After animal rescuer Sera chooses her best friend Toby in Amy Hutton’s debut Sit, Stay, Love, sunny-natured rising movie star Ethan James, gets another shot at love with his prickly dog walker, Hazel.

This book was sweet and easy light reading written in an engaging style. What was also refreshing was to read a rom com set in Oz. I also loved that Hazel was the prickly one, which was a refreshing gender reversal of the whole grumpy/sunshine. I love reading female characters that are prickly and go against a gender stereotype that women are a ‘softer’. Ethan was sweet and I liked we got more backstory about his relationships with his family. Though I was surprised he was more hung up on Sera as I never really felt any chemistry with them in the first book.

However, I felt like I was told more than shown and it was a bit too Insta-lust for me. Given Amy Hutton’s background is in TV I think this would work really well for the screen to flesh out the story more with actors to bring Ethan and Hazel more to life than in book form. I also think the final conflict was a bit flimsy, but I appreciate that they had that time apart to pursue their careers.

Overall this was a sweet and lovely read though the ending was a bit too cheesy for me.

Thanks to Simon & Schuster Australian and NetGalley for the ARC

When a book promises to combine my two favourite things, cats and food, then you know I'm going to read it!

LOVE FROM SCRATCH is the follow-up to SIT, STAY, LOVE (which is currently 99c on Amazon btw!) and follows the ever charismatic Ethan James as he films the sequel to his doggy rom-com. I enjoyed that we got to see a different side of Ethan and that he has come out of his shell a bit more. Truthfully he was a bit of a d1ck in SSL 🫣 but I had high hopes he would redeem himself in this one, and I was right. His relationship with his rescue dog Harry is super sweet and finding a dog sitter to care for Harry during filming set up the perfect meet-cute. Enter Hazle and her sassy cat Kevin! And yes you have to stay it like Home Alone KEVIN! 🤣.

The story is a cute rom-com to snuggle up with your furry companion. 

You can definitely read LOVE FROM SCRATCH as a standalone, but to appreciate Ethan's full backstory, I highly recommend starting with SIT, STAY, LOVE.

A cute light hearted read. Nice descriptions, likable characters. Definitely had me smiling at my screen and I would be likely to read the others in the series

I found this to be an enjoyable lighthearted romance. I particularly liked Kevin (the cat) and I’m not even a cat person!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a cope of this book in exchange for a honest review.

So this was a slow burn…. A very slow burn. This doesn’t usually bother me but the chemistry has to be there. Unfortunately, for me, I didn’t feel like the chemistry and pacing was pulled off as well as it could have been. The premise was fun and should have made a great romcom but it fell a bit flat. It wasn’t a bad book but also wasn’t particularly memorable. I do enjoy books with animals so Harry and Kevin were the stand outs for me.

Ethan James is an up and coming movie star, Hazel is a chef who has just had her world turned upside down with a horrible review. So the chances of their lives crossing paths seems highly unlikely. Until Hazel moves inter state to try and restart, taking some time out to become a dog minder.

The book is told is third person, I really think dual POV would have added a lot more to the storyline and allow it to flow a little better. It’s definitely a slow burn romance, with a touch of spice and a heap of banter.

I enjoyed the building attraction between the two main characters and I particularly liked how Hazel didn’t love Ethan immediately, he had to work for it. Their relationship is fun especially with the addition of the animals, but there wasn’t a whole lot that really grabbed me in.

Overall a quick easy Aussie romance

Hazel is a chef, who is doing a bit of dog-minding while she is between jobs. Ethan is a rising actor, who needs someone to look after his dog while he is on set (so said dog, Henry, doesn't destroy his house). In true romcom fashion, after Ethan hires Hazel, sparks fly, although Hazel is jaded by past experience with celebrities and is the one person not dazzled by Ethan.

And so we begin the dance of friendship and relationship building (I'm not going to go into tropes) with straight-talking Hazel and Ethan determined to prove he's not as shallow as she thinks. There are misunderstandings, sad backstories, a diabolical cat called Kevin (totally the star of the book!) and a couple of sex scenes.

(For those who want spice ratings, this is sort of middle of the road - neither overly explicit, but not completely closed door, either. This was mostly about the relationship itself rather than sex for sex' sake)

This was a delightful Aussie romcom, that feels made for the screen - I read it in a day.

