Wonderful heartwarming story. Good strong characters and a nice storyline. Lovely easy reading, great for getting into the Christmas spirit.

What could be better than a sweet, holiday romance set at a Carly's Cupcakes!? This book was so darn cute and made me feel very in the holiday mood and spirit. And, look at how cute and whimsy that cover art is! This is one that I would highly recommend!!!

A gorgeous tale of friendship, forever love, family, recovery and Christmas.

Call me naive, but I always prefer a Christmas story that has warmth and love at the heart of it. No malice, no long seated resentment, just Christmas magic at the heart of it and this book had it in abundance.

I really enjoyed the characters, their back stories, their loves, their losses - it all made sense to me. The setting was very atmospheric and the street, shop and surrounding shops sounds like just the place that I would love to visit - especially at Christmas time!

A gorgeous festive tale, and I could quite happily have read this for a further 200 pages!

The weather outside is frightful, so thank goodness author Jessica Redland has crafted such a heartwarming read. Set against a snowy backdrop in the idyllic Whitsborough Bay, Christmas at Carly’s Cupcakes whips up a lot of fun thanks in large part to Carly herself. A usually strong, intent woman, lately she’s been worrying about relationships, both familial and romantic. Her focus is constantly being torn between potential one-sided love pointed at longtime crush Liam and managing a sister who’s stuck in a constant state of emotional distress. There’s plenty of drama in tension in these scenes alone to keep the pages turning.

Then, of course, there are the delicious cakes, snowy evenings, and absolute festive joy that permeate the rest of the book. Redland weaves a bit of charm through her tight prose, making sure the story clips along while offering up plenty of sweet detours. She understands exactly how to build a community of characters who seem to genuinely care for each other, even—or perhaps especially—when some of the action looks bleak.

Yet all of this wrapping—like the best presents—is deceptively simple. Beneath the pretty paper and bow, the lovely characters and festive joyousness, is a thoughtful undercurrent. Redland doesn’t shy away from difficult subjects, and here she tackles bullying and its long-term effects. These passages, where Carly has to address both her schooldays and the aftermath, are incredibly powerful without being overwhelming. She’s seamlessly meshed these with the sweeter aspects in a way that realistically showcases its impact.

By infusing a ton of heart and a bit of romantic magic, Redland has delivered a brilliant read.

Carly owns her own cake shop. She has her younger sister Bethany working for her but she's not great at cake decorating but Carly wants to help her get her confidence back as she was attacked at her last job and she feels like a loser.
Bethany is getting married and Carly wants her sister to have a wonderful day but as the wedding gets closer Bethany gets more stressed. Will the wedding go ahead?
Carly also hopes her best friend Liam who is serving in Afghanistan comes home for Christmas and she hopes they can make their friendship into something more romantic.
Will Carly get her wish of romance with Liam or will it ruin their friendship .
A real feel good book
Feet up, cup of hot chocolate and a roaring fire.
Thanks NetGalley

Carly Travis owns and runs a successful cake shop, Carly’s Cupcakes, in Whitsborough Bay. Following a very traumatic incident in her previous job, Carly’s sister Bethany has been left with low self esteem and rather more than a tendency to be accident prone. Trying to help Bethany, Carly has given her a job and, although Bethany is great with the customers, she’s a disaster in the kitchen. In the lead up to Christmas, Carly could do without the extra work, and the time it took making good on Bethany’s mistakes and cleaning up after her, but she would never say so.

"I closed my eyes for a moment in the desperate hope that, when I opened them, I’d discover I’d been hallucinating and Bethany hadn’t really managed to cover the table, walls and floor in globs of red butter icing. Or — far worse — the sixty cupcakes I’d already decorated for tomorrow night’s Christmas lights switch-on."

Carly loves being part of Castle Street’s little community, with its independent shops and businesses, the traders friendly and willing to help out when necessary — as Carly finds out when she talks to Tara about her feelings for her best friend, Liam.

Carly and Liam have been best friends since they were eleven. Targeted and abused by bullies at school because of their looks, they stuck together and their friendship grew ever stronger. Should Carly risk her the close friendship she and Liam share or tell him how she really feels and hope he feels the same?

Christmas at Carly’s Cupcakes is a lovely read set in a pretty village with wonderful characters, brought to life with descriptive writing. The story also deals with darker issues, such as the aforementioned bullying and the lasting effects of trauma.

