Aftertaste
Rating: 3.2 out of 5

Initially when I thought to give this book a look, I was expecting something like the golden spoon to occur but, it was nothing like that really. I mean it away t was it did have crime and food which is cool when I read it but, I was having trouble getting past the characters and making the story fit. I loved the concept of the storyline and how it worked out in the end. But these characters especially the main character bothered me in a way, I felt the need to make faces sort of like if my mouth doesn’t say it my face will. Whatever my face was giving was how i felt about the main character. I want more likable people or at least one, so it can have a better potential for me.

Thank you NetGalley for given me the opportunity to read. Thank you to the publishers as well.

Aftertaste is a quirky fantasy novel for the likes of TJ Klune and T. Kingfisher. A reflection death and the afterlife, it invites deep reflection while maintaining a decent amount of humor.

If cooking your late loved one’s favorite dish could bring them back for one last meal—would you do it? That’s the haunting question at the center of Aftertaste, a novel that blends grief, food, memory, and a touch of the supernatural.

Konstantin Duhovny has experienced "aftertastes" from the dead ever since his father passed away when he was a child. These aren’t just emotional echoes—they’re literal tastes tied to the meals of those who’ve departed. It isn’t until years later that he realizes the power these aftertastes might hold. What if he could cook these dishes and bring someone back—just for one final meal? But the real question becomes: can a final meal bring closure, or will it only make goodbye harder the second time?

This novel surprised me in the best way. From the moment I read the premise, I knew I had to dive in. The idea of sharing a last meal with someone you've lost feels like an impossible gift—bittersweet and beautiful. While the beginning was a bit slow, as it traces Konstantin’s childhood in Ukraine and his struggles as an immigrant in the U.S., the story gradually gained depth and momentum. Before I knew it, I was completely hooked, unable to put it down. The ending left me unexpectedly heartbroken.

It’s clear the author did their homework—the details of kitchen life, restaurant work, and flavor felt authentic and vivid. More than anything, this book made me reflect on meals I’ve had that mattered not because of the food, but because of the people at the table.

Aftertaste is perfect for readers who enjoy supernatural elements, ghost stories, and culinary fiction, with just the right touch of romance. It’s a quiet, tender exploration of loss—and the flavors we carry with us long after someone’s gone.

A special thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for providing an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Konstantin Duhovny is a lost soul. His father died when he was ten years old, and ever since then, he’s been haunted by ghosts. He can’t see the ghosts, but can taste their favorite foods. It begins with a puff at the back of his throat, signaling him that a ghost is present, and then all the flavors flood in. One night, he decides to make a drink that comes into his mouth as a lonely, grieving man sits at the bar where he works. This action changes everything.

Konstantin discovers that by cooking the aftertastes that arrive, he can bring the ghosts back for a limited time, usually until the person finishes the food or drink that Konstantin has prepared. He is amazed and decides to make his life mission reuniting people with their lost loved ones. When the beautiful Maura comes into his life, he feels even more strongly that he is on the right path. He opens a restaurant, and word about his abilities quickly spreads. However, he doesn’t realize that he is tampering with the Afterlife, and there may be consequences.

This is an incredible book, maybe one of the best I’ve read this year. I can tell the author either did a lot of research or is very passionate about food. I learned some things I didn’t know about the culinary world. The book’s premise is unique and refreshing. Reading this book makes the reader appreciate life, loved ones, and shared experiences with family and friends. The pacing is slow to medium until the end, when everything speeds up. Konstantin’s journey is not one I will forget. I felt gutted and torn to pieces at the book’s ending, but it was fitting and maybe the only way it could have ended. This book gets a solid five stars from me! Thank you to Simon & Schuster for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Great read! I love the premise of Aftertaste. The idea of being able to share one last meal with someone you love is one I am sure many people connect with and would love the opportunity to have. It made me think of the favorite food my loved ones had that have passed on. It is emotional and thought provoking. Thank you for the opportunity to read and review.