(And I loved the fact that this was 100% local content - from the settings to the characters to the irreverent language used. It's refreshing to have Aussie voices represented. )

~ Many thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Australia for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. ~

// love from scratch

‘Opposites attract in this laugh-out-loud rom-com about a heart-throb actor, the grumpy woman who minds his beloved dog, and the cat that steals his heart.’

i love finding new australian authors!

this was set on the sunshine coast, where i live, which was so fun! the beach front homes and the hinterland made it very recognisable.

i found out after reading this that it is a sequel 😬 however it did work as a standalone if you haven’t read the first book

this was a fun, easy to read, feel good romcom. the characters are likeable, there’s some good character development throughout. i enjoyed the food/cooking storyline, and the pets were a fun addition also

thankyou to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster Australia for the advanced copy 🫶🏼

Love From Scratch is crying out to be made into a bright, sparkling romcom movie. The setting is Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, the hero is a Hemsworthian hunk, the heroine is almost as gorgeous as the hero, and it’s all topped off with an adorable cat and dog.

Ethan is a movie star best known for his looks. He is well aware that that is what gets him starring roles and he is quite matter-of-fact about maintaining his appearance. He is, however, a very nice, genuine man with a great appreciation for the success that has come his way so far.

Hazel is a chef whose confidence has been shattered by a particularly horrible customer. She has, sadly, lost her passion for cooking beautiful food, and she takes a job as a dog minder for Ethan’s Jack Russell while Ethan is filming.

This is not my usual kind of book; however, Amy Sutton’s writing about the cat and dog was tender, sweet and real which absolutely won me over; and another point I would like to make is that Amy knows how to write a sex scene, a skill a lot of authors aspire to but not many do really well. The movie which I hope will eventuate will be a winner if it is filmed on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast and Sydney’s Northern Beaches: heaven on earth!

Published by Simon & Schuster

Movie star Ethan meets Chef turned pet sitter Hazel in Love From Scratch, a sweet Aussie romcom set in the Sunshine Coast.
It is the second book in a series but can be read as a standalone novel.

I really enjoyed reading about Ethan and Hazel and watching their romance unfold whilst being overshadowed by their adorable pets.

For fans of:
- Grumpy x Sunshine (reverse)
- He falls first
- Cats & Dogs

Thank you Netgalley for generously providing me with a review copy.

This was my first book by Amy Hutton, and I found it to be a very cute, very light hearted read about an up and coming actor and an aspiring chef.

Ethan and Hazel are a good example of grumpy x sunshine, and it was refreshing to see that it was the FMC who was the grumpy one in this dynamic. Throw in uncooperative (as they all are at the best of times) but adorable pets, and this book is perfect for anyone in the mood for a fun read

This is a young, light, easy-to-read romance perfect for a holiday. There was a lot of swearing at the beginning, which almost put me off, but it was an enjoyable story about two characters struggling to get over their respective traumas. Set in North Queensland, it involved Ethan, a movie-star working with dogs in spite of his fear of them, and Hazel, a chef who lost her job. When Hazel starts taking care of Harry, Ethan’s lovely little dog, sparks fly between she and Ethan. The animals in the book are very sweet. I especially liked Kevin.

This wasn’t my usual type of book but I will look out for Amy Watson’s other novels.



I received this free ebook from NetGalley in return for an honest review.

This was a feel good, light-hearted, easy to devour book!

Hazel is an aspiring Chef...down on her luck at the moment after a scorching review left her defaulted, with no confidence and her love of cooking gone. Somehow Hazel has become a pet minder...not her dream job, but it will do for now!

Ethan is an actor...an extremely hot actor who needs a dog minder....Hazel has never watched one if his movies and is not impressed by his status or his charm.

Love From Scratch is a story about opposite worlds colliding, where anything can happen as long as you let yourself be free.

This is a slow burn, flirtatious book that hits you in the heart (and other places...especially the kitchen!!).

Not only does this book revolve around 2 very good looking MCs, but we also get to meet their pets, Harry (a cute and friendly Jack Russell) and Kevin (a brooding black cat).

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and am looking forward to reading more from Amy Hutton! I love a good book from an Aussie Author 🇦🇺

A slow burn easy read. I enjoyed seeing Ethan overcome his dog fear but I would have liked a more indepth exploration of how he overcame it instead of briefly mentioning Sera helping. I liked it mentioned Australia. I enjoyed Hazel standing up for herself when she came face to face with her harsh critic. The ending felt a little rushed. I would have liked it to have been expanded.

Thanks netgalley for providing my copy.

