Recipe for Persuasion
by Sonali Dev
Harper Collins Publishers, 2020. 443 pages. Romance
This book is equal parts rom-com and equal parts "I'm biting my nails because the suspense is killing me!" A twist on Jane Austen's Persuasion, this is an enchanting story of second chances, rekindled love, and adventure. I recommend this book to fans of romance, food, and Jane Austen (but everyone, really).
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by Yaffa S. Santos
Harper, 2020. 293 pages. Romance
Lumi Santana is a chef with a gift: she can perceive a person's emotions by tasting their cooking. Despite being raised by a mother who taught her that dreams and true love were silly fairy tales, she puts her heart and savings into opening her own fusion Restaurant in Upper Manhattan. The restaurant offers a mix of the Dominican cuisine she grew up with and other world cuisines she is inspired by. When her eclectic venture fails, she is forced to take a position as sous chef at a staid, traditional French restaurant owned by Julien Dax, a celebrated chef known for his acid tongue as well as his brilliant smile. After he goes out of his way to bake a tart to prove her wrong in a dispute, she is so irritated by his smug attitude that she vows to herself never to taste his cooking. But after she succumbs to the temptation and takes a bite one day and is overcome with shocking emotion, she finds herself beginning to crave his cooking and struggling to stay on task with her plan to save up and move on as soon as possible. Meanwhile, Julien's obsessed secretary watches with gnashed teeth as they grow closer and becomes determined to get Lumi out of her way permanently.
by Sher Lee
Random House Children's Books. 2023. 264 pages. Young Adult Fiction
Dylan Tang wants to win a Mid-Autumn Festival mooncake-making competition for teen chefs--in memory of his mom, and to bring much-needed publicity to his aunt's struggling Chinese takeout in Brooklyn. Enter Theo Somers: charming, wealthy, with a smile that makes Dylan's stomach do backflips. AKA a distraction. Their worlds are sun-and-moon apart, but Theo keeps showing up. He even convinces Dylan to be his fake date at a family wedding in the Hamptons. In Theo's glittering world of pomp, privilege, and crazy rich drama, their romance is supposed to be just pretend . . . but Dylan finds himself falling for Theo. For real. Then Theo's relatives reveal their true colors--but with the mooncake contest looming, Dylan can't risk being sidetracked by rich-people problems. Can Dylan save his family's business and follow his heart--or will he fail to do both?
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