by Sheryl Berk
Copyright © 2014 by Sheryl Berk and Carrie Berk
Cover and internal design © 2014 by Sourcebooks, Inc.
Cover design by Rose Audette
Cover illustration © Kristi Valiant
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All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems—except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews—without permission in writing from its publisher, Sourcebooks, Inc.
The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious or are used fictitiously. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.
Published by Sourcebooks Jabberwocky, an imprint of Sourcebooks, Inc.
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Front Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Chapter 1: A Frightful Surprise
Chapter 2: Juliette’s Big News
Chapter 3: I Dream of London
Chapter 4: Heart to Heart
Chapter 5: A Rose by Any Other Name
Chapter 6: Across the Pond
Chapter 7: Cordially Invited
Chapter 8: Rising to the Occasion
Chapter 9: A Very Proper Party
Chapter 10: Opening-Night Jitters
Chapter 11: Curtains Up!
Chapter 12: Applause, Applause
Chapter 13: Home, Sweet Home
Opening-Night Lavender Honey Cupcakes
Lady Lillianne’s Chocolate Cupcakes with Salted Caramel Frosting
Lexi’s Rainbow Tie-Dye Cupcakes
Carrie’s Q and A: Tarek Malouf, founder of London’s Hummingbird Bakery
Acknowledgments
A sneak peek at Fashion Academy
About the Authors
Back Cover
To Rick, Stephen, Charity, Christina, Norma, Meghan, Danielle, Lisa, Isaac, Louisa, Linda, Holly, Stephanie, Kathleen, and the whole gang of Peace, Love, and Cupcakes The Musical at Vital Theatre. Thank you for bringing our characters to life. This one’s for you…
If there was one thing Kylie Carson enjoyed on a stormy night, it was curling up on her couch with a monster movie. Monster flicks were Kylie’s favorite things in the whole world, although she couldn’t exactly explain why. Most kids in fifth grade at Blakely Elementary found them creepy and weird. But Kylie insisted that all the blood, guts, and gore were good for a laugh! Plus, there was just something about a scary movie that made her happy and excited.
It felt just like when she rode a roller coaster and her stomach did a somersault as the coaster plunged down a death-defying drop. It caught her off guard and took her breath away, but afterward, she felt so alive. Her dad said she was a risk taker, just like her Grandpa Nathaniel, who parachuted out of airplanes when he was in the Air Force.
“Your Papa Nat was fearless,” her dad explained. “He once took your Uncle Charlie and me camping when we were kids, and a grizzly bear showed up at our tent in the middle of the night. Papa Nat didn’t flinch; he stared that grizzly down!”
Kylie knew she wasn’t that fearless. There were things that certainly scared her—like her upcoming geography test (drawing the entire world map from memory!) or forgetting a key ingredient in an important cupcake recipe.
She loved cupcakes almost as much as monsters. Back in fourth grade, she had taken a risk and started her club, Peace, Love, and Cupcakes, at Blakely, hoping it would help her fit in at her new school. Amazingly, she made three of the best friends a girl could ever ask for—Jenna, Sadie, and Lexi—and added a fourth, Delaney, when she went to summer camp.
Together, they were now so much more than an after-school club. PLC was a huge baking business, whipping up hundreds of cupcakes every month for all sorts of parties and events. No order was too big, too small, or too unusual for PLC to tackle. In fact, the stranger, the better in Kylie’s book! Just last week, a woman had called requesting a dozen cupcakes for her horse’s fifth birthday at the Danbury Stables. Jenna had come up with the idea to make minis out of molasses, carrot, apple, and oatmeal. They presented them to Buttercup on a horseshoe-shaped platter. Mission accomplished!
Tonight, since the forecast called for showers, Kylie decided to invite all her PLCers over for a sleepover party. She dubbed it “A Night of Fright and Frosting,” and Lexi was first on her list to call.
“I’m down for the frosting part.” Lexi hesitated. She was always a little timid and needed some coaxing. “It’s the fright part that scares me.”
