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3.51 AVERAGE
3.51 AVERAGE
I loved this!
An adorable romance, descriptions of food that make me hungry (FYI don't read this if you're trying to eat healthy), and an actually understandable third-act conflict that they talk through!
Definitely a foodie romance I'd recommend!
An adorable romance, descriptions of food that make me hungry (FYI don't read this if you're trying to eat healthy), and an actually understandable third-act conflict that they talk through!
Definitely a foodie romance I'd recommend!
I love Jackie's books because I know I'm always going to get good banter, strong family relationships, and mouth-watering food porn. And a book about an up-and-coming leading man learning the basics of baking so he can go on Not!Nailed It, delivers everything I needed in spades.
Warning, this book has a lot of discussion of parental death, which I know can be a trigger and turn-off for some, but the way Ryan and his dad finally come together at the end made it totally worth it for me. Honestly I might have liked their relationship arc even more than the main romance.
Warning, this book has a lot of discussion of parental death, which I know can be a trigger and turn-off for some, but the way Ryan and his dad finally come together at the end made it totally worth it for me. Honestly I might have liked their relationship arc even more than the main romance.
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I wanted three things as I read this:
One -- I wanted to bake a cake
Two -- I (vaguely) wanted donuts
Three-- I wanted this to end within the first 50 pages.
I will say that, like many bakery-based romances (is that a genre? I'm claiming that term now), it's a cute premise. I'd say this is a very Hallmark-y book with an Asian cast. But I couldn't get into the writing, the "banter", or the incredibly awkward sex. It almost felt like I should have been playing a forced laugh track throughout.
The food descriptions were also exasperating -- when our romantic interest tries the "best ever donut," they get hints of "sugar, flour, and butter." Note to anyone reading: if you get hints of flour in your baked goods, then it's raw and you should return the item and find another bakery. I wanted donuts, yes, but I'm always hungry and the bakery items in this just didn't do it for me.
To be fair, if you want a mindless, cutesy, forgettable read, this is perfect.
One -- I wanted to bake a cake
Two -- I (vaguely) wanted donuts
Three-- I wanted this to end within the first 50 pages.
I will say that, like many bakery-based romances (is that a genre? I'm claiming that term now), it's a cute premise. I'd say this is a very Hallmark-y book with an Asian cast. But I couldn't get into the writing, the "banter", or the incredibly awkward sex. It almost felt like I should have been playing a forced laugh track throughout.
The food descriptions were also exasperating -- when our romantic interest tries the "best ever donut," they get hints of "sugar, flour, and butter." Note to anyone reading: if you get hints of flour in your baked goods, then it's raw and you should return the item and find another bakery. I wanted donuts, yes, but I'm always hungry and the bakery items in this just didn't do it for me.
To be fair, if you want a mindless, cutesy, forgettable read, this is perfect.
funny
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:
No
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
So so so cute and also very steamy! The drama at the end seemed a bit forced but I liked the diversity and the natural growth of the relationships and the depth of the characters and their lives.
Actor Ryan and baker Lindsay’s relationship starts with a bang — or maybe more of a crash — when Ryan knocks over a tray of Lindsay’s artisan donuts. Despite the rocky start, they hit it off. When Ryan joins the cast of a celebrity baking show, Lindsay agrees to teach him to bake, and their connection keeps getting sweeter.
Sometimes you just need a sugar-coated happy ending, and this book was exactly that! I loved all the baking scenes, and I appreciate how the characters were shown handling loss and grief. If anything, it was a bit light on actual conflict; most of it happened in their heads, doubting if things would go well although they inevitably did. But in a pandemic where it feels like everything that can go wrong has gone wrong, it was nice to see things go well for Ryan and Lindsay!
Thanks to Berkley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Sometimes you just need a sugar-coated happy ending, and this book was exactly that! I loved all the baking scenes, and I appreciate how the characters were shown handling loss and grief. If anything, it was a bit light on actual conflict; most of it happened in their heads, doubting if things would go well although they inevitably did. But in a pandemic where it feels like everything that can go wrong has gone wrong, it was nice to see things go well for Ryan and Lindsay!
Thanks to Berkley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.
There is a difference between donuts and rom-coms.
Stay with me on this one. It'll all come together. (Or it won't, and we'll all be left craving deep fried pastries and filled only with disappointment.)
Donuts are for everybody. Even myself: For years I thought I didn't care for donuts, and then Tim Hortons Timbits and Voodoo Doughnuts Homer/Dirt/Buttermilk Bar (respectively) came into my life, and I realized the error of my ways.
There are cake donuts for people who are boring, and there are donut holes for people who are dainty like little dolls, and there are Dunkin Donuts for people who always thought bread should have bulletproof layers of frosting on it, and there are filled donuts for overgrown children such as myself.
There's something for everyone.
So every person should have a donut, always. But...
Not every book should be a rom-com.
Take this book, for example. The food descriptions are excellent. The two main characters are unique and interesting. Their respective backstories and familial relationships are well done. In fact they are done better than...the actual plot.
The romance here brings the whole thing down.
