What do you think?
Rate this book
The Hundred Gifts
The national bestselling author of The Sister Season shares a new novel about a woman who discovers the spirit of the season is truly in the giving....
With the holidays around the corner, empty-nester Bren Epperson realizes that for the first time in decades, she has no large family to cook for, no celebration to create. So she starts teaching a holiday cooking class, and it’s a hit—until Virginia Mash, the old lady upstairs, bursts in complaining. Rather than retaliate, Bren suggests that the class shower Virginia with kindness—and give her one hundred gifts. So they embark on the plan to lift a heart. Along the way, amidst the knitting and the making and the baking, they’ll discover the best gifts can’t be bought and family celebrations can be reborn.
CONVERSATION GUIDE INCLUDED
With the holidays around the corner, empty-nester Bren Epperson realizes that for the first time in decades, she has no large family to cook for, no celebration to create. So she starts teaching a holiday cooking class, and it’s a hit—until Virginia Mash, the old lady upstairs, bursts in complaining. Rather than retaliate, Bren suggests that the class shower Virginia with kindness—and give her one hundred gifts. So they embark on the plan to lift a heart. Along the way, amidst the knitting and the making and the baking, they’ll discover the best gifts can’t be bought and family celebrations can be reborn.
CONVERSATION GUIDE INCLUDED
384 pages, Paperback
First published October 27, 2015
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 77 reviews
November 19, 2015
An empty nest, a cooking class, an ornery neighbor, and fun-loving women who wanted to learn how to cook.
Brenda had an empty nest, nothing to do to pass the time, and a husband that didn't pay attention to her.
When Brenda happened upon Paula who was starting a business that was a cooking class, Brenda thought being a cooking teacher would be something good for her.
Brenda got into more than she bargained for, though. The class burned food and had to deal with a complaining neighbor who lived above the classroom, but luckily Brenda also met a wonderful group of women.
Virginia, the lady who lived above the classroom, always barged into the class and complained about noise and smells. The students didn't know what to make of her at first or how to handle her, but they figured they should try a little kindness. Did that work?
I laughed out loud and thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was witty, heartwarming, light, addressed family issues, and had a lovely ending.
A perfect book to boost your spirits and to give as a Christmas gift.
ENJOY!!! 5/5
This book was given to me free of charge and without compensation in return for an honest review.
January 28, 2016
I thoroughly enjoyed reading THE HUNDRED GIFTS. It is funny and heart warming and filled with so many different emotions. There is so much going on in this story but Jennifer Scott does a wonderful job of weaving all the pieces together. All the characters are very real and believable as you are reading and they will have you feeling sad and then giggling on the same page. More than once, I wanted to be right there in their classroom, cooking and laughing away the night with these awesome ladies! Once you finish devouring their stories you are going to want to tell everyone you know about this awesome book you just finished. After getting a feel for Jennifer Scott's writing, I'm going to add her to my list of "authors I must read" and find her previous novels and read them all.
ARC provided by Edelweiss for an honest review.
ARC provided by Edelweiss for an honest review.
November 4, 2015
From the back cover:
"With the holidays around the corner, empty nester Bren Epperson realizes that for the first time in decades, she has no large family to cook for and no celebration to create. Her daughter has moved to Thailand, her son has ditched college to backpack around the world, and her husband has disappeared into the basement to indulge his midlife crisis.
"So Bren starts teaching a holiday cooking class, and it's a hit - until Virginia Mash, the old lady living upstairs, bursts in, complaining of the noise, the smells, and the mess. Rather than retaliate, Bren suggests that the class shower Virginia with kindness. So they embark on a plan to lift a heart."
As much as Bren Epperson, would like to turn back the hands of time, she has no choice but to deal with the fact that this Christmas isn't going to be like the happy Christmases of the past. Everyone else seems to have moved on without her - her grown children, independent and living far away; her self-indulgent husband, too preoccupied with his own affairs to pay her any attention; even her widowed mother and aunt making plans to spend the holidays in Las Vegas. When she agrees to teach holiday cooking classes at the new kitchen shop, Bren hopes to find new meaning and purpose for the month of December.
