This is the story of Ella, a woman who is born and raised on Tara Road in Dublin, Ireland. After having her heart broken in a widely publicized scandal, Ella throws all her effort into helping to make a documentary about how Ireland is changing. What better way to do that, she thinks, than to tell the story of one of Dublins premier restaurants that also happens to be on Tara Road?
Maeve Binchy is a wonderful storyteller. I have loved every book of hers that I've read. Her books draw me in with their personable characters and intricate storylines. This book is slightly different from her others in that instead of just telling the story of Ella, we also hear the stories of many other characters who frequent Quentins. Interestingly, many of these other characters have been the stars of her previous books. This was fun, but also in a way annoying because I couldn't always remember which books the characters were from or what had happened in those books. While this new approach was an interesting break from her usual style, I think it detracted from the book rather than added to it and this is probably my least favorite of her books that I've read so far.
This book is an easy read and a bit predictable too, but I still found it to be very delightful. Other books by this same author that I recommend are Evening Class, Tara Road, and Circle of Friends.
