I bought this at the Folio bookshop in town - 2 years ago. I'd started it and then ended up back on my shelf. But this time I got stuck in and enjoyed the romp. The concept isn't new - Lawrence Block and I think others have done similar things - but Ewan writes well, I love the Parisian setting and there is some good humour alongside the nastier characters - although not really very nasty at all I guess, compared to some books.
This was give to me recently - and I was drawn to the food theme. There are some amazing descriptions of food, and some wonderfully larger-than-life characters, but I think it could have been so much better. What was the focus? There is a lot of set up to Hassan's eventual start as a chef - but then it's as if the air is let out of the balloon - the high energy kind of dissipates. There were some annoying little editing glitches - nothing major, but still.... A good book, yes, and it definitely draws you in, yes, and it's well written, yes. But certainly not outstanding....