But things don't go according to plan. Recipes fail, cookies burn, the noise level rises. Finally, Virginia Mash, whose apartment is situated directly above the busy classroom, decides she has had enough of the whole business and does everything in her power - even involving law enforcement - to stop the mayhem. And she doesn't make it easy for Bren and her students to execute their plan to "kill her with happiness," showering her with one hundred gifts. But as the reasons for Virginia's anger and bitterness are revealed, Bren and her students become even more determined to see their plan through to the end.
This is a great holiday read, an exploration of the challenges many midlife women face as they attempt to create "the perfect Christmas" for their families while floating in a sea of restlessness and self-doubt. I very much enjoyed spending time with Bren and her new friends and cannot help but wonder if there might be someone in my own life who might benefit from a hundred gifts - or maybe just one. Five warm and fuzzy stars! Very highly recommended!
NOTE: I received a copy of this book for FREE in exchange for a written review. There was no expectation that this review be either positive or negative, and I was not given any financial compensation to read the book or write the review. This information is disclosed in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255 [...] Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.
"With the holidays around the corner, empty nester Bren Epperson realizes that for the first time in decades, she has no large family to cook for and no celebration to create. Her daughter has moved to Thailand, her son has ditched college to backpack around the world, and her husband has disappeared into the basement to indulge his midlife crisis.
"So Bren starts teaching a holiday cooking class, and it's a hit - until Virginia Mash, the old lady living upstairs, bursts in, complaining of the noise, the smells, and the mess. Rather than retaliate, Bren suggests that the class shower Virginia with kindness. So they embark on a plan to lift a heart."
As much as Bren Epperson, would like to turn back the hands of time, she has no choice but to deal with the fact that this Christmas isn't going to be like the happy Christmases of the past. Everyone else seems to have moved on without her - her grown children, independent and living far away; her self-indulgent husband, too preoccupied with his own affairs to pay her any attention; even her widowed mother and aunt making plans to spend the holidays in Las Vegas. When she agrees to teach holiday cooking classes at the new kitchen shop, Bren hopes to find new meaning and purpose for the month of December.
But things don't go according to plan. Recipes fail, cookies burn, the noise level rises. Finally, Virginia Mash, whose apartment is situated directly above the busy classroom, decides she has had enough of the whole business and does everything in her power - even involving law enforcement - to stop the mayhem. And she doesn't make it easy for Bren and her students to execute their plan to "kill her with happiness," showering her with one hundred gifts. But as the reasons for Virginia's anger and bitterness are revealed, Bren and her students become even more determined to see their plan through to the end.
This is a great holiday read, an exploration of the challenges many midlife women face as they attempt to create "the perfect Christmas" for their families while floating in a sea of restlessness and self-doubt. I very much enjoyed spending time with Bren and her new friends and cannot help but wonder if there might be someone in my own life who might benefit from a hundred gifts - or maybe just one. Five warm and fuzzy stars! Very highly recommended!
NOTE: I received a copy of this book for FREE in exchange for a written review. There was no expectation that this review be either positive or negative, and I was not given any financial compensation to read the book or write the review. This information is disclosed in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255 [...] Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.
November 28, 2015
"The Hundred Gifts" is women's fiction. From the book description, I expected a feel-good story of a generous, loving Empty Nester finding new activities and friends to fill her life. Instead, Bren was very insecure, resentful, and judgmental. Even the gift idea was suggested by someone else, and Bren realized that she was doing it for selfish reasons. While the cooking class scenes were fun, the cooking-class-group scenes only took up about fifty pages.
The characters came across as realistic, complex people, and the story felt like it could really have happened. So the writing was good. If there had been more scenes of the cooking class and seeing friendships bloom instead of being told about it, I probably would have enjoyed the book. Instead, we see Bren being torn down by her family, fighting with her husband, and being seduced by her husband's best friend. Everything she tried failed. Even with Virgina, it's all heartbreak. Depressing reading, though things do turn around by the end.
There was a fair amount of bad language of all types. There were no graphic sex scenes. Overall, I'd recommend this book to women going through midlife crisis or empty nest troubles and who want to read about someone struggling with it, too.
I received this book as a review copy from the publisher.
