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    The Coincidence of Coconut Cake
    The Coincidence of Coconut Cake
    The Coincidence of Coconut Cake
    Audiobook7 hours

    The Coincidence of Coconut Cake

    Written by Amy E. Reichert

    Narrated by C. S. E. Cooney

    4/5

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    About this audiobook

    In downtown Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Lou works tirelessly to build her beloved yet struggling French restaurant, Luella's, into a success. She cheerfully balances her demanding business and even more demanding fiance . . . until the morning she discovers him in the buff-with an intern.

    Witty yet gruff British transplant Al is keeping himself employed and entertained by writing scathing reviews of local restaurants in the Milwaukee newspaper under a pseudonym. When an anonymous tip sends him to Luella's, little does he know that he's arrived on the worst day of the chef's life. The review practically writes itself: underdone fish, scorched sauce, distracted service-he unleashes his worst.

    The day that Al's mean-spirited review of Luella's runs, Lou and Al cross paths in a pub. As they chat, Al playfully challenges Lou to show him the best of Milwaukee, and she's game-but only if they never discuss work, which Al readily agrees to. As they explore the city's local delicacies and their mutual attraction, Lou's restaurant faces closure, while Al's column gains popularity. It's only a matter of time before the two fall in love . . . but when the truth comes out, can Lou overlook the past to chase her future?
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherTantor Media, Inc
    Release dateJul 21, 2015
    ISBN9781494582869
    Author

    Amy E. Reichert

    Amy E. Reichert, author of The Coincidence of Coconut Cake, Luck, Love & Lemon Pie, The Simplicity of Cider, and The Optimist's Guide to Letting Go, loves to write stories that end well with characters you’d invite to dinner. A wife, mom, amateur chef, Fix-It Mistress, and cider enthusiast, she earned her MA in English Literature and serves on her local library’s board of directors.

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    Reviews for The Coincidence of Coconut Cake

    4/5

    49 ratings14 reviews

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    • 4/5
      It's a bit overused, but I found this book to be delightful. It's a good romance/chick lit story, but there is something a bit more substantial going on as well. Maybe it's the mix of foods and her delicious descriptions, or perhaps it's the setting of the quintessential mid-western town of Milwaukee. The author obviously knows quite a bit about each and to her credit, does a great job of promoting both. I enjoyed the characters and just had fun reading.I recommend this title to foodie fans and readers who love real life romance titles. I thank the publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this title. In all honesty, I ran out of the allotted time to finish after getting about a third of the way into the book, and I just had to purchase this title-I was enjoying it that much. Oh, and I hope someday to try the coconut cake recipe in the back of the book. Just thinking about it makes my mouth water!

