Boy meets girl and sparks fly, not here, they meet and you can feel the negative tension in the air. This was not a warm and fuzzy read, it actually was a rather hard to get through for me.
The title refers to the love connections with locks on a fence, and that is nice, but the story did drag. Of course there is a person who wants it all gone, the fence and the bakery.
Come and visit Bri, Gerard, and the Aunts, along with Charles!
Hang on, the ending does get better and some of the answers come, not always what we want, but it does have a sweet ending, and more baking.

I received this book through NetGalley and the Publisher Revell, and was not required to give a positive review.

The book's cover is lovely and I enjoyed the small-town setting with the quirky cast of secondary characters. I do love a flawed hero with a bit of a snarky side, so I was impressed with Gerard right away. He's an appealing hero and one I was interested in rooting for. The dialog is witty and well-crafted. As others have stated, this novel's premise would make a great screenplay.
Sadly, I did not feel an emotional connection with the heroine. The conflicts and the hero and heroine's motivations were not particularly strong, either. I didn't understand why she was so obsessed with her parents' relationship or why he was so negative about romantic relationships. Also, why did he keep 'forgetting' to mention the money he'd received as a bribe? There were too many coincidences used as plot devices, which impacted the novel's plausibility. Finally, this is marketed as Christian fiction, yet the characters make zero mention of their faith or their world view. While a pastor makes an appearance and has a few key lines, the characters' don't demonstrate any spiritual growth. At the very end, there are some comments and a mention of a Bible verse, which feel tacked on and out of context. I was disappointed. I expect more from a book published by Revell.

The Key to Love
by Betsy St. Amant
Rating: 4/5
Release date: October 13, 2020

I've haven't read many books by Betsy St. Amant, but I did enjoy her contribution to A Year of Weddings so I was excited to have the opportunity to read this gem. I was not disappointed and the author doesn't skimp on the story which pleasantly surprised me. Although I will say, by reading the title, I was hoping for music inspired theme but alas, the "key" has nothing to do with music but with locks and keys.

Bri Duval is a classic romantic at heart thanks to the beautiful love story her parents demonstrated for her before they tragically passed away. She is a talented baker of Parisian treats at the struggling, local bakery, The Pastry Puff, in Story, Kansas. Her beloved mother taught her everything she knew except for her secret ingredient for the macarons, so Bri is constantly trying to perfect the recipe. Even though Paris' famous lovelock bridge was taken down, Bri has created her own lovelock wall at her bakery and decides to film the shop's successful love stories. The video goes viral, and Trek Magazine wants to do a feature on the bakery shop. Gerard Fortier is the man sent to write the article, and he and Bri do not hit it off right away. With a little bit of Elizabeth and Darcy first impressions vibes, the two just don't seem to get along and only seem to push each other's buttons. Gerard is a man who doesn't ever want to put down roots but instead travels the world in search of his next article. He does, however, desire to be promoted so he can write on topics that really matter, so he's determined to complete this sappy article despite his opinions on love. As Gerard begins to get to know Bri, obstacles to the bakery's success keep getting in the way. Can Gerard and Bri find a way to come together and find real love?

I really enjoyed the story and loved how it didn't seem rushed. So many times watching Hallmark movies, I'm always yelling at the screen that the couple have only known each other for a few days. lol. I appreciate the slow burn and snark that occurs between the couple. I appreciate that the concept of what romance and love is is explored. The small town vibes were charming and made me want to go visit (especially since I'm so close to Kansas). My mouth was constantly watering at the desserts, and I was googling where I could find some petit fours and macarons. The struggling bakery also gave me "You've Got Mail" vibes, which made me smile.

Highly recommend if you enjoy romantic comedies set in a small town.

My thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of the book. All opinions expressed here are entirely my own. No positive review was expected and no compensation received.

This is my first book by this author and I loved it! It was so fun. It was set in a bakery and had me drooling with all the talk of Petit Fours. I’m going to have to go to a bakery tomorrow. It had wonderful characters. The two old ladies who play matchmaker for the town were hilarious with their not so subtle plans. There was a lot of humor when the cynical travel writer, Gerard, comes to town and gets off to a bad start with Bri. Their whole relationship was great. She’s a die-hard romantic and he’s not afraid to share his opinion on anything and everything. There are aspects of small town life that are instantly recognizable. It was just a great read. I’d highly recommend it.
Thank you to Revell for providing me with a free e-copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

The Key to Love is a very sweet (so many macaroons and petit fours!!) romance about finding love in unexpected places.

