I hereby profess my love for Maddie, the lovable protagonist of Practice Cake. See Maddie isn't sure where her life is taking her, but she does know that for now baking is something she really enjoys doing. Being around all those gorgeous cakes and pastries is pure heaven. Of course, it doesn't hurt that her coworker is rather yummy himself! Never mind the fact that her current boyfriend thinks it's a waste of time. What does he know? Maddie is a teenage girl at her best and worst, all at the same time. She's perfectly flawed, hilariously honest, and I loved every minute of reading about her struggle to just figure herself out.

The people who drift in and out of her life really craft the person Maddie is, and I can't explain enough how fantastic it all is. You'll just have to read for yourself. Maddie and her friends are constantly bickering and joking. Their personalities shine off the page. There isn't a single character in Practice Cake who isn't given the same love and attention as Maddie herself. They are all well formed and wonderfully flawed themselves. Jealousy, pettiness, it's all there in black and white.

My favorite part overall though? The humor! Let me share with you one of my favorite quotes from the book. Jaslene and Maddie have some great conversations, but this one made me giggle out loud.

Jaslene was already twirling one of her long, dark ringlets and reading an article titled, Ten Things Your Guy Really Wants.

I pointed to the magazine, and said to Jaslene, "The answer is nine dumb girls and a double-bacon cheeseburger."

It's really the honesty in this book that allowed me to be so immersed in it. As I mentioned above, Dalya Moon gives her all her characters flaws. It makes them so much more realistic. Whether it's a hot boy, a best friend, or a popular girl turned mother, each character has their personality that shines off the page. I fell in love with each an every one of them, even as they drove me crazy with their decisions. Maddie learns a lot in this book, and it's all thanks to the author who allowed her to be so honest with the reader. Thanks for that Dalya!

So as you can plainly tell, I adored this book! One of my favorite things about discovering a particularly delicious self-published book, is that I get to scream it's praises to you, my dear followers. Practice Cake and Dalya Moon definitely fall into this category. I ate this book up. Great characters, fantastic story line, ample humor, it's all there! If you are looking for something light, sweet, but with a purpose, welcome to your next read.
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This was a fun and humorous story. I love that is set in Vancouver and am always glad to discover a Canadian author. I liked the characters and the mix between knowing whats right and wrong and making the choices to do whats right even if it is not the easy choice. The main character faces this several times throughout this story and the author portrays this well particularly for young adults. Look forward to reading another book from this author so this one is actually 3.5 stars. ( )

Nope; not for this nearly 50 year old lady. Teenager with a crush in a love triangle and uber-flippant writing.

Centering around Maddie, its a bit of coming of age story that shows more the beginning of the journey than the end. This would be a good read for the teen crowd.

Originally posted on These Pretty Words.

I really wanted to love this book. I gave it more than a fair shake considering I was ready to flounce at chapter four, but I held on until the end because the author is such a sweetie. Unfortunately the story never really grabbed onto me. I loved Maddie – she's funny, brazen, a little blunt, a lotta snarky –but in my opinion the other characters were written without clear characterizations. There were many moments throughout the book where I had to double back and reread to be able to figure out who was doing what. That really pulled me out of the story and frustrated me as a reader.

I also didn't feel a strong draw to any of the three boys in Maddie's life. I didn't swoon over any one of them, even though I wanted to. And the girls around her? There were times when I wanted to throw my Nook across the room because of how her friends and sister were behaving. I will admit that Maddie's wit was quite a treat. There were many moments when my husband came to check what I was doing because he heard me giggling away during a particularly good section of dialogue.

I was also very impressed with some of the scenes Dalya described. One in particular is an evening of drinking and dancing for the underage Maddie. While most authors tend to tell the reader how much their character drank and how 'wobbly' they felt, Dalya was able to write a scene from the point of view of a tipsy eighteen year old that made me give my tea the sniff test to make sure I hadn't poured in any Bailey's. The lady knows how to write good drunkenness.

In the end, I liked the book but didn't fall in love with it. The basic premise of Practice Cake is intriguing (reality TV baking show? YES!) so give it a go if you think you might enjoy it. If it helps, I would recommend this book to someone looking for a light, fun read with a snarky leading lady. I've already recommended it to a few friends who I think will enjoy it, flaws and all. ( )