Set during an amateur cooking competition, Delilah and London find things heating up both in and out of the kitchen.

This BOOK Y’ALL. I just want to experience it for the first time again. It is so beautiful and sweet - it’s like a perfectly filled tart of a romance.

I loved seeing a divorced woman finding love again. I haven’t read a character as young as Delilah who has already been through a divorce, but I really enjoyed her journey of finding her way to being herself again.

And London was a force to be reckoned with! While I have read books featuring non-binary side characters, it was so incredible to see a main character using they/them pronouns! Every time they were mentioned, my heart fluttered - to see a book that has been so widely distributed have this representation was so wonderful! Though I can’t speak to this representation myself, I’m excited to read more books featuring non-binary joy! Just like it’s expressed in the book, I hope London being out and proud will inspire more people to live their truth!

This was spicy, heartfelt, and all sorts of fun. I know Estelle from Forever would never lead me astray, and I’m so thrilled to have read and loved it a little early. I can’t wait for this to take the world by storm!

This was such a fun rom-com.

I loved the relationship develop between Daliah and London. I loved the discussion about sexual/gender identity.

There were some moments where I found myself skimming a bit. But I think that was more because of me than the story.

Overall just a delightful read.

4.5/5 stars
This was an enjoyable book which is about Dahlia, a divorcee, and London who meet each other on a cooking competition show where they feel a connection. This was such a cute LGBQ+ book. The author's writing was very well done with great pacing, storyline, characters & romance. This book gave me similar vibes to The Charm Offensive as both books take place during a reality show and have great romance. It wasn't just the structure of the story being so good but the way the author made me feel while reading this book. I felt all the tenderness and love which I love feeling while reading a romance novel.

This book has both Dahlia and London's pov. Dahlia is the protective character who recently divorced and needs money with London who is a brave character that changed their pronouns while being on a show. I enjoyed both characters so much because they grew so much throughout the novel. I enjoyed their chemistry and the way they just connected. There were some side characters in this book but I loved the fact that the side characters didn't help the MCs grow in the novel but they just helped each other. The romance trope I would say in this book is kind of a competitor to lovers and grumpy/sunshine tropes. The romance in this book is also steamy, rating it a 3/5 on the steaminess chart though there was this one scene that made me cringe hard. But I loved the fact that the couple were together early in the book as you can spend so much time with them instead of only the last 30 pages of the book.

The ending was really good and after researching I found out that there might be a 2nd book but with different MCs. So I can't wait to read that story. I honestly loved everything about this book except that one scene. It kind of gave me a weird cringe chill and wanted me to instantly skip the page. Other than that, I had no problems with this book. I totally recommend reading this book if you love a competition romance novel or The Charm Offensive.

Thank you so, so much to Forever and Netgalley for providing an ARC of this! All thoughts and opinions are still my own.

This book absolutely stole my heart. I fell in love with these characters and everything about this adorable romance. This love story is quiet and soft but so powerful and beautiful.

I know cooking/baking romances are all the rage right now, but I personally not super into cooking/baking competitions so I've been avoiding the trend. But I'm so glad I read this one! The setting in here was fun and relevant but didn't take over the story. I felt like there was the perfect amount of time spent in the competition without it distracting from the romance.

I love both of the main characters so much. They're flawed and frustrating at times (like real life people) but I was rooting for them from start to finish. And I really appreciated that they both went on personal journeys as well.

London is dealing with a lot of familial drama, especially with their father. There are so many heartbreaking and difficult discussions surrounding transphobia in here so definitely tread carefully. But I loved how everything was discussed so much.

And Delilah so relatable. She's a little lost and unsure of herself which I think a lot of millennials will be able to see themselves in. And one of my absolute favorite things about her was her desire and insistence to save and take care of herself. I thought that was such a beautiful addition to her character arc.

The romance itself stole me whole heart. While I love romances with electric chemistry and loads of tension, I personally don't relate to that kind of romance. So it was so flipping beautiful to read about a quiet, soft love. These character care so deeply for each other. They're considerate and careful and always checking in with each other. They communicate (with a few hiccups of course) and I just loved watching them slowly open up and fall for each other.

I just loved absolutely everything about this. The characters, the discussions and themes, the romance, the setting. It just all worked. I can't wait to read more from Anita Kelly in the future!

I enjoyed this book, it’s a sweet romance. I was initially attracted by the cooking show premise, and once I started reading I was drawn in by the characters.

