What really happens behind the scenes of competition shows? Are they staged or real?

Where There's a Whisk follows Peyton, a poor teen from Florida, as she partakes in a teen cooking competition. All she wants is to win and receive that scholarship to get out of her middle of nowhere, town where everyone knew her because of what her parents did (and it wasn't even good things!).

There are a lot of subplots in Where There's a Whisk that just weren't finished and could've been fleshed out. I was curious about applying to get onto the show and Peyton finding out she got into it. The history of the other characters. You were given basic details, but it was very one-dimensional. Also, the love triangle was so strange. I feel like everyone would've known about the first relationship not being real, but fake, for TV. I wish we got to see more about the show and seeing the dishes that others created and being judged. Not to mention there was a whole plot between Peyton and Angelica. Why was Angelica always so negative towards Peyton? It was mentioned that she was very critical of the others, but it wasn't shown.

Overall, the book was great. I finished it in just a couple days. I absolutely love competition cooking shows so this was definitely my cup of tea. It just needed to be more fleshed out and given more detail.

ARC provided by Netgalley for an honest review.

This is such a sweet story! I enjoyed every moment and would definitely recommend this for aspiring chefs. As a huge fan of reality TV cooking competitions, I loved this behind-the-scenes peek at what goes into making those shows happen, both the good and the bad. Watching the producers try to manipulate the characters was unpleasant at times, but seeing these teens outsmart the TV strategy in the end made it all worthwhile.

This book is about a teen girl who got selected for a teen cooking competition, and we follow her from the moment she meets her fellow competitors to when the competition is over. When I finished the book, I was happy with how the story ended and overall really enjoyed it. This is a contemporary novel with a little bit of romance and drama, but it keeps cooking as its main focus. I enjoyed the pacing and how all the characters felt well written even though they were a lot.

I feel like for a novel about food, the writing was a little underwhelming. I expected it to be more appealing to my senses, but again, it had the pacing going for it.

As we follow the main character, Peyton, we also get to meet all the other contestants and her relationship with them, and I feel like having a lot of characters helped with the plot of the book and it was pretty character-driven so I enjoyed that aspect of it and reading about Peyton’s relationship with all of them. What I liked most about the story was also the relationships between the characters.

I think this book is worth reading. Someone who enjoys books about food or cooking shows, in general, will probably enjoy this, or if they’re looking for a light, fluffy contemporary as a palate cleanser after reading a bunch of fantasy like me. Either way, I recommend it.

This book was deliciously cute and adorable ! I love the food channel and cooking competitions so this was right up my alley.

I thought this book was really cute! We follow our main character Peyton as she takes part in a cooking competition: Top Teen Chef. There are eight contestants to start, four boys and four girls. I will say this part was a little confusing to me, I couldn't quite keep up with who was who with so much information coming at me. Once I was able to keep everyone straight I liked them!

I enjoy watching the British Baking Show, but that is the only food competition I've ever really watched and they are usually so friendly. This book gave me the happy feelings that watching that show does. I didn't feel stressed or tense ever which is all I want from a book these days. I feel like we could have gotten a little more development in Peyton's character, but that's probably my only complaint.

Thank you to Sarah J. Schmitt, Running Press Kids, and Net Galley for the ARC which did not influence my review.

Where There's A Whisk by Sarah J Schmitt is a cute contemporary YA read perfect for fans of reality cooking shows like Great British Bake Off or MasterChef. The reader joins the cast of such a reality show where a group of teens are competing to win a scholarship to the culinary school of their choice. The group has been selected by the producers of the show for maximum entertainment value, be that through conflict or potential hook ups.
Our narrator Peyton is a small town girl who works in a diner to help her single mom with rent and bills. Getting a scholarship is her only ticket out of that life ,and when she begins to wonder if her baking skills will be enough she has to make some tough decisions about how far she is willing to go to stay on the show, and who she is willing to hurt along the way.
This was a really fun and fast read and I really liked all the characters, though I have to say that they were on the verge of being caricatures at times which is a shame. I loved the descriptions of food, and almost wish that some of the recipes had been included in the book. The book is set in New York and the city is almost like another character in the book which was a nice touch. This brings me to one of the things I liked most about the book, it makes the reader think about perspectives other than their own - e.g. one of the challenges was based around the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island and immigration, and the author through one of the characters gets the reader to consider the other places where immigrants from different backgrounds would have arrived.. While the book does have some romance it is more of a subplot, the focus is definitely more on the friendships between the characters.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.

