Tag: food

REVIEW: Ashes to Ashes, Crust to Crust by Mindy Quigley

REVIEW: Ashes to Ashes, Crust to Crust by Mindy Quigley

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received a free electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and St. Martin’s in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. This book releases on Tuesday, April 25th.]

Summary

Delilah is hoping the Geneva Bay Taste of Wisconsin contest will net her enough money to get through the typical lean winter in her touristy Wisconsin town. But her chances of that keep taking hits.

First, the “celebrity judge” has a history with her business partner. And it’s not a good history – Sonja slept with the man’s wife. It’s highly unlikely that he would choose Delilah’s food as the winning entry, no matter how good it is.

Then, there is a mysterious death in Geneva Bay – and another person is poisoned. The poisoning victim happens to be another contestant – the woman Delilah’s ex is dating.

And if all that wasn’t complicated enough, the celebrity judge is later murdered. Delilah has her hands full with her floundering business, her aging aunt who is hiding something from her, and her custody agreement with her ex over their cat. She really doesn’t have time to investigate a murder! But she also can’t let any of their friends go down for a crime they didn’t commit.

Review

This is book 2 in the Deep Dish Mystery series, and I thought it was great! Stronger than the first book, in my opinion.

One essential element of a good cozy mystery, for me, is the ensemble cast. This has a great one! It’s large enough to be interesting and small enough to track easily. I also enjoyed the hints at a possible future romance for Delilah.

The mystery here is excellent – there are several crimes that weave in and out of the day to day events for Delilah and her friends. It was super satisfying to read – lots to puzzle out, and “busy” enough to keep me engaged without feeling overwhelmed. It was just the right balance of elements.

I don’t know that you have to read these two books in order, but as always, it does help with establishing the character relationships. If you tried book 1 and enjoyed it, you are in for an even bigger treat here!

(I know it’s Friday, and there would normally be a review here for a book for kids or for teens, but I have been overrun with review copies of adult books, so adult readers get a bonus review this week. Come back next week for something for younger readers!)

Rating: ♥♥♥♥*

*♥♥♥♥ = Great! Might re-read.

REVIEW: The Hunger Heroes: Missed Meal Mayhem by Jarrett Lerner

REVIEW: The Hunger Heroes: Missed Meal Mayhem by Jarrett Lerner

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received a free electronic review copy of this book from Edelweiss and Aladdin in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

The Hunger Heroes are taco ingredients with the smarts, the compassion, and the skills to save the day when kids need a snack.

Today, the Heroes – Mr. Toots the bean, Chip Ninja, Tammy the tomato, and Leonard the cheese – receive an alert that Jason missed breakfast. And he has a big math test before lunch. He needs a snack!

Review

Delightful!!

I don’t always have a lot of luck with chapter books. I love middle grade because you can really dig into stories and characters since you have a lot of pages to work with. But chapter books sometimes fall flat for me because I want something “more.”

That is NOT the case here. This is the perfect sort of chapter book for me. The illustrations are so fun to explore. The heroes are a riot! And the story does the work to make sure the adult – one of the roadblocks to Jason getting a snack – is sympathetic and an eventual ally.

This is now at the top of my recommendation list for chapter book readers as well as young middle grade readers. I think graphic novel fans will love this as will kids who love funny books. I hope we’ll be seeing a LOT of adventures for the Hunger Heroes in the future.

Rating: ♥♥♥♥½*

*♥♥♥♥½ – I loved it! Would re-read.

 

The release date for this delightful book has been pushed back into November. Pre-order this one; you won’t want to miss it!

REVIEW: Tweet Cute by Emma Lord

REVIEW: Tweet Cute by Emma Lord

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

Pepper’s parents started Big League Burgers when their whole family still lived in the same town. Now, Pepper’s parents are amicably divorced. Her sister, Paige, is away at college, and Pepper is trying to survive her senior year at an incredibly competitive private school. Her life revolves around her school work, staying ahead of her academic rival, and swim team responsibilities as the captain. When she’s not consumed with all that, she bakes to let off steam. Her mom, in a bit of tone deaf parenting, also expects her to help with the business’ Twitter account. While there’s an employee assigned to it, she doesn’t have Pepper’s instincts or snark.

