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9th out of 270 books
—
120 voters
The Lost Recipe for Happiness
by
Barbara O'Neal (Goodreads Author)
In this sumptuous new novel, Barbara O’Neal offers readers a celebration of food, family, and love as a woman searches for the elusive ingredient we’re all hoping to find….
It’s the opportunity Elena Alvarez has been waiting for–the challenge of running her own kitchen in a world-class restaurant. Haunted by an accident of which she was the lone survivor, Elena knows better...more
It’s the opportunity Elena Alvarez has been waiting for–the challenge of running her own kitchen in a world-class restaurant. Haunted by an accident of which she was the lone survivor, Elena knows better...more
Paperback, 452 pages
Published
December 30th 2008
by Bantam Discovery
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I have to admit when I first skimmed the book description, I thought the plot would be: girl breaks up with current boy, relocates to new city for a fresh start, meets new boy, not sure if she should get involved with new boy, ends up getting involved with new boy and they begin new relationship. Ok, so maybe The Lost Recipe for Happiness can be summed up that way. But honestly, it’s so much more than that.
Elena Alvarez is a complicated character, but extremely likable. She’s haunted by her past...more
Elena Alvarez is a complicated character, but extremely likable. She’s haunted by her past...more
This isn't "Sex in the City" chic lit--this one actually has some seriousness and some heft. Elena, the lone survivor of a horrific car wreck that killed a number of her family and her boyfriend, is a chef now, living with her damaged body and her more damaged soul in the tough, male dominated world of high end cuisine. She's offered her first executive chef position with the challenge of renovating and recreating a restaurant in Aspen. I absolutely FELL into this book. I identified with the kit...more
I was extremely moved by this book. The characters were beautifully written; they were flawed, broken, hurt. I could really feel the pain they had in their souls because of past tragedies. There's despair and disillusionment, but not to a point where they had given up all hope – just nearly.
Although I'm not that familiar with this cuisine, I enjoyed the pages with all the recipes on Southwestern cooking. Normally I’m not too fond when there’s a lot of cooking and talk of food in a novel, but he...more
Although I'm not that familiar with this cuisine, I enjoyed the pages with all the recipes on Southwestern cooking. Normally I’m not too fond when there’s a lot of cooking and talk of food in a novel, but he...more
In this food lovers' novel, Elena Alvarez is an accomplished Santa Fe-trained chef with Mexican roots and a Southwestern flair to her elegant food. When she is offered the opportunity to become the executive chef at a new restaurant in Aspen, Colorado, owned by a Hollywood director who dabbles in the restaurant business, Elena jumps at the opportunity. But the process of opening the restaurant and developing the menu turns out to be more challenging than Elena expected. She must deal with Ivan,...more
Elena Alvarez is fired in the first pages of this engaging story. The same day she's hired as executive chef of a new restaurant in Aspen, Colorado. She's a brilliant chef (which is both why she was fired and hired) with the talent, warmth, and toughness to unite her new staff and make this new restaurant world-class. Although her career is successful she's never found a love that would endure. She might now. Elena also has ghosts that haunt her--a sister and boyfriend who were both killed in th...more
Finally a book I really liked and I finished! Elena is a woman who has suffered tragedy and survived. She is strong and focused on her career in a man's world of restaurant chefs. The story follows her as she has the opportunity (after being fired)to pursue her dream of being the head chef of her own restaurant.
I loved the character development, the fact that everyone was not perfect and how they each dealt with their own issues. I am not a cook, but the recipes woven through out the story make...more
I loved the character development, the fact that everyone was not perfect and how they each dealt with their own issues. I am not a cook, but the recipes woven through out the story make...more
3 likes · like · see review
Nov 30, 2009
Yy
added it
The Lost Recipe for Happiness, Monday, November 30th, 2009
By Ying Ying Ruan
“The lost recipe for happiness” is a book for food lovers, and also tells a great story in a wonderful manner. My response to this novel will be mostly positive, because I found it to be a unique narrative amongst the few books I had read so far. The author Barbara O’Neal has used her writing talents to combined different aspect of a woman life to present a story that is exotic and extremely interesting. Elena Alvarez’s...more
By Ying Ying Ruan
“The lost recipe for happiness” is a book for food lovers, and also tells a great story in a wonderful manner. My response to this novel will be mostly positive, because I found it to be a unique narrative amongst the few books I had read so far. The author Barbara O’Neal has used her writing talents to combined different aspect of a woman life to present a story that is exotic and extremely interesting. Elena Alvarez’s...more
I was really excited about this book - I liked the premise and the story about characters overcoming tragedy and choosing to take risks. I have also been reading some other non-fiction about food, so I enjoyed the fictional tie-in with all the recipes and narrative about creating new food in the restaurant.
