After getting made redundant, Emily follows her dream and opens the card her and her late mum had always planned. Things don't go well so she rebrands as a board game cafe. A great read.

This is the perfect book to put a smile on your face.
Easy escapism at its best.
Thoroughly enjoyed it and would highly recommend.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this copy in exchange for an honest review

I am in love with this book - the plot is fantastic, and it's hard to put down! It follows Emily's journey on starting a small business ,after losing her job and fiance, fulfilling her and her mother's dream of owning a cafe. Despite facing numerous challenges, including failure, frustration, and fear of losing everything, Emily gains loyal customers and friends who support her both in her business and love life. The Little Board Game Cafe not only serves coffee and cake but also fosters a sense of community that connects people in the Yorkshire village. The book is a rollercoaster of emotions as the characters experience failure, learn from their mistakes, and ultimately achieve sweet success. It's a touching story that has stayed with me long after reading. If you're in the mood for a heartwarming tale about family, romance, and friendship, I highly recommend The Little Board Game Cafe. Plus, if you're a fan of board games, you're in for a treat! As a bonus, be sure to check out Mr. B - I adore his character.

I loved this gorgeous novel/novella!!! Emily is such a fun MC to read, and the idea for the cafe is brilliant.

This is a medium-paced, easy-to-read story, with characters that add value. I strongly feel that this is a good place for beginners if they're new to Women's Fiction, or reading in general. I put the book down feeling full and happy, knowing I'd spent my time on something great.

I received an eARC from NetGalley and Atria in exchange for an honest review.

Wow, this certainly made for a different read. I have never heard of a cafe like this one but it is a fantastic idea.. Great characters and the story line made for an excellent read. This is one not to be missed. Well worth more than 5 stars.

Thanks to Netgalley and publisher for this ARC

This was such a sweet read! I loved getting to know Emily and her dream of owning a cafe. I discovered many new board games thanks to this book, which is a bonus!
I desperately needed a fun, light-hearted read with romance, which was very nice also. I loved the character and rroted for Emily to achieve everything she set her mind to!
I can't wait to see what else this author will offer us!

Absolutely LOVED this one! Book of the summer for sure. Highly recommend. Could see it being book club picks.

I was so excited for this book as I love board games (the more common ones sorry haha) like Monopoly and Trivial Pursuit and it sounded like a really cute romance read. But sadly it didn't quite do it for me.
I loved the idea for the story and thought all the main plot points were great. Emily's backstory and everything surrounding her café idea and how it came to be were great, but I think the way it was done with the characters how they are just didn't work for me. Emily was kind of an infuriating character. She wanted to open a café and that would have been fine, but she seemed to do very little of the hard work involved in needing to run a café and continually had other people help her out, with everything! I don't mind MCs sometimes getting some help from their friends with big projects (like Kate offering to help with publicity was absolutely fine) but she ended up getting help from lots of people, some who she barely knew or owed her nothing and they didn't seem to get anything in return, not even much thanks.
Also with the love interests (I hate that term but can't think of a better one right now), I personally find it a little sad when the original guy that she splits up with doesn't seem to be that bad. It seemed odd for her to have been with him for so long and then split with him so completely and carelessly for the reason that she did. I get that the idea was they just weren't meant to be, but then it was heartless for her to have stayed with him so long until then. And her "issues" with relationships weren't properly fixed/addressed for me. I can't imagine any way that Ludek would have given her a second chance (and certainly not the way he did) after what she did to him, and there was no therapy or anything for her to change her ways and nothing to make Ludek think she'd changed.
I also thought some sections ended quite abruptly. There were chapters that ended before I was expecting them to, seemingly in the middle of a scene. It might be that all the important conversation had finished but just a couple more sentences of how the conversation ended and the characters separated would have been better for me.
I loved the mentions of the less common board games, there were a lot I hadn't heard of that sound really fun to play and Catan is an absolute genius cat name! That really made me smile and I so want to name one of my future cats Catan now. I loved the sweet treat ideas that Annie had too, they were so inventive and delicious sounding! I definitely would want to visit The (Not So) Little Board Game Café.

This is a lovely, uplifting story which captures life in the Yorkshire village through the funny ways of the inhabitants. Emily is forced to start again and has to decide whether to take a risk and to try to achieve her life's dream or to take the easy route and look for another job. Emily still misses her mother and in many ways, she wants to fulfil the ambitions they both had to have their own cafe. Emily has a sensitive side and wears her heart on her sleeve.

