Georgia’s Kitchen by Jenny Nelson

When Georgia Gray finds herself without a job and dropped by her coke-head fiancé she calls in a favor.   She lands on her feet in Tuscany at the not-yet-open restaurant of a chef she worked with while in school.  She finds the job description doesn’t match her expectations but she has no other prospects on the horizon. Thankfully  she has interesting and, for the most part, decent co-workers who welcome her to their kitchen.  Georgia is able to pour herself into doing what she loves most while  keeping in mind that her ultimate goal is to someday open her own restaurant  in NYC.  Her grammy always told her to “stay true to yourself and work hard enough so that you never have to ask what-if.”  There are obstacles but she won’t let them stop her in reaching her goals.  Or will she?

Jenny Nelson wrote a light and entertaining novel about a young woman looking for happiness and learning to stand on her own two feet – without a boyfriend, her best girlfriends, family, and the familiar surroundings of New York.  What she finds out is that it’s ok to ask for help when you need it.  The people who mean the most usually want to be asked.   Nelson’s characters are believable but I wish some of them had been developed a bit more.  For example, I wanted to know a little more about Georgia’s girlfriends than what they wore.  Bernard definitely has an interesting story but maybe it went through a huge edit.  That’s just a small quibble compared to an otherwise very enjoyable story.

The Tuscany part of the book was my favorite.  That and the food descriptions throughout.  Nelson had me craving good Italian food. I think Georgia’s Kitchen would be a great read for fans of Foodie Lit.

Review copy from BookSparks PR