Always the Baker Never the Bride ~ Reader Friday

Patricia Bradley Reader Friday 36 Comments

Always the Baker Never the Bride by Sandra D. Bricker is this week’s Reader Friday. Here’s the first line: “She just went over like a lopsided sack o’ corn. I tell ya, I never saw nothin’ like it.”

I loved this book! But first the photo and verse. There was just enough light to capture the slight hint of pink in the sky and the bare limbs of the trees.  But spring is coming! And I love those two verses in Psalm 91. They are very comforting.

It’s been a busy week with the release of Fatal Witness! It made it to the #12 spot on Amazon in Christian Mystery and Suspense. Thank you! Now onto Sandra D. Bricker’s Always the Baker Never the Bride. Here’s the cover and back copy:

They say you can’t have your cake and eat it too. But who would want a cake they couldn’t eat? Just ask Emma Rae Travis about that. A baker of confections who is diabetic and can’t enjoy them.

When Emma meets Jackson Drake, the escapee from Corporate America who is starting a wedding destination hotel to fulfill a dream that belonged to someone else, this twosome and their crazy family ties bring new meaning to the term “family circus.” The Atlanta social scene will never be the same!

My take:

I started reading this book when I went to bed, thinking I would read a chapter, and then go to sleep…I didn’t put it down until two the next morning. It was a feel-good book!  ~ Confession ~ I’ve had this book for several years and somehow it got put away without me reading it. I found it recently and laid it on my bedside table. Now I have to get the other books in the series.

Emma was such a wonderful heroine. I felt as though I knew her personally, and she was a perfect fit for Jackson, even if he didn’t know it. And poor Jackson–his three older sisters are determined to take care of him, never mind he’s a successful businessman. Emma is caught in the middle of her parents’ strange divorce, and then there’s her aunt, Sophie, who adds so much to the story.

Oh, and the recipes! They sound amazing and are a bonus. Bicker has crafted a great story here that will leave you feeling better about the world.

Always the Baker Never the Bride is in KU and you can read it for free or purchase it here.

Leave a comment (like the first line of whatever you’re reading) and I’ll enter you in a February drawing for a book from my library! January’s winner is Tim Johnson!

Check out my review of Always the Baker Never the Bride. Leave the 1st line of what you're reading and I'll enter you in a drawing for a book from my library! Share on X

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Comments 36

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  1. Tim Johnson

    That is an unusual photo. As Ansel Adams would say, it’s all about just the right light. Good pairing of the verse to go with it.

    What am I reading now? Why, “Fatal Witness” of course! I’m just starting chapter 14, and loving the story. So many possibilities.

    I just finished David James Warren’s (yes, Susie May’s son) “Cast the First Stone”, #1 in the series The True Lies of Rembrandt Stone. It starts a bit slow, but I got hooked about half way through. It works in a bit of time travel, so you have to put on your science fiction hat, but keep your suspense hat handy. You’ll need it. Warning: the end is a cliff hanger.

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      Patricia Bradley

      Tim, did I ever tell you that Susie Warren is the main reason I’m published? She is a fantastic teacher. I’ll have to check out David’s book–I’m sure the apple didn’t fall far from the tree. 🙂

  2. Diana Hardt

    This comes from Double Take by Lynette Eason: The click next to her ear jerked her out of a deep sleep to roll into a sitting position, a scream on her lips, her eyes on the man with the gun standing next to her. “Adam?” “What are you doing?”

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  3. Priscilla Bettis

    Congratulations to Tim Johnson!

    Oh, that first line, Pat. It cracked me up! I bet the whole book is full of humor.

    I am reading The Rubicon by Aubrey Taylor. It’s a historical Christian fiction set in WWII Germany. The first sentence: Discipline.
    As you can imagine, the book covers some grim topics. But it’s also a compelling read. (Oh! And it’s on sale this month over at Amazon.)

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  4. Gail Hollingsworth

    The verse reminds me of a a bird opening her wings to shield her babies.
    I loved Fatal Witness! So glad it’s doing well.
    Finding a good book that has been in a readers stack is like finding hidden treasure! Definitely adding it to my list.

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  5. Barbara Diggs

    Sandra Bricker’s book sounds delightful. Love those kind of stories! Great review, Pat. Books that go to 2 a.m. are always a winner. lol

    Love, love, love the photo and those gentle hues throughout the sky. Absolutely gorgeous! I really look forward to these and the Scripture.

    Congratulations on Fatal Witness glad YOUR books finally came!!! 🙂 Wonderful plot and characters.

