Lindsay has sworn off romantic relationships following some emotional scars years earlier, instead enjoying casual hook-ups in the intervening years. As Lindsay and Ryan spend time together, they begin to form a bond and things heat up in the kitchen, and outside of it.ĭonut Fall in Love s hares some ground with Lau’s previous book T he Professor Next Door with a heroine who is settled into her career and life, building a version of herself she believes she wants. Lindsay lingers in Ryan’s mind and after he signs up for a celebrity episode of Baking Fail (think Nailed It ), he asks Lindsay to be his baking instructor. Our meet cute happens when Ryan collides with baker Lindsay McLeod at her shop and knocks two dozen specialty donuts onto the floor. He struggles, especially with not knowing how to talk to his dad-who now trolls him on Twitter instead of talking to him on the phone.

The recent death of Ryan’s mother and years of constant work have led him to take some time off near his remaining family to be supportive and connected. We join the story as actor Ryan Kwok has returned to Toronto following completion of the promotional tour for his latest film, a rom-com staring Asian leads that is getting less-than-stellar reviews. But that is not all that is happening in Donut Fall in Love as Lau unpacks some bigger emotional truths, in this case how we handle grief and how it interacts with larger family dynamics. I enjoy reading along as two people are dumb about their feelings, get less dumb about those feelings at different rates, and eventually stop being dumb about their feelings and Lau nails that as well. Lau is an author who knows how to include excellent food in her books and this one made me daydream about the donut shop my sister used to work at, but its more than that.

There is a certain alchemy to the way Lau writes books that feel like sitting down with a quick snack and a cup of tea, while also making them steamy. After the debacle of Always, in December I decided to make sure the next thing I read didn’t make me angry (don’t worry, future angry reviews will come – and soon – I just usually like to give myself 24 hours to get eloquent with the rage) so I put down the two books I was reading and went back to an ARC that I had not been able to get to before the deadline (my apologies to the fine folks at NetGalley and Berkley) because I know a Jackie Lau romance is going to make my heart happy – and Donut Fall in Love is no exception.

Donut Fall in Love by Jackie Lau