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How to Eat a Cupcake

Meg Donohue (Goodreads Author)

3.51 · Rating details · 7,283 ratings · 994 reviews

Funny, free-spirited Annie Quintana and sophisticated, ambitious Julia St. Clair come from two different worlds. Yet, as the daughter of the St. Clair’s housekeeper, Annie grew up in Julia’s San Francisco mansion and they forged a bond that only two little girls who know nothing of class differences and scholarships could—until a life-altering betrayal destroyed their ...more

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Paperback, 309 pages

Published March 13th 2012 by William Morrow Paperbacks

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· 7,283 ratings · 994 reviews

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Apr 09, 2012 Christie rated it it was ok

I'll admit the "idea" of a book that involved cupcakes intrigued me. Maybe I was just hungry for something sweet at the time. And this book did encourage that craving...

How to Eat a Cupcake is a light read. It is slow-going at first, but by the last third of the book it does pick up its pace (finally). But unfortunately if you can hang on that long, your patience isn't really rewarded. I was hoping for a sweet story of lost friendship found. And while that is a small part of the main storyline, I'll admit the "idea" of a book that involved cupcakes intrigued me. Maybe I was just hungry for something sweet at the time. And this book did encourage that craving...

How to Eat a Cupcake is a light read. It is slow-going at first, but by the last third of the book it does pick up its pace (finally). But unfortunately if you can hang on that long, your patience isn't really rewarded. I was hoping for a sweet story of lost friendship found. And while that is a small part of the main storyline, it is only superficially explored. The whole book felt very superficial- you are only given a surface-level character sketch, the point of view switches between Annie and Julia so you never feel very attached to either one.

Annie is the stereotypical poor girl, the daughter of Julia's nanny. Julia is the stereotypical rich girl, who thinks mainly of herself. Their reconnection is flat and boring. Julia's want to open a "cupcakery" with Annie feels forced. There is a little mystery as to a painful moment of Julia's past (that is fairly easy to guess), what happened to Lucia, Annie's mom, plus where her recipe book is, and who is the strange man that appears outside their store. The mysteries reveals are a case of too much telling and not enough showing. Those moments should have had great lead-ins, where you could start to piece together things on your own, but instead all of a sudden it's all just out there.

I really didn't come to care, empathize or sympathize with anyone. It helps keep your interest if you can at least feel something for the characters... but I really couldn't. As this is a debut work, I can't say that I'm that surprised but I was hoping for something deeper- some sort of connection to characters and more substance to the plot would have made for a stronger story. Maybe my feelings would have been elevated if there were at least some great cupcake recipes included but alas there are not... A missed opportunity there for sure.

Fans of baking/cooking related fiction would do better to read Comfort Food, Sweet Love, Friendship Bread: A Novel or The Love Goddess' Cooking School. All of which have a stronger plot and are increasingly more enjoyable than this middling read. ...more

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Aug 20, 2012 Linda C rated it it was ok

Shelves: read-2012

This book was like an underbaked cupcake. Too many flavors, too many themes and way, way too many cliches. If the author had written a book about two 20 somethings who tried to repair their friendship by going into business together, it might have been a sweet, albeit, light story. Instead, Donahue tries to cover every imaginable theme in only 300 pages, and so does justice to none of them.

And the cliches!!! Of course Julia is tall, thin, blond, gorgeous and rich. Of course Annie is short and ...more

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Mar 17, 2012 Kathleen (Kat) Smith rated it it was amazing

Shelves: chick-literature, contemporary-fiction, romance-fiction

Annie Quintana and Julia St. Clair as a different as night is to day. Separated by ten years, the two find themselves brought together once again. Julia St. Clair is ambitious, sophisticated and is very wealthy. The only daughter of the St. Clair family, she is in the planning process of her wedding to Wesley, a Southern businessman but is hiding a secret she must tell him before she marries. Julia finds herself with time on her hands now that she has quit her job to move back home to San Annie Quintana and Julia St. Clair as a different as night is to day. Separated by ten years, the two find themselves brought together once again. Julia St. Clair is ambitious, sophisticated and is very wealthy. The only daughter of the St. Clair family, she is in the planning process of her wedding to Wesley, a Southern businessman but is hiding a secret she must tell him before she marries. Julia finds herself with time on her hands now that she has quit her job to move back home to San Francisco to begin planning her wedding with her mother, Lolly.

