I am a fan of this author's books anyway but I have to say that I completely adored this book!! It has a fantastic cover that drew me in and the story is superb, full of laughs, romance, heartache and drama - exactly what you need for this kind of book!!

The characters were great and I loved their interaction, the plot was superb and I was addicted to the story - it had me flying through the pages and I read it in a few hours!

Five stars from me and I loved Skrillex - as an animal fan and lover, this book was just my cup of coffee (I don't drink tea!)

Every so often you pick up a book, any book and you know exactly how it will end in the first few pages. The same can be said here, however, the journey we go on with the two main characters Amy and Josh are not anything I have read before. This is my first book by Jane and I can honestly say this won’t be my last.

The chapters alternate between Amy and Josh, so you get to see their perception of the day to day life they both lead as their lives intertwine. Set in Monkpark Hall in Yorkshire (based on a real place) where some ‘posh git’ Edmund Evershit… I mean Edmund Evershott (Josh is wearing off on me)has taken over of the running of the estate. Things don’t add up, and he takes a shine to Amy but is it all that it seems?

Amy is a size 14 nobody (her words not mine!), she is used to her best friend Jules taking the limelight, the gorgeous blonde flirt. No one looks at her, and if they do they are just looking at her chest, she has no self-worth. Her backstory really did upset me, but I think more so as I think of growing up. I was the girl, like Amy, that boys only wanted to be friends with and if anyone showed a slight bit of interest my said best friend at the time would swoop in and divert their attention to her. So I did resent Jules and her behaviour, she turned out ok in the end, but Amy had by that point kept quiet, not to make a fuss, instilled by her Grans words to her.

Josh, the quiet bird boy who had the model good looks. Well didn’t his story just make you sob your heart our for him (read the book to find out!), his story was just so heartbreaking. He’s completely in love with Amy but in such an innocent way you realise how broken he truly is. I just wanted to give him a cuddle, not that I think he would let me. I loved all his birds and his Bird of Prey show and I mean I want my own Skrillex owl, rescued by Josh, they are his escape from the world and his only companions.

You have the storybook bad guy in Edmund, who is a douche, and he is the sort of person who tries to save himself and throw anybody he can under the bus. I loved the comradery at the end of the book when everyone stood up to him to save Amy. And Amy’s Gran, she was definitely the comical relief with her obsession that the spoons had been moved and the curtains were wrong, it was great.

This love story is not your typical drunken love, there is the miscommunication but everything is so innocent which I loved. These two broken people have found hope, healing and eventual love with each other. But most importantly they found trust, neither is going to run away from each other despite their history and that is what is truly beautiful about this story.



*Thanks to Rachel @ Rachel Random Resources and the author for the copy of my book*

5☆ Prepare to fall in love!

Little Teashop of Horrors is a quirky fun read with great characters. I devoured it in one night.

The Little Tea Shop is under new ownership and he is threatening to close it down.
Edmund has come in and wants to change things. But Amy and Jules have other ideas.

Amy lives with her Grandmother in the cottage that belongs to the Monkpark Hall.
Amy is terrified if she loses her job then they lose their home too.
I loved Amy's grandmother, it appears she has early onset of dementia or Altzhimers which is something that is close to my heart so I could really relate to Amy and her Grandmother.

I really liked Josh. Josh works at Monkepark as a birds of prey handler. He is clearly passionate about his birds and Amy.
He clearly has a big crush on her, even though he is hopeless with women and can come across as a lil creepy. He has a big heart if only Amy could see it too.

My heart went out to Amy, she has a big heart but has such a low self esteem.
She feels that she is the 'plain friend only there to make Jules look and feel good.
I can completely relate to this as my best friend made me feel that way for years.
Until something happened and were no longer friends. No one should make you feel like you are not good enough!

I love how Jane has put in some really important subjects such as self awareness, self confidence, learning to love yourself, Altzhimers/ dementia, I can relate to all of these subjects as will a lot of readers. For this I applaud and thank her.

It's hard to put Into words just how utterly charming this book is.
It is deliciously heart warming, a vivid rich tale that has absolutely stole my heart.
It was Enchanting in every sense.
A scrumptious sweet romance.
The characters are strong, quirky and unique you just route for them to suceed.

I highly recommend this adorable book.
Prepare to fall in love with little tea shop of horrors.

Favorite Quotes:

Jules had a tendency to go off in full pursuit of any man that took her fancy like a whippet after a sausage.

Julia pulled the ‘sensible one’ trick, a move so rare that it was probably endangered… Her heels clattered over the waxed and shiny boards, attracting his attention to our approach, while my sensible flats squealed and squeaked like distressed hamsters.

That young lady is all fur coat and no knickers. She’ll find herself in trouble one of these days, mark my words.

His face was pale and narrow, giving him a sort of ‘shuffled together’ look, as though his features were furniture in an overcrowded room.

Julia was so upwardly mobile that she was practically rocket-fuelled.

‘Cleaning’ was probably not the right word for what this caravan needed, but flamethrowers are hard to come by.

You’re a bridesmaid, Ames, and if you’re not really nice to me I’m putting you in primrose yellow trimmed with puce. And those heels. Well, one heel, one flat, so you sort of lurch.

