I enjoyed the book overall. I loved seeing the similarities between Austen and Dev. What I didn't like was getting preached to about politics. In the first book the politics were kept more general, but in this one they weren't. I read to escape politics, so it was irritating.

Well.....this isn't Jane Austen.

A retelling of sorts of Persuasion - brought into more modern time with alcoholism, suicide, rape, ptsd and panic attacks - things that the polite ladies of Jane Austen's book would NEVER speak about.

In this version - high school sweethearts (a chef, and a soccer player) are separated by family opposition and meet again, twelve years later, as participants in a culinary reality show. The contrast between the reality show and the dark past history of Ashna and her mother was jarring - and could probably has been handled with a lighter touch - or an easier transition.

Still, it had the elements - the barest bones of elements - of the familiar story - enough to keep me interested.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review.

This is a beautiful book, I just wish there had been content warnings in the beginning. It tackles some very dark content, and it does so well, but it can still be heartbreaking to read.

A sweet second chance romance that warms the heart and fills the soul!

There was a cultural barrier but I feel the author did such an amazing job at opening her world to the reader! I felt in awe at the growth and strength of Ashna as I got to know who she was and where she came from!

Rico and Ashna didn’t have a smooth journey but Rico never gave up and fought for the love he knew he deserved! He fought for himself and he fought for Ashna!
A beautiful read that opened my eyes and heart to a new author!

This is the second in a series of Austen re-writes by Sonali Dev. Like *Pride and Prejudice and Other Flavors* the concept for this updating is clever - the protagonist and her high school boyfriend broke up because of her father's determination that he is socially inferior and thus inferior. Dev's premise here is a good one, but the writing isn't particularly engaging. There is a lot of telling instead of showing and it just feels thin. In the second half, when the novel probes Ashna's (Anne Elliot's) traumatic childhood experiences, it feels overwrought. By the time the revelations are made, there have been so many clues that they are not a surprise. Overall, this is a light read, but not a great one.

Sonali Dev can do NO wrong - her characters are sublime, her love stories are beautifully drawn, and and her descriptions of the Indian American experience are spot on. Taking on Jane Austen is no small feat, but in the hands of a master, there are just no worries!

Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced review copy of this book. I love Jane Austen and Persuasion is a particular favorite of mine. I had really high hopes for this book but it just kind of fell flat. I found the backstory really sad. I think the author has a lot of promise and I will definitely read more by her but this book did not do it for me and it was difficult to complete. I am really between and 3 and 4 - 3.5 but will round down to 3 because it did not grab me.

Reading the synopsis and seeing the cute cover, I thought this was going to be a rom com. It's slow moving about 450 pages and deals a lot more with a tragic back story than romance. I would love to read more from this author but this just didn't do it for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins for providing this eARC.

I was very excited about the premise of this one - I love a persuasion takeoff, and the cooking show and former footballer angles sounded fun. For me though, this one just didn't resolve into more than the sum of its parts. For some reason I wasn't really grabbed by it, and it took until about the 60% mark for it to pick up a bit. I think this one is a little long, it could have used an extra trim here and there, but I did like the characters and other elements here. It just wasn't quite the perfect read for me right now.

Recipe for Persuasion by Sonali Dev is an expertly told retelling of Jane Austen's Persuasion that is at its core a story about love, romantic and familial.

Second Chance romance, yes! Jane Austen retelling, yes! Second book in the Rajes sage , yes!
I was super excited for the plot that takes place on a reality cooking show.

The descriptive writing is mesmerizing. The relationship between Ashna and Rico is swoon-worthy with the perfect amount of chemistry , even after 10 years. The emotional trauma and heavy topics addressed in the book are handled expertly with respect.

This is a multi-layered, complex story about second chances. Romantic second chances and second chances within families. not just romantically, but within families as well.

The story is told in alternating perspectives of Ashan and Rico and also Ashna's mother Shobi.

I fell in complete, total and utter love with the Raje family when I read Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors.

This story tells one of loss and redemption, not only between the Ashna and Rico but also between Ashna and her mother Shobi.

I love the angst that is portrayed only the way this author can. The family dynamics in the Raje family are complex and complicated.

This is a very well written story brimming with diversity and modern references that made me fell in love with Austen's Persuasion all over again.