Annie Quintana has been used to taking the back seat in life, especially when it comes to Julia or the St. Clair family. Annie's mother Lucia was the housekeeper for the St. Clair's and also became a close personal friend to Lolly during the time she worked there. Annie grew up with Julia since they lived in a small apartment on the St. Clair estate and was provided for by the St. Clair family. Attending the same schools as Julia since they were both only children. It made sense for them to be friends. Lucia died in the kitchen after having a brain aneurism and after attending the funeral and dealing with issues in high school, the girls grew apart.

Now that Annie has been asked by Lolly St. Clair to cater her party by bringing her delicious cupcakes, Annie and Julia are reunited. By this reunion isn't a warm one. The reader gets a sense that something more has happened between the two girls and as they begin to make plans to go into the cupcake business together, the reader is taken on a journey between alternate points of view between Julia and Annie.

As they come to terms with how they can work together in running this business, the reader gets a sense that all is not what it seems to be. Annie is warm and hard working, trying to find a way to make her cupcake business a success while still working through some unresolved issues with Julia that happened in high school. Julia on the other hand remains distant from wedding plans, avoids confrontation with Annie over what issues she has with her, and seeks solace in sharing drinks with her ex boyfriend Jake Logan.

I received How To Eat A Cupcake by Meg Donahue compliments of Harper Collins Publishers for my honest review. The beginning of the book starts off pretty slow for me trying to figure out where these two fit into each other's lives but about 1/3 of the way through the story picks up. I related to Annie the most, having been raised in Julia's shadow most of her life, she seeks resolution with Julia before she can move forward but Julia is constantly changing the subject or passes it off without realizing the impact it had on Annie's childhood. Julia is a bit self absorbed and likes to be the center of attention, seeking to remain at the top of whatever event is going on at the time. I really liked this book because it portrays a unique connection between the two women who come from different walks of life but are drawn together in a compelling way. I rate this one a 4.5 out of 5 stars and highly recommend this one for a great summer read. The only thing missing were some recipes for these delicious cupcakes that are invented along the way! ...more

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Jan 03, 2013 Christine rated it it was ok

Estranged friends Julia and Anna are reunited after ten years and open a cupcakery together. They work hard to build a successful business and attempt to rebuild their friendship after difficult high school years destroyed their relationship. Meanwhile, Julia struggles with a past trauma and planning her upcoming wedding, while Anna still tries to comes to terms with her mother's untimely death, while dating a man who seems all wrong for her.

"How To Eat a Cupcake" is boring chick lit with ...more

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Sep 29, 2018 DeB MaRtEnS rated it liked it

Shelves: cooking-the-plot, love-finds-a-way, dramatic-fiction, comic-chick-lit, crime-mystery

The fluffy concoction that I was looking for. Meg Donahue is very competent in this field of low key women’s fiction, and the frothy addition of a food theme added to the enjoyable escapism. A wee mystery, a few romances and some fine frosting and I was comfortably satiated, which was my hope for this sweet this book. Three stars for a solid performance.

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Mar 22, 2012 Susan Tunis rated it really liked it

I gained weight with every page

I live in San Francisco, where this novel is so evocatively set. After the coldest, dreariest, rainiest week ever, I felt I deserved a treat. I pulled How to Eat a Cupcake off the shelf.

At the novel’s heart, are two very different women with a shared past. Annie Quintana grew up in the carriage house of the St. Clair’s Pacific Heights mansion. Her mother, Lucia, was the nanny to Julia St. Clair, and the two girls were raised practically as sisters. They were the I gained weight with every page

I live in San Francisco, where this novel is so evocatively set. After the coldest, dreariest, rainiest week ever, I felt I deserved a treat. I pulled How to Eat a Cupcake off the shelf.

At the novel’s heart, are two very different women with a shared past. Annie Quintana grew up in the carriage house of the St. Clair’s Pacific Heights mansion. Her mother, Lucia, was the nanny to Julia St. Clair, and the two girls were raised practically as sisters. They were the closest of friends until a rift in their teen years. The last time they’d seen each other was at Lucia’s funeral, a decade prior.

As the novel opens, Annie and Julia live very different lives. Annie is a baker who has finally accepted a catering job from Julia’s mother, Lolly. What she doesn’t know is that her erstwhile friend has left New York’s high finance whirl and has moved home for the month’s leading up to her wedding. They have an awkward (and engineered) reunion at Lolly’s party.

