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greenhej's review against another edition
5.0
Historical fiction + fairy tale + food = recipe for a great read.
mg_in_md_'s review against another edition
4.0
This charming historical fiction tale set against the backdrop of the English Civil War drew me in right away. It had a fairy tale feel to it that enhanced the plot without getting bogged down by inserting a string of historical factoids. The story centers around John Saturnall whose mother was a masterful cook who taught him how to make beautiful meals from the bounties of the forest. They are forced to live almost in exile though because local villagers believe his mother to be a witch. John's life changes when she passes away and he is taken in as a kitchen boy at Buckland Manor, home to Sir William Freemantle and his daughter, Lucretia. John is taken under the wing of the manor's Master Cook, Richard Scovell, and shows a remarkable talent. Mysteries of his mother's past, his family heritage, and The Feast are ultimately revealed in the kitchen. As the Civil War comes to a head, John's past and present collide and the reader wonders what his future will hold. Fellow foodies will enjoy the fact that each chapter is preceded by a short excerpt from "The Book of John Saturnall" that describes a dish and its inspiration. The kitchen scenes are reminiscent of excerpts from contemporary memoirs by professional chefs and the reader can almost smell and taste the scrumptious meals being prepared. The book itself is gorgeous. The artful red print and etchings gave the book an old feel and made it seem like it could have been written long ago. I thoroughly enjoyed this delightfully inventive and magical tale, and I would definitely seek out other books by this author if this is an indication of his other works.
alisonjfields's review against another edition
3.0
A little bit ridiculous, but a lot of fun if you’re keen for some slightly dreamy historical fiction for the beach or your quarantine beach alternative (porch with kiddie pool?)
krobart's review against another edition
4.0
See my review here:
https://whatmeread.wordpress.com/2022/07/01/review-1884-john-saturnalls-feast/
https://whatmeread.wordpress.com/2022/07/01/review-1884-john-saturnalls-feast/
phaeri's review against another edition
4.0
John Saturnall is the heir to a legacy of cooks. The first women and men who enjoyed the endless feast provided by the Garden of Eden. The story begins with John as a boy, all the hardships and his talented nose. But then the story changes after his mother dies in the winter’s cold. He is brought to Lord William’s manor. Joins the kitchen and war explodes. All in-between friendship and romance plots.
Long ago I saw a Korean drama, “Feast of the Gods”. It was a family drama revolving around centuries of cooking and a very talented girl with a talented nose. The main character rose to the top through hardship and tests. In the end, she decided to go back to her simple life she loved, free to cook whatever she wanted. Where am I going with this? Well, I was expecting the same kind of trill from John Saturnall’s Feast. Alas, it did not come close. Also, the witch piece of the story reminded me much of the story I am working on. So I was also expecting some inspiration. Again, none.
The story began quite well. I began having questions and cheered for John against the bullies. The story took up phase. Jumping between past and present, which I enjoyed. I was expecting this to be much like “The Language of Flowers.” Then the mother died and the story began to die with her. Endless pages about John surviving. Followed by endless pages of traveling. Followed by endless pages of well… cooking. I don’t know why I expected so much about this book, and the one thing I should have expected, I didn’t. The cooking. So much cooking. So many things I didn’t understood.
The romance began fun, as kids, hating each other. But the attraction was as sudden and random as the war itself. Through the book, there are no signs of an incoming war, until a sudden moment. The romance, though well built up, was just emotionless. At least for me. I didn’t felt it. I didn’t loved the characters. I only cheered for Lucretia’s fighting spirit.
And the last bit of the book. Suddenly made me feel like I was in a vortex wondering where the hell I ended up at, dizzy, confused, and trying to make sense of it. Turned out 12 years went by in the blink of an eye. Yes, a blink, literally. One paragraph ends up with heartbreak and the next is 12 years later.
I would have enjoyed this book if it had better breaks between time periods. And less plots all over the place coming out of nowhere. Much often I found myself going back to see how many years went by. Suddenly the boy I met had grey hair. His journey to become a Master Chef was an easy breeze. The romance was sneaky and sad, so that part was good, just lifeless. As if no one in the household would have noticed their romance during the hunger and war. Please.
