Final Rating: 4.5 Stars

In Paris Daillencourt is About to Crumble, Alexis Hall takes us back to the Baked Expectations universe for the second round of showtime. Once again Alexis Hall creates a baking show universe that is very easy to fall into with a bright collection of supportive characters.

There is an abundant portrayal of Paris's severe anxiety that is present through his internal monologue and self-destructive decisions, especially in his initial interactions with Tariq. Paris continues to make these decisions throughout the story, and although it becomes repetitive, I think it's an accurate reflection of living with severe anxiety.

Hall's banter is still present in this story and is woven throughout several characters (namely Tariq's housemates). Hall also includes several important topics namely loneliness, religion, and identity. I really admired how Tariq set firm boundaries and reminded Paris that he can also set boundaries to ensure that he's comfortable. Tariq is a sweetheart that exudes confidence, and I wished that his POV was more available in some chapters. Watching Paris and Tariq grow emotionally toward the end of the story felt very sweet and rewarding and I want the best for both of them!

Thank you to Netgalley and Forever Publishing for a copy of an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Ok. While this is a solid standalone book, I would appreciate it if it was made clearer that it was technically part of a series. However, I am not annoyed with the fact but I'm not going to go back to book 1 so I get everything.

I wanted to like this book more than I did. I appreciated a main character who has anxiety. Now, did it get repetitive? Absolutely but that's how I know she got it right. Anxiety is so much about how you keep on circling back and forth with what you are facing. So that was spot on and I liked how he went through his treatment. That was great. I also loved the competition part and the judges. As someone who watches a lot of baking competition shows, that felt spot on. I did like it.

Now, what I didn't like? It's less dislike and more that I feel that Paris and Tariq simply didn't fit as a couple for me. There was something missing that I couldn't put my finger on. I'm not sure this really should be labeled a romance due to how much was spent on everything else happening in the book. If anything, i would say a contemporary but I'm not in charge of labels.

All in all, an enjoyable book.

I am what you would call an Alexis Hall ‘Stan.’ I will read absolutely everything they ever write, because they have the ability to write the sweetest, sexiest, silliest, most absurdly good queer romances that always make me laugh and cry and feel hopeful. So I was eagerly awaiting this book (the first in the series was a delight, can’t go wrong with queer romance and baking shows!), and I have to say …

Book, it isn’t you. It’s me.

The main character, Paris, is an anxious mess. He’s self-deprecating, questions himself constantly, is in desperate need of therapy, and treats people like crap because he is so damaged. And I could see myself in some of his mannerisms, and it became SO HARD to enjoy this book. Granted, I’ve been in therapy for a long time, worked on myself, put a lot of effort into being nice and positive and not a big bag of sad all the time. But Paris? Paris has not gotten there yet. And the whole time reading I was just so ANNOYED with Paris.

So, this was a cute queer romance - with no sex (!), a Muslim mc, delightful side characters, baking and adorableness and all that. But I just did not enjoy it, because … ugh, Paris. I wish I could say differently.

Regardless, Alexis Hall is still one of my favorite authors, and I’m excited to read whatever they write, forever. This book just didn’t work for me.

There are things you come to expect from an Alexis Hall book: wit, dry humor, quirky characters, and his unflinching way of tackling real life topics that maybe don't get tackled too often. I also just really enjoy his writing style, and the way he uses words and phrases like "𝘏𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘱𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘢𝘭-𝘣𝘰𝘺𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘴𝘶𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘧𝘶𝘭𝘭𝘺".

This is the second book set in the Bake Expectations world. This season we follow Paris, who has a severe case of Generalized Anxiety Disorder. Hall does a great job shining a light on what it might be like to live with GAD, and how it truly affects a person and those around them. Having said that, this one *almost* crossed the line of being a little bit annoying? I know, I KNOW, he has an undiagnosed disorder and I have no clue what it's like to live with it... So that's basically what I kept trying to tell myself– that I wouldn't know what I'd do cause my brain functions differently.

