I thought this book was great. The main character was a bit of a pill and hard to figure out at times, but by the end you were endeared to her just as much as you were to the co-star, Ray.

Honestly my only complaint is about the character of Luna, because of the demanding for baked goods in return for being a friend. I understand there are limits, but literally every time Simone made a comment, she would be making some quip about "payment".

I read maybe 20% of this book and unfortunately I just couldn’t read anymore. I got bored and didn’t really care about the characters .

Title: Chef's Kiss
Author: T.J. Alexander
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Rating: 3.75
Pub Date: May 3, 2022

Thanks to Simon & Schuster Canada for sending me an eARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

T H R E E • W O R D S

Delicious • Refreshing • Warm

📖 S Y N O P S I S

Simone, a pastry chef with perfectionist tendencies, is working her dream job at The Discerning Chef, and looking to perfect her sourdough recipe. In an attempt to attract a bigger audience, The Discerning Chef pivots to video content, and Simone finds herself thrust into the limelight, and failing at something for the first time in her life.

To make matter worse, Simone must contend with new test kitchen manager Ray's cheerful personality. When Ray's homebrewing videos go viral, Simone is forced to work on a series with Ray or risk her job. The two soon develop a working relationship, but when Ray comes out as nonbinary to mixed reactions, Simone is forced to choose between her career and their budding relationship.

💭 T H O U G H T S

As a fan of foodie rom-coms, the premise for Chef's Kiss is what first drew me in, and I was not disappointed by the delightful and charming kitchen setting and food, although I wish it would have continued to play a bigger role throughout the whole narrative. Yet, this book is so much more - at times feeling like two different novels. The first half is more lighthearted, with some comical scenes involving the two main characters and lots of entertaining banter. Whereas the second half shifted to addressing more serious topics and enlightening the reader on being an ally.

The discussion on pronoun use is something I haven't read and as a cis-woman, I know I appreciated it for how genuine it felt. It demonstrated the importance of using a person's chosen pronouns, while also showing how much resistance a person can face. Additionally, the top surgery and recovery process were enlightening.

One draw back, was how abruptly it ended, with some storylines left unfinished. I also think a dual narration, as opposed to Simone's perspective alone, would have made it that much better. With that said the LGBTQQ+ representation and inclusivity, the theme of being our true selves, the role of food in showing we care, and Simone and Ray's meaningful connection were all a breath of fresh air, making this a *chef's kiss* read that's worth picking up.

📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• fans of a slow burn
• grumpy/sunshine enthusiasts
• food themed rom com lovers

⚠️ CW: transphobia, homophobia, deadnaming, misgendering, sexual content, alcohol, cursing, medical content

Chef’s Kiss - TJ Alexander

I stayed up till 2am finishing this book, which I NEVER do. It sucked me in and I just could not put it down.

This is a very slow burn romance between Simone and Ray. The books is third person from Simone’s POV. Ray comes out as non binary about halfway through the book so they are misgendered by the text and Simone for the first half.

Ray and Simone are coworkers and are tasked with creating video content to try and save their dying cooking magazine.

Simone initially rubbed me the wrong way because when she meets Ray she immediately decides to dislike them, due to a misunderstanding. But Simone did grow on me, and I really loved Ray as a character. I think having their perspective would have been a really great addition to this book.

When Ray comes out they have to deal with a lot of transphobia at their job, and they’re afraid to make waves or say anything because they really need the job. Simone is bi, and her roommate Luna is a trans woman. But when Ray comes out to her, she still struggles with pronouns and get frustrated easily. Luna and her friends help Simone understand that she needs to not centre herself and her feelings and if she makes a mistake to just correct herself and move on.

I really loved this and recommend it, but just know the romance is very slow burn and nothing happens between the characters until the end, but I really loved the building of their characters and relationship!

Thank you Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for an arc of this book in exchange for my honest review

I loved this book. First off I loved that it was about chefs and the food aspect just made it so interesting. Secondly I loved that the main characters were bi and non binary. It is really hard to find queer books with this type of representation in it. This was such a cute slow burner and I loved all the real life problems it dealt with. Definitely recommend!

*Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy in exchange for an honest review*

Chef’s Kiss follows Simone, a perfectionist pastry chef at her dream job at The Discerning Chef, a cookbook publisher in NYC. That is, until the new, very attractive, kitchen manager shows up. Simone just wants to write her cookbooks and bake, but is thrust into the spotlight when a video goes viral of Ray, the attractive kitchen manager, and she is forced to make videos with them.

I went into Chef’s Kiss expecting a funny and heartwarming rom-com, and I got that but also MORE. I loved every god damn second of this.

Simone: Simone grows so much alone in this book. She’s a cis bisexual woman, and she realizes she has the cisgender privilege. When Ray comes out to her, Simone makes mistakes. It’s a normal process when someone close to you comes out as trans* in anyway. And to see that in literature? That it’s not black and white? God yes, I need more. As a trans person, mistakes by cis people are bound to happen. It’s a normal thing. Simone tries her hardest, but even then it’s sometimes not enough. Simone always feels bad about using the wrong pronouns. I love that she recognizes her mistakes and wants to practice. That’s what I need more of in literature.

Ray: I want to hug Ray. Can I? Ray needs a hug. I say so. They are just amazing.

One thing I was not expecting was top surgery. Ray gets top surgery, and Simone looks after them for a while (along with someone else). But the talk of top surgery? SPOT. ON. Everything Simone researched/read on is what I went though. When reading the scene when Ray comes home from surgery was a whirlwind of emotions. It was like I was back in the hospital after my surgery. I beg of authors, please I want more of the medical transition talk for trans characters.

The romance is so slow burn I wanted to scream into a PILLOW. BUT it was worth it. I loved every second of it. AND this is a grumpy/sunshine story TOLD FROM THE GRUMPY POV. How else can I convince you to read this book?? Its got everything you should want.

I really enjoyed this book! I liked how the relationship between Simone and Ray progressed and how they did not take a linear path because it made it seem more realistic, especially with everything else that was happening in their lives. The resolution at the end of the book seemed fitting and I loved how Simone’s icon was a badass! The portrayal of actually seeing the recovery from surgery on the page was something that I hadn’t read before, especially not in a rom-com book, and I thought it really added to the plot and added a lot of meaning and significance. I wasn’t a huge fan of how Simone never really explained why she was so angry at Ray when they didn’t want to do anything after Simone had just come out to her boss in a horrible, confrontational way; I feel that adding this conversation somewhere would have been quick to do and would’ve added closure and clarity on Ray’s side of things for why Simone got so angry. Overall, I loved reading this book and how it integrated tough situations that the characters had to find solutions for.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Publisher for this ARC!
If you are looking for
🧁 a sweet new rom com
🧁 LGBTQ rom com
🧁 a delicious read
🧁 important discussions

CW: deadnaming, transphobia, misgendering

Simone is a master in all things Pastry and has the dream job of making new recipes and perfect breads, but when things go virtual, Simone is at a loss. On top of this, Simone has to deal with Ray, an overnight viral sensation because their editor in chief has decided they should be partners. Despite Simone’s distaste, she finds herself possibly falling head over heels.

This book had everything I wanted and more. I really enjoyed the non binary rep in this book and thought the discussion of coming out was really important and powerful. I loved both characters and it is very clear the author has a background in all things food because the food elements in the book were spot on! Definitely one to have you craving something delicious!

I really enjoyed this book. I am down for a queer romance involving video/film making and food since I grew up in a family run restaurant and have gone to film school so it's like combining all of my areas of interest into a book. The cooking and video making was prevalent and I have no issues with it which is rare when I read books that have either filming or cooking involved.

The main characters are likable and you want to root for them and yell at Chase, the main antagonist, while the story progresses. The romance was sweet and rush through to have the characters declare their undying love to each other or overstayed it's welcome which happens in a lot of romances. It was just the right amount and I was able to comfortably binge this book Ina few days. The cute scenes are really cute and the characters are absolutely charming. I feel like there was a lot of thought put into the video making process of the book as well when Ray started pitching their better ideas because people absolutely watch cooking videos for personality and not just trends.

