Stay Sweet by Siobhan Vivian

SYNOPSIS

Summer in Sand Lake isn’t complete without a trip to Meade Creamery—the local ice cream stand founded in 1944 by Molly Meade who started making ice cream to cheer up her lovesick girlfriends while all the boys were away at war. Since then, the stand has been owned and managed exclusively by local girls, who inevitably become the best for friends. Seventeen-year-old Amelia and her best friend Cate have worked at the stand every summer for the past three years, and Amelia is “Head Girl” at the stand this summer. 

When Molly passes away before Amelia even has her first day in charge, Amelia isn’t sure that stand can go on. That is, until Molly’s grandnephew Grady arrives and asks Amelia to stay on to help continue the business…but Grady’s got some changes in mind...

Synopsis from Chapters.Indigo.ca

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PERSONAL REVIEW

I hadn’t read anything by this author before, but I’ve heard good things, so I was really excited for a cute summer read. Stay Sweet is definitely a sweet story (sorry, I couldn’t resist!) about friendship, relationships, growing up, and finding your passion.

Did Not Enjoy Present Tense
I was really thrown that the entire book was written in present tense. It’s not something I often think about, but the majority of books I read are in past tense, so this was really jarring to read. I kept feeling like I was stumbling over words and sentences. While I definitely appreciate an authors choice in creative styling, I really found myself struggling to stay focused because everything seemed off somehow. Personally, I know that I would have enjoyed this book more in the traditional past tense. But it awesome that Vivian has the courage to buck the norm and write the story (which is still a good story!) she wanted the way she wanted.

Relatable Difficult Relationships
Vivian did a good job creating a tension between between different characters as new relationships developed. I think it’s incredibly realistic how friendships are forced to change as people move into romantic relationships, and it’s not always easy to juggle everyone. And it only gets harder when your bff and your partner don’t get along! So I liked that we get a very real view of how hard it is to adjust these relationships around each other, and the guilt that Amelia feels as she jumps between Cate and Grady. I completely bought into her stress and not knowing what decision was the right one. It’s hard being in any relationship, and I’m glad that Vivian didn’t try to gloss over this.

Enjoyed the Symmetry of Past and Present Timelines
Reading Molly’s diary and seeing the parallels in Amelia’s own life was a nice way to bridge the gap between past and present, and a great way to move into Amelia taking ownership of Meade Creamery. I loved both storylines and was THRILLED when we actually got to meet Tiggy! She was such a fun reminder that history doesn’t always happen exactly how we think it does, and really went a long way to further connecting us to Molly. It was also such a great way to remind readers that women are strong independent of men, and that Molly made choices for herself, even if it meant bucking the traditions of the time. As I’m currently studying the 1950s with my history class, women like Molly are amazing to read about and remember that not everyone bowed to the tradition of women only being allowed in the household.

YOU CAN CHANGE YOUR MIND IN SCHOOL
I cannot stress how happy it made me that Grady decided to adjust his major because of how much he hated the business school. It’s so incredibly important that students understand that you don’t have to study something just because everyone else is. And that it’s ok to switch programs! No one is going to judge you, and if they do, they suck so they’re not worth your time. I loved studying History and English in university, but I saw so many of my friends have such a hard time and I wish they had the confidence to say “screw it, I’m going to study something that I actually like instead” because they would’ve had such a better time. It’s incredibly hard to stand up to external pressures, but it’s even harder to keep doing something that you absolutely hate. So a huge cheer for Grady for figuring out how to take control of his life and do something he loved.

This was a really fun read and I definitely want to try to make ice cream now...or at least go out and buy some ice cream! It was a fun, light spring read that makes me wish for summer and I’m definitely interested in seeing what else Vivian has written.

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FINAL RATING: 3.5/5