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Marram Bay #1
Falling For You
Don't miss this hilarious rom-com from million copy bestseller Portia MacIntosh! Perfect for fans of Emily Henry and Christina Lauren.
Lily Holmes is ready for a fresh start. And there’s no better place to begin again than the idyllic seaside town of Marram Bay.
All Lily wants to do is focus on making her new deli a success and ensuring her son’s happiness. Not the postcard creeping out of her handbag, and definitely not finding a new man in her life!
But this isn’t going to be as easy as she first thought. The town is in uproar about the city girl who’s dared to join them and she’s fighting a battle at every turn.
Perhaps with a little help from the gorgeous cider farmer next door, she may be able to win them over, but her past secrets threaten to ruin everything…
Praise for Portia MacIntosh
'Smart, funny and always brilliantly entertaining, every book from Portia becomes my new favourite rom com.' Shari Low
'I laughed, I cried – I loved it.’ Holly Martin
'The queen of rom com!' Rebecca Raisin
‘This book made me laugh and kept me turning the pages.' Mandy Baggot
Previously published as Summer Secrets at the Apple Blossom Deli.
Lily Holmes is ready for a fresh start. And there’s no better place to begin again than the idyllic seaside town of Marram Bay.
All Lily wants to do is focus on making her new deli a success and ensuring her son’s happiness. Not the postcard creeping out of her handbag, and definitely not finding a new man in her life!
But this isn’t going to be as easy as she first thought. The town is in uproar about the city girl who’s dared to join them and she’s fighting a battle at every turn.
Perhaps with a little help from the gorgeous cider farmer next door, she may be able to win them over, but her past secrets threaten to ruin everything…
Praise for Portia MacIntosh
'Smart, funny and always brilliantly entertaining, every book from Portia becomes my new favourite rom com.' Shari Low
'I laughed, I cried – I loved it.’ Holly Martin
'The queen of rom com!' Rebecca Raisin
‘This book made me laugh and kept me turning the pages.' Mandy Baggot
Previously published as Summer Secrets at the Apple Blossom Deli.
Audible Audio
First published May 1, 2018
440 people are currently reading
1105 people want to read
About the author
Portia MacIntosh
52 books2,108 followersPortia MacIntosh is the bestselling author of over 30 romantic comedy novels.
From disastrous dates to destination weddings, Portia’s romcoms are the perfect way to escape from day to day life, visiting sunny beaches in the summer and snowy villages at Christmas time. Whether it’s southern Italy or the Yorkshire coast, Portia’s stories are the holiday you’re craving, conveniently packed in between the pages.
Formerly a journalist, Portia has left the city, swapping the music biz for the moors, to live the (not so) quiet life with her husband and her dog in Yorkshire.
Find out more at www.portiamacintosh.com
From disastrous dates to destination weddings, Portia’s romcoms are the perfect way to escape from day to day life, visiting sunny beaches in the summer and snowy villages at Christmas time. Whether it’s southern Italy or the Yorkshire coast, Portia’s stories are the holiday you’re craving, conveniently packed in between the pages.
Formerly a journalist, Portia has left the city, swapping the music biz for the moors, to live the (not so) quiet life with her husband and her dog in Yorkshire.
Find out more at www.portiamacintosh.com
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 96 reviews
May 17, 2018
Comical, uplifting, and delightfully sweet!
Summer Secrets at the Apple Blossom Deli is a charming, summery read that takes us to Marram Bay and into the life of Lily Holmes as she meanders through all sorts of highs and lows, from single motherhood, moving to a new town, disgruntled locals, opening a new restaurant, an unexpected visit from her ex, and a blossoming new romance.
The prose is well turned and light. The characters, including all the supporting characters, are amusing, quirky, authentic, and cordial. And the plot is a fun, flirty, beguiling tale full of tricky situations, tender moments, humorous mishaps, self-discovery, friendship, family, community, happiness, romance, and scrumptious food.
Overall, Summer Secrets at the Apple Blossom Deli is another entertaining, refreshing, enjoyable treat by MacIntosh that reminds us that life is truly an adventure!
Thank you to Portia MacIntosh and HQ Digital for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.
All my reviews can be found on my blog at https://whatsbetterthanbooks.com
Summer Secrets at the Apple Blossom Deli is a charming, summery read that takes us to Marram Bay and into the life of Lily Holmes as she meanders through all sorts of highs and lows, from single motherhood, moving to a new town, disgruntled locals, opening a new restaurant, an unexpected visit from her ex, and a blossoming new romance.
The prose is well turned and light. The characters, including all the supporting characters, are amusing, quirky, authentic, and cordial. And the plot is a fun, flirty, beguiling tale full of tricky situations, tender moments, humorous mishaps, self-discovery, friendship, family, community, happiness, romance, and scrumptious food.
Overall, Summer Secrets at the Apple Blossom Deli is another entertaining, refreshing, enjoyable treat by MacIntosh that reminds us that life is truly an adventure!
Thank you to Portia MacIntosh and HQ Digital for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.
All my reviews can be found on my blog at https://whatsbetterthanbooks.com
May 21, 2018
Book Reviewed by Stacey on www.whisperingstories.com
Lily Holmes is given the opportunity to move out of London with her son Frankie and into the Yorkshire countryside when the company she works for expands their business and need someone to run their new store.
The pair moves into Apple Blossom Cottage, which looks gorgeous from the outside, but dated and small on the inside. Things don’t improve with the local school either when all the kids take a dislike to Frankie as the new place his mum has come to run is a deli, and the locals don’t want a high-street chain opening up in their village. They also believe the deli will take effect the local businesses.
Lily has her work cut out, not only trying to make a success of the deli, but convincing the locals that the store won’t hit their businesses. She does find an ally in local farmer, Alfie, who has been on the receiving end of the locals not welcoming him with open arms.
Can Lily cope with the animosity, or will she pack up her car and head back home to London?
Summer Secrets at the Apple Blossom Deli is a delicious, summery read. Single parent Lily has only one thing on her mind when she is offered the job in Yorkshire, to get her son out of London and into clean, fresh air and a better life. She didn’t expect the locals to of taken such a dislike to the deli, which in turn makes them take an instant dislike to her and her son too.
With everything going wrong she invites her mum, Viv, to stay for a while to help her. What she didn’t expect was her to turn up with an unwelcome guest, one that makes her life go from bad to worse.
I love how the story follows Lily’s life, but more than one part of it, mixing old problems and new ones together. The book flowed at an easy-going pace and was an effortless read.
The characters were all a delight to get to know and the setting was just perfect. This is a heart-warming, uplifting book that had me captivated from the first chapter and had me eager to keep on reading. I can honestly say I completely adored this book, hopefully, you will too.
Lily Holmes is given the opportunity to move out of London with her son Frankie and into the Yorkshire countryside when the company she works for expands their business and need someone to run their new store.
The pair moves into Apple Blossom Cottage, which looks gorgeous from the outside, but dated and small on the inside. Things don’t improve with the local school either when all the kids take a dislike to Frankie as the new place his mum has come to run is a deli, and the locals don’t want a high-street chain opening up in their village. They also believe the deli will take effect the local businesses.