Hazel is a chef, part time dog minder, who has recently moved up the coast to escape a bad memory.

She ends up getting hired to look after Ethan James’ dog, Harry whilst filming his newest film. It was love at first glance for Ethan, which I wasn’t too sure how I felt about it. It was sweet but didn’t seem to be enough context besides *she’s pretty* which is the essence of it I guess.

I loved the addition of a grumpy cat who softens for the golden boy (looking at you Kevin). I enjoyed the Aussie setting (as an Aussie myself) and the passion the two main characters had for their careers.

The relationship breakdown point felt realistic and relatable, it didn’t feel toxic which is quite refreshing! I found towards the end it was a bit rushed but I love reading couples in love and we didn’t get that as much as I’d like.

Overall, a quick and fun read for anyone looking for a down to earth famous guy/normal girl love story based in the best place (Aus!).

Thank you to NetGalley for my eARC!

I received an advanced copy from NetGalley.

Unfortunately I didn’t really get wowed by this book.
I didn’t like either of the characters. I think Hazel came across as very rude and abrupt and Ethan was quite shallow.

The book was almost like it was an inbetween book. Like I felt like they referenced Ethan being in love with Sera and Hazels previous issues at the restaurant a bit but didn’t give it much depth.

I loved this story, Amy is a new to me author but the cover looked so fun so I picked it up.
Ethan is an actor, a pretty smile and dimples kind of guy. The total opposite of the kind of guy Hazel usually goes for. Hazel lost her chef job and picked dog minding to cover her bills. Taking on Ethan's little pooch they get to know each other and the flying sparks took them by surprise. She thinks he's too flirty but when her evil cat is all over him she looks twice.
This is there story of a fling that's not really a fling, careers in different cities then countries. I really enjoyed their banter, their goodbye which may or may not be permanent. The heart wants what the heart wants.
Such a fun light hearted story, I look forward to seeing what else this author has written.

♡ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 ♡
🌶️ 0.5/5

I loved this book. It was light-hearted, sweet, and so fun to read. It was full of romcom moments that had me grinning and giggling.
It was my first time reading anything by Amy Hutton, so I didn’t realise this book was the second in a series before I started to read it, but I found I didn’t feel like I was missing anything by not reading the first book (Sit, Stay, Love).
I’m weak for books with animals, so I was immediately in love with Harry and Kevin. I also really enjoyed that it was set near to where I live on the Sunshine Coast, and I got to read the descriptions of Queensland for the first time in a book (here’s to me searching for more QLD-based books 😝)
The reverse grumpy/sunshine-ish trope was a nice change, but I did struggle with finding Hazel a little too judgmental at times. I like that both Hazel and Ethan faced their demons in their own way. I also really enjoyed that it was a realistic look at two adults chasing their own dreams and ambitions in life - it was a really nice change from many of the romances you can usually find.
I also don’t know if it was just me, but I really struggled with the lack of support Hazel’s sister gave her. Her sister just felt mean most of the time, and I would have liked to see more of the friendship and support Hazel spoke about within the book.

I had so many moments of giggles and feet kicking reading this.
It was a sweet and easy read that I’d recommend to anyone looking to add a little romcom to their day! 💖💖

*I received an eARC copy in exchange for my honest review of this book*
Big thank you to NetGalley, Amy Hutton and Simon & Schuster Australia for the chance to read this book.

I thought this book was absolutely adorable, a cutesy, light-hearted romcom that had me giggling, smiling like a loon so much that my husband kept asking me what I was doing on my phone smiling like that & at times shocked.

We follow dreamy movie star Ethan James and chef turned pet sitter Hazel in this Aussie situated romance. Hazel & Ethan were destined to be, their chemistry was felt through the pages and it had me rooting for them from the beginning. Hazel was such a grumpy and black cat character and had the pet (Kevin) to match her and Ethan her sunshine, with the dog to match (Harry). Amy Hutton aced the character banter which just made the story flow and made it that much more entertaining. It was such an easy, fast paced & highly enjoyable romance with a hint of spice

Thank you to NetGalley, Amy Hutton & Simon & Schuster for allowing me to read this arc in exchange for my honest & candid review.

Ok I have to be honest here. I was so excited for this book and it was my first time reading this author too. I did love the characters, and pets but it was just something with the storyline that made me not really love it. It was like things were written to just fill the pages and also I didn’t feel the chemistry with these two. There was a disconnect with them. I did like how he wanted her more than she wanted him this time!