Summer at the Garden Cafe: A Novel

by Felicity Hayes-McCoy

Paperback, 2018

Call number

FIC H

Publication

Harper Perennial (2018), 400 pages

Description

The Garden Café, next to Lissbeg library, is a place where plans are formed and secrets shared, and where, even in high tourist season, people are never too busy to stop for a sandwich and a cup of tea. But twenty-one-year-old Jazz--daughter of the town's librarian Hanna Casey--has a secret she can't share. Still recovering from a car accident, and reeling from her father's disclosures about his long-time affair, she's taken a job at The Old Forge guesthouse, and begun to develop feelings for a man who's strictly off-limits. Meanwhile, involved in her own new affair with architect Brian Morton, Hanna is unaware of the turmoil in Jazz's life--until her manipulative ex-husband, Malcolm, reappears trying to mend his relationship with their daughter. Rebuffed at every turn, Malcolm must return to London, but his mother, Louisa, is on the case. Unbeknown to the rest of the family, she hatches a plan, finding an unlikely ally in Hanna's mother, the opinionated Mary Casey. Watching Jazz unravel, Hanna begins to wonder if secrets which Malcolm has forced her to keep may have harmed their beloved daughter more than she'd realized. But then, the Casey women are no strangers to secrets, something Hanna realizes when she discovers a journal, long buried in land she inherited from her great-aunt Maggie. Ultimately, it's the painful lessons of the past that offer a way to the future, but it will take the shared experiences of four generations of women to find a way forward for Hanna and her family.--… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member cyncie

Summer at the Garden Café by Felicity Hayes-McCoy, is the Irish sequel to The Library at the Edge of the World, and continues the story of town librarian, Hanna Casey, her daughter, Jazz, and now,Hanna's discovery of an old journal on her property. Long-ago secrets are revealed as issues of love

and loss move to the current generation. This book is filled with Irish terminology, with which I was not familiar. It made the book confusing at times. Someone more familiar with Irish lingo would better appreciate this author's writing.

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LibraryThing member mchwest

After a slow start with the first book of this series, Library at the Edge of the World, this book really defined the characters and the story line and all was much more enjoyable. I started reading this before realizing there was a first to the series so stopped and bought it and read it then. I'm

happy I did because you have to to understand what goes on in the pretty little Irish town and how Hannah came to be living in her Aunt Maggies cottage. I could picture the landscape so well and can't wait to read the next.

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LibraryThing member Gingersnap000

Summer at the Garden Cafe is the sequel to Library at the Edge of the World written by Felicity Hayes-McCoy. I finished reading this novel a few days before I depart for a trip to Ireland, the home of my maternal ancestors. Will I find a story of my ancestors, probably not but Hanna Casey, head

librarian of in the little town of Lissberg located on the fictional Penisula of Finfarrian does find a journal written by her Aunt Maggie.

Maggie was a seventeen-year-old when the Easter Uprising of the 1920's. Her brother, Liam who is is Hanna's Grandfather, is part of the Irish rebels fighting against the British. Maggie's life ends with a tale of a bitter woman. How will her life story affect her Grea's niece Hanna and Hanna's daughter Jazz?

Enjoy all the character of this idyllic Irish town and you will be looking forward to a trip to the Dingle Penisula.

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LibraryThing member Lynnsoprano

Summer at the Garden Cafe is presumably the second in what will be a series of books about the fictional Irish peninsula of Finfarrian. I have not read the first book, but this feels very much a stand-alone. There are references to efforts to close the library where the central character, Hanna

Casey, is librarian, which I presume is detailed in the first book, but it clearly is not central to this story.

The story is woven around an old diary found by Hanna, written by her Aunt Maggie. But it veers off in numerous directions, following other characters from Hanna's family, a co-worker and his girlfriend, a student and her mother originally from Pakistan, a couple who run a B&B, plus others in the town. It makes for a very slow start to the book, because it takes a long time to really figure out where the story is headed. The ending leaves various plot threads hanging, setting up another sequel, but one of those is just sort of dropped in at the last moment. I found the last third of the book compelling, but I had to push myself at times to get to that point.

The writing is beautiful, and the descriptions of the scenes very engaging. I was ready early on to book a ticket to Ireland. In the end, I enjoyed Summer at the Garden Cafe, and I would probably read a sequel, but I wouldn't put this on my list of best books of the year.

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LibraryThing member mmoj

I received this book from LibraryThing's Early Reviewer Program. I requested it because I had thoroughly enjoyed Ms. Hayes-McCoy's first book in the series Library at the Edge of the World.

If you haven't read the first book don't read this review and I sugest wait until after you've read the first

book before reading the second book.

Hanna has moved into her great-aunt Maggie's cottage and is settling in nicely but she's worried about her daughter, Jazz who doesn't seem to be the same after her car accident. Jazz's grandparents are also worried about her. The decisions she's making can change lives in Finfarran. And then there's Maggie's journal - which can also bring a change.

I love the characters and the area of the peninsula but for me there was a bit too much drama and I found myself thinking that I'd like to skip some of the story. But that was a small amount of the story and didn't take away from the majority, just reduced my rating a bit.