The first thing to note about this book is that it is the sixth book in Jessica Redland’s Whitsborough Bay series. I haven’t read any of the previous books so I’m not entirely sure whether there is an overall story arc. We certainly find out that Carly’s sister in particular has had a pretty dramatic recent past (a main storyline is the impact of this on her life now), but I’m not sure whether this was part of one of the previous books or not. In any case, apart from a bit of catching up on Bethany’s past, the rest of the story feels pretty self-contained, so I don’t think it mattered too much that I was reading it as a stand alone.

The story itself was pretty cute, and once I got past the bits where Bethany’s situation is established (which felt a little bit awkward at times) I really got into this and enjoyed it enough that I’m really keen to check out the other Christmassy books in the series.

The sense of community between the residents of Whitsborough Bay, in particular the store owners of Castle Street, was quite lovely, and one of my favourite scenes was when they got together. Bethany’s wedding is a side story that features enough to be important but not so much that it overtakes the ‘lead up to Christmas’ feel. It is definitely a story about Christmas time rather than Christmas day, but this worked for me – I found it really festive and quite lovely (lots of lovely snow!)

The romance aspect was also quite sweet. I don’t want to say too much because spoilers, but I liked that it was sort of ‘friends to lovers’-ish, and I liked the way it played out.

I thought this was pretty solid, sweet, festive read, and in the end it was totally worth forgiving a few bumps at the start for.

I just love festive books that involve food and a huge community spirit, Christmas at Carly's Cupcakes delivers well with the both. It was such a heart warming read, perfect for those wintery nights by the fire. Everything about this book was perfect. The characters were loveable, the plot was enjoyable. It is a brilliant book that I thoroughly enjoyed.

This was a great short Christmas read. The story is about Carly and Liam. This was a great quick and easy read and definitely put me in the christmas mood. I loved the relationship too between Carly and her sister Bethany. I loved that you could feel the emotion of the story which added to an overall great heart felt read. I also loved that I could picture the exact place where this book was set. Another fa read from Jessica Redland which I would highly recommend.

*I received a review copy in exchange for this review

I fell head over cupcake in love with this book!

We are introduced to the main character straight away – Carly owns her own bakery where she designs and makes her own cupcakes and cakes for all kinds of special occasions. She loves what she does, and she loves being part of the local community in Whitsborough Bay. It’s her home town and where she grew up with her best friend Liam, who is now a serving Army Officer in Afghanistan.

Employing her sister Bethany in the shop to help out with orders seems like the perfect solution for Carly. Bethany suffers from self-esteem issues and with her wedding day looming, Carly thinks having Bethany in the shop will help. Sadly, no matter what, her sister seems to make many mistakes and create more problems for Carly. With Christmas looming, Carly starts to feel the pressure with the rush of orders to complete along with taking care of her sister. The one thing that keeps her going is knowing that Liam will be home for Christmas. Will Carly be brave enough to tell Liam that she loves him? Or will it run their friendship forever?

Christmas at Carly’s Cupcakes has to be one of my favourite books I have read this year. Packed full of festive warmth, fun, snow angels and love – in so many ways. Thank you Jessica for writing such a heartwarming story – just perfect for this time of year.

How nice it is to be back in Whitsborough Bay and to be meeting some familiar friends from Castle Street. I found Carly to be a thoroughly likeable character wand her best friend, Liam, did not disappoint. Family is a major part of the story and Carly's relationship with her sister, Bethany is a major part of the story. You really feel for Carly as she tries to accommodate her sister and to keep her business afloat at the same time.
There are some darker themes under the surface, such as PTSD, bullying and the effect of violent episodes. Nevertheless, this is an uplifting read for the festive season and there is a lovely nostalgic air to it. You certainly feel that there is a great community spirit on Castle Street and it is a heart-warming story as Carly discovers that she has more friends than she realised. For a festive read, this is like a warm, comforting hug.
In short: A great festive read.

