Sneak Peek Part 2

Well hello!

I thought today we could take a look at a moment you remember from Courting Scandal. This time let’s see it from Augie’s perspective.

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It was nearly seven. We were almost certain to be late given the slush accumulating on the road. It was entirely Michael’s fault. While I had dressed with more care than I usually—ever—showed, I had done so efficiently. His Johnson-swollen eye might have been a slight distraction, but that was hardly an excuse to be late to dinner.

Finally, the carriage shuddered to a halt, and the driver signaled our arrival. Michael stepped out and immediately stopped in front of the steps. I was left trapped, half out of the carriage. He stared at the door as though it might bite him. I suppose, though the door would not, the occupants might. His fears were a little founded.

“Are you going in the front or the back?” I asked.

“I suppose I should knock. Did we determine a distress signal?”

Oh no, I did not agree to act as rescuer. I hadn’t set eyes on Anna in years. I wouldn’t be distracted by Michael’s new sister-in-law’s delusions.

“We did not, and I won’t be rescuing you. I will be wooing Anna with my handsome countenance and vast wealth. You’re not to interrupt. You might distract her with your wealth and countenance.”

That was the thick of it. I was finally in a position to woo Anna. To be the man that she deserved. My hard-earned confidence wasn’t so impressive that I was willing to risk Michael impressing her in my stead.

“That seems unlikely, but I wish you the best of luck. Two quick rings of the bell followed by two slow then?”

“I’ll leave you to rot.” Probably.

“Good luck with your wooing. Don’t forget to invite me to the wedding.” His invitation was entirely dependent on whether he interrupted my efforts tonight.

Down the alleyway, I found the servants’ entrance. Faced with my own door, I was now every bit as useless as Michael. Eventually, I gathered enough courage to knock. The door burst open, and I was wrapped in Mrs. Hudson’s arms before words could escape me.

“Oh, I’m so glad you came! You’ve grown too!” As quickly as she had yanked me into her arms, she pushed me back by my shoulders just as fast. “And look at you, so handsome!”

I was still trying to extricate myself from the inspection when I heard a delicate giggle behind her.

There she was. Anna stood leaning a shoulder confidently against the opposite door, her other hand lazily resting on her hip. The air abandoned my lungs for places unknown.

Even in a dowdy maid’s uniform she was the picture of loveliness. She had forgone the cap, and her hair was escaping its pins in loose curls. They were kissed by the firelight the way the sunset kissed the clouds. A bright red flash in the sky. It had darkened slightly, reminding me more of the last glimpse before twilight than the first brushes of sunset that it resembled in our youth. Still, every bit as stunning as the first time.

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Are you getting excited??

I can’t wait for you to meet them!

<3 Ally

Sneak Peek of The Baker and the Bookmaker

Hey there!

We’re a month away from the release of The Baker and the Bookmaker. Can you believe it??

I’m so excited to give you the first sneak peek!

Here’s a snippet from the first chapter:

“Now, Augie, you’re to stay in the big house today, remember? You’ll mind Mrs. Hudson?” Papa asked as though he hadn’t reminded me three times last night.

I nodded solemnly in response. Everything I did was solemn that week. My nose was reddened, cracking, and sore from the handkerchief. Food held little appeal, and my stomach ached with a horrible combination of hunger and unbearable sorrow. Mama was gone.

A few days ago, Papa set me down between my sobs and explained the plan. While he worked, I would stay in the kitchens of the big house where the cook, Mrs. Hudson, could mind me along with her own daughter, also four years old.

He clasped my hand in his hot, rough one, so different from the delicate warmth of Mama’s, and guided me down the familiar path toward the big house. As stable master for the Grayson family, Papa had been given the little cottage close to the horses. I was familiar with the outside of the big house. The inside was a mystery soon to be solved. We passed by the lake and the big oak tree, but instead of taking the usual turn into town, we rounded the back of the house.

Papa knocked brusquely on the solid door. It opened to reveal a stout, ruddy-cheeked woman with red hair and a bright smile. She ushered us in through the scullery to the main kitchens.

To her.

Her back was to me, that little girl with the sunset hair. She stood on a heavy wooden chair struggling to reach the worktop, even with the chair’s assistance. A dusting of flour fell over her and the surrounding area like snow.