Jack’s parents run the deli Girl Cheese which was started by Jack’s grandmother. Jack’s parents seem to assume Jack will take over the deli some day, although they don’t make those assumptions about his twin brother, Ethan. Jack would rather design apps. In fact, he’s the secret designer of Weazel, a wildly popular social app at his private school. He also sometimes tweets things on the deli’s Twitter profile.

When Big League Burgers announces a new line of grilled cheese sandwiches, Jack and Ethan realize one is a direct rip off of their grandmother’s secret grilled cheese recipe at the deli. Their dad wants to ignore it, but Jack fires off a tweet. And Pepper, not knowing who is on the other side of the Twitter war, fires back.

Let the games begin.

Review

“You can’t just casually tell someone you carry caramel sauce around and walk away like that’s a normal thing. What other emergency condiments do you have stashed in your bag?”

This is delightful!! Sharp writing – and so funny! I loved Pepper and Jack! There are tons of levels to this – their assumptions about each other from school, their anonymous conversations on Weazel, their face-to-face interactions, and then the Twitter war. And it was all so fun!

There’s a lot of depth to the characters and the relationships amid the banter back and forth. Both teens are thinking about their futures. They’re struggling under expectations, and they’re trying to discover who they are. There are also some fascinating family dynamics for both teens.

And all of that – along with some mouth-watering food descriptions – is woven together so well. I loved it. The only thing missing is some recipes. Do not miss this fun novel! The paperback of this will release after the first of the year along with the author’s second book, You Have a Match. I’ll be reviewing that one in 2021. (Language, LGBTQ+)

Rating: ♥♥♥♥½*

*♥♥♥♥½ = Loved it! Would read again!

REVIEW: A Place at the Table by Saadia Faruqi and Laura Shovan

REVIEW: A Place at the Table by Saadia Faruqi and Laura Shovan

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Clarion Books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Sara and Elizabeth meet at an afterschool cooking club at Sara’s new school. Her mom is teaching the class South Asian cuisine, and Elizabeth is taking it with her best friend, Maddy.

Sara’s struggling at the new school. Before this she went to a Muslim school. She knew all of her peers and felt like she fit in. Now, there are hundreds of other sixth graders, and even more 7th and 8th graders on top of that. Sara’s not sure she will ever fit in here.

Elizabeth and Maddy have been best friends for years, but ever since Elizabeth went away to summer camp, Maddy’s been more interested in being friends with another, more popular girl. With Elizabeth’s mom struggling with her grandmother’s death, things at home are strained, and now things at school are, too.

But Sara and Elizabeth find common ground at the cooking club. Sara might not like to cook, but she’s knowledgeable and skilled. Elizabeth loves the recipes they are cooking. And both girls, for different reasons, are coaching their mothers through the American citizenship curriculum. Maybe the moms could become friends, pass their tests, and life could get better – for both families.

Review

Outstanding! I loved this! Sara’s prickly at the start – at school and at home – so it takes a bit to warm up to her. But once I did, I adored the frank relationship she and Elizabeth have together, the freedom they have to ask religious and cultural questions of each other. (Elizabeth is Jewish, and her mom is British. Sara’s family is from Pakistan, and they are Muslim.)

All the threads – food, family, friendship, culture, anti-racism – are perfectly woven together. All of the pieces are kept in balance, and I loved every bit of it.

This is an excellent middle school friendship story that I think works for both older elementary and middle school students. The racism/anti-racism pieces are unambiguous, but also age appropriate for readers at the younger end of the range. There are creative elements with the food and cooking as well as Sara’s art that will appeal to kids. Mental health and mental illness (depression) are talked about in an age-appropriate way as well. This would be an excellent addition to classroom and home libraries as well as for reading aloud at school or at home. (Mental health/Depression)

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥

REVIEW: Love à la Mode by Stephanie Kate Strohm

REVIEW: Love à la Mode by Stephanie Kate Strohm

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Disney Hyperion in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Henry and Rosie first meet on their Chicago to Paris flight. They are both on their way to the École Denis Laurent, an exclusive cooking school. They are both excited about the opportunity, nervous about wanting to do well, and happy to have met someone who understands their love of cooking.

