A mysterious gift that makes one’s world turn upside down

Synopsis

Rosa Larkin is down on her luck in London, so when she inherits a near-derelict corner shop in a quaint Devon village, her first thought is to sell it for cash and sort out her life. But nothing is straightforward about this legacy. While the identity of her benefactor remains a mystery, he – or she – has left one important legal proviso: that the shop cannot be sold, only passed on to somebody who really deserves it.

Rosa makes up her mind to give it a go: to put everything she has into getting the shop up and running again in the small seaside community of Cockleberry Bay. But can she do it all on her own? And if not, who will help her succeed – and who among the following will work secretly to see her fail?

There is a handsome rugby player, a sexy plumber, a charlatan reporter and a selection of meddling locals. Add in a hit and run incident and the disappearance of a valuable engraved necklace – and what you get is a journey of self-discovery and unpredictable events.

With surprising and heartfelt results, Rosa, accompanied at all times by her little sausage dog Hot, will slowly unravel the shadowy secrets of the inheritance, and also bring her own, long-hidden heritage into the light

My review

Rosa Larkin cannot believe that she has inherited a shop in a Devon village. But while the money of selling to place would make her life easier, it’s obviously the one stipulation she must follow, as the shop cannot be sold, only passed on to someone who deserves it.
With no other option, Rosa goes to Cockleberry Bay not only to look at the place, but also to find the person whom she inherited from.
What Rosa didn’t expect, was to see the potential of the store, and a desire to run the place herself. Together with her dog Hot, Rosa has now a purpose in her life. And she finds herself surrounded by people offering a helping hand, from her best friend in London, to a sexy plumber to even a local reporter and a whole bunch of meddling locals, offering (un)wanted advice of their owns. 

Normally you start a series from the first book and then read the other books in chronological order. Well, I didn’t… I have read other parts of this wonderful series, yet somehow missed the first book. So before I started, I was very curious to know how it all began… 

From the start, it’s clear that Rosa didn’t have an easy life, as her being abandoned at a young age, never finding a real home and not ever allowing anyone to get too close, to avoid heartbreak.
With no one really close, beside her roommate/ best friend Josh, it is understandable that the news of the inheritance came as a total surprise to her.
While on one hand I was happy for Rosa to have this new opportunity in life, even if it’s a strange one, I also admired her courage to just pack and head off to Cockleberry Bay.
I know that if I were in her shoes, I would be too much of a scaredy cat to do what she did. 

What I liked about Rosa is that she is a real person, who makes mistakes, misjudges some characters, but also at the start of the book a rather standoffish character. She is even a bit literally and figuratively scarred from her past and is wary of all the locals of Cockleberry Bay. The only one she trusts and loves unconditionally is the loveliest, cutest dog ever in the world! And with a name like Hot, how can you not just adore him??? 

But back to Rosa…
So while initially she is keeping her distance and making a few bad decisions, she slowly somehow adapt to the Cockleberry Bay way of living. Not only is she making new friends with her neighbours, she finds a job while starting up her own shop, but she only shows her kindness while looking after and caring about the young local woman in need. 

I loved the whole story, with Rosa trying to settle down, a few mysteries around the corner and even room for romance. Romance that kept going different directions, surprising me at moments with behaviour that I didn’t see coming. But also with my own personal favourite, that I kept having my fingers crossed for.
And even with love, we see a change in Rosa, as how she initially has no qualms about having a night of fun with an unavailable man, to realize towards the end that even she is looking for love, and that even she deserves to find it in a trustworthy man. 

This story has so much in it, yet it never feels too overwhelming. A lot of things are happening in it, but you never lose the gist of it. And that is that no matter how life has been to you this far, somehow, somewhere there is a place waiting for you to call ‘home’, with locals that are welcoming you in with their kindness but even their weird bits. 

After reaching the end of this book, I felt happy that I finally caught up with the start of this wonderful series. It gave me not only the answers I was searching for, but so much more in the shape of love, acceptance and growth.
This author for sure knows how to captivate her audience with a wonderful story!