I really enjoyed this! One of the aspects I appreciated the most about Aftertaste was that it is very approachable for literary fiction. It raises complex questions about grief, memory, food, and death, but in a way that will appeal to a broad range of readers. In a novel centered around food, the descriptions are appropriately lush without feeling overly indulgent. I found myself constantly wanting to pick it up to find out what would happen next. It's an impressive debut and I'll be looking forward to Daria Lavelle's future works!

A great read! Super fun premise. I couldn' wait to see what happened next. Also, can't wait for Daria's next book. Fun stuff!

The story seemed to take forever to get going. I liked the concept of the chef being able to bring back a ghost for someone with a favorite food or food memory. Those parts were really enjoyable and I loved all the food descriptions. Once that was established the storyline wavered a little and the ending was a bit strange, but overall I enjoyed the book.

As a chef and book lover, I devoured this book. I appreciated all the descriptions of the flavors and dishes. It even has inspired me to delve into more recipes and ingredients.
The progression of the story was the perfect amount of mystery and emotion to truly develop the characters. My only big critique is that the book is 5 pages too long, I don’t think that we needed the Frankie or the “souls chef”’s chapters at the end. It felt a little forced and cheesy at the end. I would have been happy with a little mystery and wonder.
I will absolutely recommend this book. And I think this would be a great book club pick with a dinner party serving dishes that were Aftertastes.

Super super interesting concept!! If you are a foodie, you will appreciate the food descriptions. Warning: this book might make you hungry lol. Also if you like ghosts, you’ll be into this! The writing quality / story telling was really good! I liked Kostya a lot.

But there was so much going on! I did feel a bit lost at times. There’s romance, culinary rivalry, mafia, horror, suspense…. And I just felt a little confused at times about what was happening with Maura. And I’m also not sure what even happened at the end? Please DM me if you can shed a little light on that.

👻 “Someone told me once that grief is like having leftovers, with no one to serve them to.”

👻 “When the Living don’t let go, the Dead go Hungry; we can’t move On.”

3.5 rounded up to 4 stars

✨✨✨ Bon Appétit mon bien-aimé✨✨✨

I love the idea of Aftertaste. The idea of being able to taste ghosts favorite foods, sharing one last meal with someone you love, etc. There are a lot of memories people have with loved ones that are tied to food. That’s where the heart of this story lies, somewhere in the middle of grief and loss, love and a ghost story, is food and taste.

I really enjoyed the idea of this book, the delicious food writing, and the overall story. I think some of the plot I wanted to be a little bit different and for me it was a little slow in parts in the middle. I like that at its core though it’s a thought provoking book about loss and grieving and it is a unique concept. It wasn’t a perfect read for me, but it is distinctive, bittersweet, and delectable.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a free ebook copy in exchange for an honest review. This book will be released May 20, 2025.

The question of, "If you could have dinner with anyone who has already died, who would it be?" Is the primary basis of this one. An incredible ability leads to connecting people with their lost loved ones, giving much needed closure in some cases. Heartwarming and full of excellent culinary experiences!

Usually when I read a book, I feel good about the time and energy I spent on it. Not in this case. The story line just never got me feeling good about reading. And I did finish it but that's all I can say. Not my cup of tea., sorry.

Wow. This is a book that is going to stick with me for a long time. A beautiful story centered around grief, magic, and the memories left behind.

Kostya has been able to get the aftertaste of significant meals of the departed since he was kid. What starts as just another thing that makes him feel like an outcast becomes the thing that makes him special. Kostya realizes he is able to reconnect loved ones with those they lost by recreating the meal that he is tasting.

I just loved this book and think it is smart, interesting, magical, and very well written! Thank you NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the ARC!

I really, really, really wanted to like this one, but it wasn't for me. I found the main character frustrating and I really didn't like what seemed to be the overall message about people who are stuck in grief.

Aftertaste by Daria Lavelle appealed to me for several reasons. One, it is well-written and draws you in immediately. Two, it is about food and Lavelle knows what she is talking about, the love of food is an almost universal human sensation. And, three, it is about chefs and restaurant work, and having spent a lot of time in restaurant kitchens and dining rooms, it is spot on in that area, also.

