I started reading this book and initially liked it but after a while I lost interest in it and could not stay invested in the actual story. I liked the blub and the overview of what it was about, but sadly is just was not for me. This book was just a little too fluffy for my taste, although I can see other people just loving it!

The Windmill Cafe is the combined book of the first three books of this series, Summer Breeze, Autumn Leavea and Christmas Trees, and I must say that I thought they got better and better as the series progressed.

I didn't predict the outcome of any of the three cosy mysteries, but it was the one in Christmas Trees that shocked met he most and had me utterly hooked while I tried to work out who the culprit was before the police and our amateur detectives Rosie and Matt.

I have to admit to having a ridiculous strong feeling of deja vu throughout reading Summer Breeze, it may just be because of the nature of the crime, but I had the strangest feeling I had read the book somewhere before and that feeling didn't leave me until I started on book 2 - Autumn Leaves.

I've never had that sensation for so long ever while reading, and its still bugging me that I can't put my finger on it, but I'm going to put it down to Poppy Blake having such lovely and familiar writing style, that just drew me in, that I felt instantly at home with the book.

I loved getting to know Rosie, Mia, Matt and Freddie our four main characters, and the stars of The Windmill Cafe and the outdoor adventure centre in Willerby. Willerby sounded like a lovely place to live, and I enjoyed getting to know it, even if it is a town that seems to attract mysteries!!

All of the mysteries had really original ideas for the nature of how someone got hurt, ones that I have only rarely come across if ever before. And the seasonal elements of each book were fabulous. I especially loved the Christmas Tree decorating competition, such inventive designs.

I really enjoyed my stay at the Windmill Cafe, and look forward to reading more from this author in the future.

Thank you to Netgalley and One More Chapter for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

My Rating: 3.5 Stars

Summer Breeze

The Windmill Café is an omnibus containing three novels all set in the same location. In the first story, Rosie Barnes has fled to the small town of Willerby to attend a garden party. This should be a great distraction to Rosie as she has experienced a bad breakup. Having caught her fiancé in the act of cheating was horrible for Rosie. Things are still not pleasant for Rosie, however, as an apparent accident occurs to one of the guests. Was it an accident that occurred, or was it actually a poisoning? How could it have happened? Now working at the Café, Rosie decides to team up with a town local, Matt, to solve the case.

The police appear to be dragging their feet. Suki, a singer at the lodge, is the woman that was poisoned. A lot of questions arise and Rosie won’t rule out any possibility as to the cause. Is the town safe? Better yet, what of the Café? This is Rosie’s chance for a new life. Yes, she must get to the bottom of things.

In this entry into the series, Rosie and Matt begin interviewing everyone that could possibly have been responsible for poisoning Suzi. all the while a gentle romance blooms between Rosie and Matt.

As I read the second book in this series six months ago, I looked forward to reading the series in order. I found the dialogue to be rather droll, but I am glad to have given this series a try.


Autumn Leaves - *Published individually on June 26, 2018.

In this second book in the series, Rosie is still quite busy at the Windmill Café, but wonders if she wants more. Presently, she agrees to help her good friend Matt Wilson on one of his outdoor expeditions. After a drudging hike and a night's sleep, the first morning brings on worries. As leader of the expedition, Matt has an early morning pre-sunrise hike planned, but he and the rest of the group oversleep. Two things are quickly realized. They must've have been poisoned, causing them all to oversleep, and one of their party is missing, and is discovered after having been shot with an arrow, and it was no accident.

Meanwhile, although having suffered recent heartbreak at the hands of her ex-boyfriend, Rosie now finds herself quite drawn to Matt, and he seems to feel the same. Over the summer, there was a poisoning at the café, and Matt and Rosie teamed up to solve it, and it appears they plan on doing the same again this time, a crime-solving duo.

This is a cute story with a budding, sweet romance. Having not read the first in the series, I still felt connected enough with the story and the characters. This was a very quick read with a great little mystery. I was surprised at the ending, which means to get the complete story, the third book in the series must be read when it is released.


Christmas Trees

When Rosie’s ex Harry turns up she is nonplussed. Why is he in Willerby? She has gotten her life back together and she’d much rather prepare for the Christmas celebration about to take place at the Windmill Café. Plans have been underway for months. There will be a Christmas tree competition and Rosie wants everything to run perfectly. Rosie hardly has time to think of the sudden business proposition that Harry makes. Not only does she have her current job to consider, there is Matt, the man she met and has worked with while at the café.

Rosie gets even more distracted by a change in events. There is a cycle race about to take place, and one of the town’s members, Theo, is injured. Another accident? Of course, Rosie doesn’t believe that, so she starts her own investigation.

This was a nice addition to the series. As in the previous two books, the mysteries are rather light, as is the romance. So, the crime, Christmas and the planned wedding of two people named Josh and Grace all tie in together to make an engaging story. This really was a nice conclusion and I am glad that I got to read the entire series in order.

Many thanks to Harper Impulse and to NetGalley for this ARC to review in exchange for my honest opinion.

