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3.74 AVERAGE
3.74 AVERAGE
emotional
lighthearted
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
Loved the behind-the-scenes details of cookbook writing, ghostwriting, and chef life.
This is a contemporary romance that checks all the contemporary boxes:
This is a contemporary romance that checks all the contemporary boxes:
- Therapy
- Hero and heroine have baggage (she’s a young widow with shitty parents, he’s an adult who struggled with dyslexia and also has shitty parents)
- Representation: religion, LGBTQIA+, size (curvy heroine, short hero), cultural, gender, mental health, neurodiverse
- Pets (heroine has a cat with special needs)
- Found family
Medium-high spice: open door, sometimes in the room.
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
The Slowest Burn follows Kieran, a chef who recently won a major cooking competition, and Ellie, a writer who was hired ghostwrite Kieran’s first cookbook. With a looming deadline without any progress made, Kieran and Ellie are sent to a cottage to work on the cookbook and get to know each other in the process.
Ultimately, I was underwhelmed by the lack of chemistry between Kieran and Ellie. It really felt like they were friends who hooked up when one of them was at their lowest.
Thank you to Sarah Chamberlain, Saint Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for the eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Ultimately, I was underwhelmed by the lack of chemistry between Kieran and Ellie. It really felt like they were friends who hooked up when one of them was at their lowest.
Thank you to Sarah Chamberlain, Saint Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for the eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
full review to come but good lord this book made me hungry
arc received from netgalley in exchange for honest review
arc received from netgalley in exchange for honest review
He falls first + grumpy & sunshine + fake dating!
Kieran is an up-and-coming sunshiney chef.
Ellie is an uptight ghostwriter for celebrity cookbooks.
When these two total opposites get paired together, the sharpness slowly softens into attraction.
Read if you love...
✨he falls first
🫶🏼dual perspective
✨grumpy (her) & sunshine (him)
🐱the best cat
✨slow burn
🧑🍳MMC chef
✨fake dating
👩💻FMC ghostwriter
✨celebrity romance
👏🏼found family
✨hidden/secret romance
🫠caretaking
✨opposites attract
I loved this one & flew through it! It was so fun, but also touched on tougher topics!
As someone who has recently binged so much Top Chef & Chopped, I loved loved loved the entire main plot with Kieran having been on a food show, now making a cookbook, and Ellie ghostwriting it.
I loved the way they balanced each other out, the character growth for both, and the representation.
Kieran's adhd inner dialogue is chef's kiss & so relatable. There were so many moments with his ADHD, anxiety, and implied RSD where I just felt so so so seen and validated.
Highly recommend this one!
📍California
✨Representation: ADHD & implied RSD; anxiety; dyslexia; Jewish MC; plus-size MC; sober MC
‼️Content: death of a spouse, past; grief; toxic relationship with parents / in-laws; abandonment; child abuse, past
This book was so fun. The author does a really lovely job of creating depth in her main characters - Ellie and Kieran. They are characters who have lived some life and come to each other with realistic issues. The author treats them with honesty and vulnerability. She managed the changing POVs well too. Thanks to NetGalley for an early copy! Well done, Sarah Chamberlain!
The Slowest Burn lives up to its name! and I loved every minute of it! Sarah Chamberlain’s debut is a sweet, dual POV, opposites-attract love story that’s filled with all the right ingredients: a chef, the writing of a cookbook, and some wholesome characters. Sure, the plot is a bit predictable, but it's like comfort food. a bit cheesy and totally worth it.
Ellie’s relationship with her father-in-law was a standout, adding an extra layer of heart to the story. It's an easy 4-star read that will leave you feeling warm and satisfied.
Thanks, NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press, for the ARC!
Ellie’s relationship with her father-in-law was a standout, adding an extra layer of heart to the story. It's an easy 4-star read that will leave you feeling warm and satisfied.
Thanks, NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press, for the ARC!
emotional
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
The Slowest Burn is a debut contemporary romance that tackles a lot of heavy topics. CWs include loss of a spouse, emotionally abusive parents, loss of a child, ADHD and anxiety on page and an unhealthy sibling dynamic. Be warned going in.
Ellie Wasserman is a 30 year old cookbook ghost writer living in San Francisco. Well, sort of living. She's been in limbo for the last three years since her husband, Max, died suddenly in his sleep. Ellie has been living in her in-law's guest cottage since then and has acted as their primary support through the loss of their son. Kieran O'Neill won a reality cooking show and has a cookbook deal to keep his profile up. However, Kieran has no clue what he wants his cookbook to be and struggles with dyslexia and ADHD, making this project a huge challenge. He and Ellie have very different styles of working and they butt heads at the beginning of their professional relationship. But once they start to understand each other, things warm up until they become a slow burn.
There was a lot to love in this debut novel. Sarah Chamberlain has a clear voice as an author, but more importantly, she created clear voices for both Ellie and Kieran. We're in dual, first person POV so it's really important to distinguish between the characters. My test for this is to see if I can tell who is narrating without looking at the chapter heading when it's in first person and I was able to with this book. She is also good at building conflict. The conflict, more than the romance, is the slow burn here. Kieran is ready to jump Ellie's bones the first time they meet. The attraction is never in doubt. What is in doubt is how two people who are individually struggling with so much and are so fundamentally different would make it work. I also enjoyed the richness of the world Sarah Chamberlain created. Ellie and Kieran's friends and family felt like full realized people.
