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3.92 AVERAGE
3.92 AVERAGE
Rating: 3.5 ⭐️
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Format: KU ebook
Pages: 360
Spice: 3 🌶️
POV: Double first POV
S/S: standalone
Check trigger warnings for any book.
A very fast pace, spicy romance between an ex rich girl and a sexy chef
very straight tp the point, very lady and the tramp
some dark themes were explored, and some darker kinks too
overall a fun time, nothing outstadning but nothing to complain about
Leena - Leena.reader review - @leena.reader on tiktok / instagram / fable / storygraph
On line Chefs is a new type I did not know i needed, but I like and want more of.
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
The only thing worth the $17 I paid for this book was my girlfriend's major league crash-out halfway through. Said crashout was also the only thing that got me turned on throughout my read.
Pause on the freak because, dear god, what did I get myself into? I wasn't expecting high art. Honestly, I was even expecting...a good time. I had a good feeling since the author had experience being a server, and the trigger warnings at the beginning were some of the most in-depth I'd ever seen. That should be the standard for these types of books.
The plot was pretty bare bones—or bear bones, considering the restaurant is named Orso. We get it, Loud. You watched The Bear like everyone else. Since this is a romance, it's more about James and Ozzy's relationship. The problem is that it's all about James and Ozzy's relationship. My gf and I (I will be referencing them a lot during this review. Also, go read their review below where they talk more about the restaurant inaccuracies) both felt like no one else other than those two mattered. Loud tried to do the whole "found family" thing at the end with a bunch of the side characters, but it didn't work. All these characters exist to get Ozzy and James together. They were stock cutouts that regurgitated tired "romance book bestie" quotes to egg the characters on.
The biggest knock against this book, and the biggest sin it commits, is James' abusive relationship. I've never been in an abusive relationship, but I am my gf's first relationship after they've been out of one. I get that this is fiction, and thus, things can be exaggerated, but their whole relationship happens so FAST. Like, disgustingly fast. James and Ozzy start hooking up two weeks after James broke things off with Zachary, and they become official just shy over a month later. Meanwhile, I know multiple people who have gotten out of abusive relationships, and it took them a minimum of 6 months of healing before even thinking about romance. Especially since James barely has a support network! We never see her bond with anyone who isn't Ozzy in any meaningful way; we barely see her struggling to survive without her parents' money. This book came close to getting it, though. It had a few solid, good passages delving into James' mind when it came to her reconciling with the abuse and S/A. Even if it did have too much therapy speak.
Working backward, Zachary was just the devil. I understand that abusers can harm their victims in multiple ways. But holy shit, nothing about this dude was redeeming. He was physically, emotionally, mentally, sexually, and even a little financially abusive. I also know some people are like that, but let's be real right now: this is a book. None of these characters are real. Naomi Loud created them to fulfill a purpose, so I'm gonna go out on a limb and do some Doyalist explanation. Zachary is only this shitty to make Ozzy look better. And this isn't an On the Line problem. This is a trend that's been going on in a lot of books. It's not just romance authors that do this! It's a lame plot device that lazy authors use to hype up the love interest and make any bare minimum action they do look 10 times better! And I'm not gonna ignore the fact that Zachary being shitty gave Ozzy his hero moment whenhe assaults him, shoves Zachary's hand in a fryer, and then roughs him up more WITHOUT JAMES' PERMISSION!!! I get the feeling. I'm no stranger to wanting to beat up a bestie's shitty ex. Hell, my GF's ex sure as hell deserves a meteoric ass-whooping. But the difference between Ozzy and I is that if I did that without their say, I'd earn myself a one-way ticket to Splitsville, and I value my girlfriend's autonomy and our relationship too much for that. Beyond that, I'm not the reason my GF healed from their relationship. They're among the strongest, most determined people I've ever met. I shouldn't get credit or be fully responsible for their healing journey. Not only is that a lot to put on me, it's a discredit to all the work they've done! In comparison, James has a lot of sex and cries a little bit, and she's pretty much on the path to being better in 3-to 5 months. It's bonkers.
