I have read several of Sue Watson's books and they never disappoint! This one is a funny fast-paced read which keeps you gripped right to the last page. The characters are slightly OTT but in a really good way. I would recommend this as a perfect beach read.

I enjoyed this book immensely. It was funny, romantic, realistic, and mysterious all rolled into one story.

What is the mystery?!?! I kept thinking I might know, then I wasn't sure, the I thought I knew again - well done to Ms Watson for keeping it going!

In fact, the author worked her magic yet again with this latest offering, and I settled down to enjoy another darned good read from her. Simply delightful - yummy ice cream, hunky guy, total change of lifestyle - all made for a great chick lit. Throw in a slightly odd mother and a mystery going back decades and you've got yourself a perfect beach read.

Some things really struck a chord with me too:

"I felt like I was giving to everyone all the time and getting nothing back." I wonder how many women can relate to that!

"I felt like a cat whose kitten had been returned smelling different and couldn’t rest until it was washed off." - About her daughter who had returned from a few months abroad. This little sentence encapsulated exactly how I felt when my daughter went to University and came back ever so slightly altered in subtle ways...

I was in the mood for a romance, and thought this would be more romantic, but it wasn’t. It was, however, well worth reading. It was a delightful read, despite me having a significant level of annoyance at the beginning. I’ll explain, but first, about the book:

Ella’s life just hit rock-bottom, but can a summer by the sea mend her broken heart? When life gives you lemons… make ice-cream!

Life hasn’t always been easy for single mum Ella, but she has just hit an all-time low; she’s jobless, loveless, very nearly homeless and, to make matters worse, now the owner of a pocket-sized pooch with a better wardrobe than her.

Packing her bags (and a bigger one for the dog), Ella sets off for the seaside town of Appledore in Devon to re-live the magical summers of her youth and claim her portion of the family ice-cream business: a clapped-out ice-cream van and a complicated mess of secrets.

There she meets gorgeous and free-spirited solicitor, Ben, who sees things differently: with a little bit of TLC he has a plan to get the van – and Ella – back up and running in no time.

In the beginning of the book, Ella’s up against a really obnoxious family. Her mother and her kids seem to be unredeemably selfish and can’t seem to give Ella the time of day. She’s struggling with finances, with the financial demands of her ex, and losing her job. She gets a lifeline in the shape of an inheritance from her aunt. When she finds out what it is, she’s a bit disappointed, but pretty soon she starts to turn things around. She gets a new focus for her life, a new romance, and starts finding a confidence in herself she never had. She also starts uncovering the secrets of her past, secrets that her mother doesn’t want to come to light.

This book was a lighthearted, but very real journey of a woman to find herself and her past. She comes through it all stronger, and her family becomes stronger for it. I enjoyed this book quite. I really appreciated the deepening of Ella’s character and the way she becomes stronger and becomes the anchor for her family and friends.

This cover just screams Summer, doesn't it?! Light and fresh and fun.

Ella is 44-years-old, with two teenagers about to leave the nest, a mother who's just discovered social media, and an ex-husband affectionately referred to as "The Dick." She's in a rut, feeling like she's lost all sense of adventure and light. When her aunt dies, leaving a portion of the family ice cream business to her, Ella decides once and for all to do something just for her. She packs up, drives south, and begins selling homemade ice cream out of her aunt's old van Reginaldo.

I loved the idea of Ella's Ice-Cream Summer. It sounded perfectly summery, a light, airy escape read with heart. And yet, something just didn't work for me. I gave up after reading about 35% of the book. Ella had JUST gotten to Devon with the van. The story simply didn't move fast enough. I'd read roughly a third, and wasn't interested in continuing.

Good things: Ella's mother cracked me up. I kinda think a book just about Ella dealing with her mom would have been more interesting. And when I finally did get to the ice cream, that was enjoyable too. But I wanted more. Much, much more....even for an escape read.

This was the first book I'd ever read of Sue Watson and let me just say that it won't be the last.

I absolutely loved this book, was in giggles right from the start, which is a rarity and usually a sign that it's going to be a good read, which I'm happy to report it was. It was a truly delightful heartwarming read.

One thing I found as I was reading this book, was that I spent quite a bit of time in giggles, throughout the whole of the story, there are funny moments or funny phrases that you can't help but giggle at.

I loved getting to know the characters, and experiencing what they were going through, as I really did feel like the story had come alive and I was there in Appledore, which sounds like a wonderful place and the beach sounded heavenly.

