A Novel Love Story

Have you ever wished you could jump into the story of your favorite novel? The main characters would be your best friends, and you could spend your days roaming a fantasy land. This possibility would be glorious, unless your favorite novel happens to be something like The Hunger Games. Fortunately, that is not the case in the plot of Emily Poston’s A Novel Love Story.

Eileen is a part time English professor who struggles with feeling like she is being left behind in life. After having her heart shattered into pieces by a broken engagement, she finds herself forcing a smile at the idea of her best friend getting engaged. Meanwhile, the one thing that brings her comfort is also splitting in different directions when she is the only member from their romance book club who can make their annual retreat. Determined to cling onto the small slices of happiness in her life, she decides to take off to a cabin in upstate New York in her dilapidated green car to fulfill her reservation for one. 

During her journey, Eileen drives into a storm. In a panic, she takes the next exit to wait out the downpour and finds herself transported to Eloraton, the setting of her favorite romance series. This quaint town is almost everything she imagined, down to the cafe named after the grumpy possum that lives in the ceiling. However, there is one person in town that was never mentioned in the beloved books- the equally grumpy bookstore owner, Anders. 

Throughout the novel, Eileen makes connections with the treasured characters. In between living out her dreams of going to the jewelry store open only when Mercury is in retrograde and staying at the always half finished Daffodil Inn, Eileen discovers that this plot might not simply be about her fictional friends. Perhaps she is intertwined into the story as well.

I have found myself a huge fan of Poston’s writing. This is the second novel of hers I have read, and I sped read through it as quickly as the first. Her ability to tackle complex emotions while telling a light hearted romance is a great balance not all writers possess. Her meta-realities also draw me in, and I chuckled at her nod to her other book The Seven Year Slip. 

The characters, both within this fictional novel and those that were in the fictional novel within the fictional novel, were engaging and likable. I even found myself rooting for the Anders, our pessimistic partner to our protagonist that reminded me of a bookish Luke Danes. If you told me I needed to pick a fictional setting to jump into the story, I would happily go live in Eloraton and live my best life having breakfast all day at the cafe, roaming the romance shelves in a local bookstore, and falling in love at a beautiful waterfall.

When it comes to recipes to represent the book, Poston once again provided a plethora of options. I have a feeling we would easily be foodie friends. I could try and recreate Sweetie’s honey taffy that melts in your mouth. I could also stay up late gabbing and baking the inn owner’s brownies. I could even take a stab at the mechanic’s homemade hot sauce that everyone piles on their burnt burgers. These were all wonderful options, but I could not resist making The Honey Surprise from the Grumpy Possum Cafe.

Unlike the unwanted surprise of hot sauce instead of ketchup on a burnt burger, this sweet treat consists of two of my favorite breakfast foods. After the pancakes and french toast are lathered in local honey, you can even get this dish served “grumpy” with powdered sugar and cinnamon on top. Completed with a perfectly imperfect strawberry cut in a star and a cup of coffee, this is certain to be the accompanying meal the next time I cozy up on a Saturday morning and open up another Ashley Poston novel.

The Honey Surprise 

Pancakes

Yields 1 Dozen

2 cups all purpose flour

¼ cup sugar

4 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon cinnamon

1 ¾ cup of milk

4 tablespoons (¼ cup) melted butter

2 teaspoons vanilla extract 

(or 1 teaspoon bourbon vanilla bean paste from Trader Joes)

1 large egg

Toppings: powdered sugar, cinnamon, honey, strawberries

Combine dry ingredients and whisk until no lumps. Add wet ingredients and mix together until smooth. Heat up the griddle on medium. Once heated, add butter to the griddle. Use a ¼ cup measuring cup to transfer the batter onto the griddle. Let pancakes cook until you start to see bubbles then flip with a spatula. Serve topped with powdered sugar, cinnamon, honey, and strawberries.

Fresh Toast Sticks

Serves Approx. 4 people

8 slices of brioche bread

4 eggs

½ cup milk

½ teaspoon of salt

⅔  cup sugar

2 teaspoons of cinnamon

Butter for pan

Toppings: powdered sugar, cinnamon, honey

Slice the brioche loaf and cut off the crust. Slice into thirds to make sticks. Whisk together the eggs, milk, and salt in a bowl. Also mix together sugar and cinnamon and put on a plate for covering the sticks after they are cooked. Meanwhile, heat up a pan to medium low heat. Once the pan is heated add butter. Quickly dip the brioche bread into the egg mixture and add to the pan. Cook on each side until golden brown. Remove the french toast sticks from the pan and immediately cover in cinnamon and sugar. Serve topped with powdered sugar, cinnamon, and honey.