Audiobook review: Baked Inn Love by Erin Branscom
The story opens with Allie being fired from her soul-sucking job. She’s stayed at the job for the health insurance, as she’s a single mom of Caleb who has a childhood disease and underwent a kidney transplant recently. She decides it’s time to move from California back home to her family’s inn in New Hampshire. It’s fortunate that a sexy friend of the family is able to road trip with Allie across the country and help move her to NH.
Baked Inn Love is a delightful romance from start to end. The entire story has small town vibes, first due to the close quarters / forced proximity of the road trip, and then second, arriving at Allie’s family’s inn in picturesque New Hampshire. Both Allie and Logan are wonderful people that I’d love to know. Allie is kind, and I like that she doesn’t blame anyone or anything for the rough hand she’s been dealt. I completely appreciate Allie’s struggle to want to be independent but realizing she’s not able to do it on her own and it’s okay to rely on others.
Overall, I really enjoyed the story. I like how the couple got to know one another as they plan the road trip and then begin the journey. It’s nice to see they have a lot in common and really gel with one another right from the get go. I enjoy how the pair starts with an attraction and zero expectations or want for anything, but as they get to know one another, become good friends. They genuinely like each other, which grows the more time they spend together.
Along the way, Allie gets some troubling news from the absentee father of her baby. This takes the story up a whole level of emotional intensity. I was so worried for Allie. But through it all, Logan remains genuine and such a great guy. He struggles with the idea that he’s not meant for marriage and a family, but after spending time with Allie and Caleb, Logan realizes he just wasn’t ready for those things until he met the right person.
Baked Inn Love is nearly a perfect read, however, I got a bit upset with Allie and her actions when she’s confronted with some news that seemingly changes things between her and Logan. She completely overreacts and does a couple things that are contrary to her character. I was annoyed, but not for very long.
Narration: The story is shared via the alternating first person POVs of Allie and Logan, with Keira Stevens performing Allie’s POVs and Thomas Locklear performing Logan’s POVs. KS does a fantastic job all around. Her narrator/Allie is upbeat and joyful like the young and optimistic character. She alters her dialogue for gender and age. Her males are deep and her Caleb sounds like a kid, not an adult pretending to be a kid. TL has a very deep voice which fits Logan perfectly. All of his male chapters sound great. And while TL adjusts the dialogue for gender and age, his female voices are not my favorite. His females are higher pitched and a good effort, but it’s clearly a man pretending to be a woman.
In the end, I had a lot of fun joining Allie and Logan on their journey, and I am excited to listen to more tales from Freedom Valley.
My Ratings
Story: A-/B+
Narration: B
Jen
About the Book:
Friends to lovers, fake marriage, epic road trip, millionaire, single parent, different worlds.
Single mom Allie’s only bright light is her son, four-year-old Caleb. When Allie is fired from her job and Caleb’s previously absent father returns to fight for custody, she knows it’s time to leave San Diego. To get closer to her support systems, she needs to move across the country to her family inn in Freedom Valley, New Hampshire. Enter Logan Nolan, a handsome Canadian literary agent. When a good friend begs him to help bring Allie and Caleb home, he can’t say no. During the road trip, Allie and Logan realize they have something to offer each other: a marriage of convenience.
Before they know it, Allie and Logan live as a family in Freedom Valley. Allie, a passionate baker, starts her own business, and Logan learns how to balance his career with his new pretend family. Logan never saw himself as a family man, but as he spends more time with Allie and Caleb, he begins to rethink his views. Allie has always gotten by on her own, but with Logan around, she’s starting to wish her marriage was real, especially as Caleb’s father’s efforts to take his son intensify. Can Allie and Logan give in to their true feelings and turn make-believe into something real?
Author: Erin Branscom
Narrators: Keira Stevens, Thomas Locklear
Series: Freedom Valley #2
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Audiobook Release Date: February 14, 2023
Publisher: My Level 10 Life LLC
Length: 7 hours and 10 minutes
Source: Book Tour
Audio Speed: 1.3x-1.4x
Purchase info:
Audible/Amazon (affilate link)