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LibraryThing member mpmills

I loved reading this second book in theFinfarren Peninsula series. I had read the first novel, but feel this book can stand on its own. The story centers around Hanna, the town’s librarian, and her friends and family. She has recently restored her Aunt Maggie’s cottage, and has found an old

diary that helps her explore her roots. This is a gentle, comforting novel, set in a small Irish town, that was a delight to read.

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LibraryThing member jillrhudy

This novel is a sequel to “The Library at the Edge of the World,” set in Ireland with a librarian protagonist. It is very cozy and immersive, set in a bucolic town that is doing a beautiful job with an economic revitalization effort, but not much happens. There are many characters (which is

fine), all demanding a fair amount of emotional involvement by the reader (which is tiring). An interpolated diary by a dead great-aunt, discovered like a buried treasure, adds zero interest and even some confusion. The author switches back-and-forth among the characters and story lines, sometimes jarringly. This would be a good choice for the reader who is tired of preachy inspirational fiction, but desires no sex, violence, crime, or even excitement in a novel. I was still waiting at the end for a climactic event that never occurred. A novel needs some dramatic tension, some problem to solve. I liked the characters but the various interrelationships (mother and daughter (times three); landlord and tenant with crush on landlord; star crossed lovers) were, in the end, completely forgettable.

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LibraryThing member mpensack

I received an Early Reviewers copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. I read the first Finfarran book and enjoyed this Irish small town with it's interesting characters. This 2nd book finds the small town of Finfarren going through some positive changes now that a priceless psalter is

now on display in the town's library. Librarian Hanna has just fixed up her Aunt Maggie's cottage when she discovers her aunt's old diary that offers many fascinating clues to her family history. Daughter Jazz is living and working in Finfarren, and has emotional issues of her own. Hanna is dealing with problems involving her ex-husband, her mother-in-law, her mother and the romantic interest of a local architect . While I enjoyed the novel, I found it difficult to follow in places. The conflicts between several of the characters were not always clearly defined, as if something was missing. Still, the plot was unique and the story enjoyable enough.

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LibraryThing member PamelaBarrett

The novel revolves around 4 generations of women returning to the roots, discovering who they want to be and grappling with their family histories. It is set in the Finfarran Peninsula on the Atlantic coast of Ireland in the village of Lissbeg. The people of Lissbeg have managed to save the library

which is on the grounds of an old Convent and next to the Garden Café, and they are excited about a newly donated ancient manuscript which is bringing them publicity to help the village. There are a lot of interesting characters, and many different relationships (past and present) so I would suggest that you read this when you have some long lazy afternoons to get lost in the story. Summer at the Garden Café is the sequel to The Library at the Edge of the World so it might help to read that book first. Each chapter starts with another character—which I like in mysteries, but it made it hard for me to settle into the storyline and there is more than one story weaving through this novel. It wrapped up nicely so I’m giving it 4 stars.

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LibraryThing member dianne47

2nd in a series, focusing on the relationships between the middle-aged Hanna, her 21 year old daughter and her mother. Hanna has relocated to Ireland and her daughter follows her after a serious car accident. Pleasant but slow-moving, I kept waiting for something more to happen. There are a lot of

different characters and relationships to keep straight. An old journal from Hanna's aunt adds more characters to the mix. I enjoyed the first book in the series, The Library at the Edge of the World. There was a bit more drama in that one due to the fight to save the library.

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LibraryThing member 2LZ

Thank you librarything for sending me an advanced copy of Summer at the Garden Cafe by Felicity Hayes-McCoy in return for my honest review.

As this book is the continuation of The Library at the Edge of the World, I read that book first. I am glad that I did, and at the same time I am sorry that I

did. As there are recurring characters and story-lines in the second book, it made sense to read the books in order, but I think that it was a mistake to read them one right after the other, so close together in time. Both novels are reminiscent of one of my favorite authors, Maeve Binchy. But, where I found the first book charming, the second book, with the exception of Maggie Casey’s back-story, while enjoyable, was a little boring. I loved the minor character Fury, but I found the main character Hanna difficult to like, though I wanted to. I think if I had read the two books further apart, I would have liked the second book more. I am definitely in the minority here so it might be best to read it and judge for yourself.
3 1/2 stars.

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LibraryThing member erinclark

This book was just a little too slow for me. I could not get invested in the characters, and frankly there were too many of them for me to keep straight. The most interesting thing for me was the diary that one of the main character, (Hannah), found that told about the early days of her Aunt

Maggie. I liked the history of it. I really wanted to like this book, it has a lovely cover but I just can't get up the enthusiasm to recommend it.

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LibraryThing member JaneAustenNut

Loved this story about an Irish woman who emigrated to a London, but later returned to her home in Ireland. Lots of .twists and turns among various characters. Great story for anyone interested in the U.K.

LibraryThing member m.belljackson

Irish life is presented as a montage of carefully crafted stories advancing the previously introduced characters.

It will be good to see them moving along more quickly.

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