Tuesday 2 December 2014

The Stall of Second Chances by Dana Bate


Thank you to the publisher for inviting me to be part of the Blog Tour. See the poster after the review, and make sure to check out the other participants!

Synopsis
Sydney Strauss is obsessed with food.

Not just with eating it - though she loves that too - but with writing about it as an aspiring cookery reporter. But food journalism jobs are more coveted than cupcakes, and so Sydney is stuck working for one of TV's biggest egomaniacs - until she's left scrambling for shifts at the local farmers' market.

Selling muffins at the Wild Yeast Bakery is hardly going to make her the next Nigella. But soon Sydney is writing the market's weekly newsletter, and her quirky stories gain attention from a prominent food columnist. After years of being left on the shelf, she's even dating again. And then Sydney gets a shot atthe story, one that could either make her career or burn it to a cinder - along with her relationship and her reputation . . .

Review
When I was offered this book, I jumped at the chance, Dana’s first novel was really good, so I had high hopes for this one. I read this as my ‘Laugh out Loud’ book for a #SundayChallenge, and was so happy that the opening scene was just one of the many funny moments in this book. The scene was so funny, and a little bizarre, Charles is exactly the personality I can imagine being on TV. Poor Sydney for having to produce his antics, however it makes sure you’re hooked by the end of chapter one.

This book, unsurprisingly talks about food more than the average book, and it all sounded so delicious. I really want to try an authentic ‘Hoagie’. I have made the recipe from the back of the book, and it does make a tasty dish (see below), however I am sure the ones from Philadelphia taste better. 

I really liked Sydney’s confidence and her passion for food. I also loved that she blogged about it, I would have liked to had more about this before she was put back in touch with a well-known newspaper, but I guess with her previous contacts this isn’t entirely unexpected, and may have made the book a little too long if you weren’t interested in blogging. 

What I wasn’t keen on about Sydney was her lack of consideration for other people, just to further her career. You see herself feeling slightly guilty about what she is doing, but then when it inevitably blows up in her face, her main defence is that the people she hurt wasn’t supposed to know it was her, as if that makes it any better. Yet she was quite judgemental on someone who had also made a mistake in their past. This didn’t make me enjoy the book any less as it was an interesting situation, and while I may not have done things in quite the same way, I understand why she did it, and the aftermath was really interesting to read, I wasn’t sure how it would all pan out in the end.

The supporting cast were all great, but I feel I need to mention Rick. Rick ‘The Prick’ was a real fun character, just absolute perfection, he made me laugh in almost every scene. He was so forthright, and everything he baked sounded amazing.

The book was an absolute delight to read. It was funny, covered a really interesting dilemma and had Jeremy, who may be one of the most perfect men ever in a book. He put so much effort in on his dates with Sydney, while Drew sounded HOT, there is only so much albatross talk a girl can take!


Order on Amazon now!

Published by: Corsair

Gratefully received from the Publisher for review.








For my 'Hoagies' I have to admit, I strayed from the recipe slightly, I couldn't find the exact cheese and one of the meats in my local supermarket, so I had to compromise!

I got a similar looking meat from the deli counter (though the name of it fails me) and apparently cheddar is a similar cheese to Provolone, but I opted for the milder and creamier Gouda, which is one of my favourite cheeses.

They were simply DELISH! My boyfriend has now added that to his list of favourite dishes I make. so will no doubt be making many more in the future :)




Want to wind down after a long week or day with a good book and a glass of wine?
I have chosen a delicious wine to suggest accompany this book!

I chose a wine that is one of my favourites for this book. A Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand. This book is about food, and this wine I think goes well with lots of different dishes, and equally as well on it's own. Incredibly fruity and delicious!

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