Reviews

The Romance Recipe by Ruby Barrett

Only show reviews with written explanations

tamamorii's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes

2.5

kayslsk's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

rosgw's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional informative sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

Enjoyed this one in general but was irked by the ending. The pacing of the reconciliation in the freezer toward the end felt a little swift (but I did like the walk in freezer as a device for private space). The epilogue felt like it jumped out from behind a bush and slapped the face. It also felt like some of the characters were left hanging - Jeremy? What happened to law school? Natalie? Did you fancy Sophie or what?

That said, I really like Amy and Sophie. They felt actually real. Like people who want to fuck each other but who also annoy each other sometimes. Their shampoo did not. Why do their respective scents of peaches and lemons linger all day? There must be some industrial strength chemicals in that shampoo or they have fierce olfactory capacities.

Some absolutely top notch sex, made better still because very often these two characters snipe at each other and irritate one another. It’s all roses (or peach or lemons) which felt quite a bit more realistic than some ff romance where they’re just perfect for each other all the time once they’ve gotten together

elforever15's review against another edition

Go to review page

2.0

I really struggled getting into the story. It's dual POV but sometimes I forget whose POV I'm reading because I feel much change in the tone.

jfictitional's review against another edition

Go to review page

3.0

Once you get past the hook of queer chefs, this dutifully checks all the boxes a romance novel should. The leads are perpetually horny for each other; the sex they have is unabashedly steamy; the words that come out of their mouths are deeply corny (and occasionally outright terrible); and the actual story is largely irrelevant.

In fact, that might be its only real flaw: the aspects that could give it a unique flavor - the culinary angle, the coming-out subplot - feel so superficially handled that they make little impression. Obviously, it's not a requirement for the story to try and be that kind of representation, but it can't help feeling safe when it could have been bold, as the characters frequently encourage each other to be. Still, the subject matter alone guarantees it an audience, who will have little else to complain about.

Content warning: the author was actually kind enough to do this for us - the book opens with a male character being fired for sexually harassing his coworkers; emotionally-abusive parents; some brief discussion of homophobia.

ynbushehri's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

This was definitely a fun read, and I liked the characters a lot. The plot dragged around the 75% point, which was unfortunate, and the ending felt too rushed. Overall still a very cozy read but the emotional beats didn't land well for me due to pacing problems.