Reviews

Just One Taste by Lizzy Dent

samfictiondistilling's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative lighthearted reflective relaxing sad medium-paced

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

4.0

A delicious romance filled with empathy and emotion. Beautiful descriptions. Do not read while hungry. Or thirty. 
The enemies to lovers wasn't too overly done. The forced proximity was also done well. The romance and anticipation was just right. If anything, it was too short, I wanted more fleshing out nearer the end.
Off to buy some blood oranges.

ellbo_oks333's review

emotional hopeful reflective slow-paced

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

3.0

ecbrookshire's review against another edition

emotional hopeful lighthearted reflective slow-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

4.0

I really enjoyed this read- it was my first Lizzy Dent book and I'll definitely be reading more!

First, the food and the travels in this book made me want to hop on a plane to Italy today! The descriptions were so evocative. It kept the plot moving with the locations and discoveries... it was just really engaging.

I also really loved the way this book dealt with loss and grief. It was very real and relatable, moving, sentimental... for anyone who has experienced loss, especially the loss of a parent, this book will be one you connect with in a good way. 

Outside of that, I really loved some of the relationships in this book. The friends, Ginny and Kate, made me laugh and think of my own group of best friends. Their dynamic was one of my favorites in the book. The romance between Olive and Leo was so very sweet. They were romantic and it was a very slow burn. I did feel like their relationship and attraction felt a little rushed, and so did the ending, but it was fun nonetheless! 

This book felt like a combination of Under the Tuscan Sun, Little Italy (I love this movie... for all its ridiculousness), and Stanley Tucci's Searching for Italy! Definitely a fun summer read!

jaymeeb's review

dnf at 47%.

i was really excited for this based on the description! Italian chef on vacation and forced proximity rivals!! gimmie!! but we’re almost halfway and all i’m seeing is lust. sure she’s starting to admire him for his personality, but mainly she’s just lusting over him and i’m not having a good time. if i ended up finishing it i would probably end up rating it 2 stars with how things are going now. 


thank you to the publisher and netgalley for an early digital edition in exchange for my honest review!

kaleigh1400's review

adventurous lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

4.0

 ** spoiler alert ** Releases: 7/16/2024

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you to Penguin Group Putnam for the ARC!

This is the perfect book for beach reading, but more specifically traipsing around Italian beaches on a European summer! It's truly a love letter to Italy and THE FOOD, it had me flashing right back to my Italian exchange trip in high school getting drunk on limoncello and eating copious amounts of pasta.

The "Yes, chef" banter was (pun intended) *chef's kiss* and I don't know if I've watched too many episodes of The Bear, but I am INTO IT. (I wanna lil chefy bf asap)

I do think that the adoption reveal could have happened earlier in the book and that would have left us with more of a resolution arc. Specifically her speaking again with Rocco and his wife and explaining her feelings more to Leo.

Also, as a failed Italian student, I loved the addition of the dialogue in Italian!

Overall... I think it's time I went back to Italy this summer! 

racy_reads's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful informative reflective relaxing sad medium-paced

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

4.0

Can’t afford a culinary trip to Italy this summer? Just One Taste is the poor person’s gastronomy journey from Sicily to Tuscany to Liguria, all from the comfort of wherever you enjoy reading, however, do not read JOT if you are hungry. I repeat, do not read if you are hungry. The food and the descriptions of the Italian regions visited are the stars of this book. Olive and Leo are just the catalyst for Italy to show off. I just wish there was a recipe or two included at the end of the book.

Olive Stone and Leo Ricci have an insta-love, not my favorite, but they work together well because they are so passionate about food and Italy. Their story is cute and their reason for being together is unique. There is no third act breakup, but there is a twist that is not all that surprising, but not wholly needed either. 

Just One Taste is the perfect summer read. I encourage you to pick it up, just not on an empty stomach.

Thank you to NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Putnam for the digital ARC of Just One Taste.

allhdvm's review against another edition

5.0

I am very excited to be reading this book! My full review to follow.
Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

vanessa10readsbooks's review against another edition

funny hopeful lighthearted 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

5.0

sam_whit22's review against another edition

5.0

I’ve been in a reading slump for the past couple of months and this book brought me out of it. The romance, the setting, all of the delicious food…I didn’t want to put it down. It made me wish I was in Italy again. 

 

I loved all of the characters and their relationships. Olive is a little prickly (but so am I, so no judgement there) and Leo is adorable. I loved the evolution of their relationship and thought they had amazing chemistry. I also really enjoyed the family and friends they met up with in Italy. The first family felt like a warm hug and they were exactly what Olive needed. 

 

Olive is dealing with grief after the loss of her father, so the book isn’t a completely light read, but I thought it was handled so well and the book never felt too heavy. 

 

This is the best Lizzy Dent book I’ve read so far. 5 stars…LOVED IT!


Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for providing this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

lanereading's review

emotional funny lighthearted relaxing slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

3.5

This has to be one of my favourite covers for a book ever! So vibrate and cute! Perfectly represents the main trope of the story being forced proximity.

 

While this was a fun and easy read, I unfortunately did find that the chemistry was lacking between the two MCs but regardless 3.5 STARS!

 

Looking forward to reading Lizzy Dent’s future stories!