Lizzy and Jane couldn’t be further from Jane Austen’s famous sisters for whom they are named.
Elizabeth left her family’s home in Seattle fifteen years ago to pursue her lifelong dream—chefing her own restaurant in New York City. Jane stayed behind to raise a family. Estranged since their mother’s death many years ago, the circumstances of their lives are about to bring them together once again.
Known for her absolute command of her culinary domain, Elizabeth’s gifts in the kitchen have begun to elude her. And patrons and reviewers are noticing. In need of some rest and an opportunity to recover her passion for cooking, Elizabeth jumps at the excuse to rush to her sister’s bedside when Jane is diagnosed with cancer. After all, Elizabeth did the same for their mother. Perhaps this time, it will make a difference.
As Elizabeth pours her renewed energy into her sister’s care and into her burgeoning interest in Nick, Jane’s handsome coworker, her life begins to evolve from the singular pursuit of her own dream into the beautiful world of family, food, literature, and love that was shattered when she and Jane lost their mother. Will she stay and become Lizzy to her sister’s Jane—and Elizabeth to Nick’s Mr. Darcy—or will she return to the life she has worked so hard to create?
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Sexual Content - 1/5
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Violence - 0/5
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Language - 0/5
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Drugs and Alcohol - 1/5
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Summary
Overall I've been looking forward to Katherine Reay's second novel, Lizzy and Jane, and I was not disappointed! Very obvious is Ms. Reay's love for classic literature, especially all things Jane Austen. Littered throughout the novel are numerous references to Austen's books; for starters, the title characters sisters are named for Austen's most famous and best loved sisters, Jane and Elizabeth Bennett. While the setting for Austen's novels are Regency England, Reay's Lizzy and Jane are contemporary
sisters living on opposite sides of the United States. The plot revolves around the reconciliation of the sisters which comes about when Lizzy loses her mojo as a premiere chef in New York City and heads back home to the Washington coastline in an attempt to find it. She hasn't been back since she cared for her mother during her losing battle with an aggressive form of breast cancer. Now her sister has the same cancer, but it has been caught in the earliest stages. Jane and Lizzy have been estranged for many years now. Ms. Reay writes beautifully of struggle: struggle for Jane as she fights the battle of estrogen-dominant breast cancer, struggle between the sisters as they learn to love each other again, struggle for Lizzy as she attempts to recapture her passion in her cooking. But truly, there are so many more underlying struggles, and other relationships that make this novel rich and hard to put down. It is an excellent picture of the emotional, physical, spiritual, and relational battle with cancerMs. Reay obviously did her research well to have been able to portray her characters' emotions so well. Perhaps most fun is how she entwines food and literature throughout the plot; I was totally intrigued by how Lizzy thought about food as it related to different people and memories. There is a romantic aspect of the
novel, though it does not steal the focus of the plot. While the novel has a biblical worldview, it feels natural rather than didactic. There is much to love about this
well-written novel!
Sexual
Drug & Alcohol In relation to food pairings primarily.