The Bookshop by the Bay
Ratings1
Average rating5
15
Ratings1
Average rating5
"Anyone who’s ever wanted to turn the page on their old life or felt the whispered promise of a new dream, and a fresh start will fall in love with Pamela Kelly’s charming new novel." —New York Times bestselling author Mary Kay Andrews The Bookshop by the Bay is a breezy, escapist beach read from powerhouse bestselling women’s fiction author Pamela Kelley. Two lifelong friends. One bookshop by the beach. And the summer that could change everything. Jess loves her work as a high-profile lawyer in the respectable and austere city of Charleston. But when she finds her husband, Parker, has been cheating on her with his assistant, she retreats, with her thirty year-old daughter Caitlin for support, to her childhood home on Cape Cod, in Chatham. Caitlin has always been bright but directionless, looking for her passion but keeps coming up blank. And Jess needs to regroup with the help of good food and wine, the company of her best friend, Allison, and come up with a plan for the future. Allison’s career has hit a low. After twenty years as an editor for the Chatham magazine, circulation is dwindling and though her boss and long-time friend, Jim, does everything to keep her, she has no choice but to take a step back. With a career on hiatus and her main relationship being with Chris, her ex-husband who is still a good friend, Allison is at a pivotal point in life. Her daughter Julia opened her own artisanal jewelry shop a year prior, and she has the kind of day-to-day fulfillment Allison yearns for. When Allison stops into her beloved local bookstore one day and learns that the owner wants to sell, a long-held dream turns into a reality, thanks to Jess. Allison and Jess set a plan in motion and what was once a place that held warm childhood memories is now theirs to run. As the two friends, along with the help of their daughters, reopen the doors of the cherished bookstore and adjacent coffee shop to the community, they also open themselves up to the possibility of romance, the bonds of mothers and daughters, and the magic of second chances. "A wonderful multi-generational story about mothers, daughters, and friendship set in a quaint seaside town on Cape Cod. If you love talk of bookstores, delicious food and coffee shops, this one is for you!" —Rachel Hanna, author of the South Carolina Sunsets series
Reviews with the most likes.
The Bookshop by the Bay by Pamela Kelley and this is my review. @pamelamkelley
Jess's world is turned upside down when she finds out her husband has been having an affair with his assistant and the assistant is now pregnant. She can't be at work in the same law office as the pair of them. She needs to get away so her daughter Caitlin decides to go with her to her hometown on Cape Cod. She really needs her mother and her best friend to figure out her next move.
Over food and wine, Jess and her best friend Allison talk about owning a bookstore one day. It's a beautiful dream but Jess has other plans. The bookshop there is up for sale and Jess, being a lawyer, has money to invest. Allison's hours are being cut at the magazine she works for so this could be the solution she has been searching for.
It couldn't be more perfect and Caitlin who is at a loose end, seems adept at running the coffee shop attached to it. Everything seems to be falling into place at last but when Jess's husband finds out she wants a divorce and she bought a bookshop without discussing it with him first, will the happily ever after they thought they were getting, be hitting a major roadblock?
This book literally took my future dreams and weaved a beautiful story of friendship and sisterhood. In finding yourself even when you think you have hit rock bottom. Owning a bookshop with a coffee shop is literally any bookworm's dream (I would serve wine in mine haha) but I felt like the whole book was written for me and I loved every single minute. I loved the location of the book and I really want to go to Cape Cod now. The writing was so whimsical and sweet I felt like I was really there, that I could hear the waves rolling across the sand.
Jess is stronger than she knows and I think when she was finally able to get some distance from her marriage, she really saw that she was holding herself back. Allison is my favorite. She is basically me. I really loved all the characters and how they all accepted and loved the differences between them. I'm a sucker for a cute rom com and this one ticked all the boxes.
5 stars.. I found the book so charming and it would make a great summer read!
Thank you @stmartinspress for my gifted copy
#romance #chicklit #smpinfluencers #thebookshopbythebay #pamelakelley #booksaboutbooks #bookreview #bookblog #bookstababe
To Mothers And Daughters And Best Friends Forever! Yes, the title is a line from near the end of the book. But I thought it summed up the book quite well - this is ultimately a story of girl power, of friends and family and the family you choose. It is a lighter-side Hallmarkie type tale where there is some amount of drama, but most of the tale is women finding their paths at various ages and stages of life. Yes, there is some romance here (though with no sex scenes, for the clean/ sweet crowd), but really the focus really is squarely on the various women at hand. While the men are never *quite* caricatures, there is certainly a fair amount lacking in their characterizations and indeed even ultimate importance to the story, but that is perhaps to be expected with the type of tale crafted here. Foodies - and those aware that Kelley has written at least two fiction tales specifically about a restaurant - will love the descriptions of the meals and drinks here. This is clearly designed, from its storytelling to its cover to even its early June release date, to be designated a "beach read", and it absolutely feels comfortable in that type of space. Very much recommended.
Originally posted at bookanon.com.