DNF at 50%

First of all, I think it would be a great book to read if you like teen cooking shows, but I was trying out something new by reading about this book, and it turns out that it just isn’t something for me. I wasn’t really as into the story as I expected to be and the characters felt very awkward.

I received a copy of this book as an e-arc from NetGalley and the publisher. Any and all opinions are my own.

Peyton is a part of the cast for a new reality cooking show called Top Teen Chef, where eight teens compete to win a scholarship to a culinary institute to continue their cooking career. However, Peyton doesn't think she stands a chance. How far will she go to win, and will she stay true to herself?

This book was... interesting. Let's start with the characters. I actually liked Peyton. She knows her own morals and I think at least an interesting character to read about. There were times where I felt she was a bit defined by her past but grows into her own a lot in the competition. The other characters I think had good concepts, but were a bit sloppy in executing them efficiently throughout the story. Right at the story she makes a pact with Malik, but we barely see her interact with Malik until the last 20-30% of the story, so it was very out of place.

Now the plot was something else. At the beginning it was just a lot, and I mean A LOT, of repeated introductions that it bores you. Since this does take place during a reality show competition, one of the huge downfalls is that all the dialogue during these scenes felt very forced, and almost gave me second hand embarrassment a few times, especially during the contestants cheering and responding to some things. I will admit there are some funny moments that come out of it, like stuff caught up via the mics not to be said out loud.

On top of that, there was a whole fake dating side plot that honestly didn't really go anywhere. And after they "break up" Peyton barely interacts with him for the rest of the story. This takes away from the story in so many ways since we don't get enough moments with the true love interest, and as a result makes the true love aspect forced, which I don't really like. It should have been with a different person and executed a bit more, with a heavier overlook of the production. Oh yeah, the production team is corrupted too, because they always are.

Finally, the ending was just... not good. It fell into the horrible category of "side character explains in one paragraph back to the main character what has happened since the show," which is probably the WORST way to have to explain to your characters what has happened since the time skip. It felt too sudden of a shift from the end of the game show to suddenly a year later without any warning, so it really took me out of the ending.

Where There's a Whisk is a story with a big risk of taking a reality show to paper that does a mediocre job, and falls into the "good idea, bad execution" side of things.

Overall, a cute book! I loved the cooking competition setting which was a given considering I love cooking/baking competitions on tv.
The characters were ok, I did like Peyton a lot and the fact that she was in the competition with a lot riding on winning since she comes from a poor family with a dad in jail for embezzlement. She stood up for what she wanted and how she wanted to be portrayed on tv despite being an insecure chef and competitor at the beginning. The other characters were fun, it was very easy to remember the other 3 girls, but I sometimes had difficulty remembering Adam and Malik.
This whole book was centered around a cooking competition, but I felt like when we got to the actual cooking it took 2 lines to finish the whole challenge a lot of the times. A lot more of the book was focused on the in between parts and the drama that is cooked up. Which was ok, but I felt it took away from the competition a little bit. In the competiton there was always a Landmark Challenge and then the elimination round. The Landmark Challenges were always fun, they went to a zoo and broadway and the Statue of Liberty, so it was fun kind of seeing NYC along with the contestants.
The writing style felt a little choppy at times and wasn't my favorite, but it was still very easy to read and blow through a large chunk when I had the time to.
I actually really enjoyed the ending and thought it was wrapped up very well.

I wanted to love this but it was okay. I still enjoyed it and I think it’s a great palette cleanser between heavy reads.

The main problem I have with this book are the characters. They were a little flat and sometimes the dialogue was awkward. I think the story being told from Peyton’s POV was the best choice. I enjoyed seeing it through her thoughts and it made the cooking show feel real. But everyone one else lacked. I like Malik but then he kind of fell to the background. I think the story might have been better if she would have never gotten with Paulie, but then the epilogue wouldn’t have worked. Or maybe they could have actually flirted more to develop the romance more than it was.

