Publishers Weekly
11/20/2023
Reality TV producer Ford debuts with the charming story of a British home baker’s turn in the spotlight. Jennifer Quinn, 77, has lived a quiet life with her sweet, supportive husband Bernard, to whom she’s been married for nearly 60 years. Though she feels she should be content, Jenny longs for something more. So, without telling Bernard, she applies to be a contestant on the popular competition show Britain Bakes. Her sneaking stirs memories of a long-held secret: before she met Bernard, she gave a baby up for adoption, and she’s always been convinced that telling him would ruin their marriage. To her surprise, Jenny’s chosen for the show. When she shares the news with Bernard, he’s shocked but thrilled for her. Jenny decides to bake treats for the show based on memories of pastries she ate at crucial points in her past. She makes it to the finals and enjoys some fame as the show begins airing, but Ford’s smoothly told narrative builds to a crisis point when one of Jenny’s Facebook posts is unearthed by the media. Fans of cooking competitions will find this feel-good story delectable. (Jan.)
From the Publisher
Praise for Mrs. Quinn's Rise to Fame:
“Ford transports you back to that cozy, something’s-in-the-oven world where you somehow know (or at least believe) that everything is going to be OK.”
—New York Times Book Review
“Fans of cooking competition shows will devour this romp about an elderly home baker who appears on one in secret. As cozy as a cup of tea and cake.”
—People
“A sweet confection… Readers are sure to eat up this delicious paean to pursuing one's dreams at every age.”
—NPR
“Calling all Great British Baking Show fans: When you've salivated your way through the latest season (and the entire back catalog), this charming novel will fill the cake-shaped hole in your heart. The story of an older woman who enters a televised baking show is as cozy as a night in grandma's kitchen with the kind of feel-good suspense we love from the likes of Paul Hollywood.”
—Good Housekeeping
“Ford. . . entertains readers with backstage shenanigans while also focusing on the depth and intimacy that come from a lifetime of knowing someone.”
—The Washington Post
“There are a couple of recipes included at the end of the book. I haven’t attempted them, but I’m going to assume that taking them out of the oven will — like The Great British Baking Show and Mrs. Quinn's Rise to Fame — feel all warm and cozy.”
—Minneapolis Star-Tribune
“Ford’s writing is sentimental without being saccharine, and the scenes from Jenny’s youth are, much like Jenny’s pastry, deliciously layered. . . For anyone who’s ever wished they could read, instead of watch, reality TV.”
—Kirkus
"A warm, sincere and heartfelt tale with relatable characters."
—Library Journal
“One of those books you just want to hug to your chest. I loved it so much.”
—Jasmine Guillory, New York Times bestselling author of While We Were Dating
“This novel is perfectly baked, utterly delicious, and completely moreish. Mrs. Quinn is destined to become the nation’s favourite.”
—Clare Pooley, New York Times bestselling author of Iona Iverson's Rules for Commuting
“Soul-enriching….From its enticing setting to its perfect ending, Mrs. Quinn’s Rise To Fame is absolutely marvelous. Like a great dessert, you’ll wish you could come back for more.”
—J. Ryan Stradal, New York Times bestselling author of Kitchens of the Great Midwest
“Olivia Ford has written a moving, uncommon coming-of-age story, and if the age Mrs. Quinn is coming of is a few decades older than usual, it’s all the more uplifting and empowering for it. I loved the insider’s look into a reality TV show and the delicious descriptions of all the bakes, but it’s the love stories at the center of this novel that so beautifully rise.”
—Laurie Frankel, New York Times bestselling author of This Is How It Always Is
"Mrs. Quinn's Rise to Fame is a charming, heartfelt and uplifting novel about love, family and the emotive power of home baking. I loved every minute of it!"
—Libby Page, bestselling author of The Lido
"Mrs Quinn’s Rise to Fame is a delightful story full of warmth, kindness and cake. Author Olivia Ford shows us that it’s never too late to take chances and step out of our comfort zone, and readers will be inspired and moved by Mrs Quinn’s charming coming-of-age tale. So sit back with a cup of tea and a slice of cake while you devour this deliciously feel-good story."
—Freya Sampson, bestselling author of The Lost Ticket
“Mrs Quinn’s Rise to Fame is an absolute delight. A lovely novel full of warmth, courage and heart, Jenny Quinn is a heroine you’ll cheer for every step of the way.”
—AJ Pearce, bestselling author of Mrs. Porter Calling
“Delightful and heartwarming, Mrs. Quinn's Rise to Fame is the ultimate comfort read and a sweet reminder that it's never too late to pursue our dreams.”
—Margarita Montimore, bestselling author of Oona Out of Order
“A warm-hearted book that rises to the top with its delightful story and wonderful characters.”
—Phaedra Patrick, bestselling author of The Messy Lives of Book People
Library Journal
12/01/2023
DEBUT Bernard Quinn is convinced that his wife of 59 years has a mortal illness. Recently, she has been very secretive, making strange phone calls and disappearing to appointments. Jenny Quinn has only kept two secrets from Bernard: the first from before they met, and her new secret, that she's tried out for the popular televised cooking competition Britain Bakes. Although the couple are approaching their 60th wedding anniversary and still in love, Jenny has keenly felt the absence of never having had the opportunity to raise children. Discontented and fearful of the future, she turns to the comfort of baking for her friends, neighbors, and especially for Bernard's niece Rose and her young family. When Jenny wins a spot on the show, she discovers that the love and support of friends and family helps her to find self-confidence to compete and the courage to reveal her first secret to her husband. VERDICT Debut author Ford offers up a warm, sincere and heartfelt tale with relatable characters. Full of appetizing descriptions of baked goods, it will please fans of TV cooking competitions.—Joy Gunn
Kirkus Reviews
2023-10-21
A septuagenarian with a penchant for baking proves her worth.
After her husband, Bernard, comments that they’re no longer going to “embark on any grand adventures,” Jenny Quinn, a 77-year-old pensioner living in Kittlesham, England, sneaks into their study to secretly apply for a spot on a televised baking competition. Jenny doesn’t truly believe she has a shot at making it onto Britain Bakes—an obvious stand-in for The Great British Bake Off, right down to the jokes about a “soggy bottom”—but nonetheless summons the courage to hit Submit. Much to her surprise, she makes it onto the show. While she’s initially plagued with self-doubt and worries that she’s only been cast as a cruel joke, Jenny admits her plans to her doting husband, packs up her old-fashioned cast-iron kitchen scales, and takes the competition by storm. Many of Jenny’s bakes on the show harken back to significant moments from her childhood and young adulthood, and, sprinkled throughout the book, Ford intersperses the world of 17-year-old Jenny, which includes a secret that not even Bernard knows about. Ford’s writing is sentimental without being saccharine, and the scenes from Jenny’s youth are, much like Jenny’s pastry, deliciously layered. While readers might wish for a bit more conflict in the contemporary timeline, as our heroine would surely argue, there’s nothing wrong with indulging in a little something sweet: “Jenny has shown that our dreams have a place at every stage of our journey...that they can be achieved because of our age, and not in spite of it.”
For anyone who’s ever wished they could read, instead of watch, reality TV.