“That’s the point,” Kylie assured her. “Monster movies are supposed to be creepy, spooky, spine-tingling…”
“Can I bring my boo-boo teddy bear?” Lexi asked.
Kylie chuckled. “Sure, if it makes you feel better. I’m thinking a double feature: The Blob, then Ghost of Frankenstein. Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff. It doesn’t get any better than that.”
“Sure it does,” Lexi insisted. “We could watch something fun and happy and monster-free. I could ask Delaney to bring over some of her baby brother and sister’s Sesame Street DVDs. Come on! Aren’t you just an itty-bitty bit nostalgic for Elmo?”
“Technically, Elmo is a monster,” Kylie replied.
“A cute, red, fuzzy-wuzzy one!” Lexi tossed back. “With a big orange nose!”
“I think Frankenstein is cute—in a green, undead sort of way,” Kylie teased. She knew scary flicks weren’t exactly Lexi’s thing, so she had to think fast.
“You know, I was kind of hoping you’d bring your sketchbook over and help me come up with a design for a new order: thirty dozen cupcakes for the opening of the New Fairfield Amateur Art Show.”
“Art? Did you say art?” Lexi’s ears perked up. Art was always up her alley! Her artistic eye and talent for painting and drawing had made her PLC’s expert cupcake decorator. She dreamed of one day having an exhibit at a famous art museum—like the Met in New York City, the Louvre in Paris, or the National Gallery in London. “What kind of an art show?”
“The lady who placed the order said it’s for all local artists in the Connecticut area. I was thinking maybe you’d want to create an awesome painting and enter it in the contest.”
“OMG! That’s amazing! I’ll be right over!”
An hour later when Lexi rang her doorbell, Kylie had finished inviting over the rest of the club and was poking around in the kitchen cupboards.
“Kylie, honey, Lexi’s here,” her mom said, ushering Lexi into the kitchen. “And she brought her entire art studio.”
Kylie looked up from the shelves of spices. Lexi had an easel under one arm and a canvas under the other.
“I didn’t bring my entire studio,” she corrected Mrs. Carson. “Just my oil paints, brushes, a couple of canvases in case I make a mistake…”
Kylie shook her head. “As if you ever make a mistake,” she said, climbing down from her step stool. “Lex, your paintings are all masterpieces and so are your cupcakes.”
“Which is why I had this great idea,” Lexi said, opening her bag and pulling out her sketchbook. “Cupcakes are art—you know that and I know that. So why not prove it to everyone else?”
She held up a drawing she’d made in pastel colored pencils. It was a beautifully frosted cupcake, dotted with rain
bow sprinkles.
“Everyone else will probably paint landscapes or flowers or horses. I thought a still life of a cupcake would shake things up a little.”
“I think that’s a brilliant idea,” Kylie replied. “Maybe we should do mini versions of your painting on each cupcake. How cool would that be? If anyone can paint an awesome cupcake, it’s you, Lexi.”
“I agree!” said a voice outside the kitchen. It was Sadie, followed by Jenna with Delaney tagging along behind her. Sadie, as always, was on her skateboard. She was the sportiest girl in the cupcake club, but had proved she was an awesome baker as well.
“The door was open, so we came in,” Jenna said. “Do I smell buttered popcorn? I’m starved!” Other kids in school teased her for being overweight, but all the PLC girls loved Jenna just the way she was.
Kylie chuckled. “How do you say it, Jenna? Mi casa es tu casa?”
Jenna tried to be polite. “Yeah, that’s kinda how you say it…only with a much better Spanish accent.”
Kylie jumped down and gathered up a pile of DVDs she’d placed on the kitchen counter. “Let’s get the monster movie fest under way!”
They gathered on the rug in front of the TV, where Kylie had arranged pillows and bowls of popcorn.
“I’ll sit over here.” Lexi pointed to the couch. She took the throw blanket on it and wrapped it around herself. “In case I need to duck for cover.”
