I know, it's not winter. However, the ski hills are making snow after the past weekend's low overnight temps. and our forecast is for snow and freezing rain starting after midnight. Makes me want to curl up in front of the fire with a good book and a cup of something chocolatey.
I think this winter I'll intersperse the new books on my TBR pile with some past favourites, books I know will satisfy and take me to that special reader space. For some reason, I love books that involve food. I'm not a cook -- don't enjoy, can't
My book club tonight is discussing The Hundred-Foot Journey by Richard C. Morais. What an enjoyable read! It starts with a family owned restaurant in Mumbai and progresses, as the family moves, to a small town in the French Alps, and eventually, Paris. The son is also on a journey of growth about food and his love of French cooking translates into a very successful restaurant. It's food descriptions interwoven with family and setting. My kind of book.
I am also smitten with Italy and Sicily, so combine that setting with food and I'm reading it. That would include the books by Marlena de Blasi which are non-fiction and mouth-watering. Try The Lady in the Palazzo for a taste of her writing style, even though it's not the first in the series.
Getting back to the simmering pot of mystery and crime, The Debt to Pleasure by John Lanchester is a novel I go back to time and again. It's a journey through France that involves passionate thoughts about food and a chilling intensification of something sinister.
These are a good start to the winter season. I'll add more as the days get darker and colder. What's on your list?
Are there any Canadian mysteries that combine crime and gastronomy? Aside from Howard Engel's Benny Cooperman and his love of egg sandwiches, of course!
Linda Wiken/Erika Chase
A Killer Read coming April 3, 2012
from Berkly Prime Crime
thanks for the suggestions. I've written them down and will download them.
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