I'll admit it: what attracted me to Good Things in the first place was the promise of recipes at the back of the book. I'm a sucker for recipes. Otherwise, this genre of book doesn't particularly appeal to me. Having said that, I found this to be a delightful and engaging novel, despite its completely predictable ending.

Deidre McIntosh is Seattle's lifestyle and cooking maven - a local Martha Stewart. She has a successful television show, a beautiful apartment that she shares with her gay roommate and best friend, William, and a closet full of designer clothes. Deidre has a seemingly perfect, well-ordered world.

In fairly short order, her show gets cancelled, William meets the man of his dreams and moves in with him, Deidre gets evicted from the apartment, and she finds her investments tanking and no savings to help her keep afloat. To add insult to injury, a rival television station begins airing a show similar to Deidre's that features socialite Marla Banks, who openly mocks Deidre on the air and whips the tabloid news into a frenzy.

A timely encounter with a rich, handsome stranger, Kevin Johnson, results in Deidre getting an offer she can't refuse - unlimited access to Kevin's home in remote Jacob's Point. Almost immediately upon her arrival, she regrets it, but something compels her to stay, and her experiences in Jacob's Point help her to realize that she can have good things in her life once more.

Good Things contains thirteen recipes that are mentioned in the story, including corn fritters, salad, meatloaf, scones, cookies, and Deidre's tea blend.

Even though chick lit is not my thing, I found this to be a pretty smart and sassy novel. Deidre is a strong, self-sufficient character who is able to maintain a fairly optimistic outlook despite all the bad things that happen to her. She is likeable and human, and even though the happy ending is predictable, readers would be disappointed with anything less.