In this book, Sandra Bricker takes us on a little trip south of Atlanta, GA. I’m a true southern girl who travels/shops in Atlanta often, so this book was a special gift to me in more ways than one!
Half the time, I was craving bakery desserts and the other time I was thinking “I know where that is! That’s such a southern thing. Oh my gosh, that’s so true!” Each character made me think of someone I knew or in a similar situation. If having a baseball wedding with a baseball glove cake and tomahawk centerpieces seems unusual, you don’t know how many Atlanta Brave fans there are in Atlanta. I can see what happens.
For me, the funniest line in the book was when Emma’s mom wants to move her sister to an assisted living town in Sandy Springs, GA. She says
“She’s not doing very well and I’m worried about her. I thought I could get her one of those apartments in the Sandy Springs complex where Dolores and Beauregard Denton moved in last year. Peachtree something… Everything in Atlanta is Peachtree something, mother”.
I laughed a lot because that’s definitely true. What fun! It is the closest book I have ever read that describes scenes, places, and accents that are near and dear to me. I loved the ladies’ southern accents with words like “brutha” and “shugah.”
One of the real surprises in this book is the delicious recipes and tips. Yes, recipes! Just when you can’t handle one more discussion about chocolate brownies or red velvet cake, you turn the page and there’s the recipe for the deliciousness. I can’t wait to make them for my family. And look at the cake in the book, don’t you want to just eat the cover? Very delicious!
Spicy factor: 3 stars This book was slightly spicy. It was more cute and sweet than hot. Will your toes tingle? Probably not. Will it make you laugh and go “aaahhhh”? More than likely.
Overall Rating: 3 Stars I liked this book for its setting and theme. I haven’t read much fiction with pastry chefs as the heroine and that made it all the more interesting. If you like TV shows like Ace of Cakes, Cake Boss, and Say Yes to the Dress, you’ll love this book.
Christianity: 5 stars The Christian theme of God never leaving us and being a constant presence in our lives was very strong in the book. This quote sums up the theme well and is very beautiful:
“Vocatus atque non vocatus due aderit. It means, ‘Requested or not requested, God is present.'”
Plot summary: Thirty-six-year-old Emma Rae Travis has been baking specialty cakes and melt-in-your-mouth pies at The Backstreet Bakery in historic Roswell, outside Atlanta, for the past six years. But here’s the problem with her job as a baker… Emma is a diabetic. When Jackson Drake hears about this local baker who has won a prestigious award for her wedding cake artistry, he tells his assistant to make sure to include her in the cake tastings scheduled at his new wedding destination hotel the following week. Can these two inadequate players master the tightrope act and make a new trading venture? Or will they crash each other down, with no net? And will the surprise wedding at The Tanglewood be theirs?