Thanks to the author for a copy of the book

I have been a fan of Jessica’s work for a little while now. I haven’t quite caught up with all of her books yet but I am getting there. ‘Christmas At Carly’s Cupcakes’ is Jessica’s latest novel and it was released on 13th August 2020. It’s another fabulous and delightful read from Jessica and I adored every single minute of it but more about that in a bit.
I absolutely loved the character of Carly and I warmed to her from the start. She is one of those girls, who has been through a heck of a lot, but she hasn’t let it keep her down for long. Instead she has pulled up her big girl’s pants, dusted herself off and carried on. Carly runs her own cake shop. She is a super talented cake maker. I do think that Carly does have a lack of self confidence in her own abilities. Carly works in the shop with her sister, who is lovely but to say she is accident prone when it comes to icing cakes is a huge understatement. Bless her, she tries her best but it always seems to go wrong and Carly literally has to mop up the mess. Carly hasn’t got the heart to sack her sister, who is going through a tough time and who has a distinct lack of self confidence. Carly’s love life hasn’t exactly been hugely successful. I won’t go too far into the exact details, but she is destined to be with somebody, who doesn’t realise how she feels. Her previous boyfriend was just a twit and treated Carly badly. What happens? Well for the answer to that question and so much more you are just going to have to read the book for yourselves to find out as I am not going to tell you.
It didn’t take me long at all to get into ‘Christmas At Carly’s Cupcakes’. In fact as soon as I started reading the synopsis, I knew that I was going to be in for one hell of a fabulous read and I was spot on. This was one of those books that was simply unputdownable. I became so engrossed in the story that I couldn’t have put the book down even if I had wanted to because I needed to know what happened. The book wasn’t exactly glued to my hand but it might as well have been because it travelled everywhere with me. The pages turned over rather quickly as I raced my way through this story. All too quickly I reached the end of the book and I had to bid farewell to Carly and her friends. I hope that this is not the last time we meet her.
‘Christmas At Carly’s Cupcakes’ is superbly written but then I have thought that to be true of all of Jessica’s books that I have had the pleasure of reading and reviewing. She has one of those easy going writing styles that reads more like a chat between friends than reading an actual story. I hope that makes sense. Jessica is one of those writers who uses such vivid and realistic descriptions that the reader feels as though they are part of the story themselves. That’s how I felt at any rate. The only problem with this book was the fact that I ended up craving cake, which isn’t good for somebody trying to lose weight! Ha ha.
I have to be honest and say that ‘Christmas At Carly’s Cupcakes’ was a difficult read for me at times. I know that sounds really negative but I don’t mean it that way. Let me explain, when Carly was younger she was bullied quite badly at school to the extent that it impacted on her daily life and she still bears the psychological scars as an adult. When she was at school, the school basically swept the bullying under the carpet and she ends up not reporting the bullying incidents to her teachers because nothing was ever done. This is where it gets a bit personal. To cut a long story short, I was badly bullied throughout school from 5 years of age until 16 years of age. After an assault at school, I was left with a permanent disability which I will now have for life. That would be bad enough but the psychological and emotional scars are even worse. Like Carly, I stopped reporting the incidents because I was fobbed off with either ‘so and so isn’t capable of bullying’ or ‘you are being too sensitive’. Jessica has either experienced bullying herself (I hope not) or she knows somebody who has because she was spot on with describing how a bullying survivor feels. She was so accurate that when I was reading passages about the bullying a shiver literally went up my spine. That’s enough of my personal warblings but I just wanted to let you know why this book was at times difficult for me.
In short, I thoroughly enjoyed every single bit of ‘Christmas At Carly’s Cupcakes’ and I would definitely recommend this book to other reads. I will certainly be reading more of Jessica’s work in the future. The score on the Ginger Book Geek board is a very well deserved 5* out of 5*.

I started this book this morning and I have finished it this evening. What a gorgeous book. I was worried having not read any other in the series that I wouldn't know people or I would have missed the stories for characters but I didn't need to worry. I am loving Jessica Redlands writing style and her characters. The story is full of love, hope, excitement, with a little bit about ptsd and all topped off with a huge dollop of cake! And who doesn't love cake?!?! Thank you so much to netgalley, the publishers and Jessica for the opportunity to read this book for my honest opinion