Lily has her work cut out, not only trying to make a success of the deli, but convincing the locals that the store won’t hit their businesses. She does find an ally in local farmer, Alfie, who has been on the receiving end of the locals not welcoming him with open arms.
Can Lily cope with the animosity, or will she pack up her car and head back home to London?
Summer Secrets at the Apple Blossom Deli is a delicious, summery read. Single parent Lily has only one thing on her mind when she is offered the job in Yorkshire, to get her son out of London and into clean, fresh air and a better life. She didn’t expect the locals to of taken such a dislike to the deli, which in turn makes them take an instant dislike to her and her son too.
With everything going wrong she invites her mum, Viv, to stay for a while to help her. What she didn’t expect was her to turn up with an unwelcome guest, one that makes her life go from bad to worse.
I love how the story follows Lily’s life, but more than one part of it, mixing old problems and new ones together. The book flowed at an easy-going pace and was an effortless read.
The characters were all a delight to get to know and the setting was just perfect. This is a heart-warming, uplifting book that had me captivated from the first chapter and had me eager to keep on reading. I can honestly say I completely adored this book, hopefully, you will too.
October 1, 2025
I FELL BIG for "FALLING FOR YOU".
TRUE CONFESSION:
This was my first "Portia" book and will not be my last.
From start to finish, the author checked all my rom-com boxes:
☑️❤️ Funny
☑️❤️ Heartfelt
☑️❤️ Pacey
☑️❤️ Character-driven
☑️❤️ Relatable
☑️❤️ Nonstop Witty Banter
☑️❤️ Unpredictable
☑️❤️ Unputdownable
Kudos to the author for delivering just the right mix of tension, banter, and tenderness between vulnerable, compelling, and endearing characters.
This is the first book in the author's "Marram Bay" series, and I look forward to listening to future releases by this talented author.
I listened to the audiobook, expertly narrated by Karen Cass.
Karen Cass' performance was outstanding.
All the stars!
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
October 3, 2025
It didn't deliver on the cozy fall vibes I'd expected based on the cover, but it's still a heartwarming story.
August 15, 2018
This is a lovely story about a mother and son starting over in a new place, where they know no-one and need to learn to fit in. The locals of Marram Bay initially aren't friendly as they are opposed to the deli that Lily will be running.
This has a knock on event of 9 year old Frankie. Frankie is a star of the book, but nothing in his recent life has been easy. I couldn't help but feel sorry for him most of the time, especially when the kids are predisposed to dislike him, just because of what his mum is doing.
Thankfully Lily's nearest neighbour, Alfie understands what it is to be an outsider and is determined to turn the locals opinions around of Lily, and also to make Lily really fall in love with the town of Maran Bay. So there are some lovely outings that are planned between them, and the fact that Alfie is easy on the eyes is a nice bonus.
Nothing goes smoothly in this book, but was each secrets or change of direction is revealed, that kept me interested and curious as to what would happen next.
What did surprise me is for a book featuring a deli in the title that at no point did the book make me feel hungry as you may expect. Which is mildly frustrating as i had held off reading this while other food based books called out to be read first, and I wanted to space them out a bit. There was a sprinkling of great food descriptions, but on the whole it seemed almost secondary to whether the deli would even get any customers once its open.
The story is peppered with humour in Portia MacIntosh's typical style and was a sheer pleasure to read this book. I found this a very fast read, that was incredibly enjoyable.
Thank you to Netgalley and HQ Digital for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.
This has a knock on event of 9 year old Frankie. Frankie is a star of the book, but nothing in his recent life has been easy. I couldn't help but feel sorry for him most of the time, especially when the kids are predisposed to dislike him, just because of what his mum is doing.
Thankfully Lily's nearest neighbour, Alfie understands what it is to be an outsider and is determined to turn the locals opinions around of Lily, and also to make Lily really fall in love with the town of Maran Bay. So there are some lovely outings that are planned between them, and the fact that Alfie is easy on the eyes is a nice bonus.
Nothing goes smoothly in this book, but was each secrets or change of direction is revealed, that kept me interested and curious as to what would happen next.
What did surprise me is for a book featuring a deli in the title that at no point did the book make me feel hungry as you may expect. Which is mildly frustrating as i had held off reading this while other food based books called out to be read first, and I wanted to space them out a bit. There was a sprinkling of great food descriptions, but on the whole it seemed almost secondary to whether the deli would even get any customers once its open.
The story is peppered with humour in Portia MacIntosh's typical style and was a sheer pleasure to read this book. I found this a very fast read, that was incredibly enjoyable.
Thank you to Netgalley and HQ Digital for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.
November 2, 2025
Oh how I love a small town romance filled with drama!
Lilly and her son Frankie have moved in to Marram Bay after Lily was asked to run the new deli opening in town.
Lily has visions of the deli, what she wants it to be like and what she wants served inside but what she doesn’t expect are the locals shutting her out and doing anything possible to make it not open but Lily is determined to make it work.
When her son disappears and ends up at the farm just down the road, Lilly meets her neighbour, the lovely and extremely handsome Alfie.
Alfie is very well liked around town but knows exactly how Lily is feeling as he too has been the new guy around Marram Bay. He vows to help make her new normal as easy as possible. Taking her for walks to explore and helping with the deli has them becoming very close.
Then comes a new arrival and things are thrown up into the air and boy, is it exciting!
The drama, the sadness everything just wrapped up into a ball of greatness, it’s been a joy to read.
I have loved reading through this story, learning all the characters and loving them all. This author brought us a lovely little town filled with various characters with lovable and not so loveable personalities.
It’s been a fun time reading this and I can’t wait for more.
Lilly and her son Frankie have moved in to Marram Bay after Lily was asked to run the new deli opening in town.
Lily has visions of the deli, what she wants it to be like and what she wants served inside but what she doesn’t expect are the locals shutting her out and doing anything possible to make it not open but Lily is determined to make it work.
When her son disappears and ends up at the farm just down the road, Lilly meets her neighbour, the lovely and extremely handsome Alfie.
Alfie is very well liked around town but knows exactly how Lily is feeling as he too has been the new guy around Marram Bay. He vows to help make her new normal as easy as possible. Taking her for walks to explore and helping with the deli has them becoming very close.
Then comes a new arrival and things are thrown up into the air and boy, is it exciting!
The drama, the sadness everything just wrapped up into a ball of greatness, it’s been a joy to read.
I have loved reading through this story, learning all the characters and loving them all. This author brought us a lovely little town filled with various characters with lovable and not so loveable personalities.
It’s been a fun time reading this and I can’t wait for more.
May 4, 2018
An adorable summer feel good book.
The story begins with our heroine and her son relocating up North to open a deli. They have to face a number of trials and tribulations when it comes to fitting in and winning over the locals. I love a good chick lit now and again but I like the female leads to be a bit stronger. I felt she bowed down to other people a lot and could have stood up for her son with a lot more gusto than what she actually did. I found I just wanted to give her a good shake through most confrontational issues.
