The Plumberry School of Comfort Food #BookReview

Book: The Plumberry School of Comfort Food
Author: Cathy Bramley

First, a confession: I read this book and wrote the review eons ago but forgot to share it here for some reason that I cannot remember, till I stumbled upon it in my drafts. And so here it is, The Plumberry School of Comfort Food.

I found the book at a Books by Weight Sale a few years ago and bought it only for it’s title. So when Shakespeare said ‘What’s in a name’ he really didn’t know what he was talking about. It sounded warm and happy and comforting. And that’s exactly what it turned out to be. The cover is lovely too, isn’t it? Happy and cheerful?

The story

The book is about Verity Bloom who works for an insurance company. She was once an amateur cook and enjoyed making fun Youtube videos with her childhood friend Mimi. When Mimi passes away, Verity loses all interest in cooking and turns into a Prick-and-Ping-Princess, someone who depended on the microwave to do all her cooking. Meanwhile Mimi’s mom Gloria, who had been a food stylist for television (I had no clue that was profession) decides to set up a Cookery School and calls over Verity to help her. Since she’s at a bit of a lose end in her professional as well as her personal life she agrees. That’s where Verity renews her love affair with food.

What I thought of it

This one is a simple feel-good book. Somedays that’s all I have the heart for. For starters I loved the setting – a quaint town called Plumberry. Isn’t that the sweetest of names? The School is wonderful and the cottages in the town, so very inviting.

Watching the women set up that school right from choosing a name to devising courses and planning marketing strategies to pull in the crowd was great fun. Some of the schemes they devised are good enough to be used in a real-life school of cooking, they were that innovative.

I loved the constant debate between the School’s celebrity Chef Tom and Verity about whether food should be serious business or something that spells fun and togetherness. The title gives away the winner but I could see Tom’s point of view too.

The book met another one of my criteria for a good read – a bunch of endearing side characters. There’s a cute little love triangle that keeps you guessing and a bit of a mystery thrown in for good measure.

I give it four stars for delivering on its promise and because I like romances with liberal doses of food and some humour.

I know I’ll be looking out for Cathy Bramley at the next sale.

Last thought: A sweet easy read to curl up with on a rainy day.