Teetä auringonkukkien kahvilassa

by Milly Johnson, Irma Rissanen (Translator)

Milly Johnsonin Teetä auringonkukkien kahvilassa on hurmaava tarina kahdesta naisesta, yhdestä suklaanruskeasta silmäparista ja kahvilasta, jossa unelmat voivat käydä toteen

Connie Diamond on aina kuvitellut olevansa aviomiehensä sydämen valittu. Kun Connie saa tietää Jimmyn pelanneen likaista peliä viimeiset kaksikymmentäneljä vuotta, on hetki kypsä kostolle.

Della Frostick, Jimmyn oikea käsi Diamond Shine -siivousyrityksessä, on läpeensä kyllästynyt pomonsa jatkuvaan suhmurointiin ja sen peittelyyn. Kun Della saa viimein tarpeekseen, ryhtyy hän punomaan juonta miehen pään menoksi yhdessä Connien kanssa. He päättävät tehdä miehen elämästä selvää perustamalla kilpailevan yrityksen.

Onnistuakseen suunnitelmassaan Connie ja Della tarvitsevat tuekseen koko Diamond Shinen henkilökunnan sekä omia asiakkaita. Alkaa kilpajuoksu ajan kanssa, eikä sitä helpota yhtään Dellan siivouskeikka hurmaavan suklaamestarin talossa.

Genres: Romance, Chick Lit, Fiction, Contemporary, Romantic Comedy, Audiobook, Adult

546 pages, ebook

First published December 1, 2015

About the author

Milly Johnson was born in Barnsley, raised in Barnsley and still lives in Barnsley. She writes about strong women, often having a renaissance, all ages and has just released her 22nd novel Same Time Next Week. Do check out her website for up to date news and appearance dates.

As well as a novelist she is a professional joke writer, performance poet, newspaper and magazine columnist and also after dinner/motivational speaker.

She is on insta as @themillyjohnson, facebook as @millyjohnsonauthor, Twitter as @millyjohnson and a ridiculous presence on TikTok @millyjohnsonauthor. Do give her a follow - even if it's just out of sympathy!

Reviews

[Dale Harcombe · Rating 1 out of 5]

Connie Diamond discovers her husband of twenty four years is planning to leave her for his office junior. Though she still loves him she is not about to make it easy for him to get away with his treatment if her, especially when she finds out that even what she thought was true was in reality false as far as Jimmy was concerned. Della, Jimmy’s personal assistant, who has worked with Jimmy at Diamond Shine and loved him for years, also feels betrayed when she finds out what Jimmy is up to. The two women team up in a plan for revenge. How will they both start life over and maybe learn to trust again?
At first this seemed quite amusing and it was easy to understand why Connie and Della felt betrayed and to want to see them get revenge. But the longer it went on the less engaged I became. It just all felt over the top. I ended you skimming because I was so sick of it. Some parts of it just didn’t sit comfortably with me, especially the antics of some of those who used the cleaning services and the crude behaviour.
That said there is going to be a lot of people who will probably enjoy his as a light hearted romp. But I was actually sorry I’d bothered to read it. I know this author has a number of books of which I have only read one before which I really enjoyed. Why I decided to pick this book up. But this one I’m not even sure why I persisted. As for the title, although the idea for revenge is conceived in the Sunflower Café, the place hardly features apart from that. It ends up giving the wrong impression of the book.
If you like chic lit and in particular Milly Johnson's books, then you may enjoy this story. But this one just didn’t cut it for me. I became less and less enamoured of the characters and I can’t in all honesty recommend it.Others may well view it differently though.

[Bookworman · Rating 5 out of 5]

After multiple re-readings this one is definitely deserves a 5-star rating! Milly Johnson rules!

First reading: This is now one of my favorite Milly Johnson books. I just love a good revenge story. Very satisfying with her usual cast of lovable characters and dasterdly villians as well as a good love story and, of course, a happy ending. I'm making my way through all of her books and it's so much fun. This one is a gem!

[Lee at ReadWriteWish · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chick lit. There’s a million books out there claiming to fall under that genre. There’re a million literary snobs out there that claim it’s an easy genre to write. But, the truth is, for every ten chick lit books you could pick up to read, only one of them will be high quality. This is one of the one.

