreaking and I liked how he saw Tara for herself and recognised a kindred spirit in her. I would definitely love to see another book showing their lives together and hopefully Aaron being a part of it.

This was a simply beautiful read.

Not your typical boy meets girl romance, in fact romance is not really the main story line. The story offers encouragement to let go of the past and not let it define the future. Tara has left her old life behind, but has put up walls to prevent more heartache. She comes to realize that she needs to open her heart to new possibilities in life and love.

Another truly delightful read from Jessica, before settling down with this book I would advise you have something sweet and a hot chocolate with you as you will become very hungry hearing about all the delicious sweet treats the Chocolate Pot Cafe has to offer. After reading Christmas at Carly's Cupcake's I wanted to hear more about the other characters and was delighted to return to Whitsborough Bay in this story. Tara's story is a sad one but being in Whitsborough Bay and running a successful Cafe that sells the most delicious sweet treats, she begins to unravel what brought her to the Bay and with the help of some very good friends she realises what she is missing out on and opens up to one of her closest friends. Expect love, friendship, romance and a gorgeous rabbit called Hercules. I didn't want this story to end. I loved it so much.

Another absolutely beautiful and breathtaking read. This is absolutely perfect and I can honestly say that this is my new favourite read by this author.
I am a huge fan anyway but this book is just absolutely spectacular. I have been completely pulled in from the very first page. 
I have devoured this book in just one sitting, I love everything about this book. The characters are utterly stunning and the author has created a perfect setting for this book. 
I'm definitely in the Christmas mood after this book. I am completely ready for woolly jumpers, Christmas treats and twinkly lights. 
This is a definite five star read and I literally have nothing negative to say about this one. It really is top of the list of books by this amazing author.

Public review to follow on blog tour

There were a lot of things I liked about this book; the characters were delightful, the Christmas-time setting made the book feel cozy and heartwarming and I loved reading about The Chocolate Pot Cafe. But there were some times when the traumatic flashbacks Tara had detracted a bit from the cozy Christmas feeling of the book.

Vulnerabilties over previous heartbreaks ie exes make them closed to the idea of love. But romance wins in the end of the day and what a romantic journey. Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for letting me review this book.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an early review copy.

Absolutely loved reading this book, felt like I wish it’d carried out forever, If only.

I’ve read the series of Whitsborough Bay and again, thoroughly enjoyed them. I wasn’t disappointed to be reading them and hoped this was the same, it so was.

Each book gives you a little more background information, read about he characters have progressed since you last visited.

If reading about believable characters who start in you head is your kind of book, please do read the beginning of the series of books, and continue going. I can’t wait for the next one.

Recommend it.

3.75 Stars

Overall I thought that the book was sweet, with a little bit of unexpected thrown into the mix. This was one of those stories that you wanted to get cozy in front of a fire place and read with a cup of cocoa. This was easily read by itself but this book had the feeling that there were other books in the series that came before this, there were so many minor characters briefly introduced at the beginning that it felt like we should have already known them.

There were two main things that through this story off for me.

1) The deceit that was caused by Tara’s “sister” and husband felt totally off and random. The overall tone of the book was sweet and innocent and that specific truth just didn’t feel right with the vibe of the storyline; it honestly felt like a last minute add in for shock value

2) I felt the romance of this story was rushed. There was so much build up that we weren’t really introduced to the love interest until half way through the book, which caused everything to feel rushed. I also wish that there was a little more attention to the ending, again it felt rushed. The couple says the three magic words and it’s over. End of story?

⭐️ There is currently not a GoodReads book for this with the new title, so I will wait for that to be added before posting my review publicly.

I love this series of books. This one in particular made me cry a little. All the characters are brilliantly written, even the more minor ones. Fab read!

Loved this book. I loved reading about Tara porters life, her ups and downs, how she thought she had loved and lost in a totally unexpected way to realising that she hadn’t really experienced love and being loved before. Her life evolves around the chocolate pot cafe but for 14years she has done her job which she loves but as soon as it closes she retreats to her flat letting no one in. However she begins to look differently at life and opening up to people brings light into her otherwise darkened days. A wonderful story from start to finish, that leaves you wanting more

Really enjoyed this story. Being a foster carer myself it made me a little emotional in some parts. .

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to review an eARC of this book!
This book is about a girl named Tara and her chocolate shop. Tara has a very traumatic past that has left her closed off to friends and romance. The only person she allows in is her giant pet rabbit named Hercules. Her closest friend is Carly (the cupcake shop owner from the previous book) and she has held her at arms length but decides to share her past. I loved seeing her retell her past and confront some of the demons that have been haunting her. However, this book mainly focuses on the past and is a character arc as opposed to being a cute Christmas story like the last one. I think the rebranding and taking Christmas out of the title is a good idea and more accurately reflects the story. I also think the author does a great job of creating the sweet and charming vibe of castle
Street and I’d love to read the rest of the series! The hate to love romance was fine and I thought the guy was super sweet but I wish there would’ve been more communication.

SPOILERS AHEAD:
Tara was a foster child after her dad died and her mom (who suffers from bipolar disorder) is unable to care for her. Her mom eventually commits suicide, leaving her completely dependent on her foster families. She goes through a couple of them and then finds a forever home. She has sisters and wonderful parents but one sister keeps setting her up with boyfriends and grooming her for something. Then there’s finally a guy she falls in love with and they get married, only to find out that he and the sister had an underground swinger/kink club and she was just a front because his bosses wanted him to appear more like a family man.
As for the romance, she bought the chocolate shop
building from a guy who’s family owned a cafe there. He wants her to continue running the business but she says no and that starts a hateful relationship. He moves to Australia then years later comes back after he finds out his wife only Wanted them to move there so she could get back with her ex. So now he’s back with his 2 adult daughters and there’s no love lost between him and Tara but then we find out that he didn’t know about the sketchy things that were done in the deal years ago and he’s actually a great guy. They’re both vulnerable with each other about their prior heartbreaks and they live happily ever after!