He’s a master baker with a big…cannoli.They call me the sugar whisperer.Anything your tongue desires, I can bake it. Scones? Child’s play. Cupcakes? I’ll frost them so good you won’t know what hit you. Donuts? Please.You’re talking to a master baker.But there’s one egg I’ve never been able to crack.My best friend.Correction: My former best friend.She’s the apple in my pie. The whip in my cream. … former best friend.
She’s the apple in my pie. The whip in my cream. The lemon in my meringue. The wish in my bone.
She’s the one who got away.
After ten years in the military, she’s back. She’s bruised and battered by life, but she’s back.
Except she’s not my second chance. She’s gone to the dark side.
Running a rival bakery in a town not big enough for two.
So now I have to decide—which do I want more?
My bakery?
Or the woman I never should’ve let go of in the first place?
Master Baker is a deliciously fun friends-to-enemies-to-lovers romantic comedy featuring a smooth-talking baker, the one who got away, and a goat with more matchmaking tendencies than a nosy old grandpa. It stands alone with no cheating or cliffhangers.
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Loved it! It’s a fun book with great characters–human and animal. It’s always great to see past characters. I’m ready for the next one!
Master Baker is a Masterpiece!
This Book. Wow. Seduction on page one. It pulls at the heartstrings, makes you laugh out loud and want to be biscuit dough more than ever!
Grady Rock is fulfilling his life long dream of being a master baker in his hometown of Shipwreck. He sweet talks his ingredients into baked perfection. He has everything he’s ever wanted, except the love of his life.
Annika Willams was Grady’s best friend all through high school but he wasn’t enough to keep her in the Sarcasm/Shipwreck area. She ran to the Army to avoid falling into her Mom’s footsteps of being a teen mom and struggling all her life.
A family emergency brings Annika home and a rivalry with her now ex-best friend ensues. The rivalry is all anyone can talk about but it’s not a what Annika and Grady want. But it’s what sells and keeps their bakeries thriving. Who will come out the winner? Sarcasm, Shipwreck or Love?
Master Baker is another Pippa Grant Can’t-Miss read!! It’s filled with familiar characters, a loveable, nosy goat, foul-mouthed parrot, snarky teens, busy-body family and plenty of signature Pippa one-liners and steamy scenes.
4.5 stars
I love all of Pippa Grant’s books, and this one is no exception. Annika and Grady Rock met Freshman year in High School and Grady was immediately smitten. Because Annika was raised by a teenage single mom, she lets Grady know that they cannot date. They are inseparable during the four years of high school, and at graduation Grady professes his love and asks Annika to stay and not join the Army. Annika rejects him and joins the Army. Ten years have passed and Grady is now a Master Baker in his hometown of Shipwreck. He hasn’t heard from Annika since graduation night, and she has come back to her hometown Sarcasm to open a Bakery with her mother. Since Shipwreck and Sarcasm are small towns just ten miles apart, there is only room for one bakery to succeed. This is a set up for a bakery war, ratcheting up the two town’s rivalry. The book is full of hilarity including a matchmaking boy goat named Sue, a foul mouthed parrot and cameo’s from the Berger twins. Grady is wonderful, smart, kind, loving and a great book boyfriend. I had to take a half a point off of my rating because of Annika. I had a hard time liking her in the beginning of the book. All second chance romances have an issue that keeps the lovers apart, and with Grady and Annika I would say that Annika was about 70% at fault. Yet, Grady is the one that has to make amends. Annika grew on me by the end of the book, and many of the issues I had with the character were addressed. Overall a really fun read. I was given an ARC of this book from the author for my honest review.
I absolutely loved that damn parrot! I laughed so hard at him. I loved this book. The writing and the character are well developed and flowed well. I Know what kind of book I am getting when I open a Pippa book. I know my abs will be hurting for days from laughing so hard. Loved the characters! Amazing book
I voluntarily read this as an advanced readers copy
If you are not a Pippa Grant fan, you need to become one! All her books are terrific and this one continues that streak. Grady and Annika were best friends in high school. When Grady professed his love for Annika on graduation night, it did not go very well. Fast forward 10 years – they have both lived their lives (she joined the Army, he went to culinary school and runs the family bakery) but are still torn by the past and what happened graduation night. Annika returns to her hometown to deal with a family crisis and they are suddenly back in each other’s orbit, running rival bakeries.