Afternoon Tea at the Sunflower Cafe has the classic click lit plot. Middle aged frumpy wife, Connie, finds out her marriage is a sham. Her hubby, Jimmy, is unfaithful, and has been for quite a while, and is about to leave her for his young mistress. As usual, frumpy wife blossoms when she hatches a plan to not only leave her husband, but also to start up a rival business that will destroy his career just as he has destroyed her marriage.

Yes, all sounds familiar, but somehow Johnson makes it all fun and fresh, as well as compelling.

Surprisingly, the family business in this case is cleaning. This seemingly mundane and boring choice of work place by Johnston actually brings lots of opportunities to introduce a range of supporting characters, given that there is a team of cleaners working for Jimmy and Connie's respective businesses, as well as their many clients.

All the characters are well written and fleshed out nicely. Some make you cringe, some make you cry, some make you laugh, and some are downright scary.

Along with Connie, we follow two other female characters closely. Della, Jimmy’s company’s office manager, who has wasted several years by also being in love with Jimmy. Like Connie, Della has her own awakening to his personality and the reality of her unrequited love. And one of his cleaners, Cheryl. Unlike Della and Connie, Cheryl has no emotional attachment to Jimmy, but she has enough of her own man troubles to keep us engrossed. All three women are appealing, and I never once wanted to skip over a particular story line to reach one of the others.

I also enjoyed all this book’s potential beaus. I won’t say too much about them (spoilers!) but they all worked for me. Even Jimmy himself has potential. He's not your cardboard cutout villain, and I appreciated that greatly.

I enjoyed the northern English setting. Johnson doesn’t give us endless descriptive passages, but we still get a nice feel of the place via the characters’ accents and slang.

If the cleaning business idea is putting you off, I must add that there is some food porn. Gorgeous descriptions of chocolate. Enough to make your mouth water and blow your diet just reading them.

If I had to nitpick on one thing, I would say it’s the title. It’s quite deceiving. It conjures the coffee shop setting, but apart from two or three gatherings at the Sunflower Cafe, which are basically trade union meetings for the cleaners, the cafe is not an important part of the novel. The sunflower theme is present throughout the book, however, and I can see why that word is present in the title, but the cafe idea, not so much.

I would still highly recommend this to those who enjoy the genre, and would definitely try another one of Johnson’s books. 4 ½ out of 5.

[Rebekah · Rating 5 out of 5]

‘That is amazing,’ laughed Connie. ‘You didn’t really ring up and make a false appointment though, did you?’ ‘Oh you have no idea how many hand grenades I’ve pulled the pins out of which are set to go off this week, Connie,’ said Della, noticing Connie’s sunflower picture on the wall out of the corner of her eye. Be like the Sunflower . . . She could give those giant plants lessons in bravery and boldness with what she’d implemented since Friday.

Another delicious dramedy from Milly Johnson. This one has her standard 3 women getting revenge against bad men formula, but it does deviate somewhat. There are cases of dumbdoormatitis, as is usual in a Milly Johnson, but none of the protagonists actually succumb to the disease in this story. One of the women's triumph is on a separate track than the other two but is no less cheer-worthy. Her fortunes meet with the others at the end (literally). Also, the romance is definitely on the light side. One of the women has a fairly significant one, but the other, as sweet as it was, is just tacked on, and the 3rd woman does not have one at all. The main bad guy's impending doom is so relentless that I almost felt myself starting to pity him a bit. However, in a massive takedown, our heroine ticks off all of his bad acts and selfish decisions over the years and I was back on board. That said, I do like that in this book, she does give him some redeemability at the end.

One of the aspects I loved, and I have seen this in several of her books, is a hint of the supernatural: A house that is a great judge of character (and acts accordingly) and a couple of ghosts that come to rescue their loved one. Sunflowers are a symbol and theme throughout the book but the Tea at the Cafe part really has nothing to do with much at all which makes it a strange title.

When you pick up a Milly Johnson book, you pretty much know what you are going to get if you've read even one of her books. This does show a willingness to deviate from and toy with her usual tropes just a bit, and I loved it. I hope I see more of this growth in future books. But I won't complain if her heroines remain kind, gentle, and good women who find their inner Boedicas by the end.

[Love Fool · Rating 4 out of 5]

Her marriage is all washed up. It's time for a clean start;
Connie Diamond has always been her husband Jimmy's 'best girl' - or so she thought. But then she discovers that he's been playing away for the past twenty-four years, and that the chocolates she believed he bought her as a sign of his love were just a cover-up, and she is determined to get revenge.