As for all the different flavours of ice cream, oh some of them sounded absolutely devine, lush and yummy, my favourite being one of the cocktail style ice creams, the Bellini ice cream (fresh peach puree and Prosecco). Double dosage of yummy. It made me want to eat ice cream a lot whilst reading this book.

The storyline was great, had me turning the pages in seconds, wanting to find out what would happen. I can highly recommend this as a summer read or an anytime read as it is simply a delightful read and I can't wait to read more by this author.

Ella's Ice Cream Summer is a fun summery beach read that had me laughing from page one. Sue Watson never fails to humor her readers by creating charismatic characters. I continue to find myself inspired by her leading ladies that experience fun adventures when they realize that their lives aren't the steady boring humdrum situations that came before. These are stories of women that are finding themselves later in life and truly allowing themselves to  thrive in new situations and new relationships.

This book made me want to go to the beach, grab a delicious ice cream and stick my toes in the sand. There was a touch of nostalgia in the story, thinking back on Ella's past while at the same time looking into the future. Themes of life, love and family secrets lend themselves to a well-written and fun chick-lit novel. I would recommend this to all who love chick-lit and to anyone looking for a good summer read.

A lovely tale of Ella and her aunt's ice-cream business. Despite appearing sugary sweet on the outside, this is a tale with greater depth with family secrets a plenty. Several complex characters add colour to the story , interspersed with great ideas for ice-cream flavours.

Although I was pretty certain how this story would turn out, i did enjoy the telling. It evokes memories of summer by the sea.

An enjoyable story 4*

Oh my goodness, where do I even begin?? This book had everything for me. I mean at first glance, why wouldn't I want to read a book about an Ice Cream summer, with such a gorgeous front cover? But then upon reading the first few pages and finding out the characters had links to Sorrento, Italy, I was literally in heaven, smiling from ear to ear. It couldn't have been more perfect!
Ella is a single Mum, she lives with her two kids and elderly Mother, all of whom spend most of their time with their heads down, reading the latest gossip on Facebook or snapping pictures to post on their Instagram accounts. Yes, that goes for her Mother too. Ella longs for her own adventures to post about on Facebook, so when she loses her job and her ex husband sends her yet more "great" news about their house, she decides she doesn't have much choice but to take action and take advantage of what life has handed her. Which in her case is a rundown, old ice cream truck in Appledore, left to her from her Aunt Sophia. Ella has wonderful memories of summer's spent on the beach playing with her cousin Gina, while watching and helping her Aunt make the most scrumptious ice cream in the world. Maybe this is just what she needs. Her kids are grown up, her ex-husband's being well, a dick and the thought of a new adventure, while scary, is also thrilling. Can Ella take the risk? Can she restore her Aunts famous ice cream van and in doing so, do something for herself? Can she also discover the secrets that her Mum is so obviously hiding about her past? One thing is for certain, it's going to be a Summer Ella won't soon forget!

I utterly adored this book. From the descriptions of the ice cream flavours to the characters, to the gripping story-line, I simply could not put it down. But to make it even more special to me, Sue Watson described Sorrento - with the Lemons as big as your head, so beautifully that it made my heart deliriously happy. Having relatives from The Amalfi Coast, I can indeed confirm that the Lemons are as big as your head, it was something that fascinated me when I visited as a child and to this day lemons are one of my favourite things.

As well as the lovely descriptions of ice cream and Italy, Sue also wrote the connections Ella felt with her family's heritage so well. The way Ella was inspired by her Aunt's Italian decor, the way she eventually understood that her Aunt taught her that cooking and baking all came from the heart and that recipes weren't needed. It all spoke to me on such an enormous level, that I literally felt like Sue had been inside my head or had secretly been watching me with my Nanna and Grandad somehow. That probably sounds crazy but that's how close to home this story and the emotions were for me.

The characters themselves were brilliant, warm, funny, endearing and so easy to love. The story was captivating, inspiring and easy to get lost in. And the Ice Cream, well let me tell you, if you're not craving lots of it after you read this, then you have more will power than me! So far today I have eaten mint chocolate ice cream and a pot of lemon sorbet and I'm still craving all the mouth watering flavours that Ella creates in this story. Limoncello and Amaretto being two that I would happily queue up outside Ella's ice cream truck for any day of the week, come rain or shine.

The next book in this sweet series is out at the end of June and I cannot wait. I am hoping for more sugary goodness, delectable treats and also to see the return of a rather gorgeous diving solicitor!!! :) Told you it has everything!! :)

Thank you Netgalley and the Publisher. I absolutely loved this book and it made me laugh out load. The characters were brilliant

What a perfect read for the summer! I absolutely loved the story, the characters & all the yummy ice cream descriptions.