My Review:

This book was found treasure. It was a delightfully amusing and well-crafted tale which was sneakily and slowly constructed while we became acquainted with the oddly compelling yet endearing and strangely enticing characters and their heartbreaking histories. I smirked every single time a character was introduced, as each one was uniquely peculiar and described in such a colorful manner they were instantly knowable. The writing was stealthily insightful, acutely observant, and riddled with clever wit and levity. I adored it, even when I wanted to give the mousy main character a kick in her scratchy Edwardian outfit. I greatly admired and greedily covet the author’s vast and artfully nimble word skills and want to read every line she has ever penned. And I proudly have a few new words and phrases for my Brit Vocabulary List – which has become quite voluminous… First up is “go like the clappers” which is to go fast, supposedly like the clappers found in hells bells, then there is “pranny” which Urban Dictionary told me was a cross between prat and fanny but could also be considered an idiot as well as female genitals, so… hmm, seems to be a multitasker.

If you've been reading a lot of dark and deep novels lately and fancy s change of 'scenery' so to speak, I highly recommend putting 'Little Teashop of Horrors' on your TBR! Well, let's be honest - I highly recommend putting this book on your TBR anyway! Don't be fooled by the 'horror' in the title - it isn't scary, although a couple of the characters leave a lot to be desired...

Amy works with her best friend, Julia, in the cafe at Monkpark Hall. In Amy's eyes, Julia is the 'pretty one', the 'popular one', the one who everyone remembers. Even though Amy doesn't want to be 'memorable', she would love to be noticed - surely that isn't too much to ask? Amy has the type of personality which draws people in, but often her personality can come back to bite her on the backside - especially when she allows people to walk all over her. Julia included.

Whilst Amy works in the cafe, other members of staff at Monkpark Hall seem to catch her eye, yet none of them catch her eye quite like Josh. Josh, like Amy, tries to stay in the background, only coming up for fresh air when his birds need him. Amy notices Josh and she wants to know what makes him so different. But will he let her get close enough?

Despite being very slow to begin with, the storyline packed more of a punch the further into the story I read. At first it was a case of finding out about the characters, the hall and the new boss. Don't get me wrong, it was great to set the scene and find out more about the characters - the 'bite' was just slow in coming. When it did, the pace picked up and multiple characters began to show their true colours (especially Josh). 'Little Teashop of Horrors' is a light-hearted and fun read, yet there are moments where characters pasts are brought to life, making for quite an emotional couple of chapters. Not teary emotional, more empathy emotional...if that makes sense. Heart-warming if you will.

In the end, 'Little Teashop of Horrors' completely surprised me and kept me thoroughly entertained. The storyline was a breath of fresh air in the fact it was different to what I have been reading recently - I'm certainly not complaining though, I needed the change.

Jane Lovering entertained me with her laugh out loud, bonkers and brilliant storyline - I welcomed the distraction which this storyline brought to me!

When a new estate manager arrives at Monkpark Hall, Amy is seriously worried about the security of her job. She works in the tearoom but also lives in an estate owned cottage with her gran, so her job really does depend on everything. Her childhood friend Julia also works in the tearoom and colleague Josh calls in often between his bird of prey displays for a cup of tea and one of Amy’s delicious cupcakes.

I loved the characters, their Northern wit had me chuckling, especially Amy’s gran who reminded me so much of my own grandma. I felt the pain of Amy when she compared herself to her more confident and attractive best friend and worried about Josh because he seemed quite lonely and fragile. A wonderful addition was the birds of prey who all had their own little personalities and their interaction with Josh was so charming.

I think what set Little Teashop of Horrors apart was the fine detail and constant laugh out loud moments. I could just imagine Amy and Jules in their cumbersome and comical Edwardian outfits with their unflattering mop caps which pinged off at every opportunity.

This was the first book I have read by the talented Jane Lovering and I enjoyed every single page. I thought it was going to be a light-hearted romance but soon realised that the story had some darker layers and unique, quirky characters who tugged at my heart. My only disappointment was that it had to come to an end!

4 Quirky Stars 🌟🌟🌟🌟

Well... I have found the perfect romance for my friends that have an aversion towards romance books… there will be no eye rolling in this unusual and very delightful romance… there is no alpha male or sophisticated heroin… there is no Insta love, no walk of shame in the morning, no angst… what there is though is lovely real characters... characters you would actually meet when walking down the street... a beta hero who you’ll fall in love with… and a heroin who does not have a mean bone in her body…

Amy our heroine was so lovely…. Always worrying about everybody, always there for everybody, with the exception of herself… it was almost heartbreaking at times how little Amy thought of herself, when she was such a capable and wonderful person…. Josh our beta hero was very secretive and very damaged, my heart broke for him as well.... The relationship between these two developed so sweetly and at such a realistic pace... shoot it almost developed too slowly and how often does that happen in a romance?

Along with Amy and Josh was a cast of amazing and quirky secondary characters…. The setting was also interesting a historical hall, with a tea shop, and a birds of prey show…. Now I am not a bird person, but I will make an exception for Skrillex the owl…. This was a delightful book filled with laughs, love, and food…

Absolutely recommend to fans of a clean romance and even to those of you that don’t always love the love……

*** thank you to the author and Rachel at Rachel’s Random Resources for a copy of this book ***

I enjoyed this story, the setting of a heritage property, quirky characters, some moody owls and falcons make up for an interesting read.
With a small town charm complete with a bit of snake oil type too, Little Teashop of Horrors has a cast of characters who stand up for each other and support without a second thought which is always heartwarming to read about.