Along with Della Frostick, Jimmy's right-hand woman at his cleaning firm, Diamond Shine, Connie decides to destroy Jimmy's life from the inside. Together they will set up a rival business called Lady Muck, and along with the cleaning ladies who meet at the Sunflower Cafe, they'll make him wish he had never so much as looked at another woman.

Milly Johnson is truly a gem. I know I'm going to get a fun, witty, and great story when I read her books. Side note, if you watch the British show, "Come Dine With Me", you have to check out the episodes she's in.

I love revenge stories, maybe because I have been burned in the past by men or because I'm a little evil. I love how the good guys win in this book and the bad ones get what they deserve, especially the little tramp. #girlpower

I will just say I didn't find Cheryl's story all that interesting and I wanted to slap her the most which is why I gave this book a rating of 4 stars.

If you are going to be on a long commute I recommend this book to make the ride go by quicker.

[AdiTurbo · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of those heart-warming novels about women and their friendships, hidden powers and general loveliness. The story is a basically a tale of revenge on stupid, bad-behaving men who underestimate the women in their lives and take them for granted. What balances it all is that there are also great men in this story, so its not as one-sided as it sounds, and makes the novel much more realistic. I loved the characters and wanted them to have a happy ending. I was in great suspense the whole time reading this book and couldn't turn the page fast enough to learn what happens to the people in it.
In short, this is a wonderful piece of fluff that doesn't insult your intelligence and makes you feel better - a great choice for those low moments in your life.

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was so excited when my pre publication copy of Milly's book arrived. It's great being part of Team Milly.

I literally couldn't put this one down. I loved The Ladies who launch which was released on 1st June and introduced us to the Sunflower Cafe. I hope we hear more from Lady Muck and The Sunflower Cafe.

A group of disgruntled cleaners meet there once a month to air their problems and enjoy an afternoon tea. The owner closes especially for their meetings.

Connie discovers that her husband who owns Diamond Shine has been unfaithful over the last 24 years, she and the office manager vow to bankrupt his company and open their own rival one, Lady Muck.

The characters are all so well drawn that you fall in love with them AND the people they clean for. I loved Cheryl and her relationships with her clients. Astrid made me laugh out loud. Some of their stories pulled at the heartstrings, whilst others made you smile and cheer them on.

I was willing Connie on, to make a success of Lady Muck and leave her husband regretting losing her. She meets Brandon who is a chocolatier and wants to make her smile and enjoy chocolate again. Who could resist such a knight in shining armour?

I finished this one sitting in the sunshine and was trying to make the last few pages last longer!!!!!!

I loved that Team Milly were mentioned in the acknowledgements! Made me feel special for a moment!

The latest Milly is ALWAYS a treasure- I just wish I had more to catch up on. Hope the next one is already in production!

With many thanks to Milly and her publishers for an early copy of this book.

[Book Addict Shaun · Rating 5 out of 5]

Milly Johnson's The Teashop on the Corner was one of my favourite reads of 2014 and so I was a little nervous about starting Afternoon Tea at the Sunflower Café because I wanted to love it just as much. I've finished it and I want to read it again because it really was that good. It features a superb cast of characters and a brilliant story that I will not be forgetting in a hurry.

In the book's opening we meet Della Frostick who discovers her boss Jimmy Diamond has a history of infidelity, and his latest tart is office bimbo Ivanka (who is as stupid as you might expect her to be). Della wastes no time in revealing all to Lady Muck (aka Mrs. Connie Diamond) but she doesn't get the reaction that she hoped for. Jimmy Diamond is the owner of cleaning company Diamond Shine, and Connie soon comes up with an idea of how she will exact revenge against her husband; by setting up a rival cleaning company - the aptly-named Lady Muck - and having Della help destroy Diamond Shine by dismantling it from the inside. Neither woman in the beginning realises the journey this will take them on.

Connie Diamond is a woman living a settled - if unhappy - life and she experiences doubts in the beginning as to whether she has the courage to see it through. She very quickly became a character that I could believe in and I rooting for her from the off. Della is an intriguing character, not without issues of her own and some doubts about Connie's plan. Della's opinion of Connie has always been quite negative but a friendship is formed between the two, and it forms the basis for the whole story, and it was one that I loved seeing develop. The ideas they come up with for taking down the company are just so incredibly imaginative that it makes the book so much fun to read.