And that would have been that, perhaps, but Julia needs something to do with herself that doesn’t involve wedding planning and nurturing the secret she’s keeping from her fiancé and the world. In the midst of a sugar high, she proposes to Annie that they collaborate on opening a cupcake shop. Despite her distrust of Julia, Annie can’t pass up the opportunity to make her dreams come true. And so an uneasy alliance is born.

As the two women work together towards a common goal, they work to heal their fractured relationship. There are many allusions to past wrongs before the full story is eventually teased out, and there are an equal number of ominous foreshadowings, because not everyone seems to want these two to succeed. Beyond that there are subplots about men, parents, business, and many, many references to delicious cupcakes! I will warn you now, the cravings became unbearable. Kara’s Cupcakes, That Takes the Cake, American Cupcake, I hit them all! Let this serve as a warning to all dieters.

The fact that debut novelist Meg Donohue’s prose was tempting enough to send me to multiple bakeries speaks volumes. In many ways, How to Eat a Cupcake is fairly typical women’s fiction. There really weren’t too many big surprises along the way, but that’s not why I was reading it. Sometimes some semi-formulaic entertainment is exactly what you’re looking for. For me, in the midst of some god-awful dreary weather, it was exactly the literary comfort food I needed. ...more

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Jul 02, 2012 Sara Strand rated it it was ok

You know I love me a good chick lit book, but I've grown frustrated with most of what I have read recently. Every story sounds like another book I have read. I feel like this is like a few books but we changed up the setting and put some cupcakes in it.
Part of what made this just a mediocre book for me is that it never hooked me, drew me in to keep reading. I could predict everything that happened, the fights/arguments between Annie and Julia, and the ending. And it's so frustrating because I ...more

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May 02, 2012 Sonja Reid rated it it was ok

Shelves: novels

I didn't start this book expecting great things, which usually frees me up to enjoy fluff without remorse.
I still wasn't all that thrilled by it.

Maybe it was all the knowing references to "the effects of aging" by characters who are 28. Maybe I am oddly unmoved by the Poor Little Rich Girl thing. Maybe it was the rather boring who-dunnit sub-plot. Or the lamely two-dimensional male characters. Or that I have a hard time suspending disbelief and thinking of cupcake bakeries as anything like a ...more

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Aug 08, 2017 Melodie rated it liked it

Shelves: fiction-and-food

Childhood friends with a difficult past are thrown together as adults. And to complicate things further, they are in business together! One is entitled, the other has a chip on her shoulder. Both have some growing up to do if the cupcakery they have opened is to succeed.
Overall this was a decent light read. There was a twist or two to keep it interesting. If you can suspend belief that this arrangement could actually work, pack it in your beach bag and enjoy.

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Mar 20, 2013 Meg - A Bookish Affair rated it really liked it

Shelves: fiction, 2013, chick-lit

Mmmm, cupcakes! Mmmm, books about cupcakes. I love foodie fiction and I was very excited to read this book because 1. it's about cupcakes and 2. I had heard some good things about this book from some other book bloggers (and we all know that book bloggers are awesome so there's that). This is also a story about a redeemed friendship.

I really liked both of the main characters in the book. Annie seems like a person that I would really like to be friends with. She seems like a lot of fun. Julia ...more

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Jan 27, 2012 Mrs Mommy Booknerd http://mrsmommybooknerd.blogspot.com rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites

Donohue has blasted her debut novel right out of the ballpark. It was moving, believable, well written and real. The characters were well developed and despite their imperfections you found yourself rooting for them, grieving with them, celebrating with them...just simply feeling for them throughout the entire novel. The novel was perfectly paced and it kept me engaged from start to finish. Just when I thought I may have figured things out Donohue threw me for a loop. I am so excited to see what ...more

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Mar 09, 2012 Kimberly Russell rated it did not like it

Shelves: abandoned, bookclub

This one was a bookclub pick. I'm sorry, but I was bored out of my mind (I only made it to page 60). I'm still going to the meeting though because most people are bringing cupcakes. :)

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Mar 07, 2012 Heidi rated it really liked it

Four stars: A riveting cupcakey read.
Annie closes her eyes, draws a deep breath and tries to vanquish the old ghosts. After ten years, she has returned to the house where her mother worked as a servant for the wealthy St. Clair family during her youth. Ten years ago, her mother collapsed on their kitchen floor and died a few short days later of a brain aneurism. Since then, Annie has avoided the family, until now. Today, she is back to serve her delectable cupcakes for a St. Clair social ...more

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Mar 12, 2012 Kristi (Books and Needlepoint) rated it really liked it

I really liked the way that the author told Annie and Julia's story. The timeline went from June to May with the chapters alternating between the two young women. It was almost as if they were sitting in front of you, telling you the story as a friend. There were times I wanted to laugh and times I wanted to cry and times I wanted to shake one of them to open up their eyes as to what was in front of them!

