A review by xanthe
North to You by Tif Marcelo

3.0

True North is the story of Camille and Drew who had a thing when they were in ninth grade and then run into each other ten years later, both back in San Franscico and both at crisis points in their lives. Camille is doing everything she can to make a success out of her food truck, Lucianna, so she can provide stability and art school tuition for her beloved younger sister, while Drew is on leave from the army, awaiting deployment to Iraq, and home to face his difficult relationship with his father and work at his family’s restaurant. So, I loved the setting and the great ordinary details about Camille and Drew’s lives and their families, plus even though I’m not a foodie, I do love it when people write about food and all the different ways that it can be prepared, served, and angsted about. What didn’t like what that this story boasted another miscommunication plot where Camille and Drew decided not to share their full lives, deliberately misled each other and omitted information so that when everything finally came out, there are scenes of recrimination and betrayal that derailed their real relationship issues and delayed their ultimately happy ending. (What kind of deeply upsetting secrets can they keep from each other about food trucks and family restaurants? Just you wait.) Also, the very real obstacle of Drew’s deployment to Iraq was mostly skipped over as Camille struggled with it and then the epilogue just picked up after he had returned. I suppose that would have been another several chapters of them skyping or whatever, but it felt like that we brought up and then ended up being a non-issue as it was happening. This probably makes it sounds as if I didn’t enjoy this book, which just isn’t so. The parts about their families and their respective foodie businesses were great, but I read the parts where they lied to each other while cringing. Despite that, this was a delightful story of connection and I’m a sucker for people reconnecting later in life after being parted. I’m definitely interested in reading more by this author, but hoping that she keeps the misunderstandings and secrets to a minimum.