But things are a little more complicated than they seem at first blush. Henry’s mom wants him to go to a traditional college. She knows how hard it is to run a restaurant. She and Henry’s dad have done it for years. His mom meddles, convincing his academic teachers that he wants to do extra, more advanced work when he really just wants to cook. And if he doesn’t keep his grades up, she says he will have to come home.

Rosie’s true love is baking. But the École is all about cooking – tasks like breaking down a whole chicken and the uniform cutting of vegetables in fussy, precise ways. She’s the only student there who doesn’t have her own knife kit, and she starts to wonder if she even belongs there. If she can’t find a way to shine in the traditional areas of cooking, she may be sent home at Christmas.

The sparks between Henry and Rosie are undeniable, but their personal struggles might pull them apart before they even get a chance to see what they might be together.

Review

This was so sweet! (Pardon the pun.) I loved Henry and Rosie right from the start. They have terrific chemistry. As is often the case in romance stories, they have to learn to communicate if they’re going to have any chance at a future.

I didn’t understand a lot of the fancy cooking terms, but the love each of the kids has for his/her craft was obvious. I loved the scenes when Henry and Rosie – and the other characters – got to just enjoy and savor food together, either around Paris or at school. It was pure joy for them. They were in their element.

While Henry and Rosie are great characters, the ensemble around them is also terrific. The other kids come from a variety of backgrounds. There are the catty girls you would expect, some good friends, and a possible rival for Rosie’s affections.

This is a fun celebration of Paris, food and friendship – as well as friendship that could become something more. I’ve come to expect fun stories with endearing characters from Stephanie Kate Strohm (Prince in Disguise, It’s Not Me It’s You). And her latest book does not disappoint!

Rating: ♥♥♥♥

REVIEW: Assaulted Caramel by Amanda Flower

REVIEW: Assaulted Caramel by Amanda Flower

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

Bailey King puts her life as a chocolatier in New York aside to travel to Harvest, Ohio. Bailey’s Amish grandfather is sick. Even though she is up for a huge promotion at work, family comes first.

When she gets to Ohio, Bailey discovers that a developer, Tyson Colton, is trying to buy out her grandparents’ candy shop, Swissmen Sweets. After an argument with Bailey’s grandfather, Colton is found dead in the kitchen of Swissmen Sweets. As her grandfather’s health makes him too weak to be a viable suspect, Bailey becomes the sheriff’s top choice.

In order to stay out of jail, protect her family, and get back to New York to save her job, Bailey’s going to have to figure out who really killed Tyson Colton. There’s no shortage of suspects, from the other Amish store owners Colton tried to buy out to his own son. Bailey has her work cut out for her!

Review

I loved this! It was a great cozy with interesting characters and some fun humor. Great all the way around.

The Amish pieces were a nice contrast to Bailey’s usual world in New York as well as the world of most readers. There was a great balance with Bailey as she understood the community because of her family, but at the same time she was outside it. I think Bailey’s struggle with issues of faith when faced with the faith of her grandparents and the Amish community could be a fascinating aspect of future books.

I really enjoyed the mystery. In general, I find mysteries stressful when the protagonist is the main suspect. But I liked the other pieces of this – the characters, the setting, the candy, the potential romance – so much that it balanced the tension well.

My only complaint is that I have a couple questions I don’t feel were answered in the solution to the mystery. I’ve gone back and re-read sections to be sure I didn’t just skim too quickly over something, but I still didn’t find complete satisfaction with the solution on the murder. Maybe this is because I read an unedited review copy. Perhaps this last 5% of the solution will be resolved when I read this in a final copy – which I will. I’m looking forward to spending more time with Bailey and her family and friends. I already have book two, Lethal Licorice, in my shopping cart to pre-order before its February 2018 debut.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Kensington for providing an electronic review copy in exchange for an honest review. I honestly adored this book!