The love interest and fellow contestant,Tariq, was such a charming character. His and Paris' meet cute (meet disaster?) was...something. 😂

Lastly, I appreciated how much of their personal growth we get to see on page. They are both twenty years old, and it's probably good you keep that in mind while reading. 🧡

🍰 New Adult
🍪 Baking show setting
🍩 MC with GAD
🥧 LGBTQIA+ book

I dnf'ed this book as it just wasn't doing it for me. I didn't really vibe with the characters and I had to force myself to keep going until I decided to just abandon it. A shame since I generally tend to really enjoy Alexis Hall's work.

Paris Daillencourt is about to Crumble was a 3.5 star read for me.
I went into this book with no expectations, and honestly it was a decent read. I loved the side characters including Paris's roommate Morag and Tariq's roommates the four Daves. They definitely added some light heartedness to this novel. You can never go wrong with a baking show, and this one was no exception. I loved the way the judges were written and the interactions between the director and the judges,
The one thing I really struggled with in this book was the constant over-thinking and doomsday like thoughts Paris had in this book. I can understand the overthinking, but for every paragraph to be the world is ending, I'm the worst person, everything I've done is a failure was too much. The banter was great throughout the book, and I enjoyed reading about the different baking challenges each week. I enjoyed Tariq, and how he initially tried to help Paris understand how his actions and behaviours were not normal, and mental health may be the main cause, and encouraged Paris to try and get help. I didn't love the relationship between these two for most of the book, and I don't seem them surviving as a couple.
I felt in some ways this book tried to address too much, and wasn't able to spend enough time properly addressing certain problems and concerns that had been brought up. I did enjoy the growth Paris had in this book, and how having support, therapy and the right medications can truly help a person have a better understanding of themselves and how to interact with the world when dealing with anxiety.
Overall I would recommend checking this book out, but to be aware of the content warnings before picking it up.
Thank you Netgalley and Forever for this ARC.

Alexis Hall’s sense of humor is present on every page of this rollicking great read about two lads on a British baking competition show who meet, date, implode, forgive, and finish aimed at a better future for them both. Although focused primarily on Paris, Paris’ love interest Tariq is charming in his own way. Paris has a severe case of generalized anxiety disorder and Hall doesn’t flinch from describing just how debilitating constant anxiety can be. In the end, Paris seeks professional assistance in dealing with it which leaves the lads on the uphill climb towards a well deserved HEA at the end. Thoroughly enjoyable.

As always, I'm a huge fan of Alexis Hall's humor and knack for writing characters that truly jump off the page. My only issue with this book is that the main couple just... isn't convincing. I thought for all the stuff Paris puts Tariq through in the first half of the book, it was a bit weird that their apologies were more 50/50 because Tariq really didn't have much to apologize for. I also just didn't care a whole lot for the baking show premise, which is quite the saturated setting right now in queer adult romance, and I found the side characters to be pretty boring. I still really enjoyed Paris's journey with his mental health and the representation provided.

Every book that I have read by Alexis Hall I have not finished. I just do not think her writing style is for me. Her characters just seem to childlish. I wanted to give this book a chance to see if it was different from her other books. And once again the trend of me not finishing books by her contuines. This book just seemed very annoying to me. Thank you for the ARC though.

Oh boy did these two certainly give me fits throughout this book. Both Tariq and Paris are distinct, different characters with their own neurosis and issues.

Paris needs help, and to be honest it is evident from the first few pages that he does. I do empathise with im, but it is almost like he is a character who has become comfortable in his own misery. This competition is about him reaching outside of his comfort zone, but he is often in his own way and I found myself frustrated with him as often as my heart broke for him.

Tariq is almost too much as well, but his opposites attract attitude drew me in quite quickly, though both he and Paris seemed a bit combustible from the get-go. His ability to admit when he was wrong made him a likeable character even as I wondered throughout the book if these two belonged together.

The baking competition remains a wonderful breeding ground for colourful characters, including ones from the previous book who had me laughing out loud, tsking and shaking my head all in good turn. I can't wait to see what happens here next, and who stumbles upon the stage. It also left me wishing for a little more behind the scenes in my regular baking competition.

