I picked up this book not knowing what to expect. Honestly, it was the cover that drew me in, it’s so beautiful and I just couldn’t stop thinking about it. I was a bit concerned to see that so many readers had DNF’ed this book but decided to give it a chance anyway. And I’m so glad I did!

I absolutely loved this book from start to finish. I generally enjoy fantasy books, but many of the big epic series’ tend to be slow paced to the point that I struggle to make progress in them. By contrast this story is extremely fast paced! We start the first chapter with a kidnapping attempt and it never lets up from there. I am also a fan of stories that focus on court intrigue and political manoeuvring which this book has loads of.

The cast of characters was great, I loved to see the middle aged and elderly protagonists represented but we also get an empowering teenage girl who does not (!) fall for a boy or make stupid decisions out of immaturity.

Honestly I fell in love with the first narrator, rebel chef Ada, from the moment I watched her interact with her senile grandmother. Their bond was beautiful and their interactions were at times heartwarming and at times hilarious. Ada’s backstory was heartbreaking and I really hoped for her to get to a better place over the course of the book.

And princess Solenn was another excellent narrator, a girl with a massive diplomatic weight on her shoulders, trying to make the best of a bad situation. She has a great mind and strong character but in the misogynistic society where she lives is only valued for who she might marry. It was great to see some of her potential realised throughout the book.

Unlike many books with multiple narrators I did not find myself preferring one over the other, although it was unclear for most of the book how they would converge I enjoyed the two parallel storylines equally. The story mostly went where I though it was going but there were several surprises and plot twists along the way, all of which only made the book better. It’s clear this book is setting the stage for a series, it doesn’t end on a cliffhanger but leaves several threads loose for future instalments.

I can’t finish off without commenting on the world-building, the story is set in a fantasy version of 18th century France which I think was well done. There are enough similarities that I can appreciate the historical and geographical inspirations, but it’s still a unique fantasy realm. The magic system is based around cooking magical ingredients with blessings from five deities. I found it really well done and loved the more insight into the gods that we get towards the end of the story. The little intros of lore and recipes at the beginning of each chapter were also interesting.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys fast-paced fantasy books with strong female protagonists. It’s also an excellent choice for anyone that wants to transition from YA fantasy to start reading adult fantasy.

A very interesting premise…unfortunately I found the execution to be under-developed and a bit wooden. Could possibly appeal to a YA audience. Thank you to NetGalley/publisher for the opportunity to review.

I think it's really interesting to have a magic system built on food but it felt like a quick idea and not particularly well developed out. This book had so much potential to blow me away and whilst I enjoyed it, it wasn't something I would pick up and read again

A Thousand Recipes for Revenge comes out Jun 27th, 2023. This interesting fantasy world explores the new trendy magical system of 'food-related' magic. In this world, five gods rule the world, and some gifted mortals are 'chefs' with some of the gods' powers. The story follows Ada, a rogue chef, and general. While the food-based magic system was interesting, I could not relate to the characters and the writing felt too choppy. The author focused on developing this unique world, that the plot and characters fell short.

Thank you to NetGalley, 47 North, and author, Beth Cato, for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review.

I was thoroughly entrantsed with this book. But throw in magic, cooking and adventure and that makes for a fantastic book. This has quickly became a favorite. I'm still thinking about it.
I just reviewed A Thousand Recipes for Revenge by Beth Cato. #AThousandRecipesforRevenge #NetGalley
[NetGalley URL]Edit

3 Stars. This book was an interesting and a fun idea. Just fell a little flat in my opinion, I wanted to like it more than I did.
Thank you netgalley for the arc!

I received an advanced digital copy of this book, courtesy of the publisher, via NetGalley. I wanted to give this book a try because it is different than what I typically read, but I honestly could just not get into it and I DNF at 30%. I found myself skimming instead of reading, and I’m super bummed about that because a magic system that revolves around food is such a creative idea! This book just wasn’t for me, and that’s okay!

