Bay Area chef Donia Bijan's yummy prose pulls readers behind the headlines of contemporary Tehran. Last Days of Café Leila reads like a love letter to the author’s childhood homeland. We follow Noor, who returns to Tehran nursing a broken heart and seeking reunion with her father, Zod, who is the patriarch/proprietor of an elegant restaurant. The cast of characters includes Noor's rebellious teen daughter, Lily, and her own childhood nanny, Naneh Goli. Flashbacks excavate secrets about Noor's mother, Pari, who died mysteriously.

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This book is a feast of small plates and generous pours of lyrical, poetic prose. Insecure main character Tess, 22, isn't sure what she wants out of life but plunges into a high-paced, intense job serving at "one of the top" NYC restaurants. Yearning for sensual experiences - and an alluring bartender, Jake - Tess finds herself spinning in binges of booze, drugs, and emotions. The tension between Tess' entrapment and freedom is just as seductive as her first sliver of heirloom, "tie-dyed pink and red" tomato.

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