It was also interesting to see how the characters responses to things changed based on where they were. Neither felt comfortable out of their own environments and the way they interacted in each of them seemed to change, both of them off kilter when it came to the competition and the differences in each other's lives.

The ending was hopeful without being too bitter which was appreciated but it was by no means perfect and that was exactly how it should've ended. The two characters trying to put aside their differences, reaching for each other while reaching for help externally was a good, hopeful way to end it.

Personally, I had a difficult time with this book as someone who also suffers from anxiety (at times quite badly). I really appreciate that it's been written and shares the experience with other readers. However, I found it to be quite triggering and Paris' constant rumination, spiralling thought patterns, and catastrophizing were at times very real and reminded me of anxiety attacks I've had in the past. I appreciate that they capture the experience, but I found myself feeling very unsettled after reading the book. It was just not the right book for me given my own mental health. I thought it would be a cute romance about baking, but it was more about mental health than I realized. Perhaps in another place and time this would sit better, but I just felt exhausted in trying to manage myself while reading it. I also would just like to say that I recognize I am but one person, with one version of this life experience, and so I hope that this book does well with others bc it's an important story to tell.

I keep waffling between 3 and 4 stars for this one, so I'm going with 3.5 and rounding up.

What I liked about this book was the portrayal of Paris's anxiety. That portrayal is the focus of the book, and I found a lot about Paris's experience very similar to what goes on in my own head. I've got panic disorder and generalized anxiety disorder and felt like this was a very realistic picture of how much it sucks to be stuck in your own head when your thoughts are basically your worst enemy and no matter what you do you can't turn them off or escape them. Paris has a privileged, easy life in many ways. That doesn't change the fact that he has a debilitating medical condition. Another book by Alexis Hall, A Lady for a Duke, has a line about how suffering isn't something we earn, it's something we bear. That line has really stuck with me, and I think it's very true for Paris. His anxiety isn't a blanket excuse for all his wrongs, but it also isn't something he has to earn. It's one facet of who he is that has sort of hijacked his entire life, the way mental health issues so often do. I also smiled at one point when "intolerance for uncertainty" is mentioned as being like an allergy to uncertainty because that is legit straight out of the readings I've been doing for the anxiety outpatient program I'm in. I felt very seen lol

What worked less well for me here was the romance. I did not see these two MCs as a match. I never felt a real connection or spark between them. There wasn't a single swoony moment in the entire book. I don't know what Tariq sees in Paris, apart from thinking he's pretty. They barely felt like friends to me, let alone something more. I just did not want these people to end up together. I was glad they both ended up happy, but any hint of romance was entirely lacking for me. I also wish there'd been a bit more conversation around how their relationship would work in regards to Tariq's wanting to wait until marriage to have sex. As someone who is ace and really appreciates discussions in romance about how relationships can unfold with various types of intimacy that don't involve sex, I would have loved to read more about how they would navigate that.

I sort of liked the Bake Expectations stuff here, but also felt like the side characters weren't as memorable this time around. The pacing also felt a bit off, the middle dragged somewhat for me. And the emphasis on the show meant that I didn't know as much about Paris and Tariq's life outside of the show as I'd have liked. They are both very young, and still figuring out who they are, but I still wanted to know more about their day to day lives apart from the show.

Not all the jokes and conversations landed for me. But then occasionally there would be a sort of throw away line that was so spot on and unexpectedly charming that I'd have to highlight it and read it over again. I usually love the banter-y bits between MCs in Hall's books, but for some reason they felt lacking here. And there was a joke in this book that's also in Husband Material (well, part of it anyway, you know how it is when Luc tries to tell Alex Twaddle a joke), but I'm choosing to believe that was sort of a wink wink nod nod situation rather than the author running out of wonderfully corny jokes. As ever, I love that there are recipes included, especially since they are written in the "voice" of the characters.

So I guess I'd recommend this if you're looking for a relatable MC with anxiety but less so if you're looking for swoony romance.

