Imagine navigating a lifetime of micro-aggressions from one side of your family, while feeling disconnected from the other. This is Mae Townsend's reality in Shauna Robinson’s *The Townsend Family Recipe for Disaster*.

Mae is a mixed-race woman raised in California by her white mother and Black father. Her mother's family perpetuates subtle racism, which May has accepted because they are family. This experience leaves her wary of white people’s intentions.

On the other hand, Mae's father’s family lives in North Carolina. Despite his annual visits for a big Fourth of July picnic, he never brings Mae along, leaving her yearning for a connection to her Black heritage.

With her paternal grandmother’s death and her own wedding on the horizon, Mae embarks on a quest to connect with her father's side of the family. Her search hinges on finding the secret recipe for her grandmother’s famous mac and cheese. Will this recipe bridge the gap and bring her the connection she’s been missing?

The book offers an engaging read, though at times it can be frustrating due to the characters’ behavior towards Mae and the slow reveal of motivations. It’s disheartening to see Mae endure micro-aggressions without a support system, but ultimately, she finds her voice and builds a meaningful community.

This one was a fun audio. I really enjoyed the performance by the narrator. The story was very relatable and I had a lot of fun listening to it.

The Townsend Family Recipe for Disaster is a tale of belonging and redemption. Mae is stuck between two worlds, desperately trying to fit in. Her mother's side of the family is white, her father's black. While she never really had the chance to know her father's side, she marveled at the stories he would regale her with growing up, of his mother's famous recipes and the cherished 4th of July BBQ. Mae often finds herself dodging microaggressions and subtle racism at the hands of her mother's and fiancee's families, so when the opportunity to connect with her father's family presents itself, she jumps at the chance and is more than surprised at the veritable Pandora's Box she opens. What starts as a sweet attempt to replicate her Grandmother's mac and cheese recipe quickly turns into a story of family secrets, deep pain, and the search for belonging so many Americans face. A must-read!

The Townsend Family Recipe for Disaster was the first book that I had the pleasure of reading by Shauna Robinson. As the title suggests, this book was about family a lost recipe and lots of secrets. Mae Townsend, recently engaged to Conner Parker, all of a sudden had a real desire to get to know her father’s side of the family. She had had no contact with them at all in a very long time. Mae remembered that her late father had always traveled to North Carolina every year for his family’s annual Fourth of July barbecue. As much as Mae begged her father to let her accompany him, he always went by himself. With her and Conner’s wedding rapidly approaching, Mae wanted the members of her late father’s family to attend her wedding. Mae was a product of her parent’s biracial marriage and now she was following in their footsteps by marrying Conner, a white boy from a very affluent family. When Mae learned about her paternal grandmother’s death, she informed Conner that she was going to go to North Carolina to attend her funeral. Mae wanted to reacquaint herself with the Black members of her family and try and get them to come to her wedding. It was time that Mae got to know this side of her family. She could take care of last minute wedding plans long distance and could also work remotely. Mae promised Conner that she would return as quickly as she could but a lost recipe and an offer to plan the annual Fourth of July barbecue prolonged Mae’s stay longer than she had intended. Would Mae be able to worm her way back in the graces of this part of her family with the promise of replicating the traditional Fourth of July barbecue? Would Mae be able to discover the secrets that led to the estrangement with this part of her family? Could Mae accomplish all this before her wedding?

I listened to the audiobook of The Townsend Family Recipe for Disaster that was well narrated by Chante McCormick. Each character’s voice was easily recognizable and distinguished from the other characters. I appreciated the characters that Shauna Robinson brought to her book. Mae and Mae’s cousin, Sierra, were my favorites. I admired Mae for her determination and how she came to terms with very significant issues in her life. Sierra was the most difficult and unwelcoming of all of Mae’s family in the beginning. It was touching how Sierra’s and Mae’s relationship changed over the course of the book. As an added touch, Shauna Robinson mentioned and included many Southern dishes throughout the book that made my mouth water for them and my imagination feast on them. The Townsend Family Recipe for Disaster was about family, secrets, racism, acceptance of biracial marriages, standing up for what is right and the importance of passing down family recipes. I will definitely seek out more books by Shauna Robinson in the future. I recommend this book if you enjoy family drama and women’s fiction.

Thank you to Spotify Audiobooks for allowing me to listen to The Townsend Family Recipe for Disaster by Shauna Robinson through Netgalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

Mae has always known that there's a rift between her parents' families. She also knows that she wasn't particularly welcome as a mixed race child in her mother's family. While she has only met her father's family a handful of times, Mae has kept tabs on the family and is devastated when her paternal grandmother passes away. Though it's only a few months before her wedding, she goes to her father's family home in order to pay respects and see a family that she never really knew. Her determination to get to know the family without knowing all the issues that forced her family apart in the first place causes all sorts of drama, growth, and mending.

