A Legend in the Baking
A Novel
by Jamie Wesley
Narrated by Jaime Lincoln Smith, Nia Serge

I received an ARC of this audiobook through Netgalley

Both of the narrators were great. I would have enjoyed some parts of the audiobook to be dual narrated.

The premise of the book is great too.

I think something is missing from the book, but I don’t know what. It was good. Certainly worth a listen.

4 ☆
-
I enjoyed how August Hodges' impromptu feminist rant about how women bakers are the backbone of the industry and baking cupcakes isn't a threat to masculinity went viral. Sloane Dell is a social media manager whose brother is August's best friend. A Legend in the Baking is book two in the Fake It Til You Bake It series. While this is a series, these books are stand-alone and don't have to be read in order. The beginning of this story held my attention and went at a decent pace, but once you hit the middle, it kind of slows down.

The audiobook is a dual narration, and I enjoyed it! Actually, I loved it.
The female narrator (Nia Serge) is someone I normally listen to when she does fantasy, so it felt a little weird to hear her do romance.
The male narrator is a favorite of mine (Jaime Smith), and I love hearing his voice!

𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬:
•Slow burn
•Black Romance
•Brother's bestfriend - to - lover
•Second chance
•Dual Timeline (Past and Present)

Thank you, Netgellay, and Spotify Audiobook for the audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

This was a perfect romance listen! I loved seeing a complicated love story through the eyes of a smart and motivated social media manager and a plain and simple good guy. This story not only has a sweet romance with perfect tension, but it also navigates conversation about race, gender, and gentrification in a really honest and nuanced way!

I was granted access to an audio arc and I highly recommend reading it in this format. I adored the voice of Sloan!

Sugar Blitz Cupcakes is owned and operated by three friends who happen to be professional football players; however, they don’t publicize that. August Hodges, one of the owners, doesn’t want any recognition since as far as he’s concerned, he’s a silent partner. That is until his feminist rant goes viral and all of a sudden, he’s the hottest commodity in town. They’ve just acquired a new location and decided that maybe the social media attention will be beneficial.

Sloane Dell, the sister of one of the owners, has had a crush on August for over a decade, but since he rejected her all those years ago, she’s had to keep that in check. She agrees to help with the social media aspect of the bakery since it may help land her a job that she’s applied for, but being around August will be a challenge.

Sloane plans to do her best to not have feelings for August, but what are the chances that August has feelings for her?

I enjoyed the fact that there were two narrators. I always find it easier to listen to a book that is being told from two perspectives when there are different narrators.

Thank you to NetGalley and Spotify Audiobooks for allowing me to listen to an ALC of this novel. #NetGalley #ALegendintheBaking

A Legend in the Baking was a cute friends to lovers story . I liked the premise but got terribly bored by the end. The narration was good but not great , overall sitting at a 6/10 with me preferring the female narrator.

Thank you Netgalley and Spotify for the free alc. My opinions are being left voluntarily. This is book 2 in the fake it till you bake it series. I enjoyed book the first so I was excited to read this one.

If you read and enjoyed the first book you're gonna wanna read this one. What's not to love an influencer and a footballer oh did I mention is best friends little sister.... one of my favorite tropes.

Suggest giving it a try

4.5/5☆

I loved this story and the dynamic between Sloane and August! Can I also add, if my local bakery was run by professional football players I'd be in there every day?! This is definitely a slow burn, but so worth it!

I loved these narrators! Definitely brought the story to life and had me smiling and laughing throughout!

A slow burn, dual POV, older brother's best friend second chance romance between August, a divorced pro Football player slash cupcake bakery co-owner trying to open a second location and Sloane, the woman who has had a crush on him since childhood and gets hired to help improve his PR image to help quell community discontent. This was good on audio, had emotional depth and great diverse MCs plus who doesn't love a hot male baker who can deliver in the sheets? Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!