      1 person found this helpful

    • 4/5
      Let's be clear- this is not going to set the literati on their ears with its groundbreaking approach to literature. However, for a fun piece of reading, this is a great choice. Lou is a chef with her own restaurant which is unkindly reviewed by the best food critic in Milwaukee on the same day as she breaks up with her fiancee. What follows is a woman's love affair with food, with her home town, and, yes, with a new man in her life.
    • 4/5
      Lou owns a small French restaurant named Luella’s in the heart of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She’s engaged to be married, however, she tries to surprise him with a coconut cake for his birthday only to find a woman in his apartment. In lingerie. She doesn’t take the news well and the restaurant suffers from it that night, which also happens to be the night the local food critic visits Luella’s.Her little restaurant begins a downward spiral after his scathing review but things are starting to look up when she meets someone new. Al is from the UK and has yet to be shown around Milwaukee so Lou agrees to be his guide. She takes him to see everything from the best restaurants to museums and festivals. They begin to fall for each other during their non-dates realizing just how much they have in common, but neither of them know that Al was the food critic that caused Lou to lose her restaurant.The Coincidence of Coconut Cake is a delightful, lighthearted romance story that is also a love story to delicious foods and the city of Milwaukee. The food descriptions had me re-declaring my love for food.‘He started with the much hailed cheese curds, hot and oozing a little of the white cheddar; the outside was crispy and salty when he bit. A string of cheese dangled from his mouth to his hand as he pulled the cheese from his lips.’ And also making a raid on my kitchen. And maybe planning a trip to Milwaukee to see all these wonderful sounding sights for myself.‘Ingredients in baking were mixed in a specific way to create a specific result; a lot like relationships. If people didn’t blend well together, you’d never get the outcome you wanted.’ The requisite drama in this one was palpable and while it all came to a predictable resolution this was still a completely satisfying story. There’s something about the components of a basic foodie fiction book that I can’t help but fall in love with. Delicious food descriptions quirky characters adorable romances = me, head over heels. And The Coincidence of Coconut Cake has all the right ingredients.P.S. There’s even a delicious coconut cake recipe in the back pages that I can’t wait to try myself.
    • 4/5
      A love story for foodies. What fun. Chefs and food critics! Lou, living in Milwaukee, has a small but growing restaurant. When the newspaper food critic visits her place, he finds the restaurant in turmoil. Lou, the chef, is upset over finding her fiancé with another woman. Instead of returning to do a follow up review, Al, the critic, fires off a terrible review that signals the beginning of the end for Lou's restaurant. But, then Lou meets Al, and neither one knows what the other does for a living. She agrees to show this British newcomer to Milwaukee, the city including food and beverages. Needless to say they fall in love. A love complicated by what they don't know about each other.Great food descriptions and great travel tips to see Milwaukee. The recipe for the coconut cake is included as is the reader's guide for book clubs. Read as a NetGalley ARC.
    • 3/5
      Approximate Lexile: 550There’s really nothing new in this book. They meet cute, lots of coincidences and near-misses happen, the truth is discovered, there is anger, angst, and reconciliation. (I don’t think I’m giving anything away by saying that Lou and Al reconcile. We all know how this genre is supposed to function. The fun is in finding out how they get there.)With all that said, though, I enjoyed this book. I raced through it in a day. It would make a great big-screen rom com, the type of thing Meg Ryan used to star in. (What’s she up to lately, anyway?)There are two REAL love stories in this book: Milwaukie and food. The author obviously loves both of these deeply. Her descriptions of the various places and events that Lou shows to Al, and the foods they eat there, are detailed and full of love. They make me want to visit those places.The characters are well-drawn, particularly the supporting cast. The ex-fiance, Devlin, is probably the most stock character. The surprise isn’t that Lou won’t take him back; the surprise is that they were ever together at all.This is a fun, lightweight read for those times when you don’t want to think too hard and definitely need a happy ending. Perfect accompaniment to a pint of Ben & Jerry’s. (You all know what I’m talking about.)Possible Objectionable Material: Scantily clad people. Grownups engaging in consensual sex—offscreen, but not without some sensuality on the page first. Mild cursing. As I said—perfect RomCom, probably rated PG.Who Would Like this Book: Again, romantic comedy! If you like those, this is the book for you. Nothing high school kids can’t handle. A low Lexile level means even struggling readers will probably do fine.Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC e-book!