Milly's books often contain a large cast of characters, and in Afternoon Tea at the Sunflower Café my favourite was one of the cleaners, Cheryl. Cheryl is a woman who is quite accepting of her poor lot in life, unwilling to do anything about it because she thinks that is all she is good for. Underneath all that though I saw the woman she could be, and the woman I wanted her to be. Despite being a man, I saw some of her traits in myself, and there were some lines in the book that really resonated with me and I very quickly wanted Cheryl's luck to change. She was such a likeable character, probably the most likeable in the book and without being able to say why, her story was fantastic and gave me some of my favourite moments in this book.

Jimmy Diamond is such a cliche it should be ridiculous but really he was just so easy to picture. I could just imagine the awful tanned skin, the terrible smile and the disgusting aftershave I imagined him to wear. I so wanted Ivanka to get her comeuppance because I loathe those girls that throw themselves at rich men but I have to be honest and say that she was quite an enjoyable comedy character to read about. Jimmy is a believable character, and there were a couple of times in the book where I nearly ended up feeling sorry for him. Nearly! There are a number of secondary characters that add further depth to both the story and the main characters themselves so there is so much going on outside of taking down the company, especially when Connie Diamond meets a certain chocolatier (not ideal when she's off the chocolate) that it really is an action-packed book.

Milly's books contain some brilliant quotes, lines that make you reflect on life and Afternoon Tea at the Sunflower Café is no different. The cafe doesn't play as much of a role in the story as you would expect it to with it being in the book's title but the scenes with the various characters there were great. Milly creates strong and believable female characters, ones who readers can really root for and I think the ones in this book might just be some of the most realistic and relateable that she has created. It is a 500-plus page read but those pages fly by because of everything Milly has packed into the story; humour, drama, heartache, romance, and plenty of wonderful little twists and turns before a truly satisfying ending and I don't think her fans will be disappointed with this book. Like me you will be cheering these characters on every step of the way.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm a big fan of Milly's books, they always make me smile (and sometimes cry) but they are always such fun to read, and Afternoon Tea at the Sunflower Café is no exception.

Unlike the previous book, The Teashop on the Corner, the Sunflower Café doesn't play a huge part in the story, but its still an integral feature, as this is where the Diamond Shine girls have their meetings.

There are two main themes running through this book, revenge and friendship. When Connie Diamond discovers that her husband Jimmy has been cheating on her yet again and is planning to leave her, she hatches her own plot to get even. Does she cut up his clothes, damage his car - oh no, she sets up a rival cleaning business in the hope of destroying his.

As usual, Milly has created some fabulous characters, from the likeable to the bizzare! There were one or two that I took a little longer to warm to, for example Della. Della is Jimmy's office manager and there is nothing that goes on at Diamond Shine that she doesn't know about...or so she thinks. She has secretly been in love with Jimmy for years and is devastated by the turn of events. She is torn between getting revenge and wanting to protect him.

Connie, Jimmy's long suffering wife, was the real star of the book for me and perfect proof that some women won't just sit back and be a victim. I was rooting for her all the way and hoping that Jimmy would get his just desserts.

There are many other characters who played their part to perfection - there are too many to mention individually - some were odious and others engaging, but they were all brilliantly drawn and realistic. Among the cleaners, Cheryl was my favourite. She was kind and loyal but also had her share of misfortune and put up for too long with other people wiping their feet on her. I had a soft spot for Astrid, an outspoken German who took Cheryl under her wing; and then there is Ivanka. Ivanka was the office junior and the cause of so much heartache, I should have disliked her, but her manipulative manner and lack of charm did make for many amusing moments.

There is so much to love about this story, it is funny but also heart-warming and written, as usual, in Milly's forthright and down to earth manner. It was wonderful to see characters grow in confidence and be helped by each other. Having seen Milly read from this book at the Books and the City Bloggers event a few months ago, it did bring the book to life for me and I could easily imagine Milly's voice behind some of the characters.

I couldn't finish this review without mentioning the chocolate. If you are on a diet then you may have a hard time reading this book because the chocolates sound delicious and are to die for.

