Author: Sue Watson
Publisher: Bookouture
Publication Date: May 2017
Genre: Chick-Lit / Romantic Comedy / Women’s Fiction
Buy The Book: Amazon | BN
Description: Ella’s life just hit rock-bottom, but can a summer by the sea mend her broken heart? When life gives you lemons… make ice-cream!
Life hasn’t always been easy for single mum Ella, but she has just hit an all-time low; she’s jobless, loveless, very nearly homeless and, to make matters worse, now the owner of a pocket-sized pooch with a better wardrobe than her.
Packing her bags (and a bigger one for the dog), Ella sets off for the seaside town of Appledore in Devon to re-live the magical summers of her youth and claim her portion of the family ice-cream business: a clapped-out ice-cream van and a complicated mess of secrets.
There she meets gorgeous and free-spirited solicitor, Ben, who sees things differently: with a little bit of TLC he has a plan to get the van – and Ella – back up and running in no time.
Ella’s Ice-Cream Summer is a heart-warming and hilarious romance that will scoop you off your feet and prove it’s never too late for a fresh start.
My Thoughts: This story is so much fun! I want to drive a pink ice-cream van on the beach serving homemade ice-cream with a Pomeranian in designer duds along for the ride! Ella is a fantastic character that you can’t help rooting for. She is experiencing a lot of bad luck all at once with her children taking off to begin their lives when she is let go from her job and learns that her slimeball ex-husband is selling the house out from under her. Her favorite aunt, Sophia, has recently passed away and Ella wants to go to the funeral and learn more about her inheritance. Ella’s mother thinks it’s a terrible idea and has been on the outs with her sister for most of Ella’s life but won’t explain why. Frustrating, isn’t it? Luckily for Sue Watson’s readers, Ella doesn’t give up that easily.
This story made me laugh and cry and I felt immense empathy for Ella as well as irritation at her mother and her cousin for all the secrets that have kept Ella separated from her extended family. It didn’t take me long to figure out what the secrets were and once it came out and Ella finally got answers, I shed a few tears along with her.
The extended cast of supporting characters add a lot of depth and dimension to this story. As annoying as Ella’s mother was, I thought she was quite entertaining with her misunderstanding of the difference between sexting and texting and what Netflix and chill really mean. Ella’s cousin, Gina, was a very interesting character. At the first meeting, the reader is given the impression that Gina is very vain and full of herself but learn it’s a façade that she erects to protect herself. I also liked Ben immensely and hope he will make an appearance in future books as I thought he and Ella had great chemistry.
My Final Verdict: You don’t have to be a fan of ice-cream to enjoy this book, but it sure won’t hurt. The concoctions Ella creates demonstrates she has a special talent for the family ice-cream business. I highly recommend this story to fans of chick-lit, romantic comedies and women’s fiction as well as readers who are looking for something delicious to appease their sweet tooth.
Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of Ella’s Ice-Cream Summer from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
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