Meet Me At The Cupcake Café (Cupcake CafA (c), #1) (Cupcake Cafe, #1)

by Jenny Colgan

'A sheer delight from start to finish' Sophie Kinsella

Come and meet Issy Randall, proud owner of The Cupcake Café . . .

'An evocative, sweet treat' Jojo Moyes
'Gorgeous, glorious, uplifting' Marian Keyes
'Irresistible' Jill Mansell
'Just lovely' Katie Fforde
'Naturally funny, warm-hearted' Lisa Jewell
'A gobble-it-all-up-in-one-sitting kind of book' Mike Gayle
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Issy Randall can bake. No, more than that - Issy can create stunning, mouth-wateringly divine cakes. After a childhood spent in her beloved Grampa Joe's bakery, she has undoubtedly inherited his talent.

When she's made redundant from her safe but dull City job, Issy decides to seize the moment. Armed with recipes from Grampa, and with her best friends and local bank manager fighting her corner, The Cupcake Café opens its doors. But Issy has absolutely no idea what she's let herself in for. It will take all her courage - and confectionery - to avert disaster . . .
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Why readers ADORE Jenny Colgan

'Jenny Colgan has a way of writing that makes me melt inside'
'Her books are so good I want to start over as soon as I have finished'
'There's something so engaging about her characters and plots'
'Her books are like a big, warm blanket'
'Her stories are just so fabulous'
'She brings her settings and characters so vividly to life'
'The woman is just magic'

• ISBN10: 0748121951
• ISBN13: 9780748121953
• Publish Date: 14 April 2011
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group
• Imprint: Virago Press Ltd
• Edition: Digital original
• Format: eBook (EPUB)
• Pages: 400
• Language: English

Reviews

[Rowena]

This book was a little on the slow side though I did enjoy the narrator's soothing voice. I just kept wanting something to happen and nothing really does. Izzy gets sacked, opens up a bakery and the entire book is character driven but there were too many POV's and the switch between POV low key gave me whiplash. I did enjoy the recipes though and am really curious about the Nutella cupcakes. Full review to come.

[wyvernfriend]

Loved this story of a woman finding a niche for herself and deciding that following her heart is better than going with the flow.

[Emma (SCR)]

This review was originally posted on Star Crossed Reviews I read this book almost 2 months ago when I was on holiday. It was the perfect poolside companion it did give me a craving for cakes though.

Issy is made redundant and spends quite a while wallowing about this. She was sleeping with the boss, Graeme. Issy thinking that he should have told her ended the relationship in the middle of the office. Issy felt like everything around her was crumbling to pieces. Eventually she decides to open a Cafe. She's really good at baking and well how hard could it be....very is the answer.

Issy is a very likeable character. She could easily be any one of your friends. It was very easy to care about her and the cafe. I loved Gramps and was glad that Issy had, had him in her life. I loved the way he spoke with such passion about his bakeries and his recipes.

Graeme was a sneak SOB. I didn't like him from the beginning and when you find out what he plans half way through you will hate him even more.

Austin the bank manager was lovely. I felt quite sorry for him. He had, had such tragedy and had to grow up so quickly. I just wanted him to be happy.

This book was a real page turner. I couldn't put it down. I also really enjoyed the recipes at the beginning of each chapter. I know I will be buying a paper copy of this for that reason alone. I will shortly be starting Christmas at the Cupcake Cafe and I can't wait.

[Cocktails and Books]

This was a very cute story. It's set in London so I loved all of the references to all things British--even the words I didn't know! Issy is let go from her job due ""redundancy"" (love it!), but it's her big chance to start over & maybe really start living her dream. And get rid of the deadweight that is her ""boyfriend"" Graeme.

Issy's grandfather raised her & was a successful baker himself. With that encouragement, she gets the idea to open her own cafe where she can showcase her delicious cupcakes which up until then had just been treats she made for fun.

Of course, starting your own business is never easy. Helping Issy get the cafe off the ground we meet quite a cast of characters. Pearl stands out to me the most because although Issy relies on her a great deal to start the cafe, Pearl gains a lot from the experience as well.

While there's definitely an element of predictability, there was more to the story than I expected. Without giving everything away I will just say, just like real life, there is death, disappointment, betrayal, heartbreak, etc. in this book. Be prepared to laugh & cry!

Great recipes in the book too, but realistically I will probably never make any of them. I'm happy to leave the baking to the people that have a real passion for it like Issy!

Reviewed by Joelle for Cocktails and Books