23 December 2009

Short Review: The Tavern on Maple Street

I read The Tavern on Maple Street by Sharon Owens early in 2007.

Lilly and Jack, the owners of the Tavern on Maple Street, are very much in love but they don't have anything else in their life except their work. Unfortunately, big business wants to tear down the entire Belfast city block that is home to their pub and build a mall with offices. Lilly doesn't want to lose the tavern, so she decides to hire some young people to help her make the place more upscale and modern. All four of the women who come to work at the tavern need some kind of help and love, and Lilly and Jack need to open themselves up to new possibilities.

The Tavern on Maple Street is somewhat predictable, but the quirky characters are well developed, making this a fun vacation read. I gave the novel a C+. I listened to the unabridged audio edition and noted that narrator Caroline Winterson had a pleasant and believable Irish lilt.

The cover is from the 2006 Penguin Group edition. I listened to the audio, which was read by Caroline Winterson, but I don't have any notes on the narration. (Source: Bought; see review policy.)



Reading at the Beach is the host for this meme: Each week she invites us to spotlight a book whose title begins with the featured letter. This week it's T.

12 comments:

Anonymous,  12/23/09, 7:08 AM  

Sounds like a good Tube or beach read.

Happy holidays!

serendipity_viv 12/23/09, 8:03 AM  

I read this last year at Christmas and absolutely loved it.

Sandy Nawrot 12/23/09, 11:20 AM  

Sounds like a cozy, quick, feel-good read. Nothing wrong with those now and again.

Sherrie 12/23/09, 11:24 AM  

Hi Beth,
Great book, I enjoyed it when I read it last year. Loved all the different characters in the book. Have a safe and happy holiday season.

Sherrie
Just Books

bermudaonion 12/23/09, 2:20 PM  

The characters do sound good, but I'm not sure they're enough to compel me to read the book. Thanks for the review.

Joyful 12/23/09, 2:50 PM  

Sounds like a book I could sit & relax with.
Thanks for sharing.
MERRY CHRISTMAS

Beth 12/23/09, 3:07 PM  

Sounds like an easy read. Merry Christmas!

Nise' 12/23/09, 4:06 PM  

Sounds like it would make a good movie.

Julie P. 12/23/09, 7:20 PM  

I really enjoy books like this when I need an escape!

me again 12/23/09, 9:31 PM  

You know, sometimes you absolutely need a lighthearted, predictable book. This sounds pretty good!
If you want to have a look, here's my T book.
Merry Christmas!
==lennie==

(Diane) Bibliophile By the Sea 12/23/09, 10:43 PM  

I thought the book before this one was a lot better.... "Tea Hous on Mulberry Street".

BTW Beth...Hope you and your have a great holiday. Happy reading in 2010.

Bonnie 12/24/09, 11:26 AM  

I read this several years ago when it first came out. This is the third in the series and it was the weakest in storyline and characters for me. I love british novels like this. The Tea House on Mulberry Street is the first in the series and I liked that one the best. I'd recommend it if you haven't read it yet. It has much richer characters and a stronger storyline and reading about tea and a tea house was enjoyable.

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