I have been fascinated by the oriental culture for many years, so when I saw this book for review I wanted to read it.

Natalie Tan left the Chinatown district of San Francisco after a fight with her mother over her ambition to be a chef, and follow in her laolao's (Grandmother) footsteps. But, when tragedy strikes Natalie is drawn back to the world she left, and finds that her mother, while keeping secrets from her, loved her and only wanted the best for her. Being agoraphobic, her mother relied heavily on the neighborhood to help her with her life, and when Natalie comes back she isn't sure how she feels about the neighbors. After settling in and going to visit some of them, memories flood back and she realizes that she blocked out some of the most meaningful parts of her life.

I loved the magical aspect of the book, along with the food and cooking aspect that it usually went along with. I can certainly relate to how much food can mean to memories and family, as I have many, many memories tied to food from my mother and grandmother, as well as other family members.

One thing that I felt was a little short was the character development. While I liked all of the characters, I felt that some of them could have been fleshed out more so I could connect to them on a much deeper level. It is still a book that I would recommend, especially if you are looking for a story that is an easy read on a lazy day.

This was a very sweet and tender book, packed with incredible recipes. I expected it to be a light romance, and was delighted by the magical realism woven throughout. Really hard to read when you're hungry, though!

I love magical realism, and I love foodie books. I thought this would be a perfect combination for me. I liked it, but I don't love it. There is no subtlety to this story. It's full-on, in your face, fairy tale magic. I prefer a little more nuance, I guess.

I really enjoyed the cooking parts of the story. I've been strategizing how to get my hands on some pan-fried dumplings for a few days now. Miranda and Laolao were thoughtfully crafted characters, and I appreciate the realistic take on mental illness. The romance was just a little too sugary for my taste.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book in return for an honest review.

Growing up in San Francisco’s Chinatown, Natalie Tan dreams of being a chef. Natalie lives alone with her agoraphobic mother, Miranda, on top of an abandoned restaurant. The restaurant was run by Miranda’s mother, Qiao, and was highly successful, but shuttered after Qiao’s death and before Miranda was born.

Natalie saves money for culinary school, but Miranda vehemently opposes Natalie’s career choice. Natalie leaves anyway, causing a rift between them and the two haven’t spoken in seven years. After flunking out of culinary school, Natalie travels the world, working in kitchens in pursuit of her dream. She returns home only because of her mother’s death.

Returning to Chinatown, she is shocked to see Chinatown is no longer the once-vibrant community of her youth and no longer able to sustain generations of immigrants. Businesses are failing and families are leaving. Natalie sees her inheritance of the abandoned restaurant as an opportunity to enliven the neighborhood. The local mystic tells her that that in order to succeed, Natalie must cook three recipes from her grandmother's cookbook for her neighbors. The book’s recipes contain annotations describing the embodiment of each dish, such as: Crabs are precious and have a natural armor like the warriors of old. They are the perfect ambassadors for courage.

Natalie gets busy in the kitchen, and serves up meals to her neighbors. I will say that I loved the descriptions of what happens to each as they partake of Natalie’s special meals. Natalie makes a dish of broth and noodles for her friend, Celia. While Celia is eating, Natalie envisions yarn being knit into an afghan, cocooning Celia in comfort. It created a beautiful depiction in words of just what food can mean to someone.

The story continues along these lines, and is a pleasant way to while away a few hours on a lazy afternoon. The story is predictable, without any real story line or plot and not much substance. Natalie’s insecurities and inconsistencies were irritating, so I just didn’t feel much connection to her character. Her dream was to be a chef and while she knew she made great dishes, she was constantly wringing her hands and worrying she wouldn’t live up to Qiao’s legacy. Her driving ambition is to save the community, yet she harbors bitterness for the neighbors who didn’t do more to help and her agoraphobic mother.

While the “magical” themes of the book ask you to suspend belief and reality at times, I had a hard time doing so at one point. I just couldn't understand why and how Natalie thought a restaurant with two tables and a counter would suddenly transform an entire neighborhood.

There was the obligatory romance thrown in, and it was a bit over the top and just didn’t seem to fit the story line. A lot of time was spent reading about her chopping, slicing and dicing, and my attention would wane. But this will make a great movie!

