Should you be searching for reviews of other books from Kirsty Ferry, you’ll find plenty here on Being Anne – she unfailingly produces books I enjoy. Her latest novella, Summer at Carrick Park, is published today (1st August) by Choc Lit, available on all major e-book platforms, and I was delighted to receive an advance copy from the publishers to read and review.
A summer wedding, fifty cupcakes and a man she thought she would never see again …
When Joel Leicester walks into the hotel where Rosa Tempest works, she can’t believe her bad luck. Out of all the hotels in all of North Yorkshire, the man who broke her heart would have to walk into Carrick Park!
The last time Rosa saw Joel it was after a whirlwind holiday when they’d been greeted at his flat by a woman claiming to be his fiancée. Rosa never stuck around to hear Joel’s side of the story but now, six years later on, Fate has another trick up its sleeve as a potentially disastrous summer wedding at Carrick Park can only be saved by Joel and Rosa working together…
Now, if you’ve already read A Little Bit of Christmas Magic – believe it or not, I haven’t, but I’ll put that right this year! – you’ll already be familiar with Carrick Park and will recognise some characters you’ve had the pleasure of meeting before. You might also remember the setting from the first of the Rossetti mysteries, Some Veil Did Fall. But this novella really is a perfect stand-alone read.
There’s no timeslip for once, just a thoroughly enjoyable modern romance in a vividly drawn setting – and lots and lots of cake (what’s not to like?). I think there’s a real art in producing a novella that has well-developed characters (as well as Rosa and Joel, I loved the relationship with the baking uncles, and the involvement of Rosa’s sisters), a story with enough depth and back story to engage your emotions and the fleshing out that makes it a satisfying read – and this book most definitely delivers.
I read it in one sitting on a hot afternoon in the garden, and totally agree with the publishers who called it “a gorgeous summer read that will melt your heart”. It will, though, also make you extremely hungry – it gave me an irresistible urge to whip up some cupcakes, but the experience really wouldn’t have been the same without a drop dead gorgeous kitchen helper…
About the author
Kirsty Ferry is from the North East of England and won the English Heritage/Belsay Hall National Creative Writing competition in 2009 with the ghostly tale Enchantment. Her timeslip novel, Some Veil Did Fall, a paranormal romance set in Whitby, was published by Choc Lit in Autumn 2014. This was followed by another Choc Lit timeslip, The Girl in the Painting in February 2016 and The Girl in the Photograph in March 2017. The experience of signing Some Veil Did Fall in a quirky bookshop in the midst of Goth Weekend in Whitby, dressed as a recently undead person was one of the highlights of her writing career so far!
Kirsty’s day-job involves sharing a Georgian building with an eclectic collection of ghosts – which can sometimes prove rather interesting.
You can find out more about Kirsty and her work here, catch her on her Facebook Author Page or follow her on Twitter.