The Lost Art of Mixing

The Lost Art of Mixing, by Erica Bauermeister, centers around a restaurant owner and the people who surround her. 

Lillian, the owner herself, is in a new relationship with widower Tom, and encounters an unexpected wrinkle in her otherwise steady life.  Al, her accountant, is struggling with his marriage to Louise, who (unbeknownst to Al) harbors anger and suspicion.  Chloe, Lillian's sous chef, lives with Isabelle, who is struggling with Alzheimer's.  Chloe finds herself drawn to Finnegan, the tall dishwasher at the restaurant.

I read the first book in this series, The School of Essential Ingredients, with my book club in 2013, and we all enjoyed it.  According to Goodreads, we all gave it three or four stars.  So I was looking forward to the continuation of many of the stories introduced in The School of Essential Ingredients.

It would be too harsh to say I was disappointed in The Lost Art of Mixing.  I did enjoy the book, just not as much as the first.  The interaction of the characters and their individual stories was interesting, and I am always attracted to the next book in a series.  I'd still give it three stars and recommend it to anyone who read The School of Essential Ingredients.

Books about cooking or restaurants always make me think about taking a cooking class.  This book, as well as it's predecessor, did the same.  And then I always think again and realize that a cooking class is not for me.  I have no patience in the kitchen.  Sometimes just the thought of making a sandwich exhausts me.  I'm better than I used to be.  I can, in the right mood, throw together a decent meal (provided I have a recipe, of course).  It's just that the right mood doesn't strike me very often. Maybe one of these days I actually will take a cooking class.  But tonight it will be pasta and a jar of Trader Joe's marinara.