Summer at the Comfort Food Café (The Comfort Food Cafe, #1)

by Debbie Johnson

[Leah]

I love Debbie Johnson for many reasons - she's an amazing writer, she currently releases two books per year (I love any author automatically who releases two books per year, it's just the BEST), and she makes me laugh. Although, this time around, with Summer at the Comfort Food Cafe she made me cry. I literally had to put the book down because I was crying so much, but that's because it just reminded me so much of what I went through nearly three years ago, but if I think of it even now it still hurts and it all just came flooding back while I was reading the book. But, mostly, Summer at the Comfort Food Cafe was a wonderful read.

I say this a lot when I read books like this, but I just love books where there's this amazing family-like feel to the book; Laura, Lizzie & Nate move from Manchester to Dorset and it's like they've been in Dorset the whole time, that's how friendly everyone is at the Comfort Food Cafe, most importantly Ms Cherie Moon. There's this real family vibe to the book, almost like the cafe itself (or most likely Cherie) have some kind of magical powers that can heal people and some of the stories were just so lovely, they didn't half pull at the old heart-strings. It's just so warm, so comforting. And it made me think: what would my comfort food be? Like Frank with his burnt bacon butties and his strong tea, everyone had their own comfort foods they couldn't be without, and mine would most likely be homemade Yorkshire puddings, though I would take the whole Sunday roast, if I could.

As always with books like Summer at the Comfort Food Cafe, I inevitably wanted to up and move there immediately. It just sounded so idyllic, so perfect, so peaceful. So beautiful. And it was nice to see the way everyone rallied around Laura, after she lost her husband, and how Laura just fitted in so easily, and especially her friendship with Matt. I was waiting and waiting for something to go wrong, and it was kind of nice that Laura had pretty much the perfect summer, as did her kids Lizzie and Nate, and Lizzie's rather heart-felt gesture at the end there kind of broke my heart, but in the best way. And I can't not talk about Jimbo the dog. It just made me smile to see him so involved, such a big part of the family.

This was such an amazing read, even if it devastated me for just a little while, with me reading with tears streaming down my face, willing them to stop. But apart from that intensely emotional bit, this was the perfect summer read (although I am SO glad I wasn't reading this on a beach/plane/train/ANYWHERE the public can see you cry). I loved the cafe, I loved Cherie Moon and Laura, Lizzie, Nate and Matt. I love more than anything we're going back there at Christmas, because it's a place you feel like you can always go if you're feeling down and you'll leave feeling much, much happier.