The girls grew up together since they were babies - they might as well have been sisters. I really liked the way that the author told Annie and Julia's story. The timeline went from June to May with the chapters alternating between the two young women. It was almost as if they were sitting in front of you, telling you the story as a friend. There were times I wanted to laugh and times I wanted to cry and times I wanted to shake one of them to open up their eyes as to what was in front of them!

The girls grew up together since they were babies - they might as well have been sisters. Annie got to do a lot of the same things that Julia did, thanks to Lolly and Tad - Julia's parents. Over time, Lucia, Annie's mom, though employed by the St. Clair's, became Lolly's best friend. When the girls entered high school though, the dynamic between the two of them began to change. They went to a private high school, Devon Prep, and for Julia, it was like coming home. She fit in perfectly and didn't think about pulling Annie along with her. Annie, being the daughter of the housekeeper, was only at Devon Prep thanks to Lolly and Tad. She didn't fit in well, but adjusted, until rumors blew her life apart her senior year. Her mother died that summer and she left soon after for college, and did her best to not look back.

Lolly St. Clair, however, kept tabs on Annie, and urged her to provide the cupcakes for one of her charity functions. This is where the story really begins - the above you learn through flashbacks. Annie reluctantly caters the function and runs into Julia, whom she didn't know was back in town. Julia hasn't thought much about how her actions in high school almost derailed Annie for good, and can't understand why Annie is still holding a grudge.
"Of course, that was back when I still cared about making Julia happy, before I realized that the person releasing that peal of laughter was a manipulative, lying, cruel young woman who was trying her damnedest to ruin my life." (p14 - Review copy)

Julia is actually in town to plan her wedding to Wes, a southern charmer who adores her. She is keeping a secret from him though, and the more time that passes, the harder it is to tell him. Instead of planning a wedding she decides she needs something else to occupy her mind. Since she is in love with Annie's cupcakes, she decides that her and Annie should go into business. She would provide the capital and after a year, Annie could buy her out and she would go on with her new married life. She sees no problems with this, as Julia has usually gotten whatever she wanted. I thought this passage described her pretty well:
"I had, I'll admit, affected a certain style - a method, if you will - of cupcake eating. To begin, you remove the cupcake liner carefully so as not to unnecessarily crumble the cake, and set it aside. You then turn the cupcake slowly in your hand, taking bites along the line where cake meets icing, your mouth filling with a perfect combination of both components. Once you've come full circle, you gently twist off the bottom half inch of cake, a move that takes considerable finesse -- leaving a delicate sliver of cake -- the ideal size for lying flat on your tongue and allowing it to slowly dissolve, building anticipation for that final bite. To finish you are left with the center cylinder of cake and icing, the cupcake's very heart, sometimes filled with a surprising burst of custard or jam or mousse, sometimes not, but always, always, the most moist, flavorful bite of the entire cupcake. Take a breath before diving into that final perfect bite, it is to be savored for as long as possible. Finally, of course, you scavenge the crumbs from the cupcake liner you set aside during step one, then ball the liner into your fist and overhand it into the nearest receptacle. Make the shot? You get another cupcake." (p30 - Review copy)

Can't you just picture this woman in your head? I know that I don't eat a cupcake this way (well, I will admit, I did try it today!) Annie is nothing like this, diving right into her cupcake and eating away. This was their take on life as well. Julia's was planned out, well, had been planned out until something happened that made her unable to see her future and really making her wonder about her upcoming wedding and future. And Annie, who has worked multiple jobs just to be able to pay rent, never knowing if she would have enough for the next month. Add to those differences the slight Annie still feels from high school and you have a recipe for an upside down cake!

I liked Annie right off, but took a little while to warm up to Julia. Even by the end of the book, I liked her better, but still wondered if she truly knew, or could even fathom, what she had done to Annie in high school. Coming from her background, I am not sure that is something she could really understand. Oh, and you think you have a nice little chick lit book here, and then the suspense starts to build toward the end as the vandal who has been doing a little nuisance vandalism to their cupcakery ratchets up his game a notch.

