Recipe for a Perfect Wife - Karma Brown

I picked this book to read with a friend as we tried out a possible book and drink club (online because we don't live in the same country anymore!).

I liked this book. It opens with a couple looking at a house in the suburbs. Alice is not impressed and does not want to leave the city. Her husband loves it and can't stop talking about the potential. Alice feels like she can't say no because she recently lost her job and told her husband it was because she wanted to write a book, so he will be paying for the house. It is this fact that causes Alice to feel like she needs to earn her keep by being a housewife while also trying to write the book she really has no idea for.

The other storyline takes place in the 1950's where we see the original owners of the house. Nellie is an excellent cook, an excellent gardener, and everything a perfect wife should be. Even down to accepting abuse from her husband, to a point, Most of the chapters with Nellie opens with a recipe and in the chapter she bakes/cooks that item. I may have written some of them out so I could try them!

The book flips between the two characters and when Alice finds boxes of old belongings in the basement, she begins to see what her book could be about, and is inspired to try to become a perfect wife. Alice has a lot of flaws that I found frustrating, but did drive the story forward. Nellie was compelling and her story ends in a satisfying way for me, though that may be controversial.

I did not want to stop reading this book, so I guess you could say I really liked it. And my friend liked it too. The book/mixology club has come to fruition on Facebook and is called Cover to Cocktails. Come check it out for some great books and great drinks!