The Forgotten Recipe Book

A gastronomic feel-good novel about family secrets and new chances. Max Nyström is an acclaimed restaurant critic, but no one knows that he was fired from the newspaper he works for, and also forced to move into his aunt's studio. Max’ curiosity is awoken when he finds an old collection of recipes in the studio's bookshelf, written by his own mother. She disappeared without a trace more than thirty years ago. In the late 80s, young Kicki Nyström leaves Västervik for the big city. She has gotten a job at the bistro Lilla Champen and enjoys being part of the hustle and bustle of the big city. But wonderful is short, and life soon takes an unexpected turn. At the same time as Max starts searching for his missing mother, he gets to know the waitress Olga. Together, they begin to wallow in the mystery, but the path to the truth becomes both tricky and emotional.

320  pages

Reviews: 

"I adore this book! The Feel-good King Christoffer Holst completely knocks us out with a fun, romantic and none the least awful "I have to eat a kilo of garlic bread NOW" -sounding story about the unemployed food critic Max who finds his missing mother's old recipe book. The Forgotten Recipe Book is packed with fantastic recipes that are far ahead of their time. The discovery amazes Max - but also arouses complicated emotions. Why was he abandoned by his own mother? Why was she a waitress, when she should have been a master chef? Everyone says she's dead, but what if she's still alive?
The search for answers leads the reader deep into the profitable cellar vaults at the legendary restaurant Lilla Champen, and before everything is sewn together, we get plenty of romance, excitement to the thousands and also a nice depiction of addiction problems" 5 out of 5 - M Magazine

"Christoffer Holst proves that he is next level compared to other writers within this genre of feel-good novels for he manages to find the balance between depicting a dark theme with alcohol abuse while also offering beautiful depiction of Stockholm and mouth watering descriptions of food from the Mediterranean" - Aftonbladet magazine

"The Forgotten Recipe Book is a skillfully written novel... the book has a well working plot and good descriptions of both characters and working environments for food critics." BTJ, library service

"Wonderful novel that I got completely hooked in. I enjoyed the environmental depictions, story, characters and all the yummy food and beverages it contained!" -@bettansboktips, book blog

"A warm, cozy, sad story about love, food, addiction and a mystery. It will also leave you craving new and exciting dishes!" @bokmoster, book blog

"Easy, cozy and difficult to put down. The perfect book to enjoy during warm days in the sun." - Lollos bokhylla

"Feelgood at its best" - Kickis bokvärld

"Holst knows the art of writing page turners" - Millimys_books