I love a man who bakes and I love this series. August and Sloane have a past. She's his best friend's little sister and also the girl he broke 12 years ago. After doing what he thought was right at the time, he has regrets. He is sure she's past it now, but them working together so closely is going to test his patience and ability to not try for what he really wants deep down. Sloane has been let down tremendously but all the guys in her life, including August. She's not interested in embarassing herself again, but she doesn't think she is imagining the tension she feels coming from him as they are working together.
She wants a marketing job and to get it, she has to promote another company and ramp up their socials to prove she has it in her. Working with August, aka Sugar Bae, will be just the thing she needs. I love these two together and you can feel the tension right from the get go. It is obvious that they have a connection that stems from long ago. August knows he hurt her and Sloane knows they are different people now, but she is still scared that someone she puts her faith in will let her down again.
August is really honestly the sweetest and I am on board with pretty much anything he does. He is a walking green flag, and we need more of those in romance books. The narration was great and I loved hearing the story brought to life. 4.25 stars.
Thanks to Spotify, Jamie Wesley and Netgalley for an early ALC.

August Hodges gets a book! I repeat August Hodges gets a book. Where do I start? Let's see.... The fact the Sloane and August had me smiling... literally showing all my teeth. Is a pretty good place to start. I loved Fake It till you Bake and I'm so honored to have this opportunity to read A legend in the Baking. This book did NOT disappoint. There was second chance, found family, dealing with your past, learning to trust, being open to love again, being accountable and vulnerable especially in a man... you add some baking and a little bit of spice and you my friend have a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ read on your hands. Thank you Jamie Wesley and NetGallery for the opportunity.

A viral rant turns August, a cupcake bakery’s silent partner, into the hottest bachelor in town. He’s forced to work with social media manager Sloane to capitalize on his popularity. The intense chemistry between them reignites their teenage infatuation, challenging them to embrace the risk of chasing their dreams.

This book is fast-paced and fun. The writing, voice, and conflict are strong. Sloane and August are well-developed and cute together. I enjoyed the audiobook narration.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for the eARC and Spotify Audiobooks for the ALC.

I remember meeting August in the first book and wanting his story. A quiet, socially awkward guy who seems like a grump but is really a marshmallow? Sold. In fact, if you look at my last review, I said AND I QUOTE “I need August’s book STAT.” I rest my case.

But to my surprise, I did not expect a brother’s best friend trope, with mutual pining over a decade. Talk about a tortured and angsty slow burn. Sloan was a little difficult to like at times; it felt like she was so hyper focused on getting this new job that she completely disregarded personal boundaries and lacked empathy.

While I enjoyed their friendship reblossoming, I wasn’t a huge fan of the back and forth. Both Sloan and August were guilty of this—it took forever for them to actually communicate and discuss their feelings.

One thing I cannot move past is the sexual harassment August receives when he first becomes “Sugar Bae.” Women are literally patting his ass and touching him without his consent…and no one cares? Sloan even uses social media to entice those women into the bakery, by using August as a dangling carrot. It was just…gross and I am disgusted that it was treated more like a jokey rom com moment rather than educating.

Despite my dislike of certain moments, I still enjoyed this in audiobook format. Jaime Lincoln Smith and Nia Serge do fantastic and really bring these characters to life.

This book is a slow burn novel about a Social Media Manager and Football Legend who also helps run a Cupcake Bakery. It’s a cute story, which I enjoyed thoroughly. I really enjoyed getting to know Sloan and August and how their characters developed throughout the story. This book covers the topics of masculinity and gentrification in such a great way. I listened to the audiobook version, which had such great narrators. This was my first Jamie Wesley book, but I look forward to reading more.

Thanks NetGalley and Spotify Audiobooks for the opportunity to listen to this book prior to publication.

Thank you @netgalley, @stmartinspress, and @jamiewesleywrites for approving me for such a cute book. I’m loving this series! It checked off my fav tropes and kept me smiling.