I would say this is not necessarily a "funny" book, nor does it feel like a "romantic" one. There's not a real chemistry between the two characters, and I wasn't rooting for them to get together. And calling a book comedic just because it rhymes with the rom(ance) is my least favorite literary trend of the last 5 years.
We should've dubbed this a contemporary, put the romance in the background, and left it at that. Then I could have given it four stars and we all could've smiled and gone on our way.
Instead, here we all are. Disappointed and dreaming of donuts.
At least we have alliteration going for us.
Bottom line: REDUCE THE NUMBER OF ROM-COMS. INCREASE THE NUMBER OF DONUTS.
------------------
pre-review
aaaaaaand the best-worst part of this was the food descriptions.
i might need to buy a deep fryer.
review to come / 2.5
------------------
tbr review
oh no...immediately i want a donut, badly...
thanks to the publisher / netgalley / whoever for the copy in exchange for review
Stay with me on this one. It'll all come together. (Or it won't, and we'll all be left craving deep fried pastries and filled only with disappointment.)
Donuts are for everybody. Even myself: For years I thought I didn't care for donuts, and then Tim Hortons Timbits and Voodoo Doughnuts Homer/Dirt/Buttermilk Bar (respectively) came into my life, and I realized the error of my ways.
There are cake donuts for people who are boring, and there are donut holes for people who are dainty like little dolls, and there are Dunkin Donuts for people who always thought bread should have bulletproof layers of frosting on it, and there are filled donuts for overgrown children such as myself.
There's something for everyone.
So every person should have a donut, always. But...
Not every book should be a rom-com.
Take this book, for example. The food descriptions are excellent. The two main characters are unique and interesting. Their respective backstories and familial relationships are well done. In fact they are done better than...the actual plot.
The romance here brings the whole thing down.
I would say this is not necessarily a "funny" book, nor does it feel like a "romantic" one. There's not a real chemistry between the two characters, and I wasn't rooting for them to get together. And calling a book comedic just because it rhymes with the rom(ance) is my least favorite literary trend of the last 5 years.
We should've dubbed this a contemporary, put the romance in the background, and left it at that. Then I could have given it four stars and we all could've smiled and gone on our way.
Instead, here we all are. Disappointed and dreaming of donuts.
At least we have alliteration going for us.
Bottom line: REDUCE THE NUMBER OF ROM-COMS. INCREASE THE NUMBER OF DONUTS.
------------------
pre-review
aaaaaaand the best-worst part of this was the food descriptions.
i might need to buy a deep fryer.
review to come / 2.5
------------------
tbr review
oh no...immediately i want a donut, badly...
thanks to the publisher / netgalley / whoever for the copy in exchange for review
3.5/5⭐️
This book was super cute!! I loved the idea of baking lessons to lovers to more but it ended up being more than that! I love how Jackie Lau also tackled these different struggles and condescending misconceptions that Asian people and actors have to deal with.
I loved Ryan Kwok, I feel like I could picture his abs on Twitter lol! I enjoyed the depth he had and the emotions he felt going through the death of his mother and trying to help his father navigate his grief and his sister going through postpartum depression. They were heavy topics to read through at times, but I liked how it still felt digestible and light and you were just rooting for the best for the entire family.
Lindsay is a bad ass! I loved how she turned her grief from the death of her father into taking a chance and opening up her bakery. As a big donut fan, I loved hearing about all the recipes and the creativity that Lindsay put behind them. I also think it was super relatable how she felt stuck in her life, living with a roommate she barely knew, watching her best friend get married, and being single since the death of her father. I think a lot of people can relate to Lindsay in this way and that made reading about her so enjoyable.
Again, I applaud Lau for putting such honesty into these characters. It was interesting seeing the pressure Ryan felt to not be the nerdy Asian character or to try and represent Asian actors as a leading man in a rom com; these are things as a white person I don’t have to think about. Overall, I really enjoyed it and thought it was a fun read!
This book was super cute!! I loved the idea of baking lessons to lovers to more but it ended up being more than that! I love how Jackie Lau also tackled these different struggles and condescending misconceptions that Asian people and actors have to deal with.
I loved Ryan Kwok, I feel like I could picture his abs on Twitter lol! I enjoyed the depth he had and the emotions he felt going through the death of his mother and trying to help his father navigate his grief and his sister going through postpartum depression. They were heavy topics to read through at times, but I liked how it still felt digestible and light and you were just rooting for the best for the entire family.
Lindsay is a bad ass! I loved how she turned her grief from the death of her father into taking a chance and opening up her bakery. As a big donut fan, I loved hearing about all the recipes and the creativity that Lindsay put behind them. I also think it was super relatable how she felt stuck in her life, living with a roommate she barely knew, watching her best friend get married, and being single since the death of her father. I think a lot of people can relate to Lindsay in this way and that made reading about her so enjoyable.
Again, I applaud Lau for putting such honesty into these characters. It was interesting seeing the pressure Ryan felt to not be the nerdy Asian character or to try and represent Asian actors as a leading man in a rom com; these are things as a white person I don’t have to think about. Overall, I really enjoyed it and thought it was a fun read!