Julia's Chocolates (Paperback)

~ (Author)
Key Phrases: story hour, small penis, red negligee, Aunt Lydia, Julia's Chocolates, Cathy Lamb (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The quirky debut romance from Lamb opens as Julia Bennett flees the Boston altar where her blueblood abuser fiancé, Robert Stanfield III, awaits her. She leaves her wedding gown in a North Dakota tree, and arrives in the tiny town of Golden, Oregon to take refuge with her beloved Aunt Lydia. As Julia slowly returns to a semblance of normalcy, Lydia's eccentric friends soon become Julia's near and dear as well: minister's wife Lara, psychic Caroline and abused wife Katie all have their own hidden pains, to which Julia can relate. Robert, who hit her and made her feel bad about her body, is never far from her thoughts, nor is her incapacitating "Dread Disease"-a feeling of panic she can't name. The dialogue is funny and bawdy: "Don't cry, love! You escaped a life's prison sentence with King Prick." Julia's struggles with people's interest in her chocolate-making, and in her person, make her a winningly flawed heroine, and there is well-deserved come-uppance for abusers of all types.
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Product Description

"I left my wedding dress hanging in a tree somewhere in North Dakota. I don't know why that particular tree appealed to me. Perhaps it was because it looked as if it had given up and died years ago and was still standing because it didn't know what else to do..."

In her deliciously funny, heartfelt, and moving debut, Cathy Lamb introduces some of the most wonderfully eccentric women since The Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood and The Secret Life of Bees, as she explores the many ways we find the road home.

From the moment Julia Bennett leaves her abusive Boston fiancé at the altar and her ugly wedding dress hanging from a tree in South Dakota, she knows she's driving away from the old Julia, but what she's driving toward is as messy and undefined as her own wounded soul. The old Julia dug her way out of a tortured, trailer park childhood with a monster of a mother. The new Julia will be found at her Aunt Lydia's rambling, hundred-year-old farmhouse outside Golden, Oregon.

There, among uppity chickens and toilet bowl planters, Julia is welcomed by an eccentric, warm, and often wise clan of women, including a psychic, a minister's unhappy wife, an abused mother of four, and Aunt Lydia herself--a woman who is as fierce and independent as they come. Meeting once a week for drinks and the baring of souls, it becomes clear that every woman holds secrets that keep her from happiness. But what will it take for them to brave becoming their true selves? For Julia, it's chocolate. All her life, baking has been her therapy and her refuge, a way to heal wounds and make friends. Nobody anywhere makes chocolates as good as Julia's, and now, chocolate just might change her life--and bring her love when she least expects it. But it can't keep her safe. As Julia gradually opens her heart to new life, new friendships, and a new man, the past is catching up to her. And this time, she will not be able to run but will have to face it head on.

Filled with warmth, love, and truth, Julia's Chocolates is an unforgettable novel of hope and healing that explores the hurts we keep deep in our hearts, the love that liberates us, the courage that defines us, and the chocolate that just might take us there.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Kensington; First Thus edition (May 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0758214626
• ISBN-13: 978-0758214621
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.4 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (63 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #13,486 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

41 of 47 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Exquisite Delight, July 11, 2007

By	Gayla Collins (Sheridan, WYOMING USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Usually chosing books on reviews, I was a bit apprehensive that I chose this book from the cover and inside blurb. Twenty pages in I was relieved to know I made a wise choice as Cathy Lamb's book is rich in character, plot and resolution.

Julia, abused her entire childhood, sickly chooses a cruel finance who continues the pattern with great zeal. The day of the wedding, in a moment of clarity, Julia realizes she is making a huge mistake. She escapes in her beat-up car from New England to Golden, Oregon to the comfort of her Aunt Lydia's farm, leaving her wedding dress dangling from a tree in North Dakota. At Aunt Lily's, Julia befriends 4 women who attend "Aunt Lydia's Psychic Nights" where each lady exposes her own set of disturbances. The friendships open Julia's injured mind to understanding no one deserves constant berating, constant hitting, constant chaos. But as she heals, her crazed fiance plots vicious revenge, and Julia knows a reckoning is coming.

I found this beautifully written because in the face of disturbing subject matter there was still uproarious humor, gentle moments, quirky, loveable characters and redemption. Written with a homespun prose, the book keeps you on a fragile edge, but doesn't leave you dangling for too long. A perfect balance makes this a must read for all that hide from truth or are in search of it.

Great first effort; I look forward to more books from this gifted author.

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Deliciously Complex, September 21, 2007

By	V. S. Jordan "gravehearted" (Campbell, CA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

wow, I loved this book! Best thing I've read in ages.

The characters are well developed - highly quirky, funny and will without a doubt work their way into your heart. Although this is a story about friendship and courageous women, it is also a tale about facing your fears, having the courage to take risks and finding yourself. What a journey - I simply howled about the Psychic Nights, cheered at the victories and felt the fear they faced. I can not wait for Ms. Lamb's next book and have to admit that it was hard to see this book end.

There were many moments where I laughed and cried during this treasure.

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Underwhelmed, July 21, 2008

By	Diane "dianemax" (Newfoundland, Canada) - See all my reviews

Julia Bennett is the central character in this book. She has lived with abuse all of her life with her alcoholic mother and her many boyfriends, and she is reliving it all over again with her fiancé Robert. Finally, one day after being abused she sees the light and decides to leave before her wedding and go to look for refuge with her Aunt Lydia, a woman who has tried to help her in the past.

In living with Lydia, Julia also gets to know a group of women who will help her find herself and heal her soul and her body in the process. Unfortunately, for me, a lot of these characters were just too out there in regards to the psychic nights and the ability to find strength in their private body parts! I mean, who does that?! It's fun to be quirky but this was just a little too bizarre and kind of killed the story for me.

Julia, of course manages to find love and her talent in the midst of some serious situations.

While this book is indeed filled with warmth and love, I just could not get into the characters lives, thankfully so I guess since most of them are dealing with some very serious issues. I wanted to like this book but in the end, I was just glad that it was over.