Book Review: A Summer Fling by Milly Johnson

When Christie comes to take over the reigns at the Bakery Department in which 5 ladies work, they don't expect to develop the friendships and bonds that they do, especially that they've barely spoken a work to each other in the many years they've already worked there! There's young Dawn who is planning her wedding to fiancé Calum, but starting to have niggly doubts about him and his lifestyle. Anna has been dumped by her fiancé Tony for younger woman Lynette but she still doesn't seem to be over him. She's sure that everyone sees the dowdy, hideous woman she sees when she looks in the mirror, but mysterious Vladimir Darq is out to prove her wrong.

Grace married her husband because of his children, not through true love, and now it's coming back to bite her in a big way. Can she get out before it takes a turn for the worse? And finally, there's Raychel who is hiding a secret past that no one else but her husband knows about. Will the other ladies be able to coax her out of her shell? All together, these women realise how much they need each other and the friendships that come with it too, and help is what they'll need to get them through some troubling times ahead!

This is Milly Johnson's fourth book, and it's not a secret to say that I have looked forward to this one for absolutely ages! I first read her debut novel The Yorkshire Pudding Club a few years back, and then quickly moved onto her next book The Birds and The Bees which was just a good! Her third book A Spring Affair was also brilliant (seeing a pattern here?!) so I had very high hopes for this one, and luckily Milly hasn't let me down again! I was so excited when I opened the parcel to discover a copy of this book and I actually started it there and then, I just couldn't wait, and finished it a day later. I was actually up until 1am because I couldn't bear the thought of going to sleep and not knowing how it was all going to end for everyone! I hope my review conveys just how much I adored this book, because it really does deserve a glowing review.

Immediately, I was drawn into the book because I met all the characters within the first few paragraphs, and that straight away set the scene for the book, showing us all the different characters and how they all are together before Christie is introduced into the mix. I actually expected that to happen a lot sooner but I am glad Milly makes us wait a little bit so we really get to know these characters before we start to see them change before our eyes. The book begins in April and progresses through the book until we end up in June, and I think the three month time-frame is perfect for the book and pace of the story.

I won't go into too much detail with all of the characters because there are quite a few, and I don't actually want to spoil anything about the book for you because it's such a brilliant read. What I love about Milly's books is how believable her characters are as people, and this is certainly the case in this book. My favourite character was definitely Christie, she is a breath of fresh air not only for her colleagues but for the book as a whole. She breezes through in her bright suits and really cheered me up, you just wish you had a friend like Christie! I also loved the character of Anna - she's very self-deprecating as a lot of us women are so I could relate to her in that respect, and I enjoyed seeing her character grow throughout the book very much.

Milly has been brave in this book and created a character that is totally unexpected, and not a character you would expect to see in a chick lit book like this at all, and that is Vladimir Draq. He's a Romanian designer that has a wonderful story with Anna, but also there is a bit of a mystery to him as well... is he a vampire? I was worried that this character would seem totally out of place in the book but I loved the whole mystery around it, and I think Milly has done a great job of integrating this storyline into the lives of these normal 5 women.

What I loved most about this book however was the emotion running right throughout it. It was funny and it made me laugh... it was sad and I felt the sadness along with the characters, and every other emotion that these people felt I felt like I did so too. Milly writes in such an easy to read way that you quickly find yourself plowing through the book and I'd devoured nearly half of it before I realised what was happening, I was so engrossed in it! It's got a real heart in it, and that's what will make it appeal to so many people out there who love a good, fun and emotional read. I can't tell you enough how much I loved it, there is nothing to dislike at all and if you don't pick up a copy, then you'll really be missing out on a superb read. Amazing!

Thank you to the publishers for sending me a copy to review!