Natalie Tan's Book of Luck and Fortune

Starred review from March 18, 2019
Lim serves up love, loss, heritage, and hints of the supernatural on a silver platter in this magical and mouthwatering debut. Seven years after aspiring chef Natalie Tan’s relationship with her agoraphobic mother ends in a blazing fight, Natalie’s mother dies, and Natalie returns to the apartment they shared in San Francisco’s Chinatown to plan her mother’s funeral. She finds the lively neighborhood where she grew up on the verge of economic collapse and her childhood home full of secrets. Among them is the boarded-up ground-level space they lived above—Natalie’s grandmother’s famed Chinese restaurant, now her inheritance. Everyone who looks at Natalie sees her mother and grandmother, often before they see Natalie for herself, and she feels haunted by her ancestors’ successes as much as by her own failures. When a mystic predicts Natalie’s attempts to revive the eatery will succeed only if she uses her grandmother’s recipes, Natalie undertakes the mammoth task of resurrecting both her lost culinary dreams and her family legacy, and the neighborhood she abandoned soon feels like the one place she’s meant to be. This eminently filmable tale of finding one’s own path while honoring one’s history is delicious and spellbinding.

April 1, 2019
Loss, homecoming, romance, recipes, and magic mingle in this debut novel. Natalie Tan knows her mother has died when a bird sings Ma-ma's favorite aria on her balcony, a glint of magical realism that then takes a while to resurface. Natalie returns to San Francisco's Chinatown to plan the funeral and grapple with her resentment toward the community she felt didn't help her when she was growing up with a mother who suffered from depression and agoraphobia. Ma-ma herself caused a seven-year rift with Natalie by opposing her wishes to become a chef. But the Chinatown to which Natalie returns is changed in many ways. Some for the worse: Business is down everywhere; the place is in disrepair. But some for the better: Natalie begins to bond with the neighbors who cared for Ma-ma in her absence. And she learns that her grandmother's restaurant--shuttered after her untimely death--is now hers to run. A local friend and seer tells her she must cook for and help her neighbors before she can successfully open the restaurant; here the magical elements return. Serving dishes chosen from her grandmother's recipe book for their promised effects, Natalie watches miracles unfold. In one instance, cracks form in the eaters' faces and are filled with gold, patching up their relationship. Of course a perfect suitor arrives, drawn by the scent of dumplings. And of course all Natalie's progress must fall apart in order for her to find her inner strength and put it back together. While the plot is timeworn, the book is distinguished by the love Lim shows the neighborhood, the characters, and the food.

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May 1, 2019

DEBUT After a seven-year absence, Natalie Tan is returning home to San Francisco's Chinatown following her mother's death. She and her mom were estranged because Natalie wanted to be a chef like her departed laolao (grandmother) and her ma-ma objected. In addition to grieving for her mother, Natalie is shocked by Chinatown's shabbiness and the shuttered houses, stores, and restaurants. After moving back to her old home, she learns she's inherited her grandmother's restaurant and treasured cookbook. As she gets reacquainted with her neighbors, she realizes how much they helped her agoraphobic ma-ma. Natalie begins to dream about reopening laolao's restaurant. However, a local fortune-teller tells her she must prepare three of her grandmother's recipes and serve them to troubled neighbors if she is to succeed. Recipes are supplemented with charming asides and comments from Natalie: "The symphony of textures sang on my tongue." A sweet romance with a man who follows the enticing aromas into her not-yet-open restaurant adds warmth. VERDICT Foodies and those who enjoy mother-daughter sagas will most appreciate.--Susan G. Baird, formerly with Oak Lawn P.L., IL

Copyright 2019 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 15, 2019
When chef Natalie's mother passes away, she hasn't been back to San Francisco in years, but the responsibility for settling her mother's affairs falls squarely on her shoulders. Natalie wants to thank the neighbors that checked in on her mother, who developed agoraphobia in her later years, and soon discovers that the neighborhood has changed since she's been away. Swaths of Chinatown have fallen into disrepair without a steady stream of foodies and tourists to drive the economy. When Natalie falls into an opportunity to bring some life back to the neighborhood, it promises to be the hardest and most rewarding risk she's ever taken. Infused with the flavors of Chinese cuisine and sprinkled with magic, Lim's debut will be a treat for fans of Mary Simses, Ashton Lee, and Nina George. Her prose is infectious, with a cinematic flair. Readers will fall in love with Natalie, her multifaceted supporting cast, and the sights, sounds, and smells of San Francisco. This bighearted and deeply-felt story stirs together mourning, nostalgia, and the freedom of new possibilities.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)