The one thing I enjoyed were the recipes in-between. Supposedly dividing chapters that were just scattered. But were written with a prose which in my head read as if it was indeed John reciting them. The whole book was a sort of metaphor for Lucretia and John’s romance and centuries of disputes between the original people of the Vale and the Invaders. But it seemed to focus more on the metaphor and the kitchen than in the characters. This disappointed me. I rated it 2 stars and that’s a gift. I didn’t liked it in the end. Though after long years, with a sudden disappearance form the archenemy (surprise surprise), they reunite again in a feast and a happily ever after.
Long ago I saw a Korean drama, “Feast of the Gods”. It was a family drama revolving around centuries of cooking and a very talented girl with a talented nose. The main character rose to the top through hardship and tests. In the end, she decided to go back to her simple life she loved, free to cook whatever she wanted. Where am I going with this? Well, I was expecting the same kind of trill from John Saturnall’s Feast. Alas, it did not come close. Also, the witch piece of the story reminded me much of the story I am working on. So I was also expecting some inspiration. Again, none.
The story began quite well. I began having questions and cheered for John against the bullies. The story took up phase. Jumping between past and present, which I enjoyed. I was expecting this to be much like “The Language of Flowers.” Then the mother died and the story began to die with her. Endless pages about John surviving. Followed by endless pages of traveling. Followed by endless pages of well… cooking. I don’t know why I expected so much about this book, and the one thing I should have expected, I didn’t. The cooking. So much cooking. So many things I didn’t understood.
The romance began fun, as kids, hating each other. But the attraction was as sudden and random as the war itself. Through the book, there are no signs of an incoming war, until a sudden moment. The romance, though well built up, was just emotionless. At least for me. I didn’t felt it. I didn’t loved the characters. I only cheered for Lucretia’s fighting spirit.
And the last bit of the book. Suddenly made me feel like I was in a vortex wondering where the hell I ended up at, dizzy, confused, and trying to make sense of it. Turned out 12 years went by in the blink of an eye. Yes, a blink, literally. One paragraph ends up with heartbreak and the next is 12 years later.
I would have enjoyed this book if it had better breaks between time periods. And less plots all over the place coming out of nowhere. Much often I found myself going back to see how many years went by. Suddenly the boy I met had grey hair. His journey to become a Master Chef was an easy breeze. The romance was sneaky and sad, so that part was good, just lifeless. As if no one in the household would have noticed their romance during the hunger and war. Please.
The one thing I enjoyed were the recipes in-between. Supposedly dividing chapters that were just scattered. But were written with a prose which in my head read as if it was indeed John reciting them. The whole book was a sort of metaphor for Lucretia and John’s romance and centuries of disputes between the original people of the Vale and the Invaders. But it seemed to focus more on the metaphor and the kitchen than in the characters. This disappointed me. I rated it 2 stars and that’s a gift. I didn’t liked it in the end. Though after long years, with a sudden disappearance form the archenemy (surprise surprise), they reunite again in a feast and a happily ever after.
kathleenww's review against another edition
4.0
This was an electronic advanced reader copy from NetGalley.
I have never read anything by this author before, but asked for the ARC based on the book's description on NetGalley and I received it. It wasn't until I was more than half way through the book that I decided to look up Lawrence Norfolk and learn a little bit more about this writer, and was impressed with his credentials, although I can hardly claim to have a strong interest in reading his other works, as they sound way above what I would be capable of reading and understanding! I was happy I was reading this on my Kindle, since I did use the built in dictionary quite a lot. Norfolk uses a lot of vocabulary you do not generally hear in today's world, most of it referring to more ancient times. This book is set in the 1600's in England, beginning right before the English Civil War. But another added feature of this novel is the ancient language used before each section to describe the "receipts" used for John Saturnall's Feast, essentially, a cookbook.
John Sandall is a lonely little boy who lives with his mother, Shunned by the villages children as a "witch's son," his mother is an herbalist/healer/midwife who is regarded as a w itch by the Puritanical order that has grown up in England after the Reformation and is trying to take over the worship in small villages. The Puritans in the village are fanatical and frightening, and the preacher, Marpot, is a hateful and controlling man who incites the village to violence against John and his mother, even after they have finally been accepted there. John and his mother are forced to flee, while their home is destroyed. They escape the wilderness nearby, surviving on their wits, and his mother continues to educate John to her ways with a special cookbook of sorts that she has managed to save.