*I received a free ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

"Paris Daillencourt is About to Crumble" has a completely different feel to it than the first book in this series, "Rosaline Palmer Takes The Cake", which really speaks to the author's versatility as a writer. I found this books less charming and more heavy, which makes perfect sense considering our titular character, Paris, struggles with undiagnosed and untreated mental illness for most of the book. I loved Tariq as a character, and I adored seeing our secondary characters (especially Jennifer) again.

Even though I didn't enjoy this book as much as the first one in the series, it stands in a different category for me because it dealt with completely different topics while remaining within the same setting. Read your TWs before taking this one on! And as always, it's a master-class in writing from Alexis Hall. His writing is always fresh and different for each book/series, and I always know that if I pick up one of his books I will enjoy myself until the last page.

I first was introduced to Alexis Hall with Boyfriend Material, and it’s sequel, Husband Material. I unfortunately didn’t realize Paris Daillencourt is About to Crumble was the second in the Winner Bakes All series or I would have read that first. However, I will note that it is not essential to read first. This story acts as a stand alone, and from what I can tell, the other book’s main characters and season are only briefly mentioned, but not important to understanding this book. I really love Hall’s writing style. He has a great way of telling a story that keeps you engaged and moving, while also really focusing on his characters. His prose is impeccable and I've really come to enjoy it. He writes a great romance story that is more than a romance story. It has the elements of a classic romcom, while bringing in representation of other groups that we normally don’t see in traditional romcoms and also touching on much larger issues. There was fantastic gay, Muslim, and anxiety representation in this book, which I’ll touch on in a moment. I also loved the setting of the book in a baking competition. It was so much fun and I found myself itching to watch the Great British Bake Off while reading.

I loved all of the characters in this book, especially all of the side characters. Knowing that the production team/hosts of the show are in the first book makes me really excited to go back and read that one to get more of them. I also love our main supporting character, Tariq. Tariq is a gem of a character and I appreciate the dichotomy of his character being both gay and Muslim. His conversations about trying to live and exist in both these communities was very touching and I think its important to talk about people who are trying to be part of what others might see as two very different worlds. I also appreciated that we saw flaws in his character as well.

Our main character, Paris, had me on a journey. Paris is a gay man who starts the book with undiagnosed anxiety. As someone with anxiety, I really struggled at the beginning with Paris’ issues. From the start, his negative self talk and clear catastrophizing had me starting to get overwhelmed and I was at a point about 15 percent in where I wondered if I’d be able to finish the book if Paris was like this the whole time. But honestly, that was the point with his character. The reader needed to see him and experience this out of control anxiety that he had. We had to see that he was at times annoying (which he understood) and that his feelings could be very overwhelming. I think for me just as someone who has struggled with that it was almost a touch too real, but that just makes me give more props to Hall for writing Paris’ struggles so well. He perfectly showed how someones out of control anxiety can take a major toll on their life and their relationships, and I greatly appreciated how Paris didn’t magically get better because he was in a relationship. Paris had to hit some dark spots and finally get treatment that he needed. You can tell that Hall is knowledgeable on that subject as well as he makes it clear that Paris won’t get “fixed” from this. It is something he will always struggle with, but now will have tools and resources and know how to ask for help when he needs it. So while at the beginning I was concerned about Paris being “too much” for me, I’m glad I stuck it out and understood that that was almost the point with his character. His journey to understanding and dealing with his anxiety was difficult at times, but in the long run was actually a beautiful story.

Overall, I enjoyed this book way more than I realized I would. The story was engaging, with a few interwoven plots (the baking show, the relationship, and Paris’ anxiety) and complementing each other really well. The characters were well written, lovable while still making you cringe at times due to their flaws. I really want to go back to read the first book in the series, and am excited for the third one, out next year!

Goodreads review is posted and I will post to the Instagram account in the links the week prior to release.

I have not read book 1 of the Winner Bakes All series though it is on my tbr. That said, I don't think it's necessary to read that book before jumping into Book 2 (which I did read!) Paris Daillencourt is About to Crumble.

