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Friend of the Devil
Friend of the Devil
Friend of the Devil
Ebook351 pages4 hours

Friend of the Devil

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

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It’s 1990, and some critics believe that America’s most celebrated chef, Joseph Soderini di Avenzano, cut a deal with the Devil to achieve fame and fortune. Whether he is actually Bocuse or Beelzebub, Avenzano is approaching the twenty-fifth anniversary of his glittering Palm Beach restaurant, Chateau de la Mer, patterned after the Michelin-starred palaces of Europe. Journalist David Fox arrives in Palm Beach to interview the chef for a story on the restaurant’s silver jubilee and quickly becomes involved with Chateau de la Mer’s hostess, Alessandra, unwittingly transforming himself into Avenzano’s rival. When the chef invites David to winter in Florida and write his authorized biography, he gradually becomes sucked into the restaurant’s vortex—shipments of cocaine coming up from the Caribbean; the Mafia connections and unexplained murder of the chef’s original partner; and the chef’s ravenous ex-wives, swirling in the background like a hidden coven. As Alessandra plots the demise of the chef, David tries to sort out hallucination and reality, while Avenzano plays with him like a feline’s catnip-stuffed toy.
LanguageEnglish
Release dateMay 28, 2016
ISBN9781626944510

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Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
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  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    This is a funny book. So mission accomplished there. I was hoping this would be the outcome. So many times I have come across books where I was expecting them to be funny and they were not. This is amazing that this is Mr. Spivak's first fiction novel. Yet, you can tell that Mr. Spivak is an experienced writer. His wealth of knowledge with wine, spirits, food, restaurants, and culinary travel lends very nicely to this book. I was almost drooling from the descriptions of the food that chef Soderini di Avenzano would cook. It was as if I was sitting at the table being presented the food. Although as much as I found the chef to be an interesting person; it was actually David that I was more drawn to. Just his presence, voice, and persona are what had me intrigued. Well that and the fact that he was not so easily fooled by chef Soderini di Avenzano. If you are a fan of foodie books, comedy, or are just looking for a good book then you should check Friend of the Devil out.

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Friend of the Devil - Mark Spivak

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