Cover Image: Natalie Tan's Book of Luck and Fortune

Natalie Tan's Book of Luck and Fortune

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Natalie Tan’s Book of Luck and Fortune follows a young woman named Natalie who returns home to Chinatown in San Francisco after her mother’s death. Natalie has been away from home for several years and has been estranged from her mother due to them having arguments on how she should live her life . Natalie is grieving, is struggling with the fact that she never really got to say goodbye to her mother, and feels extreme guilt for being away from home for so long. Going home is a familiar feeling for Natalie while it’s also strange as the neighborhood has changed so much.

Readers see Natalie struggle with her past and feels like her mother’s agoraphobia kept her from having certain experiences growing up and has separated her from the community. Upon coming back home she decides to take over her grandmother’s restaurant and restore it to its glory. Natalie is given her mother grandmother’s recipe book which happens to have some sort of special magical powers (magical realism of some sort) and she has to fulfill a prophecy of helping three of the neighboring businesses and her community in order to have a successful restaurant and to rebuild her neighborhood

One thing Natalie is very passionate about is cooking. She loves to eat delicious food all the time and try new recipes in the kitchen. As Natalie begins to cook her grandmother’s recipes, she starts to find joy and inspiration in her life again. Cooking helps her to reconnect with community she grew up with and reminisce about her childhood. Cooking provides a source strength to move forward and stop harboring mistakes/regrets from the past.

I liked the vivid description of the neighborhood and how even though the businesses is starting to decline that everyone looks out for each other like family. I could picture the shops and restaurants lining the street due to Lim’s great attention to detail. I have been to San Francisco’s Chinatown and it’s one my favorite places I’ve visited.

I love all of the recipes featured and the mouth watering food descriptions. Everything sounds so good!! I enjoyed the concept of Lao Lao’s (Natalie’s grandmother) recipes are not are not only traditional but magical as well. They serve a purpose to help others solve problems, mend relationships, and helps the community to reunite once again.

One of my most favorite things about this novel is the theme o food. It brings people together, cheers people up, mends relationships, makes people nostalgic for memories. Food is a simple thing, but it can be so powerful and Natalie’s recipes are evidence of that in the story.

This is such a beautifully written novel about food, family, tradition, healing, and mental illness. Lim’s writing is engaging and lyrical and it had me engrossed to beginning to end. The characters felt very real and reading the story through Natalie’s eyes was emotional. I liked reading about her journey of honing her craft but also healing from the past and moving towards the future. Recommended read!

*Trigger warning: Death

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I came across this one while browsing Goodreads and it looked like something I would normally enjoy but for some reason, I just couldn't connect with it. The story itself was really slow and Natalie Tan just wasn't a character that I'll remember much about. It took me foooorrreeeevvvverrrr to get this book read and when I finally finished, I was glad to finally be done with it. It was so easy for me to walk away from this book because, to be honest, I was bored. I thought that I'd enjoy it a lot more than I actually did. Sometimes the magical realism stuff works for me but for some reason, it didn't completely work for me here. I did think parts of the book were interesting. I thought it was interesting that the state of the neighborhood was tied into how well Natalie's grandma's restaurant did. I also enjoyed seeing some of Natalie's magic with the food but overall, this book was just okay to me. I'm seeing that a lot of people enjoyed this book but as much as I wanted that to be the case for me, it wasn't and that bums me out.

Grade: 2.5 out of 5

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Firstly, I would like to thank you to Rafael from The Royal Polar Bear Reads for hosting an International Blog Tour for Natalie Tan's Book of Luck and Fortune and I was so happy to be part of this tour. Thank you for selecting me to be part of this tour.

I think nowadays I am more like to not let myself read the synopsis of the book and I guess I like the way it is. That way it let me into the story with an open mind and heart. Now that I mentioned it, Natalie Tan's Book of Luck and Fortune is definitely full of surprises and it warms my heart throughout reading the book and I enjoy it.

Natalie Tan has been running away from home for 7 years and now she is back to her hometown after she got the news about her mother died. She was resent for not being there with her mother and letting her ego conquered her up. She regrets that but with the support she received from her Celia - her mother's close friend, her neighbor - she builds her courage to get to run the restaurant that she inherited from her grandmother.