A fabulous festive novel that I adored
Carly is the owner of a cupcake shop in a busy town but on a fabulous street of independent businesses that all work together. She does have a secret through, she has been in love with her best friend Liam for years but has been too scared to tell him in case he doesn’t feel the same
I loved Carly as a character, she is a strong and independent woman in charge and in control of her life but she would also do anything for those she cares about. Following an incident in a previous job she employs her sister Bethany and although things aren’t necisarnaly plain sailing she still cares about her sister and works hard to make things work between them and to build up Bethany’s confidence in herself again
Carly’s relationship with Liam seems very undecided, she’s in love with him but is scared that he won’t feel the same way. A lot of the book makes you wonder whether she will or won’t tell him how she feels which feels totally natural and unforced. It is clear to see how much they care about each other as best friends and communicate as much as they can
I really enjoyed Carly’s relationship with the other traders on her street, they work together and are like a community in how they pull together when one of them is in need which is heartwarming and I’m sure is how some streets work in real life!
I would recommend this book to those who enjoy stories about family, character development and love which will capture your heart

Cupcakes, Christmas and Romance await you in this feel good book.

Christmas at Carly’s Cupcakes is one of those feel good heart-warming reads, the fact that is set at Christmas just makes it feel all that more romantic and magical. I was hooked from the beginning and I did no realises that this was book 6 in the Whitsborough Bay Series – but that did not matter as this can read as a complete stand alone. You will fall in love with the characters and get hooked on the feelings and atmosphere that Castle Street brings.

This story focuses on the relationship between Carly and her sister Bethany, after her sister was attacked at her last job Carly offered her a job at her shop, only Carly ends up fixing so many of Bethany mistakes some of them costly that she doesn’t know how to fire her – Bethany has so little self esteems she is always saying she is such a failure at everything and even believes that she isn’t good enough for her soon-to-be husband.

I loved Carly and Bethany’s storyline but the side hook was the fact that Carly has been in love with her best friend and when he comes home on leave from Army she plucks up the courage to tell him – will it be a Christmas wish come true to Carly? You will have to read the book to find out!

Christmas cracker of a book

Warning ***You will be craving cake/cupcakes whilst reading this book***

I started this Tuesday night and had finished by Wednesday night. It left me feeling warm all throughout. There was a lovely sister bond, beautiful caring friendships and a girl/boy best friend situation. Add a winter wonderland wedding, with the most magical, beautiful setting. It will leave you wanting Christmas to hurry up.

Set mostly in a cake shop, it sounded wonderful. I want to visit castle street, full of loads of little cute shops and lovely shop owners. Set in north Yorkshire seaside town, it sounded idyllic. You only need to look at the cover of the book to see how dreamy and magical it looks.

Carly was a right workaholic with her cake business her life and happy working to forget her best friend posted in the army. Who she adored. Having a few friends; quality is better than quantity was Carly’s happy approach. Her cakes sounded amazing.

I loved the whole knowing what’s right in front of you and guessing of the relationship between Carly and Liam. Friends since school, was they both ready to finally take it to the next stage?! Like Tara I could feel the chemistry.

Her younger sister Bethany at 23 was stuck in a rut of changing jobs and ended up working with her. Which at times was a disaster. Some parts I was thinking grow up Bethany and take some action for you own life but then you got to dig deeper, and it come out why she was the way she was. Which left me feeling rather sorry for her and wanting her to be happy at the same time.

I really enjoyed the build up of the story, as it was written from 4 weeks to Christmas. I enjoy the build up as much as Christmas day so this made me just wish it was Christmas already. The festive spirit, the setting, the cakes, the snow – it was all written so beautifully.

This wasn’t all romance and cakes there was some really good topics covered in this book, especially one around mental health. Its that saying again ‘you really do not know what someone else is dealing with’. Be kind to everyone.

This is a lovely festive read in which Carly is busy getting ready for Christmas but her sister, Bethany, is proving a very mixed blessing as she keeps accidentally causing havoc with Carly’s schedule and her baking! Bethany is getting married just before Christmas and the stress of it all, following on from the traumatic events from earlier in the year, are making her more anxious and clumsier than usual. Meanwhile, as well as all that entails, Carly is eagerly anticipating the return of her best friend from active service in Afghanistan. She knows she loves him but is wary of making him aware of her feelings and ruining their friendship. As drama in the bakery unfolds, can these sisters both find true love and happiness this Christmas?

What a fun read this proved to be. I really enjoyed learning about the various businesses on Castle Street and it is fantastic how their owners help and support each other. There are plenty of characters to get to know, lots of laughs and some moments of anguish, too, in this delightful festive read. I can’t wait to learn more about this great community in the sequel which I’ll be reading next!