Ok, therapy time for me: There seems to be a trend in contemporary romance this year (Just for the Summer, The Other Side of Disappearing, this book, to name a few) of using the CPTSD of oldest daughters who were left to raise themselves (and their siblings) because of neglectful and abusive parents as the impetus for romance conflict. I understand the deep well of conflict we can provide to a story because we are awash in the glow of attachment trauma and issues with boundaries (either too many or too few). But I am really tired of seeing untreated CPTSD all over romance right now, especially in women in their early 30s. I am one of these women, I am friends with some of these women. We were horribly abused and neglected by our parents but all of us have sought help to deal with it. Are we 100% well today? Absolutely not. But it strikes me as disingenuous to keep seeing women who have done little-to-nothing to unpack their trauma when they are so clearly aware that it's a problem.
This book bumped up against one of my biggest icks: your mental illness can be a reason for your behavior but not an excuse. Both of our main characters at different points use their trauma as an excuse for behaving stupidly. It's just a personal issue for me in books, especially contemporary romance. When they character knows they have issues (e.g. Kieran's ADHD) they need to be an adult about it.
All that being said, I think a normal person (e.g. not a person who fits into the "I raised my siblings because my parents were either too drunk or too wrapped up in their own shit to care" camp) will probably love this book. If you are in that camp with me, tread lightly and know going in that you will probably bump up against some things you're going to struggle to read.
Ellie Wasserman is a 30 year old cookbook ghost writer living in San Francisco. Well, sort of living. She's been in limbo for the last three years since her husband, Max, died suddenly in his sleep. Ellie has been living in her in-law's guest cottage since then and has acted as their primary support through the loss of their son. Kieran O'Neill won a reality cooking show and has a cookbook deal to keep his profile up. However, Kieran has no clue what he wants his cookbook to be and struggles with dyslexia and ADHD, making this project a huge challenge. He and Ellie have very different styles of working and they butt heads at the beginning of their professional relationship. But once they start to understand each other, things warm up until they become a slow burn.
There was a lot to love in this debut novel. Sarah Chamberlain has a clear voice as an author, but more importantly, she created clear voices for both Ellie and Kieran. We're in dual, first person POV so it's really important to distinguish between the characters. My test for this is to see if I can tell who is narrating without looking at the chapter heading when it's in first person and I was able to with this book. She is also good at building conflict. The conflict, more than the romance, is the slow burn here. Kieran is ready to jump Ellie's bones the first time they meet. The attraction is never in doubt. What is in doubt is how two people who are individually struggling with so much and are so fundamentally different would make it work. I also enjoyed the richness of the world Sarah Chamberlain created. Ellie and Kieran's friends and family felt like full realized people.
Ok, therapy time for me: There seems to be a trend in contemporary romance this year (Just for the Summer, The Other Side of Disappearing, this book, to name a few) of using the CPTSD of oldest daughters who were left to raise themselves (and their siblings) because of neglectful and abusive parents as the impetus for romance conflict. I understand the deep well of conflict we can provide to a story because we are awash in the glow of attachment trauma and issues with boundaries (either too many or too few). But I am really tired of seeing untreated CPTSD all over romance right now, especially in women in their early 30s. I am one of these women, I am friends with some of these women. We were horribly abused and neglected by our parents but all of us have sought help to deal with it. Are we 100% well today? Absolutely not. But it strikes me as disingenuous to keep seeing women who have done little-to-nothing to unpack their trauma when they are so clearly aware that it's a problem.
This book bumped up against one of my biggest icks: your mental illness can be a reason for your behavior but not an excuse. Both of our main characters at different points use their trauma as an excuse for behaving stupidly. It's just a personal issue for me in books, especially contemporary romance. When they character knows they have issues (e.g. Kieran's ADHD) they need to be an adult about it.
All that being said, I think a normal person (e.g. not a person who fits into the "I raised my siblings because my parents were either too drunk or too wrapped up in their own shit to care" camp) will probably love this book. If you are in that camp with me, tread lightly and know going in that you will probably bump up against some things you're going to struggle to read.
emotional
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Death, Grief
Minor: Abandonment
This was a cute but kind of average romance for me...with some added depth. It was definitely a slow burn which is one of my favorite tropes, but sometimes it felt a little too slow.
The depth came from both main characters as one was dealing with guilt and grief (both her own and others close to her), and the other was dealing with social issues and emotional abuse. I enjoyed watching as these two began to see outside themselves, recognize each other's needs/pain and step in to provide support and eventually love...that's what I really take away from this story. They both made missteps/mistakes, and there were a few frustrating moments for me, but overall, I admired the growth arc and considered it a good and worthwhile read.
My sincere thanks to the author, NetGalley and St. Martin's Press/St. Martin's Griffin for providing the free early arc of The Slowest Burn for review. The opinions are strictly my own.
The depth came from both main characters as one was dealing with guilt and grief (both her own and others close to her), and the other was dealing with social issues and emotional abuse. I enjoyed watching as these two began to see outside themselves, recognize each other's needs/pain and step in to provide support and eventually love...that's what I really take away from this story. They both made missteps/mistakes, and there were a few frustrating moments for me, but overall, I admired the growth arc and considered it a good and worthwhile read.
My sincere thanks to the author, NetGalley and St. Martin's Press/St. Martin's Griffin for providing the free early arc of The Slowest Burn for review. The opinions are strictly my own.
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes