Thanks to Netgalley & St. Martin's Press for the E-ARC! Loved this so much!! The chemistry between both characters was perfect. Also loved the banter. Definitely will read more from this author.

I wish I could have devoured this book much faster than I was able to! Definitely a fitting title with the slow burn between main characters. I also enjoyed Ellie growth over the course of the book. She really finds herself and is easy to connect to as a character. Kieran is just so much fun and has such a big heart. I also found myself looking up YouTube videos on how to “supreme and orange” and other fun cooking skills and lingo! Perfect romance novel for foodies. Such a fun easy read. Can’t wait to see more from Sarah Chamberlain.

Thank you NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for the ARC.

Such a cute book. I could not put the book down once I began reading it. Cannot wait for it to be released. I will recommend it to everyone I know!

Thank you Net Galley and Sarah Chamberlain for the chance to read this arc.

The book is literally titled perfectly. It is slow burn, but in the best way. The chemistry between Ellie and Kieran is amazing and the banter and humor between them is great.

Ellie is a widow learning how to live her life while taking care of everyone else and lives life by the rules. Kieran has ADHD and lives life freely. He helps her learn to live a little and she helps him learn how to be more composed and adult like in a way. Together they learn how to be happy and love.

PS - I need these cookbooks and I love Floyd.

The Slowest Burn took me quite some time to really get into, and I wasn’t a huge fan of the pacing. I liked Ellie’s character and think the author did a good job making her and her grief feel realistic. Not sure how I feel about Kieran. Most of the time I didn’t enjoy his immaturity, though I suppose he acted that way because of his past. I do appreciate that he made Ellie face her fears.

Slow to get into, but it picks up after a while. A gentler comp for The Bear if The Bear was a romance between a writer and a cook and a partner who's passed away rather than a brother. Heavy but not. Solid writing and characters with a well deserved, sweet, happily ever after.

This book was great. The characters were enjoyable. The plot holds your attention. I would read another book by this author.

Grateful for the opportunity to read an ARC of "The Slowest Burn" through Kindle, courtesy of NetGalley, the author, and St Martin's Press. This charming tale follows Ellie, a recent widow and ghostwriter for cookbooks, as she collaborates with chef Kieran amidst their respective personal struggles. Despite its lighthearted rom-com vibe, the story delves into poignant themes such as loss, alcoholism, and childhood trauma with a delicate touch. The characters are authentic, and the blend of heavy topics with light-hearted moments gives the narrative a unique and engaging quality. The focus on food and cooking adds a delightful layer to the story, reminiscent of works by Lucy Score and Tessa Bailey but with a milder tone. Overall, "The Slowest Burn" offers a heartwarming happily-ever-after, making it a refreshing and enjoyable read for those seeking a feel-good romance.

Our story follows our MMC Kieran, who is determined to write a cookbook after his successful win on a popular cooking show. However, he knows nothing about writing. Enters our FMC, Ellie, who will be the ghostwriter on his book. Problem is, they don't exactly start off on the right foot. Ellie is uptight, organized, and meticulous,. The complete opposite of Kieran. Them working together proves to be difficult until they can learn to accept each other's personalities and pasts.

There honestly isn't anything I would change about this book! The pacing was wonderful, the characters were relatable and lovable, and I found myself rooting for everyone. As someone who has lost someone close to them, the representation of grief was incredible. I really found that Ellie's self discovery journey to be accurate. I also appreciated that her weight was not a major defining factor of her personality and that it was only mentioned once. I also loved how Kieran was portrayed. His learning disabilities felt realistic and we love a short king. Overall, I couldn't have asked for better main characters.

As always, thank you to NetGalley & St. Martin’s Press for an ARC copy of this book!

I just loved this story. There were so many different aspects and relationships that developed throughout the book. I found myself up very late reading in hopes of being able to finish.

I struggled to get into this book for around the first 20%, but once it captured me I couldn't put it down! Until around 80%, by which time I was getting bored again. But that sweet spot in between? Oh, so good.

The romane is cute and wholesome, and - really - the slowest, most delicious burn.

Chamberlain has managed to write really great main characters, encompassing their passions, flaws, and traumas. But she truly mastered writing "bad" characters who make you want to tear out your hair in frustration, and really resonate with the emotional rollercoaster Ellie and Kieran are forced to experience.

The slowest burn is a very sweet book that you can read in a weekend and leave with a good taste in your mouth.
I love cooking reality shows and it made for something fresh different from my usual type of reading, it was fun to see these two cooking lovers on the scene.

I would have liked to see a little more development of the couple's grieving theme, but overall the book is beautiful.

Thank you Sarah, your debut book left a good taste in my mouth, I look forward to reading more from you.

I LOVED this book and am so glad I got an arc from NetGalley for it!

The slowest burn is such a fun concept, and though there’s a bit of fake dating, overall, I’d say it’s very titular — it really is a slow burn between Ellie and Kieran, while dealing with neurodivergence, grief, and childhood trauma. The characters are so well thought out, and because it wasn’t an insta-love story, I was rooting so hard for them by the end — I genuinely wanted to see them happy. This book felt refreshing and different to me, and I’m going to be recommending it.

The author continuously references how small/short the MMC Kieran is, and mixed with the immaturity of his actions it was a struggle to see him as an adult and a good counterpart to the FMC. I wanted him to be less annoying, to be blunt!

I really, really enjoyed the FMC Ellie and wish that she was given a different character to play off of. Her experience was described beautifully and the process of coming out of grief and the hard road of starting from scratch when the dreams and plans you had for yourself ended with the loss of your spouse.

