Secrets, lies, carrot cake - and an owl called Skrillex!
Amy Knowles has always been the plain sidekick to her pretty best friend Jules. And whilst the tearoom they both work in on the Monkpark Hall estate in Yorkshire is not exactly awash with eligible bachelors, it's obvious where the male attention is concentrated - and it's not just on the cakes!
There is one man who notices Amy. Joshua Wilson also works at Monkpark, where he flies his birds of prey for visitor entertainment. He lives a lonely existence but he has reasons for choosing isolation - and, in Amy, he may have found somebody who understands.
Then a management change brings slick and well-spoken Edmund Evershott to Monkpark. He's interested in Amy too, but for what reason? Josh suspects the new manager is up to no good - but will Amy? Because Edmund could leave her with much worse than a broken heart ...
This is told in alternating voices of the two main characters. Amy is the third generation of her family to work in an historic trust building. She and her grandmother are able to live in the village at reduced rent because a family works at Monkpark. This wasn't Amy's goal in life but she can't afford to keep her Gran at home any other way. She's always been a bit of a doormat for people but figures that is her lot in life.
Josh loves his birds but is very uncomfortable around people. He doesn't like to be in enclosed spaces, even inside houses. He's never had a relationship with a woman. He likes Amy though because she seems to see him as a real person and not just that strange guy with the birds.
This is an unusual romance. The characters both have back stories that make them think that they are unsuitable for love. I wish Amy's had been a little deeper. I felt like she was written almost as a cliche at times. I haven't seen a lot of male romance characters like Josh though. There was a lot of trauma in his background that made him stay away from people. Although the term is never used, he felt like a demi romantic/sexual character. He did not see people as potential love interests at all until he got to know Amy very well. He doesn't magically overcome his problems just because he meets a love interest either. He still has issues that drastically affect his life and relationships. That's a nice change from books where the hero or heroine's entire life gets fixed when they get a lover.
