ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Kathryn Littlewood is an author, actress and comedienne, who lives in the USA. She writes simple and sweet novels for middle-grade readers. Bliss is the first book in the Bliss Bakery Trilogy. A Dash of Magic and Bite-Sized Magic are the next two novels in the series.
REVIEW
What’s the point of being famous if the people who love you most don’t even know you anymore?
Bliss is the story of Rosemary Bliss and her family bakery, where magic potions are used for baking cakes, cookies and muffins that cure illnesses, and warm hearts. The premise of the novel promises an exciting magical adventure to the readers.
Rosemary Bliss‘ family made magic in their bakery kitchen. They cooked up enchanting recipes that worked wonders. Her mother would capture lightning in a Mason jar, and her father would collect magical potions such as a nightingale’s song and the bee’s sting to bake magical cookies and pies that cured people. The family’s secret recipes were from an ancient Cookery Booke owned by the Bliss family. The recipes in the book are written in an interesting, riddle-like manner.
Rosemary’s parents leave for another town, leaving the bakery and house in charge of Rose and her siblings. The kids are supposed to safeguard the Booke and take care of the bakery, but a mysterious stranger shows up. Who is the stranger? What are her intentions? And, most importantly, do the children succeed in keeping the Bliss Cookery Booke safe? These are the questions that the novel seeks to answer.
One of the main drawbacks of Bliss is the less-than-convincing portrayal of Rosemary Bliss, the protagonist. She is a girl with a very low self-esteem and confidence. She thinks that she is not as cute and adorable as her little sister, nor as good-looking as her brothers. Rose compares herself to Aunt Lily and wonders why she isn’t as gorgeous as her. She is seized by constant bouts of self-loathing on account of her poor looks. She spends her time daydreaming about her crush, David Stenson. It goes without saying that such a portrayal of an eleven-year-old girl is far from suitable for young readers.
Furthermore, the secondary characters of the novel come across as too flat. Overall, the story lacks the magical touch that makes fantasy novels so popular among their readers.
Bliss is a magical story meant for middle-grade readers. The adventures of Rose and her brothers in the bakery are entertaining. The way they create trouble in Calamity Falls while trying to cook some recipes from the cookbook brings a smile on the faces of young readers. The funny interactions between the siblings and their boisterous banter are somethings kids will relate to.
That being said, the plot has many loopholes and fails to connect with the readers. The readers do not understand as to why the parents left the key under the charge of the children instead of taking it with themselves. The story is too wordy and invariably makes the readers lose attention. The interactions of the family members at the end of the story are quite predictable and seem rather forced. All in all, Bliss merits an average rating of 2.5 stars out of a possible 5.
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