It’s an easy read, not to be taken too seriously. I received an advance copy and there are quite a few spelling errors and grammatical errors that I’m sure will be ironed out before publication.
The story begins with our heroine and her son relocating up North to open a deli. They have to face a number of trials and tribulations when it comes to fitting in and winning over the locals. I love a good chick lit now and again but I like the female leads to be a bit stronger. I felt she bowed down to other people a lot and could have stood up for her son with a lot more gusto than what she actually did. I found I just wanted to give her a good shake through most confrontational issues.
It’s an easy read, not to be taken too seriously. I received an advance copy and there are quite a few spelling errors and grammatical errors that I’m sure will be ironed out before publication.
May 18, 2018
The Blurb :
Lily Holmes is ready for a fresh start. And there’s no better place to begin again than the idyllic seaside town of Marram Bay.
All Lily wants to do is focus on making her new deli a success and ensuring her son’s happiness. Not the postcard creeping out of her handbag, and definitely not finding a new man in her life!
But this isn’t going to be as easy as she first thought. The town is in uproar about the city girl who’s dared to join them and she’s fighting a battle at every turn.
Perhaps with a little help from the gorgeous cider farmer next door, she may be able to win them over, but her past secrets threaten to ruin everything…
My Thoughts :
We meet Lily Holmes, Lily has left behind the bright lights of London and her son’s dad to move to Marram Bay in Yorkshire. Along with her 8 year old, Frankie, Lily has high hopes for a new start by opening a new deli as part of a chain of YumYum delis that she works for. Moving into a beautiful cottage called Apple Blossom, filled with apple trees in the garden, Lily thinks she can make Marram Bay her home.
Soon she realises the whole town doesnt want her there and will do anything to ship her out. Lily will not be beaten and trys to win over the residents of the bay.
I really warmed to Lily from the off, she is a very likeable charactor and likes to get things done.
Her first meeting was with cafe owners Clara and her husband, who offer Lily and Frankie a meal when everything else was closed. Lily also has run in’s with Frankie’s new teacher Mrs Snowball (love this name) as she often arrives late to drop or pick Frankie up.
And then there is Cider Farmer Alfie, who is maybe after more than just her Apple trees.
With an array of fun charactors we are treated to a great summer read with a few twists and turns along the way, Portia MacIntosh as always delivers us a treat, one that will leave us smiling from ear to ear.
Lily Holmes is ready for a fresh start. And there’s no better place to begin again than the idyllic seaside town of Marram Bay.
All Lily wants to do is focus on making her new deli a success and ensuring her son’s happiness. Not the postcard creeping out of her handbag, and definitely not finding a new man in her life!
But this isn’t going to be as easy as she first thought. The town is in uproar about the city girl who’s dared to join them and she’s fighting a battle at every turn.
Perhaps with a little help from the gorgeous cider farmer next door, she may be able to win them over, but her past secrets threaten to ruin everything…
My Thoughts :
We meet Lily Holmes, Lily has left behind the bright lights of London and her son’s dad to move to Marram Bay in Yorkshire. Along with her 8 year old, Frankie, Lily has high hopes for a new start by opening a new deli as part of a chain of YumYum delis that she works for. Moving into a beautiful cottage called Apple Blossom, filled with apple trees in the garden, Lily thinks she can make Marram Bay her home.
Soon she realises the whole town doesnt want her there and will do anything to ship her out. Lily will not be beaten and trys to win over the residents of the bay.
I really warmed to Lily from the off, she is a very likeable charactor and likes to get things done.
Her first meeting was with cafe owners Clara and her husband, who offer Lily and Frankie a meal when everything else was closed. Lily also has run in’s with Frankie’s new teacher Mrs Snowball (love this name) as she often arrives late to drop or pick Frankie up.
And then there is Cider Farmer Alfie, who is maybe after more than just her Apple trees.
With an array of fun charactors we are treated to a great summer read with a few twists and turns along the way, Portia MacIntosh as always delivers us a treat, one that will leave us smiling from ear to ear.
June 20, 2018
In "Summer Secrets at the Apple Blossom Deli" we meet Lily, leaving behind her life in London and moving herself and her 8 - year - old son Frankie to Marram Bay in Yorkshire to start a new job and a new chapter in her life. She has high hopes for this move and she's determined to make the opening of the new deli, which is a part of a chain of YumYum delis that she's been working for, a success, as well as her private life. She hopes that she can make Apple Blossom, the cottage she's moving into, as well as Marram Bay, her new home. However, the residents of Marram Bay have other ideas... But fortunately, not all of them...
Portia paints a great cast of supporting characters, they're colourful and different, we have the really good ones and the not so good ones, those that knows everything and those that only wait for their chance. They were authentic, quirky and amusing. They were a real delight to get to know, and next to Lily we have also two significant male characters, and the difference between them was brilliant. Ex - boyfriend Nathan was a hippie who wanted to save the world trying to convince everyone to start eating vegan and who only watched reality shows on Lily's coach, and then we have Alfie, the charming, handsome and much more normal neighbour.
I loved how determined Lily was and she was not the one to be beaten, oh no. She was a really likeable character and it was easy to fell for her from the very beginning. She has to juggle single motherhood and her career, moving to a new town with unhappy locals, then an unexpected visit from her ex and a delicious Alfie from the farm in the neighbourhood, and she does it daintily and with humour, and it is so normal that she has ups and down on this journey. She was strong and she didn't let other people to belittle her. And well, her life was a little challenging, right, what with also an eccentric mother who pretended to be her daughter's sister and the arrival of an ex and a potential romance as well.
My heart went also to Frankie, Lily's son, when the hostility of the locals turned out to be directed not only to Lily, but extended to Frankie as well. It was so, so sad to see how he's treated at school, how nobody wants to be his friends because of his mum and her plan to take the jobs from the local by opening the new deli. It's no wonder that he felt so isolated and that he spent so much time on his own. I fell for him completely and empathised with him.
Yes, it was a tad predictable read, to be honest, but well, you could expect it from this kind of a book, and it was written in such a lovely way that it didn't bothered me for a single moment that I know what's going to happen. Yes, the author has tried to stir the things a little by adding a very unexpected visit, and she has managed to create a little havoc, and it was brilliant. But there are also some twists and turns that keep the pace and make the reading truly gripping.
Altogether, it was a funny, delightful and uplifting novel, perfect for the summery days. It was full of tricky situations, unexpected events, tender moments and humour. Altogether, it was all I have expected from Portia MacIntosh's book, full of friendship, challenges, happiness, romance and family. She also touched upon some heavier issues, such as bullying for example, and she's written about it with great compassion and gentleness, and she brilliantly captured mentality of a small town and what makes the people tick. Recommended!
Copy provided by the publisher in return for an honest review.
August 31, 2025
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
Lily is early thirties, has an 8 year old child in tow and is ready for a fresh start in a picturesque village. Marram Bay looks perfect 🤩 However, as Lily is about to open a new deli, the locals aren’t happy with her as they are concerned about the threat to local businesses, not to mention the fact that she’s a ‘dfl’ (down from London). Her first few days are hell, until she meets the handsome cider farmer next door. Lily is hiding some big secrets, but it’s all about whether anyone can look beyond that, and whether Lily can put herself first for once.
