⭐⭐⭐★
This is a lightweight romance between
trapped-by-unwanted-success-superstar and a wine shop owner in a quint beach
town.
Forty-nine year old Kirsty McBride, divorced for seven
years, owns a wine shop in Sandy Cove in partnership with her old friend,
Helena. She has a fairly good relationship with her parents, though her mom is
far from subtle about nudging Kirsty to find a partner. Her life is on an even
keel. And her business could be expanding to include divorce parties. Kirsty
has floated the idea to her new, posh, affluent, recently divorced customer,
Ginger, who seems interested in such a party.
Saffron Oliver, star of a hit franchise, Girl Racer,
has been acting since she was fifteen, is hugely famous (enough to command
eight figure fees for a single movie) but practically burnt out and rather lost
at just thirty-two. She wants time off and convinces her pushy agent to leave
her alone for a month. Saffron plans to spend the month in Sandy Cove, where
her sister, Ginger, has relocated to.
Saffron and Kirsty inevitably meet and are assigned by
Ginger to work on her divorce party together. The two are attracted towards
each other but carrying their own baggage which could well crush the budding
relationship.
All the characters -- Kirsty, Ginger, Helena but mostly
Saffron -- are immensely engaging. The dialogue fun and the atmosphere light.
Lydon and Markinson are both solid writers so the narrative flows fluidity. So
as a purely fluffy read, it ticks all boxes.
We know that we're not supposed to overfeel something meant
to be as lighthearted as this book, but we found Saffron intensely tragic. She
keeps saying no one hears her or listens to her, and that is repeatedly proved
true throughout the narrative. Also, she seems to be alone in almost all her
relationships including with her sister and with Kirsty. She seems to be the
only one reaching out, the only one trying to convince the other of her
authenticity and the only one trying to make a relationship. Our heart really
bled for her.
But our final take is that this is a very well paced, easy
flowing, quick entertainer.
⭐⭐⭐★