Oh my gosh! I love this book so much that I don't even know where to begin. My mouthwatering with the mention of the food everywhere in this book. It makes me really hungry and I could not stop imagining the food. Like seriously.

"Food comforts, heals, and is the only lover I will ever take." - Roselle Lim, Natalie Tan'sBook of Luck and Fortune.

Okay, let's get into the important part of this book. Natalie Tan's Book of Luck and Fortune is filled with the love from the community, how they look for each other, gives help, and be there when one needs them. It was really so good to see how they embrace each other in their lives and how they fought to ensure their business still open despite the difficulty they face. I love all the characters in this book.

"No matter how much you try to direct your fate, eventually, she finds a way to do what she wants." - Roselle Lim, Natalie Tan'sBook of Luck and Fortune.

Natalie Tan, the MC of this book, though she opts for running away rather than fix the problem as a better option however with the support, words of courage from the people around her, she makes the best decision in her life to stay and restore the restaurant business. She definitely has a skill in cooking, she cooks from her heart and serve the customer to eat and the people feel happy with the food. Good food brought people together.

"You cook like your grandmother, which means you cook from your heart. Your food is so delicious because of how much you care and joy you put into it." - Roselle Lim, Natalie Tan'sBook of Luck and Fortune.

Natalie Tan's Book of Luck and Fortune is filled with magical, a bit of mystical, love, warm, the twist, and delicious food. Roselle's writing is really good that it seeped into my heart that I could imagine the food that been mentioned, the warmth and love from the characters and it has been a while since I last read a book that makes me cried so much. Also, I learned something new from this book on agoraphobia that the author has explained it what has caused Natalie's mother anxiety. Other than that, a spice of romance in this book makes it even more lovable.

Overall, I was...I couldn't hide the satisfaction from the book. It was really a wonderful read. It's a slow burn read and it's really worth. Natalie Tan's Book of Luck and Fortune will live in my heart and memory for so long and I fully recommended you to read this book.

Rating: 4.5 stars / 5 stars

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I went into Natalie Tan's Book of Luck and Fortune with a certain understanding of the book based on how it was marketed and when I finally read it, it was something completely different from what I expected. I do think that played a role in how I ultimately felt so let me just get those things out of the way now: this is not a romance and while it is contemporary, it's also magical realism. Natalie Tan returns home to San Francisco for the first time in seven years when she find outs her mother has passed away. The last time they spoke, they fought over Natalie's decision to leave and pursue a career as a chef. So you can imagine her surprise to come home and find out that she's inherited her grandmother's restaurant in Chinatown, a community she's belonged to since childhood and whose businesses are now failing. But Natalie doesn't know anything about the history of said restaurant or how to even run one. She turns to the neighborhood seer who tells her that she must cook three recipes from her grandmother's cookbook to help struggling neighbors and only then will her restaurant succeed. As she does this we learn a lot about Natalie, her childhood, what it was like to grow up with an agoraphobic mother and the neighbors who turn out to be friends. I enjoyed a lot of the themes and concepts throughout the book such as a good meal being a balm for the soul, the importance of community, and the representation of Asian culture. What I didn't like was the writing which I found kind of juvenile, a "romance" that was very instant and way under-developed to the point where it didn't make sense and certain reveals were so jarringly done that I had to re-read passages to understand what just happened. As much as I loved what the book was trying to do and be, I wasn't a fan of the execution.

Do I recommend? It's not something I would personally recommend but I know people who enjoyed far more than I did. My favorite thing ended up being the recipe inserts (are they real because I'd like to cook them!) and the inclusion of Filipino food. If you're genuinely interested in this though, I'd recommend borrowing from the library.