Elbow-deep in some kind of dough, she slipped as she tried to push the rolling pin before steadying herself.

I didn’t know it right then, but in that kitchen, covered in flour with her fingers in dough, was her favorite place in the world.

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Stick around for a few more clips in the coming weeks! I’m so excited for you to get to know Augie and Anna!

It's Anna's Turn!

Guess what?

If you guessed that I didn’t bake anything for this week… you would be correct. That’s alright, I have Anna to talk about.

So, I consider pretty carefully before I make a choice on which point of view I use for a scene. Sometimes I end up rewriting part or the entirety of a scene in the opposite point of view. There was one scene I added late in Courting Scandal that I desperately wanted from Tom’s point of view. Obviously, it would have been a weird, off-putting choice, but I 100% wrote it from his point of view first. I still have that and it may make an appearance in his book, or it may never see the light of day.

When I started writing this book, I didn’t intend to write the entire novella from Augie’s perspective. Buuuutttttt, I do love an obsessed, besotted hero’s perspective. And so every time I sat down to write a scene it became a case of, just one more from Augie.

And that’s how the entire book ended up in Augie’s perspective. He’s a sweet, precious, snarky golden retriever who just wants to bask in Anna’s glow.

Let’s talk about Anna’s glow. In Courting Scandal, Anna was very much a side character. Her primary function was to fulfill maid duties and to be the object of Augie’s poetic ramblings. I wish I had more time to delve into her in that book, but there’s only so many characters you can explore in one book.

But now, you get to know her better! Unlike Juliet, Anna is quite self-assured and had one of the more functional childhoods for my characters. She discovered her passion early and is fortunate enough to be surrounded by those who support her. But she’s also a pragmatist, and until it becomes clear that it may actually happen, she prefers to keep her dreams realistic.

She’s also surrounded herself with two mischievous boys, and has to serve as the only voice of reason on occasion. Her mother gives her a great amount of freedom and responsibility, but she takes those quite seriously and manages them very maturely.

Anna is also very genuinely nice. I’ve started experimenting with less overtly kind characters in the novels I’m currently drafting and editing, but my first few deal primarily with genuinely nice people.

Augie loves her sweetness, talent, sense of humor, practicality, and beauty. Augie may jump in with both feet, but Anna is the kind of person who tests the water before diving in.

If, once you’ve read The Baker and the Bookmaker, you find yourself wishing for a few scenes from Anna’s perspective, you can check out the bonus scenes, here.

I hope you adore Anna as much as Augie does!

Next week may be an off week, I have a bachelorette trip! We’ll see on Sunday!

<3 Ally!

Let's talk Augie!

Did I bake Anna’s next recipe? Nope, sorry!

Let’s talk Augie instead!

So, I owe a lot to Augie. A lot, a lot. Before Augie showed up snarking at Michael, this was a completely different story. But Augie showed up on page, intended to be a throw-away side character with a name I would probably change, and he was just… a little shit. At every available opportunity, he was giving Michael the dressing down he needed. Between him, and Celine, they demanded that I set aside the original plot and switch to a historical romance instead. Then they demanded their own books.

I intended The Baker and the Bookmaker to be a a 5k-ish word freebie for signing up for my newsletter. It ballooned into a 35k word novella in just 12 days. To date, this is still the fastest book I’ve written by far. It changed a great deal in editing, for the better I believe, but the first draft, the bones, took just 12 days. Because Augie loves Anna and he absolutely will not shut up about it.

In general, I prefer a slower burn. In some ways, this book is a slow burn, it’s the slowest of slow burns, it’s a 2 decade slow burn. But it’s also instalove. Augie meets Anna and he knows.

In the end, this isn’t just a book about love, it’s also about friendship. In Courting Scandal, Augie and Michael’s friendship can feel kind of one sided, but I wanted to explore why Augie feels such loyalty to Michael in this book too. If we want our characters to be real people, they need to have relationships outside of their love interest sometimes. Augie and Michael are the brothers they never had. Yes, Michael has brothers, but his relationship with Hugh is strained and his relationship with Tom is paternal. With Augie, they can simply shit talk each other.

