Mrs. Quinn’s Rise to Fame by Olivia Ford

Title: Mrs. Quinn’s Rise to Fame
Author: Olivia Ford
Publication: Viking, hardcover, 2024
Genre: Fiction
Setting: Britain

Description: When Bernard Quinn tells his doctor he and his wife Jenny won’t be undertaking any great adventures in their late 70s, she is taken aback and realizes she at least is not ready to take it easy and let life pass her by. Without telling her beloved Bernard, she completes an extensive online application for Britain Bakes, the country’s well-known culinary contest. Jenny has always loved baking but knows she is unlikely to get chosen and does not want her husband to think she is discontent with their lives. Their marriage has lasted nearly 60 years and this is only the second secret she has kept from him in all that time. When Britain Bakes invites her to an audition, Bernard is hurt but very supportive. As Jenny progresses in the competition, baking old family favorites reminds her of happy and unhappy times, including a long-buried secret. Her new fellow-competitor Azeez urges her to tell Bernard, but Jenny cannot bear the pain of revisiting a terrible time in her life – and focuses on Britain Bakes instead – until it is too late.

My Impression: The phrase “heartwarming story” is so trite but there is no other way to describe this book that combines family, cooking, and a certain amount of drama – I didn’t want it to end! Jenny is a delightful heroine, warm and open to new experiences. That is when she hears the announcement on her television: “Are you a keen baker? Do you have what it takes to be on next year’s show? Apply now by clicking the link on the Britain Bakes website.” She doesn’t think her style of baking, which ranges from an ordinary Tiffin her father used to enjoy to the Black Forest Gateau she makes for family birthdays, would impress anyone but she clicks on the application anyway and is captivated by the question, “Why do you bake and who do you bake for?” This question speaks to Jenny’s entire life: as a child, she baked with her mother before her mother died young; she baked for her father, for friends and neighbors, for Bernard, and for their niece Rose and her family, as they had no children of their own.

Jenny submits the application without telling anyone; she’s afraid of being ridiculed, but when the Britain Bakes staff contact her to be a contestant Bernard finds out and is stunned that she kept such an important secret from him. She values her marriage more than anything and is determined nothing will jeopardize that but she really wants to compete. Bernard shows his devotion by swallowing his hurt and becoming her biggest cheerleader. As Jenny practices her most trusted family recipes and tries to master bread baking, each bake triggers a memory from her past, leading to a painful episode she has buried deep within her.

I really enjoyed the descriptions of the baking, both Jenny in her own kitchen in preparation for the show and then the actual competition. Jenny’s friendship with one of the other contestants, a young gay architect, is especially charming. Friends who are fans of the Great British Bake Off say it is not just the baking they like but the fact that it is a positive reality show - the contestants support each other, the judges aren't cruel, and the viewer gets to know and root for the participants.

They twisted the board, scrutinizing it before picking up the knife and slicing through it.

“Nice equal squares,” said Angus, before taking a forkful.

It was painful to watch. She considered the three hours that it has taken her to make and how quickly it was devoured, the aesthetic destroyed as the candied peel scattered across the plate.

“I don’t like this,” said Amanda, narrowing her eyes.

She felt the floor drop from beneath her feet.

“I love it.”

She exhaled sharply, clutching her neck as the floor returned.

Jenny’s rise to fame (the title comes from the social media handle her great-nephew comes up with) is depicted with poignance, warmth, and humor by first-time author Ford, whose background is in entertainment television. I started off with the audiobook, then had to switch to the hardcover; I recommend either.

Source: Library.  As this book takes place in the present and in the 60s and 70s, I will also count it as my eighth book for Marg's 2024 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge.  This was a 4.5 star read for me.  Thank you to Shana for this suggestion.