Fiction Review: You're the Cream in My Coffee

You’re the Cream in My Coffee by Jennifer Lamont Leo is one of those books I almost didn’t buy. The goofy title suggests a trite romance, and I’m not exactly a fan of predictable books or romances. Even after reading this book, I wish the author had come up with a better title. I misjudged the book before reading it. (I’m so thankful I read the reviews! I might have missed it altogether.)

Marjorie Corrigan is a small-town girl from Kerryville, Illinois during the Roaring Twenties. Kerryville is one of those places where everyone knows everyone—and their business. She’s engaged to a busy doctor named Richard. Her first love, Jack, was “lost to me forever on some battlefield in France.” He was “classified as missing, presumed dead.” Her fiancé Richard was, in Marjorie’s description, “kind. Generous. Faithful. Prosperous. Toss in thrifty, brave and clean and he’d make the perfect Boy Scout.” The problem was, Marjorie’s admiration for Richard lacked a “spark.” Everyone thought Richard was a great catch—but Marjorie was dragging her feet about setting a wedding date. She finally decides on September 15th.

Marjorie looks at Jack’s “photograph, worn around the edges from much handling . . . in his army uniform, smiling and confident. . . . ‘I’ll be home before you know it,’ he’d written on the back in his strong, black cursive. ‘You won’t even have time to miss me.’” But Jack was wrong. Marjorie has already had ten years to miss him, and it’s as if she’s only started.

Under stress, Marjorie faints three times, and her small-town doctor sends her to Chicago for medical tests. At the last minute, Marjorie goes by herself, glad that her stepmother isn’t along, but fearful, too. Chicago is a big city!

Stepping out of Union Station into the wind, Marjorie goes in search of Mrs. Brownlee’s house, where she’s to stay. After meeting Mrs. Brownlee, a relative of her fiancé, Marjorie is happy to get some rest. The next day, she’s off for medical tests, followed by exploration—so she won’t have to get back to Mrs. Brownlee’s too soon. She sees the Art Institute, goes inside, and enjoys looking at the paintings. Marjorie notices they offer art lessons for adults and decides to sign up. She then makes an effort to please her stepmother and goes looking for gifts for her bridesmaids. Marjorie walks into Marshall Field & Company. After nearly choking over the prices, she ends up in millinery. What she needs is a new hat!

Marjorie buys a cloche from the bubbly little clerk with bobbed hair, and so begins her Chicago adventure. She bumps into a man who looks like Jack but is named Peter, gets a job in the big city, and then . . . .

Seriously, you need to read this book! It's funny, very well written, and full of twists and turns. The author totally surprised me with one of her revelations. If you need to let your hair down—or get a fashionable twenties bob—you won’t be disappointed.

It’s a Christian read in every way. You and your teen girls will love it!

Five stars! No cream. No coffee. I am still wondering how the author came up with such a goofy title! (There's also nothing in the book anything like the cover illustration.)

**** The author got in touch with me and told me the title comes from a song from the period. This is what she says: I'm so happy you enjoyed the story. To answer your question about the title, "You're the Cream in My Coffee" is a song title of the 1920s, and refers to Marjorie's no-alcohol stance. It's a toe-tapper: listen here.