Reviews with content warning for Cancer - The Romance Recipe

I’m so happy I picked up The Romance Recipe. I loved it! Amy and Sophie push each other to be their best selves, and their chemistry is so clear. And I spent the entire time reading so hungry! I wish they could come over to cook for me!

Steam: steamy open door

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avidreaderandgeekgirl's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective relaxing fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

sweet sapphic romance with an a-hole verbally abusive father, I did really enjoy this, the dad was a lot like my own, a bully, but overall it was a funny, sweet book that I thoroughly enjoyed. I wish they'd gotten into the mom more though. I'm glad they didn't really try to redeem the dad and give him so excuse. The narrators were great but I wish they'd had more distinctive voices, it was a bit confusing at parts who's POV you were in.

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onceandfuturereaders's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Queer romance between an owner of a struggling restaurant and the celebrity chef she brought in to run the kitchen. These two women were messy, but also perfect for each other. Once I got a feel for the characters, I enjoyed the book a lot.

One of the best parts of this book, in my opinion, was really that it felt like a love letter in a lot of ways to bisexual women. There are so many beautiful moments not only between the two main characters (like Amy is so validating of Sophie’s bisexual identity and Sophie’s own journey to explore her queerness is so relatable and beautiful to read), but also between Sophie and her mom. Honestly, her mom’s reaction was such a mom reaction that it made me laugh.

The book is a really quick read. It’s a little spicy, has a lot of miscommunication (or lack of honest communication), and both the leads have a lot going on. But both of them grow beautifully and I just really enjoyed it overall.

Thanks to NetGalley and Carina Adores for a digital ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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kbairbooks's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful lighthearted reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

This was a fun read. It hit on some heavy topics and the asshole dad/certain restaurant moments were a bit tough for me to listen to but it was a really lovely realization of self/sexy WLW/romance. Sophie was pretty patient with her woman’s issues and her coming out scene was not too bad! I do feel like maybe a little bit too much was packed into the story? Or maybe it’s just because of my brain at the time of reading it.

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qraveline's review against another edition

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emotional inspiring fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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melaniereadsbooks's review against another edition

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lighthearted reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Thank you so much to Carina Press and Netgalley for the arc of this book.

This is an absolutely adorable and introspective adult romance about a chef and a restaurant owner who put aside their differences to work together to save their restaurant, and end up falling for each other along the way.

I love the dual povs in this story! Amy is the grumpy to Sophie's sunshine but they are both so much deeper than that. I particularly loved Sophie's story with discovering her bisexuality and how much it is a part of herself! This part of the story was really meaningful to me and I thought it was dealt with gracefully and with the gravity it deserved.

This is also a super cute romance story with a little bit of spice. Sophie and Amy work really well together and watching them develop from co-workers to lovers to partners and equals was magical. I absolutely love this one and can't wait to have a physical copy!

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decklededgess's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted relaxing fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

trigger warnings: biphobia, emotional abuse, death of parent mention, sexual content, alcohol,

This book..idk how to express how emo and soft this book made me. Sophie and Amy both dumping for each other and then simping even harder while hooking up but pretending it’s casual except EVERY ACTION INDICATED OFHERWISE!!! I’m soft. Worst third act break up ever though this shit was ROUGH. Thank god it was quick and actually made sense for their arc. They needed the time to heal. Love love loveeeee

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