The Baker's Apprentice

by Judith Ryan Hendricks

The sequel to Judith Ryan Hendricks' absorbing debut novel, "Bread Alone"

Having found her calling, Wynter Morrison is blissful about her new career in Seattle as a baker -- cherishing the long days spent making bread and the comforting rhythms of the Queen Street Bakery. Still, she struggles with the legacy of her failed marriage and with her new boyfriend Mac's reluctance to share his mysterious past. When Mac abruptly leaves Seattle, Wyn again feels abandoned and betrayed, at least until intimate letters arrive in which Mac at last reveals his deepest secrets. But the more she learns about her absent lover, the more Wyn discovers about herself -- and when tragedy threatens, she will have to decide if there is a place for Mac in this new life she has made.

Genres: Cooking, Fiction

384 pages, ebook

First published May 1, 2007

Reviews

[Diane · Rating 4 out of 5]

very enjoyable!

[Lenore Kuipers-Cummins · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the sequel to "Bread Alone" by the same author.
The setting is primarily in Seattle, but some of it takes place in a little town called Beaverton, YT (Yukon Territory).
The main character, Wyn Morrison, (having found her calling as a baker in the previous book), begins her work in the Queen Street Bakery. She has a failed marriage, and has left all of that behind in Los Angeles.
Mac McLeod is a writer, Wyn's boyfriend, who grew up in New York, dropped out of college to hitchhike across the U.S., did some mountain climbing, and ended up with his 1971 Chevy El Camino in Seattle, reuniting once again with Wyn.
Throughout the entire book, their relationship is always in question...is it on? or off?
Many characters enter into each characters lives; all very unique. They help shape Wyn and Mac into the characters they become at the end of the book.
Descriptions are incredible; especially when Wyn is baking (you can almost smell and taste the breads in particular), and the Yukon Territory that Mac inhabits for quite awhile.
The endings to Hendricks books are always a surprise, because they say so little, and so much, at the same time.
I recommend this, and the book before it....both were delicious reading!

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a sequel but I did not know it. It was referred to enough in this book that I don't need to read the previous one.

[Carrie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Blah. Boring. Not enough bread making and not enough of much else.
Read it because I started it and didn't have anything else.
(Why do I find the stars so hard to commit to? There's needs to be some more rating options....)

[Stacey Lechner · Rating 2 out of 5]

A very slow read with not much pay off at the end.

[Melissa (Semi Hiatus Until After the Holidays) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to like this book more than I did. I loved Bread Alone and was very excited for this one, but it kind of fell flat. Not as much baking and romance as the first.

[Darla · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read as follow up to first book. Easy reading, not special though

[Cari · Rating 3 out of 5]

The deviation from the story with a male perspective was a nice touch. It definitely ended with the option of another book.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not as good as the first one in the series, but I will read the third just to say I read the series.