Spiced: A Pastry Chef's True Stories by Dalia Jurgensen, book review

There are two things I really liked about Spiced, (2009) a book about becoming a chef and working in restaurant kitchens.

First, the inside info of the goings-on in the off-limits areas of restaurants - the good, the bad, and the funny. And second, the mouth watering descriptions of foods, their preparation, and the unusual pastries and desserts concocted by pastry chefs in three star restaurants.

It was interesting to learn that many chefs work long hours for just average wages, without health insurance, and hit the burn out point often, having to change jobs or rotate the types of food prep they do.

Dalia Jurgensen left her routine job in publishing to attend pastry school and work in a succession of restaurants, preparing appetizers, pastries, main dishes, and finally pastries again. She doesn't have much time to socialize; her off hours are often spent with her coworkers after work, winding down in bars at midnight after the restaurant is closed. She has surprising and not-so-surprising romantic dalliances with various chefs.

What I missed in the book, however, was a stronger story thread that would link up her restaurant and chef experiences and show a progression to the place where she is now. We know that later in her career, she was reviewed by food critics from top newspapers, but this was not an achievement she dwelt on or showed as a high point or culmination of her hard work under various chefs. At least, that was not a strong impression.

The book thus seems to be a chronological account of her career without that main theme to carry it all the way through. Even the ending seems to be "more of the same."

Her unusual desserts in the pastry kitchen, however, sound finger-licking good! Some simpler recipes and a taste of what her book is about can be found at her website, My Spiced Life.

Book provided by the publisher, Putnam Adult, for my objective review.

Awards, Awards

Let's Be Friends Award
Yet another award, this one from Britt of A Book Habitue. Thanks, Britt.

"Blogs that received the Let’s Be Friends Award are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers. Deliver this award to eight bloggers."

Kudos to

Jenny Julian at Sunny Sweet Pea
PopInFresh at Popin's Lair
Nely at All About(n)
Mari at MariReads
Sally906 at Books and Musings from Downunder
JLS Hall at Joy's Blog
Lori at Lori's Book Den
Lisa at Books Ahoy

Check out these blogs!

More Awards

The Premio Dardos Award

This award is from Scattie of In My Head. Very neat! Thanks, Scattie!

"This award acknowledges the values that every blogger shows in his or her effort to transmit cultural, ethical, literary, and personal values every day.

The rules to follow are:
1) Accept the award, post it on your blog together with the name of the person who has granted the award and his or her blog link. 2) Pass the award to 15 other blogs that are worthy of this acknowledgment. Remember to contact the bloggers to let them know they have been chosen for this award."

I've passed the award on to
Ruby at The Ruby Canary
Mark David at Absorbed In Words
Fleur at Fleur Fisher Reads
Karen at Euro Crime

Congratulations!

Awards

Lemonade Stand Award

Many thanks to Stacy of Stacy's Bookblog for this award! It's much appreciated.

"Here are the rules:1) Put the Lemonade Award logo on your blog or post. 2) Nominate at least 10 blogs that show great attitude or gratitude. 3) Link to your nominees within your post. 4) Let the nominees know that they have received this award by commenting on their blog.5) Share the love and link to the person from whom you received your award."

I'm passing on the award to:
Barb at Exploring Nature
Kay at Kay's Book Shelf
Cathy at Booklady
Caspette at The Narrative Causality

Check out these cool blogs!

Greek Island mystery novels

A list of mysteries set in the Greek islands has been compiled by book blogger Euro Crime.
Also included are
The Doctor of Thessaly by Anne Zouroudi and
Basic Shareholder by Petros Makaris. The above are to be printed/reprinted this year.

See also my reviews of other Greek mystery novels at
More Greek Island Mystery Novels, including The Black Monastery >>
Let me know if anyone has suggestions for other books not included here!


The Tomb of Zeus by Barbara Cleverly is an archaeology mystery published in 2007.

Those who love Greece, the Greek Isles, and Greek mythology will have little problem with the archaeological setting - the island of Crete in the late 1920s.

Laetitia Talbot, a student from Cambridge, is sent by her professor to work on the island with British archaeologist Theodore Russell. Russell has invited her to stay with him and his wife and two other students at his Villa Europa.

When she arrives, Laetitia is disturbed by an air of menace at the villa. When one of the occupants dies, Laetitia's discomfort definitely increases. Was the death a murder or a suicide? She is determined to find out, even if she has to unearth all the secrets surrounding the villa.

Interestingly, the characters in the story parallel the characters in Greek mythology. Theseus of Greek myth arrives in Crete to find and slay the half-man, half-bull Minotaur hidden in a labyrinth underground. Theodore Russell is in Crete at a much later date to unearth ancient Greek statues and temples in archaeological digs. Theodore's complicated family and love life also parallels that of Theseus.