“I don’t think you’ll need that,” Kylie’s mom said, popping a DVD into the player. “I spoke to Juliette earlier today, and she dropped off something she wants you girls to watch.”
“Hey!” Kylie protested. “I have a whole lineup of monster movies planned!” It wasn’t like their club advisor to spring something on them. She usually consulted Kylie first. After all, Kylie was PLC’s president.
“I think you’ll want to see this,” her mom replied. “Especially since Juliette has a big surprise for all of you and she’ll be here in an hour to tell you about it.”
“A surprise?” Delaney asked. “What kind of surprise?” The last “big surprise” she had was her mom announcing she was pregnant with twins! “Monster movies don’t scare me, but surprises do.” Delaney was PLC’s comic relief—until she became a big sister a few months ago. But no matter how “serious” and responsible she tried to be, she was always the life of the party with a flair for the dramatic.
The DVD began to play, and beautiful pink posies appeared on the screen. Then yellow daisies, then white chrysanthemums. There was sweeping music, and the words “My Fair Lady” and a list of names materialized.
“This doesn’t look like The Blob.” Kylie sighed.
Lexi leaned in for a closer look. “No! It’s beautiful!”
Sadie giggled. “But Kylie thinks The Blob is beautiful.”
“You bet I do,” Kylie grumped.
“In a red, ooey-gooey kinda way,” Delaney said.
“Watching The Blob always kind of makes me hungry for Jell-O,” Jenna added. “With whipped cream and bananas.”
“Guys! Can we please focus on the movie!” Lexi insisted. “What do you think Juliette’s surprise is? Do you think it has to do with flowers? Maybe we’re doing cupcakes for the New York Botanical Garden!”
Just then, a figure appeared on-screen. He was a proper English gentleman with a proper English accent. He wore a tweed hat and a trench coat, and was making quite a fuss over the way a girl selling flowers was speaking.
“I think my sister did this musical in tenth grade,” Jenna said. “This guy is gonna teach her how to be a lady.”
“It’s based on a famous play by George Bernard Shaw called Pygmalion,” Mrs. Carson explained.
Kylie wrinkled her nose. “Who would name their play Pig-Mail? Pigs play in the mud. They don’t deliver mail.”
Her mom giggled. “Pygmalion. It has nothing to do with pigs, and it’s a classic. But I’ll let Juliette explain the significance when she gets here.”
All the girls were enthralled with the movie—all except Kylie. The man on the screen was complaining, “Why can’t the English teach their children how to speak?” He looked angry and frustrated, and she knew just how he felt.
Why couldn’t her cupcake club simply watch a monster movie?
By the time their club advisor arrived, they had reached the part in the movie where Eliza Doolittle, the flower girl, and Henry Higgins, the language teacher, were waltzing around his study singing “The Rain in Spain.”
“This is the best movie I’ve ever seen,” Lexi exclaimed.
“I know!” Delaney chimed in, jumping on the couch and singing along. “Who knew the rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain?”
“I’m so glad you feel that way,” Juliette said, taking off her coat. “It’s pretty magical, isn’t it?”
Kylie rolled her eyes. “I don’t get what’s so great about it. He teaches her how to pronounce her words with some silly rain-plain-Spain tongue twister. Big deal. It’s not like he killed any vampires or zombies!”
Juliette chuckled. “I don’t think Henry Higgins would make a very good vampire slayer,” she told Kylie. “I suppose Rodney will be relieved to hear that.”
Kylie wondered why Juliette’s fiancé would even care—aside from the fact that his last name was Higgins too. Mr. Higgins was always swept up in teaching Shakespeare to kids at Blakely Elementary. He was a trained actor, just like Juliette, and he loved catching his audience off guard. He had, after all, planted Juliette’s engagement ring in a cupcake! Maybe he was behind all this. “Does this have to do with your surprise?” she asked Juliette.