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It’s the first @berkleyromance book that I am DNF-ing 😢😢

The premise of the book was really sweet, Natalie returns to her hometown after her mother passes away and then decides to re-open the restaurant previously owned by her grandmother.
I just wasn’t feeling the book. I have read more then 50% of it, but it’s a bit drag for me. Plus all the recipes and talk about food is a bit boring. I personally don’t like cooking, just eating 🍽 so this wasn’t up my alley.
Other than my unpopular review, I have read all positive feedbacks about this book. So if you want to give this book a try, PLEASE DO! Maybe you will love it! And then come tell me about it!!
The book was published on 11th June 2019.

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3.5 stars. There’s a lot to admire about this story exploring grief, food, family, and gentrification.

When I first learned about this book, it was presented as magical realism. I’m by no means an expert on that genre so I can’t offer much commentary. However, gentrification is an interesting comparison to the colonization often subverted in magical realism. Gentrification is a big issue in San Francisco and I myself had a hard time finding a place to live when I lived there. I didn’t spend much time in Chinatown but the way it was depicted in the book, and the way gentrification has impacted the city as a whole, rang true to my experience. It is heartbreakingly awful to watch families and businesses get pushed out of their neighborhood and therefore it was all the more gratifying to watch Natalie try to figure out a way to save the neighborhood through her cooking.

The food is the star of this book and I often wished I could reach through the page and eat whatever Natalie was cooking. Her grandmother’s recipes sounded amazing and I loved how her notes on who she cooked for and what the dish represented. It made me wish food actually had magical healing powers. By reading her grandmother’s recipes, Natalie is able to forge a bond with the woman she never knew and understand other aspects of her mother.

Natalie and her mother were estranged when her mother died. It was interesting to see the funeral and mourning customs, especially Natalie’s decision to wear white for the full year, instead of the usual period of time. She often struck me as immature but there were times she did rise to the occasion. I confess I didn’t fully understand the reason for their estrangement. Knowing her daughter wanted to be a chef, why didn’t her mother tell her about the restaurant’s existence? Had she done that, Natalie likely never would have left SF. I could understand Natalie’s desire to break free from her mother and felt so bad for the way her mother’s agoraphobia affected her. It made me angry at the neighbors for not stepping in. But it was also nice to see Natalie remember the good about the neighborhood and to realize it wasn’t as black and white as she thought. The neighbors function as a found family and I’m always here for that.

The romance with Daniel felt like an afterthought. It was too insta-love for my taste and their reactions as things inevitably fell apart did not entirely make sense for people who have not known each other long. The story would have been stronger if it had focused on Natalie’s attempts to bring the restaurant back and rediscover her neighbors. And if you know how much I love a good love story, that’s saying something.

Lim is an intriguing new voice to watch and I look forward to seeing what she’ll come up with next.

CW: death of a parent, grief, agoraphobia

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The story begins strongly with the death of Natalie’s mom. She will then embark on a journey to reconcile her past before she can secure her future. I did not expect that there will be magical realism involved in the storytelling, and it is such a pleasant surprise. I love the subtle magical elements. It is somehow reminiscent of my two other favorites “Like Water for Chocolate” and “Chocolat”. Though I thought some of the conversations were a bit stilted, it’s all very forgivable and even adds to the charm.

The novel has one of the sweetest romance ever–it’s certainly worth the read just to experience all the cute moments between Natalie and the geek hottie Daniel. However for me I just love how the soul of the story is still about the community and rejuvenating the old Chinatown. It’s all about building communities and embracing your culture. I’m all for modernization and moving forward with time, but preserving culture and heritage is of utmost importance if we don’t want to lose our sense of identity and belonging.

Big thanks to Berkley Publishing for providing an ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review and participation on the book’s intl blog tour.

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Natalie Tan was forced to go back to her hometown because of the sudden death of her mother (whom she's not in good terms with).

The community wasn't so keen in welcoming her back because of what happened to her mother, but she decided to stay and continue her grandmother's legacy. She wanted to reopen her grandmother's restaurant with the help of her grandmother's recipes.

Natalie is the kind of person who tends to run away and have a fresh start instead of facing her problems. I loved how her journey towards believing in herself and having the confidence to be successful in pursuing her passion was shown in the book.

Aside from Natalie, the side characters' stories were very interesting too, and I felt that they were one big unit/family in the community (which is very common for Asians).