Nonetheless I enjoyed this. It got me to get out of my head for a little bit. Kind of like watching a random sitcom episode because you don’t change the channel and it kinda allows you to just chill for a moment.

This book is so fun! I've never been a huge watcher of cooking shows, though I've seen a few here and there, but I love reading about all the ins and outs of the show in this book. The challenges, the drama, all the food descriptions--it's all such a delight.

I also love rooting for Peyton, the underdog, throughout the novel. She's an excellent choice for this type of story, and I enjoy all the dynamics between her and the other contestants. While some of them aren't as developed as they could have been, they are easy to tell apart and each play a fun role in the story as a whole. The romance subplot is a little more predictable, but since it is super cute and not the focus of the story, I don't even care.

Some of the events that unfold are a bit unexpected and some are more predictable, but I really enjoyed it. This book is a good blend of fluffy and serious contemporary that I like reading. Definitely going to recommend!

I was very excited to read this book because it had to do with food and a food contest, but the whole thing felt forced. The relationship between the contestants, the setting itself, and the main character. I read about 50% through, and I didn't want to continue reading. I felt like so much more could have come from this book and it just wasn't giving me what I wanted it to give.

Where There’s a Whisk is a fun ride for fans of cooking shows everywhere. The Teen Cooking Competition from Where There’s a Whisk feels pulled straight out of The Food Network, With fun challenges and gimmicks to keep our narrator and her fellow contestants on their toes.

Don’t come to this book hungry, or you’ll end up like me and ordering a giant dish of pasta and a slice of key like pie to fuel the cravings this book will give you.

I found it super interesting to get a peek behind the curtains on the set of a reality show. Like the amount of breaks in between pauses and the various takes throughout filming an episode.

All of the characters were each unique and felt like someone you may meet on the street. Some were more fleshed out than others but as a whole I loved the cast.

The setting of New York City was fun! The characters got to explore the city a little, I kind of wish there was a little more love put into exploring the city but I enjoyed hearing about the iconic places they visited.

If your looking for an easy read to snuggle up with on a chilly night, Where There’s a Whisk is your book. If you can’t tell already, I really like cooking books.

2.5

If you're looking for a book equivalent to a reality television cooking competition show, Where There's a Whisk might satisfy that need. The competitions are fun and would make sense on an actual show. There is also some commentary on the realness of reality tv.

Fitting an entire season into one book was always going to be a logistical nightmare, and this was very apparent when the first episode of the show took up the first half of the book. I think this book would have been more successful if they had based it around a single episode of Cupcake wars or Cutthroat Kitchen.

What makes this worse is the confusing choice to use the limited space the author has to get the reader to care about the characters is spent on romantic subplots. This meant I felt nothing towards most of the cast and didn’t care who got eliminated. A lot of the storylines flop, including a rivalry that always felt kind lame and forced

If you enjoy reality television cooking competitions and don't mind romance subplots, you will probably enjoy this more than I did.

I picked up this book because the combination of baking and a reality show for teens sounded fun. It was a quick, light-hearted read. Peyton made it onto Top Teen Chef and this was her only chance to be able to attend culinary school and escape her dead-end town. Throughout the competition, she struggles with the issues that come with reality TV while simultaneously trying to improve her cooking enough to take home the prize.

The cast of characters was diverse and it was interesting seeing a reality TV plot play out from a contestant's point of view. I plan to recommend this to my students.

