Today is Herbs and Spices Day and we have some popular spices and herbs to pair up with books. Some of you may know these common spices and herbs from cooking. Now to make things fun we are going to pair each of these ingredients with a book that would best suit them. Hope you find each book flavorful for your eyes.

Paprika

It’s a spice that is mild and sweet, yet has plenty of heat. Paprika is good for your immune health. You may be familiar with using this on top of macaroni salad or devil’d eggs. But if you are fond of the sweet and heat then you’ll love the book Bad at Love by Gabriela Martins.

Bad at Love by Gabriela Martins

Your cheeks will heat and you will swoon at the sweetness in this novel.

Daniel moved from Brazil to L.A. to join a band called Mischief & Mayhem. The tabloids call him a bad boy. Girls swoon and the paparazzi eats up his anctics. However Sasha hates bad boys. When a coincidental encounter brings Sasha to write a story for her gossip magazine internship, Daniel is a perfect target. As she gets to know Daniel, Sasha realizes he is actually sweet and kind, not at all like his reputation. When Daniel has a major secret, will knowing change her heart or will she deliver a hot gossip story for her career to soar?

Sage

This special herb can improve brain function and memory. It has earthy and peppery tastes, along with a hint of mint. To emphasize the health benefits of sage, we went with an ironic approach and chose the book Still Alice by Lisa Genova which talks about memory loss.

Still Alice by Lisa Genova

Prepared to be moved by a story that will stay in your memory.

This novel focuses on a fifty year old woman who is soon diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Genova has a PhD in neurosicence, so she is able to create a narrative that hits the Alzheimer experience for many who go through it as well as those who care for them.

Alice Howland is married and has three grown up children. She is a renowned Harvard Professor, still well into her career. However, odd moments of memory los and confusion lead her to find out she is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. Being indpenedent she tries to maintain her lifestyle while navgating these strnage occurences. Her three children watch as she slowly slips into fear, madness, confussion and loses herself. Alice tries to grasp whatever memories she can muster. Heartbreaking, inspiring and terrifying; this novel will resonate with those who have family or are going through this disease.

Rosemary

Enjoy a woodsy and evergreen scent and flavor? Rosemary has health benefits that prevents allergies and helps nasal discomfort. If you are a fan of outdoors and enjoy Rosemary, then we recommend Lost in the Never Woods by Aiden Thomas.

Lost in the Never Woods by Aiden Thomas

In the small town of Astoria, children are missing and they are looking to Wendy for guidance.

Five years since Wendy and her brothers went missing in the woods. When the town’s children start to disappear. Wendy flees from the past but gets sucked back in when running over an unconscious boy lying in the middle of the road. Now she is pulled into the mystery of the town. She meets Peter, a boy who she thought only lived in her stories.

When the town’s folk claim that these children will meet a similar fate as her brothers, she must confornt the woods head on and figure out what is happening. Will she be able to face her fears?

Cayenne Pepper

This pepper spice gives a hot and fruity flavor, an odd pairing that works with many dishes. One of the benefits is that it helps reduce appetite. However, we took this into consideration and chose a book that is fruitful, hot meaning some themes are a bit scalding, and may reduce your appetite to a high degree. Fruit Forbidden by Arwen Tristram has several references to heated topics such as eating disorders, sexual assault, mentions of suicide, and abuse. If any of these topics are triggering to you we suggest you do not read this book. However, if you want to explore how Tristram creates a compelling self discovery narrative then by all means read!

Fruit Forbidden by Arwen Tristram

Mia wants to blend in and stay within the comfort of her books and friendships. At the age of sixteen the formation of cliques, perverse teachers, and family drama become overwhelming. She just wonders what the price will be to just be ‘normal’ or does she want to explore who she really is?

Abandoned by her so called friends, she is lost and wants guidance. Suddenly a new friend, a dragon with persistence and animosity suddenly starts making decisions for her. The dragon tells her what to say, do, eat, and who to befriend. The dragon slowly fills the shell of her life and is very loud. Will she be able to slay it?

Parsley

An herb that is bitter yet can improve your bone health. Speaking of bones, we recommend a book that takes bones as a central theme to a creative route of fantasy. The Bone Maker by Sarah Beth Durst, is a bitter tale of magic, bones, and tragedy among the fallen.

The Bone Maker by Sarah Beth Durst

Twenty five years ago, five heroes risk their lives to defeat a bonemaker named Eklor, a corrupt magician who created an inhuman army made of animal bones. Although life carried on, only four heroes survived.

Kreya, the group leader of the five, exiled herself to a lonely tower and now pursues the resurrection of her dead husband. But, she harbors a secret as well, she is also a bone maker. She has used human bones to recreate her husband. The catch is that although her husband can be resurrected, the spell will work if there is a sacrifice. She sacrifices a day from her life line and gives it to her huband. She rather have him for a year than none at all.

However, the law is that using bones is illegal, those who are dead are burned, including those who break laws. There is one place that bones still remain, the battlefield where several lives were lost, including her husband. But, defying the laws of the land may be the cause of why many of the dead did not rest in piece.

With each hero fighting their own battle: broken, soft, simple lifestyle, stuck in the past, and one who should be dead; what will become of them?

Which spice or herb is your favorite? Any of these book pairings a match made in heaven for you? For more book recommendations go to Bookstr.

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