Dahlia is queer, divorced and running out of money. Winning the tv show “Chef’s Special” would change everything for her. She’s taking the opportunity to look at herself and make changes, she’s decided to be “LA Dahlia” and take some chances doing new things.

London is transgender and announces their pronouns to the world on the show. They want to win the show to start a program for trans teenagers, but has to deal with prejudice from other cast members
and their growing attraction to Dahlia, who is extremely distracting.

As the show progresses, Dahlia and London get closer and give into their mutual attraction in some steamy scenes.
How will they handle their relationship while competing on a tv show? What happens when one of them is eliminated, and what happens when the show ends?

The book is so well written and the characters are true to life. She did an outstanding job detailing the prejudices, misgendering, and other issues that London faces as a non-binary contestant. I highly recommend this book, 4 stars.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This was such a fun read and I loved both characters so much! This is a sunshine and grump trope which is one of my favorites!! We follow Dahlia who is recently divorced and trying to move on with her life when she gets picked for a cooking competition show. Her first day on set she meets London and the two have a memorable meet cute! London is picked for the show and just wants to keep their head down and win the show so they can start a non-profit to help LGBTQ+ kids in their home town. I loved the journey of the relationship and what each one has to go through to get to the point were they can be happy. I also loved the description of the food and cooking, I always enjoy reading about that in my books. If you are looking for romances that follow diverse characters than I would highly recommend picking this one up, it has bi rep and a nonbinary character. Thank you Forever for my gifted copy for review!!

With all the hype surrounding this book right now and the reality tv show setting I was really hyped for this book but I was left a bit dissapointed. I'm going to start by saying this isn't a bad book. It's a fun and quick read. I liked our main characters and their romance was also pretty cute. The only complaint I had on the romance is that I would liked to have seen more of Dahlia falling for London because it seemed pretty sudden. All my complaints of this book are basically based on personal prefference. I personally think this book focussed on the romance a little too much as our two main characters were very wrapped up into each other. This lead to us barely knowing any of the side characters, which I wouldn't have minded if it were not for the fact that everytime someone got eliminated our main characters would get emotional because they were close apparently and I was just thinking "this is literally the first time this character has gotten mentioned". That really took away from the emotional impact this book could have had. On top of that the two main characters getting so wrapped up in each other also meant we barely got any of the cooking competition. That was a shame as in the beginning we did get it and it was really interesting. So yeah, that caused some problems for me but maybe you read that and think "damn, that sounds like a good time" and then by all means go read this book because I definitely think it can be a fun time for someone.

This a debut novel for Anita Kelly (they have some novellas previously released) and my first one of hers I read. Overall, it is a lovely romcom where a lot of things worked great for me, but I still had some issues here and there.

This is a f/nb romance and it is not my place to comment on the non-binary rep, I can comment on what I liked/disliked about them as a romance character. I did like lot about London - their insecurities, their grumpiness. They came off as aloof and somewhat cold but we also see them being passionate about the things they cared about. They loved their family and this cause some major conflict regarding their acceptance for who they are. They were also passionate about cooking, their dream to make music. And Dahlia!

Dalhia was messed, recently divorced, almost broke, pinning all her dreams and hope on winning the cooking show. I appreciate that she wanted to follow her dreams and she left her marriage when she realised her husband and her have different dreams. At the same time she also read immature to me, whiny, her constant I-don't-know-what-I-want mood was annoying. I wanted her to go for the things that made her happy and not complain so much about the difficulties in her life.

I really liked the romance, there is great chemistry between the MCs, lot of open discussion of body image, desire, sexuality, explicit consent. At the same time I had some issues. On the one hand the way London sexualised Dahlia all the time made me uncomfortable, it was on the verge of creepy, especially in the beginning when the two of them were not a couple yet. London acted like a macho alpha romance hero when it came to Dahlia and I was not a fan of that. There are explicit sex scenes in this book which I mostly liked but the one involving the use of fruits in the bedroom was weird and didn't work for me at all.

There was not a lot of conflict regarding the romance, the focus was more of families, personal goals in life and that was OK. There was a third-act break up which could have been handled better but I just went it.

The cooking show was fun, presented in its complexity, lot of diverse participants, we get to see some of the behind-the-scene actions that is not very glamorous.

All in all, this is an interesting debut with a good balance of funny and serious, still it is far from perfect.

CW: transphobia, misgendering, social anxiety, family rejection

Do you love cooking shows? Are you a chaotic Queer with a soft spot for feels? Then is this the book for you! Love & Other Disasters had me hooked from the first line. It is so utterly sweet, and charming, and soft, and silly, and steamy, and oh, did I mention delicious?

