The Little Flower Shop by the Sea by Ali McNamara

The blossom is out in the little Cornish harbour town of St Felix But Poppy Carmichael's spirits aren't lifted by the pretty West Country spring.

Inheriting her grandmother's flower shop has forced her to return to Cornwall, a place that holds too many memories. Poppy is determined to do her best for the sake of her adored grandmother, but she struggles with the responsibility of the more-shabby-than-chic shop. And with the added complication of Jake, the gruff but gorgeous local flower grower, Poppy is very tempted to run away... 

The pretty little town has a few surprises in store for Poppy. With new friends to help her and romance blooming, it's time for Poppy to open her heart to St Felix and to the special magic of a little flower shop by the sea!

I have loved reading Ali McNamara’s books and Breakfast at Darcy’s has been a long standing favourite of her books but having just finished The Little Flower Shop by the Sea it sure did come extremely close of knocking it off the top spot!

Poppy Carmichael has a new start ahead of her after inheriting her grandmothers flower shop in St Felix, sound like an idyllic opportunity?

Poppy doesn’t agree!

Never one to give up on a promise she accidently agrees to make a go of running the flower shop and bring the magic alive again to the town and the loyal community but this will mean facing her demons. Will a touch of romance help to soften Poppy and make her set down roots or will her past once again stop her from accomplishing the task at hand?

After struggling with my previous book this book was an absolute joy to pick u and fall into such a cosy, bright and uplifting storyline. I blame Ali McNamara for not getting anything done today because once I picked this book up I didn’t move for the rest of the day as I was so absorbed in the events in the book and when I reached then end I didn’t want to leave the characters behind, I really hope that there will be a follow on to this book as I still feel like there is so much that could be done with all of the characters in this town not just out main characters Poppy and Jake but also Stan and Amber.

Poppy was a wonderful main character, she was our flawed heroine and although she has had many years where she has fallen from grace I could feel that she had something heartbreaking that she was holding back from sharing and I love how the author managed to keep the mystery as to what had happened in Poppy’s past concealed right the way through the book and it did bring a little lump to my throat not just because of the tragic event that happened but because of how Poppy has felt about it all these years.

I am not into flowers myself, I couldn’t tell the difference between a flower and a weed so I wasn’t sure if I would appreciate the storyline but I didn’t need to worry there is so much more to this book than just flowers but they added a meaningful touch.

As much as I love Poppy I have to say her character was completely upstaged by Miley! Miley is an adorable cheeky monkey who brought a fun and witty part to the storyline and I looked forward to her appearance throughout the book and she particularly made me chuckle with her torment of Basil the dog!

The storyline has an uplifting and magical feel to it but also covers some difficult topics all which were delivered with such tenderness.

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