The Coincidence of Coconut Cake

Arrived in great condition.

The Coincidence of Coconut cake This is a book about a chef and a food reviewer. He’d provided a bad review of her restaurant which ruined it. When they meet they are initially unaware of the connection between them.She’d discovered her fiancé with his intern and now someone is destroying her French restaurant Luella’s.Al, the food critic meets her on the day the review comes out, drowning her sorrows. He encourages her to take him sightseeing. Those scenes are utterly charming and make you want to head out there and experience the sights and tastes of Milwaukee.As their relationship builds- who is going to discover their unfortunate connection first and what will that discovery do to them.A really lovely book.With many thanks to Net Galley for a copy of the book to review.

*I received a copy of this book through NetGalley in return for an honest review*This is probably the first book I've ever read that was located in Milwaukee, and to be honest this is a place I would be hard pressed to find on a map. However, after reading this book all about the romance between Lou and Al in which Milwaukee is like a third character filled with delicious foods, I might actually want to go and visit! Anyway, back to the story. Lou and Al literally bump into each other on the worst day of Lou's life, which Al accidentally manages to make infinitely worse later in that same day. Luckily they are both completely unaware of this and manage to carry on a romance with each other and the city of Milwaukee for a good long while before things inevitably blow up in spectacular fashion.The characters in this book and beautifully drawn with even the background characters being well rounded. In fact some of my favourite people are the background characters like John the worlds scruffiest fashion editor, or the delightful German couple who brought me to tears. As I previously said I even like the character of Milwaukee and her citizens and especially the food everyone seems to be permanently sampling.And so on to the food, of which there is a lot! There is even a recipe for the famed coconut cake and icing in the back of the book for those who facing dabbling in a little baking. There are so many luscious foods mentioned in this book that you will feel hungry guaranteed. My personal favourite is the fried cheese curds which I feel I really have to try and possibly go on a quest with Lou to find the best in the city!Overall this book really is a cosy romance with added food, which is right up my street. I enjoyed this book in small sampler style mouthfuls to eke out the pleasure, but feel free to gorge yourself!

Disclosure: I received an e-copy of ‘The Coincidence of Coconut Cake‘* for review purposes, but the opinions in this post are my own and unbiased.‘The Coincidence of Coconut Cake’ by Amy E. Reichert is a light romantic comedy set in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Lou and Al’s paths cross on what turns out to be the worst day of her life, as she takes a coconut cake to her fiance’s apartment for his birthday. She first catches her fiance with a half-naked intern and then, unknown to her, Milwaukee’s harshest food critic visited her restaurant when she is upset and distracted. The resulting review ruins her restaurant’s reputation.Of course the restaurant critic is Al but when they bump into each other again in a bar, neither of them realises who the other is. Al challenges Lou to show him the best places to eat in Milwaukee, and their relationship develops without either of them knowing the true identity of the other.This book was billed as ‘You’ve got Mail’ meets ‘How to Eat a Cupcake’. Now, I absolutely love ‘You’ve Got Mail’, so when I was looking for books to take on holiday this summer, I was definitely drawn to ‘The Coincidence of Coconut Cake’. I was hoping for a light romantic story with a happy ending, and this book didn’t disappoint at all. The plot develops pretty much as I expected and the resolution was satisfying, with a little twist that I definitely did not expect.I also didn’t expect was that the city would play such a starring role in the novel. I have to admit that Milwaukee has never been a city that has been high on my travel wish list. Actually, I don’t think I’d ever considered it as a travel location. But after reading Amy E. Reichert’s descriptions of the fabulous food that Lou and Al eat, I definitely want to go there. I felt like I needed to re-read the book with a notepad at hand, to take note of all the food recommendations!Food and romantic comedy usually makes for an enjoyable novel, and I enjoyed ‘The Coincidence of Coconut Cake’ very much. This is Amy E. Reichert’s first novel, and I think it was a fine debut. I hope to read more from her in the future, and I also hope to visit Milwaukee!A deliciously light and fun romantic novel with mouthwatering food descriptions thrown in as well – 8.5/10