Bri is a romantic. She’s holding out for a big romance, just like the one her parents shared. But her aunts’ bakery, where she works and tries to recreate both her mother’s legacy and recipes, is in danger of being sold, demolished and replaced with a chain store. When a travel magazine sends a reporter to write about the bakery, Bri hopes it will be just what they need to save it. But the journalist, Gerard is nothing like she expected and seems against them and her from the start.

I really enjoyed the romance between Gerard and Bri. They are complete opposites. Bri has stayed in her comfort zone, living and working in her home town. She likes bitter coffee and sweet treats. She loves all things romance. Gerard has sworn off love after a relationship gone bad and words of advice from a trusted mentor. He lives a life with no strings holding him back and is cynical about relationships. Settling down is the very last thing on his plan. He also has no desire to write a sappy article about a bakery, but it’s the only thing between him and a promotion.

Bri and Gerard butt heads right from the start. Yet despite everything that is different between them, their different goals in life, they connect. Well, mostly they argue and fight, snap and banter, but they also have a few moments where they really gel. They also have some challenging conversations about their desires for life and what has gone wrong for them. They build each other up but also challenge each other to consider more for their futures.

Bri is a Christian and refers to her trust in God, but the faith journey in this book is Gerard’s, as he is challenged by Bri’s light and selflessness and his mother’s downward spiral. Caring words spoken by a pastor help Gerard to search for further meaning in his life.

If you enjoy really sweet romance with a good heart, you’ll love Betsy St Amant’s The Key To Love.

The publishers provided an advanced readers copy of this book for reviewing purposes. All opinions are my own.

Do you like your romance with a good sweet to roast ratio?
I sure do, and I absolutely loved the banter between these two characters!
He is clinical and jaded, she is idealistic and sentimental.
But when they clash the jabs fly. And I do love verbal sparring!
This book had that sweet charm with the meddling matchmakers and the fight to hold onto the memories of the past. This book had depth to it too. Ot had two characters that grew and realized that maybe their preconceptions about what love and life were supposed to look like can change. I loved seeing them grow. The plot kept me engaged and eager to find out how it would end.
I really enjoyed it and recommend it to readers who enjoy Denise Hunter or any kind of contemporary romance.
I recieved a copy of this book from the publisher through Netgally. All opinions are my own and honest.

This book had a solid, appealing premise, but in my opinion, fell short of the mark. The female lead was immature and unlike-able, the male was deceptive, which could have been cute if handled differently.

I tried, but couldn’t appreciate the story. Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book, but my opinions are my own.

3 1/2 stars.

This is a new-to-me author. I enjoyed the story, even though it read a bit too long in parts.

Bri is stuck in Story, KS, baking like her mom did, in the same bakery. She has her parents' love story on a pedestal, and when she discovers new facts that contradict that, she struggles with it.

Gerard is a travel writer and gets the assignment to go write about the bakery and the wall of locks that imitates the one in Paris. Since he wants a promotion, he agrees to go, despite his reticence.

Both Bri and Gerard both have hangups about their perception of love and they butt heads a lot in the beginning. As they relent to each other, their friendship deepens and brings them closer.

I received a copy from the publisher through NetGalley and this is my honest opinion.

I loved this book by Betsy St. Amant. It has all the feels! Bri's infatuation with her parent's love story is woven throughout the book and is the basis of so many of her decisions. Then Gerard comes riding into town with his cynicism of all things romance. This book will keep you up at late, trying to finish it to find out how it will all end. I highly recommend this book to any fan of small town romance, a bakery, and a happy ever after.

I was lured in by the synopsis on the book's back cover and sure glad I was. This book was just plain good fun to read. A heroine who thinks love must be picture perfect to be perfect love is holding out for a love like her mother and father had. A jaded world traveling reporter is assigned to a little bakery in a small town that claims to have a market on love and marriage. What follows is just complete fun all the way around. And lessons are learned, too, and hurts get healed. Recommended.

*My thanks to Revell Publishing for a copy of this book via Net Galley. The opinion in this review is entirely my own.

The Key to Love ought to have been a book I loved. I've enjoyed Betsy St. Amant's books in the past, the premise of this book sounded good, and the French influence and desserts had my mouth watering with just a thought. Unfortunately, the secret ingredient seems to be missing, and The Key to Love was more a miss than a hit.