To set the metaphorical table, a favorite game of Konstantin and his father was for Konstantin to taste dishes his father had prepared and guess the ingredients in the dish. When Konstantin was ten years old, he begged his father to play the game early in the morning, but his father said later. Konstantin would not give up. He said things he would later regret. Later that day Konstantin's father passed away in an accident. Konstantin was never able to get over that loss and neither could his mother. This made life for young Konstantin very difficult, often facing hunger and needing to take care of himself as well as his mother.

Over the years, he would get flavors in his mouth of things he had not eaten, but he knew what the separate ingredients were and when he became old enough, he wanted to be able to reproduce the dishes. He got work in restaurants and tried to learn about creating foods with the information in his mouth.

At one point, he realized the dishes he was tasting were sent to him by people who had passed away. What he does with that is quite unexpected. I literally devoured this book, I think most readers will, too, since we all have the experience of being eaters.

Thank you, Netgalley, for the prepublication copy to read and review.

You know how people see ghosts of loved ones or dream of them, well, Kostya can taste their favorite food. One night before closing a drunk man comes into the bar and starts a commotion, Kostya can taste a drink so he makes it for him however Kostya has never made or heard of this drink but he finds out it was the man’s wife’s favorite drink and while he was drinking it the man could see and talk to his wife, but she was gone when the drink was gone. Kostya had finally figured out why he would taste very odd dishes out of the blue. Kostya knew exactly what the ingredients were but he was not a chef so he needed to learn how to cook those ingredients. Kostya wanted to be able to do this for other people so they could have closure.
This book has so much more to it than I can say without spoilers. But Kostya is just trying his best to help people, all he ever wanted to do, and see his dad one more time. This all takes place in the world of New York’s kitchens so fast and furious is how things change within a minute or two. This book like the kitchens of New York move fast as well there is suspense and some action but it is the hope that keeps you reading, a hope that this would work and help so many out. I am going to leave that there but I hope you read this book and find the beauty within.

𝙰𝚏𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚝𝚊𝚜𝚝𝚎
³/⁵ ⭐⭐⭐

What if you could have one last meal with someone you’ve loved, someone you’ve lost?

🍵⋆｡°🍡°⋆. ࿔*:･🍵⋆｡°🍡°⋆. ࿔*:･

This was one of those books that I thought I was really going to love. Culinary? Food? Ghosts? Yes, please. I'm not really sure why I didn't vibe with this book? I overall just felt 'meh' about it. I genuinely have nothing bad to say about it, I just think maybe it wasn't a book for me. I do however think it's a beautiful story with a lot of meaning behind it. I've always connected food with some of my most fond family memories, and this will certainly trigger some emotions.

I do think that if you are a foodie, love a little ghost action and romance, vivid food descriptions and some fantasy sprinkled in, you will enjoy it. I would 100% say give this a shot.

🍵⋆｡°🍡°⋆. ࿔*:･🍵⋆｡°🍡°⋆. ࿔*:･🍵⋆｡°🍡°⋆.

Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for this e-arc in exchange for an honest review .

Thanks to Netgally and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
This book was really cool. The storyline was completely original and very interesting and I loved every second.
Kostya gets tastes from people that have passed on. The first time it happens when he is 10 years old, and the aftertaste in the back of his throat reminds him of his father's favorite dish. As he grows older, he continues to get these "aftertastes" throughout his life, and one day he accidentally finds out that by making the food (or drink) that he tastes, he can bring back a ghost for obe last conversation with their lost loved one.
This book is great for anyone that has ever worked in a restaurant, anyone that has lost someone they love, and anyone that believes in ghosts. Basically it's for everyone. Just read it, you won't regret it!

Aftertaste is one of those books that feel as though you've stepped into someone's life, e.g., Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, The Midnight Library, etc. It's immersive as it spans decades of Kostya's life, transcending traditional genres and form. Author Daria Lavelle moves seamlessly between New York City's very real food scene and the fantastical world of hungry ghosts, crafting both into a love story of its own.

Aftertaste is a haunting exploration of grief, love and the magic of food — quite literally a literary feast. It's a must-read and will likely be one of the best literary fiction books 2025.

✨4.5/5 — Rounded to 5 for review purposes

Thanks to the author, NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the advance copy in exchange for my review.