On to the characters. James, as mentioned before, is overshadowed by her abuse storyline. Outside of that and painting, I really don't get a good sense of her character. She feels very...stock. That's really not good.
Ozzy, on the other hand, is a douche in jester's clothing. His borderline bullying behavior at the beginning of the book would have absolutely been called out if not for how shitty Zachary was. Personality-wise, he did get better later on in the book, and his "kick the dog" backstory with his family did well to humanize him, but I felt it was too little too late. Sigh.
The sex between them became egregious past the 50% mark. Too many of their conversations turned sexual, and while my gf held back on yucking someone's yum (and gave this book extra points for femdom. While based, it's my job to hold the hater line), I will be yucking away. Ozzy says something to James that's so reminiscent of what Zachary tells her mid fuck (something about how irresistible she is) and not onlysprings cocaine on her and goads her into doing it and fooling around but also springs exhibition of her out of nowhere! And yeah, the somno and cnc shit is at least on James' terms, but she barely does any research on it before being cool with Ozzy doing that to her. And aftercare? Forget it. She also calls him "chef" in bed, which sent my gf in a tizzy. YMMV on that, but they said if I ever said that to them, I'd be getting my ass beat. Would it be worth it? Absolutely.
James' parents and Ozzy's dad were also pretty stock. Whatever
Maybe it was my fault for expecting more out of this book. Perhaps I got my hopes too high. I don't know. It's exhausting seeing many of the same, tired tropes I was hoping to escape from in this book. Even the Snickers scene, which was so gleefully advertised because every booktok book needs something outrageous to draw people in. The state of the romance/dark romance genre is stark. There are good romance books out there. Hell, there are probably good romance books that deal with abuse in a sensitive way. I'll find them one day. For now, I'll seethe about it.
Pause on the freak because, dear god, what did I get myself into? I wasn't expecting high art. Honestly, I was even expecting...a good time. I had a good feeling since the author had experience being a server, and the trigger warnings at the beginning were some of the most in-depth I'd ever seen. That should be the standard for these types of books.
The plot was pretty bare bones—or bear bones, considering the restaurant is named Orso. We get it, Loud. You watched The Bear like everyone else. Since this is a romance, it's more about James and Ozzy's relationship. The problem is that it's all about James and Ozzy's relationship. My gf and I (I will be referencing them a lot during this review. Also, go read their review below where they talk more about the restaurant inaccuracies) both felt like no one else other than those two mattered. Loud tried to do the whole "found family" thing at the end with a bunch of the side characters, but it didn't work. All these characters exist to get Ozzy and James together. They were stock cutouts that regurgitated tired "romance book bestie" quotes to egg the characters on.
The biggest knock against this book, and the biggest sin it commits, is James' abusive relationship. I've never been in an abusive relationship, but I am my gf's first relationship after they've been out of one. I get that this is fiction, and thus, things can be exaggerated, but their whole relationship happens so FAST. Like, disgustingly fast. James and Ozzy start hooking up two weeks after James broke things off with Zachary, and they become official just shy over a month later. Meanwhile, I know multiple people who have gotten out of abusive relationships, and it took them a minimum of 6 months of healing before even thinking about romance. Especially since James barely has a support network! We never see her bond with anyone who isn't Ozzy in any meaningful way; we barely see her struggling to survive without her parents' money. This book came close to getting it, though. It had a few solid, good passages delving into James' mind when it came to her reconciling with the abuse and S/A. Even if it did have too much therapy speak.
Working backward, Zachary was just the devil. I understand that abusers can harm their victims in multiple ways. But holy shit, nothing about this dude was redeeming. He was physically, emotionally, mentally, sexually, and even a little financially abusive. I also know some people are like that, but let's be real right now: this is a book. None of these characters are real. Naomi Loud created them to fulfill a purpose, so I'm gonna go out on a limb and do some Doyalist explanation. Zachary is only this shitty to make Ozzy look better. And this isn't an On the Line problem. This is a trend that's been going on in a lot of books. It's not just romance authors that do this! It's a lame plot device that lazy authors use to hype up the love interest and make any bare minimum action they do look 10 times better! And I'm not gonna ignore the fact that Zachary being shitty gave Ozzy his hero moment when
On to the characters. James, as mentioned before, is overshadowed by her abuse storyline. Outside of that and painting, I really don't get a good sense of her character. She feels very...stock. That's really not good.