Another aspect that I loved about this book is the food! There were recipes inside the book and the meaning behind the dish were explained just like in Kat Yeh's The Truth About Twinkie Pie (which I also loved). You will surely crave Chinese food after you've read this!

There were important issues discussed in this book as well such as grief and mental illness (agoraphobia), which I felt made a perfect balance between the light and serious moments in the story.

A book about food, family, Asian culture, magic, and love. This is definitely worth the read! Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Books for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Rated this 4.5 stars on Goodreads.

"This was my paradox in love: to want something so badly, but to also be afraid of being tied down by it."

"Yes, but there is always hope. Underneath all this is something beautiful. It just needs time and patience to come out."

"Anything worth having involves some measure of pain and work. Because of this, you treasure it more."

"Love, like life has the highest risk, but the greatest reward."

Soundtrack: Apples & Onions by Jess Penner

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When I finally picked this book up to read, I was surprised by the content of what the entire story entitles. Even though, the title suggested it, I couldn't really grasp to the idea. It was magical, hopeful and all about the prosperity of the community. But most importantly, it was about food that could make the people come together and rejoice in whatever the problems they may be facing.

I was really pleasantly surprised by the magical element of this story. Of Natalie laolao's recipe book, the good and the bad that it can bring to the result of her cooking.

At first, I find the flow of the plot to be a tad too cliche. It became too predictable until it didn't anymore. Suddenly, there were twists and turns arising along the story and it was then that I hadn't quite given up this story yet. That I hadn't listed and categorised it as a story that was mediocre and as I mentioned before, too cliche for its own good. I know, I shouldn't judge a book so quickly and read the whole thing until the very last page to finally judge the book as a whole. I'll try to take note of that from now on!

This story not only highlights the things that I mentioned before, it was also about family, grief and feeling like a total failure. Its the kind of feeling that we might feel like its just us against the wide world. I'm sure that every one out of three of those we have at least once experienced before. It would be the thing that makes us vulnerable and attacks us as a whole. It sucks but it sure does happen.

Anyways, to those who are feeling helpless and going through something that you just can't find the answers to, sometimes all it takes is to have a bite of your comfort food. It may not solve all your problems right away but food is great and it usually makes a lot of people happy. And if that's what it takes, you need to grab that chance.

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A young Chinese American woman comes home to fulfill a dream. As she gets to know her mother’s neighbors and works on making her dream come true, she discovers secrets and gets answers she’s sought for much of her life. Author Roselle Lim draws on her own cultural heritage to give readers a story full of delicious recipes but light on substantial fare in the cooking-related novel Natalie Tan’s Book of Luck and Fortune.

Natalie Tan has wanted nothing more than to be a chef with her own restaurant. She knows she comes from a tradition of cooking: her grandmother ran a restaurant too. Natalie doesn’t know much more than that, however. Before she was born, the restaurant shut down. When she pressed her mother, Miranda, for details, Miranda claimed the restaurant was beyond saving.

Despite this, Natalie wants to pursue her dream. She leaves home to enroll in cooking school. She fails after her first year, but she cooks and travels across the world to continue honing her skills. For seven years mother and daughter don’t speak—until the day Natalie receives word that her mother has died.

She arrives in San Francisco’s Chinatown and her old neighborhood where she grew up as the only child to a single parent. She also grew up hating her father, a man she never met but an inheritance she carries from her mother’s refusal to talk about him. Now Natalie has no parents and only a neighborhood full of people who, in her mind, turned their backs on her and her mother when she was young.

From beyond the grave, though, her mother surprises her. The restaurant is not in a state of disrepair after all, and in a letter Miranda says she approves of Natalie’s dream to open it again. She only wishes she could have said it to Natalie’s face. Natalie is ecstatic, but then she examines the neighborhood. The buildings are old, the tourists no longer come, and few young people live there anymore. Even if she does open her restaurant, who would eat there?

The discovery of her grandmother’s old cookbook and a message from the neighborhood seer encourage her. The seer states that Natalie must make three dishes from the cookbook to help three different people. Her grandmother’s cooking was legendary, healing hearts and solving problems. If Natalie wants the restaurant to survive, she must think of the neighbors and help them first before she can help herself. As she fumbles her way through new relationships and tries to deal with the challenges of starting her own business, Natalie learns that a good meal, like a good conversation, can whet one’s appetite for a new life.

