Book Synopsis:
When Alice Hale leaves a career to become a writer and follows her husband to the New York suburbs, she is unaccustomed to filling her days alone in a big, empty house. But when she finds a vintage cookbook buried in the basement, she becomes captivated by its previous owner: 1950s housewife Nellie Murdoch. As Alice cooks her way through the past, she realizes that within the pages Nellie left clues about her life.
Soon Alice learns that while a Baked Alaska may seem harmless, Nellie’s secrets may have been anything but. When Alice uncovers a more sinister, even dangerous, side to Nellie’s marriage, and has become increasingly dissatisfied with her own relationship, she begins to take control of her life and protect herself with a few secrets of her own.
Recipe For A Perfect Wife is available in ebook and paperback now. You can purchase your copy using the link below.
My Review:
I absolutely loved this fun, captivating read which was surprisingly thought provoking.
The story is told from the point of view of Alice in 2008 and Nellie in 1955. I warmed to each woman immediately and loved getting to know them better. Both woman are strong and very resilient, especially Nellie who also have societal norms to fight against. Her story is particularly emotional and I often wished I could jump into the story and help her out. The house seemed to be almost alive at times and reacting to everything that’s happening or being discovered. It seemed to become less creepy as the story developed and Alice starts unraveling Nellie’s past which I found very interesting.
Although the woman are fifty years apart both have surprisingly a lot in common as they attempt to fight against what society expects of them. I found this very interesting, especially as I came to realise that not much has really changed in that regard. The start of each chapter features a quote from old fashioned books about house work and how to be a wife which were amusing to read but also quite unbelievable that people used to actually think that way. There are also some recipes included, though I’m not sure I’ll be trying them anytime soon as some of the ingredients were interesting to say the least.
This story piqued my attention from the start, with the fabulous two main woman and the clever plot ensuring that this book was hard to put down. I found myself often trying to hide away from the kids or bribing them with something so I could read a tiny bit more. I was very sad to finish the book and leave Nellie and Alice behind.
Huge thanks to Lucy Chamberlain from Legend Press for inviting me onto the blog tour and for my copy of this book via Netgalley. I’m definitely going to be recommending this book to everyone!
About The Author:
Karma is the bestselling author of four novels and is a National Magazine Award winning journalist. Karma lives just outside Toronto, Canada with her husband, daughter, and a labradoodle named Fred. @KarmaKBrown
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