A modern day enchanting story of a young woman, Holly, who is betrayed in the worst possible way, and finds herself drawn back to her home town in the Cotswolds, where she impulsively buys a sweet shop.
In rebuilding her life and her new business, Holly revels in the past joys of her childhood, making up for opportunities that were sadly lost, and embarking on a journey of personal growth, and self discovery, as she reclaims her identity, and finds herself again.
But when things don’t quite go to plan and she almost feels like giving up, Holly is forced to dig deep within herself and persevere, spurred on by the memory of a dear friend lost, and the strength and encouragement she receives from new friendships formed.
With fate also intervening, and lending a helping hand, Holly turns the tables on a charismatic wolf in disguise, who has cleverly been attempting to sabotage her dream.
Despite yet another betrayal, Holly eventually learns to trust in her instincts once again, and more importantly to let go. She opens her eyes to the value and beauty of life itself, beyond the ball and chain of work. A life enriched with friends and laughter, fun and freedom, and the importance to simply be in the moment, neither dwelling in the past or worrying about the future.
The Sweet Shop of Second Chances is such a beautiful and well crafted story that instantly draws the reader in and forming a connection to the characters created. Although I did find the pace of the first chapter, a little too quick, Holly’s story had me captivated from the very beginning, and as the subsequent chapters settled down to an enjoyable pace, I found myself cheering Holly on, with much admiration for her strength and resolve, empathy shared, and outrage, as her good looking wolf, and new love interest, seeks to worm his way in, and trick her into losing all she holds dear. Each of the supporting characters in Holly’s story were completely endearing, especially the way in which they came together and rallied around to lend their support.
Just One More Sweet Shop is the perfect name and setting for Holly’s story to unfold, and Hannah, through her writing and story telling, has brought back such fond memories of my own youth, with references to the various traditional sweets, weighed out into paper bags, that I too enjoyed as a child. She has created a magical place where a person can simple forget about all the responsibilities and pressures of adulthood, and gives a reminder to us all, of the importance of taking a moment in time, to indulge and embrace our inner child. A truly motivating, heart warming and enchanting story, and to which I award an easy 4.5 stars.
Coming Soon to The Book Dragon Shop