Author Roselle Lim will make readers mouths’ water with the recipes she includes. She offers insight to Asian cooking and its subtleties, proving Chinese fare is so much more than the standard dishes most readers might know. Natalie begins the story with an excellent understanding of these subtleties, so readers might question just why she couldn’t complete her tenure at cooking school.

Natalie comes across as deferential and eager to do the right thing yet also longing to forge her own path, traits many Asian readers will understand. Yet for someone who spends so much time talking about how much she wants to open her restaurant, she takes a long time to do so. In between getting to know the neighbors, cooking, and finding new love, she doesn’t charge forward with the specifics of her goal. Mentions of paperwork, licenses, and other necessities to start a new business crop up from time to time, but readers may wonder: what else, exactly, does Natalie do all day?

Despite the story being told in first person, Lim gives the neighbors their due as secondary characters. While readers never get the full stories on any of them, Lim provides enough information to satiate the most curious. It’s a shame, then, when one or more of these characters behaves in a manner that seems too far outside the lines drawn for them, which happens on more than one occasion.

Lacking a major conflict or even high tension for most of the book, Lim does keep one big surprise for the end. Some readers may not make it that far, but for those who do it will offer a sweet “aha!” moment falling right in line with the rest of the story. Readers looking for a quiet, laid-back novel about family might enjoy this one. Otherwise I recommend readers Borrow Natalie Tan’s Book of Luck and Fortune from the library.

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Ro's Take on This Journey:

After 7 year's, Natalie returns to her home town, Chinatown, in San Francisco, upon hearing of her mother's passing. She is racked with guilt over not reaching out after so much time to fulfill her filial duties. Others in the town befriended her mother and took the place of Natalie, with her mother's agoraphobia.

Natalie returns, a failed culinary student, yet the dream still is alive in her heart. She finds herself at a leaf reader, who tells her what she must do to make amends to make her Grandmother's old restaurant a success, and help the neighborhood once again to thrive.

Natalie's Grandmother, Laoao, was a phenomenal chef, and a pioneer in her day, and was the toast of China Town. Natalie's desires run deep with the desires they both shared, but which Natalie was never told by her mother. Natalie carries a lot of resentment towards the store front town that has become a kind of ghost town, because she carries thoughts from her past with her mother that made her feel all alone. Little did she know how wrong she was.

Natalie is fiercely independent, and determined to make amends, be a success, and keep her town from disappearing. There is a great shadow that she must penetrate, and more to the eye than just making phenomenal dishes.

Ms. Lim's magical novel will take you over. The succulent recipes sounded wonderful, and made me feel like I was in heaven! I love Chinese food, and culture. It was a must read book for me. I could picture each dish, and the beauty of the artful construction.

I give Natalie Tan's Book of Luck & Fortune, 4 magical Prose, repairing of the soul, mysterious, intriguing, romantic, finding answers to all of Natalie's questions stars!

This novel was pieced together perfectly and was eventually a feel good experience; from sad to happy to fulfilling...A great read!

Quote: The Chinese custom of swallowing one's misery."

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Captivating tale with foodie overtones!

Loved this contemporary novel with a touch of magic realism set in San Francisco's Chinatown.
Am I reading the Chinese version of The Road Less Travelled or Chicken Soup for the Soul?
What we have is an expose on the healing properties of food all mixed into a fanciful story bringing life back to a neighborhood.
Natalie Tan returns home after her mother's death, to find the neighborhood run down and herself the owner of a boarded up restaurant (her grandmother's) in the downstairs of her building.
Natalie had left to follow her dream of becoming a chef. When the local seer gives her the secret for restoring the neighborhood and her dreams, she reluctantly takes up the challenge.
I loved the description of the tea lady's night garden, the help from the somewhat clairvoyant cat, and the wonderful recipes interspersed throughout the story.
Tension in the hood, romance and resolution makes this an uplifting story of community, friendship, and relationships.

