I’ve not really been accepting new blog tours for months, but when fellow blogger Anne Cater got in touch to say when was organising a tour for Jo Thomas’s latest book Sunset Over the Cherry Orchard I had to be on it. I love Jo’s writing and she was one of the first authors I met when I began blogging.

You can read my reviews of Jo’s The Olive Branch here and of Late Summer in the Vineyard here. I also have a smashing post about Jo’s top 5 holiday destinations that you can read here.

Sunset Over the Cherry Orchard is available for purchase through the links here.

Sunset Over the Cherry Orchard

It’s time for Beti Winter to dance to her own beat.

After three failed engagements Beti is in desperate need of a fresh start. What better place than the sun-drenched hills of southern Spain?

But it’s not all sangria and siestas. Beti finds work on an old Andalusian cherry farm where there are cherries to be picked, trees to be watered and her fiery boss, Antonio, to win over.

As the sun toasts her skin, Beti finds herself warming to the Spanish way of life. Embracing the art of flamenco, she discovers there is much to learn from the dance of passion. She just has to let loose and listen to the rhythm of her heart.

My Review of Sunset Over the Cherry Orchard

Beti’s Spanish plans are not panning out quite as she expected.

I always think reading Jo Thomas is like sinking into a warm, luxurious bath after a stressful day; it’s relaxing, comforting and just what you need for a totally pleasurable experience. Sunset Over the Cherry Orchard was exactly that and more and I closed the final page with a contented sigh of delight.

I just loved this book. Sunset Over the Cherry Orchard has all the elements I’ve come to expect from Jo Thomas’s writing. Firstly, there’s the glorious sense of place. Jo Thomas appeals to the senses so wonderfully, transporting her readers through the descriptions so that they feel they are there with the characters. I could almost sense myself putting on weight just reading about the food! The added touch of the Tapas at the end of the book is sheer genius. But it’s more than just fabulous descriptions. Jo Thomas has a knack of getting right to the heart of an area so that the cultures, people and places are respected and brought to life magnificently.

The characters are so well depicted. I fell in love with Beti and Antonio especially, but even the minor characters like Bonita are vivid and real. I developed an intense dislike of Olivia so that I could quite cheerfully have slapped her and as for her father, Paul – it’s lucky I wasn’t able to climb in through the pages as I so wanted to give him a piece of my mind. What I love about Jo Thomas’s writing here is she makes the reader care about the people in her books and to respond to them almost against the reader’s will. I’ll be thinking about them and their lives for ages.

The plot of Sunset Over the Cherry Orchard is perfect. We expect a happy ending from Jo Thomas, as her writing has an enormous feel good factor, but throughout the story it isn’t always clear who might get their happy ending, or how, so that this is such a satisfying read. Themes of love and loyalty, friendship and rivalry weave throughout the story adding depth and fulfilment for the reader.

It’s always a risk reading the latest book from a favourite author as there’s a chance that expectations may not be met. In Sunset Over the Cherry Orchard Jo Thomas didn’t meet my expectations – she exceeded them and I adored every word of this book.

About Jo Thomas

Jo Thomas worked for many years as a reporter and producer, first for BBC Radio 5, before moving on to Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour and Radio 2’s The Steve Wright Show. In 2013 Jo won the RNA Katie Fforde Bursary. Her debut novel, The Oyster Catcher, was a runaway bestseller in ebook and was awarded the 2014 RNA Joan Hessayon Award and the 2014 Festival of Romance Best Ebook Award. Jo lives in the Vale of Glamorgan with her husband and three children.

Find out more about Jo Thomas through her website, on Facebook and follow her on Twitter @jo_thomas01.

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