Poppy Jenkins makes everyone smile. She’s the heart of Wells, a beautiful village in mid-Wales, leaving light and laughter in her wake. She has a doting family, an errant dog and a little sister with a nose for mischief. But she’s the only gay in the village and it’s a long time since she kissed a girl: the chance of romance in sleepy Wells is rarer than a barking sheep.
If she doesn’t think too hard, life is cosy, until a smart sports car barrels into town with the last woman Poppy wants to see behind the wheel. Beautiful Rosalyn Thorn was once Poppy’s high school BFF even though she was trouble. Then one day she abandoned Wells and Poppy without explanation. Now the highflier is back and bound to cause fresh havoc in the village and with Poppy’s heart; folk are not happy.
Wells needs to wake up to the 21st century and Rosalyn can help, but old prejudices die hard. If they can be friends it could be the chance to make everyone’s happy ever after. Couldn’t it?
I recently won a giveaway of this book, run by the fabulous @booasaur and after I devoured this lovely story in less than a day, I immediately decided I had to do the same in an effort to pay it forward.
This book is a DELIGHT. There are no intricate plots or schemes. There’s drama, but nothing insurmountable. And the characters are lovely, lovely things. Poppy Jenkins (the title character) is such a force of goodness that it makes you feel like maybe the world isn’t so bad after all. She chooses to be good, time and time again, even when it hurts, and for me, there’s no better character in the world than that. And to get this in a queer romance?!?!?! With Pride and Prejudice vibes all over the place? I was losing my mind.
I wish I could offer hundreds of copies of this book so that everyone I know could get one, but either way, if you’re in the mood for a lesbian romance where everything works out perfectly, all complications are solved, and everything feels good after, I’d highly recommend this quick read. (It’s only $5.99, pals, even if you don’t win one of my copies.)