✨
This was the perfect autumnal read. Portia laces comedy with romance so well. This isn’t just any old romance, it’s hilarious at times, as well as emotional at times. There is depth and real important themes covered. There is also a lot of mystery, which keeps it fast paced.
I loved Lily. From the minute you start reading, you’re rooting for her and you can connect with her a lot. Lily’s mum was an iconic character, although I didn’t always agree with her judgement! Portia creates really good antagonists too! I loved the hilarity of the village busybodies. The romance was really beautiful. I loved that it wasn’t smutty or overwhelming. It was a friends to lovers, but not quite a slow burn - it felt different. Really beautiful read and once again, can’t wait to read more from Portia.
Lily is early thirties, has an 8 year old child in tow and is ready for a fresh start in a picturesque village. Marram Bay looks perfect 🤩 However, as Lily is about to open a new deli, the locals aren’t happy with her as they are concerned about the threat to local businesses, not to mention the fact that she’s a ‘dfl’ (down from London). Her first few days are hell, until she meets the handsome cider farmer next door. Lily is hiding some big secrets, but it’s all about whether anyone can look beyond that, and whether Lily can put herself first for once.
✨
This was the perfect autumnal read. Portia laces comedy with romance so well. This isn’t just any old romance, it’s hilarious at times, as well as emotional at times. There is depth and real important themes covered. There is also a lot of mystery, which keeps it fast paced.
I loved Lily. From the minute you start reading, you’re rooting for her and you can connect with her a lot. Lily’s mum was an iconic character, although I didn’t always agree with her judgement! Portia creates really good antagonists too! I loved the hilarity of the village busybodies. The romance was really beautiful. I loved that it wasn’t smutty or overwhelming. It was a friends to lovers, but not quite a slow burn - it felt different. Really beautiful read and once again, can’t wait to read more from Portia.
September 30, 2025
Started kind of slow but half way through I couldn’t put it down.
January 27, 2026
Nice easy read
November 14, 2025
This book was very cute and I really loved the main character, it had such lovely laugh out loud moments and was such a cosy read, the ending was lovely and was enjoyable from start to finish
April 30, 2018
Lily and her son Frankie are new to Marram Bay moving from London as her job demands it. As she prepares to set up a deli branch for her bosses like they asked her to, she has to contend with all the locals whom are deeply against the idea and Danny to stop it opening and in their eyes stealing their local trade.
They befriend locals Clara and her husband whom run the cafe on the very day they arrive and they cook them their welcome meal as well as later helping out babysit Frankie.
She has to deal with Mrs Snowball who's Frankie's new teacher as she often takes him to school late for varying reasons and the teacher often has words with her over other matters too.
She meets cider farmer Alfie after her son runs off and As she has a garden now full of apple trees she realises that cider farming makes a lot of sense local business wise and he also makes jams.
However, once she hires Channy to work in the deli once it's open, she learns more about the locals and especially about Alfie's character. She later goes on some dates with him and end up together back at Lily's only for Frankie's dad and then Viv, Lily's mum to turn up!
So as she tries to win over the locals, successfully open the deli, possibly become Alfie's girlfriend and deal with nightmare Nathan and his vegan ways influencing their son, will she be able to manage it all?
This was a really great book, we see the struggles single motherhood can bring whilst keeping a career but Lily is a strong capable woman who doesn't need a man but gets her happy ending anyway! The writing was fun but dramatic at the right times while there was no dips in action waning off as Frankie or Lily have so many things going on in their lives.
Many thanks to the publishers for allowing me to review this book for them!
They befriend locals Clara and her husband whom run the cafe on the very day they arrive and they cook them their welcome meal as well as later helping out babysit Frankie.
She has to deal with Mrs Snowball who's Frankie's new teacher as she often takes him to school late for varying reasons and the teacher often has words with her over other matters too.
She meets cider farmer Alfie after her son runs off and As she has a garden now full of apple trees she realises that cider farming makes a lot of sense local business wise and he also makes jams.
However, once she hires Channy to work in the deli once it's open, she learns more about the locals and especially about Alfie's character. She later goes on some dates with him and end up together back at Lily's only for Frankie's dad and then Viv, Lily's mum to turn up!
So as she tries to win over the locals, successfully open the deli, possibly become Alfie's girlfriend and deal with nightmare Nathan and his vegan ways influencing their son, will she be able to manage it all?
This was a really great book, we see the struggles single motherhood can bring whilst keeping a career but Lily is a strong capable woman who doesn't need a man but gets her happy ending anyway! The writing was fun but dramatic at the right times while there was no dips in action waning off as Frankie or Lily have so many things going on in their lives.
Many thanks to the publishers for allowing me to review this book for them!
September 30, 2025
3.5 ⭐️
Lily, single mom to son Frankie, moves her little family from London to the small Yorkshire town of Marram Bay. She’s excited for a fresh start and the opportunity to run her own franchise of a well known deli. The problem is, the locals aren’t too keen on this new big business coming into their small town. And they take this dislike out on the newcomers, making them feel quite unwelcome.
I liked the premise and thought the writing was light and entertaining. The characters were likable and there were plenty of funny, chaotic moments - especially when were introduced to Frankie’s absentee dad Nathan and Lily’s mom Viv, who always acts younger than her age.
The romance with local hunk Alfie didn’t quite have the depth I was hoping for. We got a glimpse of how wonderful Alfie could be (definitely book-boyfriend material). He was welcoming from the start, trying to help Lily and Frankie fit in and show them the beauty of Marram Bay. So while cute, their love story seemed a bit rushed.
Still, if you’re looking for a quick, feel-good escape with humor and heart, this one does the job!
Lily, single mom to son Frankie, moves her little family from London to the small Yorkshire town of Marram Bay. She’s excited for a fresh start and the opportunity to run her own franchise of a well known deli. The problem is, the locals aren’t too keen on this new big business coming into their small town. And they take this dislike out on the newcomers, making them feel quite unwelcome.
I liked the premise and thought the writing was light and entertaining. The characters were likable and there were plenty of funny, chaotic moments - especially when were introduced to Frankie’s absentee dad Nathan and Lily’s mom Viv, who always acts younger than her age.
The romance with local hunk Alfie didn’t quite have the depth I was hoping for. We got a glimpse of how wonderful Alfie could be (definitely book-boyfriend material). He was welcoming from the start, trying to help Lily and Frankie fit in and show them the beauty of Marram Bay. So while cute, their love story seemed a bit rushed.
Still, if you’re looking for a quick, feel-good escape with humor and heart, this one does the job!
October 30, 2025
I was hoping for a cute, cozy distraction with all the Hallmarky fall vibes. But this was pretty bad.
Insta-love🤢
A bunch of adult women being mean girls🥴
The FMC being totally spineless🙄
The single mom cliche, actually every character is a cliche😬
It’s impossible to picture someone named Alfie being a buff and attractive farmer. That just doesn’t work.😂
Numerous logical inconsistencies and plot discrepancies.🤔
And a frog is not a freaking reptile😩
At the beginning, it kept hinting at something seemingly sinister in her past that she was afraid would catch her… but those little easter eggs went nowhere. Super weird. And this had a very rushed happy ending. Like oh ok I guess we are wrapping this shit show up. Lmao.