The characters came across as realistic, complex people, and the story felt like it could really have happened. So the writing was good. If there had been more scenes of the cooking class and seeing friendships bloom instead of being told about it, I probably would have enjoyed the book. Instead, we see Bren being torn down by her family, fighting with her husband, and being seduced by her husband's best friend. Everything she tried failed. Even with Virgina, it's all heartbreak. Depressing reading, though things do turn around by the end.
There was a fair amount of bad language of all types. There were no graphic sex scenes. Overall, I'd recommend this book to women going through midlife crisis or empty nest troubles and who want to read about someone struggling with it, too.
I received this book as a review copy from the publisher.
September 29, 2015
What an extraordinary Christmas story. Virginia Marsh is a sad depressed ornery older woman who isn't happy that a cooking school is opening on the first floor of her apartment building. Bren has a husband who is busy and and empty nest with no children coming home for the holidays. Virginia tries her best to stop the classes from taking place but Bren and the ladies decide to "kill her with happiness" by giving her a hundred gifts instead of being nasty. So many great characters who all view the holidays with different mind sets. A great read and a happy way to spend an evening.
August 13, 2020
The idea of The Hundred Gifts is good. The execution, not so much. The majority of the book is very depressing. Brenda seems more like a wife from the 50's than someone in current times. I debated a rating of ⭐⭐ or ⭐⭐⭐. I didn't hate the book. The writing was realistic. But, I don't feel like I would have missed out on anything if I hadn't read it.
March 11, 2024
It's the Holiday season, with Bren Epperson teaching a cooking class.
Virginia Mash lives upstairs over the cooking class and has complaints about the noise, smells and the mess.
Bren has a solution for Virginia, showering her with kindness. The class gives her one hundred gifts with a positive attitude.
Virginia Mash lives upstairs over the cooking class and has complaints about the noise, smells and the mess.
Bren has a solution for Virginia, showering her with kindness. The class gives her one hundred gifts with a positive attitude.
October 18, 2016
This book is a little too sweet sometimes, but it's a holiday story so it goes with the theme. Anyway, these ladies decide to return grumpiness with kindness and see where it goes. My NYE resolution the last 3 years has been "Be kind" so I enjoyed this story quite a bit.
June 26, 2019
Took a bit to get into the book, but the last half was spectacular! It made me laugh, it made me cry! It made me want to volunteer & donate; this book will remind you about what I feel is our purpose, I think we were meant to help others while we struggle through life on Earth. Just a “feel good/I know I need to be a better person!” book!
March 30, 2026
I thought this would be a feel good book about a group of strangers doing heartwarming things. but the main character was so negative, to her children's happiness and her self depreciation. I just couldn't finish it.
January 25, 2022
Wonderful feel good book of hope love and perseverance. My daughter picked this out for me to read and I loved it!!!!
Thank you.
Thank you.
May 25, 2022
The main character got on my nerves but the last third was the best part.
November 30, 2015
Wow! I could relate to a lot in this book! The age of the main character, Bren. I could relate to everything about her and how she felt about her kids, and how her kids made her feel, her husband, and I could go on and on. Being the same age and being able to relate to the character so well, well . . . I enjoyed this one.
Bren’s friends talked her into teaching a cooking class, and she was very busy with that, yet stressing, too, while trying to get every recipe just right. Her time is spent with that right now. In the back of her mind she thought about her children. Bren is an empty nester, but not ‘just’ an empty nester, her daughter lived far away on the opposite side of the world, literally, in Thailand, and her son, well, she never really knew where he was until Bren was talking to her daughter one morning and she found out her son would be spending Christmas with her daughter. That HURT! Poor Bren! She had just been kind of beating herself up, or at least that’s what I call it, where she wonders if she’s depressed, or maybe it’s the menopause and her hormones are all screwed up. She was going through weight gain, and even though married, NO sex, husband asking her to leave him alone for right now, and whatever else. She says, “Those things are depressing too, right?”
So the Christmas bomb was dropped on her, literally, even though her daughter continually invited her to Thailand. She was afraid one day her daughter would have little Thailand-babies and they’d be running around. Bren’s heart was not in Thailand for Christmas, even though her two kids finally caught up with each other over in Asia, they at least would be together. She felt jealousy, as I know I would, and I’m sure that will happen to me one day, so it was a little refreshing reading about that in this book. It was kind of a preparation for it.
