Book Review: Recipe for Love by Sasha Wagstaff

Summer in a luxurious villa in Sorrento and a rare interview with an amazing Italian chef should be a taste of heaven shouldn't it? For Cassia Marini it looks more like being a recipe for disaster...
Cassia should be excited about her trip to Italy, Rocco Disanti is one of Italy's most talented chefs, and the trip gives her the opportunity to research her own Italian heritage. But she's in the midst of her own wedding plans and handing this over to a frosty mother-in-law doesn't seem like the greatest idea. It gets worse as she arrives and realises that Rocco is less than thrilled about the interview, her summer break in Sorrento is looking less than promising. But maybe the unlikely ingredients of a hint of romance, a chance to find out more about her past and space from her own relationship, will combine to make an altogether more convincing dish!

I have really enjoyed Sasha Wagstaff's previous books so I was excited to receive her latest one, Recipe for Love. Sasha did not disappoint, Recipe for Love is a great read and would base the perfect book to take on holiday. The vast majority of the book is set in beautiful Sorrento. I went on holiday there myself a few years ago and it is the perfect location to set a book like this; glamorous, beautiful and very romantic.
Cassia Marini is passionate about food and is highly respected as a writer for Sumptuous magazine. Her latest assignment is to shadow Rocco Disanti, chef extraordinaire at his family's estate in Sorrento. It will also give Cassia the chance to look into her dead father's past; he was Italian and adopted but never got the chance to discover the identity of his birth parents. Spending the summer in Sorrento would be perfect but the problem is that Cassia has just got engaged to Finn and going away means leaving the wedding planning to her awful mother-in-law. The other problem, which Cassia is less than happy to admit is that she thinks that being away from Finn might be a good thing as it will test whether she is making the right decision or not but what happens if absence doesn't make the heart grow fonder?
Sasha Wagstaff packs so much into her books and they are always highly glamorous from start to finish. Recipe for Love has romance, lust, family secrets, passion, lies, curses and of course lots of lovely food. I loved that aspect of the book but I have to say that it made me very hungry when reading it!
Cassia is a really good character and I enjoyed her interactions with Rocco Disanti. My other favourite character was Diana, Carissia's mother. She is a successful actress struggling to come to terms with getting older plus protecting her daughters from past events that she she has tried to shelter them from.
I apologise if this review is a little scatty but there was so much that I enjoyed about this book. Sasha Wagstaff has a knack of grabbing your attention at the beginning and then continuing to hold it with a fast paced story full of plot twists and turns.
I would recommend any of Sasha Wagstaff's books, they are pure escapism.

Dot Scribbles Rating 4/5

Many thanks to Headline Review for sending me a copy of the book to review, Recipe for Love is out now!