Beth F
Sandy
Jennifer
Michelle
Staci
In The Kitchen by Monica Ali
Gabriel Lightfoot’s life HAD been going well: executive chef of a kitchen, a lovely girlfriend, and two men ready to become his partners and help him open his very own kitchen. Then Yuri, the kitchen’s Ukranian porter, is found dead and everything begins to go downhill. Gabe finds out that his father is dying, becomes infatuated with the unpleasant Lena who worked at the restaurant until Yuri’s death, and begins acting erraticly – jeopordizing his relationships with both his girlfriend and his business partners.
There were some very interesting elements to this story around the issues of immigration, exploitation, culture, and racism/zenophobia. That being said, I really didn’t enjoy this book at all. If it hadn’t been a review copy I probably would not have finished it. It wasn’t that it was a bad book, there were no problems with the writing, I simply didn’t like any of the characters or really care about what was happening to them. Judging by the other reviews on LibraryThing, it isn’t just me, either.
If you’re interested in Monica Ali, I’d try “Brick Lane” instead, I’ve heard very good things about that one.
Buy this book from:
Powells.
A local independent bookstore via Indiebound.
Amazon.
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I wasn’t a fan of Brick Lane. It was OK, but didn’t stand out in any way for me. I remember seeing a TV adaptation for it though and thought that was really good.
I’m sad to see that In the Kitchen isn’t any better, but thanks for the honest review.
.-= Jackie (Farm Lane Books)´s last blog ..The House at Riverton – Kate Morton =-.
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Anything to do with cooking is a draw for me, so I too appreciate the honest review. Life is too short, you know?
.-= Sandy´s last blog ..Wordless Wednesday – Gdansk #3 =-.
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I saw this on LibraryThing and I was curious about it. Brick Lane has been sitting on my shelf to read for about a year, and better things just keep getting ahead of it in line. The more I read about it and the author, the less motivated I am to read it, though.
.-= Kari @ Five Borough Book Review´s last blog ..Review: Rendered perfection =-.
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I am glad you told me this. it is hard to like a book if you don’t feel anything for the characters.
.-= veens´s last blog ..Cover Attractions~~ =-.
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I have the darnedest time finishing books that have characters I don’t like. Especially if I can’t find one character in the whole book I don’t like. Kudos to you for sticking it out!
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Thanks for the review — I would have been drawn to it by the title alone. I think I’ll just pass on it.
.-= Beth F´s last blog ..Thursday Teas (July 23): Delectable Mountains by Earlene Fowler =-.
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looks like Monica Ali has fallen into the sophomore book problem.
.-= J.T. Oldfield´s last blog ..Lit Tripping =-.
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Well, darn the title and the premise sounded good. Too bad it’s a stinker.
.-= Kathy´s last blog ..Review: The Unit =-.
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