The 'Queen of the Beach Read' Elin Hilderbrand Praises New 2026 Novel: 'This Book Is Perfect'
Elin Hilderbrand just finished The Reservation by Rebecca Kauffman, and she wanted her 231,000 Instagram followers to know about it immediately.
'Who doesn't love a good restaurant novel?' the #1 New York Times bestselling author wrote. 'THE RESERVATION by Rebecca Kauffman is a delight - it's clever and engaging as we hear the story of one night at a midwestern college town restaurant from the points of view of the staff, owner and one very special customer. This book is PERFECT for any book hangover.' Hilderbrand added that she came to the novel on the recommendation of fellow author Emma Straub.
Hilderbrand, often called the 'Queen of the Beach Read,' has more than 20 million books sold worldwide and regularly uses her platform to champion novels she loves. Her endorsement landed on a book that has already collected a year's worth of serious critical heat.
The Reservation, Kauffman's sixth novel, published February 24, 2026, is set at Aunt Orsa's, the finest restaurant in a Midwestern college town, on the morning the most important booking in its history is set to begin. When the operations assistant discovers 22 ribeye steaks have been stolen, and a wave of hostile online reviews simultaneously begins appearing, suspicion spreads through every corner of the staff. No one is above suspicion, not the Mennonite baker, the tattooed chef de cuisine, the various servers, or the inexperienced undergrad working as hostess.
The novel rotates chapter by chapter through each employee's point of view, building a portrait of the people who keep a restaurant running before the dinner service ever begins. The day in question is the one when John Grisham is set to attend a dinner at the restaurant, which raises the stakes for everyone already trying to manage the chaos of the theft.
The critical response has been broad and enthusiastic. Publishers Weekly gave it a starred review, calling it a pitch-perfect mash-up of Clueand The Bear.BookPage called it an observant, witty, and wry delight, and advised readers not to pick it up while hungry. Emma Straub, who pointed Hilderbrand toward the book in the first place, praised it on The TodayShow, saying fans of The Bear who find that show too stressful will love it.
Kauffman received her MFA in creative writing from New York University and is the author of five previous novels, including Another Place You've Never Been, The Gunners, The House on Fripp Island, Chorus, and I'll Come to You. She lives in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia.
Kauffman's talent for portraying large ensembles of sympathetic characters, launching multiple individuals through a single compressed timeframe, has drawn comparisons to the work of Elizabeth Strout and Jennifer Egan. The Reservation was named a best new book by People and a most anticipated book of the year by Southern Living.
For readers still in the fog of finishing a book they loved, Hilderbrand's prescription is simple. This one fixes it.
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This story was originally published May 19, 2026 at 1:12 PM.