Thank you NetGalley for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was so excited when I read the synopsis of this one! I love reality TV, especially cooking and baking competitions. They’re such comfort shows for me. When I saw that this was about a televised teen cooking contest, I knew I had to read it.
Unfortunately, Where There’s a Whisk didn’t live up to the excitement I had for it. I think the whole story just felt a little surface level to me. This mostly stemmed from it coming off younger than what the target audience seemed to be. This story follows high school seniors competing for a scholarship to a culinary institute but it read more like they were middle schoolers.
I enjoyed the large cast of characters, but that being said, I didn’t really feel connected to any of them. They each had interesting backstories but none of them were really fleshed out. There was a lot of telling rather than showing and this made the characters come off as pretty one-dimensional.
I wasn’t pulled in by the drama or romance either which was unfortunate. The romantic plot line felt like it came out of nowhere and I honestly would have been happier if it were left out so there could be a greater focus on the competition and the friendships.
I did really enjoy the parts where the group was able to explore New York City. I grew up near the city and it definitely captured the essence and liveliness of New York really well.
This had its fun and cute parts but I really think the lack of depth hurt the book overall.

I was given the opportunity by NetGalley to read an advanced reader copy (arc) of Where There’s a Whisk by Sarah J. Schmitt. In exchange for the arc, I have to review the book. With that being said my opinions on the book are completely my own and have not been influenced by receiving the arc.
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Where do I even start with this book? I loved it so much. This is exactly the kind of book I love to read. Ya romance, bigger plot than romance, and so much subplot. This book beautifully delivered on all of those.
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The romance was adorable! When a book gives me butterflies I know it’s a good book. I kept highlighting so many cute lines and moments. One thing I loved was that it didn’t shove it in your face. The main girl, Peyton, wasn’t boy crazy. There was more to her, more to the story. We all know that a romance book needs great romance, but to keep it interesting you’ve got to have a bigger plot. That’s exactly what Where There’s a Whisk does. The plot of the cooking/baking competition kept it so entertaining. Honestly felt like I was watching the food network channel. However, beyond that there were sub-plots. Friendships, enemies, sabotage, producers, judges, backstory, and of course a love triangle. I was never bored reading this book, it was so dynamic.
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The only critique I can think of at the moment is that I feel like Schmitt could have done more. There was a couple of moments in the book where there was tension between the judges and stuff like that. She made it seem like she was going to address it but never did. It just kept me wanting more. Though with that being said, she could totally write a second book or companion novel. I love the world she has created.

I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher, via NetGalley. This in no way impacted on my view.

Teen baker, Peyton Sinclaire, wants out from her run down life in Florida. Her father arrest for fraud, her mother unable to work, she's living with her aunt on a trailer park, pulling double shifts at the local diner while also going to school. When the opportunity to take part in a new TV show, Top Teen Chef, comes around, she jumps at the chance, and luckily, is picked to be one of the eight competitors. But when she arrives in New York, it's clear that the producer wants to use her past for ratings, and want her to start a romance with a fellow competitor too - if she doesn't, she's off the show. As it seems that one of the judges, and another competitor, is out to get her, Peyton must do whatever it takes, even colluding with a rival, to stay in the show, and hopefully win the scholarship she so desperately needs.

This was a book I wasn't too sure what to expect, but I couldn't put it down once I'd started it. I'll admit, I love watching shows like The Great British Bake Off, and reading books that follow that kinds of plot line has always been one I've enjoyed. I really liked Peyton, and her goals. Life had dealt her a bad hand, and she was doing just about everything to change her future, and being on this show - and potentially winning - would be the making of her. She really didn't like the idea of pretending to be something different for the ratings, but when it was clear she had to, and so did the person she joined forces with, she went along with it, while also picking up hints and tips that made her a better cook. Some of the recipes that people were making I would hate, but some sounded lush, and I was dead hungry at some parts of the book. There was a bit of a love triangle, which I wasn't overly keen on, but I liked the camaraderie between the contestants, and the ending of the book, plus epilogue, was perfect for Peyton's story.

This just didn’t end up being a book that interested me. When I first read the premise, I was very excited and invested, but getting into it made it clear that it just wasn’t for me. Hopefully it works for others out there!

I ABSOLUTELY LOVED THIS! I do wish there had been a little more of a hint to some of the twists towards the end built throughout, but the relationships were fleshed out (even with such a large cast), the main character was very well developed, and I honestly couldn't stop reading. It's as fluffy as a merengue and twice as sweet. I would highly recommend to anyone who's more interested in what goes into reality shows than what goes on in them.