The Slowest Burn is a cute and food-filled, enemies-to-lovers story. Ellie is a ghost writer for cookbooks and Kieran is the celebrity chef she's working with. Things don't start out great between the, but ultimately they find their HEA.

~~What I liked~~
-The writing was easy to read and the story was interesting. I binged this in basically one day, it was well done.
-The characters for the most part were pretty good. Kieran has ADHD and it was interesting to see how that played out on paper. The supporting friends were great, I would have loved for them to play a larger role in the book.
-The food had a pretty big part in the story, obvs, but it wasn't so much that I was like "Enough food talk already!"
-The FMC is a curvy girl and it is subtlety hinted at in the book. I like body positivity, but I don't like having to read about it every third page and the author did a great job with that aspect of the character.
-In addition to a curvy (read: realistic sized) FMC, the MMC wasn't a stereotypical Greek god. He was short (and a redhead), but he was toned and worked out.
-

~~What I didn't like~~
-It was a bit slower than I would have liked and time in the book seemed a bit wonky. Some parts seemed perfect with pacing, other times I felt dragged, and then two weeks would pass I felt like there was too much happening to jump that much.

-The romance seemed off to me. I loved that they started as enemies, and it did take a while for them to become friends, but I wanted more to the romance. They worked together for 9 months, but I never really got the impression that they were 'deep' into each other, more just a surface level stuff.

-I had trouble vibing with Ellie. One chapter she was put together and strong , the next she would be really meek and almost seemed to let people walk over her. I know part of the story is she isn't like that in the end, but I struggled to see how someone who always looked out for others would suddenly change to put herself first with not much support other than her BFF.

Overall, I did enjoy this book and would recommend. This was a great debut novel and I look forward to more books by Sarah Chamberlain.

Thank you NetGalley for the chance to read this ARC for my honest review.

4.75 stars 💚

Releases: September 24, 2024

Ok yes this book is a slow burn but in the best way.

What I loved:

-the ADHD representation and I loved that we had Kieran's POV so we can hear the inner turmoil that he deals with, which his ADHD.

-the dual POV. I am just a sucker for dual POVs and I don't think I've ever read a book where I was like "oh that dual POV was not good". I thoroughly love hearing both sides of the story and it was done well.

-the MMC. Ok I do agree with some of the other reviews that Kieran seemed to have a "younger voice". However, that man came through and stood by Ellie.

-the friends. I liked the side characters who were friends and honestly I liked some of the other non friend side character, but I won't say more on that to stay spoiler free.

I related to this story in more ways than one. As a person with ADHD myself I felt seen and validated by Kieran's experience. At the same time I struggle/struggled with similar things as Ellie too.

Overall, this book had me crying at a brewery, blushing, and squealing with joy.

Also, another debut novel I read this week that makes me excited for future work by this author.

The Slowest Burn was an absolutely adorable read! Kieran and Ellie are so relatable, I really loved how the author made them REAL. He has his own internal and diagnosed issues and I appreciated how the author made it the GUY who also had some. I love books who break stereotypes. Men can struggle too!!!! Ellie turned out to be patient and kind and together they are just lovely. For some reason I’ve been on a chef book kick, on accident? Loving it though.
I’m so glad I received an ARC of this romantic, sweet book. Thank you netgalley 😀🫶🏻

Ratings:
Overall Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3.5/5
Writing: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3.5/5
Plot: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5
Characters: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3.5/5
Romance: 🌹🌹🌹 3/5
Spice Quantity: 🚒 🚒  2/5
Spice Quality: 🔥🔥🔥 3/5

What to Expect:
✓ Dual POV romance
✓ A grieving widow and ghostwriter FMC
✓ A handsome Irish chef MMC with a big case of ADHD
✓ Big foodie vibes
✓ Workplace enemies to lovers
✓ Forced proximity

My Thoughts:
This was a very cute and easy contemporary romance. I’m tempted to just give this book 3 stars, but I flew threw it and did enjoy it as a nice palette cleanser so I kick it up to 3.5. This is definitely a book for foodies, and one that you shouldn’t read while hungry. Ellie (the writer) and Kieran (the chef) are writing a cookbook and so there is a lot of discussion about food and restaurants throughout. Their romance was super sweet, and I love anything involving forced proximity enemies to lovers, so that’s a big bonus for me. While I wasn’t blown away, I do think this is a great story of healing, love, and food.

A few side notes just for feedback:
- I really don't love when there is so much focus on body types in a book. Whether they are plus sized or rail thin or jacked or something in between, when it's constantly brought up or mentioned it really irks me. I appreciate getting a clear picture of a character, but the focus on body and repetitiveness seemed a bit much? I don't know, maybe this is just a me thing?
- The Happy Pirate Leprechaun nickname seems so unrealistic and insane? I get why the MMC wouldn't like it. It just feels like such a stretch that anyone would use that name for someone? I don't know.

Gosh, this book is just allllmost there. I was barely rooting for the two MCs to get together, because the slow burn wasn’t burning hot enough. If you’re going to advertise the trope right there in the title, I should be panting by the time they get naked.

When I’m into a book, I can gobble down a 400 page book in an afternoon. It took me 12 days to get 10% of the way through this book and I just can’t do it anymore.

The dialogue in this book is PAINFUL. Like it just felt so clunky and awkward. There was no natural flow to it at all. It also felt like I was thrown into the middle of a story without an adequate explanation as to what was going on.

I was excited for this book, the cover is GORGEOUS, but I’m officially giving myself permission to DNF it.