I know this is not a YA book, which is what I normally review and discuss here. But I just got done reading this book, and simply had to share.
Yes, the majority of my shelves are filled with young adult books, but I love reading all kinds of books. YA contemporary romance, YA paranormal romance, Adult contemporary romance, YA and Adult historical romance, Adult steamy romance . . . I bet you can see a theme, huh? 🙂
I guess it’s then fitting that I choose to share this review on what would normally be Guilty Pleasures Friday. Often I feel as though I should be sticking to just reading YA books, as that is the genre I’m currently writing in, and I absolutely adore it–but I can’t help sneaking a few “different” books into the mix. So today, on this day of food hangovers, when many are off braving the crazy crowds at Black Friday sales, I share my review of one of these yummy adult reads . . . The Love Goddess’ Cooking School!
The Love Goddess’ Cooking School by Melissa Senate
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Goodreads blurb:
Camilla’s Cucinotta: Italian Cooking Classes. Fresh take-home pastas & sauces daily. Benvenuti! (Welcome!)
Holly Maguire’s grandmother Camilla was the Love Goddess of Blue Crab Island, Maine–a Milanese fortune-teller who could predict the right man for you, and whose Italian cooking was rumored to save marriages.
Holly has been waiting years for her unlikely fortune: her true love will like sa cordula, an unappetizing old-world delicacy. But Holly can’t make a decent marinara sauce, let alone sa cordula. Maybe that’s why the man she hopes to marry breaks her heart. So when Holly inherits Camilla’s Cucinotta, she’s determined to forget about fortunes and love and become an Italian cooking teacher worthy of her grandmother’s legacy.
But Holly’s four students are seeking much more than how to make Camilla’s chicken alla Milanese. Simon, a single father, hopes to cook his way back into his daughter’s heart. Juliet, Holly’s childhood friend, hides a painful secret. Tamara, a serial dater, can’t find the love she longs for. And twelve-year-old Mia thinks learning to cook will stop her dad, Liam, from marrying his phony lasagna-queen girlfriend. As the class gathers each week, adding Camilla’s essential ingredients of wishes and memories in every pot and pan, unexpected friendships and romances are formed–and tested. Especially when Holly falls hard for Liam . . . and learns a thing or two about finding her own recipe for happiness.
Oh how I adored this story. Holly is a wonderful protagonist, endearing and so heartbreakingly relatable. It opens with her getting her heartbroken, immediately pulling you into her life and causing the reader to pull for her to find her true love . . . even if he does happen to be one of the few people on earth to like to eat lamb’s intenstines. (eek!)
Seriously, the characters were rich and varied, filling me up completely. It fits that I read this during the Thanksgiving holidays, not only because it centers around food and cooking, but because of the intense relationships created and nurtured throughout the novel. Mia, the almost twelve-year-old apprentice, was a doll. She had me laughing so many times. Not only at how perceptive and witty she is, but by making me remember exactly what it was like to be that age! Holly’s relationship with her grandmother, that we mostly get to experience through journal entries scattered in the chapters, was so sweet. I would have LOVED to be Camilla’s granddaughter. Learning how to make all those delicious recipes alone would be worth it! (Side note: do not read this book when hungry. Just a friendly warning)
The subplots with the rest of the students in Holly’s cooking class were fun, and completely rounded out this story. And best of all was Holly’s relationship with Liam (which isn’t a spoiler really since it’s right there in the blurb). He was a hottie. And his own relationship with his daughter Mia just made him all the hotter. Their relationship was told perfectly–and realistically. This was not a love at first sight, walk into the sunset immediately relationship. It had some definite ups and downs, which only made Holly grow stronger as a woman.
The ending is tied up in a beautiful bow, leaving me with a warm fuzzy all over. And the intense desire to create an Italian feast, being sure to add my own truth statements, wishes, and memories. Definitely recommend this one!
