Welcome to Rosie Hopkins' Sweet Shop of Dreams

This was such an enjoyable quick read! I didn't believe I actually love this novel, but I did and I am glad, because - every once in a while - I need a light read to unwind from all the doom and gloom of my regular reading choices. To find a book that is cheerful and quirky, but not silly or centered around a sloppy romance, is a real discovery.

The blurb of the edition I bought mentions the word indulgence and it pretty much summarizes the essence of Jenny Colgan's novel. Throughout the book, we find the personal notes of Lillian, the fascinating, formidable elderly owner of the sweetshop, and they are a true delight. Chocolate, caramel, strawberry, licorice, mint, blackcurrant, nothing's missing. It is Lillian that Rosie, a young auxiliary nurse, comes to help and it is Lillian's personal story, set during the Second World War, that gives this special touch to the novel.

Lillian is a fascinating lady, full of strength, and determination. Rosie is also a wonderful heroine. She is optimistic, friendly, with some insecurities, just like every human being. That is why I couldn't believe how she could have fallen in love with Gerard, who is basically a couch potato, with the personality of a doormat, and the dictionary definition of the term ‘‘momma's boy''. In Greece, we have a word for people like him but best not translate it here...It took eight years and a devastatingly aloof and brooding young man named Stephen, for Rosie to see that Gerard is not one to spend your precious time with.

There are two very interesting male characters. Moray, the young doctor of the small town, and Stephen, a young man with a strange wound and an even stranger personality. Moray is kind, polite, a true gentleman, whereas Stephen is like a wounded animal trapped in a cage, too afraid to break the bars and walk out. He has a whole lot of darkness to fight against. It was really interesting to come across such a troubled character in a chic-lit novel, although I cannot say I am an expert of the genre.

The interactions between the characters are realistic, funny (where needed) and believable, the romance of the story is well-grounded, neither naive, nor too dramatic, and the descriptions of the English countryside of Derbyshire are vivid, beautiful, full of the quirkiness that is the main characteristic of all small towns, regardless the country. The end is satisfying, well-rounded and, somehow, bittersweet, but full of hope and new beginnings.

This isn't a beach read like many critics have mentioned. It is a book for summer, for autumn, for spring and winter. It will warm your heart and make you consider the moment when we need a new start.