Review of The Recipe Box by Viola Shipman

*****5 stars

This is a feel-good book, a sweet romance, and a collection of baking recipes. The story features a baker, Sam, who leaves her family’s Michigan orchard for a job in New York City. Deciding not to take her boss’ demands anymore, she quits and returns home to take a time out and also attend the 100th anniversary party of the orchard and her grandmother’s 75tyh birthday.

Each section of this book includes a recipe that connects with the storyline of that section. There are flashbacks told by the women in her family that show Sam how they’ve created a history and traditions with their baking that’s shared by recipes in a recipe box passed down through the generations.

When it’s time for Sam to decide whether to return to New York and accept a promising baking position or stay at the family orchard, she’s also faced with dealing with her feelings about a promising relationship with Angelo, a man she left behind in New York, who comes to the orchard to visit her.

I recommend this book to those who enjoy family-centered stories. I was surprised to learn that the book was written by a man who used his grandmother’s name as a pen name. Her recipe box inspired the story, and the recipes included are some of hers and family friends.

Author: Debbie

I'm a retired librarian and the award-winning author of the Cobble Cove and Buttercup Bend cozy mystery series and other novels, short stories, poems, articles, and a novella. My books include CLOUDY RAINBOW, REASON TO DIE, SEA SCOPE, MEMORY MAKERS, TIME'S RELATIVE, MEOWS AND PURRS, and MEMORIES AND MEOWS. My Cobble Cove cozy mystery series published by Solstice Publishing consist of 6 books: A STONE'S THROW, BETWEEN A ROCK AND A HARD PLACE, WRITTEN IN STONE, LOVE ON THE ROCKS, NO GRAVESTONE UNTURNED, and SNEAKY'S SUPERNATURAL MYSTERY AND OTHER COBBLE COVE STORIES. My new Buttercup Bend series published by Next Chapter Publishing includes THE CASE OF THE CAT CRAZY LADY, THE CASE OF THE PARROT LOVING PROFESSOR, THE CASE OF THE LLAMA RAISING LIBRARIAN, and THE CASE OF THE WHALE WATCHING WEDDING PLANNER. I've also written a romantic comedy novella, WHEN JACK TRUMPS ACE, and short stories of various genres published as eBooks and in anthologies published by the Red Penguin Collection. My poetry appears in the Nassau County Voices in Verse and the Bard's Annual. My latest book is A MIXED BAG OF CAT TAILS, a multi-genre collection of ten stories featuring cats. I'm a member of Sisters-in-Crime, International Thriller Writers, and the Cat Writers' Association. I live on Long Island with my husband, daughter, and 2 cats. View All Posts