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    Summary

    Lucy Muir is leaving her husband. It's complicated.

    As joint owners and chefs at one of the best restaurants in town making a clean break is tough. But, let's face it, a woman can only take so much cheating, recipe stealing and lack of good grace.

    Then Lucy happens upon an old, empty terrace that was once the city's hottest restaurant: Fortune. One minute she's peering through grimy windows into an abandoned space, the next she's planning a pop-up bistro.

    When Lucy fires up Fortune's old kitchen she discovers a little red recipe book that belonged to the former chef, the infamous Frankie Summers. As Lucy cooks her way through Frankie's recipes, customers come flocking and slowly Lucy begins to regain her confidence. It turns out that courage, passion and just a tiny bit of magic might be the secret recipe for a better life...

    The Little Café of Second Chances by J. D. Barrett
    T

    4

    Simply put this book is cute. A good sounding synopsis, a beautiful story with an unexpected element to it all interwoven with delicious recipes that I’m dying to try, especially those cheese soufflés.

    The unexpected element I mentioned above is magical and supernatural, and while a surprise it was entirely welcome. It added more to the story, more depth, more history to the restaurant and Frankie’s life. The book had funny scenes, emotional scenes and scenes where you wanted to shout at the more despicable characters in the book. It was a great read from the start and the way it was written kept my attention throughout.  

    Paula is clearly a passionate and talented chef, and quite conscientious too. Which is why her signing the contract and using the last of her money to get a lease on an old, dilapidated restaurant ‘Fortune’ is  out of character but she’s both excited and nervous all at the same time. However, she has some great support from her best friend and it spurs her to strive even harder to make Fortune a success. She’s a great character, and her shy nature made it easy for me to connect to.  

    Frankie is the previous owner of Fortune, and we get two stories from him. One in the present day, where, while he can have a temper, you get to know a softer side to him. The other is the past when he owned Fortune, and for a lot of it you’re not sure if you like him or not, cheating on his wife and not being there for his only son isn’t a great character reference, but towards the end of the history parts, again he seems to show a more human side that’s easier to empathise with.  

    I loved Leith. Not quite the reaction I think the author was after, but he was so awful, I enjoyed his scenes immensely as I love a good villain. Someone I can roll my eyes at, or frown in anger while screaming at them (in my head).  

    As I said in the opening of this review, the book is a cute read. It has magical charm and the a wonderful sense of romance. The cooking sounded delicious and I will make sure to try some of the recipes for sure.  

    Published by: Piatkus
    Gratefully received from the Publisher for review  

    View Book on Goodreads
    Order on: Amazon UK | Amazon US | Book Depository

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    Lucy Muir is leaving her husband. It's complicated. <br /><br /> As joint owners and chefs at one of the best restaurants in town making a clean break is tough. But, let's face it, a woman can only take so much cheating, recipe stealing and lack of good grace.<br /><br /> Then Lucy happens upon an old, empty terrace that was once the city's hottest restaurant: Fortune. One minute she's peering through grimy windows into an abandoned space, the next she's planning a pop-up bistro. <br /><br /> When Lucy fires up Fortune's old kitchen she discovers a little red recipe book that belonged to the former chef, the infamous Frankie Summers. As Lucy cooks her way through Frankie's recipes, customers come flocking and slowly Lucy begins to regain her confidence. It turns out that courage, passion and just a tiny bit of magic might be the secret recipe for a better life...The Little Café of Second Chances by J. D. Barrett

    Rachale's Reads

    About Me

    My name is Rachel, or Rachale as my husband calls me. I love to read books, it doesn't matter if they're in Hardback, Paperback, Digital or Audio, I love nothing more than absorbing myself in a good book.

    I am also obsessed with Disney, Video Games and Harry Potter. I help host a book club at my most favourite pub (well, currently I'm hosting via Zoom, but hopefully it will be back to the pub some point in the near future) which combines my love of books with the pleasure of a glass of wine or cider while socialising with my friends.

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