Delectable

Delectable. Adrianne Lee. 2014. 273 pages. Forever. [Source: ARC provided courtesy of NetGalley.]

You ever read a book so descriptive that you can taste what the characters are eating? This is definitely a book that makes you wish you actually could taste what they’re eating. “Delectable” is a story loosely about the opening of a pie shop, Big Sky Pie, but really focuses on the seemingly failed marriage of Callee and Quint McCoy. It’s full of small-town charm that makes the book both endearing and entertaining at once.

Quint and Callee were (not quite) happily married until his father Jimmy died of a massive heart attack. Quint’s way of dealing with his father’s death was to run away from the comfort of his mother and wife. When he returns from a month-long fishing trip, he has only an empty house, divorce papers, and a failed real-estate business to welcome him. His mother, Molly, however, has taken it upon herself to follow her dream of opening a pie shop … in the same space he once called his business office. When Callee shows up out of the blue for one last bit of closure before leaving for Seattle, they’re both present when Molly suffers a heart attack. To keep Molly calm, they both agree — begrudgingly — to do whatever it takes to make Big Sky Pie’s grand opening a success.

The characters in this book are fairly well-developed and each has their own distinct personality. Molly, Quint’s loving but fiesty mom is an ever-present though off-scene part of the book. The most we see of her is in the beginning, but she is ever-present during her hospital stay. Andrea, Quint’s current/former employee is also a comedic relief throughout the book, though we don’t see much depth to her beyond being a single mother looking to reestablish her love life. Quint and Callee both have their personal struggles around careers and their failed marriage; the result is for a great deal of tension that drives the story.

I found this to be a fairly quick read, partly due to interesting story itself but also because of its easy flow. I spent a lot of the time thinking about food, though. The constant description of pies and baking made me wish I had the recipe for the famed cherry pie. It was a pleasant surprise to see it included at the end of the book.