A woman's midlife reinvention and a beach village of eccentric Aussies collide with stupendous results in this witty, razor-sharp and immensely enjoyable debut from author Catherine Greer.

Audrey Sweetman wakes up one morning, excited for the promotion she's been working towards for years. But by nightfall, both her advertising career and her marriage are in tatters.

Audrey escapes to the seaside village of Whitehaven Bay, but her plan to hide is derailed by meddlesome neighbours. The Coffin Cheaters bikie gang. Shez, the dubious 'CEO' of the holiday flats. A cranky pensioner with a habit of naked swimming. A mouthy teen who's nothing but trouble. And the handsome yet elusive retiree, Dr Flood.

When Audrey learns she's facing financial disaster, the villagers help her launch the haphazard Bittersweet Bakery targeting Divorce Parties for Sydney's elite divorcees, selling fortune cookies that tell the bitter truth.

With a little help from her unpredictable friends, Audrey's outlandish business just might work—as long as the head of the Whitehaven Community Association doesn't catch up with them first.

The Bittersweet Bakery Cafe is the debut novel of author Catherine Greer.