The Potluck Club

I've always been the type of person that enjoys a good book when eating. Somehow reading a book about food always makes the meal tastier even if what I'm reading isn't what I'm eating. "The Potluck Club" is another one of those great eating/reading books. It even comes complete with recipes from the dishes mentioned in the story in case you get a hankering for beef brisket, cinnamon rolls or broccoli casserole. I really enjoyed this book. It gave the story from many different angles, with the characters all have different personalities. The premise of the story deals with a group of women meeting together for prayer and potluck. The women are real, experiencing funny and heartbreaking events together. Each character has a background story that they try to keep secret from the others. I am very glad that the book did not fault Goldie for her decision in her situation with her husband. Other books would have let the matter slide by or have Goldie give in. My favorite scene in the book dealt with a certain bear and a chocolate cake. I had to put the book down because I was laughing so hard. (Of course if I had been in that situation I wouldn't be.) My only complaint was the character of Clay. I'm not sure why his viewpoint is in the story. I understand he's a newspaper journalisty trying to get a story for the paper, but he just came across as annoying, nosy, and stalkerish. I also hope the conflict with Lisa Leann and Evangeline is either resovled or more fleshed out. This is a good book for women, perfect for a book club to read and discuss over a potluck! and yes! the library just got book 2 in.

This is the way Christian fiction should be written. No cardboard Christian cut-outs of sweet angelic women none of us can relate to. These women are real, just the kind of women I find in my own community. We/they are real, they struggle with their faith and how to live it out in the real world with real life problems and in real life situations. After reading this book you will be affirmed as I was not only as a woman, but as an authentic Christian woman. This book does not hit you over the head with a preachy message, but through the lives of these women you will see real faith, lived out in the real world, from real women. No cardboard Christian cut-outs here.

Oh my goodness! This book reminds me why I can't read many novels these days. I could NOT put it down -- which is quite dangerous for me. It would have taken major surgery to detach this book from my hand. I loved it! I recently heard Eva Marie Everson speak at a conference, and her sparkling "diva" personality enticed me to buy her book. "How do two people write a novel together?" I was curious. "We each wrote three characters," she said. "But it's a secret which ones." What is the Potluck Club? It's a tight-knit group of six friends who get together to share a home-cooked meal, spicing things up with the latest gossip (excuse me, prayer requests.) And there's plenty to talk about in their small town nestled in the scenic Colorado mountains. What I love most about the book is these women are real. They're funny and flawed, but have a heart for growing in their faith. As the plot unfolds, we enter into their joys and heartaches, frowning at the naughty and smiling at the nice. And the men! The husbands, sons, boyfriends...and that nosy reporter who keeps showing up everywhere. I laughed and cried -- now, I'm hooked and can't wait to read the next one. It's about time Christian publishers gave us something to read that rivals best-selling chick-lit that won't make us blush! This is a novel you wouldn't mind your teen daughter or your grandmother picking up after you -- pass it on. Forget the trashy romances -- here's a piece that's good for your mind and soul. Ladies, if you're looking for something fun and poignant to discuss at your next book club meeting, this book is the perfect accompaniment to the staples of food and laughter. Since all the recipes are included at the back of the book, why not try some out? Are Lisa Leann's oven-barbecued brisket and cinnamon rolls really ALL THAT? Make them and see. Vonnie's Mexican Tamales will always remind you of that sad secret in her past. And Mother Dippel's Chocolate Cake looks delicious -- just watch out for hungry black bears! The Potluck Club would make a great movie, one I would actually enjoy taking my daughters to see. --Reviewed by Heather Lynn Ivester for Mom 2 Mom Connection

I loved this! It's delightfully delicious, witty, and at times poignant. After the first few chapters, the reader becomes almost like a silent member of the Potluck Club, sitting back and experiencing all the woes, regrets, vulnerabilities, longings and triumphs of the six female protagonists. We laugh and cry with them, shake our heads at their antics and feel the joy of their victories. They are real to us and their relationships palpably engrossing. And through it all someone always seems to be cooking. With its warmth and hominess, The Potluck Club is reminiscent of the Mitford Series with a dash of extra spice. These are characters you develop a personal attachment to...and miss when you close the cover of the book.

Delicious characters build a wonderfully entertaining, "grab you and pull you in" story from minute one in The Potluck Club. I was captivated by the mysteries and milestones, victories and frustrations, lives and friendships and all their magnificent complexities--all folded together in some interesting and beautifully quirky characters (I immediately fell in love with them). The Potluck Club was a delight to read! I can't wait for the next course!