Sunrise by the Sea: Little Beach Street Bakery #4 by Jenny Colgan

Item: Sunrise by the Sea
Rating: 5
Author: Gaele

Jenny Colgan returns with the fourth book in the Little Beach Street Bakery series with

Sunrise by the Sea

As a side note, y’all – few things (or authors) make me happier than Jenny Colgan – which is why reviewing her books is far more difficult. I get lost in her stories, the places, the characters and even the cute-overload that ALWAYS happens …. so bear with me – grab the books, and just enjoy the ride!

I’ve read this series from the beginning –and loved Polly, the little rock of Mount Polbearne, Neil the puffling (now full grown puffin) and the changes that everyone went through. We return some years later to find Polly and Huckle have twins – a boy and a girl, they are living in the lighthouse, Neil is still a pet and ensconced in the house, and while things have always been difficult, financially, they’re really pressed now. Huckle is traveling more and more to sell his honey, Polly is increasingly stressed trying to figure out new ways to make the bakery more profitable in the non-tourist season, their friends Kerensa and Reuben (along with their own child) have made major investments – but this has made everything else pricier for everyone.

A new school is coming – and Reuben has placed the music teacher, Alexei – a large, bear-like Russian man into one of the homes, while his cousin has turfed out a roommate and arranged for her to have another house on the island. Marisa has been caught in a depression and anxiety after the death of her beloved grandfather in Italy. Retreating from society, never leaving her house and allowing the anxiety and loneliness and her own insecurities build. Getting to Cornwall was a trick: arriving at the house only to find it next to another that houses Alexi, his students, his piano and another person she may have to face is just one thing too far.

Yet, in the manner of all Colgan books – we have gentle (and not so) moments that bring change to everyone – particularly those who need it most. The reinforcement of friendship, community and family as Marisa spent long hours on Skype with her grandmother in Italy, to the recognition (for Marisa) and a reminder for us all – that everyone who “appears to have it all together” just may have struggles and trials of their own, to the generosity of Reuben (even if it feels as though a catch is involved) and the joy of Polly’s children with Neil and without gives this a sense of ‘coming home’ – where nothing is ever REALLY too much to handle – not with the support of friends, family and community – and there are always bright moments even in the worst of circumstances. You will enjoy this story if you’ve never picked up a Colgan book before (how is that possible?) but to truly come to love and understand Mount Polbearne, Polly, the community and where Neil fits in (anywhere his chubby little body can fly – or walk) you’ll want to start at the beginning. A lovely return to wildness with a dash of civilization – all full of heart, love and hope, reminding me why it is a favorite series with this most important installment.

Sunrise by the Sea: Little Beach Street Bakery #4 by Jenny Colgan

Title: Sunrise by the Sea
Author: Jenny Colgan
Series: Little Beach Street Bakery #4
Also in this series: Little Beach Street Bakery, Summer at Little Beach Street Bakery, Christmas at Little Beach Street Bakery
Genre: Contemporary Woman's Fiction, British, Contemporary Elements, Dual Narration, Family Saga, Friendship, Grief, Humor elements, Mental Health, Multi-Cultural, Romantic Elements, Second Chance, Setting: Britain
Published by: William Morrow
ISBN: 0062911325
Published on: 22 June, 2021
Format:eARC
Source: Publisher via Avon Addicts, Publisher via NetGalley
Pages: 368
Audio Length: 9 Hours: 23 minutes
Rated:

Heat:

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New York Times bestselling author Jenny Colgan returns to the setting of her beloved Little Beach Street Bakery series for a timely and heartfelt novel set in a Cornish seaside village.

Marisa Rosso can’t understand why everyone else is getting on with their lives as she still struggles to get over the death of her beloved grandfather, back home in Italy. Everyone loses grandparents, right? Why is she taking it so badly?

Retreating further and further from normal life, she moves to the end of the earth—the remote tidal island of Mount Polbearne, at the foot of Cornwall, hoping for peace and solitude, whilst carrying on her job as a registrar, dealing with births, weddings, and deaths, even as she feels life is passing her by.

Unfortunately—or fortunately?—the solitude she craves proves elusive. Between her noisy Russian piano-teaching neighbor, the bustle and community spirit of the tiny village struggling back to life after the quarantine, and the pressing need to help save the local bakery, can Marisa find her joy again at the end of the world?

A copy of this title was provided via Publisher via Avon Addicts, Publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.

About Jenny Colgan

Jenny T. Colgan was born in 1972 in Prestwick, Ayrshire, Scotland, UK. After studying at Edinburgh University, she worked for six years in the health service, moonlighting as a cartoonist and a stand-up comic, before the publication of her first novel Amanda's Wedding in 2000. In 2013, her novel "Welcome to Rosie Hopkin's Sweetshop of Dreams" won the Romantic Novel of the Year Award by the Romantic Novelists' Association. She is now working on her next novel.

She is married with Andrew, a marine engineer, and had three children, Wallace, Michael-Francis, and Delphie. She mostly lives in France, with frequent visits to London. She occasionally writes for The Guardian newspaper, as well as a TV series.

Her Doctor Who novel Dark Horizons is published under the name J.T. Colgan.