Dahlia decides to take a chance with her future and signs up for a popular reality cooking competition. What she doesn’t expect is to promptly fall flat on her face in the first episode and catch the attention of London, who has just announced their pronouns on national television. London doesn’t need to be distracted by the adorable woman at the bench in front of them, they have enough issues dealing with trolls, a certain fellow constant, and their dad. But then, feelings never really care much for plans, do they?

OMG do I love this book!! As rural, queer person, London makes me over the moon happy by the simple fact of existing on the page. And their relationship with Dahlia going from acquaintances to friends to lovers? It’s the sweetest!

Kelly also deals with tough topics in a refreshing and honest way, and I did really appreciate how misgendering scenes were done with actually misgendering London on page. There was also a very important storyline where London was pitted against the competitor who kept misgendering them and I found it brought in a focus on performative allyship that was very well done.

Love and Other Disasters is fun, sexy, and shamelessly human - I adored it and want to hug it with all I can!
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One more note: THIS COVER!! I MEAN, IT’S SO STINKING CUTE I LOVE IT SO MUCH !!

I’m an avid reader of romance these days, but it’s been awhile since I’ve fallen head over heels so quickly for a couple of love interests! I absolutely loved everything about Dahlia and London’s story, including that the book highlighted their individual growth as well as the character development within their relationship. They were fully realized characters with depth, and backstories that stood on their own. I feel like that can sometimes make a romance stronger, and make you feel more invested in their lives as both a couple and as individual people.

It was so fun to read about the mutual pining and longing between them at their workstations at Chef’s Table. I watch a lot of cooking and baking shows, and it felt realistic to those familiar competitions - only with the twist of being able to see a love story unfold between two of the contestants. It was so sweet how much they rooted for each other and genuinely admired each other’s talents as chefs. There was also that protectiveness from Dahlia’s POV, of wanting to fight back against any rudeness toward London’s identity as a non-binary person.

I appreciated reading a romance that featured a non-binary love interest, because I don’t believe I ever have before. Which is a shame! That’s something that should be normalized, and although there might be a number of such books that are perhaps lesser known, it’s something you don’t see in the mainstream nearly enough. London was such a lovable, real character, and I was rooting for them and Dahlia from the get-go.

It’s not often that I read a book and feel such undeniable joy every time I turn the page, excited to read what comes next because I know it will just make me love the characters and the story even more. But that’s exactly the experience I had with this one - I’ll be honest, I was fangirling pretty hard. Lots of happy squealing going on over here at certain moments.

This was such a fun, light read that I thoroughly enjoyed! It's so exciting to see nonbinary representation in romances!

Dahlia and London meet on a cooking competition show, each with something to prove. Dahlia is recently divorced, and cooking has become a comfort for her as she rediscovers herself. London is the first nonbinary contestant and is using the show as a platform to come out. They're hoping to win the money to start an LGBTQ+ non-profit.

I absolutely loved this book! The romance was very cute, and I absolutely loved their relationship.

A couple of specific things I loved:

This book treats London and their pronouns with such respect. They/them pronouns are used form Dahlia's perspective even before they've come out to her. When a character misgenders London, the book itself never does. Instead, the dialogue still uses "they" and explains that the transphobic character did not.

Explicit consent! Romance books rarely include consent in sex scenes, but even more than that, this book shows consent for a specific act not being given. I absolute love that this was included.

Overall this was a super cute read that I will definitely be recommending to friends.

I love romance books, and I love baking and cooking shows. When the two things combine, there is nothing better in this world!

Dahlia is going on the cooking competition, 'Chef's Special' (think similar to Master Chef) to try and find a new direction for her life. She is newly divorced, is in a lot of debt, and living in a city where she doesn't really have any friends or family. London is the first non-binary contestant on Chef's Special, and is nervous about how their father will react to their announcement on television, as he has refused to use their correct pronouns thus far. The two of them form a fast friendship, but that soon becomes more than either were looking for.

This book was a joy to read! The romance is wonderful, and the two of them together are so much fun! Dahlia and London have hysterical adventures while on the show, and the chemistry and steam between them is everything! There are so many things scenes in this book that I just want to go back and read over and over again, which is a great sign of a five star read for me.

