This is the first book by Debbie Johnson that I’ve read and I can undoubtedly say that Debbie is now on my favourite authors list!

Sometimes all you want is to curl up with a delightful romcom that has you intermittently laughing out loud and crying and this book certainly delivers that! This book gave me so much enjoyment and a real feel-good feeling at the end.

I fell in love with Laura and her children and the gorgeous Matt, Sam, Cherie, Willow and all the other wonderful, warm and engaging characters that Debbie has created.

If you are looking for a summer read, this is the book to choose!

Thanks to HarperImpulse and Netgalley for a copy of this book in return for an honest review.

I enjoyed the other book by Debbie Johnson (Sunshine at the Comfort Food Cafe) but since one of my reading rules is to not continue with book that use the word “retard” to describe a person, I’ve stopped this one at chapter 5. It makes me so sad that in this day and age writers who would never use racist or homophobic language in their mainstream books still thing that this vile word is ok. When you use the r-word to describe someone (“its to the right, you r**ard” in this case) and equate them with stupidity, you’re actually saying “you’re so stupid, as stupid as someone with a learning disability” - adding to the unacceptable view that people with learning disabilities are defined by stupidity and are acceptable targets for derision. So, no more Comfort Food Cafe for me. Thank you for the opportunity to read in return for an honest review, this certainly is one. Very disappointed as I’d been looking forward to a second instalment..

Laura Walker breaks away from her life in Manchester and drags her children away to fresh air, beaches and countryside, where she can try to move on from the devastation brought about by the untimely death of her husband.
This is where the magic begins and we get to meet the people of Budbury and learn all about the quirks that make them tick. I went back to this book after reading one of the later ones and was really glad I did. Highly recommended. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

An absolutely cracking summer read (yes it must be nearly here I reckon).

Well written, very descriptive and an easy to digest story.

I read this book AFTER I'd read the sequel, so it filled in some of the blanks for me.

Sometimes you just need a light and easy read, and this book fits that bill. An enjoyable and comfortable read, filled with great characters and lush descriptions of food and scenery. Some bits of it made me cry a little, and others made me smile. I like the way the author writes each book from the POV of a new member of the "Comfort Food Cafe" cast.

I'm giving it 5 stars as I would happily read more in this series, which is always a good sign.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an ARC in return for my honest review.

I picked this book for a nice, easy read however it gave me so much more! The book offered a real emotional roller-coaster and there is so much empathy for every single character within the book. You feel a part of the Comfort Food Cafe from the beginning and that never goes.

I so adore this series of books - they are brilliant. I really loved this book! Excellent story with brilliant main characters. I would recommend this book so very much.

I love this book! Laura’s husband David died in ana code to and this book charts part of Laura’s recovery. Laura moves herself, her children and the family dog down to Dorset for a summer job. There is warmth, humour, fun, grief, courage and hilarity all contained in the pages. This is a story of learning to live again, learning to love again and moving on after a traumatic event. It’s definitely my favourite in the series so far. Read it. Tell your friends to read it too!

I saw a recommendation from one of my favourite authors on Twitter for this book so when I was offered a free copy from Netgalley.com I took the opportunity to try it.
Laura is a young widow with two teenage children living in Manchester and she is existing rather than living, consumed with grief after the death of her childhood sweetheart husband. She answers an enigmatic ad for a person to work at the eponymous Comfort Food Cafe in Dorset and to her amazement after pouring her heart out in a letter gets the job.
The book tells us in a believable way about her experiences with Cherie, the owner of the cafe and her customers who all have their own quirky ways.
I laughed out loud several times, cried my eyes out at times and thoroughly enjoyed this book. Debbie Johnson has obviously had experience of the ways of modern, social media using teens and writes so eloquently about love, loss and human frailties.
I love Dorset and the book brought back happy memories of family holidays spent there.
I have already purchased the other books in the Comfort Cafe series and look forward to catching up with all the characters I have met.

Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins for a copy of this book. A very entertaining read, as I’ve found with every Debbie Johnson book. A book that is written so that you’ll laugh and cry along with the main character and her family and friends. A really good story, a book I’d recommend to anyone who loves a good romance.

I did enjoy this story, it was well written and certainly made me fall in love with the Comfort Food Cafe and all its VIPs. It slowly drew me in until I was totally engrossed in Laura's story and it made me smile and it also made me cry...quite a lot!

The characters in this book are all great, they are so real and bond together so well to create a really believable story. I loved them all, I wanted to find out their stories and to get to know them too.

This is a lovely story and a great summertime read. Do make sure you have a box of tissues to hand, you will need them; well you will if you get emotionally involved with the characters like I did.

This was a slow starter for me, but eventually I was hooked and couldn't wait to see how Laura's summer ended.
Will be binging on the rest of the series now!

I couldn't put this book down. The characters and their stories were so engaging and the Comfort Cafe sounds such an inviting place. I loved the range of age groups and the different types of relationships the stories covered. The central story of Laura and her family had me in tears on several occasions, but the hope that comes from the pages and the importance of having good people around you makes it an uplifting, if occasionally emotional read. I would definitely recommend this as an essential pick me up to escape the horrible winter and get a bit of warmth and sunshine in your life.

Loved it! I love all of Debbie Johnsons series set at the comfort food cafe and I eagerly await each new one :) This is our first glimpse at the joy that is the comfort food cafe when we first get to know all the characters.It starts with Laura and her kids and the miserable place they find themselves in and we follow them as they learn to love life again and find themselves a new place in their new world.

Can I have more please? Pure escapism, I love these books. Where can I find the cafe? I want to have a snack and meet the characters, go walking along the cliffs, and see all the scenery. Love these books!

I loved this book! It was the first I've read by Debbie Johnson but I'm sure it won't be the last. I loved the characters - they were all so likeable. Laura's backstory was great and I loved the Comfort Food Cafe - shame it's only a fictional place! There are some cracking one liners in this book too - "I always wondered what an inkling was, maybe it's a baby fountain pen"!!

If you want a nice easy light hearted read that will have you both laughing out loud, and will take you on a emotional rollercoaster, then this is the book for you!

A heartwarming story of a widowed mum of two surly teenagers who throws caution to the wind and escapes to Dorset for the summer. It made me want to leave my life behind and run away to the Jurassic Coast, so appealing was life at the Comfort Food Cafe. Thanks NetGalley!

A hugely enjoyable romance novel and I defy anyone to not want to change their life and escape to the seaside after reading it! When Laura's husband (and childhood sweetheart) dies unexpectedly the family is left grieving with no visible way out if the life they are only half living so when she spots an ad for a summer job working in a seaside cafe in Dorset she applies thinking that if nothing else the children will get a summer holiday. 6 weeks later and their lives are unrecognisable but will they take a chance on a new life or will they head back home? Sweet, funny and romantic- a great read.

I loved it! Yes it was a bit predictable but the characters were so warm and the descriptions of the countryside were so lovely I thoroughly enjoyed the ride. My measure of a good book is whether I can disappear into it - and I certainly did with this one. I read far later into the night than I should have, and when I finished it was with something in my eye. Lovely, just lovely.

This is a heartwarming story about Laura Walker, whose lost her husband and left with her children. She takes the brave and momentous move from Manchester to Dorset and gets herself a job at the wonderful cafe. The sadness that seems embedded in Laura slowly begins to disperse, as she settles in. The characters are terrific creations, with elements of quirkiness. A story that will delight and charm, with a great location. I hope to return to the beguiling cafe. A great read!