The Lost Art of Mixing

The delicious follow up to The School of Essential Ingredients...

Summary (via Goodreads.com): Lillian and her restaurant have a way of drawing people together. There’s Al, the accountant who finds meaning in numbers and ritual; Chloe, a budding chef who hasn’t learned to trust after heartbreak; Finnegan, quiet and steady as a tree, who can disappear into the background despite his massive height; Louise, Al’s wife, whose anger simmers just below the boiling point; and Isabelle, whose memories are slowly slipping from her grasp. And there’s Lillian herself, whose life has taken a turn she didn’t expect. . . .

Their lives collide and mix with those around them, sometimes joining in effortless connections, at other times sifting together and separating again, creating a family that is chosen, not given. A beautifully imagined novel about the ties that bind—and links that break—The Lost Art of Mixing is a captivating meditation on the power of love, food, and companionship.

Review (4/5 stars): Wow! This is my first time reading this author, even though this is the second book in this series, and I was thoroughly impressed!

Erica Bauermeister certainly knows her way around a metaphor. The writing is so beautiful, so lush, and so descriptive that you will fall in love the book in a matter of pages.

There are numerous characters but their story lines are all fairly simple so it's not too confusing. And the author will always drop little hints here and there as gentle reminders to help you along in case you do happen to forget who someone is.

As you're reading you might feel like not a whole lot is happening, even though each of the characters goes through some pretty major life changes. It's gentle though, which I think is why this is such an easy read. I listened to the audio version and was performed wonderfully.

I'll definitely be looking this author up again, and may even read book # 1 just to see what I missed.