What a delightful book! Part fairy tale, part cultural experience, part coming-of-age, and even part cookbook, this has something for everyone.....even a bit of mystery thrown in. Natalie Tan returns to San Francisco's Chinatown after years traveling the world and learning to cook. She & her mother fought before she left, and now that Natalie's mother has died, she's left to pick up the pieces of her life and find some resolution to the events of her past.

Natalie is a lovely character and the author's descriptions of Chinatown, its inhabitants and the food (OH! The Food!!) pulls the reader right into the story. The magical elements incorporate Chinese myths & folklore and prevent the plot from descending into silliness. By the end of the book, you will believe in curses & magical effects of food. A sweet story of love & redemption.

Natalie, living in Montreal when she learns that her estranged mother has died, goes back to San Francisco’s Chinatown to attend to the details. Her mother suffered from agoraphobia, and Natalie learns how much the people in the community had helped her. Natalie loves to cook (and provides the reader with many recipes), but does she have the talent and the strength of her late grandmother to reopen the family restaurant which closed many years ago? This book had so many things I liked: vividly drawn characters, a likable protagonist, a bit of magic realism, and an evocative Chinatown setting. I hope that Roselle Lim will write another book about Natalie, her community, her restaurant, and her new love. Highly recommended.

Delightful, joyful, adorable, and with a touch of magic, this book just fills your heart!
Natalie has been estranged from her mother for years and returns to Chinatown in San Francisco when she dies. The neighborhood is deteriorating and Natalie feels she has to do her part to build it up again. Her grandmother was a phenomenal cook, started her own restaurant, but Natalie’s mother closed it and refused to have anything to do with it. Natalie discovers her grandmother’s recipes and decides to use those recipes to create healing in her neighborhood and to re-open the restaurant. I just loved the characters and I fell in love with Meimei, the kitten. This book has made it to my ‘best ever books’ list and would make a terrific movie!
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The well-written Natalie Tan's Book of Luck and Fortune cleverly puts a literal spin on the adage that food is healing.
And as Natalie's food heals its eaters (and her cooking heals her), Lim's thoughtful words heals its readers.
Natalie Tan's Book of Luck and Fortune is set around cooking, with a bit of magic and a dash of Asian culture mixed in.
Lim addresses certain common struggles in the Asian community such as traditional versus alternative careers, where children don't "need" their parents' "permission, but want their support and blessing."
She also emphasizes the strength of her culture, nothing that "a scar would be left...a reminder of survival and hope."
Lim writes beautifully and I look forward to reading more from her.

Thank you NetGalley and Berkley for the ARC.

When Natalie hears of her mother’s death, she returns home to San Francisco’s Chinatown after leaving seven years before. When she finds out that she has inherited her grandmother’s restaurant, she also has to cook three recipes from her grandmother’s cookbook to help her neighbors before she can re-open. Fun read, great characters and writing.

How do you get past the events of the past? With food of course! This book made me hungry. And thankful for the family I have. An exploration of life in a different culture, filled with people so expertly described I feel I know them. With recipe descriptions that have me yearning. Loved this book.

This book was received as an ARC from Berkley Publishing Group in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.

I fell in love with this book immediately when I opened to the first page. From the cover, I was expecting a completely different story but, after I read this book it was definitely better than I expected. I have a passion for reading and for cooking so this book was definitely in my wheelhouse. It also reminded me of a Hallmark movie of how a hometown girl returns home after heartbreak and in this case, loosing her mother finding that in her mother's will, she was left her family restaurant after leaving so mad due to the lack of support from her mother because her passion for cooking and career path of a chef. Then, when an unexpected neighbor turned good friend turned love of her life, Natalie later realizes that whatever happened in the past did lead her down the right path after all and that she had the support all along unknowingly.

We will consider adding this title to our Fiction collection at our library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.

A layered tale with delicious food, family, relationships that will keep you hooked. It is fast-paced to keep you reading. It will break your heart and heal you. Definitely would recommend this book.

NATALIE TAN'S BOOK OF LUCK AND FORTUNTE is a feel-good story--and a feel-hungry story, too! I loved the descriptions of rood and the magic Roselle Lim delivers from start to finish. This needs to be in everyone's beach bag this summer!

This book is an exploration of grief and growth as Natalie Tan tries to live the life she wants. Personally, I don't think I'm enough of a food person to have gotten enough enjoyment out of this, but I think it will be popular with the public and will definitely be adding it to my library's collection.

