I picked this up at a library book sale. As far as I know, I've not read anything else by this author. I think I saw the Kensington logo and thought it was a cozy mystery (rather than just fiction).

The book centers around two families: the Colemans and the Shepherds. The title comes from gatherings both families host that feature clam chowder (a combination of the two families's recipes) and the fact that the elder men of both families drink gin and have a toast that combines the two.

The negatives on this book far outweighed the positives for me, thus the lower than average rating.

I did like Martha (the dog). I liked the friendship between the two families and that Asa and Isaac used to visit Nate and Annie and were treated like their own children. Both boys seemed to have good memories of the house and their childhood.

Though painful to read about, I do think the author did justice to Asa's depression (resulting from a series of life events).

The negatives:
* everybody in the book tends to drink--some seeming to excess.
* Despite Asa's mother insisting he attend church and Noelle being a preacher's kid, neither seems to consider fleeing from temptation. I understand that to some extent, we may not be able to control who we're attracted to/who we have a crush on. But we can control our actions. We can choose to not put ourselves in situations where adultery will have a chance.
*Isaac juggles two girlfriends for a good part of the summer--not that he ever said he was exclusive to either one, but he also didn't tell either of them about the other.
*We're never really told what happens after Asa finds out Noah is probably his son. Is there a paternity test that proves it? Did Nate name Asa's parents as Noah's guardians (which would have made it easier for Asa to claim him or have a relationship with him)? Where did Noah live: with Asa, with the elder Colemans, with some other relative of Nate's or Noelle's? ( )