There are several things to like about this book. I'm always a fan of the enemies-to-lovers trope, and while Bri and Gerard don't exactly fit that description, it's close enough. I like the back and forth of their relationship, but the dramatic encounter that would break them up, even temporarily, was obvious from the very beginning. While I'm usually fine with this sort of set up in Christian fiction, I just don't like that the drama here is based simply on Gerard being forgetful. Additionally, while Gerard claims that he wants what's best for Bri, he never truly considers what Bri wants for herself. Sadly, other characters do the same thing, and although Bri ultimately ends up in a better position, it would be better if it had been the result of her own decisions.

That being said, Bri's kind heart and her love of baking ring true, and I love the scenes of her working around the bakery. St. Amant knows how to describe desserts to make you want to hit up the nearest bakery, and I love the ambiance of the Puff and its importance in the small town of Story. Coming from a small town, I can very much relate to the comfort and joy of being known at your favorite local place, and the Puff plays that role for may of the people in Story. In contrast to Bri is Gerard, who is basically Oscar the Grouch in comparison to Bri. It's nice to see Gerard's iciness thaw as the residents of Story intrude upon his isolation and begin to win him over, but I couldn't really connect with him as a character. Maybe getting more of his backstory would help; it's not as if we need his entire history, but I feel as if we just get the highlights and that's enough for Bri to fall for him. Their relationship doesn't feel unbelievable per se, but it does feel rushed.

On top of that, the coincidence of Gerard's mentor being the man with whom Bri's mother had an emotional affair is too much. Of all the men in France, it has to be the same man that Gerard would meet? It doesn't work for me. I don't mind the affair itself--that is, I don't mind that St. Amant uses the affair to help Bri realize that love isn't all sunshine and butterflies and that it takes real work--but the conclusion is too convenient.

Overall, The Key to Love could've been a 5 star read for me, but I failed to truly connect with the characters, and there are certain plot lines that play out in ways that rub me wrong. While I think this might make a nice Hallmark movie, I don't know that I would recommend this as a book to anyone.

The beautiful cover is just the doorway into this story. It’s filled with references to baking, Paris, and love. Along with an enemies to lovers trope that volleys back and forth the entire time.

I have somehow never read a Betsy St. Amant book! Well, now that has changed I am going to be devouring whatever else she has published! This book was hilarious! And super cute! I loved the romance between the two characters and how this book made them work for it. They didn't fall in love by the end of the second chapter. And I like that in a book! The cast of characters, especially the old ladies had me rolling. This book felt like I was in Stars Hollow and I am HERE FOR IT!!!!

I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley.

The cover of this book immediately grabbed my attention as did the blurb. I was in the mood for a light romance and this seemed like a perfect fit.

Now I watch every single Hallmark movie for every season and at first I pictured this just like the plot of a Hallmark movie. However, this one was much much cheesier to the point where I could not finish it after more than half way.

I tried, but I could not find anything I liked about Bri and it was painfully cheesy. I am okay with no curse words, but I also roll my eyes at so many doggone it, hecks, good gravy's, good griefs. It just wasn't my type of book.

I tried to remove my annoyance with Girard and Bri and continue on for the plot, but much of what Bri does, doesn't make any sense, Also, her dialogue and "comebacks" with Girard are painfully forced. Him calling Bri cupcake every other line was also so cringey.

I tried, I really did.

Fans of contemporary romance who enjoy books incorporating small towns, food, and bakeries into the storyline and Hallmark movies may want to check out The Key to Love by Betsy St. Amant. I was immediately drawn to this book by its gorgeous cover and premise of the storyline. Once I read the blurb, I was definitely interested in reading this book. While the storyline has great potential, I was hoping to connect to the characters more. No matter what genre I am reading, the connections that I as a reader make with the characters are what remains with me long after the final page.

I received a complimentary copy of this book and was not required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are mine.

I've read a few books by this author before, and I enjoyed them. So I went into reading this book with high hopes. But, unfortunately, the book didn't live up to my expectations. There were some parts of the book that were good. But I had a really hard time connecting to the main characters.

Bri loved french macarons and romance. I liked Bri and the baking. Some parts were cute. I just couldn't connect to the characters and get hooked

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley. These are my honest thoughts.

The cover of this book caught my eye immediately, and I knew right away I wanted to read it. I had heard fantastic things about the author and her lighthearted romance stories, and that cover was completely irresistible. The premise sounded right up my alley too.

That pink loveliness that was the cover, with the sparkle lights and the bakery window, might be the best thing this book had going for it.

Or I might just not be the target audience for this book.

