Recipe for a Charmed Life

by Rachel Linden

A little magical realism.  And I loved it! 

Georgia May’s goal in life from the time she was a child has been to be a chef managing a restaurant kitchen in Paris.  She watched Julia Child with her mom when she was little, but then her mom left.  Now, at age 33 as the book opens, she’s a sous chef in Paris with the hope of becoming the chef in a new restaurant that will be opened soon by her current employer.  And then things turn sour.  Her boyfriend, the chef where she works, is cheating on her (skip over the refrigerator scene).  Just as she learns this, a renowned restaurant critic is awaiting his meal AND the chef cooking his meal of fish has burned it.  In retaliation, Georgia May plates the burned fish and serves it.  She quickly realizes it’s an awful mistake. 

The owner of the restaurant suggests she leave town until the scandal blows over and suggests that she’s lost her spark and that being away will give her the opportunity to get it back.  Georgia May's spark is that her food often brings memories or helps people make decisions or to see things clearly, etc.  While deciding what to do, she sees an email from her mom, sent a week earlier, asking Georgia to get in touch with her and inviting her to visit.

Except for that one scene in the refrigerator, I loved this book.   

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