This lyrical debut about family, food and friendship captures the essence of the Southern soul, winning several notable awards for best fiction. Shelby Preston, a young single mother, is at a crossroads. She feels suffocated by her hardscrabble life in rural Georgia and dreams of becoming a professional chef. Lord knows her family could use a pot of something good. In Atlanta, Mallory Lakes is … good.
In Atlanta, Mallory Lakes is reeling from a bad breakup. The newspaper food columnist is also bracing for major changes at work that could put her job at risk. Determined to find the perfect recipe for how to reinvent herself, she gets involved in the growing farm-to-table movement. But an emotional setback threatens to derail everything she’s worked for.
Shelby and Mallory couldn’t be more different. But through their shared passion for food, they form an unlikely friendship—a bond that just might be their salvation.
This heartwarming and lyrical tale reminds us that family isn’t necessarily whom you’re related to—it’s whom you invite to your table.
This is a new release of a previously published edition titled Simmer and Smoke; it contains twenty delightful recipes.
more
This is the first book by Peggy Lampman, I’ve read. What an awesome book! Loved it!
The Promise Kitchen is a beautifully written novel about two young women that are the complete opposites of each other. Shelby has lived in rural Georgia all of her life, just getting by. Mallory grew up in a wealthy home with all of the advantages that Shelby could only dream about. Shelby has a young daughter, Miss Ann, that she is raising by herself. Miss Ann’s father left after she was born without one of her eyes. With all the love of Shelby and her grandmother, Miss Ann may not have a lot in terms of money value but she has the love and values that some kids can only dream of. Mallory is bewildered from a breakup with the man of her dreams. Working for the local newspaper as a food columnist, Mallory has always prided herself with her wonderful recipes and advice. Going through some major changes on the job, Mallory is to the point of a breakdown. She has been self medicating herself with alcohol and pain pills, which only adds more fuel to the fire. After an accident while drinking, Mallory is ready to give up when she encounters Miss Ann passed out and barely breathing. With the life of Miss Ann hanging in the balance, Mallory is determined to help her and her mother, Shelby. With her help, Shelby’s dreams of becoming a chef and making a great life for Miss Ann is possible. This is the first novel I have read by author Peggy Lampman and I dare say, it will not be my last! She has written this novel with so much feeling. I found myself laughing out loud at times and crying at others! I highly recommends this novel!
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I loved the melding of great storytelling and a culinary backdrop. Gritty descriptions of the southern setting contrast perfectly with the richly descriptive, lyrical writing.
This is the first book I have ready by Peggy Lampman but it will definately not be my last. I loved the southern charm, well developed characters and the uniqueness of having recipes inside the story!
If you love southern fiction with friendship and new beginnings then this is definately a book for you!
I love this book! It brought so many things to the table besides fantastic food. I am not a “foodie”. I am someone that does not like to cook, but the fact that the plot is tightly interwoven with recipes and cooking did not turn me off at all. (I recently read a book about someone going to a cooking school, which did bore me a bit!) This book has so much more than the love of cooking holding it together.
The recipes blogs written by the characters within the pages of the book are more about how the food makes them feel, the memories that the food brings back to them, than about the actual preparing of the recipes. I think that is why I enjoyed the cooking parts so much.
So many things are going on in the pages of this book. For much of the story, the reader is getting to know two very different women, separately, as they go about their lives. Since I knew the story would bring these two together at some point, I was not surprised that their worlds would indeed collide.
The author did an amazing job of creating life-like fully formed characters. They are flawed and lovable, and I was happy and distraught for them during the course of the story. The cast of characters are varied in age, economic level, social status and the list could go on. The basic needs of all of them are the same, that (I think) is at the root of the book. They all have suffered loss, dealing with grief and heartache, but strive to achieve a good life. (A good life might be a different definition for each of them.)
I have read one other book by this author and after I read it, I immediately purchased her other two books. It has taken me a while to read this, and I am sorry for that, since it was an emotional journey that I truly enjoyed taking. The story and its characters will not leave me for a long time. They definitely have taken a piece of my heart with them. I am wondering even as I write this, what lives they go on to live. That is a sign of a great story to me, when I finish a book, the story does not leave my mind.
I definitely recommend this book!
Some books you fly right through and some you’ll want to savour. Such was the case with The Promise Kitchen. Peggy Lampman is a beautiful writer that has crafted a story of hope and dreams presented by a cast of well developed characters I thoroughly enjoyed meeting, even the ones that were only briefly encountered. Her vivid descriptions put you right there and what fun I had. This story is both funny and touching as we experience the merging of two entirely different women’s lives Mallory and Shelby. You will laugh, you’ll cry and say “Uh huh”, as you read of the sacrifices Mothers make for their children and grandchildren as well as the messiness of “romantic” relationships. I am going to be thinking about little Miss Ann for awhile along with the message that sometimes family is who you choose. A wonderful and heartwarming read.