This is an omnibus containing all three of the Windmill Café books published (so far), and I would not recommend reading them one after another since this is getting quite boring. It's always very near the beginning that some 'accident' happens involving one of the guests, and then Rosie, working at the Windmill Café, and Matt, owner of an outdoor activity center, team up to solve the case faster than the police. Their only means of doing that is by interviewing everyone from the circle of friends that came with the victim. Really, there is nothing else going on other than questioning all these people, sometimes combined with a bit of cooking and baking in the café. Only in the last part, "Christmas Trees", some additonal action is taking place.

I didn't know before that these books are rather cosy mysteries than chick-lit, but I wouldn't have minded that if the author did a good job of it. But solving a case only by talking to differenz people does get boring after a while, especially if those people have not much to tell other than "oh, i hated him because of..., but I swear I didn't do it". I mean, Lilly Rush and her team are basically only interviewing people as well to solve their "Cold Cases" in the TV show, but at least there is always something interesting happening in the flashbacks. Not so in this book.
Furthermore, Rosie and Matt are crossing of people from their list of suspects not because they found some evidence that prove that they are innocent. But only because of their "gut instincts" and so they are finally left with the person with the biggest motive.
The absence of real clues and evidence also makes it impossible for the reader to make his own guessings about the culprit, which would have been at least one reason to keep reading this book. But as it is I nearly put it away with a 'did-not-finish' label, because only reading about how Rosie and Matt get on with their cases don't generate any interest.

The little love-story between Rosie and Matt is also taking place so agonizing slow, that it would not have mattered if if weren't there at all and I surely didn't keep my fingers crossed for them - I simply didn't care.

Nice easy to read book. Lovely characters and nice storyline. Very nice and popular especially with the horrible weather we have you can escape in your book

This was a really well told story - or rather a collection of them - I really liked the characters and the mysteries. The setting was intricate and descriptive. And overall I found it to be a very good read!

Thanks Netgalley and the Publisher. This is a free part book and I shall certainly be looking out for the next 2 in the series. Good read

I have previously reviewed this series in it's component parts and I stand-by and reaffirm my previous reviews!

A lovely, fun, season spanning series :c)

This is an enjoyable read, set around the Windmill Cafe in Norfolk. The new Manager Rosie has recently moved there from London to escape heartbreak.She settles into village life after becoming friends with Matt, Mia and Freddie. Very soon she becomes embroiled in a targeted attack on one of the guests of the holiday lodges which she also manages. Matt and Rosie discover a mutual interest in Crime and law and decide to do a little investigating of their own to try and find the perpetrator.
The book was originally published in three parts, in some places of the story it seems like a part of the story has been missed out, but as you read on, the plot reveals the missing parts.
As the story develops, there is a growing friendship between Matt and Rosie, as she is healing from her heartbreak. It would have been nice if there was more background to the other friends as Mia in particular was an interesting character. It would have been nice to know more about her. It would have also been good to get a better description of the cafe, which sounded lovely.
The story was romantic, in a gentle way. The mystery and crime plots were well thought out, and enjoyable. It gave the book a different twist to the usual romantic novel. It was good to try and work out the guilty person. The way that the perpetrator was revealed put me in mind of episodes of Scooby Doo, which was fun, but not realistic. This is a great book for light hearted entertainment, but it is not a serious crime novel.

I read the 2nd book in this series and absolutely loved it so was desperate to read this the 1st book to see how it all began.

Rosie has moved to Willerby after discovering her boyfriend cheated on her. She is the Manager of the Windmill cafe and is hoping to settle in and make new friends.

When Suki a pop star is deliberately poisoned after Rosie hosts a garden party it looks like the poor Windmill cafe will be closed down. But if it is Rosie’s fault then why are none of the other guests sick too!!

Matt and Rosie team up to investigate and find out who the culprit is. Really enjoy their interaction and watching their budding relationship develop.

Loved this mystery book and it’s wonderful characters. Would love to live in this village and visit the Windmill cafe with its delightful cakes.

Looking forward to reading more in this series, I love a good whodunnit and this book has me enthralled.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy in exchange for a review.

This is my first by this author but it won't be my last... I will be adding the other's in this series to my TBR pile and will re-read this one in the correct order.

I didn't realise this was the 3rd instalment in this series when I requested it on Netgalley but that said I think you can read it as a stand-alone... you just won't understand the references to things from previous books.

A Christmas setting... romance and a bit of a mystery... what more could you want?

Rosie works in the Windmill Café, she's organizing the Christmas Tree Festival whilst trying to organise a wedding for her friends, her ex turned up wanting to make amends, he offers her a stake in the business. Rosie has fallen for the gorgeous Matt... but... who does she really want to be with?

Poppy is asked to solve a mystery... A member of the bachelor party is injured in a bike race... they took a short cut and went into a trap they didn't see... was it an accident and who put it there? Everyone has a reason why they may have done it... so can Poppy get to the bottom of it without putting herself in danger. Will she realise what and who she wants in life to find happiness?

