A review by aallyoop_reads
Sweetbitter by Stephanie Danler

3.0

This was on my "to read" list for quite some time and once I heard about the TV series, I decided to give it a shot.

I have mixed feelings about this one. On one hand, I thought the focus on an elite restaurant and its employees was an interesting angle and I liked reading about the juicy, behind-the-scenes details. I also enjoyed the descriptions of wine and the process of Tess learning about how to become a decent server. On the other hand, I found Tess to be immature and her partying/blacking out phase got a little stale.

The characters were generally interesting, but some of the character development was lacking. I wanted more from the relationships between Tess and Simone, as well as Tess and Jake. I never got the appeal of Jake, he just seemed like a quiet, unkempt man who used Tess.

The writing style was a little much for me at times, and the desired effect was lost on me. I have yet to watch the TV series, but throughout the book, I kept thinking about how it would likely be a good show. A so-so read, didn't love it or hate it.