Insta-love🤢
A bunch of adult women being mean girls🥴
The FMC being totally spineless🙄
The single mom cliche, actually every character is a cliche😬
It’s impossible to picture someone named Alfie being a buff and attractive farmer. That just doesn’t work.😂
Numerous logical inconsistencies and plot discrepancies.🤔
And a frog is not a freaking reptile😩
At the beginning, it kept hinting at something seemingly sinister in her past that she was afraid would catch her… but those little easter eggs went nowhere. Super weird. And this had a very rushed happy ending. Like oh ok I guess we are wrapping this shit show up. Lmao.
December 10, 2025
I listened to the audiobook and thought this was a perfectly nice read. The characters felt relatable and there were some really funny parts. Honestly, the book itself isn’t the issue — I just don’t think I am a contemporary romance girly as I always find these stories a bit slow. Fans of light, modern romance will probably enjoy this more than I did, but for me it’s a solid three-star read 😊
September 19, 2025
3.5 🌟
I love how Portia writes about the same towns, like Marram Bay and Hope Island, and makes connections from previous books. 💛
I love how Portia writes about the same towns, like Marram Bay and Hope Island, and makes connections from previous books. 💛
November 17, 2025
A super cute read that had me cracking up, kicking my feet and shedding a few tears!
May 25, 2018
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This was such a good story - I absolutely LOVED it!!
Everything about this book worked for me, the setting, characters, cover, beginning, ending, it was all perfect and worked so well - the writing style was excellent and I loved every page of the story. It is definitely an ideal read at this time of year!!
A lovely refreshing book that leaves you feeling like its given you a lovely hug! No hesitation at all in giving this book 5 stars!!
This was such a good story - I absolutely LOVED it!!
Everything about this book worked for me, the setting, characters, cover, beginning, ending, it was all perfect and worked so well - the writing style was excellent and I loved every page of the story. It is definitely an ideal read at this time of year!!
A lovely refreshing book that leaves you feeling like its given you a lovely hug! No hesitation at all in giving this book 5 stars!!
September 30, 2025
i’ve been in a long reading slump and really needed a sweet and simple story 🥲
May 20, 2018
All reviews can be found on my blog at https://thewritinggarnet.wordpress.com
SISTERS ARE DOING IT FOR THEMSELVES. STANDING ON THEIR OWN TWO FEEEEEEET!
Ohhhhhh my goodness me – what a refreshing read this is! Being a single mum myself, of course I am going to zoom in on those parts of the storyline, especially due to the way the author wrote them.
Many books I have recently which have featured a single mum or two, have made us single mums’ out to be whining, negative women who aren’t good role models to our children. This book however, did the complete opposite. Whilst I am incredibly proud to be a single mum, after reading Portia MacIntosh’s new book, I felt even more proud to be one. Not only did MacIntosh celebrate single mums with her main character, Lily, she also showed all the haters that bringing up a child on your own is something to be proud of in more ways than one. This author didn’t patronise us, nor did she make us out to be a negative thing. Instead, she embraced us by allowing her character to kick all of the haters bottoms. For that alone, I want to thank Portia MacIntosh for writing a story which shows single mums in a positive way – it’s refreshing to see an author thinking for themselves where this topic is concerned.
So, Lily wants a new start for reasons which aren’t clear to us readers at the start. Her son’s happiness is at the forefront of her mind, but so is being able to lock the door on the past. However, with the locals going out of their way to alienate Lily and Frankie from the town before they have even unpacked their belongings, Lily’s ‘fresh start’ looks to backfire before it has even properly begun. Even though Lily is determined to do things on her own without the help of a man, when her new neighbour comes to help her out, she knows it would be incredibly rude to say ‘thanks but no thanks’, especially when he is too hot to trot. The neighbour, not his llama (of course).
It’s amazing how much animosity one deli can cause. Or is the animosity radiating from her new visitor who likes the water the ground with his self attached hose? Who knows!
Hand on heart, if you were to ask me to tell you one negative thing about this book, I couldn’t reply. It’s not that I’m afraid of saying negative things, it’s because I genuinely cannot think of anything negative to say. Portia MacIntosh really has outdone herself with the content of ‘Summer Secrets at the Apple Blossom Deli’. From start to finish I was gripped by such a refreshingly brilliant storyline which just kept on given. Even though the storyline contained more laugh out loud moments than serious moments, the author still managed to give the more serious situations the same amount of attention. Portia MacIntosh is known to make me snort drink from my nose, but when the vibe of the storyline changed to accommodate a stressful situation for Lily, MacIntosh delivered the sombre moments with the gritty oomph that they rightly deserved. Okay, she did include some things which did make me laugh out loud and visualise things when, being perfectly honest, I would have preferred NOT to, but it all worked very well together and I cannot fault the delivery of the theme in any way shape or form.
I LOVED every single thing about this book, so much so I had to wipe a stray tear from my eye when I reached the end (er, I think it was a stray tear, either that or the sweat from the 37573838 degrees outside was dripping down my face). I have everything crossed that ‘Summer Secrets at the Apple Blossom Deli’ is the start of a brand new series, but if it’s not, I hope MacIntosh can feel MY LOOK radiating through this blog post as a ‘wtf, get on with it’. Although, seeing as my daughter loves the fact the author has included a Shopkin name in her title (apple blossom), I cannot wait to see what Shopkin name you’ll manage to put into the second book in the series – there had better be a second book!
Such a hilarious, unique, refreshingly brilliant, and addictive read which will tickle your taste buds more than Shirley Valentine like her ahems tickled until Friday. I urge you all to go and read this – you will be missing out on a beaut of a book if you don’t!
SISTERS ARE DOING IT FOR THEMSELVES. STANDING ON THEIR OWN TWO FEEEEEEET!
Ohhhhhh my goodness me – what a refreshing read this is! Being a single mum myself, of course I am going to zoom in on those parts of the storyline, especially due to the way the author wrote them.
Many books I have recently which have featured a single mum or two, have made us single mums’ out to be whining, negative women who aren’t good role models to our children. This book however, did the complete opposite. Whilst I am incredibly proud to be a single mum, after reading Portia MacIntosh’s new book, I felt even more proud to be one. Not only did MacIntosh celebrate single mums with her main character, Lily, she also showed all the haters that bringing up a child on your own is something to be proud of in more ways than one. This author didn’t patronise us, nor did she make us out to be a negative thing. Instead, she embraced us by allowing her character to kick all of the haters bottoms. For that alone, I want to thank Portia MacIntosh for writing a story which shows single mums in a positive way – it’s refreshing to see an author thinking for themselves where this topic is concerned.
