Chocolicious [Kindle Edition]

When I first heard about Geraldine Solon's new novel Chocolicious there was only one thing that came to mind; my love of chocolate. The cover instantly had me running to my cupboard to crap a chocolate bar before settling down to devour this novel (almost as fast as I devoured the chocolate bar!). Chocolicious is about much more than chocolate though, and predominantly centres around going through hard times in life and coming out the other side.

Blair Nightingale is devastated when her husband Larry dies. Her life is turned upside down again when she learns that she is about to lose everything due to a mistake that Larry made. Blair's life is transformed from rich, Silicon Valley trophy life to a poor widowed single mother. She must now find a way to provide for herself and her daughter. As Blair tries to put her life back together again, George, Larry's best friend, always seems to be around. Blair finds comfort in baking rich, three layered cupcakes that her grandmother taught her to make. Little does Blair realise that these cupcake could change her life forever.

I really enjoyed the way in which Geraldine wrote the storyline of Chocolicious. At many times you may think you know exactly how the novel will pan out and then Geraldine will throw an element into the works which will leave you intrigued and in suspense. I found that because of this, it was difficult to put the novel down, and I just wanted to keep reading to find out exactly what happens. I found the storyline to flow easily which made the characters come to life. I fell in love with the character of Blair, feeling her emotions throughout the hard times that she suffers and routing for things to work out for her in the end. I'm sure many people will be able to relate to the hardships faced by Blair in the economy that we now live in, therefore I felt as though this was a great time to create this very current storyline. I absolutely love the cover of Chocolicious and it defiantly made me want to just dive into the book. The cover art is unique and inviting and which I'm sure will attract the attention of many readers.

I only had a couple of small issues within Chocolicious. The first being that I thought the birth of Blair's daughter at the beginning of the novel was a little unrealistic. Blair seems to give birth really quickly and the man she hates, George was there to help her deliver. I understand that many births can happen that quickly but just from my point of view I didn't enjoy this. Secondly, and I don't want to give too much away here, but there are moments of infidelity between characters within the novel which I felt were swept under the matt a little too quickly and cleanly. Characters forgave where I felt that there should have been a little more turmoil with their decisions.

Overall Chocolicious is a delicious captivating novel which will take you on a rollercoaster of emotions and leave you feeling satisfied at the end. The messages of being independent, strong and trusting your family in hard times is a heartfelt one which will stay with you long after you have finished the book. Like the tempting chocolate three layer cupcakes in the novel I would happily devour this novel again.

Georgina
Chick Litaholic

What a fun book! Not only is the cover alluring, with its lush concoction flirting with our eyes, but the writing is fresh and a treat to read.
The plot is well planned, that becomes obvious from the first few pages. There is a bit of tension at the beginning, as Blair starts to realize her husband has left her in an economic lurch, and the reader really begins to feel for the heroine. What I enjoyed most is the way that she refuses to fall into self-pity, and instead finds a way of getting out of her problems. It's wonderful to see real, strong women take charge, even if it's in a book. The way that she manages to put her life back together is inventive and very different, immediately catching the reader's attention.
The writing is very carefully edited, making for a pleasant read without annoying grammatical mistakes. The only thing I wish had been expanded a bit more was some of the conflicts that had to do with some infidelities in the novel. They weren't really resolved as well as they could have.
I enjoyed this book quite a bit. I can easily recommend it to most adults who like a fun read. There are some sex scenes in it, so maybe it's not that well suited for teens.

When Blair Nightingale's husband, Larry, dies,its a week later that she learns she's about to lose everything she owns due to a foolish mistake her husband made.Blair's life is transformed in almost an instant from rich, Silicon Valley trophy wife to poor, widowed single mum. Blair's only goal now is to provide for her daughter. So Blair begins to pick up the pieces, she realises that Larry's best friend George always seems to be around. Blair really resents George. When Blair is overwhelmed by all the challenges she faces, she seeks comfort in baking rich, filled, three-layered cupcakes that her grandmother once taught her, and soon Blair's life is changed forever.

First of all I have to say the cover is delicious! I think I put a stone on in weight just looking at it! Back to the book, Blair obviously feels hurt and betrayed by her husband Larry, and the fact he hid their true circumstances and his mistakes away from her. Blair knows she cannot turn back time so has to knuckle down and forge a new life for herself and her daughter. Blair needs comfort so she does what most of us women do in a crisis and seek comfort. Blair seeks comfort in baking the gorgeous cupcakes she used to bake with her grandmother. That's when things begin to turn around for Blair and her daughter, as with help from George, Blair sets up her own business. The book started out being quite slow paced and then just as I was about to give up it started to gather pace and in the end I really quite enjoyed the book. This was the first book i had read by this author but I would look out for more books by her and would recommend her to friends too.