I enjoyed the characters who came into Emily's cafe, especially Mr B. There are one or two twists in the story and Emily has to adapt to succeed. This is a gentle romance. At the beginning, she has to decide whether she wants to go along with her life and continue her engagement or branch out on her own. This is an entertaining read, perfect for a weekend and a promising debut novel.

Thanks to the publisher for a copy of the book

“The Little Board Game Café” by Jennifer Page. What can I say other than I loved it and read in one day. Who doesn’t want to escape to a small town in the Yorkshire countryside...

The setting of a tiny village called Essendale sounded like just my cup of tea, I could picture it especially as I have visited small villages in England. It had everything you could want in a story friendship, community and love. I adored Mr. B and how he seemed to adopt Em and her cafe. We actually have a board game cafe here in Calgary, Canada, now I must go check it out!

I found the characters to be well developed, and multi-dimensional. It’s a great start to a new series, and I can’t wait to pick up the authors next book!

I will definitely read other books by this author.

I requested and received an advance reader copy of this book from Aria and Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I wasn’t one hundred percent sure I was going to enjoy this book when I started it. It took me a little time to warm up to the main character, Emily, in the first few chapters, mostly because of her relationship with her boyfriend and his mother, which just drove me to distraction and I was desperate for her to do something to change things. However, I stuck with it until, just when I was close to screaming in frustration and throwing in the towel, Emily rose to my silent challenge and things took a turn for the better. From that point on, I was hooked, charmed and, but the end, totally enamoured by the whole story and was so glad I had stuck with it.

Romance novels set in cafes are nothing new but I haven’t come across one set in a board game cafe before and this worked really well as a plot line for the romance to hang on. I loved the way the board game idea wormed its way into the cafe theme. The real strength of this book though is in the characters. The main characters that the author surrounds the protagonist with are eccentric and charming and ultimately lovable which always helps a romance novel. And let’s not forget the romantic lead. I found GP immensely attractive, mainly because he feels about his board games the way I feel about my books, and this is always the way to my literary heart.

By the end of the book, the author had completely won me round, particularly because the book took a twist you don’t often see in this kind of book and which I thought was quite brave, and I was really glad I had picked it up. Now, I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it to anyone who loves this genre, and I didn’t think this was going to be the case at the beginning. I would happily pick up another book featuring these characters and set in this world and look forward to seeing what the author comes out with next.

I loved this book. From page one I was rooting for Emily. I truly wish there was a board game cafe in my local area, I’d be there all the time. Likeable characters and a great storyline kept me interested from start to finish

I'll be honest - apart from Monopoly and Trivial Pursuits, board games have never been my thing, but this quite stunning - out last week and already flying up the charts - little debut novel from Jennifer Page has had me looking in the kids' cupboards to see what's in there!
An original plot as Emily pursues her dreams. The novel is really well written with some great character development and once started I couldn't put it down!
A fellow Yorkshire novelist - Jennifer Page is one to look out for!

Thank you Netgalley and Aria for the chance to read The Little Board Game Cafe by Jennifer Page. I love board games which is why this novel appealed to me. I enjoyed reading it, but was less impressed by the main character Emily (she was a hot mess). I did enjoy reading about different games that I had never heard of. For me this is a great beach/summer read. 31/2 stars rounded up.

Read and reviewed in exchange for a free copy from NetGalley. I loved this book. I was invested in Emily's story and the blossoming romance, and I love the idea of a board game cafe! A really lovely, enjoyable read. I also liked how much of the story was focused on Emily setting up the cafe and her friends, rather than just the (lovely) romance which I really rooted for.

