Thank you, Random House, for the gifted copy of The Kitchen Front 👩🏽‍🍳 {partner}

Genre: Historical Fiction
Trope: WWII
Format: 🎧
Pub Date: 2.23.2021
Star Rating: ☆☆☆☆

Summary:

“In a new World War II-set story from the bestselling author of The Chilbury Ladies’ Choir, four women compete for a spot hosting a wartime cookery program called The Kitchen Front – based on the actual BBC program of the same name – as well as a chance to better their lives.

Two years into WW2, Britain is feeling her losses; the Nazis have won battles, the Blitz has destroyed cities, and U-boats have cut off the supply of food. In an effort to help housewives with food rationing, a BBC radio program called The Kitchen Front is putting on a cooking contest–and the grand prize is a job as the program’s first-ever female co-host. For four very different women, winning the contest presents a crucial chance to change their lives.

For a young widow, it’s a chance to pay off her husband’s debts and keep a roof over her children’s heads. For a kitchen maid, it’s a chance to leave servitude and find freedom. For the lady of the manor, it’s a chance to escape her wealthy husband’s increasingly hostile behavior. And for a trained chef, it’s a chance to challenge the men at the top of her profession.”

Review:

“The most painful part of living is the fact that little by little, our family and friends leave us, and then, in the end, it is our turn. We all have to say goodbye to everything we’ve ever known.”

Here’s to checking another book on my backlist! And if you ask me why it took me so long to read The Kitchen Front…well 🤷🏽‍♀️ The story follows four women on their quest to win a wartime cooking show. It’s full of wartime rationing recipes, and they all sounded delicious (minus the whale meat and sardine rolls 🤢).

Once I figured out each character’s backstory, I was able to invest myself into their stories and enjoyed watching all of their friendships grow. In my opinion, the character who showed the most growth was Zelda.

The only complaint I have is that I did feel that some aspects of the story were rushed – which says a lot since the book comes in at just over 408 pages. In my opinion, this is often the case when you have more than one main character. What do you think?

There were several “easy” directions that the author could’ve taken The Kitchen Front to add more drama, but I applaud her for not doing so. Sometimes a book’s “easy” drama is not what makes it entertaining.

4️⃣ main characters
💪🏼 Lots of character growth
👩🏽‍🍳 Based on a real-life show during the war
📝 Recipes are included throughout the book

❌ – domestic abuse

I recommend reading The Kitchen Front if you enjoy books based on real-life events with added historical fiction flare.

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BOOK INFO
Format: 408 pages, hardback
Published: February 2021
ISBN 0593158806 (ISBN13: 9780593158807)