Super cute with a touch a whimsy
This book was super cute and centers around the ideas of family, forgiveness, and finding your true happiness. Anna Kate expected to work the minimum time possible before inheriting the cafe to sell it and go to medical school, but Wicklow tends to grab hold of people. This book is very much a work of domestic fiction with a touch of whimsy, with there being a sense of magic without magic being used outright. There is suggestions that her mother and grandmother are now blackbirds (set with the ladies eyes), her two employees are also a grey cat and brown bird (noted by scars and feathers on their "human" form), and that magical dreams appear from eating famous Blackbird Pie.
I did wish to see a bit more with Anna Kate in relationship to those around her, as this book mostly focuses on her falling in love with the cafe but being in conflict with breaking a promise from her mother. It felt like there was a whole cast of characters in this novel that we learn the bare bones about, and I would have liked to see them explored more. This book was very PG though, with hints of relationships but not really any actions taken (kissing, sex, etc).
The description of the town itself is very desirable and I wish I could visit and get a piece of the blackbird pie, whether it would give me magical dreams or not. All the characters were very sweet and hospitable, especially as the town was quickly becoming a tourist destination, where people were literally opening their homes and letting strangers stay while in town. Even a majority of people who were in the town said they only stayed because Wicklow had grabbed ahold of them and they did not want to leave, and I have yet to experience a place like that!
Another thing I did struggle with, though, was how quickly Seelie changed her whole demeanor. Natalie was right to question it, as I was also wondering whether she was now heavily medicated or going to end up being vindictive down the road. After 20-odd years of hating Anna Kate's mother, Seelie finally looked Anna Kate in the face and somehow changed her whole demeanor outlook on the world, suddenly deciding it was time to let the past lie and try to repair what relationships she could. I know people generally do change their opinions and views when they receive new information, but I have never heard of somebody with that much hatred change their mind that quickly.
Overall, this was a cute book and I enjoyed reading about it. I loved the little magical realism elements and the hospitality of the small town, and the idea that something that could be magical had a reasonable explanation. I loved the instances of using holistic medicine and talking to nature and letting in not only people but forgiveness, and even the friendships made along the way. This book was a light read and a good pick-me-up, and I just wish there was more to this world!
I did wish to see a bit more with Anna Kate in relationship to those around her, as this book mostly focuses on her falling in love with the cafe but being in conflict with breaking a promise from her mother. It felt like there was a whole cast of characters in this novel that we learn the bare bones about, and I would have liked to see them explored more. This book was very PG though, with hints of relationships but not really any actions taken (kissing, sex, etc).
The description of the town itself is very desirable and I wish I could visit and get a piece of the blackbird pie, whether it would give me magical dreams or not. All the characters were very sweet and hospitable, especially as the town was quickly becoming a tourist destination, where people were literally opening their homes and letting strangers stay while in town. Even a majority of people who were in the town said they only stayed because Wicklow had grabbed ahold of them and they did not want to leave, and I have yet to experience a place like that!
Another thing I did struggle with, though, was how quickly Seelie changed her whole demeanor. Natalie was right to question it, as I was also wondering whether she was now heavily medicated or going to end up being vindictive down the road. After 20-odd years of hating Anna Kate's mother, Seelie finally looked Anna Kate in the face and somehow changed her whole demeanor outlook on the world, suddenly deciding it was time to let the past lie and try to repair what relationships she could. I know people generally do change their opinions and views when they receive new information, but I have never heard of somebody with that much hatred change their mind that quickly.
Overall, this was a cute book and I enjoyed reading about it. I loved the little magical realism elements and the hospitality of the small town, and the idea that something that could be magical had a reasonable explanation. I loved the instances of using holistic medicine and talking to nature and letting in not only people but forgiveness, and even the friendships made along the way. This book was a light read and a good pick-me-up, and I just wish there was more to this world!