Natalie Tan's Book of Luck and Fortune by Roselle Lim

Natalie Tan is finally going home.  Her mother died unexpectedly and she has to pick up the pieces.  She finds she has inherited her grandmother's restaurant as well as her mother's apartment above it.  She left home because she wanted to take cooking classes and her mother wanted her to go to college.  Now she has an opportunity to open a restaurant and she's going to do it.  But the whole street is gray and lifeless.  Where did the customers go?  Why are the businesses failing?

Berkley Books and Net Galley allowed me to read this book for review (Thank you).  This book is being published today.

She visits with the shop owners and listens to their tales of woe.  Then she's given her grandmother's cookbook.  Not only does it have good recipes, it has suggestions for what it will fix.  Eat one dish and develop courage.  Eat another and renew love in a relationship.  She starts feeding the neighbors.  It works for a while but then one falls and breaks his leg, the couple starts arguing again and it looks like it was all for naught. There is a very aggressive realtor trying to talk them into selling.

Natalie also finds a new love interest.  She's still trying to hold the neighborhood together.  And then her restaurant catches fire and burns...

She talks about walking away from the mess and her boyfriend knows that will mean leaving him, so he goes.  You will be amazed about who steps in to help.  Now can she get her love back?

I enjoyed the read.  It has history, romance, and some crotchety old people in it.  What more could you want?