...more

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Nov 22, 2011 Laurel-Rain rated it really liked it

Two young girls grow up side by side in San Francisco's Pacific Heights district, but they live totally separate lives. Julia St. Clair is the wealthy daughter of Lolly and Tad; Annie Quintana's mother Lucia fled Ecuador as a teenage single mom, and now works as a nanny/cook for the St. Clairs.

Over the years, however, the girls become best friends, attend the same schools (thanks to the largesse of the St. Clairs), and seemingly are like family to one another.

But what happens during the high Two young girls grow up side by side in San Francisco's Pacific Heights district, but they live totally separate lives. Julia St. Clair is the wealthy daughter of Lolly and Tad; Annie Quintana's mother Lucia fled Ecuador as a teenage single mom, and now works as a nanny/cook for the St. Clairs.

Over the years, however, the girls become best friends, attend the same schools (thanks to the largesse of the St. Clairs), and seemingly are like family to one another.

But what happens during the high school years, and how Julia played a role in those changes, will inform their lives for more than a decade. Annie's mother's death is like the final event that breaks the bond.

When Julia comes back to SF after living a successful life in New York, the women connect again when Annie caters a charity luncheon at the St. Clair home.

Julia reaches out to Annie with a business proposition: she wants to invest capital and help start up a cupcakery with Annie, whose talent for cupcakes borders on perfection. The contract includes a clause where Julia will exit the business after she marries in about a year. So, despite her reservations, Annie agrees.

But what secrets have captured Julia that could devastate her future? And what strange events happening regularly at the Mission District cupcakery dubbed "Treat" could threaten their security, their futures, and possibly their lives?

"How to Eat a Cupcake: A Novel" is narrated alternately between Julia and Annie. Just when I thought Julia could not be more annoying or self-absorbed, I would read her story and start to understand her perspective. Annie's sharp wit and sarcasm evaporate when, in her voice, we come to understand the loneliness, the sadness, and the hurt that have populated her life. I really felt that something important could happen between them, but instead, we see the conflicts and misunderstandings dissipate rather quickly after a horrific event at the cupcakery. Perhaps that moment could have made everything clear to them, but I don't think emotional distance could dissolve with such ease.

What kept me rapidly turning pages, however, were the mysterious events at the cupcakery and trying to sort out who was vandalizing and threatening them. I had it figured out before the end, but there was still some suspense as the exciting and dangerous events kept unfolding until the final piece fell into place. I also loved the delicious descriptions of the cupcakes and the unique presentations of each of them. A delectable cozy read with a few plot points that didn't work for me. Four stars.
...more

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Dec 17, 2011 Melissa ♥ Melissa's Eclectic Bookshelf rated it it was amazing

Shelves: reviewed-net-galley

I knew that I had to read this book from the second I saw that cover and read the title! Isn't is awesome? Clean lines and so appealing...with the perfect mix of colors :) Luckily for me, the inside of the book completely lived up to that wonderful cover. (We're not always so lucky, are we?)

Meg Donohue's writing style and pacing of the novel were perfect. I loved how the narration took turns every other chapter between Anna and Julia. I'm finding that I am really enjoying this trend of dual I knew that I had to read this book from the second I saw that cover and read the title! Isn't is awesome? Clean lines and so appealing...with the perfect mix of colors :) Luckily for me, the inside of the book completely lived up to that wonderful cover. (We're not always so lucky, are we?)

Meg Donohue's writing style and pacing of the novel were perfect. I loved how the narration took turns every other chapter between Anna and Julia. I'm finding that I am really enjoying this trend of dual POVs...more than two and I tend to find that it takes away from the novel. The characters of both Anna and Julia got under my skin quicker than I would have thought...I don't always find myself making quick connections to characters in Chick Lit but this book was the exception. I liked them both immediately and was sucked into their fears and secrets, hopes and dreams, more and more as the story developed.

This is primarily a story about friendship...what it means to really be a friend and how the bonds of friendship can transcend time, space and at times even betrayal. I loved slowly finding out the history behind Anna and Julia's friendship and eventual rift...and watching as time, hard work, trust and communication, mutual goals and a healthy dose of a mutual adversary...led them back to each other.

This is also a story about following one's dream and having the courage to make it happen. I for one can certainly confess to having had many a daydream about opening my own small business (a bookstore) and learning about how these two made it happen was tons of fun...I actually wouldn't have minded if more of the story focused on the nuts and bolts of getting their cupcakery up and running.