I was expecting a lighthearted romance, perhaps a romcom, which was exactly what I was in the mood for when I chose to read this book.

What I ended up getting was a forced romance between two people who hated each other’s guts and were completely rude to each other even after three passionate kisses. Not only did the leading lady not have any common sense or use Business 101 tactics to “save” the bakery she worked at (instead, choosing to give away more products and services than she ever sold, with no complaints from the two owners, shockingly), but other characters made major life-altering decisions for her because they apparently knew better than she did what was best for her. (The leading man, at one point, even wished her dream would get crushed because “it could be a blessing in disguise for her.”) The premise was lost on me when it became clear the lady had enough savings to make an offer on the bakery yet chose not to and hoped the magazine article would save the place or that the shop would be willed to her, and that she kept giving away practically every ounce of coffee and treats to any customer that came in off the street.

I don’t deal well with controlling characters, after having experienced that sort of thing on a personal level for eighteen years and finally making a clean break from that scenario, so this book was clearly not the right fit for me.

One thing I truly hope gets edited out before publication was the super offensive line about a particular hair color inducing anxiety in a person. No matter what color the hair is, natural or otherwise, there is no way it would cause anxiety in this adrenaline-junky travel writer character who claimed it might, nor would it in any non-traumatized person.

Another issue I noticed was that, when discussing a particular super popular, general market romance book, the leading lady said cheating was okay because the character “wasn’t married yet.” According to the Bible, sex outside of marriage (including before marriage) is never okay and always a sin. Even if I had been rooting for Miss Bri prior to this moment, that one would have lost me for sure. She never did change her view on this topic, to realize her “belief” was anti-biblical.

The nicknames the leading man gave to two different women were overused and degrading. This always irks me, especially when it’s a name given to the person he is supposed to care the most about. Even if he originally didn’t like her, which was obvious, once he did like her, it would make sense to stop using the degrading nickname and treat her with respect. As a professional journalist, it would have made better sense to respect the person he was doing a story on in the first place.

What I loved, which wasn’t much, about this book was 1) the cover, which was and still is spectacular and one of my favorites this year; 2) the preacher, John, who gave fantastic advice; and 3) the desserts, which practically melted on my tongue.

I wish I had more positives to share. I wish I would have adored this story. I wanted to adore this story so much. I’m highly disappointed right now. I’m not even sure which book to read next, because this one has left such a bad taste in my mouth at the moment.

One more positive: This book will likely have a million fans. I have a feeling I will be in the minority with disliking it. It is my hope that other readers will find the delightful story I feel I missed.

This novel had me dreaming of freshly baked macaroons. Reminded me so much of a hallmark movie however I just couldn’t connect to the main characters.

Beautiful and deeply heartfelt, I loved the feel of this book.

“She needed someone who could kiss her and make her foot pop like in the black-and-white movies. The only thing Charles made pop was her bubble of expectations.”

A little bit of Paris brought to small town America, St. Amant beautifully spins a tale of healing and finding love where you’d least expect it in “The Key to Love.” Bri Duval is wrapped up in waiting for her perfect love; a love like her parents had. She will do anything to keep the bakery in which her mom baked masterful pastries and confections. However, her whole world is flipped upside down when Gerard Fortier walks into their little bakery. This love-hate relationship had me yearning for their happily ever after. The matchmaking “Love Angels” have their own agenda and keep a dash of humor going throughout the book. I loved the Paris and wanderlust theme, which is truly the desire of Bri’s heart. I could relate with Bri’s desire to travel and yet, not wanting to leave her safe, small town. Gerard drove me a bit nuts with his attitude, but that was also what I loved about him.

“But he didn’t ask when everything was perfect. It’s easy to love when life is shiny and looks it best…”
“It’s easy to love when everything is perfect”

Another beautiful aspect of this story in the town of Story, was seeing the beauty outside of perfection. As Bri is waiting for her knight in shining armor, she is missing out on the love God has all around her. Gerard is living in pessimism and a darker view of life after losing in love. As they both realize the lives they have lived has sheltered them from the love God has for them, the true beauty of their love begins to shine.

Though this is not a fast paced romance, it is filled with truths that made the story shine. I loved the small town feel and the references to Paris. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves contemporary small town romance with a twist of wanderlust in their hearts. Sometimes the unexpected brings us to a deeper place than we ever expected. It opens our hearts to dream bigger and perhaps put feet behind that dream.

I received a NetGalley copy of this book by the publisher, Revell. All opinions given in this review are my own and given honestly.