Excellent book with a great storyline. Characters that are so well written. I would highly recommend this book to anyone!

This is a first for my by this author but won't be my last.
Having heard about the Comfort Food Café series I thought I'd give this one a go, but was weary as I haven't read the others... but that was not a problem... it can be read as a stand-alone.
I'll be looking out for the rest of the series to catch up on the rest of the characters and looking forward to the next one.


Christmas has never been Katie Seddon’s favourite time of year. Whilst everyone else shares memories of families coming together and festive number ones, the soundtrack to Katie’s childhood wasn’t quite so merry.

But since she moved to the village of Budbury on the gorgeous Dorset coast, Katie and her baby son have found a new family. A family who have been brought together by life’s unexpected roads and the healing magic of a slice of cake and a cupful of kindness at the Comfort Food Café.

This year, Katie’s new friends are determined to give her a Christmas to remember, and with a gorgeous newcomer in town, Katie’s Christmas wish for a happy home for her son might just come true.

The Comfort Food Café has a way of drawing you in!

A heart-warming festive read that was great to snuggle up with on the start of the colder evenings.

Thank-You Netgalley for my ARC.

Lovely read. You don't need to have read the other books in this series in order to thoroughly enjoy the story of Katie, her son Saul, and the people of Budbury. Don't judge Katie until you know her- a rotten childhood can linger on but she's making an effort to change things. SHe's letting others into her life, including Van, the love interest. It's all good. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. You'll want to give Katie, and Saul, a big hug. I'm waiting for the next one!

I wasn’t let down by this one by Debbie Johnson, great read just like her others. Went far far too quick for me thou! I just want to be there in the comfort food cafe! Cannot wait for the next one!

I love Debbie Johnsons books and this one was a nice edition to the collection.

I have read all of the books in this series but did struggle at the behinning placing all of the characters. If i remember rightly one of the books had a map in... that would be handy in this one!

Other than that, i loved it.

I love this series and I loved this entertaining and heartwarming instalment.
It was good to be back and meet again the characters.
The book is well written, the characters well fleshed out and it's a pleasant read.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to Harper Impulse and Netgalley for this ARC

I was really looking forward to reading one of these Comfort Food Cafe Books. For me, this is the first book I’ve read in the series, but is actually the 5th book and can definitely be read as a stand alone. This is the best time of year for me to want to snuggle up with this type of book, as the cooler weather and darker days set in.

I thoroughly enjoyed the characters, the story, and all things tied to the Cafe. I loved this book!💗 I couldn’t help but wish I lived in this small, slow-paced village with all the wonderful people that surround the cafe…and the yummy cake!

Katie moves to this small village with her little boy Saul to have a simpler life, after a rocky childhood from her parents’ constant fighting. She is afraid to follow in their footsteps and give her son the same traumatic experiences she had. This makes her a bit of a loner at first in this welcoming village. She has to work through a few things before she can move forward in a healthy relationship and accept the village’s open arms for her and her son Saul.

We have a cafe in Eugene that I thought of while reading this book, Cornbread Cafe. It’s not set in a small village, but they have the best comfort food when I’m in the mood! Here are some of the other titles in this series…

29FBA09C-D13C-43CD-8540-F2BF39B0AE09 CA3E7CDD-7B9B-4AA8-9B12-8C6FDECCBA9E 0DAF64FE-0A7B-4BE2-B1EE-327F427FF3BC C5457733-DB5D-43C8-9666-21E2C2963C91
I received this advanced copy from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own. Thank you to NetGalley, Harper Collins, and the author, Debbie Johnson for this copy. The book will be released October 18th, 2018. Go check it out and snuggle up with a good book for Fall!

A Gift From the Comfort Food Cafe by Debbie Johnson



This is the fifth book in the series about The Comfort Food Cafe, the amazing venue in the seaside village of Bunbury, Dorset, that is so much more than just an eating establishment. As readers of previous books in the series know, the Cafe is a place where the perfect dish to soothe your soul appears as if by magic in front of you, served up by proprietor Cherie Moon, or chef Laura. I have read, and thoroughly enjoyed, all of the titles in this series, and was looking forward to this Christmassy story.



As the series has progressed, we have met the regulars at the cafe and a procession of characters who have discovered its healing powers. In this story, we learn more about Katie and young son Saul, who have been present from the start, but with Katie always keeping herself to herself. As the pages turn, Katie's background and reason for relocating to Budbury emerge. Cherie and Laura are, as usual, matchmaking and hoping to get Katie together with local man, Van, but can she overcome her misgivings about entering into a relationship at all? While this is the central story in the book, there are, of course, other things happening with the cafe's clientele, making for an entertaining read.



This book contains the wonderful blend of comedy, romance and drama I have come to expect from Debbie Johnson. I cannot recommend this series highly enough. Each story can be read as a standalone, but it would be a shame not to read them in order. They are full of strong, believable characters, each with interesting back stories. Each time I read about the Comfort Food Cafe, I have a longing to visit and sit there watching the sea, with a plate of their delicious food in front of me. I'm sure other readers would join me.

The next book in this great series! The story of Katie and her young son, who moved to the village when she wanted to get away from her ex. A great catch-up with all the other characters in the village too!

Debbie Johnson does it again! She has written yet another wonderful instalment to this comfort food cafe series.

Don't worry if you haven't read the others in this series this works perfectly as a standalone but you would be missing out on some other fabulous books.

