Reviewed by Emma Crowley
When Bella’s heart is broken by her cheating husband, she packs a bag and escapes to the little island of Jersey, to help her beloved great-aunt Celestine run her seaside flower stall.
With the sun on her cheeks, watching white-haired Celestine in her elegant patterned trouser suit beam at customers and arrange flowers in vases, Bella realises that life is too short to feel sad. And when handsome, brooding Rory arrives at the rose-covered flower stall, and their eyes meet, she feels a sudden spark…
Inspired by Celestine’s lust for life, Bella agrees to get to know Rory better. As the two of them walk together under vast blue skies, Rory tells her of the family secret that has brought him to the island.
Bella wonders if Celestine might be able to help Rory with his quest, but Celestine warns her to be careful. Bella knows she should listen to her wise aunt, but she can’t fight her feelings. Yet when she tries to track Rory down days later, she is shocked to discover the secrets he has been keeping.
Is her hope of an island romance with a mysterious, handsome man simply too good to be true? Or can this beautiful place still bring her the bright new beginning that she so desperately needs?
Many thanks to Bookouture via NetGalley for my copy of The Little Island Flower Stall to review and to Sharon for having my review on the blog.
A gorgeous cover and a wonderful story are what await you between said cover in Tilly Tennant’s new book, The Little Island Flower Stall. You’d be forgiven for thinking that this is just another run of the mill story where the stall in question has to be saved from closure. I’ve read so many stories like this be it a café, restaurant, bookshop etc. But this is not the case at all and I was pleasantly surprised. Instead the flower stall is the means by which our main female character arrives on the island of Jersey and through the work she has to do there she is transformed. Changed from someone who was beholden to her husband Sean who tried to suppress and quash her freedom into someone who can now embrace life and all it’s challenges. But how did she come to be on the island?
Bella had forgiven Sean twice for his misdemeanours but after discovering that he has cheated for a third time and after 15 years of marriage she has plucked up the courage to leave him and not before time might I add. No matter what he promises he is never going to change and as we get to know Bella more it’s obvious that she hasn’t been in love with him and his ways for quite some time. But it’s easier said than done plucking up the courage to leave a situation that you aren’t happy in. Despite facing an unknown future she leaves the home and goes to stay with her parents knowing that she has wasted too much of her life with Sean and her personality and aspirations have been quashed for far too long. But what next for Bella? Sean had made her feel as if she could make no useful contribution to society but this tale will disprove that.
Bella’s father Brian has an aunt who lives on the island of Jersey. Celestine is 94 years old and still running her flower stall in the village of St.Rosa as she has done for decades but she has had a fall and injured her foot and needs help. This is the opportunity that Bella needs in her life. Six weeks on the island away from all the stresses and strains that her impending divorce from Sean will bring and a chance to reconnect with Celestine whom she hasn’t seen for years. Memories still remain of the many family holidays spent on the island and she regrets not connecting more with her Great Aunt in recent years but again that was all down to the controlling nature of Sean. But she is free of him now and she is getting a chance to help someone in need and at the same time hopefully find her old self again.
When Bella arrives on the island the reader quickly feels at home with glorious descriptions of the beaches, the coastline, promenade, sand dunes, the sea and the many independent shops and of course Celestine’s flower stall. It’s a healing place where community is everything and it gives Bella a sense of purpose like she has actual agency and worth. I found that Bella settled very easily into a routine on the island and through working everyday under the close supervision of Celestine that she grew in both confidence and independence and this seemed to occur quite naturally and quickly. There wasn’t any drama of oh I can’t get through the day or I am useless at this etc. She just found her groove and settled nicely into it. So much so that it allowed her own personal issues to slightly take a back seat and a different story began to emerge. One that I had not been expecting given the title and what I initially thought the book would be about. There was nothing wrong with this. In fact, it added an extra dimension to the book and made me enjoy it all the more.
Celestine is very sprightly despite her age, well at least when she is not incapacitated through injury. She is feisty and can clam up quite quickly when questioned as Bella son discovers. But the relationship that grew between the pair was lovely and I admired the mutual respect that was fostered. They both needed each other without even realising it. But what of the element of the story that made this book just that little bit different. Yes, there as a little bit of romance that did feature but that’s not what totally caught my attention. It was the mystery of Rory trying to discover his true heritage. Rory has a funny introduction when he has an unfortunate incident on the promenade with a seagull which was all observed by Bella from the flower stall. Rory is funny, charming and easy on the eye and a lovely character who was a complete contrast to Sean. There is a little spark between the pair but as she gets to know Rory better she discovers he is on a quest to find out who his grandfathers parents actually were.
I honestly didn’t expect a historical element to come into the story. I mean who would judging on the cover. Sorry for saying that but it’s true. But it worked wonderfully here and although I hate using the term cosy mystery that is almost like what the story did become but in a very good way. The history of the island under German occupation is explored and I had known a little bit having read something about it in different books many years ago but I was pleasantly learning a lot more. In doing so, a story that has been kept secret begins to be uncovered and shows that love doesn’t follow the rules and guilt shouldn’t eat us up for years but instead take that chance and seek forgiveness. All the little connections began to become apparent the further Rory and Bella dive into the past and I was thoroughly enjoying it all. It was a nice nod to all those that sacrificed so much during the war years and how the effects rippled down for several generations to come.
I loved how there was a quick intro with just the right amount of information that the reader needed to know and then boom we were into the heart of the story. I appreciated this as there was no messing around with needless filling of chapters and the nice pace that had been established at the beginning was maintained throughout. Although, I will say the ending was just that little bit too rushed and given that the book finished at the 80% mark on my Kindle there would have been room for more. But that is the only very minor issue I had and in fact the way things were left I think there is room for another follow on book. I do want to know more about Bella and Rory and in my mind there are also potentially more characters and settings on the island that could be introduced in order to turn this into a series. Well, that’s what I’m hoping for anyway but maybe Tilly Tennant has other ideas in store for her readers. But in the meantime you won’t go far wrong with this delightful, engaging, relaxing and captivating read.
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