It is quite a big book, over 500 pages but every page is pleasure to read, there are laughs, some sad moments and little twists and turns. I loved it and I'm sure it will be another huge success for Milly Johnson.

[Mela · Rating 5 out of 5]

she shouldn’t judge all men by one deceiver’s actions

Yeah, who haven't fight with such transferring...?

Love wasn’t about having a battalion of soldiers stationed around her heart in case of emergency

It was a really wise story about marriages/relationships when you have to give up, otherwise, you lose your life completely. But also it was written in a caring way, so every woman stuck in such a relationship will not feel stupid or criticized - but rather hugged and understood.

Keep your face to the sun and the shadows will fall behind you. If only, thought Della. She’d always kept her face to the shadows, on full alert for what could – and inevitably did – come out of them to hurt her

I want to add, I would really really like to see more of DC Oakwell and Brandon. My heart always craves for such heroes ;-)

Jimmy was definitely a character worth meeting - preferably only in a book. You can understand such men better thanks to him. It was brilliant how the author managed to be realistic but on the other hand, not condemning him as a devil. He was just one of the types of humans.

Not one of my favourite by the writer, but still, a great woman-fiction.

PS As a Pole, I must point out that Mrs. Johnson didn't choose appropriate Polish swearings. I don't say they were totally incorrect, but I don't doubt that such a person like Ivanka would have used different ones. And when we talk about Ivanka - it isn't a Polish name - there are girls/women with such names but they are few. Still, those two remarks aren't important.

[Amber Grenville-Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Warm, witty and romantic. A perfect feel good summer read.

[Sharon Goodwin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a fan of Milly's so when I saw Afternoon Tea at the Sunflower Cafe on Netgalley, I had to request!

I've enjoyed this story centered around the lives of the characters associated with Diamond Shine cleaning company. I loved the relationships with the cleaners and their customers. Their stories provide fabulous entertainment, not just with laughter but sadness too. I can guarantee your emotions will be involved!

Milly always has an assortment of characters in her novels and her secondary characters have their own crises to deal and Afternoon Tea at the Sunflower Cafe is no exception. This always draws me in as I become involved with them and either want the best for them or I'm eager for karma to work its magic.

When we meet Della, she would do absolutely anything for her boss Jimmy Diamond. I loved the changes in her character and the bond that develops with Connie.

Cheryl is another character who sees changes. Her partner Gary is such a time waster - and 10 years in a relationship with him is definitely time wasted. One of the quieter characters in the story, I just knew she would be vital at one point.

Maybe a bit predictable but Connie is my favourite character. Her 'ugly duckling' transformation happens a bit later in life than most romantic heroines ... and it was magnificent. I have to say that I also enjoyed the fact that getting her man isn't easy.

Milly's a genius in creating one particular scene from the past that had such a motivation for one character.

Oh and Astrid, you just have to meet her ...

I didn't think I would end up feeling sorry for Jimmy but by the time I finished the story, I was hoping that his life would work out for him. He certainly lost his way ...

Afternoon Tea at the Sunflower Cafe for me is a story of loyalties and the empowerment of women - of rediscovering who we really are underneath those duties and responsibilities and taking back our power and creativity to live life to the full. Entertaining and an emotional read, one to add to your reading list.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

So you know what is going to happen (but not how, haha!). So the nasty characters are immediately painted black and all the handsome Clooney-like men are sure to fall in love with the endearing women who are so down on their luck. So it's chick-lit and there's always a happy-ever-after ending. You KNEW all this before you started… So what?

Milly Johnson's novels are just like a clotted cream tea on a summer's afternoon, or a big box of your favourite chocolates… Naughty but nice! They make you feel good and "Afternoon Tea at the Sunflower Café" was no exception (silly title though, as it doesn't have much to do with the plot). Just the thing to read after a gruelling and dark crime thriller or a bad day.

[Susan Buchanan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved this - quite different setting than expected. Mainly centred around a cleaning firm. Loved all the characters. It was my first full-length Milly book. I've already gone and bought White Wedding on the back of it. Would highly recommend.

[Jenna | Projekti kirjahylly · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐ 4.5 stars

[littleprettybooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

15/20

Divertissant et amusant, ce roman a répondu à mes attentes en mettant à l’honneur la solidarité féminine et des personnages forts et très attachants. Une lecture inspirante et douce.

