Review - - A Legend in the Baking

A Legend in the Baking

by Jamie Wesley

Sugar Blitz - Book 2

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

Release Date: November 19, 2024

Reviewed by PJ

 

August Hodges was supposed to be the silent partner in Sugar Blitz Cupcakes. Emphasis on silent. That is until his impromptu feminist rant about how women bakers are the backbone of the industry and baking cupcakes isn’t a threat to masculinity goes viral, making him the hottest bachelor in town. With a new location in the works, August and his partners decide to capitalize on this perfect opportunity to help cement their place in the community. But the hiring of his best friend’s younger sister, the woman who has haunted some of his best dreams for years, was as much of a shock as his new-found fame.

Social media manager Sloane Dell fell hard for her brother’s best friend the moment she met him more than a decade ago, but that teenage infatuation cost her dearly. Still, she accepts her brother’s request to revamp the bakery’s social media presence to take advantage of August’s newfound popularity, knowing it’s the big break her fledgling career needs. She’ll just ignore the fact that August is still August, i.e. sexier and sweeter than any man has a right to be. And that he drives her crazy with his resistance to all her ideas.

They vow to leave the past in the past. But when an explosive make-out session makes it clear their attraction burns hotter than ever, Sloane and August are forced to reconsider what it means to take a risk and chase your dreams.

As they’re both about to find out, all’s fair in love and cupcakes.

PJ's Thoughts:

Sloane may have fallen hard for August but I was right there with her. A professional football playing cinnamon roll feminist hero who is handy with tools and also bakes cupcakes? It's like the author created him just for me. Of course, she actually created him for Sloane but, hey, a girl can dream.

Jamie Wesley reeled me in with the first book in this series, Fake It Till You Bake It, and kept me hooked through this second installment, A Legend in the Baking. It's a slow-burn romance with a best friend's sister trope, a second chance, chosen family, well-placed humor, and a fair amount of emotional depth. 

I enjoyed the layers Wesley gave both August and Sloane. It made them feel authentic and relatable. My heart ached for August. Watching him work his way through long-held issues and beliefs to emerge at the other end with confidence and knowledge of his own self-worth was immensely satisfying. Sloane's journey was no less impactful. I especially appreciated the fact that she finally came to realize the impact her actions were having, apologized, and grew from the experience. In the end, I was confident their relationship would be long lasting and happy.

I'm really enjoying the bonds of brotherhood that August, Donovan, and Nicholas have formed. These partners both on the football field and in the bakery may not be related by blood but in every meaningful definition of the word, they are family. I can't wait to discover what Wesley has planned for Nicholas, the last (single) man standing.

One more thing, in case the cupcake baking football stars are listening. I really need a recipe for those Lemon Meringue Cupcakes, the drool-inducing confections that August bakes and Sloane devours. I'm not above begging. 

Review - - Fake it Till You Bake it

Fake it Till You Bake it: A Novel

by Jamie Wesley

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

Release Date: June 21, 2022

Reviewed by PJ

 

Jada Townsend-Matthews is the most reviled woman in America after turning down a proposal on a reality dating show. When she comes home to lick her wounds, Jada finds herself working at San Diego's newest cupcake bakery, Sugar Blitz, alongside the uptight owner and professional football player Donovan Dell.

When a reporter mistakenly believes Jada and Donovan are an item, they realize they can use the misunderstanding to their advantage to help the struggling bakery and rehabilitate Jada's image. Faking a relationship should be simple, but sometimes love is the most unexpected ingredient.

PJ's Thoughts:

What a thoroughly charming story! I read it in one day. Will probably read it again. It made me smile, laugh out loud, sigh with delight, and crave cupcakes. So. Many. Cupcakes.

Jada is lying low, trying to get her life back on track after the social media sh*tstorm that followed her refusal of the final proposal on a reality dating show when she's upended again by a surprise family ultimatum. Donovan, a pro football player, along with two teammates, has just realized his dream of opening a cupcake shop but business is falling off rather than picking up steam. Fate sets them up as adversaries, her grandmother (his boss), sets them up as co-workers, and an unexpected twist has them fake dating. Did I mention that they also have off the charts chemistry and his (meddling) friends think they'd make a perfect match? Reality dating shows, football, enemies-to-lovers, and cupcakes. It's like Jamie Wesley wrote this book just for me! 

I adored this couple with their snappy banter, simmering chemistry, and surprising work partnership. I loved that Wesley gave them the necessary time to work through personal issues and find their footing before leading them into a romantic relationship. I loved Jada's evolution, how she slowly began to discover her strengths, how Donovan's perception of her shifted in the process, and his defense and support of her against naysayers. I enjoyed their layers, their teasing humor, and the emotional baggage that had to be sorted. It was just enough to give complexity and texture to the lighthearted, humorous parts of the story. And I loved the secondary cast! There's so much potential there for future stories and I, for one, cannot wait to read them.

I enthusiastically recommend adding this one to your summer reading list but a word of advice: you might want to make a batch of cupcakes to nibble on before you turn that first page. Just sayin'.