Book Review - The Little Board Game Cafe by Jennifer Page

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Title: The Little Board Game Cafe

Author: Jennifer Page

Format reviewed: Ebook

Source: Netgalley

Publisher: Aria

Publication Date: 13th April 2023

Rating: 5 Stars

An irresistible story of love, friendship and the power of Games Night, perfect for fans of Holly Martin and Christie Barlow.

When Emily loses her job, house and boyfriend all within a matter of days, she's determined to turn a negative into a positive and follow her dream of running a small cafe in the gorgeous Yorkshire village of Rosegarth.

But she quickly finds she's bitten off more than she can chew when the 'popular' cafe she takes over turns out to secretly be a failing business. Emily desperately needs a way to turn things around, and help comes from the unlikeliest of places when she meets local board game-obsessed GP Ludek. But when a major chain coffee shop opens on the high street, Emily is forced to question if she'll ever be able to compete.

Has she risked everything on something destined to fail? Or can a playful twist, a homely welcome, and a sprinkle of love make Emily's cafe the destination she's always dreamed of?

I can't believe this is a debut novel, it is so so good. 

I kept having to pick the book back up to discover what would happen next, as you may think you know what is likely to happen but there are definitely a lot of ups and downs.  

And this is a book that appealed to my inner gamer geek self.  I love a board game, and have even heard of or played quite a few of the games mentioned in this book, as well as having to google to just see what some of the others really looked like. Even recall being as distracted as Emily was while I had my one attempt at one of the more complicated games - although in my case it was because I had been stung by a bee earlier in the gaming day, and not for reasons of the heart as was the case for Emily. 

And the way the cafe was described and set up, I could picture it so so clearly, and it had so much more character than the time I went to a board game pub!  I just loved the whole idea of a board game cafe, and so glad that Emily decided to give that a go, after a false start and losing her job (her fiancee made her redundant), and then the fiancee and place to live. 

Nothing was particularly smooth and I loved seeing the various ups and downs, both in the business attempts and also her personal life.  And as you get to know her background,  you can't help but feel for Emily and understand her that bit more. 

The characters were all really realistic, and it was great to meet such a wide variety of people. And the little sub groups of the initial board game evening where Ludek introduced Emily to his love of games, well let's just say I know people that would fit into so many of those groups.  And it was also making me feel like I really need to go to my local games club and say hello to people, as I never do that enough! 

This just spoke to me on so many levels, it was just totally my sort of a book and I'm so glad I spotted the cover on Netgalley and couldn't resist requesting it.  As it was fabulous. 

Thank you to Aria and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.