Feast by Catherine Kurtz

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Minha is a young woman in the late 1800’s, with a special gift. The daughter of a prostitute and Indian spice merchant, she is initially raised in London by her mother until she is of an age where she can no longer be hidden; she is brought to her grandparents’ house outside of London. It is not an easy existence being of darker skin, but she shares a special relationship with her grandfather, who exposes her to his garden. Because of him and his teachings, she discovers her gift of taste. She can smell individual ingredients and her time with him is almost idyllic, until her grandfather passes. Immediately upn his death, she feels rejected by her grandmother and feels forced to leave, eventually making her way to France.

While in France, she finds her way into a household where she becomes the official poison taster for the duc of a Chateau; still ostracized by the household staff, she finds peace in the stables where she stumbles upon a man who she helps nurse to health. Given all her struggles so far, it seems too good to be true that she starts having feelings for this man that seem could be reciprocated. And things are not good, as Minha’s troubles get worse.

I won’t go further into the plot, which takes us through twists and turns, with the timeline accelerating from months to years in a few chapters. The book started out strong for me, but then it moved quickly into many plot twists; initially I enjoyed the great description of the food and tastes. But then it seems that plot elements are thrown in, rather than allowing the reader to enjoy more sensory aspects. The special focus on taste was what drew me to the book to begin with.

This is a 2.5 up to a 3 star rating for me. Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley publishing group for an ARC in exchange for a book review.







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