An Indie Next Pick!
A Most Anticipated Book from: People Magazine, Los Angeles Times, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Southern Living, UK Vogue, and Chicago Review of Books.
"A book that’s sure to satiate your appetite." —People Magazine
"From the Mennonite baker to the tattooed chef to the college student hostess, no one creates characters like Kauffman." —Lizz Schumer, People Magazine
"Entertaining . . . [T]he story develops into a profound meditation on what it means to be connected, which Kauffman elucidates with a light touch when a bar guest reflects on the nature of storytelling . . . It’s a pitch-perfect mash-up of Clue and The Bear." —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Yes, it’s a mash-up of locked-room mystery and “The Bear,” but it’s also a beautifully crafted novel in stories that reveals characters’ essential loneliness right beside their cravings for true connection.” —Bethanne Patrick, Los Angeles Times
“Rebecca Kauffman does an incredible job in bringing this restaurant and all its employees to life on the page, and the result is a madcap mystery that makes The Bear seem calm and collected. This utterly delightful novel is a full feast for readers.” —Michael Welch, Chicago Review of Books
"Kauffman explores her characters' interactions and backgrounds with aplomb . . . The Reservation is a big-hearted novel perfect for J. Ryan Stradal's fans." —Shelf Awareness
"A restaurant-based mystery reveals more than just the culprit in this sprightly drama . . . [A] tender tale that seeks the 'immeasurable satisfaction' of an ordinary job well-done. In what is largely a light and funny novel, Kauffman nevertheless touches some of the deeper mysteries of the human condition: desire, longing, and an inchoate sense that there is something larger than our circumstances which binds us all together. A book that proves light touches can leave lasting impressions." —Kirkus Reviews
“Who doesn’t love a story set in an insulated small-town restaurant—so ripe for drama. Kauffman, longlisted for The Center for Fiction First Novel Prize in 2016, has penned a thoroughly appealing and subtly insightful novel about the pressure cooker of a restaurant called Aunt Orsa’s…Everyone’s a suspect, from the chef to the baker to the hostess to the servers. You’ll enjoy finding out who did it and why.” —Melanie Fleishman, The Center for Fiction
"The characters are engaging, sympathetic, and portrayed without judgment. The staff members are so much more than the work they do, and the care and curiosity that Kauffman brings to all of them is effective and purposeful. The gustatory details, too, are rich and delightful as the story unfolds. Observant, wry and witty, The Reservation is a joy—just don’t read it while you’re hungry." —Freya Sachs, BookPage
"The novel is engaging not so much because of what happens but rather in the portrayal of the characters and how they view each other . . . The Reservation has spot-on observations about human nature." —Mary Ann Zehr, The Harrisonburg Citizen
"Both peppery and poignant." —Erin Douglass, The Christian Science Monitor
"This is Big Night, but with sandy blond hair and a Southern drawl! So, so good." —Emma Straub
“Rebecca Kauffman is brilliant and her books keep getting brillianter." —David Lipsky, author of The Parrot and the Igloo and Although Of Course You End Up Becoming Yourself
“One thing I love about fiction is that it can take you anywhere. For instance, an entire novel can take off when a whole bunch of steak are stolen from a restaurant refrigerator. That this relatively small theft can change the trajectory of people’s lives. With The Reservation, her sixth novel, Rebecca Kauffman has proven herself to be a master of documenting ordinary life—revealing how complicated, rich, puny, funny, beautiful, and absolutely bittersweet it can be.” —Marcy Dermansky, author of Hot Air
Bookseller Praise:
“Captivating and humorous, this should be on the TBR list of anyone who appreciates character-driven novels.” —Pat Rudebusch, Orinda Books (Orinda, CA)
“The Reservation is The Bear meets Anxious People: sharp, funny, and tightly knit.”—Beth Seufer Buss, Bookmarks (Winston-Salem, NC)
“Bold, flavorful, and impossible to put down—The Reservation is an irresistible blend of drama, wit, and the messy beauty of service.”—Jewell Petrowitz, Books & Company (Oconomowoc, WI)
“Featured on today’s menu are characters who are flawed, sweet, annoying, complicated, secretive, ambitious, and a little desperate. Set on one very imporant day in a midwest restaurant, The Reservation blends the backstories of each employee into a completely filling and satifisying story. When steaks are at stake, everyone is a suspect.” —Nancy Baenen, Arcadia Books (Spring Green, WI)
“A perfect little world, like Big Night or Last Night at the Lobster. Restaurant drama, human drama, humor! I love all of Rebecca Kauffman’s books but this is her most commercial, and you should stack ‘em high!!!!” —Emma Fusco-Straub, Books Are Magic (Brooklyn, NY)
“It’s incredible to me how the story of a single dinner service at a local restaurant can manage to be immensely gripping, entirely fascinating, and quietly touching all at once. Getting to know each worker at the restaurant on the day of a celebrity author visit when everything seems to be going wrong is as fulfilling as a three course meal.” —Tabitha Klein, The MIT Press Bookstore (Cambridge, MA)
“Told over the course of a single day, this novel gives vibrant voice to each person on staff via their role in the restaurant. It’s a brilliant structure for a story of class, love, art, and ambition. The reader has the best seat in the house—this is one reservation you don’t want to miss.” —Laurel Rhame, Phoenix Books (Essex Junction, VT)
“Rebecca Kauffman has once again introduced us to a group of interesting people and then unfolded their lives for us at precise moments—when they intersect, when they leave the room, when they realize something about themselves, or, about the other. Set in the restaurant world, if you didn’t have extreme empathy for anyone who works in a restaurant, you will now.” —Kira Wizner, Merritt Bookstore (Millbrook, NY)