Ozzy, on the other hand, is a douche in jester's clothing. His borderline bullying behavior at the beginning of the book would have absolutely been called out if not for how shitty Zachary was. Personality-wise, he did get better later on in the book, and his "kick the dog" backstory with his family did well to humanize him, but I felt it was too little too late. Sigh.
The sex between them became egregious past the 50% mark. Too many of their conversations turned sexual, and while my gf held back on yucking someone's yum (and gave this book extra points for femdom. While based, it's my job to hold the hater line), I will be yucking away. Ozzy says something to James that's so reminiscent of what Zachary tells her mid fuck (something about how irresistible she is) and not only
James' parents and Ozzy's dad were also pretty stock. Whatever
Maybe it was my fault for expecting more out of this book. Perhaps I got my hopes too high. I don't know. It's exhausting seeing many of the same, tired tropes I was hoping to escape from in this book. Even the Snickers scene, which was so gleefully advertised because every booktok book needs something outrageous to draw people in. The state of the romance/dark romance genre is stark. There are good romance books out there. Hell, there are probably good romance books that deal with abuse in a sensitive way. I'll find them one day. For now, I'll seethe about it.
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Life on the Line by Grant Achatz and Nick Kokonas is a harrowing memoir about one man's drive for culinary excellence coupled with his triumph over an ironic battle with tongue cancer; it features both the highs and lows of the industry, from asshole chefs to kitchen crew uniting in times of stress. Achatz and Kokonas (and presumably their ghostwriter) had a clear vision for their story, and it paid off.
By contrast, On the Line by Naomi Loud is a confusing novel that can't decide if it wants to be a heartfelt romcom that treats heavy subjects with the care they deserve, or a boundary-pushing dark romance that unabashedly eroticizes the dark and taboo.
I have never been more conflicted about a book than I am now. It's somehow both a 3.5 and a 1 star, so let's just split the difference before I crash out even more.
I've worked in restaurants my whole adult life. Some details were spot-on—kitchen clogs, "behind!", Fernet shots, and accidentally running out of mise en place mid-shift. Others didn't fit my experience. Rarely do characters shorten phrases the way cooks do; we get "garde-manger," "walk-in fridge," and "small fridge under [my station]" instead of "garmo," "walk-in," and "lowboy." Granted, this might be a consequence of Naomi living in Montreal and this book taking place in the States. Still, that only makes the absence of French terms like "CdC [chef de cuisine]" or "mise [en place]" all the more jarring.
Chapter 3 opens with the CdC (who, sidenote, is a Mexican woman! We love that) shouting, "Chef, fire two tartare for 54, one for 23, niçoise salad for 10," which kinda gets the general shape right, but not really the nitty gritty of busy service. Usually tickets are called as they're printed rather than grouped like this, and table numbers are omitted, because that's useless information to the line cook. All we need to know is what's on fire and what we have. The call-back from Ozzy was also weak; "yes chef" is what you say to chef generally giving you an order, not a call-back. The expo needs to know that you know what's on fire, and "yes chef" isn't enough. In my experience, it would look more like:
By contrast, On the Line by Naomi Loud is a confusing novel that can't decide if it wants to be a heartfelt romcom that treats heavy subjects with the care they deserve, or a boundary-pushing dark romance that unabashedly eroticizes the dark and taboo.
I have never been more conflicted about a book than I am now. It's somehow both a 3.5 and a 1 star, so let's just split the difference before I crash out even more.