    • 5/5
      I LOVE coconut! That drew me to this book. My mom makes an amazing coconut cake and as I read I kept tasting it in my mouth. And that flavor made me especially enjoy this book.This is a love story times three. There is the love story between chef Lou and Al the food critique. Then there is another love story between each of these main characters and food. Finally, there is the love story written to the city of Milwaukee, introducing us to the wonders of a nearby place.I really enjoyed this book. Yes, I sort of guessed the direction it would take early on. But, that didn't really dim my enjoyment! Instead, it made it more relaxing and comfortable - drawing me in like a wonderful soup or a creamy pastry. Although I knew what to expect - there were some great surprises. Like the elderly couple demonstrating what a second chance looks like, or the fashion writer who hides behind his homeless man looks or the calloused, jaded food critique who still had his grandmothers cast iron skilled hidden in his shelves.More than anything this book made me want to cook - to really cook and enjoy the process as much as the product. The description of the Thanksgiving meal really demonstrated that for me!And I will admit - I was completely teared up at the end!! Another great read!!
    • 5/5
      The Coincidence of Coconut Cake by Amy E. Reichert is a 2015 Gallery Books publication. I was provided a copy of this as a member of Simon & Schuster's official XOXO After Dark Street team. These types of stories are just plain good for the soul. Every lady at some time or another needs to curl up with a good chick lit novel and lose herself in great characters and light romance. Here, we meet Elizabeth, “Lou” Johnson, a chef, who is running a struggling French restaurant, lovingly named after her favorite grandmother. She's also engaged to an ambitious, career driven, attorney who has it all set in his mind that Lou will give up her dreams of being a successful chef and restaurant owner once they are married. Al, who is originally from Britain, but staying in Milwaukee, is a food critic writing for the local newspaper under a pseudonym. So far, Al's column is creating a big buzz due his scathing reviews, which so far has caused more than one establishment to close it's doors. ( Note: not all reviewers and critics are evil, mean, and nasty- *Grin*) Then he gets a tip about Luella's and decides to check it out. Well, as it so happens he chose the worst day imaginable for Lou. It goes without saying his review was perhaps his most damning one to date. But, fate has a wry sense of humor sometimes....Lou and Al meet, hit it off, and begin falling in love, as Lou takes Al on a fabulous tour of Milwaukee. Little does she know that Al is the infamous critic who took her restaurant down, and Al was equally unaware that Lou was the owner of Louella's.... at least at first. This theme is not exactly original, and will of course put one in mind of “You've got Mail” a little bit, and it's written with the tried and true romantic comedy/ Chick lit formula without a lot of tweaking. However, the main characters are just so fabulous! The food, and the city of Milwaukee are like secondary characters. Who knew how interesting Milwaukee could be? This book will have you thinking about planning a vacation around the area, maybe with this book as a quasi guide. The real secondary characters are simply outstanding! John, Harley, Gertrude, and Otto round out the cast giving the story an added touch of sentimentality and humor, and occasionally they steal the show. Second chances is the main theme of the book, with Lou and Al both getting a “do over.” We all need a second chance in life at some time and while Lou definitely deserved to get her footing back, Al's chance comes from Lou's ability to forgive and forget, giving them both a new lease on life, and what could mean more to someone than that?A lump might grow in your throat a time or two, but by the time you turn the last page you will have a full heart and a smile on your face. Oh... and that coconut cake? Well, there is a scrumptious recipe included in the back of the book you simply must try! YUM! 4.5 stars
    • 3/5