The husband to be was a total W, Mae's awakening was much needed. I was rooting for her by the rehearsal dinner. It was such a satisfying book to read and the characters had that true family quality that makes me want to keep checking in on them though the story's over.

#arc
#netgalley
#thetownsendfamilyrecipefordisaster

Narrator made this book for me. Highly recommend audiobook version.

Thank you to NetGalley aan the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Well-written novel that tackles such timely issues as racism, colorism, family secrets, and so much more. The narrator's voice was emotive and the delivery was even keeled.

This audiobook naarrator truly brought the story to life. It was a bit hard for me to get into the story but once I was able to the narrator immersed me extremely well. The production of this flowed nicely and I would gladly pick up another that is narrated by the same person.

A great audio book about family, new and old. It was a perfect 4th of July read for me because of the happy coincidence of book timeline and the recent holiday, but I would also recommend this book on a cold day with a large bowl of macaroni and cheese.

5 Stars

This book was amazing! It takes you a journey of a family coming together. They find their way back to each other over food and family gatherings. The story telling was simply the best. I loved every word of it. The narrator was so good!

Thank you to NetGalley and Spotify audiobooks for the opportunity to listen to this book.

Mae always dreamed of connecting with her estranged black family. She wanted to be part of the famous Townsend barbecue which her late father kept flying to every year. Her wedding's around the corner and she wants her paternal family to be part of the celebration because she always felt standing out with her white in-laws and white maternal relatives. so when she comes to know that her paternal grandma passed away, she decided to attend the funeral and try and make connections with the Townsends. One thing leads to another and now Mae has taken responsibility of hosting the 4th of July barbecue and perfecting her grandma's secret mac n cheese recipe.
This book is just a perfect mixture of everything just like the Mac n cheese recipe. There's an understanding groom. Conner is the sweetest, and by that I mean he is one of the best men I've ever read in books. He was so so so sweet, every girl deserves a Conner.
There are family dynamics. There's lots and lots of food, different kinds of cousins, some of them are not even kind. Wedding preps and things are always happening.
But more importantly its about Mae and her figuring out how to deal with her family and her in laws, how not to keep things inside and let them grow bigger than they actually are and talking and being honest, its about her standing up for herself and not take racism from her white relatives. I absolutely loved the way racism is discussed in this book, everyone should read this book just for that if not for the delicious recipes.
This is my second book by this author and its safe to say that she is now on my favorite authors list.

Shauna Robinson's books just work for me.

It might come down to how lovable her main characters are. Her focus on social connection? How readable the text is while still integrating some difficult topics? That there are consequences for actions?

I'll read whatever she wants to write. In THE TOWNSEND FAMILY RECIPE FOR DISASTER, I particularly enjoyed watching Mae juggle so much, and navigate familial ties (both new and old).

I also really liked narrator Chante McCormick - good delivery.

Special thanks to the author & @bookmarked for my advanced e-ARC‼️

This one had a lot of potential but fell a little short on what I expected. I was waiting for a disaster to happen like something major and while we do get some family drama and some secrets I still felt like something was missing.

Mae was getting married soon and after all these years of not connecting with her father’s side of the family she decides now is the time. Longing for a connection from those who look like her and she could relate to reconnecting with the Townsend’s would give Mae just that. But what Mae doesn’t realize is you can’t just walk back into someone’s life expecting open arms when you don’t know them and they really don’t know you.

When Mae showed up to her grandmothers funeral whom she barely knew I figured some of the family wouldn’t take it well. Mainly Sierra she didn’t let up off Mae nearly the entire book. Read it and you’ll eventually understand why. But I kept thinking wtf is this girl issue with Mae y’all family but don’t know each other enough to have all this animosity. Barbara was passive asf just inviting Mae to things without informing the rest of the family. They were acting funny and looking upside her head when all she wanted to do was get to know them. I don’t know what side of the family was worse her dad’s or her mother’s.

I kind of wished the author dove deeper into the whole spill of being biracial and how it is growing up having a white mom who can’t really relate to you. I liked how she touched on some of the microaggressions Mae dealt with from her mom’s family though.

Overall,the book was okay but it had a slow start. There were a few characters we could’ve done without like Madison. I thought the big reveal wasn’t as big of a surprise but it explained why the Townsend’s were acting funny with Mae. I also blame her father and mother for the division she had with her estranged family. But if you’re looking for a fun read with lots of family drama you might like this book.

Rating: 3.75/5⭐️

"The Townsend Family Recipe for Disaster" by Shauna Robinson is women's fiction, but specifically, it's a family drama story.

Mae has one black parent and one white parent. She is estranged from her black family in North Carolina. She is getting married soon to Connor, who is a white man. She travels to North Carolina for the funeral of her grandmother. She gets herself invited to the reception. She really wants to get to know this side of her family. She stays awhile, intent on hosting the Fourth of July family barbecue.