Rating: ♥♥♥♥½

REVIEW: The World's Greatest Chocolate-Covered Pork Chops by Ryan Sager

REVIEW: The World’s Greatest Chocolate-Covered Pork Chops by Ryan Sager

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

Zoey is a gifted and creative chef. Her unique taste creations have people lined up to try her cooking. She decides she wants to open her own restaurant, so she heads to the bank for a loan.

It probably would have gone better if she wasn’t a twelve-year-old kid.

But Zoey is a very creative and persuasive kid. She coerces the loan officer to come to her house for lunch. The food – and the $1200 Zoey makes from the people who come by for her lunch special – convince the loan officer to give her a shot. Then, Zoey just has to convince her parents.

Zoey shows incredible perseverance as she works towards her goal of having every person in the world try her cooking! But perseverance may not be enough when someone tries to sabotage her dream.

Review

This was so fun! Zoey’s creativity with food is astonishing. Her understanding of cooking principles is FAR beyond mine. For kids who love to cook, her ideas will be fodder for their own cooking experiments.

Zoey’s got a great support group around her. I love her best friend, Dallin. Zoey gets to learn some good friendship lessons while she pursues her goal of having her own restaurant. Her parents are interesting. Supportive yet skeptical. But Zoey knows how to get them on board.

This reminded me of the All Four Stars books by Tara Dairman about another girl with a passion for food and cooking. This book is quirkier and zany-er, but will appeal to some of those same readers. Recommend this one to all the budding chefs you know! This will be inspiring to kids who cook. Includes a few recipes for kids to try (with adult supervision!).

Many thanks to the publisher, Disney-Hyperion, for a electronic review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: ♥♥♥♥

 

REVIEW: A Sheetcake Named Desire by Jacklyn Brady

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

A bakery mystery. Rita goes to New Orleans for the express purpose of getting her estranged husband, Philippe, to sign their divorce papers. He’d been stalling long enough. But she shows up in the middle of a disaster at his bakery, Zydeco Cakes. After a season of sabotage and conflict, a major cake is ruined just before delivery, one of the employees is knocked out, and Philippe is found dead. Now, instead of being an ex-wife, Rita is a widow. And a murder suspect.

Review

For me, this was a good mystery but not a great story. The setting of the bakery was interesting, the characters were well defined (and there were a lot of them), and the mystery kept me guessing all the way to the end. My theory was all wrong. And I like when a mystery keeps me guessing almost as much as I like when I can puzzle out the solution on my own!

I just didn’t click with the story in a way that made me want to drop everything and keep reading. I didn’t love the characters. And characters often make or break a book for me. Many of the characters in this one were abrasive in their own quirky ways, maybe as part of their “artistic” personalities.

The writing is good. I would definitely read more from this author. I’m just not sure I clicked enough with the characters to dive into another in this particular series. Other readers might enjoy these characters even if  they weren’t a good fit for me. If you are a mystery fan, and the premise of this one sounds interesting, give it a try and see what you think!

Rating: ♥♥♥ ½

REVIEW: Behind Chocolate Bars by Kathy Aarons

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

A yummy chocolate truffle mystery! Michelle and Erica start sleuthing again when one of Erica’s comic book club teens is accused of murder. Faith or Faelynn or whatever name she went by was all bad news, but there’s no way this kid killed her. Michelle and Erica are determined to track down the truth – but they have their hands full. There’s a Halloween Festival, things going on in their personal lives, and a whole lot of suspects!

Behind Chocolate Bars by Kathy Aarons

Review

I read a mystery not long ago that was fine but flat. There was no spark. No zing. This  book definitely has zing! The setting – a chocolate and books shop – is different and fun. The characters are a believable team. Even the non-mystery portions of the story with family members and boyfriends are completely engaging. I love reading a book that doesn’t take any work to enjoy.

There are a lot of series regulars to keep track of in this book. Add to it the murder suspects. Readers will need to stay focused to keep track of everyone. The mystery was intricate and therefore satisfying. I figured things out a few pages before the main character. I love when I can puzzle it out.

Finally, this series makes me start to fantasize about trips to our local chocolate shop. They don’t get as creative and fancy as the book does, but it doesn’t matter if the treats are exactly the same. You will definitely be craving chocolate by the time you are done reading!

Rating: ♥♥♥♥