Rosie's Travelling Tea Shop by Rebecca Raisin

Oh those inebriated online purchases - always fun when the delivery comes and you can start berating yourself for buying some useless piece of rubbish.  Fortunately for Rosie, her piece of drunken shopping turns out to be a gorgeous vintage camper van called Poppy.  I suppose that's one of the perks of working as a sous chef in a michelin starred restaurant - you never get chance to spend anything left over after paying the bills as you are far too busy working; leaves you a nice chunk of disposable income for those drunken purchase moments.  Also, it apparently leaves you with a decent chunk to fund a travelling lifestyle.  I did find it very hard to believe that you could (A) cook enough baked goods in a campervan to make a profit, however small  (B) that said campervan would pass health and safety inspection as a food preparation area.

Setting aside those practical and real world concerns, the fictional world that Ms Raisin creates is entirely bucolic.  Yes, we have the nasty husband who leaves Rosie for a younger model precipitating the adventure.  Yes, we have Rosie's controlling nature and need to plan to the last second to deal with.  Yes, we have a supporting cast of eccentric characters who are all too ready to admit a stranger in to their midst and become instant friends with.  Yes, we have a shady sounding "penpal" encouraging and luring Rosie in to the lifestyle.  Yes, we have the misunderstood rugged hero that provides a will-they-won't they- for Rosie.

Basically, everything you expect from this genre is tucked away in there in various guises.  Not that this is necessarily a bad thing - certain things are expected but it is how you deliver them that is important.  Fortunately, Ms Raisin delivers them with a verve that makes things seem as fresh as the dew on the festival fields.  None of it really stands up to close scrutiny but who really pays close attention to if this would work in reality - we read to escape reality.  Although, I am sure this would provide inspiration for someone already on the edge of making the decision to try van life for a while.

It is humorous but falls short of being genuinely funny, certainly not a laugh out loud book - although very, very few are.  I do have a sense of humour, quite an overdeveloped one but this raised nothing more than the occasional smirk and those were in places that I am pretty sure were unintended by the author. 

Overall, this is a good solid holiday read.  Nothing too challenging, nothing too dramatic or heart rending but a heroine you want to get behind and a lifestyle straight from Enid Blyton - what could be better?