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lawbooks600's review against another edition
funny
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
3.0
Score: Six out of ten.
This one was okay. I wanted to read A Taste for Love by Jennifer Yen for a while but I put it off for a few months, before finally picking it up at a library only a few days ago. The blurb sounded promising, but the ratings were low, so I headed in with low expectations. When I closed the final page, it was okay.
It starts with Liza Yang, a Taiwanese American, living with her controlling mother, seeing her as rebellious compared to her sister, Jeannie, but only because of one subject: traditional values. Liza's mother only wants Liza to date Taiwanese or Chinese men, and no one else. Why? I'm unsure, other than it's a value promoting monoracial marriages. The pacing is slow in the opening pages, and it doesn't pick up steam at any point in the narrative. The characters are likable and have character development, but it wasn't easy to connect or relate to them, especially Liza's second love interest. All the characters lacked depth, so I didn't feel like Liza and her partner had any chemistry, but adding more depth would improve the reading experience.
I like the diversity here, but I keep seeing a lot of Asian American stories, and I'd like to see more outside America, like British Asian and Asian Australian ones. Nothing much happens in the first 160 pages of the story, but the second half is more engaging as I get to see a baking competition, but the contestants are all Asian men. Liza soon realises the true purpose of the bake-off--her mother selected them, hoping Liza would date one of them, and she does. The relationship starts slowly but picks up, but I'd love to see more of the side plots, particularly those about racism and cheating.
I don't get to see why Liza's mother has a tight grip over Liza's life, especially considering she won't allow Liza to play sports (explaining her lack of swimming abilities until the 6th grade,) claiming she could risk tanning her skin and make herself less appealing (she still plays indoor sports behind her back without consequences, though.) It sends a message that Asians have a culture of not playing sports, meaning no swimming culture, soccer culture and so on, perhaps due to systemic racism. Really? I would've enjoyed A Taste for Love more if Liza's mother also changed as a character.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity and Racism
limeykiss's review against another edition
5.0
A wonderful, wonderful book. Cozy and comforting. It dealt with difficult issues like parental expectations, prejudice, the immigrant experience, and the modeling industry with such grace and care. The HEA is so good it makes me want to hug the book (except that would be uncomfortable, because I read it on my iPad). This is one of my top 10 fave books of the year so far, and it has absolutely won a spot on my "comfort reads" shelf. It has also renewed my love of boba tea and introduced me to Yokan and Taiwanese sponge cake, both of which I'm going to make this weekend!
kzhawol's review against another edition
5.0
Love, love, love. From Baking to Boba all my loves wrapped and stuffed into one bao, I mean book. This book covers the twists and turns of a first generation daughter of a locally famous set of restaurateurs and her family (mother) continuously trying to set her up with the 'perfect asian boy future husband'. Honestly this book made me want to drink boba and eat egg tarts while pining over Ben 10 times over.
cobaltbookshelf's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars
Super cute modern-day retelling of Pride and Prejudice, overall wholesome book.
Super cute modern-day retelling of Pride and Prejudice, overall wholesome book.
fezzik's review
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
hmarks15's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.5
marieintheraw's review against another edition
4.0
Overall, while it can be a bit lost towards the middle, this still is stellar baking romantic comedy.
I received an ecopy of this book via Netgalley; however, my opinions are my own.
I received an ecopy of this book via Netgalley; however, my opinions are my own.
alexandergrantwriter's review against another edition
4.0
~ Cute, Fun Read! ~
I definitely enjoyed reading this! It was quick to get into and keep reading and I loved all the characters!
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Liza was a good main character and her emotional journey was well done. One of my critiques though were some of her reactions. They just seemed pretty immature for her age and it seemed like she was blushing over something literally every other page. So it just got a tiny bit frustrating to read.
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Another small criticism is the constant references. I don’t mind always mind them, but these seemed a little jarring and didn’t flow too well, so I could have done without them.
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But overall, the plot was good and easy to follow along with and the relationships were cute and well-developed. The book will make you very hungry while reading it though, so you’ve been warned!
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A Taste For Love was a fun and cute romance and I would definitely read another book by Jennifer!
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CWs - infrequent medium language
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I definitely enjoyed reading this! It was quick to get into and keep reading and I loved all the characters!
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Liza was a good main character and her emotional journey was well done. One of my critiques though were some of her reactions. They just seemed pretty immature for her age and it seemed like she was blushing over something literally every other page. So it just got a tiny bit frustrating to read.
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Another small criticism is the constant references. I don’t mind always mind them, but these seemed a little jarring and didn’t flow too well, so I could have done without them.
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But overall, the plot was good and easy to follow along with and the relationships were cute and well-developed. The book will make you very hungry while reading it though, so you’ve been warned!
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A Taste For Love was a fun and cute romance and I would definitely read another book by Jennifer!
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CWs - infrequent medium language
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leareadssometimes's review
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Everything you expect in a quick, fun, contemporary read. Lively characters, slightly cringy moments, specific locations and just a load of fun. There is no deep, big plot to this. It's a cute story about a girl that likes baking and a boy she meets. A perfect book for summer holidays. Did the romance go from 0-100 very quickly? Yes. Was it kinda underdeveloped? Yes. Was it weird that she got over her ex within one page and didn't mention it once again? Yes. Was the sister wayyy too quick to be like: what's the plan to expose my boyfriend when she was sad literally one second before? Yes. Still recommend, though, for anyone that likes quick lighthearted romances.