So, Lily wants a new start for reasons which aren’t clear to us readers at the start. Her son’s happiness is at the forefront of her mind, but so is being able to lock the door on the past. However, with the locals going out of their way to alienate Lily and Frankie from the town before they have even unpacked their belongings, Lily’s ‘fresh start’ looks to backfire before it has even properly begun. Even though Lily is determined to do things on her own without the help of a man, when her new neighbour comes to help her out, she knows it would be incredibly rude to say ‘thanks but no thanks’, especially when he is too hot to trot. The neighbour, not his llama (of course).
It’s amazing how much animosity one deli can cause. Or is the animosity radiating from her new visitor who likes the water the ground with his self attached hose? Who knows!
Hand on heart, if you were to ask me to tell you one negative thing about this book, I couldn’t reply. It’s not that I’m afraid of saying negative things, it’s because I genuinely cannot think of anything negative to say. Portia MacIntosh really has outdone herself with the content of ‘Summer Secrets at the Apple Blossom Deli’. From start to finish I was gripped by such a refreshingly brilliant storyline which just kept on given. Even though the storyline contained more laugh out loud moments than serious moments, the author still managed to give the more serious situations the same amount of attention. Portia MacIntosh is known to make me snort drink from my nose, but when the vibe of the storyline changed to accommodate a stressful situation for Lily, MacIntosh delivered the sombre moments with the gritty oomph that they rightly deserved. Okay, she did include some things which did make me laugh out loud and visualise things when, being perfectly honest, I would have preferred NOT to, but it all worked very well together and I cannot fault the delivery of the theme in any way shape or form.
I LOVED every single thing about this book, so much so I had to wipe a stray tear from my eye when I reached the end (er, I think it was a stray tear, either that or the sweat from the 37573838 degrees outside was dripping down my face). I have everything crossed that ‘Summer Secrets at the Apple Blossom Deli’ is the start of a brand new series, but if it’s not, I hope MacIntosh can feel MY LOOK radiating through this blog post as a ‘wtf, get on with it’. Although, seeing as my daughter loves the fact the author has included a Shopkin name in her title (apple blossom), I cannot wait to see what Shopkin name you’ll manage to put into the second book in the series – there had better be a second book!
Such a hilarious, unique, refreshingly brilliant, and addictive read which will tickle your taste buds more than Shirley Valentine like her ahems tickled until Friday. I urge you all to go and read this – you will be missing out on a beaut of a book if you don’t!
May 18, 2018
Before I begin my review I have a shameful confession to make. Although I have several of her books on my Kindle ‘To Be Read’ pile, I haven’t actually read anything by Portia MacIntosh. I know, I know where have I been? I did say it was a shameful secret. Anyway sorry to digress a bit there. Going by how much I enjoyed reading ‘Summer Secrets At The Apple Blossom Deli’, those books are not going to be on that TBR pile for long. I absolutely loved reading it but more about that in a bit.
I really felt for the characters of Lily Holmes and her son Frankie Holmes. Lily has decided that she has to get away from where she is currently living. It’s obvious that something bad has happened. Hints are dropped throughout the book as to what happened. Frankie isn’t all that keen on the move to start with because he feels as though he is being uprooted from all her knows and he has to leave his friends behind. Thankfully Lily’s bosses are understanding of her situation and second her to work on opening a deli in a small seaside town. All does not go to plan though and she faces extreme hostility from the townspeople, who think that this deli will kill off local businesses. This hostility isn’t only directed at Lily, it even reaches as far as the school playground and is aimed in Frankie’s direction. My heart really went out to Frankie because nobody wants to be his friend and he is feeling isolated, spending a heck of a lot of time on his own. I’ve been in that sort of situation myself so I instantly understood how Frankie would be feeling. Frankie runs away and this is when we meet the hunky, handsome, gorgeous sounding cider farmer from the farm next door. Frankie is mesmerised by the animals on the farm and this is when he gets talking to the cider farmer. The cider farmer knows how it feels to be the outsider and so he supports Lily and gives her tips as to how to integrate herself into town life. Will Lily recover from what led her to flee her former home? Will Lily and Frankie manage to integrate into town life? Will Frankie make friends? Will Lily find happiness with the cider farmer from next door? Well for the answers to that question and more you are just going to have to read the book for yourselves to find out.
I picked this book up at a perfect time for me. I was feeling a bit down in the dumps, my back was killing me and I was in desperate need of something to cheer me up. This book ticked all those boxes and more. I literally loved this book from the moment I opened the front cover. Reading this book became an addiction. The pages were turning so fast that it was almost as if they were turning themselves and before I knew what was happening I had finished the book which I was so disappointed about. The characters were all realistic and written in such a way that I really took to them and in Frankie’s case I found myself empathising with him because of being bullied. Difficult subjects are tackled within the book but the author writes about them in a compassionate way with a dash of humour thrown in for good measure. I also loved how the author wrote about a small town mentality, where the residents are immediately suspicious of outsiders and are paranoid that these newcomers will destroy town life as they know it. Again I really empathised with this because we moved to the village where I live over thirty years ago and I still feel like a newcomer at times. Reading ‘Summer Secrets At The Apply Blossom Deli’ certainly took me on an emotional, bumpy rollercoaster ride. There were moments, whilst I was reading this book where I wanted to cry, I found myself smiling, I felt myself wanting to lend a sympathetic ear to Lily, I found myself wanting to bang heads together or slap somebody silly with a wet fish, I found myself laughing at something that one of the characters had done and well you get the picture. This certainly is a book that has a bit of everything and will stay fresh in your mind for a while to come.
To conclude, I have to say that I really loved, no make that ADORED reading this book. As I indicated at the beginning of the review, I am going to make reading Portia’s other books one of my top reading priorities. I wholeheartedly recommend this book to other readers and especially to those who need cheering up or simply need a distraction. I can’t wait to read Portia’s next book. Here’s hoping that we don’t have too long to wait. The score on the Ginger Book Geek is a well deserved 5* out of 5*.
I really felt for the characters of Lily Holmes and her son Frankie Holmes. Lily has decided that she has to get away from where she is currently living. It’s obvious that something bad has happened. Hints are dropped throughout the book as to what happened. Frankie isn’t all that keen on the move to start with because he feels as though he is being uprooted from all her knows and he has to leave his friends behind. Thankfully Lily’s bosses are understanding of her situation and second her to work on opening a deli in a small seaside town. All does not go to plan though and she faces extreme hostility from the townspeople, who think that this deli will kill off local businesses. This hostility isn’t only directed at Lily, it even reaches as far as the school playground and is aimed in Frankie’s direction. My heart really went out to Frankie because nobody wants to be his friend and he is feeling isolated, spending a heck of a lot of time on his own. I’ve been in that sort of situation myself so I instantly understood how Frankie would be feeling. Frankie runs away and this is when we meet the hunky, handsome, gorgeous sounding cider farmer from the farm next door. Frankie is mesmerised by the animals on the farm and this is when he gets talking to the cider farmer. The cider farmer knows how it feels to be the outsider and so he supports Lily and gives her tips as to how to integrate herself into town life. Will Lily recover from what led her to flee her former home? Will Lily and Frankie manage to integrate into town life? Will Frankie make friends? Will Lily find happiness with the cider farmer from next door? Well for the answers to that question and more you are just going to have to read the book for yourselves to find out.