This story is well written. It kept my attention for a full listen all at once. The characters are quite well described. The plot isn't too elaborate. The audiobook is narrated by Chante McCormick, and she was easy to listen to and did all the voices well.

Characters - 5/5
Writing - 5/5
Plot - 3/5
Pacing - 4/5
Unputdownability - 5/5
Enjoyment - 4/5
Narration - 4/5
Cover - 5/5
Overall - 35/8 = 4 3/8 rounded to 4 stars

Thank you to Netgalley, Spotify Audiobooks, and Shauna Robinson for providing this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

This is a great, fun beach read, a story brimming with family drama, generational recipes, and evolving perspectives. It deftly navigates family secrets, the complexities of interracial relationships, and the journey to self-assertion.
If you're searching for women's fiction or romance interwoven with thoughtful racial themes, this book is a must-read! Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for audio ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Entertaining, engaging, and expertly narrated. A recommended purchase for collections where women's fiction and Robinson's other titles are popular.

Family recipes are so much more than just a list of ingredients - they are love, history and culture passed down through the generations. Much like a family tree, they are complex, filled with secrets and forever updating. The Townsend Family Recipe for Disaster follows a family in mourning as they search for the missing ingredient of a beloved recipe, and also in their lives.

🔐 Family Secrets
🧀 Mystery Mac & Cheese
⏳Countdown
💍 Wedding Bells
❤️‍🩹 Healing
🥘 Delicious Food
🫶 Family & Friendship

Shauna Robinson has whipped up another perfect recipe for a heartfelt novel! It’s full
of tough conversations, decades old secrets, love, loss and beautiful connections. 10/10 recommend!

Thank you so much Sourcebooks & Spotify Audiobooks for the gifted copies!

The Townsend Family Recipe for Disaster is a delicious concoction filled with secrets, drama, charming characters and mouth-watering dishes.

Shauna Robinson expertly directs our attention to the challenges of growing up biracial coupled with social micro-aggressions that often occurs within families through the eyes of her main character. Mae is a Townsend but she is far removed from her father’s side of the family and wants more than anything to reconnect with her relatives in North Carolina. She does this by crashing a family funeral and takes it upon herself to host an annual Townsend BBQ, traditionally ran by her late grandmother, while her wedding is right around the corner. How she manages to navigate this makes her remarkable and a lovable character. You don’t have to be a Townsend to fully grasps the chaos and complex family dynamics. The story asserts certain truths that I find far too relatable no matter where we come from.

Overall, a highly entertaining and heartwarming read! By the end of this book I was ready to whip up my own version of shrimp and grits with a side of mac & cheese. I go weak at the knees for the taste of Southern food!

Thank you to Spotify, Shauna Robinson, Chante McCormick and Storygram Tours for my gifted audio copy of this amazing book.

This was a very complex story that focused on serious themes around race and acceptance, with some humor thrown in. While I did enjoy this book, I wanted to like it more than I did. I found Mae’s character to be a bit annoying and I didn’t like the way she treated her fiancée.

Mae Townsend and her fiancé Conner are soon to wed at his parents' vineyard in an extravaganza that is not really her style. Mae is biracial - her father, who died fairly recently, was Black and her mother white. Once a year, her dad went to his hometown near Durham, NC for the family's Fourth of July picnic. Mae longs to go but he never took her. He did bring home tales of his mother's cooking. Other than his annual visit, Mae's impression is that her father's family wants nothing to do with her mother and her and her only known relatives are on her mother's side. When her father's mother dies, she impulsively goes to the funeral and is met with a rather cold, in some cases hostile reception. Slowly she tries to connect and she learns her grandmother's macaroni and cheese recipe is missing. Together with a female cousin who seems unusually wary of Mae, they begin trying to recreate the recipe.

The Townsend Family Recipe for Disaster is partly a coming of age story, a story of family secrets and a story of how a biracial child navigated the white side family, experiencing micro aggressions and hearing outright racist comments at times. It puts you inside Mae's conflict avoiding head as she starts to learn family secrets and reasons for the longstanding strains that kept her from her father's folks. Along the way, she makes a lot of macaroni, starts to recognize that she has put up with a lot of racism in her life and figures out why she tiptoes in many relationships including those with her future in-laws. (Conner is white).

All of this is couched with humor, fun family feels, and love. I have not idea what genre it is, but it feels both lightweight and not. It gives some education and insight into the Black experience interacting with white America, which I consider a serious topic, but illustrates it in an entertaining story with entertaining characters. Conner is so good he is not believable but that is necessary to let Mae's story develop.

I listened to the audio version. The narrator was generally good but has a weird way of making her voice go up that sometimes sounded "Valley Girl" Not a dealbreaker as many of her voices and most of the reading was fine. A strong B+.