I downloaded this book for review based solely on the cover and the title. My mistake. I must have read the description—I always do—but I can tell in hindsight that I didn’t read it properly.
The title and cover gave me the impression The Sweet Life was a romance.
The last line of the book description would have confirmed that. As such, I was expecting this to be Dawn’s story of recovery from her broken engagement, then reconnecting with her ex through her mother’s impulse buy—a dilapidated ice cream store.
It started with a cast of characters … not a great sign in a contemporary novel. I can deal with the cast of characters in historical fiction, where it can be important for the reader to know which characters are real historical figures and which are imaginary. But in contemporary fiction? A good writer should be able to introduce the characters in such a way that the reader knows them all and never gets confused (which, to her credit, Suzanne Woods Fisher achieved). But starting with the cast of characters feels like a weakness, as though readers aren’t going to be able to work out these vital details.
Anyway, onto the story.
I was expecting this to be mostly Dawn’s story. It wasn’t.
It was probably an equal split between Marnie (the mother) and Dawn (the daughter). They are complete opposites, which was interesting but did occasionally veer into caricature. Both were obsessive to the point of ridiculous at times and felt like the author was trying to make a point rather than being true to the characters.
My favourite characters were Lincoln, a sixty-something ex-pastor who volunteers a lot of helping the ice cream parlour, and five-year-old Leo the Cowboy, who loves ice cream (although I did wonder where his parents were, and why he seemed to have the run of the town all day, every day).
My least favourite characters, unfortunately, were Marnie and Dawn.
I lost all respect for Dawn —the accountant who is trying to make partner in her firm—when she suggested paying Lincoln under the table. Maybe the author or publisher doesn’t know that that term means. If so, can I recommend asking Aunty Google? The internet says Dawn could face 57 years in prison if she’s caught … surely that’s a career-limiting move for an accountant who wants to make partner.
(Here’s a tip for employees: it’s illegal for your employer to pay you under the table and can result in severe penalties for your employer and for you).
The other thing that bugged me was the lack of communication between mother and daughter.
Dawn gets testy when she discovers her mother has spent money that’s not in Dawn’s detailed budget, but Dawn also doesn’t ask the obvious questions (like where the money is coming from). Yes, there were a couple of duh! moments when Dawn finally worked out the obvious.
In Marnie’s defence, she’s recently lost her husband and gone through breast cancer treatment. Now she wants to rebuild her life, and her relationship with her daughter. So she buys an ice cream shop, because her husband and daughter used to make ice cream together.
If you’re looking for a fun rom-com (as suggested by the cover), The Sweet Life is not the book for you.
But if you’re looking for women’s fiction that explores some deeper mother-daughter issues, it could be.
The Sweet Life appears to be the first book in the Cape Cod Creamery series. Even knowing it’s more women’s fiction than rom-com, I don’t know if I’m invested enough to want to read future books in the series.
The location had potential, but the characterisation writing just weren’t strong enough to grab me.
I had a similar issue with the last Suzanne Woods Fisher title I reviewed, The Moonlight School. I wrote:
My reactions to this book show the importance of setting expectations as an author, then delivering on them. The book was excellent. But it wasn’t the book the title or book description promised.
The Moonlight School and The Sweet Life are both from mainstream publishers. They are not self-published. As such, the issues with the book title, cover, and book description are the responsibility of the publisher, not the author. I hope they do better for the author next time.
Thanks to Revell Books and NetGalley for providing a free ebook for review.
About Suzanne Woods Fisher
Suzanne Woods Fisher is an award-winning, bestselling author of more than 30 books, including On a Summer Tide and On a Coastal Breeze, as well as the Nantucket Legacy, Amish Beginnings, The Bishop’s Family, The Deacon’s Family, and The Inn at Eagle Hill series, among other novels. She is also the author of several nonfiction books about the Amish, including Amish Peace and Amish Proverbs.
Find Suzanne Woods Fisher online at:
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About The Sweet Life
Dawn Dixon can hardly believe she’s on a groomless honeymoon on beautiful Cape Cod . . . with her mother. Sure, Marnie Dixon is good company, but Dawn was supposed to be here with Kevin, the love of her life (or so she thought).
Marnie Dixon needs some time away from the absolute realness of life as much as her jilted daughter does, and she’s not about to let her only child suffer alone–even if Marnie herself had been doing precisely that for the past month.
Given the circumstances, maybe it was inevitable that Marnie would do something as rash as buy a run-down ice-cream shop in the town’s tightly regulated historic district. After all, everything’s better with ice cream.
Her exasperated daughter knows that she’s the one who will have to clean up this mess. Even when her mother’s impulsive real estate purchase brings Kevin back into her life, Dawn doesn’t get her hopes up. Everyone knows that broken romances stay broken . . . don’t they?
Find The Sweet Life online at:
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Susan May Warren