Bren’s neighbor, Virginia Mash (Smash!) starts giving the cooking class problems. It’s too loud. It smells. She sees smoke rising into her apartment. (UGH!) It’s this, it’s that, so the cooking class, instead of breaking up, decides to shower this woman with gifts!
I don’t want to get much more detailed than that so you can enjoy it! You’ll love this! There is the part where they cook Turduckens. That part is hilarious! There are some parts you can’t help but to laugh your behind off! Turducken? I don’t know what it is, either! I know I saw an ad for it on TV at KFC or Burger King one time? I can’t remember! LOL! The ladies were making shapes out of them, etc! It was just too funny!
These are just everyday ladies trying to get by with their families, friends, and the new things that make them happy now that they are empty-nesters. That really does take a toll on you, as they all learn together. The perfect sentimental book for this time off year. This book was provided to me by the Publisher through NetGalley.
Bren’s friends talked her into teaching a cooking class, and she was very busy with that, yet stressing, too, while trying to get every recipe just right. Her time is spent with that right now. In the back of her mind she thought about her children. Bren is an empty nester, but not ‘just’ an empty nester, her daughter lived far away on the opposite side of the world, literally, in Thailand, and her son, well, she never really knew where he was until Bren was talking to her daughter one morning and she found out her son would be spending Christmas with her daughter. That HURT! Poor Bren! She had just been kind of beating herself up, or at least that’s what I call it, where she wonders if she’s depressed, or maybe it’s the menopause and her hormones are all screwed up. She was going through weight gain, and even though married, NO sex, husband asking her to leave him alone for right now, and whatever else. She says, “Those things are depressing too, right?”
So the Christmas bomb was dropped on her, literally, even though her daughter continually invited her to Thailand. She was afraid one day her daughter would have little Thailand-babies and they’d be running around. Bren’s heart was not in Thailand for Christmas, even though her two kids finally caught up with each other over in Asia, they at least would be together. She felt jealousy, as I know I would, and I’m sure that will happen to me one day, so it was a little refreshing reading about that in this book. It was kind of a preparation for it.
Bren’s neighbor, Virginia Mash (Smash!) starts giving the cooking class problems. It’s too loud. It smells. She sees smoke rising into her apartment. (UGH!) It’s this, it’s that, so the cooking class, instead of breaking up, decides to shower this woman with gifts!
I don’t want to get much more detailed than that so you can enjoy it! You’ll love this! There is the part where they cook Turduckens. That part is hilarious! There are some parts you can’t help but to laugh your behind off! Turducken? I don’t know what it is, either! I know I saw an ad for it on TV at KFC or Burger King one time? I can’t remember! LOL! The ladies were making shapes out of them, etc! It was just too funny!
These are just everyday ladies trying to get by with their families, friends, and the new things that make them happy now that they are empty-nesters. That really does take a toll on you, as they all learn together. The perfect sentimental book for this time off year. This book was provided to me by the Publisher through NetGalley.
November 19, 2015
Christmas will be different this year for Bren. Her newly married daughter has moved to Thailand and her son who decided at the last-minute not to go to college is wandering the world. Her husband seems to go through a hobby every few weeks – a recent one had the house smelling like the inside of a gasoline can. So Bren is finding her nest empty and not pleased with that. When she’s approached to teach a cooking class she decides to do it even though she’s probably not the best person to teach others how to cook.
Bren’s students are her mother, her crusty aunt, a quiet young woman and a few others. They all get along fine but there’s a crabby woman who lives in the apartment above the kitchen classroom who complains from the very first day. She is unhappy that all these noisy people and smells are infiltrating her world. She’s determined to shut them down. The women are shocked by such a negative attitude – especially at this time of year. The class decides to “kill her with kindness” which yields unexpected results that ultimately gave surprising (to me, anyway) depth to what began as a fluffy novel.
Even though I understood Bren I didn’t always like her. At first she came across as kind of self-centered. Her inner dialogue was off-putting at times. Slowly, though, Jennifer Scott revealed Bren’s layers, as well as those of a few other characters, which gave me a fuller appreciation of her thoughts and actions.
There’s so much going on in this novel but Jennifer Scott did a great job weaving all the threads into a story that was highly entertaining and yet quite profound. We’ve all had losses and, as we do, we each react differently to loss. As I go through life I constantly remind myself to not judge at first glance – I don’t know what has happened to make a person behave the way she does.