Ma chronique : https://myprettybooks.wordpress.com/2...

[Adele · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have adored all Milly's previous books and was honoured to be given an arc of this new novel. Milly always writes with such honesty and I appreciate this style of writing. Milly is a Yorkshire lass and her northern charm flows through her words on the pages of her books.

Connie and Della are both in love with the same man, Jimmy Diamond. One of them is his wife, Connie and Della is his 'right hand man' office manager. Jimmy calls them both 'his best girl' however, someone else has caught Jimmy's eye and he is soon swept away with passion and lust. Connie and Della discover that Jimmy is planning to leave Connie for his 'new girl'. Connie and Della declare an alliance and set about to destroy Jimmy's life. What follows is a fun filled story of female comeraderie helping each other achieve what some would think would be impossible.

Milly has created some fabulous characters in this book. I adored Connie, Cheryl and Della and would love to read a follow-up novella on the progress of these characters. Astrid is a hoot and a legend! She made me smile quite a few times. I loved how the story was broken down into lots of short chapters and each chapter focused mainly on one character at a time.

I'd love to be a 'fly on the wall' when the girls have their regular meets at the Sunflower Cafe, I bet they had some interesting tales to tell.

At the end of the book Milly described her perfect afternoon tea which left me salivating for cake! Omgee, the mini strawberry cheesecakes sound amazing. The book is quite long at just over 500 pages but is well worth sticking with it as its a funny, colourful, heartwarming read that leaves you wanting to find out what happens next with the characters you've fallen in love with and have become friends with. A brilliant 5/5* read.

[Smitha · Rating 2 out of 5]

Connie Diamond and Della Frostick have a common cause. After years of being a loyal office manager to Jimmy Diamond, Della realises to her shock that Jiimmy has plans to get rid of her. Connie, Jimmy's wife of decades, who gave up her own dreams and aspirations so that Jimmy could follow his dream, realises that she had been living a lie. Nothing that she took for granted was as she believed.

Both Connie and Della are women with a mission, and when they come together, they realise that they are powerful. A story of how they take revenge. Funny in places, sad at times, a book where you know what the outcome is.

A book which I thought would be more entertaining, more of a fun, holiday read, but in reality found it a bit tedious. It seemed to take forever and for me, there was just too much detail, which made me wish I could skip to the end, especially as I knew how it would end. The title of the book felt quite 'pulled out of the air'. It felt as if portions of the book were included just to justify the title. It didn't quite all fit well together, in my opinion. The characters were all quite black and white. All in all, not quite a book I would rave about.

Thank you, Netgalley for the review copy of this book.

[Allison Hurst · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chick lit at its finest. Oh I just love Milly Johnson’s books. There’s so much going on in them that I never want to put them down. I think, I’ll just finish this, then you get to a really nitty gritty bit where u want to see what happens. Then I’m gutted when I’ve finished. I think she’s fast become my favourite author. This one is about Connie, who’s been married to Jimmy (who owns the diamond shine cleaning company) for 24 years. He can’t keep it in his pants and decides he wants to run off with his 19 year old office junior. But not all goes to plan. The Sun flower cafe is used for the meetings of the cleaning ladies. Hilda, Astrid, Della, Marilyn, Gemma and a few others. A great story of revenge, friendships, and love. And to show the grass isn’t always greener on the other side. Some of Milly’s lines are howlers. And the escapades everyone gets up to are just funny. Great little read

[Paula Sealey · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'll begin by saying that I usually fall in love with Milly Johnson's books and her great characters and was really looking forward to this new offering.

Sadly, I found the book a bit of a trudge to get through and I had a hard time identifying with any of the characters, most of whom came over as very cliched. I'm also not sure why the book was titled 'Afternoon Tea at the Sunflower Cafe', when the cafe barely rates a mention in the story, which is instead about a wronged wife setting up a rival cleaning business to compete with her cheating husbands company. Unfortunately, not a book I'll be revisiting or recommending, although I will still look forward to future releases by Milly.

*Thank you to the publishers for providing a review copy through NetGalley.

[chippyvale · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay here's what I like - great characterization. I especially like Cheryl and Astrid and Brandon.

Here's what I found exhausting - the revenge. Wow there is so. much. revenge. It actually makes the book so tedious to read. I understand Della and Connie's rationale actually but there is just so much revenge that it makes the book very spiteful and tedious to read.