First, I LOVED every minute of this book.

This book went on my radar at the end of 2018. I was drawn by the cover, and mostly symbols of San Francisco. Also? Food. I’m 100% drawn to this story because of food.

Natalie Tan’s Book of Luck & Fortune by Roselle Lim is about family that you were born into and the family you make. After her mother’s death, Natalie Tan returns to San Francisco’s Chinatown. She relives her past while healing in the present, and dreams of what her future may become.

Natalie Tan’s story had the familiarity of your friend telling you a story about her life, all with the anticipation of the next page. I loved her from the beginning, and I was so invested in how her story played out. Death in the family isn’t always easy, and Lim’s words held my hand as Natalie relived every story with her Ma-Ma. I also adored every supporting character in this book, and I feel that they contributed to how beautiful this story was written.

Guys, I cried. I cried because I was able to feel the emotions jumping off the page. I laughed at the silly anecdotes. And mostly? I was invested in these characters that built up this community. I enjoyed the recipes and their descriptions. It felt familiar to me, like I was in this family. And I think when an author can place me in the middle of their world and make me feel that I’ve always been a part of it? It’s the highest praise that I can give.

Roselle Lim writes so effortlessly and lyrically, that the time I spent reading this story slipped away from me. I enjoyed my time with Natalie Tan. I cannot wait to read more from Lim. I am forever a fan.

*Thank you to the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.*

After her mother's death, Natalie Tan moves back home to San Francisco's Chinatown and decides to reopen her grandmother's restaurant. I normally love books about cooking and also books with a touch of the magical ... but this book didn't work for me for so many reasons.

Probably the biggest reason I disliked this book was because of the amazingly selfish and self-centered main character who is supposedly trying to help revitalize her old neighborhood, but really is just trying to help herself.

When the man shows up to eat her cooking and the restaurant hasn't even opened, she accepts without question large sums of money. That was just creepy--both the offering and accepting of it.

The restaurant has been abandoned for years and years and yet it is fully equipped and ready to go--no mention of pests, dirt, decay, etc.

Then there were the recipes which take up a large part of the book, but all we get are an extensive list of the ingredients and details on how they are cooked, but no measurements for anything so what's the use.

I also didn't feel like the magical elements really worked--it just seemed odd and out of place. Add to that plenty of cliches and some really bad dialogue. Very disappointed with this book.

Delicious and delightful! From the opening pages to the final chapter, I loved the magic, the romance, and, above all, the food.

Natalie Tan has been running from her agoraphobic Chinese mother and her past for the past seven years. And she probably would have kept running if the news of her mother’s death did not force her to return to her old neighborhood to settle her mother’s affairs.

She slinks back with her tail between her legs, only to be called out by all those around her–her mother’s friends, shop owners and the community who felt she had committed the worst sin a daughter can–abandoning her mother, leaving her to die alone.

But as Natalie starts to delve deep into her mother’s and grandmother’s pasts, a lot of her childhood takes on a new meaning. And she starts to understand the importance of community as she works to restore her grandmother’s old restaurant and re-build and strengthen the Chinese community.

This one was so charming and compulsively readable. And the recipes!!! I’m going to have to try quite a few of these, although it seems that my cooking will probably not do justice to Natalie’s cooking.

I can see the movie already, I really hope one is in the works or will be soon! There were a couple things that didn’t gel for me in the book, but I passed them off to Chinese mysticism. Overall it was just delightful!

Special thanks to Berkeley Publishing Group and Netgalley for an e-galley in exchange for my honest review. This one is out June 11, 2019. This review will be published on my blog, Women in Trouble Book Blog on May 13, 2019.

This reminds me of the Joy Luck Club but of course it stands on its own.
I'm looking forward to more from this Author and the recipes where a great addition. The description of food and cultures are almost edible themselves, and the way the characters interact with each other is frustrating and satisfying at the same time. If you're looking for a new read for spring, or like novels about cooking, food, and family, add this to your list.

This was a solid 3.5 star read for me. I think it has wide appeal with some great elements that are really unique. As someone who loves to cook I loved the addition of recipes, however, it couldn’t really save the plot for me. The book was a little slower paced than I like my contemporary fiction and I found it a bit hard to keep invested. I did love the writing and I think this is a book that many will love.