I've worked in restaurants my whole adult life. Some details were spot-on—kitchen clogs, "behind!", Fernet shots, and accidentally running out of mise en place mid-shift. Others didn't fit my experience. Rarely do characters shorten phrases the way cooks do; we get "garde-manger," "walk-in fridge," and "small fridge under [my station]" instead of "garmo," "walk-in," and "lowboy." Granted, this might be a consequence of Naomi living in Montreal and this book taking place in the States. Still, that only makes the absence of French terms like "CdC [chef de cuisine]" or "mise [en place]" all the more jarring.
Chapter 3 opens with the CdC (who, sidenote, is a Mexican woman! We love that) shouting, "Chef, fire two tartare for 54, one for 23, niçoise salad for 10," which kinda gets the general shape right, but not really the nitty gritty of busy service. Usually tickets are called as they're printed rather than grouped like this, and table numbers are omitted, because that's useless information to the line cook. All we need to know is what's on fire and what we have. The call-back from Ozzy was also weak; "yes chef" is what you say to chef generally giving you an order, not a call-back. The expo needs to know that you know what's on fire, and "yes chef" isn't enough. In my experience, it would look more like:
Chef: Fire two tartare!
Garmo: Two tartare!
Chef: Fire niçoise!
Garmo: Niçoise!
Chef: Fire tartare!
Garmo: One tartare, three all day!
A note on everyone being "chef": That is a real thing a few upscale places do, notably those owned by Thomas Keller or Grant Achatz. The book gets it half right that is a sign of respect, but it's also a sign of responsibility. Everyone is chef, so everyone better act like chef. (And a note to this note: I can see how civilians think "Yes, Chef" is erotic, but for me it's about as sexy as a saucepan.)
At times, it feels like the only people working at Orso are James and Ozzy (yes, the restaurant is named Orso. As in bear. As in The Bear. Ha ha ha kill me). Upscale restaurants run on a tight brigade system with everyone having their set role; it makes no sense for James to show people to their seats like a host, or boot them like a manager. At one point, line cook Ozzy stays overnight to replenish the prep; clearly, Loud didn't consult her husband nearly enough, or he would have told her about the prep cooks who come in at 7 in the morning for this express purpose. (Sidenote: if the kitchen is closed, why is the fryer still on? Is Ozzy planning on emptying and cleaning it by himself? Does he not know how heavy fryer oil is when you carry it out to be disposed? I know it's only on so that he can
The utter dearth of SOPs really got to me. James is hired on the spot, without going through the hassle of IDs and food/alcohol permits; considering she's a fish out of water, the lack of even a throwaway ServSafe joke confused me. When James' abusive boyfriend Zachary and his friend dine in and get wasted, not once does their server think to cut them off. I checked, and Massachusetts has a Dram Shop Law on the books forbidding the sale of alcohol to intoxicated persons; these characters could lose their jobs, and Orso its liquor license, if Zachary had committed a crime or DUI. Finally, Ozzy's behavior in the first third of the book isn't quirky or sexy or jesterlike; if I were James, I would have long since sicced HR on him for sexual harassment. And if I were one of their unnamed coworkers, I would have also sicced HR on them for fucking in dry storage. At least have the decency to screw in the employee bathroom.
Ozzy drinks on the clock and talks James into doing coke, which, okay. The industry is fueled by addictions. Damn near all of us depend on caffeine and sugar; many others on nicotine and/or weed; and sadly, a few others on alcohol and hard drugs. It's a real problem that leads to workplace accidents and death; I don't like seeing it treated so casually. Plus, the focus on the lurid stuff like vodka and coke feels sensationalist. Ozzy smokes and has a Chekhov's candy stash (IYKYK), but no one else seems to have a minor vice, when in reality everyone should have a favorite flavor of Celsius and a slush fund for the pre-shift coffee runs.
Moving onto characters: I loved that James is plus sized and Ozzy is shorter and kinda scrawny! It's a refreshing break from the typical M/F mold and genuinely great representation. What I liked less is that they're still rather flat characters. Ozzy is the "jester" line cook whose only personality traits are "food" and "messed up family," and James is the poor little rich girl who's also an abuse victim and a painter. I kinda wish both were fleshed out more.