Wow! I am so lucky to have stumbled upon this book that combined some of my favorite things (coffee, board games, England, and romance) into one cozy, heart-warming book. I adore table-top board games and many of my weekend hours are spent playing games like Ticket to Ride and others. I am also part of a Dungeons and Dragon campaign that has been going on for five years. So yes, board games are my thing and I really enjoyed this debut novel by Jennifer Page.
This book follows Emily, a young woman, as she navigates through unemployment, launching a cafe business, and budding romance. Though Emily was a bit naive at some points in the book, overall I liked her. She remains passionate about her dreams and has flaws that are relatable. This is not a how-to start a cafe business book and shouldn’t be read as such. It’s a fun, light hearted read that requires you dispel a bit of disbelief and cynicism. Page included tidbits throughout the book that enriched the story. For example, readers get a glimpse of the books on Emily’s night stand table as a way to gauge what’s really on her mind. Also, included are short descriptions of the board games played and from what I can tell, except for the game that Ludek gifted Emily, the games are all real! I loved this component and appreciated that the author researched board games. Many of these games like Dinner at Paris, Wasabi, and A La Carte I’ve added to my TBP (to be played) list. Overall, this is a charming book that I highly recommend for purchasing by public libraries serving adults.

Thank you to NetGalley and Aria for the complimentary digital copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions shared are my own. This ebook is available on April 13, 2023 and the paperback version is set to be released on June 23, 2023.

I absolutely love playing board games, which is one of the reasons why I chose to read this book.

This book is a little gem of a read, thoroughly enjoyable and entertaining not to mention plenty of drama, really well written too. When certain board games were mentioned throughout the story such as Ticket to Ride, Carcassonne, Catan, Azul I was like, yes I know those games, have played them myself numerous times. There were also mention of games I’d not heard of, which made me go straight to google to look them up to see if they’d appeal to me for playing in future lols.

Anyway I loved the concept of the story, opening and managing a board game cafe, seeing the ups and downs it went through before being a successful venture which gave it believability as all new businesses are likely to have hiccups or fail before they succeed.

I really liked the character of Emily and in fact in some ways, I could very much relate to her, similar personalities, although I am definitely not a baker like she is. I also like the characters of Ludo (Ludek), who is a GP and a lover of board games, absolute perfect boyfriend material there! Oh and I have to say that Catan is the perfect name for a cat, named after a board game, just brilliant.

I almost got distracted a couple of times when reading this book, as mentions of some of the board games, did make me almost want to drop my book and start playing a game lols. The problem is real when one is a book worm and a fan of playing board games, yep that would be me.

In addition to board games, there is baking, it is also a cafe after all, so naturally there is mention of a lot of yummy sounding food, so be sure to have some snacks to hand when reading this book.

Anyway, well done to the author, she has done a fabulous job with bringing this story to life in my opinion and a I look forward to reading her next book when it comes out.

I adored this delightful romance debut from Jennifer Page. From the idyllic Yorkshire setting to the lovely characters… I had the biggest smile on my face while reading this. Yes it’s a little predictable, but this genre always is - isn’t that why we read it in the first place? I eagerly await more from this author now!

Heartwarming and inspiring, The Little Board Game Café by Jennifer Page gives readers an insight into the difficulties of starting a business. It also shows the struggle to love when you’re afraid to lose it.

Emily opens a café, her lifelong dream, after losing her job and breaking up with her fiancé. She meets Ludek, who's obsessed with board games, and instantly takes a liking to him. And that's how you have The Little Board Game Café ;)

I loved this book so much. There are so many good one-liners that just crack me up. Is it British humour? (The author said yes, by the way.) I love it anyway. This book has its fair share of happy, sad and frustrating moments. There are also parts that made me go OH when things are revealed. I really love how the author just forms perfect circles in the story. Everything just ties together so neatly!

Emily is such a sweet character. She just makes so much sense. I understand why she thinks the way she does. Ludek is such a sweetheart. Green flags everywhere! Together, they make a cute couple. Of course, there are some minor misunderstandings throughout the book, but I don't care. It's not jarring. They make sense – what's life without some misunderstandings? I'm just glad that they eventually talk it out. Communication! I love that.

There are so many amazing characters in this book. Even those we may be sceptical about earlier in the story end up being such lovely characters. I mean, nobody is perfect. It’s nice to see characters with flaws (within limits)!

I recommend this book to romance readers, especially people who love board games! There were so many board games mentioned, but honestly, I only recognised Monopoly, Scrabble and Ludo, which is Ludek's nickname. Thank you so much to the author for explaining the games! I find it so interesting just how many board games there are in the world.

Thank you, NetGalley, for having me.

This book was such a treat to read with quirky characters, lots of humour and a sweet romance. I had to google the word “meeples” to see if it was a real word, and found a whole new world out there, including a link to the Meeples and Milkshakes Board Game Café in Penticton, BC (Canada). Who knew?!