A Berkley Publishing Group ARC via NetGalley
(Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.)

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I saw a few mixed reviews for this one, unfortunately, but was still eager to check it out. I love books involving food (especially some of my favorite kinds of foods) so it was inevitable that this book would make me hungry at all times. I wish I didn’t read some of those reviews for this book before starting though because I think some things got into my head a little.

Regardless, the writing was very flowery and chock full of metaphors and similes. It was a bit overwhelming and unnecessary. There was a lot of repetitive inner dialogue and commentary about the neighborhood dying, too. The biggest issue with the writing, however, was that it’s the epitome of telling instead of showing. The main character told stories and narrated what she was doing, often repeating the same phrases and thoughts, instead of the author showing us things. The writing felt too simplistic at times for this reason and too flowery at other times because of the metaphors. It’s an odd dichotomy. There were many times I thought about DNFing this because of the repetition and fairly uninteresting main character, but I really felt compelled to finish for some reason. While I’m complaining, I should also mention that the romance in this book was incredibly rushed, barely explored, and not fully necessary. I guess I’m sort of glad it existed because at least it added a little something to the plot, but it was just so instalove-ish and quick.

Since I had just gone to San Francisco the week before reading this one, it was still super fresh in my mind. I LOVED that I could picture Chinatown so perfectly while reading. I loved the insight into Chinese culture as well; there was a lot of information about norms without feeling too much like a lecture of sorts. The descriptions of food were out of this world and I was so hungry every time I picked this book up!

The plot for this overall is quite good and interesting. The touch of inexplicable magic was well-written and fun to read about. The ending had some surprises that I also really enjoyed. I loved the food and locals in the neighborhood, but really didn’t care for the writing style much. I’ll be interested to try Lim’s sophomore novel to see if the writing has changed because she knows how to craft a good story otherwise.

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When Natalie Tan’s estranged mother dies Natalie returns to the home she left seven years ago. Home is a Chinatown neighborhood in San Francisco and the people who knew her before her departure are not exactly pleased to see her. She must make amends and hope that they will warm to her once again. She also hopes to find answers to life-long questions concerning her family. She will meet new people, renew old acquaintances and, along the way, create possibilities where there once were none. This is a magical story that is filled with yummy recipes and charming characters – and left me smiling as I turned the last page.

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I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review, which has not altered my opinion of this book.

This story was so sweet and heartwarming. I wasn't exactly sure what to expect when I started it this book, but I got a wonderful story about family and food. I love how Ms. Lim incorporated aspects of the Chinese culture and the changes that have happened over generations. This explores those generations a bit and examines the difference between them and the difficulties in getting along. While there was a bit of insta-love going on in this book, I was alright with it because it was not a big focus of the story. Instead, the romance was more of a side plot, if anything.

I loved the magical realism element of this story. It wasn't needed, but I feel as though it for sure added to the story. I loved the depiction of food having a physical and a mental impact on the people who eat it. This really shows how much food can affect a person, which I feel is underappreciated in our day and age. This book shows how important thinking things through, food, and being yourself is such an important aspect of figuring out your own path in life.

Overall, I loved this book. The only thing that is keeping it from a 5 of 5 is the instalove, which I really just dislike immensely. However, I do like how the book ended. I highly recommend this book, especially for anyone who enjoys fiction and food and a dash of romance.4.5 out of 5 for me.

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I was intrigued by the synopsis of this book but was a bit disappointed in its’ execution. All of a sudden, there were their unexplained magical elements thrown into the story and I found that they really didn’t have a real impact on the story.

It wasn’t a bad novel, it just wasn’t what I expected. I have read other food related stories both fiction and non-fiction, that kept my interest more.

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Cute, Quirky and Tummy Rumbly!

Roselle Lim’s debut novel is an interesting mix of self-discovery, cultural identity, love and a bit of magic - all interspersed with yummy recipes. When Natalie Tan returns home after her agoraphobic mother’s death, she seeks out the space where her grandmother’s restaurant once was. In trying to recreate her family recipes and reopen the restaurant, she learns more about herself and her family than she could have imagined.

