What is the title of your latest release?
A SPRINKLE OF SWEET SERENDIPITY
What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book?
A sweet story about a struggling chocolate maker, Emmie, who finds herself in the sandwich generation. She’s caring for her young son and her ailing mom, and running her family’s rundown fudge shop in a harbor tourist town in the Pacific Northwest. When Emmie is given a magical chance to see her future, she thinks all her dreams are finally coming true, but as the summer progresses, she begins to suspect that what she saw in her vision might not be what her heart truly desires after all! This book features an adorable small town filled with a cast of heartwarming characters, not one but two hunky love interests, a French bulldog named Mr. Butters, and so much chocolate!
How did you decide where your book was going to take place?
I live in the Pacific Northwest, and I wanted to set my story in one of the charming harbor towns nearby. I chose Poulsbo, WA, known as “Little Norway” for its adorable look and Norwegian roots.
Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life?
Absolutely! Emmie is a mom AND a chocolate maker. What’s not to love?
What are three words that describe your protagonist?
Responsible, determined, and hopeful.
What’s something you learned while writing this book?
I did a lot of research about how to make fudge and chocolate. I’m not sure I could be a master chocolatier, but I know how much effort and skill goes into the process now.
Do you edit as you draft or wait until you are totally done?
I edit as I draft, in a sort of loop. I’ll write a few chapters, then circle back and edit them. I usually loop my way through the entire book.
What’s your favorite foodie indulgence?
Good quality dark chocolate, particularly European chocolate since I lived in Europe for years. My favorite chocolate right now is Alter Eco’s Browned Butter dark chocolate. It’s delicious and ecologically sustainable, which is important to me!
Describe your writing space/office!
For the first time I have an office and I love it! It has a little peek-a-boo view of Puget Sound. I don’t write at a desk. I write on a daybed, lounging like a cat. My office is filled with plants, books, and mementos that are special to me. It’s a peaceful, colorful space that fosters creativity and imagination.
Who is an author you admire?
I have really admired Kristin Hannah’s books for years, even before I moved to the Pacific Northwest. Now she lives on an island close to me.
Is there a book that changed your life?
Little Women. I loved how Jo made her own way in the world while still helping her family. It was inspiring to me!
Tell us about when you got “the call.” (when you found out your book was going to be published)/Or, for indie authors, when you decided to self-publish.
I was living in Europe and working with an NGO in Budapest. I was at a conference and my agent called to tell me I’d been offered a 2-book deal with an imprint of Harper Collins. I was over the moon! I felt like I was floating on a little cloud of joy for the rest of the day.
What’s your favorite genre to read?
I love stories about people being transformed by the power of community and connection. I will read anything about the power of love and human connection to make us more healthy, happy, whole people.
What’s your favorite movie?
The Brothers Bloom by Rian Johnson. It stars Rachel Weisz, Adrien Brody and Mark Ruffalo on a caper across Europe by train. It beautifully explores what it means to live an unscripted life.
What is your favorite season?
Spring! Here in the Pacific Northwest, spring comes the end of February and lasts until May. There is always something blooming, even in the rain.
How do you like to celebrate your birthday?
I love to have breakfast with my family, get hilarious cards my kids made me, then throw a party with my mom friends and celebrate the blessings in my life. I love to give gifts on my birthday and really appreciate the gift of life for another year.
What’s a recent tv show/movie/book/podcast you highly recommend?
I just saw the movie adaptation of Remarkably Bright Creatures and thought it was so hopeful and satisfying and beautiful.
What’s your favorite type of cuisine?
I’ve traveled a lot (56 countries and counting) and enjoy all sorts of food from my travels. I especially enjoy Japanese cuisine and am ALWAYS up for some good sushi!
What do you do when you have free time?
I explore the outdoors with my husband and kids – hiking, camping, kayaking. I love to be outside. And I read a lot, tend my dahlia and vegetable garden, play board games, and cook for people I love. Recently I’ve taken up mushroom foraging which I really enjoy.
What can readers expect from you next?
I’m at the start of a new story, but it’s in the dreaming and creating stage, so stay tuned when I figure out more about it!
A tantalizing novel about a struggling chocolatier who is granted a magical vision of the future of her dreams, only to realize that her heart may desire something else entirely, from the bestselling author of The Magic of Lemon Drop Pie.
Paris trained chocolatier and single mother Emmie Wynne gave up her own dreams six years ago when she returned to her Pacific Northwest coastal tourist town to run her family's struggling candy store. Now on her thirty-fourth birthday, Emmie has only one wish, to be granted the vision that every Wynne woman is given once in her lifetime—a shimmering glimpse of her true destiny. This year, when she blows out her candles, it finally comes true.
Her vision is more delectable than she could’ve imagined—her very own artisanal chocolate shop filled with decadent truffles and caramels, and her celebrity crush, Henry Summers, down on one knee. And when Henry suddenly arrives in town for the summer, offering Emmie the opportunity of a lifetime, the future in her vision suddenly seems possible.
But a rekindled connection with Jakob, her former high school best friend turned hunky, brooding tattooed baker, forces Emmie to grapple with the bittersweet realization that her destiny may not be what her heart truly longs for. As the culmination of her vision draws nearer, can Emmie find the courage to create a happiness of her own making?
Women's Fiction | Fantasy Magical Realism [ Penguin, On Sale: May 19, 2026, Trade Paperback / e-Book / audiobook, ISBN: 9780593816660 / eISBN: 9780593816653 ]
Small Town Charm and Magical Realism Set in a Candy Shop
Rachel Linden is the bestselling author of many novels including Recipe for a Charmed Life, The Magic of Lemon Drop Pie and The Enlightenment of Bees. She loves creating stories about strong women facing big challenges, food, travel, and second chances at love…
Rachel’s taste for adventure and interest in people first led her to a career as an international worker with a faith-based aid organization, and her experiences living and traveling in more than fifty countries around the globe continue to provide excellent grist for her stories. She loves writing novels that combine so many of her favorite things – strong women facing big challenges, food, travel, and second chances at love. Rachel enjoys crafting bittersweet stories of struggles and triumphs infused with a touch of magical realism and with ultimately happy, or at least very hopeful, endings.
Currently Rachel lives with her husband and children on a sweet little island near Seattle. When she’s not dreaming up a new story, she enjoys camping with her family in their pop top campervan, exploring the beauty of the Pacific Northwest, eating sushi, and having grand adventures in far flung places.
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