Add in a little romance and a dash of mystery and suspense and you have an amazing tale... What would it take to make this story almost perfect?? Cupcakes! Swoon-worthy, drool-worthy, "I need to go out and find a cupcakery at 1am in the morning" cupcakes! And that was precisely the final element that Donohue delivers by the dozen. Mmmmmmm....I'm getting hungry again right now..... ...more

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Aug 25, 2011 Kelly rated it really liked it

Shelves: read-in-2011

I must admit when I picked up this book I was looking for a light hearted read, easy going that I could pick up and put down at will. What I got was a brilliantly worked story leaving me turning pages until the early hours (not to mention craving cupcakes.)

Meg Donohue writes this in a way that slowly feeds our the information and secrets right to the very end which is what keeps you hooked.

What I liked: I loved both characters and really connected with them, especially Julia who clearly ...more

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Nov 20, 2012 Samantha March rated it it was amazing

I received a copy of How to Eat a Cupcake by Meg Donohue in exchange for an honest review.

What a home run of a book! It gives me chills when I find a book that I find irresistible from page one, and this exactly what happened with How to Eat a Cupcake. The dynamic between Annie and Julia was tense, loving, troubled, and supportive –all wrapped into one. These characters really leapt off the pages and made this impossible to put down. I loved the mystery surrounding the death of Annie’s mother ...more

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Feb 19, 2014 Becky rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Cupcakes!

I really want to rush to a bakery and get a glamorous cupcake and try to eat it the way Julia does, I think I might need to get two because I might not get it right the first time! this was a fun book, relationships re-learning each other, misconceptions, misunderstandings, human.The women in this story are both likeable and while reading you just know it's all going to work out but what keeps you reading is How?
The descriptions of cupcakes did have me snacking my way through the story ...more

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Jan 10, 2012 Ruth rated it it was amazing

Recommended to Ruth by: http://www.megdonohue.com/events/

I am happy to be able to report that I really, really enjoyed this book! The characters were likeable, interesting, and believable. I was very intrigued by the idea of girls who grew up together as sisters, through the odd circumstance of being one's parent employed by, and living with the family of the other. And I thought the book was very realistic in its approach to that premise. The book is set in San Francisco, which adds a nice element. Also, any book that includes so much discussion of ...more

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Feb 25, 2013 Angela rated it it was amazing

Shelves: chic-lit, favorites

I loved this book. I like that there was a little mystery but not overwhelming the plot of the book. It was interesting to read the story from both perspectives. It made me realize both girls were being ignorant, which I'm sure is the case with me when I'm fighting with someone.

Fun story, really likable characters..... Now if the cupcake shop were real. This book left me craving cupcakes for days (0=

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Oct 16, 2016 Kate rated it it was ok

Shelves: mystery-books

The book had its moments, though not as intriguing of a book as I had thought it was going to be. Might give author Meg Donohue another try though with Dog Crazy. All in all not a terrible book but it didn't have exactly what I was hoping for.

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Mar 22, 2014 Di rated it liked it

Further proof that you can't judge a book by it's title or cover. Fluff, but lot's of substance. Enjoyable and at times humerous.

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Mar 30, 2013 Jaynan rated it really liked it

I loved this book! It's fluffy fun and full of yummy delights and a bit of romance.

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Apr 25, 2018 Elisabeth rated it liked it

Shelves: novels, chick-lit

This book was a struggle for me to get through. I really felt like the first half dragged and all the action happened in the last 25%. Character development was lacking- Both main characters seemed one dimensional to me, and they kept alluding to their past falling out, but never really clued the reader in for over half the book. Frustrating to get through. However, I appreciated the themes of change, forgiveness, and reconciliation.

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Jan 08, 2017 Nicole Roach added it

Abandoned this book half way because I didn't find any of the characters to have sincere qualities.

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May 15, 2012 Chocolate & Croissants rated it really liked it

It only seems fitting that I would read How to Eat a Cupcake as I was on my way to France. The French are apparently obsessed with cupcakes and we are obsessed with their macarons. Why not read a book about the love of baking as I was headed over to the pastry capital of the world. I am proud to say that I gave this book to the front desk clerk at my hotel in Paris and she was delighted by it. You would think that I was giving her freshly baked cupcakes.

How to Eat a Cupcake is a book after my ...more

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Feb 27, 2013 Heather rated it liked it

Julia St. Clair and Anita "Annie" Quintana grew up together like sisters in San Francisco-Julia the only child of the wealthy St. Clairs and Annie, the only child of the St. Clair family cook. Their friendship was torn apart by an incident that took place their senior year of high school and after graduation, they went their separate ways.