Dynamic, elegant prose and flawless character building make Recipe for Persuasion a book you will not want to put down.

Highly recommend !

I think with this book Dev has crossed firmly over the "romance" line and into the "women's lit" category. This is a layered, complex story about second chances--not just romantically, but within families as well. And we get chapters from the point of view of not just the romantic leads, Ashna and Rico, but Ashna's mother Shobi as well. There was so much past pain for all of these characters that it made their second chance renewals that much sweeter and more heart touching. After [book:Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors|43500381], I was really in love with the Raje family, so I started from a happy place and was never disappointed for a second. With P&P, I was familiar enough with the source inspiration that I could identify the fun little connections. This time, I wasn't smart enough to re-read [book:Persuasion|2156] first, so I don't remember enough to comment on this story from that angle (though I may find myself reading it now just because I'm curious). Even without that, this story stands firmly on its own as another funny and heartwarming escape from one of my favorite authors.

This modern set retelling of an Austen classic transforms the tale of lost love to one of mothers and daughters, family expectations, loss, and regaining not only love, but family.

4.5 stars

In recent years, modernizing Jane Austen stories has become all the rage. In Recipe for Persuasion, Dev takes inspiration from Austen’s Persuasion to tell the story of Ashna Raje, a chef who reluctantly agrees to join the cast of Cooking with the Stars to save her struggling restaurant. She immediately regrets her hasty decision when she is paired with her first love, Rico Silva, who is now a FIFA soccer star. Their romance ended badly, and Ashna and Rico blame each other for the failed relationship. When they have a disastrous first meeting for Cooking with the Stars, the clip goes viral and they become social media darlings. The author hews close enough to Persuasion to warrant the inspiration claim but creates her own sweet, clever tale, a highly satisfying update of a classic story.

Ashna Raje is a great chef but her overbearing mother cannot be pleased with her and her choices. Because Ashna has a restaurant that's failing and she's desperately trying to save it. Well good news! She gets picked to be on a celebrity of sorts cooking show. She's so nervous and excited and wants desperately to prove to her mother and restaurant goers she has what it takes. It's a very exciting chance for her!

Until she's partnered with Rico Silva, a celebrity sports star AND past love of hers! Omg I love a book with food (foodie that I am) and throw a little exciting love story in there with a past. You got me hooked! Desperately wanting to win, not knowing how to work beside someone she once (still) loved? Could turn out disastrous in so many ways. And what will her mom think? Great book to read and a page turner.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins Publishers for my ARC of this book. Highly recommended. Especially the food!

In her second homage to Jane Austen, Ms. Dev tackles a story of loss and redemption in a tale of a first love as well as two women: a mother and daughter who lost their emotional connection years before. Ashna Raje has continued for ten years to run her floundering restaurant, Curried Dreams, clinging to all the old recipes and décor that her late father devised. She dares not stray from his menu least panic attacks hit from a type of PTSD related to a hugely traumatic event in Ashna’s past with two devastating losses. As part of the wealthy and influential Raje family, Asha has a lot of support and people who love her; however, Ashna always felt rejected and abandoned by her mother, Shobi, whose raison d’etre is as a crusader for womens’ rights in India. She has the feeling of being on the outside looking into to the successful Rajes though they have always treated her as one of their own.

One of Ashna’s formative losses was her first love, Rico Silva. In a reflection of her mother’s own story, Ashna was forbidden to be with a boy of lesser social standing by her domineering father. Rico Silva, feeling rejected by Ashna, left and went on to become a soccer super star in England, but he never forgot his dark-eyed beauty, or the desolate feeling of a true soul-mate lost. When Rico sees a chance to partner with Ashna in a Food Network show, he feels it’s a chance to move on and close the door on a painful episode from his past. Rico’s own family history was peppered tragedy as well so in some ways he is equally as wounded as Ashna. Recovering from an injury and retiring from his illustrious career, Rico makes a big splash on the show by saving Ashna from serious harm which, caught on camera, goes viral.

In some ways being on this show is Ashna’s worst nightmare despite the fact that DJ from the first book is the show’s host and extended family are associated with the program. After so many years caught in emotional straight jacket, the last thing Ashna wants to do is have a major meltdown on national television. She only agrees to do the show as a rebuff to her mother and to save the failing albatross of her family restaurant.

