On an unseasonably dry day in September, pastry chef Olivia Rawlings sets fire to Boston’s Emerson Club. As the Club goes up in flames, so does the city life she’s built. With the tumble of a 40-pound baked Alaska she had meticulously prepared and deliberately set ablaze, Olivia loses her job and with it the modest income on which she was barely keeping afloat, and her boyfriend (which pleased his wife).
With little left to lose, Olivia heads north to the small town of Guthrie, Vermont. There, with the help of a kind chef, a cantankerous innkeeper and a troupe of charming small-town characters with big personalities, Olivia rebuilds her life one delectable dessert at a time.
The City Baker’s Guide to Country Living is the debut novel of Boston pastry chef Louise Miller. In this charming story, Ms. Miller explores the draw of the country and the pull of the city, what it means to have a full life, the value of simple pleasures and strong families, and the best way to make an apple pie.
“I read to be transported,” Ms. Miller told me when we spoke about the book last week. And now she’s written a book to transport others.
Available August 9. Pre-order your copy HERE!
