Fun Reads Friday: The Main Dish

You know those stories that make you laugh, cry, and leave you feeling as if you wanted to grab the main character by the neck and scream, “what are you doing?” I’ll be honest, I thought The Main Dish would not be a story like that. I picked it up this YA soon-to-be-released novel, ready to review for my friend, expecting a relaxing, somewhat amusing story about the banter that occurs between sisters.

Well, was I in for a surprise. Sure, you got a little bit of that, but quickly I found myself sucked into the unfair, cruel world of being an older sister. Perhaps it has to do with the fact that I, too, have a younger sister and related a bit too well to the feelings of Scarlet.

Scarlet Williams thought her acceptance to play the violin in the Summerset Festival would solve all her problems, starting her junior year off on the right track. That is, until her sister, Sadie, found out she had been accepted to appear on Young Gourmet, a cooking competition that would film in California. Scarlet was excited for her sister but her excitement dwindled when she found out her parents had scheduled a mandatory family vacation for the entire summer in California for the taping of the show. Needless to say, Scarlet was crushed and angry at the situation. As the story unfolds, these feelings turned to bitterness toward her sister and her parents.

As I continued to read, I assumed the summer would be a great experience for all and would end with Scarlet realizing she was wrong, making up with Sadie, and you know the rest—they all lived happily ever after. NOT. This story took several turns and twists that I did not see coming (maybe because I was too sucked into sympathizing with Scarlet to see any foreshadowing), that left you craving more. I have to say, as we neared the end of the book, I had a hard time finding things to like about Scarlet. But then, don’t we all need to go through the stuff of life if we expect to grow as humans?

Victoria Kimble does an excellent job illustrating the juggling of high school life with family, and the cost of sacrifice for those we love.

The Main Dish will be released in July of this year, but you can preorder now (and I highly recommend it!) at www.victoriakimble.com. And don’t forget, as usual, leave a comment and your name will be entered in January’s drawing.