Jenny Colgan's books are perfect little escape romances. This particular one is the fourth in her Little Beach Street Bakery series. I had a little trouble being drawn into the story, but once I was, it was an easy, enjoyable read. In this installment, a young English woman who is trying to overcome the anxiety and depression that has paralyzed her since the death of her beloved Italian grandfather, with whom she was close, finds her way back into the world on this small island off the Cornwall coast. Her main characters are often sufficiently dimensional, but the supporting characters sometimes fall flat. I felt that to be the case in this story. Enjoyable, perfect summer reading. ( )

This was a lovely read, and it tackled a number of important topics: the way we process deep grief, especially when our culture or even family does not understand. It also takes an unflinching, well documented journey into the depths of prolonged depression and even phobia. And it examines the contrast between extreme privilege and entitlement vs. the struggles of those who have to scrabble out a living.

And yet! Ms. Colgan always manages to keep the tone gentle yet true; sympathetic, but never maudlin or cloying. Her skill at weaving together love, death, humor, and the shadows of isolation never descend into a dismal experience for the reader.

Marissa (the protagonist) is so very, very human, and Ms. Colgan's skill at the telling detail makes this a gentle, but never, ever shallow story. ( )

This was straightforward feel-good book.
Marisa moves to a small coastal village after her grandfather passed away and slowly learns to enjoy life again. She meets her piano playing neighbour and a mom of two kids. Very little happens but these people living their lives and it had a cosy, sweet feeling to it.

I liked the setting of a village bakery, the friendship between Marisa, Alexei and Polly and the emphasis on Marisa’s family bonds. But then it started going downhill into a ‘we dont like each other but actually we’re in love’ type romance. I liked Marisa and Alexei’s friendship, but it annoyed me how the grandma basically said “he is a man and you’re a woman, so it has to be love”

If you aren’t as romance critical as me, I’m sure you’ll enjoy it more, because the rest of the book was nice. ( )

Aww, the outro was so sweet. I love Jenny's books and this one was no disappointment. I feel like as time goes on her characters develop more "real" problems and I appreciate that--hearing how Flora was struggling financially just felt so much more real than reading about how our Londoners move to the seaside and set up a restaurant and boom it's profitable. ( )

Sunrise by the Sea is the fifth book in the Little Beach Street Bakery series by Jenny Colgan. I had not read any of the earlier books in the series and found the beginning confusing. Chapter one introduces two married couples, two children, and a puffin in rapid succession without context or backstory. Chapter two turns abruptly to a wealthy, immature playboy and Marisa, who refuses to leave her room and join him at a party. The six adults live in a different part of the UK and have no obvious relationship. I was tempted to DNF.

However, after the ill-conceived beginning,Sunrise settles into an entertaining but uneven story. Marisa is agoraphobic and clinically depressed. Once this becomes clear, Marisa becomes a sympathetic character, and I rooted enthusiastically for her recovery. The precipitating causes of her situation and the events leading to her gradual return to health are not convincing. Still, Colgan avoids the standard literary depiction of the therapist as a buffoon. The story includes a romantic subplot, but the focus is an upbeat, optimistic account of Marisa’s gradual recovery. The relationship between Marisa and her grandmother was particularly appealing.

Sunrise drags at points with long digressions that do little to advance the plot. For example, the descriptions of Marisa’s skill in the kitchen remind me of the long lists of esoteric ingredients and extended procedures that accompany recipes in gourmet magazines like Food and Wine. An editor’s firm hand and discriminating eye could have corrected many of these problems.

The weak conclusion bookends the unfortunate beginning. I had the impression Colgan didn’t know how to bring the story to a close and resorted to a literary cheat (i.e., the magic solution). The rich guy mentioned briefly in the first chapter and in passing after that solves the financial woes and fulfills the desires of the central characters.

Despite the shortcomings I have noted above, this is an entertaining story populated by likable characters. ( )