A Supper For Ada Finch

Nell Finch makes supper for the dead. A guest who accepts her invitation can stay for one sitting. When her own mother dies, Nell knows exactly what to serve. She brings out the family winter pie and calls Ada by name. Her mother's chair stays empty. After a long silence, Uncle Bert asks for a slice. At the first hard frost, Bellwater's river rises to the upstairs windows and takes a bend that leaves the breakfast boats three streets from Ada's inn. Nell and Kit, the cook who hopes to buy the place, take their kitchen aboard a ferry. On Thursdays, Nell plays cards with Ada's oldest friend, hoping to learn what her mother liked when somebody else did the cooking. Maggie would like Nell to pay more attention to the hearts. Nell can invite Ada again. She'd give almost anything for one more Sunday with her mother. It's the Monday after that she can't picture. SERIES DESCRIPTION Use in the description field for The Farewell Cook series page. Most people can tell Nell Finch what their mother cooked. Ask what she ate when she had the kitchen to herself, and the room tends to go quiet. Nell travels the Sill valley with her own pans and an unusual trade. If she makes a meal someone would have chosen in life and invites them by name, they may come back to share it. They can ask for another helping or complain about the mustard. Once they leave the table, that's goodbye. The Farewell Cook begins with A Supper for Ada Finch, a cozy fantasy set in Bellwater, where the first hard frost lifts the river to the upstairs windows. Nell comes home with a very good story about a sheepdog. For the first time, her mother isn't there to hear it.