Raincoast Books

What Will You Read Next?

The Townsend Family Recipe for Disaster

A Novel

9781728268682

Sourcebooks
Available: 07/02/24
5.5 x 8.25 · 352 pages
9781728268682
CDN $24.99 · pb

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Shauna Robinson

From the acclaimed author of The Banned Bookshop of Maggie Banks and Must Love Books comes a heartfelt bookclub read following one woman's journey to reconnect with her estranged Black family in the south, just as it's on the brink of falling apart, perfect for fans of The Chicken Sisters and The Last Summer at the Golden Hotel.
One estranged family. Onelost recipe. One last barbecue on the line. Mae is about to learn what happens when things go south. . .
Mae Townsend has always dreamed of connecting with her estranged Black family in the South. She grew up picturing relatives who looked like her, crowded dinner tables, bustling kitchens. And, of course, the Townsend family barbecue, the tradition that kept her late father flying to North Carolina year after year, despite the mysterious rift that always required her to stay behind. 
Butas Mae's wedding draws closer, promising a future of always standing out among her white in-laws, suddenly not knowing the Townsends hits her like a blow. So when news arrives that her paternal grandmother has passed, she decides it's time to head South. 
What she finds is a family in turmoil, a long-standing grudge intact, a lost mac & cheese recipe causing grief, and a family barbecue on the brink of disaster. Not willing to let her dreams of family slip away, Mae stepsup to throw a barbecue everyone will remember.
For better or for worse.

SHAUNA ROBINSON writes contemporary fiction with humor and heart. Originally from San Diego, she now lives in Virginia with her husband and their sleepy greyhound. Shauna is an introvert at heart - she spends most of her time reading, baking, and figuring out the politest way to avoid social interaction.