I picked this book up at a perfect time for me. I was feeling a bit down in the dumps, my back was killing me and I was in desperate need of something to cheer me up. This book ticked all those boxes and more. I literally loved this book from the moment I opened the front cover. Reading this book became an addiction. The pages were turning so fast that it was almost as if they were turning themselves and before I knew what was happening I had finished the book which I was so disappointed about. The characters were all realistic and written in such a way that I really took to them and in Frankie’s case I found myself empathising with him because of being bullied. Difficult subjects are tackled within the book but the author writes about them in a compassionate way with a dash of humour thrown in for good measure. I also loved how the author wrote about a small town mentality, where the residents are immediately suspicious of outsiders and are paranoid that these newcomers will destroy town life as they know it. Again I really empathised with this because we moved to the village where I live over thirty years ago and I still feel like a newcomer at times. Reading ‘Summer Secrets At The Apply Blossom Deli’ certainly took me on an emotional, bumpy rollercoaster ride. There were moments, whilst I was reading this book where I wanted to cry, I found myself smiling, I felt myself wanting to lend a sympathetic ear to Lily, I found myself wanting to bang heads together or slap somebody silly with a wet fish, I found myself laughing at something that one of the characters had done and well you get the picture. This certainly is a book that has a bit of everything and will stay fresh in your mind for a while to come.
To conclude, I have to say that I really loved, no make that ADORED reading this book. As I indicated at the beginning of the review, I am going to make reading Portia’s other books one of my top reading priorities. I wholeheartedly recommend this book to other readers and especially to those who need cheering up or simply need a distraction. I can’t wait to read Portia’s next book. Here’s hoping that we don’t have too long to wait. The score on the Ginger Book Geek is a well deserved 5* out of 5*.
November 26, 2025
🍂🧡 Falling For You by Portia MacIntosh 🧡🍂
Book 1 of 3: Marram Bay
Genre: Rom Com
Length: 272 pages
My Rating: 🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁
Summary:
Lily is a single mom from London who just moved to the coastal Yorkshire town of Marram Bay to help her employers open another branch of their deli. Lily and Frankie, her 8 year old son, are having trouble fitting into this close-knit town as the new outsiders. Everyone from the school moms to the local business owners, to the town veterinarian are making them begin to feel like they may need to pack up and move back to the big city... except for Alfie, the handsome, amiable town cider farmer, alpaca owner, and all-around great guy. Lily instantly feels attracted to Alfie, but is he really what he appears to be, or are the rumors true and he will only break her heart?
Review:
I read this book very soon after reading Snow Love Lost (Book 2), but they are easily read as standalone novels. I loved how this book in particular did tackle some more serious obstacles in Lily's life, such as being a single parent, feeling like an outsider, and finding ways to run a successful business even though so many things were put in her way. She was really such a strong FMC, and I love how resilient she consistently was no matter what came up. Her chemistry with Alfie was so believable, and though they kind of had a friends-to-lovers start, it was so clear how both of them felt about each other from almost the start! The added adventures of Frankie also enhanced the story as they both grew to love Marram Bay. The side characters were fun as well, such as Lily's mom, Alfie's alpacas, and strict head teacher, Mrs. Snowball. Such a fun and sweet book!
Book 1 of 3: Marram Bay
Genre: Rom Com
Length: 272 pages
My Rating: 🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁
Summary:
Lily is a single mom from London who just moved to the coastal Yorkshire town of Marram Bay to help her employers open another branch of their deli. Lily and Frankie, her 8 year old son, are having trouble fitting into this close-knit town as the new outsiders. Everyone from the school moms to the local business owners, to the town veterinarian are making them begin to feel like they may need to pack up and move back to the big city... except for Alfie, the handsome, amiable town cider farmer, alpaca owner, and all-around great guy. Lily instantly feels attracted to Alfie, but is he really what he appears to be, or are the rumors true and he will only break her heart?
Review:
I read this book very soon after reading Snow Love Lost (Book 2), but they are easily read as standalone novels. I loved how this book in particular did tackle some more serious obstacles in Lily's life, such as being a single parent, feeling like an outsider, and finding ways to run a successful business even though so many things were put in her way. She was really such a strong FMC, and I love how resilient she consistently was no matter what came up. Her chemistry with Alfie was so believable, and though they kind of had a friends-to-lovers start, it was so clear how both of them felt about each other from almost the start! The added adventures of Frankie also enhanced the story as they both grew to love Marram Bay. The side characters were fun as well, such as Lily's mom, Alfie's alpacas, and strict head teacher, Mrs. Snowball. Such a fun and sweet book!
October 7, 2018
Maybe it was because I was on holiday when I read this but I really enjoyed this tale of a mis-placed Southerner trying to make a new life for herself in a small Northern Village for her and her son. You do have to suspend disbelief that a large deli chain would open a branch in a small seaside community like this one but seeing as they seem to be the hippy alternative to Whole Foods why not?
I loved the frosty reception from the majority of the locals, none of them want the new Deli and many fear it will affect their livelihoods so you can understand it. There is also the undercurrent of simply not liking strangers moving in to disrupt their community. Only Alfie, Clara and her husband are welcoming and they make a great contrast to the behaviour of everyone else - particularly the mums at the schoolgate. Whilst not something I have ever experienced having never moved far from my home town it does have a ring of authenticity to it.
There are all the expected trials, tribulations and false romantic starts that are beloved of the genre. However, the turning up of Frankie's dad (who is a real waste of skin) threw a rather fresh spanner in to the works and delivered some moments of genuine humour. Lily's parenting style is rather unrealistic though - she never seems to lose her temper with Frankie and talks everything through with him instead - whilst we would all love to be this perfect it just doesn't happen as situations overtake us.
Thoroughly enjoyable and I did find myself struggling to put it down.
I loved the frosty reception from the majority of the locals, none of them want the new Deli and many fear it will affect their livelihoods so you can understand it. There is also the undercurrent of simply not liking strangers moving in to disrupt their community. Only Alfie, Clara and her husband are welcoming and they make a great contrast to the behaviour of everyone else - particularly the mums at the schoolgate. Whilst not something I have ever experienced having never moved far from my home town it does have a ring of authenticity to it.
There are all the expected trials, tribulations and false romantic starts that are beloved of the genre. However, the turning up of Frankie's dad (who is a real waste of skin) threw a rather fresh spanner in to the works and delivered some moments of genuine humour. Lily's parenting style is rather unrealistic though - she never seems to lose her temper with Frankie and talks everything through with him instead - whilst we would all love to be this perfect it just doesn't happen as situations overtake us.
Thoroughly enjoyable and I did find myself struggling to put it down.
November 5, 2025
This was a cute, light read. Just exactly what it is supposed to be. I enjoyed the first half but by about half way through I did not enjoy it anymore.
