Barbara O’Neal is one of my favorite authors. There’s always so many layers to her stories. The family drama feels so real. The estrangement between Jewel & her father. The unconventional self-made family between Jewel & Michael. The reunion with Jewel’s whole family when she moves back home. All of the characters have a rich backstory & she paints the picture so clearly it’s like watching a movie. The recipes sprinkled throughout are an added bonus. It’s a beautiful book filled with beauty, sorrow, joy, & loss. It’s absolutely worth the read. 

Twenty Year Old Book Holds Up Well. First off, to be clear: This new (2024) edition is an updated and revised (with apparently *some* new content) version of a book originally released over 20 years ago. So some of you may have already own/ have read this, and I know there are at least some out there who "only read new releases". But for everyone *else*... this is still a damn good story, 20 years later.

In at least some ways, it is actually a callback to a different era, the era of RENT when friends dying of AIDS was still a major zeitgeist moment and a reality for many, particularly many in urban areas. (I say this because growing up in the exurbs of Atlanta in the era the book was originally published, this just wasn't a reality that was seen much in my area.) This plotline provides both some of the gravitas of the book - addiction being the primary other source - and the meetcute - the male lead is the brother of the friend dying of AIDS.

The romance side of the book is also well done, granted with a lot of lust and pent up sexual frustration as its start and with quite a bit of bedroom action (not always in the bedroom) throughout - once things get going there. Which, again, will be a turn off for some and a selling point for others.

Ultimately, this is a story of a lot of flawed individuals making their way through life as best they can in the situations they find themselves, and this is where the story particularly shines.

Very much recommended.