The Vintage Teacup Club by Vanessa Greene

At a car boot sale in Sussex, three very different women meet and fall for the same vintage teaset. They decide to share it - and form a friendship that changes their lives.

Jenny can't wait to marry Dan. Then, after years of silence, she hears from the woman who could shatter her dreams.

Maggie has put her broken heart behind her and is gearing up for the biggest event of her career - until she's forced to confront the past once more.

Alison seems to have it all: married to her childhood sweetheart, with two gorgeous daughters. But as tensions mount, she is pushed to breaking point.

Dealing with friendship and families, relationships and careers, highs and lows, The Vintage Teacup Club is heart-warming storytelling at its very best.

Don’t get me wrong I loved this book by the time I finished it; but the pace for about the first half of the book of this book was a little slow for me. But by the middle the pace picked up and I really enjoyed reading the book. 

My main problem with the first half of the book was what these three women were going through was a lot of what is happening to me, my family and friends.  I really didn’t want to get involved with a story that was pretty much my life at the time.  But by the middle of the book there was hope for these women and WOW I loved their story. 

Jenny is planning a wedding on a budget and is trying to find ways of having her dream but at a lower cost.  Alison is dealing with maybe losing her house, her marriage and a teenage daughter who is trying really hard to rebel and find herself.  Maggie is on the career path that she always wanted after a failed marriage.   

What happens after these three women meet is a strong and positive friendship that starts out as a scavenger hunt for vintage tea cup sets, but turns into three lifelong friends who help each other through a lot of life’s problems.   

Jenny is young (in her 20’s) and has found the man of her dreams.  She is dealing with being abandoned by her mother as a child and her future husband gives her that stability she never had. 

Maggie is career minded but lonely. She has built a thriving florist shop and is the flower designer for the next “it” wedding.  When her ex shows up and wants to give their marriage another try she realizes that there is more to life than work.  Too bad he is a cheating jerk who is still not right for her.  She does find her Mr. Right in the young landscaper that is also working on the big wedding.  When they realize all their tension and disagreements are actually longing and lust they find that they are right for each other! 

Alison is a mother who is trying to keep her family together after her husband loses his job.  Her daughter has decided to rebel and is getting into a ton of trouble.  Alison is having to work extra hard to bring in money (even though she thinks they have a huge nest egg).  When she finds out that her family has spent everything that’s when she really steps up and takes action.  Her husband finally gets a job and her daughter makes a turn around after a huge fight with Alison.   

The writing in this story is great.  I love when a writer is able to give you the sense that even though these characters live in a faraway place you could find them right next door to you.  They are people that you would love to have in your life and that you would become fast friends with them. Even the village where everyone lives comes to life with all off the vivid descriptions that Vanessa Greene gives you.  So many pictures painted and well developed. 

Vanessa Greene hosted her first tea party as an eight-year-old for a select gathering of stuffed bears. Since then she’s trawled antiques markets from Paris to Buenos Aires to build her teacup collection and feed her passion for all things vintage. She still loves an excuse to bring friends together, but nowadays her guests are less shy about trying the cake. Vanessa lives in London with her fiancé, James. The Vintage Teacup Club is her first novel.  

I would totally recommend this book to everyone.  Such an uplifting story (after you get past that yes everyone is going through something).  I’m even going to give it a second read just so that I get the full impact of the story!

 

*I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.  Stephanie