Lily is moving to a small coastal town with her 8 year old son, Frankie. She has been a single mom since he was born so she is okay with making it on her own. She is sent here to open and run a YumYum deli. The townsfolk are not too keen on a new person coming in and they make it well known. They try to run her out of town. She makes a few friends, one of them being the man next door who is an apple farmer. He makes jams and cider. As she tries to get things going for her new deli and fit in with the locals, there is one disaster after another. Then she invites Viv, her mom to come and help out. Viv brings Nathan, Frankie's dad with her. Nathan has never even seen his son much less tried to have a relationship with him. This turn really didn't go well for me. I soon lost interest and while I know I am not meant to like this character, it ruined what was a very sweet book for me.
I will say there is light romance in here and it is all closed door. That was much appreciated.
Lily is moving to a small coastal town with her 8 year old son, Frankie. She has been a single mom since he was born so she is okay with making it on her own. She is sent here to open and run a YumYum deli. The townsfolk are not too keen on a new person coming in and they make it well known. They try to run her out of town. She makes a few friends, one of them being the man next door who is an apple farmer. He makes jams and cider. As she tries to get things going for her new deli and fit in with the locals, there is one disaster after another. Then she invites Viv, her mom to come and help out. Viv brings Nathan, Frankie's dad with her. Nathan has never even seen his son much less tried to have a relationship with him. This turn really didn't go well for me. I soon lost interest and while I know I am not meant to like this character, it ruined what was a very sweet book for me.
I will say there is light romance in here and it is all closed door. That was much appreciated.
September 11, 2018
I did enjoy reading this book but I felt it was a bit rushed, especially towards the end but it was a sweet story to read.
Lily and her Son, Frankie move to Yorkshire to open a deli for Lily's employers. What she wasn't told was the locals are in opposition to the deli, preferring their local foods. So she not only has to manage the refurbishment she has to win over the locals; and, it seems the headmistress of Frankies new school which doesn't get off to a good start when they're late on the 1st day!
The cottage her employers have arranged for her has the lovely name of Apple Blossom Cottage, with lots of apple trees in the garden, the inside isn't as homely but will do for the time she's there.
Her neighbour is local farmer Alfie, whom Frankie takes a liking to, especially after he learns that Alfie has Alpacas, a pygmy goat Phillip and a dog, Pugsley. Alfie turns out to be her knight in shining armour although he's a popular figure in the village, especially for the local vet.
Will Lily and Frankie settle in and make the business work and the village their home, or is there a shadow on the horizon which threatens their happiness?
An enjoyable read but a whirlwind one hence the 4 stars, but I'd still recommend reading this book.
Lily and her Son, Frankie move to Yorkshire to open a deli for Lily's employers. What she wasn't told was the locals are in opposition to the deli, preferring their local foods. So she not only has to manage the refurbishment she has to win over the locals; and, it seems the headmistress of Frankies new school which doesn't get off to a good start when they're late on the 1st day!
The cottage her employers have arranged for her has the lovely name of Apple Blossom Cottage, with lots of apple trees in the garden, the inside isn't as homely but will do for the time she's there.
Her neighbour is local farmer Alfie, whom Frankie takes a liking to, especially after he learns that Alfie has Alpacas, a pygmy goat Phillip and a dog, Pugsley. Alfie turns out to be her knight in shining armour although he's a popular figure in the village, especially for the local vet.
Will Lily and Frankie settle in and make the business work and the village their home, or is there a shadow on the horizon which threatens their happiness?
An enjoyable read but a whirlwind one hence the 4 stars, but I'd still recommend reading this book.
May 5, 2018
This is a story about Lily, who moves with her 8 year old son, Frankie, to a small, northern coastal town called Marram Bay.
She moved to Apple Blossom cottage and plans to open up another deli in a chain of YumYum delis that she works for.
The move is a way for her to get away from the past, start afresh and give her little boy a better quality of life in the country, rather than being cooped up in London.
Lily’s move is a rollercoaster for her. She isn’t welcomed into the small town; the locals fearing that the deli will ruin business for the other livelihoods ran by the town’s natives.
I really enjoyed this book. It’s perfect holiday book material and made me laugh out loud and smile throughout. I liked the characters and felt like they were well developed.
I’d recommend this to anyone who wants a quick, easy, enjoyable read and for this who enjoy Jojo Moyes, Sophie Kinsella and Giovanna Fletcher.
She moved to Apple Blossom cottage and plans to open up another deli in a chain of YumYum delis that she works for.
The move is a way for her to get away from the past, start afresh and give her little boy a better quality of life in the country, rather than being cooped up in London.
Lily’s move is a rollercoaster for her. She isn’t welcomed into the small town; the locals fearing that the deli will ruin business for the other livelihoods ran by the town’s natives.
I really enjoyed this book. It’s perfect holiday book material and made me laugh out loud and smile throughout. I liked the characters and felt like they were well developed.
I’d recommend this to anyone who wants a quick, easy, enjoyable read and for this who enjoy Jojo Moyes, Sophie Kinsella and Giovanna Fletcher.
September 25, 2025
I've been a big fan of PM for some time now so when I saw this book for free I jumped right on it.
Sorry I did that! There was a lot of verbiage that I felt was just filler to make up word count as it was
not interesting at all to me; repeating over and over details about the MFC's age when she got pregnant and how very much she loved her son. I kept saying to myself. " Okay, we get it!"
Then things really went downhill with the the rather silly, age denying mom bringing the worthless ex to the house, springing it as a surprise when the kid had never laid eyes on or even spoken to his dad. Then the MFC just rolling over and letting the bum move right in to their home and lives...
Spoiler alert: Of course the deadbeat dad finally showed his true colors but by that time I was so disgusted I just skimmed to the end, which was okay. So darn disappointed in this book and sorry I wasted my time reading it. 2 stars and that's being generous.
Sorry I did that! There was a lot of verbiage that I felt was just filler to make up word count as it was
not interesting at all to me; repeating over and over details about the MFC's age when she got pregnant and how very much she loved her son. I kept saying to myself. " Okay, we get it!"
Then things really went downhill with the the rather silly, age denying mom bringing the worthless ex to the house, springing it as a surprise when the kid had never laid eyes on or even spoken to his dad. Then the MFC just rolling over and letting the bum move right in to their home and lives...
Spoiler alert: Of course the deadbeat dad finally showed his true colors but by that time I was so disgusted I just skimmed to the end, which was okay. So darn disappointed in this book and sorry I wasted my time reading it. 2 stars and that's being generous.
October 19, 2025
A delightful, easy to read autumnal romance read. This story centred around Lily and her son Frankie moving to a charming seaside town for her new job challenge. Opening a new deli for the deli chain she works for. The locals don’t seem to like this idea however and are causing plenty of chaos. On top of that there is a. unexpected visitor and a very sweet, down to earth kind of romance with a farmer.
The small town setting is very sweet, and comes with unfriendly locals and rumour mills galore. I just found this one a really easy, fun read/listen that just hit the right spot. I loved that the romance aspect was kind of a side story too and it was much more focused on Lily and her new start.
I’d recommend!
The small town setting is very sweet, and comes with unfriendly locals and rumour mills galore. I just found this one a really easy, fun read/listen that just hit the right spot. I loved that the romance aspect was kind of a side story too and it was much more focused on Lily and her new start.
I’d recommend!
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