First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by @Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines? If you want to make your own post, just follow the rules below:
- Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
- Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
- Finally… reveal the book!
Here are the first lines of the book I am currently reading:
Master Chef Armand Barrique – twice Michelin starred – dreamt recipes. And always the best of his recipes came to him in the very early morning. Had Armand not dreamt of a unique way with truffle soufflé before he woke on the day he was due back at sea, had that extraordinary recipe for truffle soufflé not contained a new and wonderful ingredient, then the disaster may never have occurred.
In his haste to bake the soufflé and slide it from his oven to inspect it – to savour it – he completely forgot about sunrise.
Chilli Kippen
AND THE BOOK IS…
The Chef Who Made Onions Cry by Chilli Kippen
As on all cruise ships, the most important person on board the Pacific Belle, apart from the Captain is the Master Chef. It is the quality and yes indeed the quantity of food that makes or breaks a cruise.
The reader is introduced to Master Chef Armand Barrique – twice Michelin starred – dreamt recipes, who is not only a Master Chef but also a man of sensitivity and devoted to his trainee expert truffle-hunter pig. Chef is also central to the plot and his planning and delivery of the spectacular Versailles dinner is a highlight, not only for the cruise guests, but also for the reader.
Our old friend Alexander Pushkin Goldfarb continues his run of luck in the ship’s casino as he observes the foibles of his fellow passengers while new characters such as Major Barbara Cock, a retired army psychiatrist and now assassin for hire, introduce elements of intrigue and revenge and somewhat paradoxically humour and sympathy for her cause.
As in her previous novel, as the plot twists and turns in Ms Kippen’s hilarious and deliberately absurd trademark style, she tackles another important social issue and delivers a powerful blow to the proponents of Live Animal Transportation. The marked contrast of sober descriptions of this cruel practice brings home the message that it must be stopped! Now!
My thoughts so far…
I am really enjoying Chilli Kippen’s book set on a cruise ship. The large cast of characters is expertly described and the descriptions of each of them are full of funny and quirky details. The point of view switches between different passengers, including that of the beloved and spoilt pet truffle pig of the famed Chef. A fun light read with short chapters.
Buy The Chef Who Made Onions Cry here:
www.amazon.com/Chef-Who-Made-Onions-Cry/dp/1838594078/
www.amazon.co.uk/Chef-Who-Made-Onions-Cry/dp/1838594078/
Add The Chef Who Made Onions Cry to your To Be Read list here:
www.goodreads.com/book/show/54968978-the-chef-who-made-onions-cry
Contact the author, Chilli Kippen here:
Sue's Musings 