The Little Bakery on Rosemary Lane by Ellen Berry

I’m a massive fan of rotating genres to keep my reading flow going and one of my favourite genres to flip to is chick lits. I think it’s because they immerse the reader in a different way and always fill me with tranquil thoughts.

So after a few thrillers and historical fiction, I picked up this little treat that I had picked up on amazon on offer a few months back, and although I enjoy a lot of chick lits, this one really took me by surprise – I was fully absorbed in the story, loved the writing style and the city/countryside contrast was relatable and amusing.

I hadn’t read the previous book in this series ‘The Bookshop on Rosemary Lane’ but judging by reviews on amazon, I can see that whilst Berry has used many of the previous characters to provide the background to this plot, she’s also created an entirely new story by shifting the focus onto a new main character. This book can definitely be read as a standalone, but I have to admit, I really want to read the previous book now!

The prologue is told from the perspective of Marsha who has been brought into a fashion magazine to get profits up, Marsha is concerned that Roxanne won’t like the changes that are about to happen but knows how important Roxanne is to the success of the magazine.

The opening chapter then flicks to Roxanne becoming our main character and we’re thrown into her world of management nightmares, arrogant boyfriends and cooking disasters. Whilst you’re probably rolling your eyes now and going “Chloe that’s just chick lit vibes all over”, yes it was, but there was something a lot more relatable about the way Berry writes it.

The blurb lets us know that Roxanne is heading up to Yorkshire since her career is in turmoil. Since I knew this was going to happen, I had in my head that it would only be a few chapters in London and then the story would sweep us up and surround us in countryside air and flair. I was pleasantly surprised that it didn’t happen until a third of the way through the book, I liked that the build up wasn’t rushed and I appreciated getting to know Roxanne in her ‘natural’ (city) environment.

Up in Yorkshire, Roxanne creates blog posts for the digital part of her magazine, so readers can read all about her fashion disasters, but more importantly, she works alongside her sister in the bookshop Della owns (explored in the first book). Roxanne’s perspective begins to change, she realises what makes her happy and realises how many things she should be grateful for.

Of course, it wouldn’t be a chick lit without a little romance, and Michael; the owner of the bakery, keeps Roxanne questioning  what she really wants from a relationship. I loved watching their friendship begin to grow into something much more.

Perfect book to unwind to, which lets you shrug off what’s going on around you and have a good giggle!

The Bakery on Rosemary Lane is out now in paperback and eBook versions from avon.

Until next time, Chloé x