Reviews - Aftertaste | The StoryGraph

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816 reviews for:

Aftertaste

Daria Lavelle

4.14 AVERAGE

lcross1's review against another edition

4.5

mysterious sad medium-paced

I really don’t love ghost and paranormal stuff, but this didn’t get too woo woo for me until the end (which was quite abstract). It was very original and well written though, once I got into it I couldn’t put it down. So a really good book and reading experience, although unlikely to become a “favorite”…

lisasplans's review against another edition

4.0

Favorite quote: “Food could do that. It could tell stories. Not just cuisines or component parts, but histories—of the people who’d prepared the dishes, the way they evolved them over time, the way they made them theirs. Leaving behind a recipe was a way to be remembered and savored and loved even after you were gone. A way to live forever.”

Notes:

I thought this was a really interesting concept. Part food/restaurant scene, part romance, part ghost story, part musings on grief. but...it left me wanting more, more parts fleshed out, more about the ghosts, more details in all the parts.
I think I will appreciate this book more in a reread, all of the pieces and the uniqueness of it because everything felt like it went by so quickly during this first read through.

bellarosereichart's review against another edition

4.75

dark emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

tj58's review against another edition

3.75

challenging emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I really wanted to love this book. In fact, up until page 118 I was absolutely loving this book. The ghost that the main character was manifesting through his aftertaste were epic. But then the author kind of did a 180 and took this story into a way different direction, absolutely away from the epic ghost ghosts that Kostya was manifesting And I just started to struggle with it. I thought this was going to be a five-star for me, but it just ended up being a bit of a disappointment.

jules_elizabeth999's review against another edition

4.0

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective sad tense 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

aspnes's review against another edition

DID NOT FINISH: 42%

DNF 42%
4:21/10:23 hours
I liked that it was about cooking and the connection between food and ghosts, but I dislike the gritty New York setting and the writing style is not for me, neither was the romance story😕

madisoneberle's review against another edition

4.0

funny reflective sad 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

danidella's review against another edition

4.25

adventurous emotional sad medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

This book is not an easy read if you’ve experienced loss and are still working through grief. The first part of the book is nothing like the last part, as the deeper into the book you get the deeper into the Hungry Ghosts you get. It has some beautiful messages built into it and if you can stay on the roller coaster of “where is this book going” I think you’ll enjoy the book as a whole.

Content Warnings