The Devine Doughnut Shop

Written by Carolyn Brown

Narrated by Brittany Pressley

Three women are torn between traditions of the past and unexpected new beginnings in a warmhearted novel by Carolyn Brown about family, romance, and the best pastries in Texas.

For Grace Dalton, her sister, Sarah, and her cousin Macy, the Devine Doughnut Shop is a sweet family legacy and a landmark in their Texas town. As the fourth generation to run the Double D, they keep their great-grandmother’s recipe secret and uphold the shop’s tradition as a coffee klatch for sharing local gossip, advice, and woes. But drama brews behind the counter, too.

Grace is a single mother struggling with an unruly teenage daughter. Heartbroken Sarah has sworn off love. Macy’s impending wedding has an unexpected hitch. And now charming developer Travis Butler has arrived in Devine with a checkbook and a handsome smile. He wants to buy the shop, expand it nationally, and boost the economy of a town divided by the prospect.

With the family’s relationships in flux, their beloved heritage up for grabs, and their future in the air, it’s amazing what determination, sass, a promise of romance, and a warm maple doughnut can do to change hearts and minds.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Brilliance Audio
• Release date: Feb 14, 2023
• ISBN: 9781978699526

Carolyn Brown

Carolyn Brown is a bestselling author who has received several awards for her writing. Her novels have been translated into nineteen foreign languages, and she specializes in women's fiction and cowboy romance. She currently resides with her husband in southern Oklahoma. For more information, visit carolynbrownbooks.com.

Reviews for The Devine Doughnut Shop

[scoutmomskf · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Carolyn Brown excels at small-town stories involving people whose lives feel like they could be yours or your neighbor's. This is a story of love, family - by blood and of the heart, and dreams. Two sisters, Grace and Sarah, and their cousin Macy are the fourth generation of women who have run the Devine Doughnut Shop. The doughnut recipe is a cherished family secret, and the shop is the center of the town's information-sharing community. Drama abounds on both sides of the counter. Grace is the oldest and the mother of sixteen-year-old Audrey. She had Audrey while she was young, with a man who bailed when he found out he would be a father. With the support of her family, Grace manages single parenthood well. But as the story opens, she's ready to send Audrey to boot camp or a convent. Audrey has been caught with contraband cigarettes and alcohol on school property and refuses to say where it came from. Grace believes in accountability, and Audrey isn't happy to find she's expected to work in the shop from 3 a.m. to noon every day during spring break. I love Grace's down-to-earth attitude and parenting style. But Audrey isn't Grace's only problem. Three of their oldest customers have invited a younger friend to try the doughnuts, with an eye to buying Grace and the others out, building a factory, and taking the pastries national. Travis is a handsome and charming man who doesn't give up easily, no matter how often Grace tells him they won't sell. Complicating matters are the sparks that fly between them. Sarah has never been married and wants a family of her own. She's spent a lot of time looking for love and finally found a man who checks all her boxes. Everything comes crashing down when she discovers that he hasn't been truthful with her. Brokenhearted, she wonders if she'll ever have the family she longs for. Meanwhile, Cousin Macy busily prepares for her upcoming wedding to Neal. They have big plans for her cousins to buy her out while she and Neal wait for him to be promoted to manager at the hotel where he works. Then an unexpected encounter shows that he isn't what he claims to be, and Macy joins her cousins in the love-lost ranks. And though Macy is the more spiritual of the group, she has no trouble playing the part of an avenging angel on his sorry hide. I laughed out loud at that scene and cheered her on. Audrey is one of those teens who must learn things the hard way. She wants to be popular and has ditched her old friends to hang out with two of the school's queen bees. She has blinders on when it comes to those two and doesn't see that she is being used. Grace gets nowhere when she tries to point that out and suspects there will be trouble when it finally happens. One of Audrey's former friends, Raelene, comes to Grace looking for a job. The grandmother who raised her has died, and her mom has left town with a boyfriend, leaving her behind. Grace's big heart steps up, giving Raelene a job as a housekeeper for them and inviting her to move in. I loved Raelene. She is a young woman who has had to grow up fast and has a good head on her shoulders. But things going on in her life could upend everything she's worked for. Travis is an intriguing man. The head of his company, he has a talent for selecting people who share his vision. His best friend, Calvin, and oldest employee and friend, Delores, round out the trio that keeps Butler Industries growing. Travis is a workaholic whose marriage crashed when he and his equally workaholic wife grew apart. Grace had his attention from the moment he walked into her shop and offered to buy her out. She turns him down flat, both for the sale and for a date, but he isn't one to give up easily. What he must decide is whether he is interested in buying her out for the business or as a way to spend more time with her. I enjoyed watching the fun as Audrey learned her lesson the hard way. I liked the effect having Raelene around had on her once she got over her snit fit. Once Audrey's eyes opened to her "friends" true natures, she got that look in her eye that didn't bode well for them. I laughed at Grace's sense of impending doom because she knew her daughter well. And when that moment of reckoning came, it was a doozy. I loved how it turned out, thanks partly to Raelene's intelligent actions. Small towns being what they are, the gossip was out of control after this. I loved seeing the three ladies decide it was the perfect time to take the vacation they'd never had. Within hours the whole family was on their way to Florida, and two weeks of rest and relaxation. Grace never expected Travis to follow her down there, nor that she'd be so happy to see him. Travis won my heart by including everyone in his plans while he was there. He's a good man, and it shows in everything he does. But Grace is wary of rushing into anything and is honest with Travis about her concerns. I loved how the two weeks away gave each person a new perspective on their past, present, and future. The two teens are given an opportunity that could change the futures they thought they had in ways they'd never imagined. The doughnut shop is no longer the be-all and end-all of the three ladies' lives now that they've seen what a little life balance adds to their lives. And Sarah and Macy discover it's never too late for love.I always enjoy the variety of characters that populate the author's books. The three older men who come into the shop every day for their doughnut and coffee fix would fit in any small-town gathering place. Beezy, the honorary grandmother was a hoot with her joy of life, adventurousness, and sense of humor. I also liked her support for the family. The two so-called friends were spoiled brats and bullies, and I loved seeing them get their comeuppance. Their mothers were even worse. I liked what little I saw of Brock and Jimmy. The epilogue was a grand wrap-up to the story. I loved seeing where they were a year later. Some things were surprises, and some weren't, but I loved them all. #netgalley