My thanks to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for my copy of this book which I have voluntarily read and honestly reviewed.

With Christmas at Carly’s Cupcakes, I was dubious at first as romance tales are not a go to genre for me. But this little story held my heart and it was adorable to see the friendship between Carly and Liam grow and blossom into a Christmas Wish. The story is full of friendship, love, loyalty and just plain adorable moments.

I enjoyed the fact it was an easy read, nicely paced and even though you knew where the story was going to lead, the build up was rollercoaster that wrangled your emotions free. I think I may have cried a few times, as well as craving cake. Alot, alot of cake. It was also easy to fit in a few chapters during the mummy-has-freedom moments without losing my pace in the story.

It’s the perfect little winter romance, for anyone craving a Christmas wish. I may be a romance beginner but this little tale of snow angels in the street will leave you craving your own icing decorated adventure. Or at least a penguin cake. No one can say no to a penguin cake. So check out the link and wrap yourself up in Christmas lights this year. I think everyone needs a little bit of Carly cheer this year.

CHRISTMAS AT CARLY’S CUPCAKES is a slow burn contemporary story that I was pulled in to from the very first page. To be honest, I fell in love with the cover the minute I saw it. I knew I would read it anyway, because I keep seeing my blogging friends reading her books, but the cover really pulled me in. I loved everything about this beautiful story and I’m excited to recommend it to my reading friends. Jessica Redland has a way of grabbing her readers and she never lets us go. CHRISTMAS AT CARLY’S CUPCAKES is the first book I’ve ever read by Jessica Redland but it surely won’t be the last. I loved every single page of this heart warming story.

CHRISTMAS AT CARLY’S CUPCAKES really takes a turn that will have you unable to put this beautiful story down. Neither Liam or Carly have ever told each other how they really feel. It was cute watching these two dance around their feelings for each other. They have been friends since they were kids and bonded because they were both picked on. The bullies called Carly “Bear Trap” because of her braces and Liam’s nickname was “Skindiana Bones” because he was so skinny.

CHRISTMAS AT CARLY’S CUPCAKES is filled with twists and turns and had me staying up way too late one night to finish! I had to know where Jessica Redland was taking us and what would happen to Carly and Liam. I really loved how the whole community came to Carly and Liam’s aid and only wanted them to feel loved and realize that they were home. There is so much heart in Jessica’s writing that I was left with a huge smile on my face and my heart very happy. I could totally see CHRISTMAS AT CARLY’S CUPCAKES becoming a Hallmark movie and I would love to see it. All of the characters are very interesting and believable, so much so that I felt as if I’ve known them for a long time. I would love to hang out with all of the Castle Street merchants . I’m sure they could teach me a thing or two and I know they would keep my laughing all day long! I love how Jessica did that to me each and every time.

I received a complimentary copy of this book through Netgalley and Rachel’s Random Resources . All opinions expressed are my own and were voluntarily given.

I am loving Jessica Redland's Whitsborough Bay stories. This wonderful story features Carly Travis, the owner of the bakery known as Carly's Cupcakes. She is well known for her amazing cakes and is getting busier all the time. When her sister, Bethany, suffers a terrible incident at her previous job she ends up with a case of PTSD. Carly invites her to come and work with her, which she agrees to immediately. The only problem is that she can't decorate anything and Carly ends up with even more work, and losing money. Carly's best friends since school days, Liam, is in the army and has gotten leave to be home for Christmas. Carly has loved him for years, and is hoping she will have the nerve to tell him so.

This was a fun contemporary, second chance romance. One of the things I like about this series is that Jessica Redland always includes some kind of serious issue. This one touches on bullying. While in school, there was a clique of girls that were quite mean to Carly, calling her "Bear Trap" and teasing Liam with the name "Skindiana Jones". They disliked this group that they dubbed "The Biscuits" into adulthood. There is a scene where they come fact to face with the "Head Biscuit" that I loved. While dealing with Carly's business, Bethany's mistakes as well as her upcoming wedding, Liam and Carly grow closer together and finally let the other know how they feel. I do enjoy the dialogue and banter in these books. They are well developed and have me zipping through them in a pleasant afternoon. Her writing is descriptive and I can picture the scene and the setting being described. I only have one more book to read in this series and am afraid to read it until she has another story ready for me to jump into.