The Little Teashop in Tokyo - Julie Caplin

Description

Grab your passport and escape to a land of dazzling skycrapers, steaming bowls of comforting noodles, and a page-turning love story that will make you swoon!

For travel blogger Fiona, Japan has always been top of her bucket list so when she wins an all-expenses paid trip, it looks like her dreams are coming true.

Until she arrives in vibrant, bustling Tokyo and comes face-to-face with the man who broke her heart ten years ago, gorgeous photographer Gabe.

Fiona can’t help but remember the heartache of their last meeting but amidst the temples and clouds of soft pink cherry blossoms, can Fiona and Gabe start to see life – and each other – differently?

Review

I always love these Julie Caplin books as they give you a chance to go somewhere you dream of visiting. Except this time I have been to Tokyo - so was it going to live up to the real thing? I admit to waiting a couple of times to see if there were any rooky mistakes, as Japan is unique and it would be easy to spot something that didn't fit in. I can thankfully say yes it did live up to my experience . All the descriptions of the travel and the Japanese customs were so true to my own trip that I felt like I was there all over again. 

The book follows Fiona who wins a trip to Japan. Whilst there she will be mentored by a famous Japanese photographier. Except that the mentor can't make it and instead someone she embarrassed herself with long ago called Gabe takes over the role. So begins a little bit of a cat and mouse story - with no spoilers from me as to whether the cat catches the mouse.

Some wonderful characters in this book - especially the Japanese ladies who I would love to meet. Hakura elegant and understated in her own unique way together with her lovely daughter and headstrong grand daughter. Julie has captured perfectly the generations in Japan. Also there is Yumi the petulant and spoilt  former muse of her mentor Gabe. I really didn't like this character at all, wanting to tell her she had made her bed and she needed to go lie in it!

The lovely easy style of the book makes it a great read even if you've never been to Japan. The journeys and sights around Tokyo are so descriptive you will feel like you are there, or make you want to go again.

I'm giving this book 5 out of 5 stars. My thanks to Netgalley and HarperCollins for the ARC.