I think if you’re looking for something a little different, that’s entertaining and yet will make you stop and think, you might enjoy The Hundred Gifts as much as I did. There are some laugh out loud moments and some very sad ones. I liked it all. This is one I’d love to see in film.
*I received a review copy in exchange for my honest opinion.
Bren’s students are her mother, her crusty aunt, a quiet young woman and a few others. They all get along fine but there’s a crabby woman who lives in the apartment above the kitchen classroom who complains from the very first day. She is unhappy that all these noisy people and smells are infiltrating her world. She’s determined to shut them down. The women are shocked by such a negative attitude – especially at this time of year. The class decides to “kill her with kindness” which yields unexpected results that ultimately gave surprising (to me, anyway) depth to what began as a fluffy novel.
Even though I understood Bren I didn’t always like her. At first she came across as kind of self-centered. Her inner dialogue was off-putting at times. Slowly, though, Jennifer Scott revealed Bren’s layers, as well as those of a few other characters, which gave me a fuller appreciation of her thoughts and actions.
There’s so much going on in this novel but Jennifer Scott did a great job weaving all the threads into a story that was highly entertaining and yet quite profound. We’ve all had losses and, as we do, we each react differently to loss. As I go through life I constantly remind myself to not judge at first glance – I don’t know what has happened to make a person behave the way she does.
I think if you’re looking for something a little different, that’s entertaining and yet will make you stop and think, you might enjoy The Hundred Gifts as much as I did. There are some laugh out loud moments and some very sad ones. I liked it all. This is one I’d love to see in film.
*I received a review copy in exchange for my honest opinion.
January 6, 2017
*I received this book from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review *
This book was incredibly sweet and just what I needed to read going into the Christmas holiday. This book is all about slowing down and enjoying your family because life is ever-changing and may change in ways you never saw coming.
Bren was just a wonderfully kind person, I admit for most of this book I wanted to strangle her family for taking advantage of such a hard-working supportive mother, but in the end I realized that this is what families do. You take for granted the people who do the most for you.
In Bren’s case her son and daughter assume that she will always be there to cook/bake/talk to them. And her husband is just so overjoyed to have children out of the house he couldn’t care what she does with her time as long as she leaves him alone. Naturally he assumes that Bren will always be there, and when she finally points out to him that other men are seeing it and offering to take advantage of his absence he comes to his senses, and proves how much he loves her.
What makes this book truly great though is all of the side characters. When Bren decides to teach a cooking class, and meets this motley group of women, it just becomes hilarious. There were times when I was almost laughing out loud because of their antics, but there was also just as much sweetness. Also when the ladies decide that Virginia needs some kindness in her life they do a fantastic job of being realistic about it. Overall this book was just a sweet fun read. 4 out of 5 stars.
*This review was first posted to Moonlight Gleam Reviews http://moonlightgleam.com/2017/01/the...*
This book was incredibly sweet and just what I needed to read going into the Christmas holiday. This book is all about slowing down and enjoying your family because life is ever-changing and may change in ways you never saw coming.
Bren was just a wonderfully kind person, I admit for most of this book I wanted to strangle her family for taking advantage of such a hard-working supportive mother, but in the end I realized that this is what families do. You take for granted the people who do the most for you.
In Bren’s case her son and daughter assume that she will always be there to cook/bake/talk to them. And her husband is just so overjoyed to have children out of the house he couldn’t care what she does with her time as long as she leaves him alone. Naturally he assumes that Bren will always be there, and when she finally points out to him that other men are seeing it and offering to take advantage of his absence he comes to his senses, and proves how much he loves her.
What makes this book truly great though is all of the side characters. When Bren decides to teach a cooking class, and meets this motley group of women, it just becomes hilarious. There were times when I was almost laughing out loud because of their antics, but there was also just as much sweetness. Also when the ladies decide that Virginia needs some kindness in her life they do a fantastic job of being realistic about it. Overall this book was just a sweet fun read. 4 out of 5 stars.
*This review was first posted to Moonlight Gleam Reviews http://moonlightgleam.com/2017/01/the...*
December 29, 2016
This is a step-up from the usual Christmas romances because it had some laugh-out-loud lines about being a middle-aged empty nester. That being said, it is not a book that is going to change your live, but is an enjoyable, light read.
