Book Review: Sundaes with Nora (Sweet Dreams #2) by Anna Garner

Summary:
Nora Finch has a sweet life. She’s married to one of San Francisco’s wealthiest venture capitalists, she lives in a gorgeous old Victorian mansion in one of the city’s most sought-after neighborhoods, and she just launched an ice cream business with her two best friends, Cricket and Lindsay.

However…exactly one week after Sweet Dreams opens its doors to the public, Nora’s husband, Kenneth, informs her he wants a divorce.

Talk about bad timing. Now, on top of the tremendous pressure she feels to drive sales, Nora has to deal with the breakdown of her marriage, adjust to a more frugal lifestyle, find a new place to live and prepare to dip her toes in the dating pool for the first time in four years. If that weren’t enough, everyone keeps trying to get her to “process” her feelings. For an overachiever like Nora, juggling the demands of a new business along with a total overhaul of her personal life should be doable…right?
 
Release Date: February 20, 2015
Age Group: Adult
Source: Review copy from author
Reviewed By: Kelli
 
Review:
I loved Sugar Spun Sister, book one in the Sweet Dreams series.  You can read my review of Sugar Spun Sister here.  Cricket's story was covered in book one, and Sundaes With Nora is of course, about Nora.  The last book in the trilogy will be Lindsay's story, and I am really looking forward to it. 

This series is written with a first person narrative, which I love in a contemporary fiction novel.  It just makes for a smoother read.  I love series where each installment features one character.  Each book always has a good amount of closure, and the characters star in all of the books in the series.  I love getting to see my favorite characters over and over again. 

Anna Garner excels again with Sundaes With Nora.  I liked it even more than Sugar Spun Sister.  I really felt for Nora, and understood her better than I did Cricket (even though I really liked Cricket, Nora was more my speed).  Nora leads what many would presume to be a charmed life.  She and her husband are wealthy---which sets her apart from Cricket and Lindsay, who struggle financially.  Nora's world is turned upside down, though, when her husband unexpectedly decides to divorce her, with no provocation at all.  He says that since Nora left her job in the financial district, she's changed: read, she's relaxed and become happy!  And he doesn't like the change in her.  I felt like it made him uncomfortable, but alas, I never found out exactly what Kenneth was thinking.  It was his folly to lose a good woman like Nora. 

I felt for Nora, and found myself wishing for her happiness throughout the story.  I hated the way Kenneth treated her and honestly wished him ill.  It would have been easy to be (book) jealous of all that Nora had.  After all, just reading about her wardrobe had me green with envy.  And to think that in cataloging their possessions for divorce, they had so many things of value that art dealers and historians had to come and appraise them all...I can't even imagine a life like that.  Yet, Nora is very down-to-earth, kind, and generous. She gives freely and is a loyal friend.  I loved how she gives so freely of her time, money, and love.  The way she makes what is probably the worst time of her life into a time of growth was inspiring.  She is a true friend, and helps those she loves without question or resentment.  I loved that about her. 

I also loved how Nora grows throughout the story.  She really changed a lot, and learned how to stand up for herself, especially with Kenneth.  I rejoiced at that! 

The Sweet Dreams series is a lot of fun, but it's also inspiring fiction.  I love that these are such clean adult reads.  I always finish Anna Garner's books in one sitting, and this one was no exception.  I really can't wait for the final installment, featuring Lindsay!




 

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