      This was a fun little read. It’s been compared to that classic Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks movie, You’ve Got Mail and I can absolutely see why. A chef and restaurateur falls in love with the food critic that skewered her restaurant but neither realizes who the other is. There’s a good buildup of the relationship and some interesting characters, but The Coincidence of Coconut Cake lacked the wit and humor that makes You’ve Got Mail one of my favorite movies.I liked how developed each of the characters were. They each had their own personalities and quirks and the secondary characters were some of my favorites. Their personalities played off the main characters well and most of the humorous scenes were involving them. Lou, the chef and main character, fell a little flat for me. She wasn’t a badly written character, I just didn’t really connect with her all that well. She was a little wishy-washy and I was frustrated with her for much of the book. That’s not necessarily a bad thing – that’s just the personality the author gave her and I didn’t relate well to her. It seemed to me that Al, the other main character and restaurant critic, was a little more developed and had more of a personal transformation throughout the book.In terms of romance, this book is very sweet. The romance develops rather slowly which I liked and I enjoyed reading about the various places throughout Milwaukee that they experienced together. There aren’t really any particularly steamy moments if that’s what you’re looking for, but that’s not really what this book is about.Speaking of Milwaukee, this book is a love letter to that city. It’s very obvious that the author is from that area and loves it. It’s a city I never would have considered visiting unless it was for a specific event, but after reading the author’s descriptions of the local festivals, restaurants and atmosphere, I would absolutely be willing to take a trip. The city is the third main character. Throughout the book, Lou takes Al to places throughout the city to try to show him how great a place it is to live. We go from seeing a bleak and cold city to a place with a vibrant food scene, lots of culture and a warm community. The descriptions of the city create a wonderful backdrop for the story of Lou and Al.There were two things that I was a little disappointed about. First, this book lacked the witty banter that makes You’ve Got Mail so great. There’s some humor but nothing particularly witty and Lou and Al just lacked that repartee that Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks had. Second, although this book is about a chef, descriptions of the food were seriously lacking. Don’t get me wrong, there are great descriptions of the coconut cake mentioned in the title, and of cheese curds, but overall I was expecting food to play a much bigger part in this book. Many dishes are mentioned, but not as many are actually described. I would have loved to see more food description and I think it would have been a great opportunity to link great food to the emotions of the characters.Overall, I quite enjoyed this. Despite the lack of repartee and food description, the book was a light easy read and I enjoyed the characters. It’s a quick read and is a great choice for when you want something fun that doesn’t require a lot of thinking. Just read and enjoy.
    • 4/5
      This book is two love stories in one: the first involves the main protagonist, Lou, and a man she meets, and the other is about love for the city of Milwaukee, which is, as their tourism center justifiably claims, “a great place by a great lake.”Lou Johnson is working hard as owner and chef at her small French restaurant named after her grandma, Luella’s, in downtown Milwaukee. But business falls off drastically after a scathing review by the popular restaurant critic A.W. Wodyski, the pseudonym of Al Waters. Lou was indeed having a bad night when the critic came there: she had gone to her fiancé Devlin’s apartment that morning to surprise him for his birthday, bringing her trademark coconut cake (and accidentally running into Al on the way). The surprise was on Lou, however, when she discovered Devlin running out of the bedroom to bring clothes to his intern, Megan, wearing a nightgown. Lou dropped the cake and ran out, bumping into Al the second time that day. Later, at the restaurant, Lou could hardly cook a dish, between her anger, humiliation, and despair.After Al went to the restaurant and submitted his review panning it, he went to a nearby bar to celebrate yet another snarky triumph. Lou was there drowning her sorrows. They talked - not knowing each other's true identity, and Al, a transplant from England, revealed how little he liked Milwaukee. Lou offered to show him around, if they could promise not to talk about their work.Yes, it’s all a bit like “You’ve Got Mail,” but it’s just as entertaining and charming. And for fans of Milwaukee, like I am, it is even more of a delight. Lou introduces Al to such beloved Milwaukee institutions as Alterra coffee, Sendik’s Grocery, cheese curds, Summerfest, the gorgeous Calatrava-designed art museum, baseball at Miller Park, butter burgers, and frozen custard, inter alia. The coconut cake, which continues to weave in and out of the plot, features prominently in the resolution as well. And to sweeten the deal, the author includes a recipe for it from her own Grandma Luella at the end.Evaluation: If you like coconut cake, Milwaukee, and/or just endearing romances, this book is a rewarding confection.
    • 4/5
      The break up. Rather predictable but sweet. Try it you’ll like it
    • 3/5
      With this book, you get what you expect. Although it was a bit predictable and somewhat formulaic, it was still a good read. The coconut cake recipe is included and I'm tempted to make it as the descriptions in the book make it sound to die for. I'd recommend if you want something light-hearted that leaves you feeling good in the end.
