Guest Review: The Little Teashop of Lost and Found by Trisha Ashley

Alice Rose is a foundling, discovered on the Yorkshire moors above Haworth as a baby. Adopted but then later rejected again by a horrid step-mother, Alice struggles to find a place where she belongs. Only baking – the scent of cinnamon and citrus and the feel of butter and flour between her fingers – brings a comforting sense of home.

So it seems natural that when she finally decides to return to Haworth, Alice turns to baking again, taking over a run-down little teashop and working to set up an afternoon tea emporium.

Luckily she soon makes friends – including a Grecian god-like neighbour – who help her both set up home and try to solve the mystery of who she is. There are one or two last twists in the dark fairytale of Alice’s life to come . . . but can she find her happily ever after?

How lovely to have the opportunity to read the latest novel from Trisha Ashley, undoubtedly one of my favourite authors. This book has such an intriguing title and such an inviting cover that it would be difficult in any event to pass it by. It had me hooked from the very start, right from the brief prologue. 

The story revolves around Alice Rose, unmistakably pictured on the front of the book, with her distinctive red hair. She seems to have been dealt a duff hand all the way through her life, from having been discovered abandoned on the Yorkshire moors as a baby and not being loved by her adoptive mother, through failed romances, to losing her fiancé in an accident. However, she is blessed with a light touch when it comes to baking. Having moved from place to place during her adult life, she finds herself drawn to the Yorkshire village of Haworth, the nearest habitation to the spot where she was discovered as a newborn baby. A rundown teashop there provides her with an outlet for her culinary skills and a chance to try and solve the mystery of her parentage. 

Alice is a wonderful, strong character. Despite all the woes that have beset her, she continues to have determination and a sunny outlook that results in some lasting friendships. Thus, we meet lots of other interesting characters as the story progresses. Her little teashop in Haworth is set in a courtyard that is shared by an antique shop. The owner, a rather handsome young man, along with his extended family, are just some of those who are added to her group of friends as they set out to help her in her efforts to resurrect the business as an 'afternoon tea emporium'.

As always with Trisha Ashley novels, this story is skilfully written, with a good deal of humour. The main storyline is intermingled with excerpts from a book that Alice is trying to write and the thoughts of another character returning to Haworth. It makes for interesting reading. The descriptions of Alice's teashop, and indeed the wider location, are so vivid that you can easily picture all of it in your mind. In fact, I feel that if I visited Haworth today, I would be able to walk into the shop and sit down for afternoon tea.  

As you might guess, I would wholeheartedly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good romantic story. I am sure it will pull you in as it did me and have you sitting there mouth watering for some of Alice's cooking in the beautiful surroundings of the Yorkshire moors. 

Click here to get your copy!