Summer at the French Bakery by Jo Thomas

Summer at the French Bakery is a warm, feel-good novel from Jo Thomas, who writes food-and-travel stories set across France, Italy and Ireland.

After a hard year, Juliet decides life is too short not to chase what she wants, and buys an old watermill in the south of France. The quiet start she planned does not last. The local mayor talks her into reopening the village's derelict boulangerie, and suddenly she is up against a rival selling bread from a vending machine, a village that is not sure about her, her own shaky baking, and a few secrets tucked away in the mill.

With an outspoken neighbour and the local Tabac owner on her side, Juliet sets out to bring back the smell of fresh bread and, with it, the heart of the village.

Feel-good fiction for readers of Jenny Colgan and Veronica Henry.

'Jo sweeps you away to a better place with every book.' Veronica Henry

'Joyful and life-affirming.' Milly Johnson