“It does.” Juliette paused the DVD and cleared her throat. “Rodney is going to be playing Henry Higgins in a new revival of Pygmalion in the West End.”
“Awesome!” Delaney cheered. “Can we go see his opening night in the city? I’ve always wanted to walk the red carpet.”
“The West End isn’t in New York City,” Juliette explained. “It’s in London.”
“London, as in England?” Jenna gasped.
“Yes, London, England,” their advisor replied. “And opening night happens to be during your spring break. Which means it’s the perfect time for you to come with me. I spoke to all of your parents and asked their permission for PLC to cater cupcakes for the opening-night party. Everyone said yes.”
“We’re going to London!” Lexi squealed as she jumped up and down on the couch. Kylie had never seen her so excited.
Juliette nodded. “If it’s okay with all of you.”
“Okay? It’s amazing!” Delaney cheered. “Do you think we can meet the Queen?”
“I’ve always wanted to check out a football game in England—that’s what they call soccer over there,” Sadie said. “Do you think we can find a match?”
“I’ve heard the Queen has Prestat chocolates delivered to Buckingham Palace,” Jenna added. “I’ve been dying to try their red velvet truffles!”
Kylie was quiet as the rest of the girls chattered away about the trip.
“Is there a problem, Kylie?” Juliette asked her. “You don’t seem excited.”
“I think it’s great that Rodney is starring in a play and that you asked us to go with you,” Kylie said.
“Then what’s wrong?” Juliette asked. “I thought you of all people would be doing the happy dance.”
Kylie shrugged. “It’s just that we usually talk about our orders ahead of time and vote on any big decisions.”
Juliette nodded. “You’re right, Kylie. I should have consulted you first. We should consider it carefully and put it to a vote. It will be a lot of work: the producers of the show want two hundred cupcakes for opening night and a fun display.”
“Kyles, are you crazy?” Delaney said, shaking Kylie by the shoulders. “This is awesome. We’re going to London! We’re going to an opening-night party filled w
ith all sorts of celebrities. OMG! What if One Direction comes?”
Juliette reached into her purse and pulled out a pamphlet that the travel agent had given her. “I thought this might be of some interest to you, Kylie,” she said, handing it to her. It read “The London Tombs.”
Kylie’s eyes grew wide. “Tombs? Real tombs?”
“I understand you walk through the plague pits,” Juliette said. “And there’s a London ghost tour, and an amazing monster exhibit at Madame Tussauds wax museum.” She pulled out several more brochures. “Plus London has lots of wonderful cupcakes to sample. Rodney tells me the Harrods Food Halls are just filled with them.”
Juliette had just said the two magic words: “monster” and “cupcake.” Still Kylie hesitated. No matter how great the trip sounded, it felt a little like she was losing control of her club. All the girls were swarming around Juliette, pressing her for details of the trip. They hadn’t even asked Kylie her opinion.
Before she could say another word, Juliette called for a vote: “All in favor of a PLC going to London say, ‘Cupcake!’”
“Cupcake!” Jenna, Sadie, Lexi, and Delaney all shouted in unison.
Kylie forced a smile and tried to remind herself of all the great things the trip had to offer—even if it hadn’t been her idea in the first place.
Two days later, Kylie called an official meeting of PLC to discuss their next few months of business. “Shall we get started?” Juliette asked her, glancing at the clock. “Mrs. Rogner and the math team need the teachers’ lounge at four forty-five…”
“Yeah, and I’ve got b-ball practice at four thirty,” Sadie added.
“Oh! I have a science test to study for,” Lexi said. “The food chain isn’t my strongest topic.”
“A chain of food sounds pretty awesome to me,” Jenna said. “I’m starving. Anybody bring a snack?” She looked through the bag of groceries Kylie had brought and found a bag of mini bittersweet chocolate chips.
“That’s our stock for our weekend bake,” Delaney reminded her.
“I’m the official taste tester. So I’m tasting!” Jenna said with a wink.