Thank you to Forever Publishing for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This was a fantastic read! There were so many elements that I really loved about this book. This was the first book that I have read where one of the main characters was nonbinary and I really appreciated seeing their viewpoint. I also loved that it showed the struggle of coming out. I also found the other main character very relatable. I think many of us have those moments of insecurity about how our lives are going. This book had two very strong characters and made this book amazing. The setting of a cooking show was also really fun and felt well done. I have read many books with this setting, but this book was done in a way that was fresh and enjoyable. This was a great read and I highly recommend this to my fellow romance readers.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #Forever for this ARC.

This book was such a delight. With the backdrop of a cooking show competition, each contestant had their own reasons for wanting to win.

Dahlia is recently divorced and has a lot of bills to pay to get back on her feet.

London wants to start a non-profit safe place for LGBTQIA+ kids. London wants to be open and provides their pronouns during the first cast meeting. One was not accepting but the others were, and finds an ally in Dahlia.

London wasn’t expecting to meet Dahlia and finding a connection with her.

Their friendship, including the walks to the hotel after filming gave an insight into both of their history. How they felt about each other. The tension was palpable and when they finally got together let’s just say the melon and whip cream will never be looked at the same!

Such a wonderful story of love acceptance, wanting be seen and having the correct pronounce be used, the struggles they had with family acceptance, and finding love in the most unexpected places.

2022 has been saved for me. LOVE & OTHER DISASTERS is the Messiah sent to me in my time of absolute need. It is so fricking good, the rep is fantastic, and I would die for Dahlia and London!

I liked this book, but I didn’t love it as much as I was expecting to. Dahlia and London were both great and from the beginning it was feeling like more of a slow burn, but I wanted more time with them having fun and enjoying each other before being thrust into what was a disappointing conflict. There was also some great detail in the beginning about the cooking show, the contestants, the challenges, and that disappeared in the second half where we were told about some of the results after the fact. Something I particularly enjoyed though was London’s story of coming out as nonbinary, the importance of representation, and setting boundaries with family members who don’t show respect for the person you are.

Love & Other Disasters is the kind of book you pick up and can’t put down. Anita Kelly had me laughing, crying, and feeling even more connected to my own queer relationship over the course of this book. It’s one of those books you stay up late to finish even when you’re tired. London and Dahlia are impeccably written characters and the honesty in figuring out who they are, as a couple and individually, was beautiful. And the Jeni’s Ice Cream mention was the very best 💛

This book was a breath of fresh air. I thoroughly enjoyed myself from cover to cover and found myself slowing down to savor it. This book tells the story of Dahlia and London who fall in love while competing on a cooking competition show. Dahlia is dealing with the aftermath of a divorce at age 28. London is navigating being out as non-binary publicly. The book is a true romance with the pair together on almost every page and focuses on their growth as a couple as well as individually.

I adored both Dahlia and London. They were both well rounded and felt like real people. I loved that the book included both moments of quiet sweetness as well as well as several very steamy scenes. There’s just something so special about having a queer book written by a queer author. I loved that London’s pronouns were they/them from the get-go and while them being mis-gendered was mentioned, it was never on the page. This is a book I can see myself returning to in the future.

Thank you to Netgalley for the digital ARC and Forever for the gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.

Dahlia is ready for a new version of herself - that’s why she finds herself as a contestant on the hit reality cooking show, Chef’s Special. After a run in on day one with London, a fellow contestant, Dahlia can’t stop thinking about them. Can Dahlia find out who she really is while also falling for London while also competing on reality TV?

I really enjoyed watching Dahlia and London’s relationship blossom. London is the first non-binary character I’ve read and I certainly hope they’re not the last! All in all this was a fun read - I just wish I had the recipe for Dahlia’s soup!

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for this ARC!

I will absolutely rave about this book until the day I die!! This was the first romance/book that I’ve ever read featuring a non-binary character and a relationship that was not gender con-formative. And let me just say, I adored these characters. This book shows how easy it is to use correct pronouns, how fluid love and life are, how hard AND rewarding it must be to live your authentic self, even if that self does not fit into the binary boxes that society loves to place us all into. This book gave me all the butterflies, taught me a lot about non-heteronormative sex (WOWZA 😍), and ultimately tugged at every single one of my heartstrings. I pulled for these amazing characters the entire time, and I hope you will too! This book literally takes the cake for my favorite romance book I’ve ever read. It felt real to me, and fun, and the emotions were so genuine, and I just loved every second but I’ll stop now because if I don’t, I might never. AHHH!!
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Thank you so much to Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for allowing me to read this book a little early through NetGalley! Love And Other Disasters publishes on January 18, 2022 and I can’t wait to see everyone raving about it as much as I am!!