purplepenning's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.75
Read during the #TransRightsReadathon March 20-27, 2023..
Sweet, silly, spicy, serious, sensual. This is a contemporary rom-com between two cooking show contestants who are each experiencing a bit of a quarter-life crisis. Dahlia (f/queer) is recently divorced from her high school sweetheart and feels disappointing and directionless. Teaching herself how to cook and develop warm, comforting flavors has helped her get through the worst of it. Winning the $100k competition prize might help her get through the rest. London (nb/pan) is settled in their non-binary identity even if they're still unsettled by their father's lack of acceptance. They're hyper-focused and prepared — to put the strained relationship with their father aside, to ignore the trolls, and to establish their place as the first non-binarycontestant winner of a major cooking competition so they can use the prize money to start a nonprofit for LGBTQ kids. There's an undeniable spark between the two, but is there a future together ahead of them?
An entertaining and enjoyable read that had me laughing out loud in places even as I cringed at others. The writing is vivid and tactile. Which is generally great, but ... I don't ever want to recall someone's hands working with raw chicken when they're in the middle of a sensual massage. There's also a large cast of secondary characters and not nearly enough time to develop them, and a background of socioeconomic disparity that's not explored much. Overall, a really good debut with excellent LGBTQ rep!
Sweet, silly, spicy, serious, sensual. This is a contemporary rom-com between two cooking show contestants who are each experiencing a bit of a quarter-life crisis. Dahlia (f/queer) is recently divorced from her high school sweetheart and feels disappointing and directionless. Teaching herself how to cook and develop warm, comforting flavors has helped her get through the worst of it. Winning the $100k competition prize might help her get through the rest. London (nb/pan) is settled in their non-binary identity even if they're still unsettled by their father's lack of acceptance. They're hyper-focused and prepared — to put the strained relationship with their father aside, to ignore the trolls, and to establish their place as the first non-binary
An entertaining and enjoyable read that had me laughing out loud in places even as I cringed at others. The writing is vivid and tactile. Which is generally great, but ... I don't ever want to recall someone's hands working with raw chicken when they're in the middle of a sensual massage. There's also a large cast of secondary characters and not nearly enough time to develop them, and a background of socioeconomic disparity that's not explored much. Overall, a really good debut with excellent LGBTQ rep!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Alcohol, Cursing, and Transphobia
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Dysphoria, Excrement, and Blood
misgendering (alluded to and explored without being explicitly written), coming out, unaccepting family, internet trolls (alluded to and explored, not explicitly written), cooking gore and detailed descriptions of animal proteins, food-related sex play, public sex, divorce (backstory), pressure to have kids (backstory), socioeconomic pressure and disparitydanaslitlist's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
A romance novel that takes place on the set of a cooking competition? And it’s queer?! Sign me up!
There was so much to love in this book from the characters being vibrant and fleshed out, the building up of the romance, the drama on set! Not to mention the really important discussions of non-binary representation, navigating your life after it throws you a curve ball, and finding the strength to stand on your own.
This book gave me the warm fuzzies and it’s not often that I get those warm fuzzies. Especially rare that I get them from a romance novel. Also the sex scenes were wonderful and the perfect blend of spice and sweetness. I can’t hype the fact that there was communication during those moments and how refreshing it was to see that.
There was so much to love in this book from the characters being vibrant and fleshed out, the building up of the romance, the drama on set! Not to mention the really important discussions of non-binary representation, navigating your life after it throws you a curve ball, and finding the strength to stand on your own.