Definitely can't wait to read more in the series

I really enjoy Sue Watson books so was really looking forward to starting this and it didn't disappoint.
The story was filled with loveable characters particularly Delilah the pomeranian. I liked the main character Ella and enjoyed her story. Her mum Roberta was so funny with her bonkers ways.
Lovely setting in Devon with a retro ice cream van. It made me want to try the icecream flavours! I need to try an icecream and brioche sandwich.
A funny feel good summer read which put a smile on my face. I am looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my advance reading copy in return for an honest review.

5☆+  Loved it!!  Simply Scrumptious!

I want to start by saying WOW!!!
What a book!
Left me wanting more and ravenous for scrumptious Italian Ice cream!

I don't think I have laughed so much about one Character.
Ella's Mum had me in tears of laughter!
Her innocence to technology... the sexting escapades, her Twitter chaos , not to mention her disastrous dating had me howling with laughter.
The Nan is my FAVOURITE  character.

Ok now for the story lol....
Ella's Mum and Aunt had fallen out many years ago and the feud spiralled out of control. Sisters at war with each other is never going to end well.
Unfortunately Ella was never privalaged to find out the reason why they hated each other so much.

So when Ella's Aunt passes away, Ella is determined to go back to Appledore and pay her respects to her Aunt she so dearly adored. Much to her Mum's annoyance and disapproval.

When she finally arrives in Appledore she finds out that she has been left Reginaldo the Ice Cream Van.
He needs a fair amount of work but what a fun way to spend the summer!

With Ella's life falling apart, she's lost her job, home & the kids are off travelling.
What better way to have her own adventure.

So she packs up leaving her Mum behind and sets off to Appledore. Her Mum reluctant to let her go agrees to stay while the house is sold. Under no circumstances would she ever step foot in Appledore ever again!

This is where Ella's adventure begins & this is where my review stops!!

I devoured this book. From the beginning I was hooked and laughing so hard it hurt.

Believe me when I say if you decide to read this scrumptious book you are in for a treat.

There is plenty of unexpected surprises, lots of secrets and a shocker of a twist!!
A sexy new love interest for Ella who sparks up emotions Ella thought she would never feel again.

Delightful characters, very real and relatable.
I loved Ella she started off being a ground down Mum/Daughter who then transformed into this strong independent women who was determined to succeed.
It was beautiful to watch her journey.

Delilah the dog was the star of the book. Her exquisite outfits and her Selfies was brilliant. It was fun waiting to find out which was next!

Gina for me was the most surprising character. At first I disliked her but she has a way of getting under your skin.
I really warmed to her and she made my heart swell towards the end.

Oh and I just wanted to mention the Slimming Club Girls. I loved them. Hehe I can hold my hands up and say I've been there and done that LOL ... you will have to read to find out!

There is Plenty of Laugh out loud moments, but there is also sadness which bought tears to my eyes.

Sue has succeeded in making Appledore come to life and the characters feel very real and for that I applaud her.

This book is very special and although it's a fun feel good book it also has a few sensitive storylines. Which I believe adds real depth to the story.


Although this is the perfect Summer Read, i can see people falling in love with Ella and her family and this is one that will be read over and over!!

I really hope there will be more from Appledore as I think there is much, much more to uncover.

Oh and before I forget.... what a scrumptious cover!!!!
Perfectly sums up Ella and Reginaldo. A real eye catcher!

Perfect read for lovers of Chick Lit, YA, Romance, Summer reads, ice cream lovers, Womens Literature and family feuds.

Would I recommend this book...... without a doubt......YES!!!!

What a fun summer read! Who doesn't love ice cream? The beach? Well this book will have you ready to go to the beach and while you are there you can read about Ella's crazy life!
The poor woman is dreading the day that her two kids go off on their adventures (in the next few months) but at least she has her job to rely on, right? WRONG!
Her friend had to close her shop and now what is Ella to do? She is taking care of her mother and she has a mortgage to pay!
And then the call comes in...she has been left something in her aunts will - did she leave her the ice cream shop? This could be the answer to her prayers!
She heads to Appledore and find out her aunt did not leave her the shop - she left her the ice cream truck...Well ok, now what? Well Ben is pretty hot, maybe she should stay around a bit?
Grab this fun read today, head to the beach, grab an ice cream cone and enjoy! You will love it!

The cover of "Ella's Ice-Cream Summer is" screaming summer read. I love the pastel colours and the old ice-cream yan on the cover.

I started well into the book and I was immediately caught into it with its brilliant humour. There were so many funny scenes which kept me well entertained throughout the book. Especially Ella's mother was absolutely hilarious.

Ella was a sweet woman who I really liked. I loved the passion she put into the ice-cream business. God, what would I do to taste those amazing ice-cream flavours which were described in the book.

The love story didn't really work for me. I don't think Ella and Ben fit together and I didn't see what drew them to each other.

The writing style is fast-paced and enjoyable which makes this book a perfect summer read.

Maybe three and a half stars.

Ella is that cliche of a 44 year old Englishwoman: her husband ran off with his boss and now lives a life of luxury in Marbella; she has a dead end job in a failing fashion shop; her mother lives with her; and her kids are growing up and spreading their wings. When her aunt Sophia dies she leaves Ella a 'part of the family business' in Appledore, Devon. Ella has many happy memories of her aunt Sophia and her glamorous older cousin Gina and the Italian ice cream business they ran. Of course when Ella goes to the funeral it transpires that what she has inherited is an old ice cream van which they lovingly called Reginaldo.

When her dastardly husband (because let's face it he can't just have divorced her can he) sends a solicitor's letter informing Ella that since both children are over 18 he is selling the family house for his half of the proceed and her boss tells her that the shop is closing, Ella decides the only thing for it is to move down to Devon for the summer to try to make some money. Oh and her 'darling don has foisted his girlfriend's Pomeranian dog onto her for the summer while they volunteer in Nepal.

Ella's mother had a bitter feud with her sister and hasn't spoken to her or Gina for decades, she won't even explain why, every time Ella mentions them her mother pretends to have forgotten. Her mother is also paranoid about Ella going to Devon and worries she will never come back, even though Sophia is dead and Gina is a wealthy actress in LA. Frankly I thought it was blindingly obvious from the very start WHY Ella's mother was behaving so oddly and found Ella's ignorance rather galling. In fact, I liked this book EXCEPT for Ella who frankly had the emotional backbone of a 12 year old she allows her mother, her children, her ex and her cousin to walk all over her and pouts like a child.

Of course, the solicitor who tells Ella's about her inheritance is her age, gorgeous, a surfer as often as he can be and they are instantly smitten. Similarly, after not having made ice cream for 30 years Ella is immediately brilliant and able to concoct fabulous new recipes at the drop of a hat. Despite being desperately hard up for cash she can somehow afford to pay for her children to go to Nepal and Thailand for the summer, do up the ice cream van and buy all the ingredients for the ice cream. Also, she spends all day int the van selling ice cream, makes ice cream all night and has time to spend with Ben the dishy lawyer/ surfer (who lives with his dad).

At first Ella is enjoying a little 'me time', away from her family and failures, but soon her mother descends on her, her cousin Gina flies in from LA and her former boss who has a risible inability to use the correct word, threatens to come to stay for a few weeks.

So there are family secrets to unravel, a business to create and a new life to build. Ella does it all with remarkable ease, Ben gets her all the required permits, no pesky health inspectors checking that she doesn't give people salmonella, no checking on the use of a private dwelling for business usage etc.

This all just felt like Sue Watson was trying a bit too hard. We didn't need the dog dressed up in silly costumes, the boss' malapropisms, her mother's obsession with reality tv etc.

However, yeah, I know, I've just complained A LOT, this was a simple, fun holiday read, especially if you like more slapstick humour and you don't want to think too hard, which after all is what holidays are all about. And the ice cream flavours sound amazing.

Well, what to say, the title and the name of the author say it all! Sue Watson is the master of uplifting comedies and comfort food. I've read most of her books and always enjoyed her too delicious desserts. I love her characters and the humorous situations she puts them into. I started reading this book on a bus and the beginning was so funny, I couldn't stop giggling. The man sitting next to me looked at me suspiciously, I've must look like a mad person.

Let me introduce you to the characters.

Ella is a forty-something years old woman who lives with her mother and two children. Recently divorced, she desperately tries to meet the ends and keep the family together. But with the children leaving the family nest, she finds herself jobless and lonely. And then, out of the blue, her long time forgotten aunt dies and mentions her in the testament. Ella remembers her aunt having an ice-cream cafe by the beach. She remembers having a great time spending the summers at her aunt with her cousin Gina. So she leaves just to find out that she now owns Reginaldo, an ice-cream van. And she decides to give it a try, to start her own business creating new flavours of ice-cream.

Ella's mother is one of a kind character. The story even starts with her! She is the reason for my humiliation in public bus :). Roberta is a hilarious old lady who has recently discovered Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Guess what, she is not good at it! The old lady rocks! Her hilarious public posts and tweets are so embarrassing for the rest of the family but so funny at the same time!

And the flavours..... Who doesn't like ice-cream? Simply reading makes your mouth watering! Chocolate, vanilla, strawberries, pistachios, it's all there, combined in some old and new recipes. I've never heard of ice-cream sandwich, but I'm definitely gonna try it!

Are you an ice-cream fan? Read this book!
Are you looking for an uplifting story? Look no further!
Need a good laugh? This is it!

Get your ice-cream, your comfy chair and the flip-flops and enjoy this perfect summer read! Sitting on a beach or not, you are going to enjoy it! And be prepared for suspicious looks from the people passing by if you are in public! Because this story is going to make you laugh aloud!

Totally recommended!

I've read all of Sue Watson's latest releases and loved them all to the moon and back - they are all so realistic, with the right dose of the finest humour and wonderful heroines, heroes to swoon about and usually full of incredibly delicious sounding recipes. Ms Watson's newest release, "Ella's Ice - Cream Summer", has been promising all of the above mentioned and as soon as I spotted the book on NetGalley, I pressed the right button and literally saw it whizzing to my kindle. I love the cover of this novel, guys, I just love it - I personally am not the greatest fan of ice - creams, but seeing this cover motivated me to make my own unicorn ice - cream. My daughter was on cloud nine.

But. Back to the book. Theoretically, it has it all what made me fell in love with Sue Watson's novels: there is a mature heroine who has experienced something and more in her life and who's about to start a new chapter in her life. She's lost her job, her two children are off on their own adventures somewhere in the world, she's been dumped with a lovely dog that she has to dress every day and who has more dresses and jewellery than Ella herself, her mother is right now living with her and has turned out to be a social media expert and she's about to lose her house. But nothing is lost yet, as with the death of her beloved aunt she's to receive something in her will - maybe it's the ice - cream cafe?

This time however I didn't enjoy this story as much as I was expecting to. I had a feeling the plot is very chaotic, it's not neat, the things were suddenly happening but there was no connection between them, it was as if they didn't belong to the story and more than often I found myself feeling very confused, not knowing what to do with a particular situation, how to handle it, wondering what does it have to do with the story. The beginning of the book was good - quick and straight to the point, and I adored it. But then Ella went to Devon and the story went downhill for me. Firstly, it slowed down very much. Secondly, there was almost nothing happening. Then the never - ending remarks of Ella's mother, mentioning that something happened in the past but she's not going to tell what it was started to make me feel annoyed and losing hope that we will get an answer any time soon, so I've stopped waiting for this. It was actually the only twist in this story, having it explained, and as I haven't been waiting for it to happen, it took me by surprise exactly at the same moment as Ella. Having known what happened in the past explained a lot and you could start to understand why there was such a feud in the family and where all the wrong feelings were coming from. There were also many time spent on thinking about things instead of doing them.

The characters are, as always, really well developed. What I liked in Ella so much was the fact that she has finally decided to put herself first, after years of being your typical mum and daughter (OK, maybe not first. She did take Delilah after all :) ), took a chance when it was given to her and followed the motto of "no risk, no fun". And she had her fun, as well as problems, but she dealt with them all in a great way. Also, the background characters were all lovely.

I loved the descriptions of ice - creams, of course, and I do believe Sue Watson that researching this book was the best thing that could ever happen to an author :) Reading about them made my mouth watering, and I am the one who's not so into ice - cream at all, so just imagine those delicious descriptions and different flavours. Also, there are some great moments in this story, of course, some funny moments and some heart - breaking ones as well. Ella's mother, with the exception of being so annoying with mentioning the secret and then stubbornly refusing to tell her daughter what the secret is (you know, it was like with children starting to say something and then deciding that they're not going to tell you what it was they meant), was a real star of this story, with her no - nonsense life approach and being so fit around social medias.

Altogether, even if I didn't enjoy it as much as I hoped - but still liked it, guys, so please don't take me wrong! - "Ella's Ice - Cream Summer" was an emotional rollercoaster ride and a great start to the series - I'll be for sure reading the next book! There is something to make you laugh and something to make you cry, the perfect mix of feelings and emotions, with an extra bonus of Sue Watson's wonderful writing style.