The book slightly misses the mark; not the author's best work. Nonetheless I'll still be looking out for more books by the author.

[Lisa Whittaker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another fantastic book by Milly Johnson filled with yet more amazing characters.

Such a fab story about friendship and strength. I literally couldn’t put this down. I just loved it!

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

Originally reviewed on http://beccasbooooks.blogspot.co.uk/

Afternoon Tea at the Sunflower Cafe is the second novel that I have read by the marvellous Milly Johnson, the first being The Teashop on the Corner which I read back in 2014 (you can read my review here). I am always, always, always hearing wonderful things about this author, and after reading Milly's latest novel I can completely understand why.

Afternoon Tea at the Sunflower Cafe was absolutely wonderful in every sense of the word. Milly's characters, their circumstances, and how their lives eventually intertwine had me falling deeper and deeper in love with this story with every turn of a page. Milly has such a unique voice when it comes to storytelling, and despite her well-known and much-loved novels falling into the same genres as so many other fantastic authors, there's still something there that sets her completely apart. I don't know whether its her genuine, down-to-earth tone, or the gorgeous descriptions which she uses to bring her stories to life, but Milly Johnson has got that something, folks. She has got that something.

I think what I loved the most about Afternoon Tea at the Sunflower Cafe was the normalcy of the plot. I mean, the majority of the women that the readers meet within this story are part of Diamond Shine, a cleaning company who attend to people's homes weekly, who natter away with the clients with a cup of tea after their duties of polishing, hoovering and dusting are done with. Some I warmed to instantly. Others? Not so much. There was such a brilliant, bright and varied collection of characters within this novel, even the not-so-nice ones, who well and truly brought the story to life with their unique voices and characteristics. Milly chose to focus the narrative spotlight on a few specific women, each with their very own special story to tell, and each with their own fate that would befall them before the novel had ended. I was on tenterhooks as I watched this story unfold, and began to put two and two together as different characters stepped forward into the limelight and their tales began to unwind and curl around the plot and it developed. It was riveting, exciting, hilarious witty and funny, and indescribably heart-warming too, everything I could hope for in an excellent read.

Becca's Books is awarding Afternoon Tea at the Sunflower Cafe by Milly Johnson with FIVE SCRUMMY CUPCAKES! I cannot wait to read more by this author, whether that be previous titles or upcoming releases, I love this author's voice and look forward to being audience to it again and again!

[Paula Jayne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book, Milly Johnson does it again, brilliant read. xxx

[Inna · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book is good enough to practice your English reading and not be bored with its story lines: betrayal, revenge, strong woman, Van Gogh picture and as a cherry on the cake new romantic relationship.

[Margo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Revenge is fun but this went on a bit too long.

[Rontti · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tä teos oli sieltä neljän tähden hyvältä puolelta. Nauttisin siitä kuinka rentoo luettavaa tä oli. Pelkäsin sitä et tä menis liian pitkäveteiseks koska en ollu vakuuttunu lukemaan kostonhaluisen siiivoajan aikeista viidenjapuolensadansivun verran. Tän teoksen lukemisen jälkeen taidan ittekki olla tarpeeks pätevä siivoajan ammattiin.

[Lucía · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love it, a complete and absolute joy to read

[Lita · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5
"Something inside her groaned, probably her stomach, but it sounded as if her heart had cracked. And she felt as if it had, too".

"Jimmy Diamond had "likeability" by the bucketload and boy, did he know it and use it. He's learnt the art of seduction from watching his dad sell second-hand cars. Stan Diamond had Cary Grant looks and a silver tongue that could have sold condoms to nuns".

"Where did all that love and affection go when relationships were severed? she thought. Or, cut off from its blood supply, did a chemical reaction sour it to hate?"

"Sometimes, from nowhere, it's as if a wave of sadness overtakes me and I have to fight it off. Luckily I have so many things I can focus on to make me feel angry and up rather than depressed and down".

[Roberta · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked this book up after all slow read and didn’t intend to stay up till 1am reading it especially when I’m working in the morning; but I did.
I couldn’t put it it down for anything. Milly Johnson had me hooked from page one. It’s a light hearted, funny read, though a little predictable at times I still had to read to the last page. So on to my next adventure also by Milly Johnson- the Yorkshire pudding club