What I love about this book is that, for the most part, Grady, Annika and all the other characters are people you might know. They work hard, run small businesses but have a group of family and friends to love and support them. The attraction between Annika and Grady has never gone away. They admire each other and what they have accomplished, and push through the odds to be together.
Some characters from Pippa’s other books make a funny guest appearance in this book, although this is a stand alone and not part of a series. Beware – you will be laughing hard and craving baked goods!
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.
A baker who talks super dirty to his pastry??? Sign me up!!
Grady is a super nice guy who piqued my curiosity in Flirting with the Frenemy. He’s hilarious. So are all of the other residents of Shipwreck (as are the residents of Sarcasm but I’m hesitant to put those two thoughts in the same sentence because I fear for my safety). Annika is super fierce. Like, I kinda want to be her when I grow up. She’s competitive, she’s supportive, she’s a hero.
The friends to enemies to lovers story woven here was AMAZING!! I loved the fight but I also loved the rebuilding of their friendship. I also absolutely loved the cameos from some of my fave PG characters (Ares=swoon). I can’t wait to visit Shipwreck and Sarcasm again!!
This book had me laughing a lot but it also had me frustrated in the beginning. I know as a woman I should be more empathetic to Annika but I have to admit there were times I wanted to throttle her by the throat. I got what she was trying to do but how she went about it and her lack of understanding made me exasperated at times. Along the way she really grew on me. That’s the thing about life and love. It doesn’t always follow through the way we visualize with our minds. This is also what makes a great book.
Yeah, I’ll just say it, I’m a big fan of Grady and all his dough!
If you’ve ever heard the expression, “Expect the unexpected” this book fits that description perfectly. This is definitely not you’re typical love story. You will laugh, tear up, blush, maybe become frustrated, and definitely swoon. It positively brings the heat in all kinds of ways.
Grady is THE Master Baker, handsome, talented in a variety of ways…his baking process is unique to say the least as is everything else he puts his heart and soul into. He always wants to be the best. To me he is. We all need a Grady in our lives. He by himself would make this book a five star. I guess you can tell I’m a big fan of Grady and all his dough!
Annika, is the dutiful daughter, sister and friend. She’s gorgeous, self sacrificing and at a major crossroads in her life. She has a lot of decisions to make regarding her purpose in life and her family. I have to admit she really frustrated me. There were times I wanted to slap her and tell her to wake up. She did grow on me. Here’s the thing, doesn’t that happen in real life? People exasperate us because they can’t see the forest for the trees so to speak.
To me this is a bizarre twist on Romeo and Juliet, and West Side Story (without the deaths and without the music and not in Verona) but in a land we are not familiar with but definitely from two warring lands. Can they come together? Can Grady and Annika beat the odds and oppose their families? Can Sue help bring peace and harmony to the land or will he just devour it bit by bit? Will we get to see more of our favorite characters from previous stories again? Fortunately, we did this time! Yes, my friends these are some of the burning questions that we will get to immerse ourselves in while reading this story. This book has all the right ingredients for a really good book that will hit you in the heart and maybe make you gain a few pounds while reading. All your appetites will be satisfied. So devour this book and as the French say, “Bon appétit”!
Another of Pippa’s snarky, steamy, amusing stories, with weird pets, excellent characters, lots of fun and lots of heart.
I read an advanced copy for an honest review.
Grady is considered the “master baker”. He has this great little bakery in Shipwreak and for some reason, he speaks foodporn to what he is preparing to get it to bake wonderfully and give the public “foodgasims”.
Annikia is the dutiful daughter, in the town next door, called Sarcasm. Even though she burns boiling water, she opens a bakery for her mother, who has suddenly gone blind, to help her fulfill her dream.
Grady and Annika used to be best friends. Annika broke Grady’s heart and now it seems she is back to break Grady’s business. At first Grady does not react well, until he realises what Annika is doing for her mom and family. Then he does what he can to secretly help them.
The sparks fly between Grady and Annika. They are from two towns that have had a rivalry that matches that of the Boston Red Sox and the NY Yankees. Can they have a relationship, when the two towns have such hatred?
This book was filled with insane characters, zany animals, that made your head spin and a bit of a rollercoaster of emotions as Annika and Grady find their way.
