Book Synopsis:
When Gill and Gabe’s elder son drowns overseas, they decide they must hide the truth from their desperately unwell teenaged daughter. But as Gill begins to send letters from her dead son to his sister, the increasingly elaborate lie threatens to prove more dangerous than the truth.
A novel about family, food, grief, and hope, this gripping, lyrical story moves between Tasmania and London, exploring the many ways that a family can break down – and the unexpected ways that it can be put back together.
The Cookbook of Common Prayer is available in ebook and hardback now. You can purchase your copy using the links below.
My Review:
The Cookbook of Common Prayer is an emotional, absorbing read that I haven’t been able to stop thinking about.
Firstly I’ve got to admit this book wasn’t at all what I thought it would be – in a good way. Yes it was very emotional as I had expected but it was also quite hopeful and uplifting in places which I really liked. I felt this was predominantly a story about love and family which was lovely to read about.
The story was told from the point of view of several different characters which allows the reader to get an holistic view about what was happening within the family. It was interesting to get to know them all personally and to see the different ways they were dealing with their grief. I started to feel I knew them all personally and wished I was able to help them somehow. My favourite character was definitely Teddy who I quickly fell in love with. His devotion to his papa as well as his determination to try and help in some way despite grieving himself was very poignant to read about.
I really enjoyed this book and found it quite hard to put down. I often found myself trying to sneak away from the kids to try and read a few more pages. I loved spending time with the family and going on a journey with them. The recipes were a great edition to the book too and it was lovely to see how cooking helped Gill. I felt quite sad when the book ended and I had to say goodbye to the family.
Huge thanks to Anne Cater for inviting me onto the blog tour and for my copy of this book.
About The Author:
Francesca Haig is an author and academic. Her previous novels are The Fire Sermon; The Map of Bones; and The Forever Ship. Her poetry has been widely published in journals and anthologies, and in her 2006 collection, Bodies of Water. She grew up in Tasmania, and gained her PhD from the University of Melbourne. She lives in London.
Over The Rainbow Blog 
Thanks for the blog tour support x
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