A Well-Read Tart

A Food and Book Lover’s Blog

ONCE PERSUADED, TWICE SHY Book Review

I actually let out a cheer while reading Once Persuaded, Twice Shy. I mean, it was a quiet cheer. Because it was 4am and my husband was asleep next to me. But, at a crucial moment in the book, a fist pump and a hissed "yes!" went up in honor of...

LOCKDOWN ON LONDON LANE Book Review

If you're a fan of the movie Love Actually (umm, who isn't???), you’re going to adore Lockdown on London Lane.   What's Lockdown on London Lane about? Lockdown on London Lane (or, Love, Locked Down if you’re reading the UK edition) features a...

Chicken Saltimbocca (Recipe Inspired by SUNRISE BY THE SEA)

I can't believe I've just tried Chicken Saltimbocca for the very first time. Much like with Bara Brith, this is another moment when I can't believe I've lived this long (in Northern New Jersey, no less. With Italian genes.) without ever tasting...

SUNRISE BY THE SEA Book Review

Sunrise by the Sea is the fourth installment of the Little Beach Street Bakery series, and boy, was it worth the wait. Much like one of the “red thinks” (a.k.a., strawberry tarts) from character Polly’s bakery, I devoured this Jenny Colgan...

RAVEN BLACK Book Review

Calling all fans of Broadchurch! Raven Black is the next book for you. Since most people know my affinity for stories set in remote, beautiful UK locations (looking at you, Irish Country Doctor and pretty much anything by Jenny Colgan),...

ONE DAY IN DECEMBER Book Review

I received a copy of One Day in December from my library one day in March. This novel made serious waves throughout the book blogosphere when it published in late 2018, aided largely in part by being the December 2018 pick for Reese’s Book Club....

THE BOOKSHOP ON THE SHORE (DNF Book Review)

Did anyone else feel the earth move?  Sorry, that was because of me. I just added a Jenny Colgan novel – The Bookshop on the Shore -- to my DNF pile. *Gulp* It’s no secret that I adore Colgan’s novels. The Bookshop on the Corner (or, The Book...

Cheese Scones (Recipe Inspired By THE ENDLESS BEACH)

Holy. FREAKIN. Cow. These cheese scones are amazing. Jenny Colgan is the woman who inspired me to make scones. I had been smack in the middle of The Café by the Sea, reading about how Flora was making scones from her mother’s recipe book, when I...

THE ENDLESS BEACH Book Review

As so often happens, I started reading The Endless Beach on a grey, rainy, Saturday morning, snuggled up in bed between a husband and a cat. I had only gotten a little into the book when I had to wrench myself away in order to find some breakfast....

Quick Look Books: Hygge Books (January 2019)

Well, the holidays are over. Enter the looooooong winter months of January, February, and March, when it's freakishly cold outside and successive snowstorms foil your plans way too often. I used to dread this time of year. Once Christmas was over,...