I will make no bones about it, Olivia Ford’s Mrs. Quinn’s Rise to Fame, a debut novel, is delightful. Spoiler alert: there are no car chases and no murders. Mrs. Quinn’s Rise to Fame is a story of love, family, and triumph. That kind of story does not appeal to everyone. However, it is a welcome relief to me after reading some particularly hard stories. My friend Susie calls such stories palate cleansers. Indeed, that’s what Ford has created.
Jenny Quinn, 77, has been married to Bernie for almost 60 years. They have no children, but they are close to Bernie’s niece Rose, her husband Jeremy, and their two children Max and Poppy. Jenny is an extraordinary cook, especially as a baker. Jenny and Bernie have shared everything over the course of their years together except for one big secret Jenny has kept all that time, and now she has a new secret.
Jenny loves baking and would like to do something strictly for herself. She secretly enters the TV show, Britain Bakes. Fearing she won’t be accepted onto the show, she keeps her entry a secret from Bernie. Jenny’s whispered phone calls make Bernie think Jenny is ill and is keeping the diagnosis from him until she finally reveals she has entered the contest to be on TV as part of Britain Bakes. When Jenny is chosen to be on the show, she and Bernie must continue to keep it a secret until the show is filmed and airs later in the year.
What Jenny can’t anticipate is that being on Britain Bakes will cause her other long-held secret to surface. What will that knowledge do to her long marriage to Bernie, and how will Rose and her family react to the news? Perhaps another question is what kind of bombshell secret could Jenny, a kind woman, have kept for 60 years?
For readers seeking a story that will warm their hearts, choose Mrs. Quinn’s Rise to Fame. You will be glad. Book club members will enjoy the drama of Jenny’s triumphs and disasters on Britain Bakes as well as the unlikely friendships she makes on the show. Mrs. Quinn’s Rise to Fame left me with the same warm feelings I had after I read Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand by Helen Simonson.
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