This book gave me the warm fuzzies and it’s not often that I get those warm fuzzies. Especially rare that I get them from a romance novel. Also the sex scenes were wonderful and the perfect blend of spice and sweetness. I can’t hype the fact that there was communication during those moments and how refreshing it was to see that.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Blood and Injury/Injury detail
linnypesto's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia and Blood
leighannebfd3b's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, Sexual content, Transphobia, Blood, and Biphobia
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Alcohol, Deadnaming, and Outing
arthur_ant18's review against another edition
emotional
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia and Sexual content
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Biphobia, Deadnaming, Homophobia, Alcohol, and Dysphoria
Minor: Blood and Injury/Injury detail
hazelsnoot's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
tense
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? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Sexual content, and Transphobia
Moderate: Blood, Body shaming, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, and Medical content
kelsqi's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Transphobia
Minor: Blood
katsbooks's review against another edition
emotional
funny
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
"She did not want niceness that was only granted because she appeared to fit into the boxes deemed acceptable by society."
"When you were around someone who felt everything, it mad you feel like you could feel everything, too. Like the depths of the world were suddenly limitless."
"You deserve more than you think you do. Go and get it all."
I loved this romance so much. It was so cool to see a non-binary love interest on page. I definitely would love to read more romances like this. I love that LGBTQ characters are becoming more mainstream because representation matters!
The steam was pretty good. If you like steamy books, it probably won't make you blush but it was still written quite well. The romance itself was a little slow-burn but not overly so. I also loved how well this novel modeled consent without having to have a whole conversation. It was just a natural part of how the characters interacted with one another.
I also really liked the food aspect. That was a fun addition to the story that kept things interesting. But definitely don't read this book while hungry! The competition really gave it a unique atmosphere since both London and Dahlia were very aware that they could be sent home at any moment.
My biggest complaint would probably be that I wish the competition had been fleshed out just a little bit more. I felt like we only got to know the other characters in the competition at a very surface level. Getting to know them better could have really added to the tension and intrigue of the story.
"When you were around someone who felt everything, it mad you feel like you could feel everything, too. Like the depths of the world were suddenly limitless."
"You deserve more than you think you do. Go and get it all."
I loved this romance so much. It was so cool to see a non-binary love interest on page. I definitely would love to read more romances like this. I love that LGBTQ characters are becoming more mainstream because representation matters!
The steam was pretty good. If you like steamy books, it probably won't make you blush but it was still written quite well. The romance itself was a little slow-burn but not overly so. I also loved how well this novel modeled consent without having to have a whole conversation. It was just a natural part of how the characters interacted with one another.
I also really liked the food aspect. That was a fun addition to the story that kept things interesting. But definitely don't read this book while hungry! The competition really gave it a unique atmosphere since both London and Dahlia were very aware that they could be sent home at any moment.
My biggest complaint would probably be that I wish the competition had been fleshed out just a little bit more. I felt like we only got to know the other characters in the competition at a very surface level. Getting to know them better could have really added to the tension and intrigue of the story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Transphobia and Deadnaming
Minor: Alcohol, Blood, Dysphoria, and Gaslighting
paperbrownies's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
-lgbtqiap+, adult, contemporary, romance, dual pov, reality tv
- nb|f
- nonbinary pan mc (they/them), queer white mc, white trans sc
initial thoughts: i am the biggest fan of cooking shows doesnt matter that i can only cook a handful of things when left alone in the kitchen but they were the greatest source of serotonin when i was a kid!! i used to Love watching my kitchen rules!! 😂 so yk i was definitely going to pick this book up!!
afterthought:
cw: alcohol, transphobia, misgendering, brief mention of blood, sexual content, discussion on divorce and joblessness
- nb|f
- nonbinary pan mc (they/them), queer white mc, white trans sc
initial thoughts: i am the biggest fan of cooking shows doesnt matter that i can only cook a handful of things when left alone in the kitchen but they were the greatest source of serotonin when i was a kid!! i used to Love watching my kitchen rules!! 😂 so yk i was definitely going to pick this book up!!
afterthought:
cw: alcohol, transphobia, misgendering, brief mention of blood, sexual content, discussion on divorce and joblessness
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol and Transphobia
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Blood
mxlewife's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia, Sexual content, and Biphobia
Moderate: Alcohol
Minor: Injury/Injury detail and Blood
references to using the wrong pronouns and misgendering, but not on the actual page