Book Reviews

Book Blurb

A grumpy baker, a quirky ad man, and a recipe for forever…

 

Scott

 

So this cute guy sits next to me on the plane and proceeds to talk my ear off for hours. Not good. I don’t like talking and I don’t like strangers. But Theo’s sweet, smart, and sexy—the perfect distraction from business woes and personal worries.

 

Okay, things get overly friendly, but we’re adults who know the score. I’m too old, he’s too nice, and we live on different continents.

 

Then, out of the blue, he shows up at my bakery with that pretty smile and a list of wacky marketing ideas—like how to make fairy cakes a thing.

 

I don’t like fairy cakes.

But I do like Theo, so…maybe?

 

Theo

 

The new me takes risks. The new me is brave and confident. The new me flirts with hunky, imposing bears on planes while traveling to a foreign country.

 

It’s going well, thank you.

 

However, my plans to sight-see, drink tea, and eat my weight in biscuits every day are derailed when I realize there might be a way to help Scott and prove a few things to myself.

 

Don’t worry. I won’t fall for the grumpy baker. No way. He’s complicated and broody and—

 

Uh oh…it might be too late. Help!

Book Review

It’s hard to resist the temptation of classifying this tale as a “cute meet” quickly turning into an exposition of “cute meat”. Mea culpa. The main characters are different in physicality, personality, professions, age, and, though both of American origins, quite distinguishable by their respective degrees of worldliness. That’s perfect becausee, in a romance, too much similarity sadly would be akin to the boring act of breeding purebreds: dull! Author Hayes does a perfect job of quickly marking the differences between the main characters as points of attraction.

 

We meet them, sitting side by side on a transatlantic flight, and we are immediately assured that sex will follow, and with good luck for the reader, so will a HEA. Their cute meet permits a modicum of familiarity, resulting in more cum in the airport men’s room.

 

Theo sees Scott as “a beast of a man” - quite a turn-on. Scott sees Theo as naive, soft and gentle, and, perhaps, too easily available. Again, author Hayes imbues their initial sexual partnering with perfect language and apt pacing – all within the scope of their personalities. Even mild Theo does not shock us in this initial coupling, though he “whimpered like a harlot on a fast train to hell”. Then it’s done, and incredibly their apparent personalities blend, but they most politely exchange “thanks” and wish each other goodbye.

 

Of course, our principals meet up again and, exercising better judgment, get to know each other. They engage in business activities to further Scott’s teetering bakeries. All the while, Scott resists their strong chemistry, based on his own bad past experiences, and some convenient self-denigration – that Theo is too young for him, too good, too sweet, perhaps too innocent. We become familiar with the characters’ inner truths, and growing attraction. The full-on sex, assuredly preordained, finally occurs, and occurs, and – well, you won’t be disappointed. Mounting lust (pun?) is set against the limited time that Theo is spending in England. Their intimacy irrevocably grows well beyond mere physical sex (though, at one point, Theo wonders whether to charge Scott for Theo’s business advice in hand jobs or blow jobs).

 

'Fairy Cakes in Winter’ reaches beyond just the satisfying bumping of uglies – there are touristy excursions around Bath and there are interactions with fully-drawn secondary characters, enlarging our knowledge of the heroes’ essences; parental divorce is reviewed.

 

Time passes, and despite the reader wishing for our heroes to wake up and do right, respective concerns and reticence seem to be leading to unbearable sadness. How does one love a man who lives worlds away? Are you one of those optimistic readers who really, really believed Rhett should have stayed with Scarlet, or may even return in a sequel? You’re the one who will most feel the angst of these heroes’ reality.

 

Ambiance is the watchword when our heroes are about to part but haven’t the courage to express their love – until Theo, as they get ready to finally part, tells Scott “I love you.”

 

Like a lovely, long symphony – at the apparent final moments of exquisite tension (and perhaps doubt), the orchestra swells with a strong, demanding coda, assuring the audience of completion, satisfaction, reassurance. Enough of this review; just read the book and share Theo and Scott’s glorious life coda.

 

 

 

 

DISCLAIMER: Books reviewed on this site were usually provided at no cost by the publisher or author. This book has been provided by the author via GRRT for the purpose of a review.

 

Additional Information

Format	ebook and print
Length	Novella, 168 pages
Heat Level
Publication Date	16-February-2023
Price	$4.99 ebook, $12.99 paperback
Buy Link	https://www.amazon.com/Fairy-Cakes-Winter-Age-Gap-Sunshine-ebook/dp/B0BSGB1WMX