September 1, 2018
I actually flipped to the beginning of this book to check the copyright because it felt like something written in the 80s. I'm only 5 years younger than the protagonist but I could not relate even a little bit.
She apparently exists in a world without the internet or social media - how is she not following her kids on Instagram? - and has literally no interests. She's culturally illiterate, constantly confused about the countries her children are visiting and their traditions - and has never had a job. She apparently didn't go to college. Her life revolved around her children, yet she had no mom friends? (Her daughter also apparently doesn't work and has no interests other than her husband, by the way.)
She's in her hometown but exists without meeting people she went to high school with or anyone other than her husband's lifelong bros? And speaking of husbands, I'd have kicked hers to the curb with a swiftness. He won't even go on a "date" to Olive Garden - OLIVE GARDEN - with her and only develops a cursory interest in her after someone else does.
And, of course, she has a weight problem that makes me think the author 1) has never struggled with her own weight and 2) thought she had to include that to make the character a Midwest mom. At one point she writes about a size 16 woman's stomach brushing her thighs - really? - and at another point, the main character wears a magical dress she bought "60 pounds ago" that still fits but is tight around the arms. Okay.
To me, the entire thing read like a writing exercise to imagine the wife from Fried Green Tomatoes without the actually interesting backstory of her, you know, getting a spine but your mileage may vary.
She apparently exists in a world without the internet or social media - how is she not following her kids on Instagram? - and has literally no interests. She's culturally illiterate, constantly confused about the countries her children are visiting and their traditions - and has never had a job. She apparently didn't go to college. Her life revolved around her children, yet she had no mom friends? (Her daughter also apparently doesn't work and has no interests other than her husband, by the way.)
She's in her hometown but exists without meeting people she went to high school with or anyone other than her husband's lifelong bros? And speaking of husbands, I'd have kicked hers to the curb with a swiftness. He won't even go on a "date" to Olive Garden - OLIVE GARDEN - with her and only develops a cursory interest in her after someone else does.
And, of course, she has a weight problem that makes me think the author 1) has never struggled with her own weight and 2) thought she had to include that to make the character a Midwest mom. At one point she writes about a size 16 woman's stomach brushing her thighs - really? - and at another point, the main character wears a magical dress she bought "60 pounds ago" that still fits but is tight around the arms. Okay.
To me, the entire thing read like a writing exercise to imagine the wife from Fried Green Tomatoes without the actually interesting backstory of her, you know, getting a spine but your mileage may vary.
January 29, 2022
What a wonderful story - really enjoyed this read! Bren is an empty nester and has lost herself during the years of raising her family (I can relate!) She discovers a cooking class and is persuaded to be the instructor. Through this class, she discovers a world of friends, and a mean old woman who lives about the cooking studio. The author weaves this old woman's story skillfully throughout, giving us pieces of how and why along the way, building curiosity until we learn of the tragedy that changed her. Bren eventually reaches out with her beautiful idea of a Hundred Gifts. Kindness is never wrong. Even when it might appear to be unappreciated, I was so glad Bren persisted! Her relationship with her husband kept the plot moving forward too - I was rooting for them! Characters were memorable and colourful - Bren's aunt, the students in her class, they all had such great personalities! I will definitely look for more books by this author!
June 4, 2018
If you are an empty nester, you might like this book. While I am an empty nester, I couldn’t relate to Bren’s circumstances. I encouraged my children to leave home and have new experiences. It wouldn’t freak me out if my daughter lived in Thailand or is she decided to travel the world.The characters in Bren’s cooking class are not well developed. I wanted to feel that I was a part of the cooking class but that involvement didn’t really happen for me. I did enjoy reading about Virginia and the circumstances that drove her to be the mean old lady with the old dog. The message is about having empathy and finding a way to reach out and touch people. It’s a feel good story at the end.
February 27, 2018
When holidays approach and you are an empty nestor for the first time you wonder how you will cope. Bren Epperson is trying to manage her life with out her son and daughter who both live overseas. Bren husband is caught up in a midlife crisis and his latest craze is forming a band in their basement. Bren starts teaching a cooking class and its a hit (even though she is not a great teacher) until the woman who lives above the shop starts complaining about the noise and smells.Bren suggests the women in the class "kill" this woman with kindness and gifts but it all backfires.