This book releases on Oct 18! Check it out if you love:

🎥 Reality show backdrop
🍰 More specifically baking programs like Great British Bake Off
🧠 Mental health rep
🌈 LGBTQIA read
🤕 Not-so meet cute
👯 Hilarious friend groups

Thanks to @netgalley and @readforeverpub for early access to this book in exchange for my honest review.

One of the things Alexis Hall does very well is writing conversations with a friend group. My favorite scenes in this were between Paris and his roommate as well as scenes with Paris and Tariq and Tariq's roommates. The dialogue is hilarious and all over the place, just like a really good convo with your besties.

I also really enjoyed the baking show backdrop, from the competition scenes with the distinct personalities of each of the contestants as well as all of them interacting away from the camera.

More challenging were the lead characters here. In small doses, both are endearing. However, over the course of the book, Paris' anxiety laid bare on page was not easy to experience with him. It may be authentic and I can see how it would be of comfort for folks having the same experience, though. I was rooting for Paris so moments where Tariq was less than helpful made me like T less. I think this is why the romance felt a little unsatisfying.

Steam 🔥
Banter 🗣️🗣️
Swoon 💕

I love the Great British Baking Show and I really enjoyed the backdrop of Bake Expectations in Rosaline Palmer Takes the Cake, so when I heard the sequel was a hero struggling with anxiety, I was really excited. Paris Daillencourt is About to Crumble stars perfectionist and over-apologized Paris Daillencourt as he enters Bake Expectations after his roommate signs him up to help show him how talented he is—even though he constantly second guesses himself. During the completion, he meets Tariq Hassan—but no amount of romance or impressive bakes help his confidence and he is forced to figure out what to do to improve his life. This isn’t necessarily a romance, it has a lot of romance moments with Paris and Tariq, but this is Paris’ story. This is his very all-consuming, sometimes wildly frustrating and uncomfortable, battle with anxiety and himself. He is so down on himself and I do think it takes a little too long for a shift to happen. I’m an over-apologized with anxiety too, so my heart really went out to Paris, but it also felt a little over done. Every week he was just so down on his bakes, it was tricky to root for him. But I did appreciate the mental healthy journey he took and the progress he made by the end. I enjoyed the ups and downs of his romance with Tariq and how genuine that felt. Their conversations were honest too. I like how they both grew and owned their own mistakes. And I adored the Bake Expectations setting. The characters and cast were all endearing and real and the baking show is just a lot of fun.

I crave Alexis Hall books like I craved every single bake in this perfect book for fans of a certain baking show in England, LGBTQ romance, mental health, and quippy friend groups. Hall has done it again.

I have read a lot of Alexis Hall books this year and I am so impressed how he can not only write unique stories every time, but also write so many characters that each feel so different, relatable, and special.

This is the second in the Winner Bakes All series and I loved the setting of the tv show -- even though it made me want to eat all the creations! Paris is an endearing character full of anxiety - and the way that he's written feels so authentic and accurate. Watching him struggle and grow is not always easy to read, but written so well that you can't help but cheer for him. Tariq is a perfect love interest, and I would love to read a book centered around him!

All the side characters are so wonderful as well -- they enrich the book and add a lot of needed comic relief. I am so happy to read that there will be a third in this series coming soon. I'm so impressed with Alexis Hall overall and cannot wait to read the rest of his books!

Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book!

I really wanted to like this because I love the great British baking show but I struggled hard to even get through this. Mental illness is a huge piece of the storyline but I felt the writing was very disjointed and all over the place.

I recently read and adored Rosaline Palmer Takes the Cake, and I was looking forward to returning to the world of Bake Expectations with Paris Daillencourt is About to Crumble.

As with the first book in the series, I loved the cheeky British humor, the diversity of the characters, the mental health representation, and all of the fun, quirky details that went along with the baking competition.

The story itself wasn't my favorite, though. I struggled with Paris as a character. I appreciate the author's effort to write an authentic experiences for him, but I never warmed to his character, and I truly don't think he and his love interest should have ended up together in the end.