Maxine’s story is in turns funny, sad, light and serious. She is trying to deal with two devastating events in her life at the same time (no spoilers because they are evident from the start): her partner’s infidelity and the diagnosis of a brain tumour. Karina May explains that she is writing from experience about the latter which makes following this thread easy while also being intensely interesting.
Max is unaware of how brave she is, always handy with a one-liner, making light of a couple of potentially disastrous situations. She has loving parents, always there when she needs them, and a devoted best friend, Alice, who probably knows best what Max needs to get her through. To this end, Alice urges Max to open a Tinder account which, according to Alice, is … ‘the perfect solution. You don’t need to meet up with anyone [but] … some fun, flirty banter with a cute guy … would do wonders for you.’
Max does connect with just such a guy and for reasons explained in the story they begin cooking and exchanging photos of their creations. The recipes they use appear in the back of the book but I think I would have liked them to be interspersed throughout the story.
There are some delightful chapters following Max on a trip to France, adding colour to an already satisfying story. This is a contemporary romance ticking all the boxes: heartache, happiness, a serious issue treated authentically, and, above all, determination and hopefulness.
I read this book in one day, always eager to get back to it from whatever had called me away, which is probably my highest recommendation!
Published by Macmillan
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