This book felt like an enormous banquet with an excessive number of dishes, many of which looked deliciously appealing but ended up tasting flat, without salt or spice. I was intrigued by the idea of food containing magic but found almost everything about that magic system disturbing, almost gratuitously so, even before the parallels to veganism came up. (As someone who has tried veganism, I can see and sympathize with some of the points made, but it still felt painfully obvious and gratuitous.) The characters for the most part felt like stock characters with not a whole lot of complexity even by the end. The pacing was really uneven, especially a rapid and thoroughly unsatisfying finish that made me feel like the author had just given up and decided, nope, I'm done. And there was so much telling instead of showing, I almost felt like I was reading a treatise on the Five and Chefs and such, not a fantasy adventure.

There was SO MUCH I wanted to love about this book, and yet every time I picked it up, I cringed and heard myself whine, "Do I have to???" What a disappointment.

Two stars -- some good ideas but painful execution.

Thank you, 47 North and NetGalley, for providing an eARC of this book. Opinions expressed here are solely my own.

This was such an interesting concept to me, I love an original book premise! A magic system that revolves around food is so creative and new that it was refreshing to dive into something unlike the norm. Some of the characters bothered me a bit but it didn’t take away from the story for me. The world building was done well and overall an interesting, unique read.

Presently surprised by this one. I was thinking it would read more like a cozy mystery but like a cozy fantasy If that existed? It was confusing at first between the two many characters POV, but after awhile you got used to it. Great depth and story telling, I just wish the end had better clarity.

*I've received an advanced digital copy of this book, courtesy of the author and publisher, via Netgalley.*

I DNF'd this book early on, which is a shame because I was really excited to read it. I found the concept to be very intriguing and I was very attracted to the cover. However, I found the dialogue in this book to be bulky and difficult to get through at times. I also found that the world-building felt a bit forced and was not organically introduced. My favourite part of what I read was the system of magic, I found it to be very interesting and unique. This book did not hold my attention but I am sure that there are many people who would enjoy this book. There is a lot of potential, it just wasn't personally for me.

I’ve read a few of these ‘food based’ magic systems and whilst they make for an enjoyable enough read, I didn’t find this one different or unique enough to hold my interest.

I got half way through and decided to skim the rest as the characters just weren’t well drawn enough to hold my interest.

The world building was overly complicated and there were a lot of characters introduced in the beginning, which made it

1. A bit difficult to keep track of people
2. Hard to relate and therefore care about any of the characters.

Overall I think there are probably better examples of this kind of book already on the market.

It also had a very YA feel to it which I don’t believe was the intended market.

Thank you to the publisher for allowing me to read this eARC!

To be transparent, I DNF'd at 48%. I did not like this book. I found all the characters to be annoying, it was either incredibly boring or incredibly over emotional and...cringe. It is a unique concept, with chefs beinh highly regarded in this world and the world building was fantastic...it just...I couldn't get into it.

Brilliant, fresh and intriguing, the food-centered world of A Thousand Recipes for Revenge brings a new fantastical perspective on something anyone can enjoy… food!

Chefs are the most highly-regarded lifestyle in this book, as only those who are blessed by one of the five Gods with a special ability can claim this title. The world revolves around Chefs and epicurea, a special substance made from fantastical creatures that can give it’s diners certain attributes.

I was hooked from the first chapter, and I have to admit I read this ARC very fast! The plot was fast-paced and exciting, the characters were interesting and unique, and the world building was extraordinary!

I will say there were some long and windy passages and over-emotional scenes. I wish there was more introduction to some of the characters so that I cared more about them, but instead I felt too distant from the relationships of the book. However, towards the end, I appreciated the sweet, sentimental relationships created and found myself excited for a sequel!

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for providing an ARC of this book. This does not affect my opinion of the book.

Different story and a unique universe. Though I enjoyed the premise and the story somewhat, the themes of what amounted to veganism were a bit heavy handed and that is coming from a vegan. I also hate stories with no real conclusion and instead just reads like half the story. It's ok but could have been more.

Wow! What an amazing book!!
Would love to read more from the author.
Thankyou netgalley for the Arc!

really enjoyed the concept of this book, it was a great swashbuckling adventure. I was invested in what was going on and enjoyed the world that was set. The characters were unique and worked well in the world. Beth Cato has a great writing style and it does a great job in telling the story. I was hooked from the first page and it had the fantasy elements that I was looking for.

“Fire?” Her brow furrowed. That didn’t fit the pattern, though it’d work well for outright murder—if one didn’t care about other lives lost in the attack. “I’m not sure if that is connected to this other threat, but in any case, I’m grateful you’re on the alert.”