Author: Rachel Linden
Published by: Berkley Books on Aug. 2, 2022
Genres: Contemporary Romance, Women's Fiction
Pages: 352
Format: Paperback
Source: Uplit Reads
Book Rating: 10/10
An uplifting novel about a heartbroken young pie maker who is granted a magical second chance to live the life she didn’t choose. . . . from the bestselling author of The Enlightenment of Bees.
Lolly Blanchard’s life only seems to give her lemons. Ten years ago, after her mother’s tragic death, she broke up with her first love and abandoned her dream of opening a restaurant in order to keep her family’s struggling Seattle diner afloat and care for her younger sister and grieving father. Now, a decade later, she dutifully whips up the diner’s famous lemon meringue pies each morning while still pining for all she’s lost.
As Lolly’s thirty-third birthday approaches, her quirky great-aunt gives her a mysterious gift–three lemon drops, each of which allows her to live a single day in a life that might have been hers. What if her mom hadn’t passed away? What if she had opened her own restaurant in England? What if she hadn’t broken up with the only man she’s ever loved? Surprising and empowering, each experience helps Lolly let go of her regrets and realize the key to transforming her life lies not in redoing her past but in having the courage to embrace her present.
Review:
Charming, hopeful, and tender!
The Magic of Lemon Drop Pie is a touching, uplifting tale that takes you into the life of Lolly Blanchard, a young woman who gave up her own dreams ten years ago to come home and run the family diner and help take care of her younger sister after her mother died, as she embarks on a journey to complete at least one of her teenage goals before her upcoming thirty-third birthday of living in another country, owning her own restaurant, falling in love, helping her family be happy forever, or owning her own horse with a little help from three magic lemon drops courtesy of her Aunt Gert which will transport her to another time and place and allow her to live another life for one day.
The prose is heartfelt and smooth. The characters are multilayered, genuine, and conflicted. And the plot is an absorbing tale about life, loss, love, grief, family, friendship, relationship dynamics, introspection, heartbreak, and hope, all interwoven with a thread of magical realism.
Overall, The Magic of Lemon Drop Pie is a beautifully written, must-read book that tugs at the heartstrings, makes you think of all those what ifs, and reminds you that life is complicated, love is powerful and everlasting, and things often happen for a reason.
This novel is available now.
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Thank you to Uplit Reads for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.
great review!