I was, however, put off by a few things. First of all, if an author is going to write a character who speaks Spanish, get an editor for the Spanish!! 75% of what Elena said was completely inc...more
I was, however, put off by a few things. First of all, if an author is going to write a character who speaks Spanish, get an editor for the Spanish!! 75% of what Elena said was completely inc...more
After reading How to Bake a Perfect Life (also by Barbara O'Neal) I had to have more of her stories! Based in Colorado, and in the kitchen - her writing style is perfect for this amateur baker from the Southern Front Range! The Lost Recipe For Happiness sounded cute, a chef in Aspen? And the cover was gorgeous too, so I dove right in. And I couldn't put it down!
Barbara O'Neal's writing is breathtaking, vivid and passionate. As you are turning the pages, you can clearly see the kitchen in the Or...more
Barbara O'Neal's writing is breathtaking, vivid and passionate. As you are turning the pages, you can clearly see the kitchen in the Or...more
(This review also appears on Amazon.co.uk)
Delectable Mexican food and romance... a recipe for success! 4.5 stars
If ever there was a book I wanted to crawl into because of its sumptuous, seductive descriptions of food, then it was this one! Don't let the somewhat frothy chick-lit style cover fool you, because this isn't frivolous, not one little bit. What it is is the perfect mixture of romance, food and a little bit of a ghost story on the side. Believe me when I say that I devoured every single...more
Delectable Mexican food and romance... a recipe for success! 4.5 stars
If ever there was a book I wanted to crawl into because of its sumptuous, seductive descriptions of food, then it was this one! Don't let the somewhat frothy chick-lit style cover fool you, because this isn't frivolous, not one little bit. What it is is the perfect mixture of romance, food and a little bit of a ghost story on the side. Believe me when I say that I devoured every single...more
I loved this book. Barbara O'Neal writes with such lush description about her characters and setting, it's my kind of rich story. The amazing detail about food and the world of Elaina Alvarez, newly hired executive chef of brand new Aspen restaurant The Orange Bear made this a story I was truly sorry to see end. Watching the wounded and reticent Elaina start to open up with her handsome new boss Julian Lisswood and her skeptical kitchen staff, is heartwarming and satisfying. I highly recommend!
1 like · like · see review
First, I must admit that I disagree with the reviewers who have classified this as "chick lit." Chick lit, to me, usually features a 20-something protagonist coming into her own as she begins dealing with real life (serious relationships, career, etc.). It's also usually written in first person, and has an overall peppy feel to it. Clothes are frequently discussed. Girl-talk generally ensues.
This book features none of those things. The main character is a 38 year old woman struggling to overcome...more
This book features none of those things. The main character is a 38 year old woman struggling to overcome...more
A well written story, but to be honest, I'm not sure if I liked it or not.
I did finish it, so that's a plus, and I'm relatively sure this was the author's debut novel, and as such it's pretty impressive. There were parts I liked, some more then others, and parts I like didn't, again some more then others. But having finished it, literally just a few minutes ago, I'm not sure how I feel. I sorta kinda want more, but at the same time don't know if I'd read another book by the author (though I won...more
I did finish it, so that's a plus, and I'm relatively sure this was the author's debut novel, and as such it's pretty impressive. There were parts I liked, some more then others, and parts I like didn't, again some more then others. But having finished it, literally just a few minutes ago, I'm not sure how I feel. I sorta kinda want more, but at the same time don't know if I'd read another book by the author (though I won...more
This book whispers magic in sweet ghost companions and lingering pains from the past. Elena Alvarez is a gifted chef with a talent for cooking rooted in knowledge, training, and her New Mexico roots. Her body is in pain from a devastating accident in her teens and she is accompanied -- not haunted -- by the ghosts of her sister, cousin, and lover who died. With gentleness and passion, this story is told of how on the day she was fired for daring to draw attention from the executive chef and her...more
Jun 08, 2012
ɑƨħŵɑɡ
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
everyone esp. foodies
Recommended to ɑƨħŵɑɡ by:
goodread's listopia
actual rating: 4.5
"Sometimes a good book waits for the good time to be discovered"
That is a quote I found at the back of the book, which I totally agree with.