Laetitia is aware of this as she searches for clues to solve the murder. She is helped by a former lover, William Gunning, who is working with her in Crete. Together they uncover an ancient tomb at their work site that only creates a second mystery. Have they found the long-sought tomb of the Greek god, Zeus?

A very enjoyable book that deals with a murder mystery and an archaeological mystery. The plot revolves around Cretan culture, history, mythology, and religion, and also around Laetita's attempts to solve a present day murder in a very exotic locale.

More on antiquities on Crete.


Judith Gould's 2008 novel, Greek Winds of Fury, described as romantic suspense, is a mystery novel without thriller elements of extreme violence, or graphic descriptions of blood and guts, etc. Armchair travelers as well as cozy readers will enjoy this trip into Greece and the island of Samos.

The protagonist Miranda, part Greek and an employee of a well known antiquities establishment in New York City, is delighted to be invited by a former professor to an archaeological dig on Samos during the summer. The crew is trying to find a lost statue of the goddess Hera, created in the th century B.C.

Miranda takes a cruise ship to the island and arrives in Samos to discover dangerous mysteries and a new love interest. She discovers that the ship has been using the identities of real passengers to create false passports and boarding passes for illegal immigrants, who are hustled from a port in Turkey to European ports.

Not only that, but there seems to be smuggling of antiquities from the Samos site to art stores and dealers around the world. Some of the missing pieces Miranda recognizes as part of the shipments to her own place of work in NYC. Crew members of the site on Samos have been disappearing, moreover, and one body is washed ashore after Miranda arrives there. "Big Mike" from the U.S. helps Miranda discover the truth, even at the cost of much danger to themselves.

Gould's detailed and colorful descriptions of place, setting, and people make this book a nice armchair travel piece. The plot will also appeal to mystery lovers and aficionados of Greek culture and antiquity. I confess though that parts of the novel dragged, especially toward the end. Some of the extended dialogue and a gratuitous sex scene that does not clarify or advance the plot could have been cut. I got impatient at the end for the denouement, so to speak, but overall the novel was enjoyable, with a good plot, deft prose, and a good substitute for the real thing - a mystery cruise on the Aegean

Melody: A Novel, review

Stacy-Deanne, author of Everlasting and Divas of the New Millennium, has written a new book, Melody: A Novel.

From the Product Description:
"Two stories of deadly passion intertwine in this gripping mystery by bestselling author Stacy-Deanne, who weaves a thrilling tale of love and death. Melody Cruz is certain her sister's new boyfriend, the wealthy, charming, and handsome Keith Taylor, has a dark past that he will do anything to hide. Wanting to protect her sister, Melody works to uncover Keith's secrets, not realizing that in doing so, she is sacrificing her own safety -- because Keith will go to any lengths to keep himself in control."

The novel introduces Brianna Morris and Steven Kemp as detectives investigating recent assaults in the city. Melody tries to protect her sister and her best friend from being victims of crime. There are surprising twists to the plot as the investigation moves in unexpected directions. The book is definitely an "adults only" novel.

Stacy-Deanne, a member of the Author's Guild, is also a model, landscape photographer, and editor. She can be reached at stacydeanne1@aol.com

Book provided by the author, for my objective review.

Book Review: Undress Me In the Temple of Heaven

Undress Me In the Temple of Heaven

"Truth is stranger than fiction" - I've often heard that phrase.

And I found it applies to the travel memoir, Undress Me in the Temple of Heaven, the story told by Susan Jane Gilman of her trip to China with a university friend Claire, some 23 years after it happened. Trying to figure out what caused the series of events in the book - the two 21-year old girls, or China itself - is not quite easy. Maybe it was the interaction of the two that was the key, or maybe it was that China in the mid-1980s was just a catalyst that would change these two girls in such different and dramatic ways.

The author has no easy answers herself. As it was, it took her over 20 years to write about it. Changing the name and identity of her travel companion, Claire, made it easier, too.

The book is not all serious - there are amusing parts, and the travel sections on Hong Kong, Shanghai, Dailin, Beijin, Guilin, and other areas of China are informative. I had the impression that the author must have a prodigious and photographic memory. The small details of the inconveniences of travel, the events, people, environment, and the dialogue are all set down vividly as if the story happened just recently.

Somehow it seems as if only these two travelers, among the backpackers and other tourists they met, had such uncomfortable experiences. Chalk it up to youth or culture shock, it was obvious these bright young Ivy League graduates were not prepared to meet the privations of the Third World of the 1980s.The book ends with loose ends, threads that needed to be tied up, and problems that would have been better resolved. But in the real world, I guess it doesn't always happen that way.

I recommend the book for anyone who would like to travel to distant, foreign parts but who is unsure about how he or she could or would react to dramatic environmental and cultural differences. It makes a good learning lesson.

Book provided by the publisher, for my objective review.