A very basic knowledge of the history of England is helpful when reading this book, and I often found myself looking up names and events to learn more about the period, people and places, but Norfolk purposely leaves much of the information provided in the story very vague, almost as if it really doesn't matter, and truthfully, the main characters are the most important ones to try and understand. John ends up at nearby Buckland Manor, as an orphan, but because of his uncanny culinary skills, he is allowed to stay on as a Kitchen Boy, instead of being sent to the poorhouse. There he meets Lady Lucretia, the motherless child of the manor, who often fasts in a passive rebellion against her father. He also meets a whole host of other interesting and important folks that contribute to life at the manor.
This book has quite a complicated plot, and the reader really needs to pay attention to names of places, to the many characters and to the thoughts of the John and Lucy. The writing is extraordinary and the story is quite moving. I loved the way the author manages to keep things happening without becoming stagnant, or stuck in the many plot details, the book has a very natural flow and feeling, and without that, it would be very easy to become mired down by this novel. The last book I read with a plot this complicated was David Mitchell's Cloud Atlas, which I really enjoyed, and the style of writing is similar: many clues and hints are given to the reader from the very start of the novel, and it is usually with hindsight that the reader suddenly recognizes them.
A delightful book, challenging yet fun reading, especially for those who enjoy history and esoteric stories with amazing people, both real and fictional.
I have never read anything by this author before, but asked for the ARC based on the book's description on NetGalley and I received it. It wasn't until I was more than half way through the book that I decided to look up Lawrence Norfolk and learn a little bit more about this writer, and was impressed with his credentials, although I can hardly claim to have a strong interest in reading his other works, as they sound way above what I would be capable of reading and understanding! I was happy I was reading this on my Kindle, since I did use the built in dictionary quite a lot. Norfolk uses a lot of vocabulary you do not generally hear in today's world, most of it referring to more ancient times. This book is set in the 1600's in England, beginning right before the English Civil War. But another added feature of this novel is the ancient language used before each section to describe the "receipts" used for John Saturnall's Feast, essentially, a cookbook.
John Sandall is a lonely little boy who lives with his mother, Shunned by the villages children as a "witch's son," his mother is an herbalist/healer/midwife who is regarded as a w itch by the Puritanical order that has grown up in England after the Reformation and is trying to take over the worship in small villages. The Puritans in the village are fanatical and frightening, and the preacher, Marpot, is a hateful and controlling man who incites the village to violence against John and his mother, even after they have finally been accepted there. John and his mother are forced to flee, while their home is destroyed. They escape the wilderness nearby, surviving on their wits, and his mother continues to educate John to her ways with a special cookbook of sorts that she has managed to save.
A very basic knowledge of the history of England is helpful when reading this book, and I often found myself looking up names and events to learn more about the period, people and places, but Norfolk purposely leaves much of the information provided in the story very vague, almost as if it really doesn't matter, and truthfully, the main characters are the most important ones to try and understand. John ends up at nearby Buckland Manor, as an orphan, but because of his uncanny culinary skills, he is allowed to stay on as a Kitchen Boy, instead of being sent to the poorhouse. There he meets Lady Lucretia, the motherless child of the manor, who often fasts in a passive rebellion against her father. He also meets a whole host of other interesting and important folks that contribute to life at the manor.
This book has quite a complicated plot, and the reader really needs to pay attention to names of places, to the many characters and to the thoughts of the John and Lucy. The writing is extraordinary and the story is quite moving. I loved the way the author manages to keep things happening without becoming stagnant, or stuck in the many plot details, the book has a very natural flow and feeling, and without that, it would be very easy to become mired down by this novel. The last book I read with a plot this complicated was David Mitchell's Cloud Atlas, which I really enjoyed, and the style of writing is similar: many clues and hints are given to the reader from the very start of the novel, and it is usually with hindsight that the reader suddenly recognizes them.
A delightful book, challenging yet fun reading, especially for those who enjoy history and esoteric stories with amazing people, both real and fictional.
booksbecreads's review against another edition
4.0
While it took me some time to read this one for the most part it was an engaging, beautiful story with an average ending
magdon's review against another edition
3.0
I was somewhat disappointed by this book. I think because it seemed that it would have more magic in it (magical realism anyway) and it didnt, so that colored my perception of it. Otherwise a lovely tale of romance during the protectorship.
lisagray68's review against another edition
2.0
I give myself 100 pages to give up on a book....I was still undecided at 100 pages, but after about 170 or so, I just didn't want to pick this book back up for days. Great writing and interesting concept, but I just couldn't get into it...