October 28, 2019
I loved the idea behind this book, but the actual “hundred gifts” was such a small part of the story. I found the characters (except for Virginia and Chuy) to be one dimensional and Bren and Gary were downright annoying. Gary’s friends were all stereotypes - a midlife crisis, an older man with a hot young wife, and the divorced man hitting on his friend’s wife. The women in the Kitchen Classroom were more interesting, but never fully developed. All in all, not the heartwarming Christmas story I expected.
January 13, 2024
Bren is dealing with an empty nest this Christmas and is struggling to deal with having her son and daughter far away. She gets talked into running a cooking class at a new store and recruits some friends and family to take the class to help support her. Even though things go wrong, the class participants begin to bond, but are challenged by the upstairs neighbor who is determined to shut them down. Bren decides that they should try to reach out to her by giving gifts and they find out that she has her own pain that is driving her but also has the ability to provide some kindness.
December 27, 2019
This is my second time reading this book. And it's so good. You feel like it's a true story, caught myself talking about it to other people like it was real. Such a good heart warming story, makes you realize that you never know what others are going through and take time for others don't give up on them right away. I could go on more about this book it gives you lots to talk about. But if your reading the reviews to see if you should read it I would say yes!
June 21, 2020
I liked this story and the characters. Husband and wife become empty nesters and after getting a little turned around find their way back to each other. It had some comedy along with a bit of realism. It just had such a slow start. It wasn’t until chapter 20 (out of 38) that the story finally made sense to the tile and started getting so much better. Glad I stuck with it, but could’ve gotten there so much faster.
June 3, 2022
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I was at a bookstore looking for a new author and found two books by Jennifer. I have read this one first and it totally warmed my heart. Exactly the kind of book I enjoy. Humor, affection, friendship, sadness...it's all in there. I loved the characters and can imagine them being my friends.
Great storyline and delving into characters and subplots. I highly recommend!! <3
Great storyline and delving into characters and subplots. I highly recommend!! <3
October 9, 2022
This one needs to be divided into first half and last half.
First half, 1.5 stars. Bren was really really unlikable and her husband wasn't much better. Although, I have to admit, if I was married to that whiny twit I probably would have done ANYTHING too to avoid being in her presence.
Last half, 2.5 stars. Things picked up a bit as the book got closer to the conclusion. Pretty much everything about the turducken made me laugh. Virginia's story was very sad. No wonder she lashed out so much.
First half, 1.5 stars. Bren was really really unlikable and her husband wasn't much better. Although, I have to admit, if I was married to that whiny twit I probably would have done ANYTHING too to avoid being in her presence.
Last half, 2.5 stars. Things picked up a bit as the book got closer to the conclusion. Pretty much everything about the turducken made me laugh. Virginia's story was very sad. No wonder she lashed out so much.
January 26, 2019
I found my thoughts in Bren's word
I enjoyed the book. It was a quick read and I found some relief in realizing I feel and think like Bren at times. Not as extreme, but it can be there. Her main characters are described well and she reveals truth in behaviors. I hope she writes more books.
I enjoyed the book. It was a quick read and I found some relief in realizing I feel and think like Bren at times. Not as extreme, but it can be there. Her main characters are described well and she reveals truth in behaviors. I hope she writes more books.
June 29, 2017
I liked this story. It is a Christmas story. It is about hurt and healing. Parents making their way into the empty nest stage. It is about women's friendships. It is a redemptive story. Some of the situations were a little rough. There was unnecessary profanity. But all in all a happy ending.
August 29, 2017
Bren's children have left the house and she is out of sorts being an empty nester. She takes on a job of cooking class and the story evolves around the community of the class and a difficult neighbor to the cooking school.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 26, 2017
This was a cute, quick read. Perfect for the holiday season.
I really identified with Bren Epperson, the main character. Although I don’t have an empty nest myself, I understand the feeling of not being seen or feeling inadequate.
I really identified with Bren Epperson, the main character. Although I don’t have an empty nest myself, I understand the feeling of not being seen or feeling inadequate.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 77 reviews