Tuesday, March 3, 2015

The Traveling Tea Shop by Belinda Jones

Laurie is excited.  She's a travel planner and has a chance to arrange an itinerary for Pamela Lambert-Leigh, the star of Tea-Time with Pamela.  She's very pleased to be picked until she finds out she has to deal with Pam's mother and daughter, too.  Uh oh...

Penguin Group and Net Galley allowed me to read this book for review (thank you).  It will be published today, so you can find a copy at your local bookstore now.

When they arrive at the airport to begin the tour, the mother (who is supposed to be the bus driver) is brought off the plane in a wheelchair.  Laurie almost panics!  They have a red doubledecker bus reserved.  She can't drive it.  What now?  Before she worries about that for too long, the daughter comes off the plane.  She's wearing punk clothes, has a rat's nest for hair, black eyes from makeup and an attitude that is five feet out in front of her.  Oh boy, this will be a fun tour...

They are visiting restaurants that specialize in local treats that have been here since the immigrants landed at Plymouth Rock.  While they eat the US goodies, they share European goodies with them.  Most of them are cupcakes, but they do other varieties.  The trip is going well until Gracie (mom) has a minor bus accident and hurts herself.  She has to stay in the hospital, but she finds them another driver and sends them on their way.  Gracie doesn't mention that the new bus driver is an old lover of Pam's.

This is chance at long lost love with a few misunderstandings in between.  Laurie tries to make things better, but she doesn't want to get caught in the middle of a family strife.  She also wishes she didn't know a secret she was told.  She knows it's not going to go over well.  She was right.

What amused me the most was that Gracie finds herself a boyfriend while they're gone and even Laurie has found someone she really cares for by the end of the book.  All these unmatched females find not only good food, but love on this road trip.  It made me smile.

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