No one would really read this title "The Lost Recipe for Happiness" and think that's not cheesy chick-lit like so many other. I did. Frankly, my chick-lit meter is set so low that I thought this is no better than Kinsella's I've Got Your Number. But man was I wrong?
Reading the blurb, every cliche plot will come crashing through to your mind...more
"Sometimes a good book waits for the good time to be discovered"
That is a quote I found at the back of the book, which I totally agree with.
No one would really read this title "The Lost Recipe for Happiness" and think that's not cheesy chick-lit like so many other. I did. Frankly, my chick-lit meter is set so low that I thought this is no better than Kinsella's I've Got Your Number. But man was I wrong?
Reading the blurb, every cliche plot will come crashing through to your mind...more
This isn't "Sex in the City" chic lit--this one actually has some seriousness and some heft. Elena, the lone survivor of a horrific car wreck that killed a number of her family and her boyfriend, is a chef now, living with her damaged body and her more damaged soul in the tough, male dominated world of high end cuisine. She's offered her first executive chef position with the challenge of renovating and recreating a restaurant in Aspen. I absolutely FELL into this book. I identified with the kit...more
Chef Elena had a rough childhood – a father who died before her birth, a mother who abandoned her, and as a saving grace, a grandmother who loved her completely. Her childhood ended with a horrible car wreck, and Elena was the only passenger who survived, barely. So, of course, she carries a lot of emotional as well as physical damage, and certainly doesn't want anyone too close to her. Not even the ghosts of her past.
This is a sweet romance novel but not the type I would normally choose to read...more
This is a sweet romance novel but not the type I would normally choose to read...more
1 like · like · see review
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Lately, I've been reading lots of books about cooking and about dogs. This book has both--at least, it's a book about restaurants with a very appealing dog as a supporting character. Elena Alvarez is an up and coming chef with roots in Santa Fe who is working in Vancouver when the book starts. When her boss and former lover fires her for, basically, stealing his thunder in an article about their restaurant, she gets hired away by the owner of the restaurant, who wants her as executive chef at th...more
I am giving this book 3 stars, instead of 4 for 2 different reasons. First, the author used the F word way too much and it was always in such a crude manner that it was disgusting every time it was used. The second reason is that most of the book was clean and told a good story...until it hit about halfway through the book when the author decided she all of a sudden needed to add disgustingly descriptive sex scenes. All I can say is thank goodness I was listening to the audio book so I could fas...more
The Lost Recipe for Happiness was a feel-good, light read about a female chef, Elena, who is offered the job as the executive chef of a new restaurant being opened in Aspen by a famous movie director. The book follows Elena as she tries to reconcile the ghosts of a tragic past (literally) with her new leadership position in a predominantly male world. In order to succeed in work, life and love, Elena must learn to let go of her past.
I really enjoyed the characters in this one, and thought each o...more
I really enjoyed the characters in this one, and thought each o...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Elena Alvarez has been haunted by an accident which claimed the lives of her family members, unborn child, and boyfriend almost 20 years ago. Now trying to fulfill a dream of running her own restaurant she's trying to defy the odds. After being fired from her job by the head chef (and her boyfriend), she is offered a chance to start over by owner Julian Liswood, a famous director and restaurant owner in Colorado. Julian and Elena quickly develop a passionate relationship, but will Elena's old gh...more
I liked this book. It was a little more slow-paced than I like, and a little more "flowery" in the language, but overall, I enjoyed reading it. (If a section got a little hard to plow through, I just skipped ahead. I read for story...)