Fast forward 10 years. Julia is a successful business woman in New York who has returned home to plan her California wedding. Annie has followed in her late Julia St. Clair and Anita "Annie" Quintana grew up together like sisters in San Francisco-Julia the only child of the wealthy St. Clairs and Annie, the only child of the St. Clair family cook. Their friendship was torn apart by an incident that took place their senior year of high school and after graduation, they went their separate ways.

Fast forward 10 years. Julia is a successful business woman in New York who has returned home to plan her California wedding. Annie has followed in her late mother's footsteps in a sense working as a pastry chef. The two cross paths again at a party Annie caters the dessert for (cupcakes) hosted by Julia's mother, Lolly. After the party, Julia, who is suffering from depression due to some secret event that landed her in the hospital prior to her coming home, approaches Annie and suggests they open a cupcakery. Despite her misgivings and having not let go of what happened in high school, Annie agrees. Throughout the next several months, they find themselves the victims of vandalism on several occasions as someone clearly does not want them to succeed, which both tests them while also pulling them back together as they realize the love of family-whether blood related or not-runs deep.

The story is told in first person from both girl's point of view in alternating chapters. That was a little confusing at first: I'd get used to it being Annie's voice and then the chapter would end and the next page would be Julia's voice. I felt Julia was rather snobbish and I wanted to tell her to get over herself. And I felt Annie really needed to let go of the past and the anger she still carried with it.

The incident in high school that tore them apart wasn't revealed into well over 100 pages in the book and by that point, I really didn't care what it was. When it was revealed, my initial response was "Really? That's the Big Thing?" Though, I can see how to an 18 year old, it would have been devastating. It just had too much build up for what it ended up being.

Julia's big secret that led to her depression also wasn't revealed until rather late in the book and by the time it was, I'd already figured it was one of two things so again, the build up led to an anti-climatic reveal.

The mystery of who was trying to sabotage the cupcakery was pretty much a slow moving subplot that was suddenly just resolved as the last thing to tie up before the book ended. The ending itself was very neatly wrapped up and almost a little too fairy tale like but at the same time, I was satisfied with it. It did make me give this book 3 stars instead of 2.5. (Interestingly, three friends who typically don't read the same books all gave it 4-stars). The book also made me want to go down to a local bakery for a cupcake or two. :)

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Oct 01, 2011 Vicky rated it it was amazing

Shelves: ebooks, netgalley, chick-lit, read-in-2011

Please read my full review at:
http://booksbiscuitsandtea.blogspot.c...

Witty, funny, heart-wrenching and engaging at the same time, How to Eat a Cupcake is the perfect read for a rainy day and a quiet night in. I can honestly say it has been one of the best chick-lit books I've read this year, without a doubt. It made me smile, it made me bawl my eyes out, but most importantly, it was simply unputdownable.

The plot is just pure brilliance. It focuses on Annie and Julia, two childhood friends who Please read my full review at:
http://booksbiscuitsandtea.blogspot.c...

Witty, funny, heart-wrenching and engaging at the same time, How to Eat a Cupcake is the perfect read for a rainy day and a quiet night in. I can honestly say it has been one of the best chick-lit books I've read this year, without a doubt. It made me smile, it made me bawl my eyes out, but most importantly, it was simply unputdownable.

The plot is just pure brilliance. It focuses on Annie and Julia, two childhood friends who fall out after a series of events and don't see each other for over a decade. When they finally meet, Annie finds herself in an interesting position: does she go with her original plan and tries to put a painful past behind her or does she forgive the one who made her life so miserable a decade ago in order to make her lifelong dream come true?

The characters are are very likeable - I loved Annie's sarcasm and wit and at the same time, I felt sorry for Julia. She's a typical only child who grew up in a wealthy family. She has had everything she wanted all her life, she lives in a huge mansion, surrounded by only the best of everything. But still, her life is far from perfect. She leads an artificial life and puts on a mask every day, an immaculate smile and pretends she's fine. But she's clearly not. And as it turns out, despite the fact that she has all the money in the world, her secrets are getting the best of her and she's on the verge of falling apart.

I loved the fact that the two girls take turns in narrating the story. It's interesting to hear the story from two completely different perspectives. Because let's admit it, the two of them couldn't be any more different. Annie and Julia are an ill-matched pair of friends who have a great bond and who are -deep down- more similar than they think they are. Which makes How to Eat a Cupcake even more excellent.

