4 Star
Ellen McClarety, a recent divorcée, has opened a new bake shop in her small Midwestern town, hoping to turn her life around by dedicating herself to the traditional Danish pastry called kringle. She is no longer saddled by her ne’er-do-well husband, but the past still haunts her—sometimes by showing up on her doorstep. Her younger sister, Lanie, is a successful divorce attorney with a baby at home. But Lanie is beginning to feel that her perfect life is not as perfect as it seems. Both women long for the guidance of their mother, who died years ago but left them with lasting memories of her love and a wonderful piece of advice: “At the end of every day, you can always think of three good things that happened.” Ellen and Lanie are as close as two sisters can be, until one begins keeping a secret that could forever change both their lives.
Jen - 4 Star
This is book is the perfect read for a rainy weekend at home. It’s comfy, cozy and makes you feel good. Wendy Francis created a story that every woman would enjoy in Three Good Things. The story has a talented main character, Eleanor, who I wish I could sit down to coffee with, she is so lovable! I liked her because she was relatable, a hard worker and she's talented in her craft. She’s got everything a great main protagonist needs: interesting family members, an ex husband, a great job and a fun home town.
Eleanor owns a bakery, and it’s not just any bakery. It’s a kringle bakery, which pretty much just means my mouth was watering the whole time I read about her job. Luckily , Wendy Francis included recipes for the fluffy pastries in the book so one of these days, I am going to try and makes some for myself!
A unique thing about Three Good Things is that Eleanor has two love interests and with most romances there’s usually a clear winner. But in this story, I actually liked both men who were vying for Eleanor’s heart and would have probably been happy for her if she ended up with either one.
The pastry shop, the quaint town and setting and the additional story lines of the other characters all combine to make this a book any reader would enjoy. Even with all these parts that matched up so perfectly, Three Good Things still had unpredictable moments and a surprising ending. At times, I thought I had I pretty good idea about what was going to happen and the next moment, the characters surprised me. They are faced with problems that many in real life face too: divorce, loss of a parent, motherhood, infidelity, and more. It’s human nature to be unsure of decisions or a desire to turn back the clocks...and it’s comforting to read about characters going through the same things you have.
If I had to give a little criticism about Three Good Things, I would say there were a couple situations and story lines that were left at loose ends for me, but that’s probably just because I was so invested in their stories and just wanted to know more.
When real characters come to life like in this book, it reminds me why I love reading so much: reading about people I would love to meet in real life and learning more about myself by meeting them.
Thank you to Simon and Schuster for our review copy. All opinions are our own.
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