The heroine is a chef. She's in pretty bad physical shape, with a bad scar down her back, and she's just broken up with her chef boyfriend-boss. There's a tragedy in her past, but she doesn't like to talk about it. When the story opens, an article about her in the...more
The heroine is a chef. She's in pretty bad physical shape, with a bad scar down her back, and she's just broken up with her chef boyfriend-boss. There's a tragedy in her past, but she doesn't like to talk about it. When the story opens, an article about her in the...more
Jun 22, 2011
Jennifer
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Food lit lovers, fans of Sarah Addison Allen
Recommended to Jennifer by:
Sarah Addison Allen
I haven't read a good Food Lit book in a while, except The Peach Keeper by Sarah Addison Allen (who I revere), and this definitely fit the bill. The Lost Recipe for Happiness is the perfect combination of food, romance, and magical realism.
I loved the characters Barbara O'Neal created. They're real and vibrant. It was fabulous that Elena's decisions were her own and she doesn't fall into archetypal caveats. The character of Julian Liswood doesn't fall into the stereotypical Hollywood director ca...more
I loved the characters Barbara O'Neal created. They're real and vibrant. It was fabulous that Elena's decisions were her own and she doesn't fall into archetypal caveats. The character of Julian Liswood doesn't fall into the stereotypical Hollywood director ca...more
This is an airport book, good for nothing more than a long flight. Elena wants to be executive chef of a really cool restaurant and have everybody think she's The Shit. But she is Haunted. By the ghosts of her sister and her Soul Mate. Any author that can use the words "soul mate" over and over again, without a single soupcon of irony, is not an author anyone wants to read anywhere but on a very boring flight.
And also, there is a LOT of sex in this book (spoiler alert: she even gets all sexy wit...more
And also, there is a LOT of sex in this book (spoiler alert: she even gets all sexy wit...more
This was one of the books I won from Reading Group Choices. It was also perfect for reading in airports and on planes since it was a rather light chick lit read. That doesn't mean it wasn't enjoyable. The main character, Elena, was horribly injured in an auto accident that killed everyone else in the car. Twenty years later she is a chef in an upscale restaurant in Aspen. She must learn to let go of the past in order to seize the opportunities that are presented to her in the present. Between th...more
Mar 24, 2011
Catherine Richmond
added it
Once you read this book, you'll never look at a restaurant the same way again.
Most of us go out to eat to relax, reward ourselves for surviving a hard week, have a respite from the drudgery of cooking. While we're enjoying the food, oh, the drama in the kitchen. Barbara O'Neal tells the story of Elena Alvarez who accepts her first executive chef position in Aspen for Julian Liswood, Hollywood director and restaurant owner. As the sole survivor of a automobile accident twenty years ago, Elena str...more
Most of us go out to eat to relax, reward ourselves for surviving a hard week, have a respite from the drudgery of cooking. While we're enjoying the food, oh, the drama in the kitchen. Barbara O'Neal tells the story of Elena Alvarez who accepts her first executive chef position in Aspen for Julian Liswood, Hollywood director and restaurant owner. As the sole survivor of a automobile accident twenty years ago, Elena str...more
I would give this book a BILLION stars if I could, and it is easily on my list of Top 5 Books I'd Want if Stranded of a Desert Island. What an amazing, poignant, sensual, wonderful book! From the minute I picked it up, I was hooked- the characters are fabulous and perfectly flawed, the plot is well-thought-out and engaging, and the book moves incredibly well.
I had empathy for Elena right from the beginning, but she's anything but a poor woe-is-me character. I loved her sense of strength, loved...more
I had empathy for Elena right from the beginning, but she's anything but a poor woe-is-me character. I loved her sense of strength, loved...more
another title in my hunt for good foodie fiction. This one had some excellent food descriptions, plus the excitement of watching a chef do a major makeover on a struggling restaurant (i LOVE "makeover" storylines like this!). I laughed, I cried, but I should warn you that this book also has a number of rather graphic sex scenes. Including the words "unit," "member," and "organ." DON'T listen to this one in the car with your parents or grandparents or your kids who are old enough to understand (y...more
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Barbara Samuel (also known as Barbara O’Neal) is the bestselling author of more than 40 books, and has won Romance Writers of America’s RITA award an astounding six times. Her books have been published around the world, including France, Germany, Italy, and Australia/New Zealand, among others. One of her recent women’s fiction titles, The Lost Recipe for Happiness (written as Barbara O’Neal) went...more
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Feb 27, 2013 08:18am