Donohue adds a little bit of mystery to the story as well which, being a huge Agatha Christie fan, I really appreciated. There is a Mystery Man in the story who wants to sabotage their whole plan and wants to see the cupcakery fail - but does he succeed? I had a feeling who this man might be (having read at least 30 murder mysteries, I'm seriously thinking about becoming the next Miss Marple, haha) and I was right!

How to Eat a Cupcake has all the ingredients of a marvellous book and I can guarantee you'll love this one. Donohue's masterpiece definitely makes you want to curl up in bed with a cup of hot chocolate and some cupcakes - but don't start reading it on an empty stomach! ...more

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Jan 31, 2013 Jan rated it it was ok

I generally prefer more serious novels, but occasionally chick lit provides a welcome break between books with heavy themes. How To Eat a Cupcake was recommended on Fantastic Fiction for those who liked Ellen Airgood’s South of Superior, which I absolutely loved. That plus the word “cupcake,” my idea of the perfect dessert, drew me.

I enjoyed the early chapters introducing Julia and Annie, who grew up in the same household and attended the same schools, Julia the daughter of a very well-to-do San I generally prefer more serious novels, but occasionally chick lit provides a welcome break between books with heavy themes. How To Eat a Cupcake was recommended on Fantastic Fiction for those who liked Ellen Airgood’s South of Superior, which I absolutely loved. That plus the word “cupcake,” my idea of the perfect dessert, drew me.

I enjoyed the early chapters introducing Julia and Annie, who grew up in the same household and attended the same schools, Julia the daughter of a very well-to-do San Francisco couple, Annie the daughter of the family’s cook and second mother to Julia. Now 28, the two women, who have been estranged for 10 years, are reunited almost by accident and agree to launch a “cupcakery” together.

Julia is beautiful, a perfectionist, a control freak, and wealthy beyond measure, both inherited and earned. She can eat unlimited amounts of sugar and still wear pencil jeans. Hiding a heartbreaking secret, she has abruptly quit her successful job in New York City and returned home, ostensibly to plan her wedding one year hence. Julia eats her cupcakes slowly and very methodically.

Annie, on the other hand, is earthy, funny, struggling financially, and comfortable with her own body -- no pencil jeans for her. She is haunted by a devastating incident in high school which she blames on Julia and which led to a rift between the two friends and more critically between Annie and her mother, who died very suddenly before Annie could make things right. Annie eats her cupcakes in gulps.

Their joint efforts to open the cupcakery combine their strengths: Julia’s financial investment and strong business sense, Annie’s exceptional baking talents. The cupcakery serves as a means for the two women’s eventual reconciliation and also provides ample opportunities for fabulous confectionary descriptions.

In my opinion this could easily have sufficed as a story line. (OK, you can keep the men thrown in for romantic interest.) But adding an unknown and frightening vandal, who apparently wants to shut down the cupcakery, was an unnecessary diversion, especially as it was complicated by a case of very mistaken identity. Way over the top.

I was also uncomfortable with the flaunting of wealth, even if some of it is used for “good causes,” and the judgments some of the wealthy characters make toward those with less.

Plus there are predictable endings for all. Maybe I demand too much of chick lit, but this story, in the end, was just too saccharine for me.

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topics	posts	views	last activity
Play Book Tag: How to Eat a Cupcake by Meg Donohue - 3 stars	1	14	Oct 16, 2018 02:04PM
Play Book Tag: how to eat a cupcake - 2 saccharine stars	7	20	Sep 15, 2018 06:56PM
Goodreads Librari...: isbn is ebook from Harper Collins at various booksellers, not a nook edition	2	154	Jul 06, 2013 01:56PM
CUPCAKES WAR READ...: OUR CHAT WITH MEG DONOHUE	5	19	May 02, 2012 07:40PM
CUPCAKES WAR READ...: Place to Come for Chat with Meg Donohue	136	17	Apr 25, 2012 06:30PM

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About Meg Donohue

Meg Donohue

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Meg Donohue is the USA Today bestselling author of You, Me, and the Sea, Dog Crazy, All the Summer Girls, and How to Eat a Cupcake. Her novels have been translated into Dutch, French, German, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, Spanish, and Turkish. Born and raised in Philadelphia, she lives San Francisco with her husband, three daughters, and dog.