[Review] Natalie Tan's Book of Luck and Fortune - Roselle Lim

Summary: At the news of her mother’s death, Natalie Tan returns home. The two women hadn’t spoken since Natalie left in anger seven years ago, when her mother refused to support her chosen career as a chef. Natalie is shocked to discover the vibrant neighborhood of San Francisco’s Chinatown that she remembers from her childhood is fading, with businesses failing and families moving out. She’s even more surprised to learn she has inherited her grandmother’s restaurant.

The neighborhood seer reads the restaurant’s fortune in the leaves: Natalie must cook three recipes from her grandmother’s cookbook to aid her struggling neighbors before the restaurant will succeed. Unfortunately, Natalie has no desire to help them try to turn things around—she resents the local shopkeepers for leaving her alone to take care of her agoraphobic mother when she was growing up. But with the support of a surprising new friend and a budding romance, Natalie starts to realize that maybe her neighbors really have been there for her all along. (Pub Date: Jun 11, 2019)

Honest review based on an ARC provided by Edelweiss. Many thanks to the publisher for this opportunity.

I confess I had expected more but it got better as I progressed.

Natalie has been away from her agoraphobic mother since she left home and decided to travel around the world, before they could make up her mother dies. When Natalie goes back home, she notices she can still make amends with her neighborhood and her own family history if she want to pursue her dream of reopening her grandmother's restaurant.

The Chinese culture element is probably what will attract most readers and yes, it's there and it seems accurate, though the author has the tendency of over-explaining it. The village that is Natalie's neighborhood was another plus, it felt so comfortable to live with them while I read this story, and you can understand why she had to escape. The third big pro going for this book are the recipes. I didn't try any, but they certainly made me hungry. And yes, the author actually took the time to write each of them if anyone wants to try, although that was maybe too much? Or more proper for the back of the book?

In any case, the book had too many flaws too. The characters were too shallow, even Natalie. It felt more like a fable than a novel, especially the first half was just silly and made me roll my eyes too many times. Fortunately, the second picked up a little, as things start going wrong. But the way Natalie reacts to all of that was weird, like what is wrong with this person? This made it hard to get into the story in the most emotional moments.

We also have a romance, and again it's shallow. This goes beyond in love at first sight and I never understood what was so important in the guy, what did he do for Natalie to even remember him. The big explanation from the book is that it was magic.

So while the details are very nice, the writing needs more time to mature. Or maybe it was just me who didn't get the writer's style. For me, it felt like I was watching some kids series on TV.

Rating: 3 out of 5.