I loved Fake It Till You Bake It and was excited to get approved for both the eARC and ALC from @netgalley! I enjoyed book 2 of the Sugar Blitz series. A Legend In The Baking picks up with Sloane Dell (social media manager at Organic Chemistry and Donovan’s little sister) and August Hodges (Pro football player and co-owner of Sugar Blitz Cupcakes). This second chance romance was cute and watching them rekindle their friendship then leading to them finally being together had such a realistic feel. It took August years to realize that Sloane was the one for him. I don’t blame him for thinking the girl he was with back in college would be the one for him. A lot of people go through that. I’m glad they found their way back to each other in the end. The pacing between the characters dragged. I would’ve preferred for them to kindle a relationship mid way through the book. But the spice was basically towards the end and felt rushed. Overall, I’ve enjoyed the series. It’s different and I liked it a lot. I recommend this series to all romance lovers and anyone looking for a cozy romance.

Cute second chance at love, slow burn, good tension, but you can tell both characters do like each other kind of instantly that it keeps them frazzled but that was due to the past. Sloane is a marketing agent she up and quits her job because she did not get the raise, she was expecting she eventually starts working for brother's cupcake shop running their social media accounts. August is a co-owner of that cupcake shop and best friends with Sloanes brother. It is dual timelines where it shows Sloane having a crush on august in the past and current time where Sloane is fighting for a position by running a successful social media campaign all while trying to keep the company image looking good from protesters for the second location, they are planning on opening up.

Thank you to Spotify Audiobooks and NetGalley for the advance listener copy of A Legend in the Baking by Jamie Wesley!

August is a partner in Sugar Blitz Cupcakes along with Sloane’s brother. When Sloane doesn’t receive the promotion that should have been hers, she quits her job and is seeking other opportunities as a social media manager. When August and Sugar Blitz go viral, Sloane assists by helping improve the businesses social media presence. The opportunity will help Sloane in obtaining the next step in her career and it will help the business as they look at getting ready to open their next location.

This book is SO GOOD! There are some wonderful tropes in this book, including brother’s best friend, best friend’s sister, second chances, friends to lovers. We get both the story in the present along with flashbacks to the days when these two were forming their relationship. This was a such an enjoying read - both the romance and the broader story. I am excited to check out the first book in this series!

I was really excited for the narrators of this book and both did such a great job bringing this story to life! One of the flashback moments will definitely stick with me from this one as a result of the great work on the part of the narrators!

📖 Sloane is certain she's up for a promotion at her job as a social media manager. But when she's passed up for someone less qualified, she quits. Finding solace at her brother's cupcake shop, Sugar Blitz, she runs into her childhood crush, August (aka, pro football player and her brother's best friend and partner). August stays behind the scenes, and that is just how he likes it. So when he accidentally goes viral, Sloane is recruited to help promote Sugar Blitz and take advantage of August's newfound popularity. With the opening of a second location and a neighborhood that is less than welcoming, the cupcake shop can use all the help I can get! However, working together is starting to bring up memories of their past, and Sloane is not sure she's ready to try again with August, despite their undeniable chemistry.

💭 I love a second chance romance, and this one was the perfect recipe! Sweet, spicy, funny, and plenty of pining. I mean, who wouldn't like cupcake baking football players?! Sloane was sassy and independent with the desire to see social media used for promoting good causes, and not to hurt. She was a hard worker and totally obsessed with August - who was, in return obsessed with her! They definitely tiptoed around each other in an effort to maintain boundaries...until they didn't. Both were hurt by various things in their pasts, and they worked hard to overcome and persevere. Cute dates, open door scenes, and a happy ending! Check this one out on November 19!

August and Sloane are wonderful! I really like how they communicate and live out and share their morals. A very good pairing and another great story from Jamie Wesley.

The narrators sold this for me. They were so freaking good. Fun story of second chance romance and a dash of workplace romance. Couple were very cute. This was just what I needed over a long holiday weekend.

I received a copy from netgalley and the publisher.

I had hopes for this book, but they were soon dashed. The storyline was boring. I never got a clear idea of the characters, other than their repetitive inner banter, which was tiring. It's just an OK story.