That being said, there is still something to be desired with the ending of the book as it feels like we don't get proper closure for the side characters. (Stop reading now if you don't want spoilers) We don't see if Chase gets any sort of reprimand which is fine but feels really disappointing when you're reading through a book that's bringing up transphobia and biphobia so often that you don't get a full catharsis. Maybe the main characters just getting a better opportunity is enough for other readers and leaving those that opposed them as background but even then we don't see if the show has fully succeeded with the crew which still leaves the ending something to be desired. There was no follow up to Kelsey as she was sort of a plotline that got dropped and the reader doesn't really see if she's okay with our main character being in a relationship with the love interest which I would have personally loved to see.

There is one minor thing that has bugged me but if I didn't read the blurb or even was told of what this book was about I don't think I would have been bothered by it. I was very much expecting Ray to be known as nonbinary near the beginning of the story only to be disappointed that it was more so near the 50% mark that it was shown. If I hadn't known Ray was nonbinary, I wouldn't be digging and searching for their pronouns to be corrected in the narrative, it would've been a very nice surprise. But being the representation starved genderqueer, I kept getting increasingly annoyed that it wasn't happening sooner but that is most definitely an issue that really falls on me. If you're anything like me, just brace yourself.

Overall, this is one of my favourite romcoms of the year and I'm excited to tell everyone about it.

*I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

4.5/5 stars!

This book was so wonderful and heartwarming! Just thinking about it makes me smile, TJ Alexander you are a genius. Chef's Kiss is a swoony, slow-burn, queer cooking romcom that will have you laughing, crying, and (if you're me) fist-pumping in the air. The representation is fantastic, and every single character jumps off of the page. The author has done a fantastic job, and I HIGHLY recommend this one!

#chefskiss by TJ Alexander is a cute and fun rom-com with a non-binary main character. What more could one want in a book than food and love📚🤓❤️

Thank you to #NetGallery and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for a review

For release May 3, 2022

Debut author TJ Alexander has certainly cooked up something special with their delectable new culinary romance novel, “Chef’s Kiss.”

The budding relationship between respected pastry chef Simone and her new kitchen manager Ray is as sweet as pie, but also impeccably well-paced.

And throughout the book, I was equally as entertained as I was educated on some of the finer points of pronouns and gender identity.

As a queer educator, it makes me so happy that positive LGBT representation has become more and more common in general fiction over the years.

But I still find that non-binary characters are dangerously underrepresented. And as a result, I feel like I am not as sensitive to this subsection of queer issues.

We need books like "Chef's Kiss" so that teens across the entire queer spectrum can see themselves represented in the literature they read.

Especially when those stories are told by exemplary writers like TJ. This is definitely a book I will recommend for years to come.

Chef’s Kiss by TJ Alexander is a treat, much like one Simone Larkspur would make in her test kitchen. The main character, Simone, is a recipe developer for a cookbook publisher who is forced to adapt to the online world. Simone also has to adapt to the new kitchen manager, Ray, as they begin to work together.

What I liked: Ray and Simone are both well-developed characters and I loved them both a lot. I also thought the author did a good job of explaining Ray’s experiences in an informative way and not patronizing readers.

What could be better: I wanted to read more about their relationship - while this is a true slow-burn with a bit of spice, I could have used a few more chapters at the end where they are together. Simone could be a bit cringey and awkward at times, but then aren’t we all?

Overall, I would give the book four out of five stars. I found the first half of the book was light and sweet, whereas the second half of the book had more tension and got into the nitty-gritty of some of the experiences of people in the LGBTQIA+ community. If you are a person who has experienced misgendering, especially in the workplace, this could be triggering for you but it also has the potential to be validating since the author describes these incidents and the reactions with authenticity. I think if you are looking for a fresh and genuine romance book, this could be the book for you.

*Please note that the ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.*