A touch of history, a snippet of romance and a bunch of feminine devotion and determination makes this biographical novel a winner. The developing friendship between Eliza, an upper middle class spinster and Annie, a destitute pauper is based on their dedication to the compilation of recipes for the English homemaker. Descriptions of the recipes are breathe taking. Their 1845 edition of the Modern Cookery for Private Families is believed to be the basis for Mrs. Beeton’s Book of Household Management, the standard historical treatise on Victorian cuisine.
Cook books have always been best sellers. The advent of television cooking shows, popularity of Chef’s and their restaurants have wetted the palate of every Foodie.
This will definitely appeal to Downtown Abbey,Gilded Age admirers and lovers of historical cookery.
In audio form, the accent adds an authentic touch.
I can envision a BBC series.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

🥖 Well before Julia Child there was Eliza Acton, an unwed woman who lived and breathed poetry and cooking; but that did not fair well for English women in the early 1800’s.

🍳 Against her mother’s wishes, Eliza, while using her distinct talents as a poet, soon began to embark upon honing her culinary skills by writing a cookbook. With the help of her 17 year old kitchen assistant, Ann Kirby, the two set the stage for creating the format for all future cookbooks.

🎧 This audiobook is a true gem, with its splendid narration. For fans of shows like Downton Abbey and Upstairs Downstairs or the memoir Julie and Julia by Julie Powell.

This historical fiction is one part Downtown Abbey (the downstairs part) and one part Great British Bake-off. It has the friendly air and social justice attitude of GBBO, too: let's help one another be successful. It's delightful and charming. It gets a bit long-- I was ready for it to be over about one hour before it actually was over, but I overall enjoyed it. It's like a Hallmark Channel movie minus the soppy romance: it goes down easily and even better with a nice dish of pie a la mode.

The narration for this book is pitch perfect! Both narrators convey their characters perfectly and capture the tone and action of the story. I was completely engrossed in the story right from the beginning because of the narration.

eliza Acton does not want to live the life the world expects an unmarried woman to live. She wants to write poetry. But when the only potential publisher rejects her poetry and instead demands a cookery book she thinks her writing life is over. When her circumstances change the kitchen provides a way to express herself and the cookery book is a possibility. She takes a chance on Anne Kirby, her kitchen maid turned assistance and an unusual partnership is formed.

The narrators do a good job giving voice to the characters.

Miss Eliza’s English Kitchen by Annabel Abbs was a delightful listen. The story was sweet but it spoke of the hardships of women in the Victorian age. The unequal treatment of women played a huge role in the story. The characters are well constructed. I particularly like Ann whose growth was inspired by her mentor Miss Eliza. The audiobook net galley made available was extremely well spoken and enhanced the story. The wording is lyrical and poetic.

I loved this book! I thought of gifting it to many of my foodie friends for Christmas. I have never heard of Eliza Acton and was inspired by this book to do a bit of research into her life and it was so interesting. I found her cookbook at my local library and enjoyed referring to it as I read this book.

Based on a true story, this book reads as wonderful fiction. The writing is excellent, and the plot moves along at a brisk pace to cover the lifetime of Eliza and her faithful servant, Ann. The narrators did a wonderful job of helping to keep each timeline straight with their very distinctive voices and the tone of the writing and unique social class perspective of each character made it an easy, enjoyable read. There is some wonderful storytelling and twists to the narrative that I enjoyed.

The characters are very well developed, and we grow to understand each. Neither is perfect and I’m not sure how likeable Eliza really is. She is a person of her time and social standing which is interesting from a historical perspective. I tend to root for the underdog, in this case Ann, so I enjoyed her chapters a bit more. Their lives intersect to make each woman a richer character as each learns valuable life lessons from the other. The insights into Victorian life are fascinating and the woman’s place in society is shown without any moralizing or deep discussion; it’s a reality and we hear of various roads taken by side characters. upstairs-downstairs stories,

There is also a lot to be read into this book about motherhood. What makes a mother? We meet Mary who seems like the perfect mother and also several others’ consideration and resolution of this question. (No spoilers here) Female friendships and how we learn from other women is threaded throughout.

I loved learning about the history of cookbooks and the references to food and recipes was appreciated. I wonder if the recipes mentioned as titles to the chapters are included in the text copy of this book. It would definitely be a bonus and I would be inclined to purchase a hard copy for reference. Cooking as art and as therapy is a message this reader heard loudly and clearly and the kitchen as the center of the home is an idea I believe.

I look forward to reading more work by Annabel Abbs. She has made history and a Victorian woman’s life highly entertaining and engaging. I hope she takes on more topics soon and plan to read The Joyce Girl next.
Thanks to NetGalley and to Harper Audio for the advance listen.

As exotic herbs and spices are imported into the UK at the beginning of the 19th century, home cooks are excited by the possibilities, but really don’t know what to do with them. Eliza Acton is compelled by her publisher to write a cookbook instead of her usual poetry, with no money of her own after her father flees the country. She has no cooking experience, so begins to practice in her kitchen and discovers that not only does she like cooking, she’s quite good at it. Eliza hires an impoverished young woman named Ann to help her and the two form a fast friendship that transcends the strict class system of the time. Based on real events, this is a fascinating story told in a charmingly cheeky fashion by the charming narrators