Shobi was the victim of a forced marriage with Ashna’s father that shaped her life. Told in tandem, Ashna and Shobi’s stories reflect what extended emotional trauma can do to a family and their relationships for years. Now, Shobi who is at times hard to take, wants to repair the damage, some of which she is responsible for; however, it may be too little, too late. As Shobi’s part of the story unfolds, the reasons for her actions become more evident.

This story is quite the emotional roller coaster ride which is the mark of a finely told tale because in the end, the thrills, chills, and spills are all worth it. Readers will relate to the family dynamics while rooting for Ashna to overcome her debilities hoping she and Rico find their way back to the home they have in each other. Sonali Dev has woven an intense tale of love, loss, and reconciliation that will please fans of the first book and leave them anticipating the next in the Raje’s series, the enigmatic Yash’s story.

It's a sweet women's fiction novel, with clear callbacks to Jane Austen's Persuasion. However, the three different perspectives came out of nowhere, especially Ashna's mom's. The two characters of Ashna and Rico you expect to be the different perspectives but not her mom, Shobi. It does help add to the story to make it way more than just a romance between a man and a woman, but also a relationship between mother and daughter. Shobi's storyline is very, very different from Ashna and Rico's the one who got away trope. The different point of views are drastic flipping between one another, and without any chapter headers to help guide readers, and different timelines all over the place, it's confusing when reading. The story is a complete slow burn, by more than halfway, you're still wondering where is the *big* moment or something. I feel like I'm just waiting and waiting for the big climax and something to happen. But the book is well written and intriguing and certainly drew me in, but maybe that's because I just wanted more. The time jumps are unclear and abrupt, there needs to be a header or a different font or italics to signify a flashback from the present day. As is, without something, there's an element of confusion. All in all, the story does put a diverse spin on a Jane Austen classic which is great to see in today's world.

I like the characters in the Raje world and find their unconditional love for each other so sweet. This is not the funny rom-com read I was expecting, it was more of a family drama and a love story just happened to be in the book. Main character Ashna has some heavy issues she needs to work through because she is so unaware of her misery. The romance between Ashna and Rico was fine. There is a good bit of self-wallowing from many of the characters, it is annoying.

I enjoy Sonali Dev's writing, so this bumped the book to three stars for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this advanced copy.

Sonia Dev writes in the most amazing byway.Drawn in from the first pages loved her first book loved this one.A very special novel by a gifted author.Highly recommend.#netgalley#harpercollins

Recipe for Persuasion is Sonali Dev’s latest Jane Austen inspired novel. A sweet second chance at love tale, this delicious romance will have you savoring every second you spend reading it.

This is book two of The Raje Series but you don’t need to read book one - Pride, Prejudice and Other Flavors - to enjoy this one.

We’ve all had them. Those days when life seems determined to poison the lemonade we’ve made out of the lemons it has handed us.  Ashna Raje feels those are the only kinds of days she’s been having lately. Keeping her beloved father’s failing restaurant open has been almost impossible. Endless foreclosure notices from her bank are the only mail she receives and the fact that she has panic attacks if she cooks anything but her Baba’s recipes means she can’t even update the menu to lure more customers in. She stays after hours to mop floors and scrub toilets because she had to let the cleaning service go. But all of that is nothing compared to her sous chef and close friend quitting without notice.

That’s the night her cousin Trisha and best friend China show up just as she’s wiping down the kitchen. She’s not really surprised. Everyone knows Ashna works long hours and that makes her a favorite late night snack source. This time, though, she’s not being asked to provide refreshments. China’s been working on a reality show for Food Network called Cooking with the Stars, a program which teams chefs with celebrities for a culinary competition and she’s hit a big snag. One of the cooks had to quit and they need a last minute replacement. Ashna is a chef, she’s local, and most importantly, beautiful and desperate. A spot on the show will give her enough money to keep the foreclosure at bay. The only trouble? Ashna’s cooking induced panic attacks. She gives China a (mostly) firm no.