    “Ella Whitaker braced herself for another of the woman’s screams.” This is the first line in Stephenia H. McGee’s book, In His Eyes.

    Congratulations Tim! Clap!Clap!

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      1. Barbara Diggs

        Pat, I just got five of Stephenia’s books. Boy am I in for a treat, huh? So neat that you had the brainstorming session, 🙂

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  6. Caryl Kane

    PROLOGUE
    Sigh no more, ladies, sigh no more, men were deceivers ever;
    One foot in sea, and one on shore, to one thing constant never. Shakespeare

    Virginia Coast
    April 1745

    With his back to the coastal wind, Henri Lennox settles his arms around Esmee Shaw, guiding her soft, pale hands with his tanned, callused fingers as they let the long silken line out. A Heart Adrift Laura Frantz

    Happy Weekend

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  7. Miss Mary

    Gorgeous photo, and like you Pat, I find Ps. 91:1-2 comforting.
    Congrats on Fatal Witness doing so well! Can’t wait to read it.
    Congrats Tim!
    When I first read your email early early this morning your review of Always the Baker Never the Bride nabbed me and I have downloaded it from KU. Mysteries and romantic suspense are my favorite genre but sometimes I want a lighthearted read.
    I’m reading Forgotten Past by Mary Alford – “She’d made a dreadful mistake.”

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  8. Alicia Haney

    The sketchy basement space was dark as a cave ,save what, little light the fifteen-inch computer monitor provided, and outside the window the moon was playing hide- and- seek.

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  9. Gloria A

    This sounds like a fun read. I plan to check it out. Congrats, Tim! I just finished this book:
    Prelude
    I never thought my life would turn out this way, and to be honest, I would never have chosen this path, given the choice.
    The Ark and the Dove by Jill Eileen Smith

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  10. Edward Arrington

    Wonderful picture. The selection of Scripture is a good one. I think of Jim Elliot whenever I read the last phrase of vs. 1.

    I don’t remember reading any of Sandra Bricker’s books, although I think I won one of her books in a giveaway nine years ago. She passed away the year after that.

    Tonight or tomorrow, I plan to start reading Lisa Harris’ Aftermath. The first two lines:
    “Don’t get too comfortable.”
    Chase Beckett opened his eyes as his brother-in-law, Jace McQuaid, slid into the empty train seat across from him.

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  11. L. Murphy

    I’m reading an ARC of Kimberely Woodhouse’s 8 Down. It starts with “Nothing could have prepared her for the dead body at the crime scene.” It’s fantastic! I highly recommend it!

    Thanks for your review of Always the Baker Never the Bride. I went to KU and downloaded it immediately.
    I’m looking forward to reading Fatal Witness. Congratulations on its success!

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  12. Ms. Dottie

    I love your photo and verse Patricia, you always pick the right one!
    Congratulations on your book release and the #12 spot already, I’m sure it will climb quickly. I can’t wait to read it! I’m currently reading the 2nd book in Mary Connealy’s newest series, “The Law of Attraction “ and the first line is “If I have to make one more pair of chaps… Nell Armstrong heard her own voice. Good grief, thinking about chaps had her talking to herself again. She badly wanted to make dresses and bonnets, ribbons and ruffles. “Would it kill someone in this town to want a few yards of lace?” This series has some humor and a lot of suspense too!
    I put the Always A Baker book on my TBR list. I love to read a light read now and then, we all need some laughter in all this craziness!!

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  13. Trixi

    Funny thing, I have that book on my shelf…buried in the back somewhere, lol! I’ll have to dig this one out because I love feel-good books. I see all the books are on Kindle Unlimited so I’ll have to borrow those as well 🙂 Also, I remember hearing about her passing in 2016. Seems we lost quite a few good authors over the last few years.

    My book I just got done reading & reviewing is “The Irish Matchmaker” by Jennifer Deibel. I absolutely LOVE the setting in Ireland & would love to visit someday! Here’s the first few lines:

    The warning came far too late, and before Donal Bunratty could register what his daughter was saying, he was slammed into with the force of a locomotive. Arms akimbo, he craned his neck to anchor himself in space while his feet flew up and over his head. The rustic odor of wet hide assaulted his senses, and Donal groaned and rolled onto his back. Wiping the muck from his eyes, he looked up to find Bo standing over him, huffing. Donal grunted. “Hallo auld man.”

    That was his gentle (but big) bull and that scene made me laugh! Donal didn’t get hurt, thankfully, but I could just picture that scene in my mind. I loved this book so much….Jennifer writes with such a lyrical voice and makes the reader feel like they plopped right into the pages of the book.

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