Nestled at the end of a tiny, cobbled backstreet, is a charming, careworn bakery, its doorstep scrubbed clean and pale green linen blinds neatly drawn. Every night, long after customers have gone and the last crumbs wiped from the shelves, a key turns in the lock. This is a haven, a place where a candle burns through the night for anyone feeling lost or lonely.
Frankie, kneading dough through the night and shaping croissants to bake for morning, hopes the bakery will keep her safe from the heartbreak of her past. But what she hasn’t expected is to meet others who need to heal as much as she does.
William appears one moonlit night. Forging his own new path following years of heartache, he begins to check in on Frankie nightly, his gentle smile letting her know he’s keeping an eye.
Tam, lost and alone, stumbles upon the bakery and it becomes the one place where he can be himself.
Beth, who nurses patients by night and her husband by day, is drawn in by the scent of freshly baked bread and warm sugar, with Frankie’s custard tarts the one bright spark in her long, lonely nights.
Each of them finds comfort, companionship, and hope, as they begin to reveal secrets they’ve kept hidden for so long.
But one night, Frankie finds a letter neatly folded on the countertop. As she unfolds the perfect creases, her heart plummets when she sees the scrawled writing: will everything she’s been working towards be undone in an instant?
Can the four new friends fight for the place they love? Or will they lose the midnight bakery just when they need it most?
Fans of The Last List of Mabel Beaumont, Sally Page and Amanda Prowse will adore this totally uplifting and page-turning novel of finding friendship and belonging in the most unexpected of places.
