Little white lies can get you far for only so long. In Pickin’ Tomatoes , Maggie is desperate to find a way to make some quick money to support her and her daughter. Maggie is a single mom doing it all on her own. She spots a contest to win cash and the grand prize of being an editor in a popular women’s magazine. This is a unique story with so much witty humor from Maggie the main character. She enters the contest and suddenly becomes The Chef Of Hearts, a columnist who dishes out advice to the lovelorn and recipes which promise to be a sure way to a man's heart.

Maggie draws a lot on her personal life for inspiration to write. Her husband had an affair with the lady next door. We get insight into her relationship with her husband through flashbacks in the book. The reader will soon be as frustrated with her husband as Maggie is.

Once Maggie wins the contest and begins writing the column for the magazine, it is one roller coaster ride after another. She can't really cook, she never went to chef school, and she is a germaphobe. I love when she washes some meat for a recipe with dish soap. The advice column is cleverly written and a lot of the recipes I will probably try for myself. For a debut novel, JW Bull has come out with flying colors. I am really looking forward to many follow up novels from her. If you like food, women, female friendships, and quirky humor, you'll love Pickin' Tomatoes.




I received a copy of this book via the author.