Lilly and Val are lifelong friends, united as much by their differences as by their similarities. Lilly, dramatic and confident, lives in the shadow of her beautiful, wayward mother and craves the attention of her distant, disapproving father. Val, shy and idealistic—and surprisingly ambitious—struggles with her desire to break free from her demanding housebound mother and a father whose dreams never seem to come true.
In childhood, “LillyPad” and “Valpal” vow to form an exclusive two-person club. Throughout the decades they write intimate letters in which they share hopes, fears, deepest secrets—and recipes, from Lilly’s “Lovelorn Lasagna” to Valerie’s “Forgiveness Tapenade.” Readers can cook along as the girls travel through time, facing the challenges of independence; the joys and heartbreaks of first love; and the emotional complexities of family relationships, identity, mortality, and goals deferred.
But no matter what different paths they take or what misunderstandings threaten to break them apart, Lilly and Val always find their way back together through their Recipe Club . . . until the fateful day when an act of kindness becomes an unforgivable betrayal.
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Sexual Content - 1/5
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Language - 1/5
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Summary
Through a series of letters and, later on, emails, we follow Lilly and Val through their childhood and into college. Their friendship, once so close, takes twists and turns that inevitably break the bond they shared.
I am always fascinated by the novels that are told by means of letters. This has the benefit of including some interesting recipes as well! I loved seeing the friendship of these two through the words they wrote to each other, and experienced the heartbreak they endured when their paths through life took them in different directions.
This was incredibly well written and true to life. There is a section where one of the characters chooses to get an abortion, which some readers may find offensive and distasteful. It is handled ina respectful, nonjudgmental way, something I appreciated.