As much as I love writing movie reviews, I still try to keep up with my reading and this next novel is by one of our very own bloggers T.B. Markinson who owns 50 Year Project and Marking My Mark. I’ve already read T.B. Markinson’s two previous novels, A Woman Lost and Marionette. I’ve linked the posts to the titles if you’d like to check them out. T.B. Markinson is an outstanding author and although her novels are not the usual reading genre that I go for, they were both very captivating reads. Marionette is definitely my favorite of the two (if I had to choose).
She recently released her third novel, Confessions From A Coffee Shop and being a huge supporter of writers in our blogosphere, I had to get a copy of it. I read this during my Halloween month but didn’t manage to get a review in before now.
Confessions From a Coffee Shop
by T.B. Markinson
Cori used to have a lot of promise. She had a book deal but everything stopped when she couldn’t figure out how to end it. Right now, she juggles a few jobs to make ends meet while taking care of her unemployed girlfriend, Kat, who seemed to have a shopping addiction. While teaching at the university in British literature, she works part-time at the local coffee shop. One day, she sees her old school crush, Samantha at the coffee shop while at work. Their friendship takes a good turn as they offer each other comfort through the tough times but when Samantha ends up asking Cori to keep a few secrets, she ends up driving Kat to be suspicious, causing their relationship to hit some bumps.
In the hands of someone with less experience or maybe a different personality, Confessions from a Coffee Shop could have turned into a boring story. However, there was a lot to love about this one. Cori has a dilemma that many might be able to relate to: struggling to make ends meet, wondering how you land such a wonderful partner, trying to find a way to be more, being stuck in a seemingly dead-end situation, flustered by an old crush. It happens to everyone some time in your life. Cori is a witty and funny character with her reactions and how she interacts with the people in her life. It does take a little while before I really settled into the story but when it did, its an intriguing read.
At the same time, the characters that are in Confessions from a Coffee Shop are well balanced. Some are plain geeky and weird, while others are fun to read. The contrast with Cori’s character and how they grow as the story develops is a fun part to it all. There will be this moment where as the reader you will wonder how Cori is so oblivious so whats happening around her when you already know whats really the secret. If anything, this novel was different from the first two and better because of the sense of humor. There are just charming characters to carry this story forward. This one also showed a more refined writing as it had a lot of detail.
Confessions from a Coffee Shop is a fun book to read. Its a cute romance full of charming characters that are extremely entertaining to read. Although, Cori sometimes hits the wishy-washy area, it also reflects life and relationships in a real way. After all, it takes time to find the courage to attack some touchy issues in relationships and it also takes time and reflection to be able to dig yourself out of a hole to a better future. This is heavy in the romance genre so its also a genre that I haven’t touched in a while. I’m never sure what to expect because it can always get formulaic but this one is a recommended read. I had a lot of fun with this one! 🙂
Tranquil Dreams 