You will laugh until you cry and be satisfied with the HEA.
Pippa does it again!
Master Baker is a wild ride filled with laugh out loud moments, sizzling sexy times, Pop Rock and Long Beak Silver, bakery wars, a domesticated goat named Sue, an amazing 13 year old, giggles, snorts, and a love story 2 decades in the making. What more could you possibly ask for?
This book is pure Pippa Grant goodness. Fueding towns, a bakery war, a dirty-mouthed bird, a matchmaking goat….and a sweet and sexy enemies-to-lovers romance.
Grady Rock is barely keeping his bakery alive when his former best friend returns home to open a rival bakery. The gloves come off and the insults fly as the towns rally behind each bakery. Grady and Annika are caught up in the ensuing war but the line between love and hate blurs quickly.
I loved this! It’s quirky, it’s funny, it’s steamy. I adored Grady and Annika and all the residents of Shipwreck and Sarcasm. I smiled from the first page til the last epilogue (those epilogues are everything!!!).
I want to be a MASTER BAKER! This book had all of the hilarity that Pippa Grant delivers. With a town fued between towns named Sarcasm and Shipwreck, what else is really needed? Oh wait, an epic bakery showdown. Donuts vs. Duh-nuts. Pirates vs. Corn, I mean Unicorns. A pet goat named Sue who loves to wreak havoc on his owner’s life? Horny grandparents? A crude bird? Oh wait, an epic love story between Grady and Annika, swoon. A friends-to-enemies-to-secret-friends-to-lovers story? It’s like a modern day Romeo and Juliet but without all of the death. Instead of sword fights there are food fights.
I loved this story, I loved these characters and I really want to visit Shipwreck and Sarcasm. I feel like they could be my people.
Pippa Grant is a must-read author for me. I’m a huge fan of rom-coms, and her books put the emphasis on the COM without sacrificing the ROM. Pippa’s books are so over-the-top comedic that they will have your snorting your beverage through your nose, have your significant other looking at you like you have 4 heads, and have your children practically running from you in fear because they are not used to seeing you chuckle and smile so much while they’re around. She’s always a pre-order-download-at-midnight-and-sacrifice-your-sleep read for me.
Master Baker does NOT disappoint. Grady found his soulmate at 14, but Annika had goals and life plans that she needed to follow – not just wanted to, needed to. So after a forced separation of 10 years, they are reunited, and it is NOT a smooth ride. How can it be a smooth ride when you have a 13-year-old snarky sister, town rivalry, and business competition getting in the way? Yet never do you doubt for a second how Grady and Annika feel about each other. It’s refreshing that they both recognize and acknowledge their feelings rather than try to pretend they don’t exist, so you can focus on the forces working against them rather than doubt their sanity! Don’t get me wrong, you doubt their sanity for other reasons since they are Pippa Grant characters, but obviously that’s in a good way.
Rounding out the cast of characters in Master Baker are siblings that are snarky, sharp and supportive, multiple pets with clearly ulterior motives (matchmaking and dirty talking), whole towns with palpable character (hello, Sarcasm), and baked goods. How can you go wrong with a book that builds in backed goods that thrive on love and dirty talk?
Another fun romantic comedy from a master writer with a CRAZY imagination, Master Baker is must read for anyone looking for a rom com ride that will leave you smiling for hours.
I love, Love, LOVE Pippa Grant. Make no mistake about it. I know without a doubt that anytime I pick up one of her books, I will laugh so hard I have to fight not to pee myself intermittently throughout. And this book is no different; that darn parrot and his potty mouth caused a double-whammy: I peed myself just a little while simultaneously snorting coffee out my nose. I need to confess, however, that I truly struggled to like the characters in this one during the early part of the book. I wanted to smack Grady and Annika upside the head for acting like children, and I wanted to throttle Annika’s teenage brat of a sister, Bailey, for thinking she gets to dictate what her adult sister does (and then kick Annika for good measure for allowing her bratty sister to get away with it). Hmm . . . I might need to see someone about my violent tendencies. In retrospect, I must say that Ms. Grant’s ability to elicit such a drastic response to imaginary characters is a HUGE testament to how good of a writer she is. Anyhoo, once Grady and Annika get their heads out of their butts (for the most part), the real fun begins. Because Ms. Grant certainly covers the gamut of romantic tropes, I realize that there will be some books I like less than others simply because I’m not a big fan of, for instance, second-chance stories. But I also realized something else while reading this one: I’d rather read a Pippa Grant book based on one of my least favorite tropes than a book by most other authors based on one of my favorites. I know without a doubt that I can trust Pippa to write realistic characters who will get their HEA, and I will laugh repeatedly as they do so.
