Hi everyone! Today I will be reviewing The Chocolate Box as part of the book tour!
Book Summary:
Ellie Sanchez wants revenge. Spurned during her school days at prestigious Monty’s academy when she was plain Eleanor Finch, and played second fiddle to her idol, Barnaby Westwood, and his show-off sister, Clementine, Ellie will stop at nothing to turn the tables now she’s all grown up. The siblings and their snubbing have been the catalyst for everything that’s gone wrong in her life, from parental neglect to her divorce.
When the Westwood travel merchandise company advertises for a new HR manager, Ellie decides her unique combo of karma and Law of Attraction has finally come good. And she’ll be bagging herself a cherry-on-the-cake, second, and richer, husband in the process – once Barnaby sees how much she’s changed, anyway.
Fast forward two years and he STILL doesn’t recognise her!
Fast forward two years and the company is in a financial mess.
Last Chance Saloon-style, Ellie coerces the siblings and their older sister, Brooke (the perpetual spanner in her works) to a rustic gite in Normandy for a spot of team-building… over a very ‘special’ box of artisan chocolates.
Cue ALL the fireworks in the cocoa bean of Jumanji…
Purchase Links:
UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Chocolate-Box-delicious-laugh-out-loud-feel-good-ebook/dp/B08FYZG54K/
US: https://www.amazon.com/Chocolate-Box-delicious-laugh-out-loud-feel-good-ebook/dp/B08FYQG54K/
Book Review:
Let’s just start by recognizing how cute the cover is!
One thing that really stands out in this book is the family connections and how they interact with each other. I thought it was very realistic and really pushed the plot further.
The food is a theme throughout the whole book but it isn’t overdone or pushy. It is done so well that the reader wants to try to food but doesn’t feel like that’s all there is.
The romance of this book doesn’t come in until a decent amount into the book, and is still not completely the center focus of the plot, but it is still there. I believe that Ellie’s motives throughout the book are more of a pushing factor in the plot instead of the romance which works out very well.
With that being said, there is still a lot of mystery, love, friendships, discoveries throughout the book that do get resolved by the end in a nice way with a little bow on the top. It was definitely a different read for me but I did enjoy it.
Oh, and did I mention that there’s wiccans in this book? Such a fun twist to the story, and adds something very unique to the tale.
This book leaves you guessing the whole way through!
Author Bio:
Isabella May lives in (mostly) sunny Andalusia, Spain with her husband, daughter and son, creatively inspired by the mountains and the sea. Having grown up on Glastonbury’s ley lines however, she’s unable to completely shake off her spiritual inner child, and is a Law of Attraction fanatic, as well as a Pranic Healer.
After a degree in Modern Languages and European Studies at UWE, Bristol ( and a year working abroad in Bordeaux and Stuttgart), Isabella bagged an extremely jammy and fascinating job in children’s publishing…selling foreign rights for novelty, board, pop-up and non-fiction books all over the world; in every language from Icelandic to Korean, Bahasa Indonesia to Papiamento!
All of which has fuelled her curiosity and love of international food and travel – both feature extensively in her cross-genre novels, fused with a dollop of romcom, and a sprinkle of magical realism.
You can follow her Foodie Romance Journey series at the following hang-outs:
Twitter: @isabellaMayBks
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/IsabellamayAuthor/
Instagram: @isabella_may_author
Read It and Weep with MGD 
Good review. 🙂 I read the book too as a part of this tour. I agree with you, romance was not the focus of this book but I liked reading about the dynamics of the Westwood family.
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Yes! It was definitely interesting to read about their dynamics.
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