Portobello Book Blog

Callie-Louise is a wedding dress designer with high ambitions. She moved to London from Yorkshire after the break up of her relationship with rockstar boyfriend Theo and has established herself as one of the leading bridal wear designers. Her boutique has provided dresses for the big day of celebrities and minor royalty. In fact, she has been short-listed in the competition to design a wedding dress for Lilac Verbois at the celebrity wedding of the year. A family emergency sees her dashing off to Yorkshire, leaving one of her assistants to dispatch the wedding dress at the last minute. Unfortunately, the assistant forgets to complete the paperwork leaving Lilac’s staff the job of tracking down the designer without revealing the dress – very Cinderella!

Callie finds she is now rather unexpectedly also the owner of Gingerberry Yarns a rather dilapidated wool shop. I so loved the setting of the shop. Even though it was run down, Daisy James really conveyed the warmth of the place and its importance to the people who came to it. It was a perfect setting for the people who came not just to buy, but to meet with friends, to chat and to support one another. Callie is really torn as she doesn’t want to leave her London life but can see how devastating it would be for the town and community if she closes the shop. She decides to at least revamp it in the hope of selling it as a going concern and as she does this, she begins to warm to the idea of keeping it going herself.

Daisy James has created a fabulous set of characters for this book. Callie herself is just lovely and someone you could see would be a true, loyal friend. The customers of the Gingerberry Yarns and her friends from home such as Nessa seemed a great bunch of people, people you’d want to get to know yourself. The bride-to-be Lilac was not at all stand-offish and it was a delight to read about the genuine love she had for her groom Finn. One character who really changed as the novel went on was quiet Marcie, rather dull and frumpy at the start but really encouraged by Callie and the ‘Stitch and Bitch’ group. She grew in confidence and I’ll bet the ladies would never have suspected what her short stories were about!

And then of course there is Theo, the gorgeous Theo. Theo and Callie had been together since they were teenagers, really in love, but split up when she couldn’t cope with all the attention he was getting as lead singer with rock band The Razorclaws. That’s when Callie fled to London and would not speak to Theo despite his attempts to contact her. Of course, they meet again when she comes back to Yorkshire and let’s just say the old attraction is still there! Theo sounded such a lovely person, not just in his physical looks but being genuinely caring too. A scene involving a song he sings was just so romantic. I was willing Callie to somehow find a way to make things works between them.

Daisy James has written another completely engaging romantic tale. It is warm and funny and although there are some sad moments there are plenty feel-good moments too. As I said in my review of Daisy’s previous novel, The Runaway Bridesmaid, if you are looking for a heartwarming book to put a smile on your face, look no further.

My thanks to the publishers Carina for allowing me to read a copy via Netgalley. If The Dress Fits was published on 12th May as an e-bookand you can order a copy here: If The Dress Fits

From the back of the book

She might be the most famous person in the country, but no one even knows her name…

Callie’s exquisite, glittering silk gown has been shortlisted for the celebrity wedding of the year. But just as all her dreams are coming true, disaster strikes!

Leaving behind the bright lights of London, Callie is forced to return home to sleepy Althorpe. And there’s one man she hopes to avoid – the childhood sweetheart who turned her life upside down. But now she’s back, is it finally time to stop running?

Yet, as Callie faces her past, a Cinderella-like hunt begins for that perfect, pearl-embroidered dress, mysteriously submitted without a name…