Summer at the Cornish Cafe by Phillipa Ashley

Demi doesn’t expect her summer in Cornwall to hold anything out of the ordinary. As a waitress, working all hours to make ends meet, washing dishes and serving ice creams seems to be as exciting as the holiday season is about to get. That’s until she meets Cal Penwith. An outsider, like herself, Cal is persuaded to let Demi help him renovate his holiday resort, Kilhallon Park. Set above an idyllic Cornish cove, the once popular destination for tourists has now gone to rack and ruin.

During the course of the Cornish summer, Demi makes new friends – and foes – as she helps the dashing and often infuriating Cal in his quest. Working side by side, the pair grow close, but Cal has complications in his past which make Demi wonder if he could ever truly be interested in her. 

Demi realises that she has finally found a place she can call home. But as the summer draws to a close, and Demi’s own reputation as an up and coming café owner starts to spread, she is faced with a tough decision . . . 

Summer at the Cornish Café is the first book I have read by Phillipa  Ashley, the cover caught my eye on twitter and when I read the synopsis I couldn’t wait to read this book as I can’t get enough of Cornish books on the run up to my break to Cornwall.

Demi has not had an easy start in life but she does all she can to get by, when she is sacked from her job as well as the live in accommodation she needs to find something for her and her dog Mitch and quick.

Cal has returned home but everything has changed since he has been away. With his love life lost he decides to put all his time into reviving the Holiday Park and he takes a chance on Demi to work for him but although Demi has lots of ideas and is not afraid to get her hands dirty things don’t go as smoothly as they had hoped.

Demi was a determined and ambitious character who even though she has been down on her luck she hasn’t sat and felt sorry for herself she has continually pushed herself to keep putting her foot forward to find her next opportunity and this made her such a strong character who I admired. Her character grows with the storyline as we see her taking such care and pride in her work but also as she begins to fit in and make friends and a hint of romance blossoms too.

Cal took a chance on Demi which I admired but there was always a part of me on my guard around him as his emotions were very unpredictable. He has a past which he doesn’t want to share with people but this obviously has an effect on his personality but his heart is generally in the right place.

Although the romance that blossomed was a little predictable I still loved watching it unfold and because it wasn’t the main focus of the storyline I was still entertained by the journey that Demi and Cal were on trying to developing the Holiday Park.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I was so immersed in the storyline I didn’t put it down and ended up reading in on sitting! I really look forward to seeing what happens in the next book in the series because I really don’t want the characters journey to end there. This is a perfect Summery read with well-developed characters and a gorgeous, inviting setting which I can’t wait to revist.

Kindle