A lovely, entertaining read.

Thank-You Netgalley for my ARC

The Windmill Café is a three-part book, based in different seasons, each containing different mysteries that the protagonist, Rosie, and her friends work to solve in the small village of Willerby. First, let me say that the cover is beautiful and I love the idea of a windmill café. If I wasn’t so averse to customer service, I would love to own a little café. Picking up this book would have allowed me to live vicariously through the main character as she works to find herself after leaving London for Willerby. Working with her friends to solve the local mysteries, I expected the main character to build up her self-confidence and end on a cozy note. In some ways, I think the author accomplished that. However, I felt like I was dragging myself along after only 5% of the book and could only read a couple pages (on my phone) before checking the percentage bar.

I am disappointed that the beautiful windmill on the front cover didn’t give way to a story that swept me away. From the beginning, I didn’t care for the writing style. I’m sure this won’t bother all readers but it felt like the author was working to show off her extensive vocabulary like children after they’ve just entered a new section in their vocab lessons. Sprinkling in words that aren’t used in day to day conversation is fine, but this was a constant presence throughout the novel and it completely threw off the flow. The conversations feel stilted and unrealistic leaving the characters in a two-dimensional state and ultimately unlikeable. I ended up distracted, looking up word definitions and usages as the use seemed wrong or had a conversational alternative that conveys the same meaning like using indecision or wavering instead of vacillation. Before long I felt like I was reading and editing a high school English assignment when I started reading descriptions like “Butterflies were having a disco in her stomach…” or sentences like “However, this was real life – yet, weren’t the principles the same?” Even so, I think I may have suffered through my opinions on advanced vocabulary and weird idiom combinations if it weren’t for Rosie.

I found Rosie, our main character, insufferable. As I review my Kindle notes, I wrote at one point during a conversation she has with Matt, her love interest, “it’s one thing to be polite and proper but Rosie has the personality of flour and is a ninny.” My notes get increasingly more irritated as the book carries on and it almost always stems from Rosie. The mysteries felt lukewarm and while I didn’t necessarily guess the perpetrator, I also didn’t care if they were caught.

As I go to post this review, I see that a lot of people enjoyed this book and I am relieved. I don’t relish giving poor reviews and I encourage the author to keep going because there is clearly an audience for their work. I just won’t be a member of that audience.

This review will be posted on the blog Dream Come Review starting 12/27/2018.

I was provided an ARC of this book by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I thought this was a romance novel, not a mystery, so my interest waned a bit when I realized it wasn't a romance, but also because it's the 3rd book in a series I've never heard of before. The mystery was kind of weak and not very entertaining for me. Sort of a bland story all around.

Loved this book the characters the romance the cafe.An absolutely wonderful sink into the story the world.take me out of my life into the characters world #netgalley #harperimpulse

Excellent book! Loved the characters and it was a great storyline. I would highly recommend this book.

This is the first book I have read by Poppy Blake but I loved it. I hope I can find more books by Poppy to,read. It was good to read all the books in the Windmill Cafe series together and I was sorry when I came to the end. Rosie has moved to Norfolk to manage the cafe after her relationship in London ended.. She was a florist working for her boyfriend and was making a name for herself in London. Now She lives in a flat in the windmill above the cafe and feels she has found not only a home but good friends too. Matt runs the Ultimate Adventure centre and together with Rosie he solves the strange events that happen in each of the parts of the trilogy. There are a few twists and turns but altogether a very enjoyable read.

I would love to have sampled some of the food Rosie and her friend Mia served up. Matt helps Rosie to overcome her lack of confidence by introducing her to some of the adventures on offer at the outdoor centre. Rosie helps Matt to hold on to his business, which is threatened when a guest staying at the cafe gets shot by an arrow while on an overnight camp and hike with the outdoor centre.

I throughly enjoyed The Windmill Cafe. Good plot and believable characters kept the plot moving quickly. I enjoyed the writing and look forward to reading more books by this author. I received a complimentary copy from Netgalley and this is my unbiased review.

Start off with Rosie being urged to open the windmill cafe garden party. The owner skipped off to Barbados leaving her with the planning of the party. I really liked Rosie

The fact that I was not aware that this is is the third book in a series set in The Windmill Café minimized my reading experience. However, Blake's prose is lighthearted and the atmosphere makes for an ideal read during cold and rainy days, especially during Christmas holidays.

I've been wanting to read this novel for a while now but was hoping it would come out as one big novel and I was so happy when it did! I don't have to be really impatient and wait to find out what happened next!! It's great.

Onto the book I really enjoyed it, I've seen tons of marketing around this novel and other bloggers sharing their reviews so I was so excited to give it a read. Plus the cover is just so super cute! I hadn't heard of this author before but quite enjoyed her style of writing. It was entertaining and I was hooked from the start.

I really liked main character Rosie and also got quite invested with the secondary characters lives too!

Overall, a fun and enjoyable read.