Review: The City Baker's Guide to Country Living

The City Baker’s Guide to Country Living had to be one of the most recommended books to me and one I got the most questions about! I mean, the cover just screams cozy Fall read, doesn’t it? 

It is billed as a read-a-like for Gilmore Girls and I think that fits. It’s cozy and sweet, very small town centered with lots of fun, unique characters reminiscent of Stars Hollow. I didn’t love it as much as I thought I would, but I definitely think it could be the perfect book for someone else! 

Synopsis: “When Olivia Rawlings--pastry chef extraordinaire for an exclusive Boston dinner club--sets not just her flambéed dessert but the entire building alight, she escapes to the most comforting place she can think of--the idyllic town of Guthrie, Vermont, home of Bag Balm, the country's longest-running contra dance, and her best friend Hannah. But the getaway turns into something more lasting when Margaret Hurley, the cantankerous, sweater-set-wearing owner of the Sugar Maple Inn, offers Livvy a job. Broke and knowing that her days at the club are numbered, Livvy accepts.

Livvy moves with her larger-than-life, uberenthusiastic dog, Salty, into a sugarhouse on the inn's property and begins creating her mouthwatering desserts for the residents of Guthrie. She soon uncovers the real reason she has been hired--to help Margaret reclaim the inn's blue ribbon status at the annual county fair apple pie contest.

With the joys of a fragrant kitchen, the sound of banjos and fiddles being tuned in a barn, and the crisp scent of the orchard just outside the front door, Livvy soon finds herself immersed in small town life. And when she meets Martin McCracken, the Guthrie native who has returned from Seattle to tend his ailing father, Livvy comes to understand that she may not be as alone in this world as she once thought.

But then another new arrival takes the community by surprise, and Livvy must decide whether to do what she does best and flee--or stay and finally discover what it means to belong. Olivia Rawlings may finally find out that the life you want may not be the one you expected--it could be even better. “ —From the publisher

What I Liked: 

  1. The Setting—You don’t get more Fall than Vermont. I loved the setting and how vividly I could picture everything. 

  2. The Food Descriptions—um, yum. Obviously this book is about a baker but all the passages about the menu at the inn had my mouth watering. 

What Didn’t Work: 

  1. The Pacing—this book felt fast and slow at the same time. It could have been when I read it, but it didn’t pull me in from the start so I had a hard time getting into it. 

  2. The Romance—I just didn’t believe it! I’m confused because this book is so well loved, so I’m thinking it was a me problem. 

  3. The Trope—This was a little Hallmark-y. City gal finds refuge in a small town and falls in love with all the differences. Not my fav, and it felt a little stale. I think this CAN work, but I just didn’t jive with it.

TW/CW: Cancer, loss of a loved one, infidelity

Character Authenticity: 3/5 Steam Rating: 1/5 Overall Rating: 3.5/5

I know this book is SO well loved…but it just wasn’t what I was in the mood for. I definitely liked it, but it’s not the favorite I thought it would be! What are your thoughts on this one? What’s the best book you’ve read this fall?