I enjoyed the recipes and the cooking aspect of this story the most - something about the family exploration fell a bit flat for me but being able to learn about the restaurant and cooking and history livened it back up a bit. While this one was more middle of the road for me, I’d be curious to read more from Lim in the future and see what she does next!

Thank you to Berkley for an advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

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With each new debut author from this publisher comes an even more gorgeous cover that just invites the reader to pick it up.

Natalie Tan’s Book of Luck and Fortune was a sweet and charming debut novel.

It was light on romance, which doesn’t make this a traditional romance novel, but also just confirms that illustrated covers can be a bit misleading. Also the romance is built on insta love which was surprising to me – I never would have expected it in this novel. But it makes sense since the romance isn’t really the focus of this story. Instead the author highlights Natalie’s friendships and encounters with her neighborhood and customers.

And the way food was presented in this novel was a delight – I was constantly craving Chinese food. And I really enjoyed the aspect of magical realism, that came into play anytime Natalie cooked one of her mother’s recipes.

The vibrant and poetically way the author wrote this book would relate wonderfully into a movie. The food, the descriptions, the neighborhood – a feast for the eyes.

Overall I wanted to love it more, but the writing didn’t 100% click with me, and the low dosage of romance factored into my overall feel for the book.

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Family, culture, food and magic – if you are looking for a vivid read that is well-written and delicious then this book of luck and fortune may be for you!

Natalie has a complicated family history – her mother was agoraphobic, unable to leave the apartment following the death of Natalie’s grandmother. Her grandmother was a famous chef in Chinatown running the most popular restaurant on the block until she died after which Natalie’s mother closed the doors forever.

Natalie, with a gift for cooking and a dream to follow in her grandmother’s footsteps, is upset to find her mother is adamantly against the reopening of the family restaurant. After a blow up fight with her mother, Natalie leaves San Francisco to travel the world and cultivate her gift as a chef. Years later, Natalie returns after her mother’s death with the guilt that they never were able to reconcile.

Natalie decides to open the restaurant and pay homage to her family and also her community. However, her relationship with the neighborhood remains complicated as she remembers the rejection her mother faced when she refused to continue the family legacy. Natalie hits a crossroads – figure out a way to reconcile with the neighborhood, open the restaurant and follow her calling, or simply sell and walk away from San Francisco forever.

This story was heart-warming, heart-wrenchingly sad and magical (literally). I found myself salivating at the recipes and craving Chinese food at multiple points in the novel. I enjoyed Natalie’s internal struggle, her search to unpack her mother’s agoraphobia, and her interactions with the traditional Chinese culture as she attempts to make peace with her past and present, in order to pursue her future.

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Oh boy this book gave me all the fuzzy feelings in the world. THIS DESERVES A MOVIE ADAPTATION. I figured that I should shout that out to the world because Natalie Tan's tale will surely look good on the big screen with its solid plot and amiable characters.

HERE ARE MORE REASONS WHY YOU SHOULD READ NATALIE TAN'S BOOK OF LUCK AND FORTUNE:

• HELLO FOOOOOD

It will be a huge disservice to the book if I don't mention the glorious food content that made me drool about a hundred times per page (oh wow that's a disgusting image). As a huge foodie*, I really applaud Roselle Lim for screaming FOOD RIGHTS and making this the most delicious book in existence. There are also actual recipes inside that you can use if cooking is your thing.

I also appreciate that this book features Filipino dishes as well. If you've been to the Philippines, you might be aware that our country boasts a lot of delicious food. This is a huge factor why eating is one of my primary hobbies. It just made me so happy to see some of my favorite dishes in these pages.

• ‎Yes to magical realism

Natalie Tan's Book of Luck and Fortune is filled with magic that can warm the heart. At first, I thought this book was just a cutesy contemporary but in fact, it is of the magic realism genre. There's something about magical realism that lifts the spirit. Roselle Lim's whimsical writing and poetic descriptions made this book even more magical.

• ‎It features the found family trope

• ‎I learned more about Chinese culture because of this #ownvoices book

• ‎It's an encouraging read

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