3.74 AVERAGE

emotional funny hopeful informative lighthearted reflective sad medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

The title sure is true to the book, it darn well felt like a slow burn for all the senses.  I was so hungry listening to this book at times šŸ˜… but makes sense when it’s talking about delicious food through out!  There were times when i was frustrated and Im like URGH! Just ….!!!! And why can’t ….THIS!?! Lol but you’ll have to read it or listen to the book to find out!  šŸ˜‰

I also Absolutely loved the narrators for this book too! Kate was absolutely fantastic and portrayed Ellie perfectly in my mind!  Loved Hunter’s voice, but I think i expected him to be a bit more high energy than so monotone.  But LOVED his tone of voice regardless and made for a really lovely listen.

š—”š—Æš—¼š˜‚š˜ š˜š—µš—¶š˜€ š—Æš—¼š—¼š—øā€¦

šŸ³Close Proximity 
šŸ³Slow Burn
šŸ³Mental Health 
šŸ³Grief
šŸ³Open Door - mild
šŸ³Dual POV

I received an advance listening copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily
emotional 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: Yes

Ellie is a ghostwriter for cookbooks, and has an opportunity to write a cookbook for or with Kieran O’Neill, the winner of the food competition Fire on High. However, after meeting him, not only is he infuriatingly handsome, but he also doesn’t seem to take anything seriously. And Ellie takes her job VERY seriously. 

Kieran won the food competition of Fire on High and now has the opportunity to write his own cookbook, until he meets Ellie and thinks she takes things a little too seriously, and is determined to win her over with his cooking. 

Can these opposites really attract? 

This book gave me many mixed feelings. On one end, I adored it and thought it was cute and quirky. On the other end, I kind of didn’t like it at all. I ended up giving it 4 stars, leaning more towards 3.5, because I really didn’t dislike it. I enjoyed it more than disliking it, and it is quite the cute read, it just has its moments. 

This had a lot of emotion and connecting. There’s talk about grief, a lot of it, handling grief, learning to continue on with life, ADHD, dyslexia, and learning your own personal worth. 

These two people didn’t exactly grow up in the greatest of households, and it seems like they were kind of handed a lame hand in life. They each seem to see the potential in others, but not in themselves. They each had to learn that through the other. 

I know this book is called Slowest Burn, but I wouldn’t really say this was a slow burn. I think they’re the connected pretty quickly and lusted after each other pretty quickly, but it’s more the emotional connection and giving into each others feelings, acknowledging those feelings that was the slow burn. There’s a bit of back and forth and drama, but I think the banter and charm throughout made up for any drama and gave the romance charm. 

It’s a deeper thinking book than I expected it to be, and I think it was balanced very well with the romance and everything else that happens in this book. There’s also a cat named Floyd in here and we’ll, I’m a cat lover, so I’m a goner and love Kieran just for his love for the cat 🄰

Overall, it’s a sweet and cute read with some heavy moments and emotion throughout that made for a charming romance. I would recommend, especially if you’re a foodie. Just give it a go if you love food, cooking and romance! 

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the gifted e-ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
emotional hopeful medium-paced
Loveable characters: Yes


This was a great debut novel involving Ellie, a cookbook ghost writer, assigned to recent hot shot Kieran who won a cooking contest. If you like enemies to lovers, forced proximity and fake dating, this one is for you. 

I didn't feel their slow burn was slow at all and felt very well stewed with how they worked together. I never really thought about chef needing a ghost writer but it totally makes sense. I love the dedication the Ellie had to the craft and make a cookbook that appeals to the masses. 

Both Kieran and Ellie had family issues and I enjoyed that aspect and their growth journey. 

The narrators, Hunter Johns and Kate Handford both did a good job with the narration. My only complaint is that Kate Hanford, pronounced a Filipino word wrong. It just seems lazy to not research how to pronounce it. 

Overall, a great debut novel and I look forward to more from Chamberlain. 

Thank you @smpromance @macmillan.audio for a copy of ALC.
adventurous challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I don’t know why I was so hesitant to read this book, once I started it I devoured it in 2 days. Ellie cares for everyone before she cares for herself. She is a cookbook ghostwriter that is living in a granny suite behind her in-laws house and dealing with the after math of loosing her husband as well as trying to keep her brother afloat. Kieran has accepted a deal for a cookbook off a big reality cooking show win and gets paired with Ellie as his writer. They clash immediately as she is organized and he is chaotic. When forced to stay in a cabin together to finally plan out the cookbook they start to understand each other more and the trauma they both bring with them. Their attraction burns slowly, but when it ignites it is fire! Can they avoid burning each other in the chemistry they have sizzling between them?

I loved this book right up until the last chapters. Them coming together both for the first time and the last was really fun to read but the central conflict was not my favourite and I found Kieran could be really hurtful at times. Ellie was a fun FMC and I loved her cat Floyd. The cookbook writing plot was enjoyable and made for some great moments in the book. Overall a really great read! It was my first time reading anything from this author and I would read more from them, definitely.

An enjoyable book of life and love and discovering who you really are. This is the story of opposites attracting and bringing out the best in each other. I listened to this on audio and the narrators did a good job giving voice to Ellie and Kieran. I did not want to stop listening! Highly recommend this book to romance readers.
emotional hopeful 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 stunningly beautiful romance. Widowed at a young age, Ellie is struggling to keep herself afloat. With so many people depending on her help, Ellie simply can’t take on one more project. Unfortunately for her, she is paired with celebrity chef Kieran to help him write a cookbook. While Kieran excels in the kitchen, he doesn’t in planning and certainly not writing. Ellie is frustrated as she begins their ghost-writing journey together. As the tensions between them rise, will they be able to work together? 

The Slowest Burn is achingly sweet and tinged with the complex grief that Ellie feels. Not only does she miss her husband, but she also feels a responsibility to look after his parents. This aspect felt so realistic. Kieran also has challenges he’s overcome and a difficult childhood that he still deals with. Ellie and Kieran are a swoonworthy couple- Ellie grounds him, while Kieran invites her to step out of her comfort zone. It was very fun when they had to work on recipes together for a week and grew closer than they anticipated.

 The Slowest Burn is a fantastic contemporary romance debut from Sarah Chamberlain and I can’t wait to read what she writes next! Readers who love cooking, slow-burn romance, and delightfully real characters will devour this book. 

Thank you to Sarah Chamberlain, St. Martin’s Griffin, and NetGalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.  

Thank you @sarahchamberlainauthor @stmartinspress @macmillan.audio
for the ARC and ALC!

A fantastic debut novel & a slow burn it was! I love the lead up to the romance. Ellie and Kieran were at odds for a long time but it just worked! The emotional and mental struggles were handled so well. Everything from being a widow to dyslexia to ADHD and more. Working on a cookbook together seeing how their passion and love for food brought them together was so sweet. The audio narrated by 
Hunter Johns and Kate Handford was excellent and kept me sucked right into the story! Grab this one tomorrow and see how these enemies become lovers!
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: Yes

This debut novel pulled me right in. The characters were very well written and realistic, and the story engaging.

While I did enjoy this, I didn’t love it - the chemistry between Ellie and Kieran didn’t ever really come across for me and it fell more than a little flat for me. I also found the ending unsatisfying (but no spoilers). 

Despite my issues, I will definitely check out the author’s future work.



Thank you to St. Martins’ Griffin and NetGalley for the DRC


emotional hopeful lighthearted medium-paced