https://www.withloveforbooks.com/2018/07/confetti-confusion-by-daisy-james-book.html

Confetti & Confusion by Daisy James - Book Review, Interview & Giveaway


 
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Review by Suze

Millie is in charge of the Paradise Cookery School. St. Lucia is her home for the time being and Millie loves working on a tropical island. There’s a lot of pressure to make the project succeed though. She’s stepping in for a famous chef and this is their one chance to make the business work, so Millie has to be at the top of her game. Millie is a Michelin-starred chef, but after a broken heart she had to start over and being at the Paradise Cookery School is the break she needs. Will her stay on St. Lucia give her her happiness back?

Millie’s taking care of a wedding party together with a talented local cook. They are teaching a group of women to prepare all kinds of delicious dishes with chocolate. Love is in the air, also for Millie, as she enjoys spending time with Zach, the property’s estate manager. However, not everything is going according to plan and this puts both Millie and the bride and her special day at risk. Can Millie save the day and give everyone the perfect time she wants them to have?

Confetti & Confusion is a wonderful festive story. It was fun to read about Millie, the star of Sunshine & Secrets, again. She’s a quirky and gifted chef and her creations made my mouth water. She also has a good head on her shoulders and she’s amazing in a crisis, Millie keeps solving problems and I admired her quick thinking. She’s a woman with a lovely personality and big heart. Millie’s doing everything she can to make others happy, but she deserves a great time herself as well and I couldn’t turn the pages quickly enough to find out if she’d find the joy, friendship and love she deserves.

Daisy James has a fabulous heartwarming writing style. St. Lucia is a perfect setting for a feelgood story and I loved the way she makes the island and its inhabitants come to life. I enjoyed the vibrant setting and atmosphere in combination with a little suspense and plenty of intrigues. Confetti & Confusions is a fantastic fun story that put a big smile on my face. I loved the sunny vibe and enjoyed every single page of this wonderful book.

Advice

If you love heartwarming romantic stories with a great tropical setting you don't want to miss Confetti & Confusion. Keep in mind that this is the second book in The Paradise Cooking School series and the books should be read in their correct order.

About Daisy James



Daisy James is a Yorkshire girl transplanted to the north east of England. She loves writing stories with strong heroines and swift-flowing plotlines. When not scribbling away in her peppermint-and-green summerhouse (garden shed), she spends her time sifting flour and sprinkling sugar and edible glitter. She loves gossiping with friends over a glass of something pink and fizzy or indulging in a spot of afternoon tea – china plates and teacups are a must.

Links

Facebook // Twitter // Amazon // Instagram

Interview

1) Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?

Hi there, can I just say a massive thank you for having me on your fabulous blog today! So, I’m Daisy James and I love writing stories about strong female characters with swift flowing plot-lines and a strong sense of place. My most recent books – Sunshine & Secrets and Confetti & Confusion - are all about the Paradise Cookery School which is set on the fabulously exotic island of St Lucia, overlooking the twin Pitons. I have to say, I really enjoyed the research! The cookery school is situated on a disused cocoa plantation and so there’s lots of fabulous chocolate-themed recipes throughout the novels as well as plenty of experimenting with the tropical produce the Caribbean is famous for.

2) How did you get the idea to write about a cookery school?

I love cooking! Well, baking to be precise. There’s nothing I like better than to plunge my hands into a bowl of flour or sprinkle icing sugar or edible glitter over a Victoria sponge or a batch of cupcakes. At the Paradise Cookery School, Millie and Ella are required to triple-test their recipes before paying guests arrive and I had great fun doing that – my family loved sampling the results too – although I’m not sure they enjoyed my first attempt at chocolate-and-chilli brownies when I misjudged the amount of chilli in the recipe.

3) You’ve chosen St Lucia as your setting, can you tell a bit more about this beautiful place and why you’ve chosen it for your story?

I love writing stories set in amazing places, and there’s nowhere better than the Caribbean. I was lucky enough to spend a week on St Lucia some years ago, soaking up the atmosphere, listening to the fabulous music, drinking amazing cocktails and eating the fabulous local food. Their use of the freshest of ingredients, mixing flavours and textures really appealed to me. Also, there’s so much more to the island than luxury hotels, swaying palm trees and white sandy beaches. One of the best days I spent there was exploring the local markets that were filled to bursting with hand-made crafts and home-made produce.

4) How do you make the delicious food you write about come to life for your readers?

I spent many an enjoyable afternoon slicing mangos, pineapples, guavas, passionfruit and generally baking up a storm. Cake pops feature in Confetti & Confusion and a friend and I had a great time making, or trying to make, those crazy things! Gosh, what a mess we made and none of the final cake pops were suitable for a photograph to appear on my Instagram feed! They tasted good though. However, I have to admit, the best bit was experimenting with the rum cocktails that are served at the Purple Parrot – the bar/restaurant in the books. The owner, Andrew, has a signature cocktail called Andy’s Blast – I wonder why!!

5) What’s your favourite Paradise Cookery School dish and which cocktail would you drink with it?

My favourite dish would have to be the grilled red snapper served with spring onion & mango chutney. I think a mojito would go very well with that, don’t you?

6) Which key ingredients should a good sunny summer story have?

For me, a good summer story has to have an exotic location, a hammock stretched between swaying palm trees, and a glistening pool overlooking a spectacular view – like the one from the Paradise Cookery School. The view of the Pitons from the hillside in Soufriere is absolutely breath-taking. There also has to be a bunch of fascinating and quirky characters on a journey of discovery. Oh, and lots of delicious food.

7) What does true romance mean to you?

It means different things to different people, doesn’t it? For me it means togetherness, compatibility, respect and fun.

How did your writing adventure start?

I’ve been writing since I was eight years old, scribbling short stories and illustrating them with felt pens. Over the years I expanded into longer stories and wrote my first full-length novel about ten years ago. It’s still in a shoe box on top of my wardrobe and will probably stay there! My first published novel is The Runaway Bridesmaid, a story set in New York – another place I had fun researching!

9) You love to bake, where does that love come from and what’s your favourite recipe?

I adore baking! That passion come from my grandma who used to stand me on a footstool at her side and let me help her to make pastry, mix scones and biscuits and beat butter and sugar together to make cakes and then sample the mixture afterwards! I still have a recipe book of hers and her favourite cake was sticky gingerbread made with treacle and lots of ginger, then iced with tart lemon icing! That recipe features in a couple of my stories as a way of paying homage to my gran.

10) What are your plans for the future?

I’m busy writing my next series. It’s set in Tuscany, so I’m really excited about getting my teeth stuck into the research of all-things Tuscan. Mmm, Crostata di Marmellata, Cantucci di Prato, cappuccino tiramisu….. where’s my mixing bowl!

Love Daisy

XX

Giveaway

 
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Three very lucky readers of With Love for Books will receive a digital copy of Sunshine & Secrets by Daisy James.



The winner will be notified by email and has 3 days to respond. All of our giveaways are international.