A sincere thank you to the author for providing an ARC for review.
It’s official, I’m moving to Shipwreck. I wanted to move there when Pippa took us there with Flirting with the Frenemy but getting to see it through the eyes of the Rock family and I am there.
Annika is a very lucky woman because Holy Jack Sparrow can Grady dirty talk his baked goods.
As is always the case with Pippa’s books I laughed out loud and wished I could jump inside the pages to hang with each member of the crazy cast, even Sue.
I swear no one puts animal sidekicks in books quite like Pippa.
My only complaint— is my Kindle can’t make me the donuts and banana pudding I’m now craving.
1-click this bad boy or walk the plank
Master Baker indeed!
Annika and Grady make me happy, it’s that simple. Pippa makes you really feel for Annika and everything that gets thrown at her and how she reacts. Grady is the perfect combination of delicious and relatable with a dash of crazy pet goat thrown in for good measure. The towns of Shipwreck and Sarcasm are fabulous and I hope to be returning there soon for more high jinx!
You know how you’re not supposed to go to the supermarket when you’re hungry? Yeah, don’t read this book when you’re hungry either. The descriptions of the food (mostly baked goods) are heavenly and I found myself wanting to visit my neighborhood bakery, even knowing that there’s no way whatever I got would measure up to those baked goods from Shipwreck or Sarcasm. ;o)
Ok, now, back to the book. So, superficially, this is a humorous book. There’s an adorable matchmaking goat (a straggler from our time during the book “Flirting with the Frenemy”), our favorite crass parrot (I love Long Beak Silver), a 13-year old sister who can probably out-think (and out-bake) any adult she comes in contact with, (I fear for the safety of all involved if she and Papaya, the little sister in Hot Heir ever got together…) and a baker who has very descriptive, and dirty, ways of talking to his baked items during the process. Not to mention the frisky grandparents. Yeah…
But underlying all this is true emotion. The hero, Grady, loved the heroine Annika. They were best friends in high school and he finally got the courage to tell her how he felt right before she went into the military. She still went because she didn’t want to be like her mother, who had her and her sister when she was young, without help from the father. Feelings of abandonment also ran deep with Annika. They lost contact, with both characters holding on to hurt about how things progressed.
Fast forward 10 years- Annika came back to take care of her mother, who just became blind. She wanted to follow through with her mom’s dream of a bakery but who owns the bakery in a competing town? Yep, Grady (there’s a lot of bad blood between Shipwreck (Grady’s town) and Sarcasm (Annika’s town)). Can they put aside the hurt and their town’s animosity to achieve their HEA? Read on to find out. Full of hijinks, humor and heart, it really makes me wish I lived in a small town where I could be friends with these people. I voluntarily reviewed an ARC and this is my honest review.
Oh I was so happy to see another story from the fabulous town of Shipwreck and Sarcasm!
Master Baker is as decadent and sweet as Grady’s doughnuts. It’s as sassy and funny as Annika’s talents in the kitchen! (hee, hee!!)
This is Grady and Annika’s story, but it’s also so much more! I just love Ms. Grant’s secondary characters (including goats and parrots!).
Grady & Annika have a long history together. Time and distance have separated them, but when they see each other, the same sparks fly, the same heat flows between them.
I actually blushed when reading the way Grady “talks” to his batters and doughs. Holy hotness! Master Baker indeed!
Annika is a hero, in more ways than one! She is overwhelmed and feels she doesn’t need or deserve the help and support. But Grady shows her just how much she really does!
Oh Pippa, you make me laugh, you make me swoon and you make me want more and more from this fictional towns and series!! Please, please, please give us more!!
Ah Annika & Grady! Such a sweet story about a master baker, friendship & families!
A rollicking fun ride which include a billy goat and a fowl (play on word) mouthed parrot. The two love interests dance around each other, commitment issues abound, family drama with a little tragedy. Romance and laughter are the heart of this fun read. Do not miss this one.