    • 4/5
      The Coincidence of Coconut Cake by Amy E. Reichert is a cute contemporary romance novel. Elizabeth Luella Johnson prefers to go by the name of Lou. She is the owner and chef of Luella’s restaurant. Lou is engaged to marry Devlin Pontellier, a lawyer. Devlin believes that Lou should give up the restaurant after they marry and be a stay at home mother (as well as cook meals for his clients and co-workers). Every time Devlin brings up marriage, Lou gets the willies (shouldn’t this give her a clue to how she really feels about him). Now Devlin is suggesting that they move in together. On Devlin’s birthday Lou is up early to make him her grandmother’s coconut cake. She gets the cake ready, gets him coffee, and favorite paper (and actually picks up his dry cleaning). On the way she runs into Al. Lou moves on, but Al continues to think about her. Then Al sees her a few minutes later looking upset and cake/frosting on her shoes. Lou walks into Devlin apartment to find him in his boxer’s and his assistant, Megan in Lou’s new negligee. Lou drops everything and walks out. That night Lou is a mess at her restaurant. She ruins everything she touches, but she refuses to stop cooking. That night the popular new food critic for the newspaper, A.W. Woodyski (Polish for water) is dining at Luella’s (he was given a card with a tip to try out the restaurant). The staff is inattentive, the service is slow, and the food inedible. A.W. Woodyski gives Luella’s a bad review. Turns out that A.W. Woodyski is Alastair “Al” Waters. Al is British and new to Milwaukee. It is the middle of winter, he is cold, does not know anyone, and is miserable. He let this affect his reviews and did not give the restaurant another chance before submitting his review. After the review comes out, Lou is sent with money to the local bar (no one wants her cooking). Al happens upon Lou (not knowing she is the chef of Luella’s). Lou agrees to show Al the good side of Milwaukee. They agree to not talk about their work (of course, she does not know he is a reviewer and he does not know that she is a chef). They spend the next few months exploring the city and getting to know each other. But you know what is going to happen when Lou discovers that Al wrote that review!To find out what happens, you will have to read The Coincidence of Coconut Cake. The Coincidence of Coconut Cake is a charming and romantic book (it grew on me). I give The Coincidence of Coconut Cake 4 out of 5 stars. It is a little predictable, but I like the characters and storyline. There are many lengthy descriptions of food (will make you hungry). If you are looking for a sappy, romantic book, give The Coincidence of Coconut Cake a try.I received a complimentary copy of The Coincidence of Coconut Cake from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The review and opinions expressed are my own.
    • 3/5
      Not sure if it was the narrator or the writing, but this book just didn't do it for me. That being said, I did finish listening to it, it was worth that much at least. The first couple of chapters had me intrigued and entertained, but I didn't feel like the rest of the book held to the same standard. Scenes often felt forced and didn't have the natural flow of the first chapters. Again, I'm honestly not sure if this was the writing or narrator.. I'm thinking a bit of both.
      The narrator was definitely an issue for me, being as she gave Al (the male lead) a horrible whiney British accent-- I mean, he was supposed to be British, but she wasn't good at it. Actually I try she did good with all the voices except for the two lead characters.
      Bottom line, it was good enough, possibly better to read than to listen, but it didn't exactly make me want to read more from this author.
    • 5/5
      Lou discovers her fiancé with another woman. She's upset and off her game as she cooks that night for a restaurant critic. He gives it to her with both barrels and her restaurant slowly goes down the drain. The same day she meets a man in a bar who cannot wait to brush the dust of Milwaukee off his shows. She challenges him that she will introduce him to the real Milwaukee and he will change his attitude. Neither knows how life changing that meeting will be as he is the reason she is losing her restaurant.What a delightful story! I loved it. The characters were wonderful. I fell in love with them especially Otto and Gertrude. Lou meets Al at the bar. Both decide they do not want to talk about work when together. For Lou she just wants to get away from the downward spiral of her life. For Al he figures he won't be in town long so why spoil their time together. Lou's co-workers and friends, Sue and Harley, are interesting and a little light diversion along the way. Al's co-worker John becomes his friend and confidant as he learns his role in Lou's loss. There is even a hiss-worthy villain in Devlin and not just because he seemingly cheated on Lou. I could not put this book down. I read it in one sitting it was so good. I laughed. I cried. I fell in love. This is a keeper.