I loved getting to know Katie, who has been on the fringes in the other books, and her gorgeous son Saul. As the story begins we learn about Katie's nightmare Christmases not exactly happy childhood, and her habit of running when the going gets tough.

Fast forward to this year and she is finally starting to come out of her shell in Budbury and let others into her life, but whether she is ready for the sexy Van, well you will need to read to find out.

Touching on tough themes in a sensitive way, this book is one heartwarming hug of a story, full of familiar faces, adorable animals, and a sense of belonging and family from the community of Budbury. All of your favourite couples from the previous instalments are there, some more prominently than others.

I can't really express how much I enjoyed this story which had me hooked from the first pages and had me reading into the small hours of the night. An absorbing read,, which at this time of year, I would suggest you get yourself a cup of hot chocolate, put on something comfy and curl up by the fireplace and settle down to an incredibly good book that is perfect for this time of year.

Thank you to Harper and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

3.5 stars!
A very genuine book that I much preferred the second half of. I was slow to get into this but could also put that down to being full of cold and not totally with it!

When I say it was a genuine book, I felt the lead female - Katie - was very relatable with her fighting parents and the difficulties of bringing up a young child (Saul) as a mostly single parent. She also promoted Saul's relationship with his dad along with his new, pregnant, wife.

Katie fell fast and hard for Saul's dad but she ended up leaving him, not wanting to become like her own parents. This seems to have put her off relationships in general so I was happy to see Van introduced as a potential love interest who was clearly a friend first and foremost. Their relationship was not rushed and that felt more likely as Katie needed to grow into it and ensure it was right for both her and Saul - I enjoyed following her story and learning to trust and think of herself first sometimes.

There were some comical moments right from the beginning and this always ramps up my enjoyment factor!

The ending was incredibly romantic and stole my heart! I am definitely interested in reading other books in this enjoyable series.

My thanks to Harper Impulse via NetGalley for providing me with this advanced reading copy in exchange for an honest review.

Katie Seddon is a very private person and finds it difficult to open up to the circle of friends she seems to have accumulated at the Comfort Food Café. Even though she knows they are just trying to help, her first instinct to hide her troubles and stay in the shadows even though her lively son, Saul, is bursting with energy, dragging her out into the open. She’s been scarred by the enmity she grew up in and just wants a quiet life and to make Saul’s Christmas a happy one he can remember. Unfortunately things don’t always go the way you want and Katie is finding hard not to bolt.
I just loved catching up with all my favourite people and finding out how they were getting on. A real pleasure to read, hope we get another instalment soon.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I LOVED being back in Budbury! And it was just made even better by it being set at Christmas time! I always love returning to the Comfort Food Cafe, the first two will always be my favourites in the series but every book is always really enjoyable. I completely fell in love with the cover for this one! The light pastel colours works really well with the cute Christmas decorations and the cafe just looks so inviting and cosy. If I lived in Budbury, I'd be at the cafe all the time too! It just feels like such a welcoming place and I'd love to be a part of that community.

This time around we follow single mother Katie, who moved to the village with young son Saul. She moved away originally as she couldn't stand her parents fighting all the time, however it soon comes to light as though history is repeating itself as it's all she seems to do with Saul's dad. She escapes to Budbury to start afresh and keeps herself at a distance from the villagers at the beginning. But the Comfort Food Cafe always has a way of drawing you in!

This was lovely, festive and heartwarming. A great Christmassy read. Thank you to the publisher for a chance to read this novel, which I have reviewed honestly.

Delicious holiday romance set in the glorious village of Budbury.

Katie Seddon is a single mother of a three year old boy called Saul. She moved away from her parents in Bristol to get away from their constant fighting only to find herself copying their behaviour with Saul's father so she moved to Budbury where she has kept herself aloof from the rest of the villagers.

But as Christmas approaches she decides that maybe it's time to let other people in to her life, to let them help her with Saul, to join in with the activities at the Comfort Food Cafe, maybe even to let Auburn's brother Van get close.

But as tensions rise can Katie overcome her instinct to run?

Lovely, just lovely addition to the Comfort Food Cafe series - great if you have read the others but I think it can easily be read alone. If you like cake and eccentric characters and romance you'll love this.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

Back to the comfort cafe and this time it’s to Katie and her little boy Saul. Katie is hurt and scared of love due to her parents relationship and that of hers and saul’s Dad so she keeps to herself but with Saul being the whole village’s little angel she has to share him and her heart with Van. Van wants her to open up to love and at xmas as well.

Aww this was just lovely to read and no doubt I will read it again closer to xmas to enjoy the festivity of it. Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

Having read a few of debbie's books i really enjoyed this nice easy read a great way to escape on a cold wet day wasn't one of my favourite's but still enjoyable
Thanks to netgalley for an early copy for an honest review.

This wasn't my favorite Comfort Food Cafe book from the series but I was still a lovely cozy read.
I honestly just found the character of Katie a bit too whiny and childish for someone who is a parent herself. She spends most of her time moping about instead of attempting to make a life for herself in Budbury. What a waste!

As usual the cast of characters (other than Katie herself) was great. I did enjoy reading about Saul's antics as a wee little powerhouse, especially his love of beauty parlor!

I cannot express how much I love this series! I could not stop reading this once I started it! I literally devoured it in a day!!! I cannot wait for the next installment :c)