581#Ai no Kotoba ~ [Book Review] Welcome to Rosie Hopkins' Sweetshop of Dreams

[edited: Dec 29, 2015] 
Truth to be told, I was attracted to this book due to its cover and the seduction of the idea of an old and traditional sweet shop. Welcome to Rosie Hopkins' Sweet Shop of Dreams was my first book of Jenny Colgan. I have become her fan since then ;)

Rating : 4.5/5

Were you a sherbet lemon or chocolate lime fan? Penny chews or hard boiled sweeties (you do get more for your money that way)? The jangle of your pocket money . . . the rustle of the pink and green striped paper bag . . . 

Rosie Hopkins thinks leaving her busy London life, and her boyfriend Gerard, to sort out her elderly Aunt Lilian's sweetshop in a small country village is going to be dull. Boy, is she wrong. Lilian Hopkins has spent her life running Lipton's sweetshop, through wartime and family feuds. As she struggles with the idea that it might finally be time to settle up, she also wrestles with the secret history hidden behind the jars of beautifully coloured sweets. Welcome to Rosie Hopkins' Sweetshop of Dreams - a novel - with recipes."

Comparing to Cupcakes at Carrington's, I found this book is more mouth-watering. The description of every traditional sweets in Lilian's old sweet shop made me craving for some sweets. You can't get enough with the sweetness!

Rosie Hopkins is a nurse in London when one day she is contacted to go to a small country village where her old Aunt Lilian live. Due to her old age, Rosie is asked to sort out her old sweet shop in Lipton. At first, Rosie only wants to quickly sell the place and return to London but the temptation of the sweet shop fails her. She begins to take over the sweet shop while taking care of her old aunt. The sweet shop has been through a lot, it is just a waste to sell it, right?

I love every character in this book, maybe excluding Gerard the boyfriend of Rosie. The village characters are quirky and I grew to love them. Aunt Lilian's grumpiness, Stephen's awful behaviour, Lady Lipton's eccentric ways and every villagers. I could not forget the time when Rosie goes to a farm. Hilarious!

Rosie's character has some flaws but she grows to be better. She knows what she wants to do even though sometimes her decisions aren't the best. Her efforts to bring back the glory of the sweet shop is no joke. She's no pro but she wills to learn.

In the meantime, Rosie learns Aunt Lilian's dark secret.

Till then.

Wassalam.