“The Restaurant” by Pamela Kelley: A Heartwarming Tale of Family, Food, and Nantucket – Book Review @PamelaMKelley #pipingploverpress

The Restaurant masterfully intertwines family dynamics, romance, and culinary delights against the picturesque backdrop of Nantucket.

From The Publisher:

Three sisters. An inherited Nantucket restaurant. One year before they can sell.

Mandy, Emma and Jill are as close as three sisters who live hundreds of miles apart can be. They grew up together on Nantucket, but Mandy is the only one that stayed.

Jill lives a glamorous life in Manhattan as a co-owner of a successful executive search firm. Never married, she is in her mid-thirties and lives in a stunning, corner condo with breathtaking views of the city and Hudson river. Everyone thinks there’s something going on with her partner, Nick, because as a workaholic, she spends more time with him than anyone else. But there’s never been anything but friendship between them and Nick loves being a bachelor in NYC.

Emma lives in Arizona and is an elementary school teacher and aspiring photographer. She met her college professor husband, Peter, in grad school and they’ve been married for over fifteen years. In recent years, she’s noticed that Peter has grown distant. But when he shares a surprising secret, she doesn’t see it coming and her world is turned upside down.

Mandy followed her high school boyfriend, Cory to Boston College, and after graduation, they married and Cory joined a successful hedge fund in Boston, while Mandy stayed home and had two children, Blake and Brooke. They moved home to Nantucket when Cory opened a competing hedge fund. Now that the children are older, Mandy is eager to do more than coordinate local charity events. But Cory doesn’t want her to work. He thinks it doesn’t reflect well on him and appearances are everything to Cory. Though when Mandy finds a second cell phone in his gym bag, she begins to question what is really going on.

When their beloved grandmother, Ethel Ferguson passes peacefully in her sleep a week before her ninety-ninth birthday, she leaves them quite a surprise. In addition to her Nantucket home, they learn that she was the silent owner of Mimi’s Place, one of Nantucket’s most popular year-round restaurants. 

There is of course, a catch–she left the restaurant equally to Mandy, Emma, and Jill–and also to Paul, the restaurant chef for the past fifteen years. 

And before they can sell, all three girls must work at the restaurant for one year–or their shares of the restaurant will go to Paul.

The same Paul that broke one of their hearts many years ago.

My Thoughts:

Pamela Kelley’s “The Restaurant” is a delightful blend of family dynamics, a charming beach setting, and the allure of food, making it a perfect summer read. As the first book in The Nantucket Restaurant series, it sets a promising stage for future instalments, which I eagerly anticipate.

The story centers around three sisters—Mandy, Emma, and Jill—who, despite living in different parts of the country, maintain a close bond. Jill, a successful co-owner of a business in Manhattan, lives a glamorous life and is best friends with her partner . Emma, an elementary school teacher in Arizona, grapples with a distant husband hiding a life changing secret. Mandy, residing in Nantucket, is a dedicated mother and wife facing her own marital uncertainties when she discovers her husband’s potential infidelity.

Their lives take a surprising turn when they reunite in Nantucket upon the passing of their beloved grandmother, Ethel. The revelation that Ethel secretly owned a popular restaurant, Mimi’s Place, comes with a catch—the sisters must work at the restaurant for a year to retain their shares, or forfeit them to Paul, the restaurant’s long-time chef and a man with a complicated history with the sisters.

What I enjoyed most about this book were the well-developed characters and their intriguing backstories. Each sister’s journey through personal challenges was compelling, and it was heartening to see them come together to honour their grandmother’s legacy. The unfolding of secrets added depth to the story, making the characters’ growth and resilience even more satisfying to witness.

The romantic subplots were sweet and added a touch of warmth to the narrative, while Kelley’s vivid descriptions of Nantucket transported me to the picturesque island. Although some plot points were predictable, the sisters’ collaboration to revive and personalize Mimi’s Place kept the story engaging and heartwarming.

Final Thoughts:

“The Restaurant” by Pamela Kelley is a captivating read that beautifully intertwines themes of family, love, and self-discovery in a scenic coastal setting. It’s a book that leaves you feeling satisfied and eagerly awaiting the next chapter in the series.

Some of the Other Books I’ve Reviewed Written By Pamela Kelley:

The Seaside Sisters

The Fifth Avenue Apartment

The Bookshop By The Bay