Thursday, February 21, 2019

Review, Guest Post, and Giveaway: Brunch at Bittersweet Cafe


About the Book



Title: Brunch at Bittersweet Cafe  
Author: Carla Laureano  
Genre: Christian Romance  
Release date: February 5, 2019  
Publisher: Tyndale

Baker and pastry chef Melody Johansson has always believed in finding the positive in every situation, but seven years after she moved to Denver, she can’t deny that she’s stuck in a rut. One relationship after another has ended in disaster, and her classical French training is being wasted on her night job in a mediocre chain bakery. Then the charming and handsome private pilot Justin Keller lands on the doorstep of her workplace in a snowstorm, and Melody feels like it’s a sign that her luck is finally turning around. 

Justin is intrigued by the lively bohemian baker, but the last thing he’s looking for is a relationship. His own romantic failures have proven that the demands of his job are incompatible with meaningful connections, and he’s already pledged his life savings to a new business venture across the country—an island air charter in Florida with his sister and brother-in-law. 

Against their better judgment, Melody and Justin find themselves drawn together by their unconventional career choices and shared love of adventure. But when an unexpected windfall provides Melody with the chance to open her dream bakery-café in Denver with her best friend, chef Rachel Bishop, she’s faced with an impossible choice: stay and put down roots with the people and place she’s come to call home . . . or give it all up for the man she loves. 
 
Click here to purchase your copy.








My Thoughts:







From the very first pages this book had me laughing out loud to the description of bread that pastry chef Melody Johansson gives to Justin Keller. Their first meeting was interesting and their continual banter was lively. 







Justin is a pilot with crazy hours and Melody is a chef with crazy hours as well. I liked that both are just about to have their dreams fulfilled in their respective careers, however neither have ever had a really serious relationship nor are they satisfied with where they are in life. As they test the grounds of a relationship can both have their cake and eat it too? 







This was a sweet romantic read that really made me hungry. All of the descriptions of food and the many pictures that Melody staged with food and books had me wishing she was a real person that I could follow online. 







There are some bittersweet family moments and Melody’s friends keep her grounded as she is a restless soul. Justin and Melody were such creative characters and they really needed to let some baggage go and work through some issues if they were going to have a happily ever after.  It was great to see Rachel from the last book and I hope Ana’s story is next. 







I received a copy of this novel from the publisher. I was not required to post a positive review and all views and opinions are my own.















About the Author







Carla Laureano is the RITA® Award-winning author of contemporary inspirational romance and Celtic fantasy (as C.E. Laureano). A graduate of Pepperdine University, she worked as a sales and marketing executive for nearly a decade before leaving corporate life behind to write fiction full-time. She currently lives in Denver with her husband and two sons, where she writes during the day and cooks things at night.








Guest Post from Carla





“Confessions of An Erstwhile Baker”





Like most females, baking is encoded somewhere deep down in my DNA. Call it nature or call it nurture, but at the earliest age, I figured out that the cute boy in my English class would talk to me if it involved chocolate chip cookies. Got my heart broken or had a friend betray me? I grabbed the mixing bowl and went for the brownies (even better if they’re served à la mode.) My friend was having a birthday? I made a cake drowned in pounds of buttercream. 







I quickly graduated from the boxed mixes to the real thing when I got married and had a kitchen large enough to roll out dough. I would comb magazines for the best recipes and spend my weekends trying them out. I quickly became known for bringing beautifully iced Christmas cookies and delicious homemade cakes to work. 







Then my husband and I moved our young family from Los Angeles to Denver, a relocation that was about 1000 miles northeast and 5000 feet up. Suddenly, every recipe I’d perfected in the previous eight years failed. Cookies burned to crisps, cakes fell, and don’t get me started on candy making. Gradually, I adapted my recipes (my beloved never-fail Toll House recipe took eight tries to get right) and even became an avid artisan bread-baker. 







Then disaster. Or at least, what a baker would consider a disaster. After developing chronic health problems, I discovered that among other things, I was sensitive to gluten. The horror! In order to heal, I turned to the paleo diet, which eliminates all grains (there goes most gluten free recipes) and all processed sugars (there goes everything else). I’ve tried baking paleo-style, and while I can now make cakes that even my gluten-fiend family enjoy, it’s just not the same. 







So what’s a once-obsessive baker do when she can’t eat her creations? She bakes for other people and goes on faith that they actually taste good… considering she can’t taste them herself. 







It struck me that there was a spiritual lesson in that, and an obvious tie to Brunch at Bittersweet Café, which deals in large part with Melody’s faith journey. There are times when we have no idea if things are working out the way they’re supposed to, in which case we just have to trust the “recipe” and the input of friends and family who love us. Sometimes our instincts tell us when we’re off track, and sometimes we need that outside nudge from our “taste-testers” to put us back on course. 







In any case, what Melody and I have in common is that we both bake to show our love for the people around us. And the process of baking my favorites, even knowing that I can’t enjoy them myself, can still be a selfless way to show people they’re important to me. 







Fortunately, macarons, which happen to be made with almond flour, are still on the menu.







Blog Stops





Quiet Quilter, February 12



Among the Reads, February 12



Lighthouse Academy, February 12



By The Book, February 12



The Power of Words, February 13



As He Leads is Joy, February 13



Cultivating Us, February 13




Fiction Aficionado, February 14



The Lit Addict, February 14





All-of-a-kind Mom, February 15




100 Pages per Hour, February 15



Splashes of Joy, February 15



Bibliophile Reviews, February 16



Texas Book-aholic, February 16




C Jane Read, February 17




Moments, February 17



Back Porch Reads, February 17



Cordially Barbara, February 18



Genesis 5020, February 18



Simple Harvest Reads, February 18 (Guest post from Mindy Houng)




Livin’ Lit, February 19



Kat’s Corner Books, February 19



Life with the Tribe, February 19





Remembrancy, February 20



Vicky Sluiter, February 20




2014 and Beyond!, February 21



Daysong Reflections, February 21



Inklings and Notions, February 21



Pause for Tales, February 21



Cafinated Reads, February 22





Ashley’s Bookshelf, February 22




Two Girls and a Book, February 23




For the love of books, February 23



God is Love, February 24



Book by Book, February 24





Lukewarm Tea, February 25



Carpe Diem, February 25




Bigreadersite, February 25




































































Giveaway

















To celebrate her tour, Carla is giving away a grand prize package of a macaron baking mat, a macaron book, and a paperback copy of Brunch at Bittersweet Café!!











Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter. https://promosimple.com/ps/db0f/brunch-at-bittersweet-cafe-celebration-tour-giveaway














at




















No comments:
















Post a Comment