The other characters barely existed. I only knew Chef Itzel was a woman because the epilogue finally gave her pronouns (and I'm only assuming she's Mexican because of her name). She, Alec, Ji-Min, Michelle, Gustavo, and Quinn at times feel more like set dressing than characters; the only real conversations our MCs have with them concerns their love life and usually ends with encouraging James and Ozzy. The same goes for Connie, James' BFF in California.
James' mean parents and Ozzy's dysfunctional dad are such laughably flat villains that it's not even worth going into detail. I really wish I got more McKenna sibling action; what little I got was actually pretty interesting.
Zachary felt like he was being written to fulfill a "stock abusive partner" checklist, rather than a complex and three-dimensional person with significant character flaws. I also kinda hated that Ozzy took revenge for James and never bothered to ask her what she wanted. I adore my girlfriend (even when she makes me read books like these LMAO), but I would never tolerate it if she ever attacked my emotionally abusive ex without my consent the way Ozzy did, and she knows it. I don't want my ex hurt; I want her to stay away from me as she learns how to be a kinder person. I also dislike that James' healing revolved almost entirely around Ozzy. My girlfriend is an amazing part of my support system as I heal from my trauma, but she's only part of it; it would be unfair to both of us if I relied solely on her. What helps victims is an entire army of friends, family, partners, and mental health professionals helping them get back on their feet to counter the isolating nature of abuse—but because the rest of James' friends and coworkers barely had one personality trait between them, we never got that, which is a real shame.
The sex scenes were quite excessive and lurid from the get-go. I'm not gonna yuck someone else's yum; while maledom/femsub isn't my favorite, someone else finds this meaningfully erotic, and what do I get from trashing it? My issue comes from how Ozzy's behavior is still that of a controlling and kind of abusive boyfriend, but because he's not as bad as literal caricature of abusive boyfriends Zachary, it's excused. Ozzy springs hard kinks like exhibitionism onto James with very little advance notice;
And here's the thing: all of this would be perfectly in line with a boundary-pushing dark romance, but not at all with a sensitive workplace romcom!! Like, this is one of the worst cases of tonal dissonance I've ever seen in a book. One minute, we have a genuinely well-written and terrifying chapter where the FMC realizes her boyfriend has repeatedly raped her in her sleep and then disassociates during sex; the next, we have the MMC dealing with his own frustrations by cornering her in dry storage and telling her to do unspeakable things to a Snickers bar while explicitly getting off on her shock. Essentially, this book paired poached trout with Bordelaise and expected it to work.
Ultimately, Loud doesn't know if she wants to write a thoughtful contemporary exploring the service industry and what it means to heal from trauma, or unabashedly taboo dark romance set in a restaurant. I'd honestly have more respect if she'd just written rape porn; at least that would have been consistent. It's not the worst romance I've ever read, but man, what a letdown.
No notes. I loved everything about it. Already want to read it again.
ozzy definitely gives off carmy vibes. it was almost like reading the bear fanfic, but he also has a lot of different baggage and personal drama that sets this apart. a few kinks were explored that typically show up in darker stories, but ozzy wasn’t stomping all over james’ boundaries and actually took a surprise turn as a submissive for her.
a few grammatical errors and the pacing was a bit weird. i feel like nothing was really resolved, but it also made it more realistic that everyone’s problems didn’t magically go away.
i’d say this is safely 4.25-4.5⭐️ mainly because i just liked ozzy, and james also had good character growth.
a few grammatical errors and the pacing was a bit weird. i feel like nothing was really resolved, but it also made it more realistic that everyone’s problems didn’t magically go away.
i’d say this is safely 4.25-4.5⭐️ mainly because i just liked ozzy, and james also had good character growth.
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
read this after seeing heather’s review on it, expected something veeeerrrrrrryyyy different lmao. not bad but like not good either. definitely kept me intrigued i guess
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
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:
Yes