Fun fact, I’m an only child. As such, I am endlessly fascinated by sibling dynamics as it’s a relationship I will never fully understand or experience myself. I hope that I’ve done them justice.

It is, of course, about romantic love as well. It’s about childish first love, angsty teen love, and mature adult love. Sometimes those experiences are with different people, in Augie’s case, they were all with Anna.

Now, the choice to write the entire book from Augie’s perspective… To be honest, it wasn’t the original intention, but once I started, I just couldn’t stop. I love reading a besotted man’s point of view and Augie is the dictionary definition of the heart eyes emoji.

So, yes. I hope you’ll love getting to know Augie better, exploring the foundations of his and Michael’s friendships, and fall in love with Anna right with him. I mean seriously, look at this besotted man!

I’ll be back next week! Maybe with a baked good, maybe with something else!

<3 Ally

Updates

Hi there!

So, as I’ve mentioned, I’ve had some family health issues. I’ve had to set aside writing and I completely used up all my pre-created blog posts (yes, I write these in advance).

Unfortunately, the best time that I have to do my baking with Anna posts is the weekend. And I’ve been in Michigan with my mom after another hospital stay and then in Florida with my aunt for a surgery the last couple of weeks and I haven’t had a chance to test my next recipe. So instead, you’re getting an update.

I’ve set aside writing for a few weeks as well, which is unfortunate. I’m also experiencing a little writer’s block. As a pantser, I don’t usually know exactly where a book is going before I start, but usually, by this point, I have a pretty good idea. I’m at least 3/4 of the way into this book and I know what needs to happen, but I have no idea how to get there. I know that I need to just hop back in now that I’m home and it will come to me, but I haven’t been able to do it.

Fortunately, this book isn’t due to be released until October of 2024, so I can take my time with it without that impacting you, dear reader.

While I haven’t been drafting, I have been editing. Book 2 has been returned from editor 2 and will go to my proofreader later this month. Book 3 is also with my editor.

The other bit of excitement is that I’ve sent out a request for ARC readers for book 2. If you’re interested, you can apply here. You’re in for tooth rotting fluff if you decide to pick it up. Originally, I intended for book 2 to be a free offer for readers of my newsletter. Then it ballooned into a full-length novella spanning 20 years, so now it is going to get the full treatment including a paperback.

There’s nothing quite like holding a copy of the book you wrote in your hands. It’s magical.

So yes, I hope you can forgive me for another week without my baking failures. I’m not a good traveler and I’m quite introverted so it takes me a few days to recover from visits and plane trips.

I’m off to stare at a blank page again and hopefully write something.

Wish me luck!

Cover Reveal and ARC Reader Request

Well hello there!

Today I wanted to give you, my dear readers, an exclusive SNEAK PEEK of The Baker and the Bookmaker cover!

Are you ready to meet Augie and Anna?

I just love them so much and I know you guys are going to as well!

Check out the blurb:

The moment Augustus “Augie” Ainsley met Anna Hudson at four years old, he was lost to her sunset curls and flour-dusted nose. But why would Anna want a future footman when she could have the son of a viscount?

To win her affections, Augie needs to make her bakery dream a reality, but that will take a fortune he doesn’t possess. When life takes a turn, Augie follows his friend to the city, and the glittering distractions of London cause him to lose sight of what is most important. Then fate brings him crashing back into Anna’s life, and he’s devastated to learn that his ambitions may have cost him the woman he loves.

Anna is unwilling to abandon her life of contentment for an inconstant suitor. Desperate to convince her that he is the man she needs, Augie resolves to prove she can depend on him. He must find a way to balance his unending work with his undying love or risk losing Anna forever.

The Baker and the Bookmaker is a heartwarming coming-of-age novella by Ally Hudson. If you enjoy Regency romances about friends who become lovers, you will relish this tender and charming story of friendship, first love, and raspberry tarts.

If you’re interested in receiving a FREE eBook copy in exchange for an honest review of the book, you can sign up to join my ARC team here. Copies will be sent out in mid-August and the book releases October 3! If you’d rather, you can pre-order your copy on Amazon now!

I’m so excited for you guys to read this book! We’ll be back to baking with Anna next week!

<3 Ally!