I received a copy of this arc from NetGalley for an honest review. I have tried to read this several times but just haven't been able to get into it.

I was approved for an arc of Cub, but missed the download date. I still plan on reading it and will review then. The blurb looks great, I am bummed I never downloaded it.

This was a quick, but enjoyable read. Great for any fans of cooking shows and really great at showing what it's like to get what you think you want, only for it to turn sour.

I'm a fat person, and I don't like reading books about fat people who really dislike themselves (insecurities are totally fine, but actively disliking/hating their body is a no-go for me). It just makes me feel bad. My rule of thumb is that if there is major body shaming in the first paragraph of the book, I put it down, and so, since this book has that, I put it down.

I really enjoyed reading Cub. Not only is it an entertaining story, it also addresses a number of very common issues young gay men experience. As YA fiction with the potential to influence young readers, I had only wished it would have taken an extra step to have Theo actually come to some important realizations-- not just experience them.

The plot of the book is fueled by two things I hate that occur frequently in the LGBTQ community: 'bitchy, judging queens' and narcissistic predatory behavior. Both are well illustrated here. The other issue addressed that I really appreciated was that of weight and self-image. All are issues that we can't discuss enough.

Theo's friend Di could have used a little more development. What could have been a fascinating character, ended up being more of a plot device.

The competition story was a great idea and fit perfectly with the issues being discussed.

I received an ARC from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I am on the fence about the rating for this book. Parts of it were really good, but other's not so much.

I know that these series of books are primarily aimed at YA and social issues, but what worked best in this story were the parts dealing with Theo and his love of cooking/baking. Having him compete in a "Chopped" type of environment was a great idea and I loved reading all the excellent food ideas he had.

The author was great at not dwelling on too many details, especially when it came to the cooking, but rather gave us just enough information to a) follow the story and b) make your mouth water.

What did not work? the sexual harassment. Yes, it is certainly an important topic, but it felt gratuitous in this story and not completely believable. As I mentioned before, I would have enjoyed this book so much more if the story had focused solely on Theo and his desire to win the cooking competition.

His friend Di was interesting, but we did not get enough of her backstory.

Overall, a good book that could have been better.

This is a solid yet short debut. I thought it was a good coming of age story. Even if I would have loved to see certain aspects fleshed out more. Loved the setting of a food contest similar to like a chopped or iron chef set up but just way gayer. The main character is the strongest part of this story for me. I wanted to go on this journey with Theo and see how he gets through it and what he takes away from it all in the end. Going into more thoughts below.

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Theo was relatable in a lot of ways. The insecurities he had were ones I absolutely experience as a teenager. That felt realistic. Even when people are telling you something positive about you constantly. You still second guess yourself. I felt that.

I was worried how the story would handle the admiration Theo gets from the chef running the competition. That worry kinda sustained for a lot of this. It's always rough in these stories when you see older men acting predatorily to younger men. With Theo being 17 it was even more of a concern and something I could, unfortunately, relate to.

I do think it's ultimately handled well. Not that it is easy to deal with in the moment when reading it. The way that Theo feels throughout those interactions. How he likes being admired. Feeling wanted for the first time. That is something that can easily get you to make choices that you wouldn't otherwise. I liked that the mixed feelings he had about what was going on was there and you could see why he wasn't fighting things as much as part of him wanted to at times.

With Theo, there is some great growth over the course of the story. His insecurities about his body are shown throughout. He sees a slim guy and thinks that guy would never be interested in someone like me. He worries about what people watching the contest will think about him. I did want to see more of the development it, though. I felt like a step was skipped. More in Theo's head would have helped with that. Seeing how he gets to where he is on the last page of the story. Show more of the gradual change that is happening for him. Still, I appreciate what Paul tries to do with Theo here.

There is some time jumps between the rounds of the competition. I think something in between there would have flushed out that development more. Maybe also gave us more time with side characters like Mama Bear and Di who I don't feel were utilized enough in the story. Especially Di.

I loved the cooking rounds by the way. It was so fun reading Theo's process in the first two rounds. I'd read a whole romance set throughout a cooking contest now honestly. You could really tell the author is also a lover of cooking. Those parts flew by. It was like action scenes. They really pulled me in.

This was a great story.

Thanks to Netgalley and Orca for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

This was a fun story. It's more along the lines of a novella at around 150 pages or so. The main characters receive some relatively good development in such a short page count, but the plot felt a little unfinished. I feel like another chapter or two to answer some lingering questions and tie up some bits left dangling would have helped. I loved Theo and his bestie Di and Mama Bear too. I did have some issues with the much older adults making advances on the youngin'...

Overall, it was a good story and I appreciate what Orca is trying to do - get more stories out there that involve LGBT+ youth, in all shapes and sizes and colors and creeds, so people feel represented. And I'm totally on board with that.

Writing/plot/story - 3 stars
Overall loving what Orca's got going on - 5 stars
So I'll settle in the middle on 4. :)

Cute quick read. Theo is a pudgy high school student who loves to cook. His best friend enters him in a cooking contest at a restaurant run by a local star chef. Theo finds himself in several situations that he is not prepared for but also steps up and takes a stand for himself. He is enticed by the famous chef and the glitz of a super nice restaurant job along with the possibility of winning the contest. Nice coming of age story about an adorable gay teen. Short and sweet! Quick read. Thanks to NG for the ARC!