Then Ashna’s mother Shobi calls. She’s receiving a Padma Shri, one of the highest civilian awards in India. She wants Ashna to do the introduction at the awards dinner and like all their conversations, this one quickly degenerates into a fight. Shobi had pursued her career at Ashna’s expense, spending more time promoting her girls in sports programs than she ever spent with her own daughter. Ashna has no desire to repay her mother’s desertion with a speech rhapsodizing about her accomplishments. Stung by Shobi’s insistence that she has nothing more pressing to do, she impulsively tells her she’s taken a position on Cooking with the Stars.

FIFA winning soccer star Rico Silva has never forgotten - or forgiven - the girl who broke his heart when he was a young, lonely, vulnerable teenager. Now that he’s been forced to retire due to an injury, he decides it’s finally time to lay this ghost to rest. He begins by googling Ashna and that’s when he discovers the Entertainment Weekly article about Cooking with the Stars. One phone call to his agent and he’s on the show, paired with the girl who kicked him while he was down. His plan is to rub in her face that the boy her father said wasn’t worthy of her is now wildly successful, fabulously rich, and disgustingly famous.

Ashna is completely blindsided when she sees Rico again. Their meeting results in her losing her grip on the knife she’s using to chop vegetables and Rico being rushed to the emergency room, and the clip of a seemingly star-smitten Ashna practically swooning at the sight of him as he heroically saves her from self-injury goes viral. They become social media darlings, rocketing the anticipation for the show to heights a Food Network program has never received.  It’s made clear to Ashna that there is no chance she will be released from her contract so she can get out of the disastrous situation.  Deciding to make the best of it, she convinces Rico they need to use their explosive chemistry to charm the pants off the judges. But the judges aren’t the ones whom they are really interested in seeing naked.

Recipe for Persuasion is a fast, fun contemporary romance with two fabulous leads. It would have been easy for the anxiety ridden Ashna to come across as helpless and weak but the author does a fantastic job of giving her a backstory that keeps that from happening. We see a nice balance between the sensitive girl tied down by a painful past and familial expectations, and the loving, fascinating, competent young woman who shines when she’s away from those debilitating ties.

Rico’s plan to confront Ashna in front of the cameras could easily have had him coming across as a complete ass, but he is humble, kind, thoughtful, helpful and caring throughout the tale - especially to the person against whom he supposedly is seeking revenge. From the moment he saves her from the wayward knife to the way he smoothly covers her faux pas in front of the camera, he becomes the champion Ashna deserves.

Their path to an HEA is filled with humor, sexual tension, tender moments and witty banter. The scenes where they are on the  show are especially enjoyable, portraying  them at their very best.

Most of the attention is focused on Ashna and Rico but there is a secondary romance toward the end of the book and the entire story is filled with an amazing cast of supporting characters. I especially enjoyed the super sweet Song, a K-drama actress also appearing in the competition and Ashna’s Aunt Mina, who was the maternal figure her biological mom had never been.

This author loves angst and Ashna’s and Rico’s histories provide plenty of deep, emotional  elements that create a much richer read than the cover leads one to expect. It would be easy to get lost in all the drama but Ms. Dev does a nice job of combining the turmoil with lighter ingredients to give us a story that is sweet as well as savory.

Most books have flaws, though, and this one has a few which kept it from reaching DIK status. While I appreciated the gravitas and sensitivity Ashna’s parental issues give her character, they are so complicated  and traumatic their resolution takes up a great deal of page space. As a result, the book reads more like women’s fiction than romance. Additionally, while the storyline with Shobi allows the author to address the draconic patriarchal system of India’s past it makes Shobi less a character and more a mouthpiece, someone who was on the page simply to sermonize. Combined with the political conversations centered around Ashna’s cousin running for governor, this causes the text to have moments where it teeters on being preachy, especially since the style used is very much telling over showing.

Those quibbles aside, eloquent prose and excellent character building make Recipe for Persuasion a clever, charming story about two people who rediscover their authentic selves by finding love. I think the author’s legions of fans will adore this book, as will anyone who enjoys a goof.

Buy it at: Amazon, Audible, or your local independent bookstore
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Thanks to NetGalley for making an eARC copy of this book available to me.

I wanted to like this more than I did, but it just didn't click for me. A bit too much angst from Ashna, the female protagonist. I did enjoy Rico's character, and how he was shown to be so much more than just an athlete. And the cooking scenes and descriptions of the food were just, well, yummy. In the end, quite readable and I will be looking up more books by this author.