This teaser is just delicious! I would love to have more than this delightful sample. Ruby hooks readers quite quickly with these opening scenes; there’s no way anyone could walk away without filling their plate with more of this delectable romance!

Ahhaa can't wait to read more
I really like the storyline and writing style and it's F/F book so ofc I'm gonna read it
Thank you netgalley for the preview copy

Though I’ve read several queer romances lately featuring cooking and/or reality shows, Barrett’s THE ROMANCE RECIPE promises to stand out from the crowd. The story follows Amy, a hard-headed restaurant owner determined to succeed, and Sophie, a former reality cooking show star looking to regain her spark in the kitchen (and the current head chef at Amy’s restaurant). They have an opportunity to apply for their restaurant to be featured on a new show, which they desperately need for the attention and boost in income. From the start, there’s fantastic chemistry between them and my favorite kind of oblivious-idiots-to-lovers mutual pining. Amy is an out lesbian and Sophie is a baby bisexual, still figuring out what that means to her and when to be more public given her minor fame. I love that Amy has made creating a safe space in her restaurant a priority, cracking down on the all-to-common sexual harassment in the restaurant industry and hiring a bunch of queer staff. I found both Amy and Sophie very compelling, and I’m really excited to see how their individual character arcs and their relationship evolves. Thanks to Carina Adores for the free preview!

Maybe I would love this story if it’s not too much after those chapters.
I though it was too much for just a few chapters

This book looks so fun, sweet, and sexy and I really enjoyed reading the opening chapters of The Romance Recipe. It definitely left me wanting to read the whole book and see how everything unfolds.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy.

This was such a lovely start to this novel! I am already captured up in the chemistry between the two main characters, and I especially connected to Sophie (I totally want to try her fancy vegan poutine). The plot also grabbed me, as I love reality show settings. I can't wait to be able to read the rest of it!

This review is based on the first 5 chapters.
Just after reading 5 chapters of this book I know I am going to love the whole book.

Amy Chambers: restaurant owner, micromanager, control freak.
Amy will do anything to revive her ailing restaurant, including hiring a former reality-show finalist with good connections and a lot to prove. But her hopes that Sophie’s skills and celebrity status would bring her restaurant back from the brink of failure are beginning to wane…

Sophie Brunet: grump in the kitchen/sunshine in the streets, took thirty years to figure out she was queer. Sophie just wants to cook. She doesn’t want to constantly post on social media for her dead-in-the-water reality TV career, she doesn’t want to deal with Amy’s take-charge personality and she doesn’t want to think about what her attraction to her boss might mean…

Then, an opportunity: a new foodie TV show might provide the exposure they need. An uneasy truce is fine for starters, but making their dreams come true means making some personal and painful sacrifices and soon, there’s more than just the restaurant at stake.
The dynamic between Amy and Sophie is unique and genuinely intriguing and both of them are so relatable and realistic.
The conversation surrounding self-acceptance and queer identity was so relatable and well written.
I can't wait to read the whole book.

I am hooked! I like how clear the author is relating how the characters move through space. Only 5 chapters in yet I have a good sense of who both main characters are, and who makes them how they are today. The tension building between them is palpable, perhaps a little too much at times, but I'm here for it. Really looking forward to the rest of this romance.

Disclaimer: I’ve only read the first five chapters available on NetGalley so far.

To be honest, I was close the giving up on the book after the first chapter. Chasing after a straight girl? A conceited business owner? Giving a second chance to someone who’s harmed other at the job? All big No’s for me.
BUT I carried on and it got SO much better. Not so straight Sophie has way more depth to herself than I first wrongly assumed, and Amy might not be the controlling business owner lusting after straight girls that I made her out to be. There’s already so much happening in these first few chapters, I cannot wait to see further personal development of these two! And of course I‘m looking forward to the budding romance.

Sophie is a (Former) Celebrity TV chef hired by Amy to bring more attention to her restaurant. However it’s struggling. Amy and Sophie desperately want to save it even if it means signing up for the TV show Sophie‘s ex is hosting. Her ex who suggested Sophie should hide her bisexuality. Amy and Sophie often clash, but they’re very clearly attracted to one another.

Thanks to the authors style of writing we get lots of insight in the thoughts of the characters, which is quite interesting, however I tend to forget which parts we (the readers) know and which parts the characters know about each other.

All in all a promising excerpt and I‘m looking forward to reading the book in June.

This book that I was lucky enough to preview is fantastic. I only got to read chapters 1-5 and now I'm just going to buy the book! Well written, Grammer is excellent, clear story timeline. But more than that, it's a great story.
It is entertaining and so far has built up the tension just so perfectly that I need to own it. The writing is so awesome that I had to look up the writer to see what other books she has. Ruby Barrett does not disappoint. From her other book reviews, many agree.

My only complaint is that i didn't get to read the full novel! Spicy and realistic about the restaurant industry! Can't wait for the full read.

This makes me want to read the whole book! The tension between Sophie and Amy was so well-written, and I can't wait to read what happens next! Ruby Barrett is an exceptional writer.

Thank you NetGalley for a preview of this book in exchange for an honest review. I think this book has a most interesting premise and builds tension almost immediately. The chemistry between the protagonists takes a little while to click but it has great potential. Can't wait to read it in it's entirety!

I just finished the preview for this book and I pre-ordered the paperback the moment I was done. This sample is not enough, I need the whole thing in my hands immediately. I'm so excited to see where this story goes. The characters drew me in from the very first pages, the chemistry and p-i-n-i-n-g, and did I mention CHEMISTRY? Somehow I missed HOT COPY when it was released, but I'm adding it to my must-buy list based on this preview, as well.

Thank you netgalley for these preview chapters!
I could not put them down or read them fast enough. I instantly fell in love with the characters. From page one I was hooked and cannot wait to read this whole book

I really enjoyed the preview of this sapphic romance novel. The characters were extremely likable, and I'm excited to read a story about a woman figuring out her queerness as an adult.

Thanks to Netgalley/Carina for an advance preview of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Looks like Ruby Barrett is at it again, crafting intensely emotional romance teeming with book girlfriends I just want to hug. Respectfully. Okay romantically. I thought I'd fall for Amy, given what I'd seen of her in HOT COPY, but it looks like Sophie is the one who'll be stealing my heart? In any case, the setup (reality cooking show, ex-boyfriend-turned showrunner, a reluctant repeat contestant and her desperate entrepreneur boss) is bursting with tension. Can't wait for the rest of this one!!!

“Ever since I first watched her on the final episode of Pop-Up Kitchen, I’ve wanted to kiss Sophie Brunet.”

Content Warnings: Sexual Harassment (unsolicited explicit pictures, verbal harassment), death of a parent (cancer, off-page), biphobia, meal skipping (unintentional)

NOTE: My review is based on a PREVIEW of the first five chapters!

The micromanaging owner of a restaurant and her head chef try to save their struggling restaurant while resisting their attraction to each other in the process.
The thing I liked most about The Romance Recipe was how it was realistic. Amy and Sophie were relatable. Similarly, the characters’ reactions and the circumstances they were placed in felt natural and true to life. Amy, the dedicated owner of Amy & May’s, is under a lot of stress to keep her business afloat, cope with her mother’s death, and navigate her relationships. Hiring Sophie, a former reality TV star, was supposed to help her restaurant gain exposure and bring in revenue. Unfortunately, Sophie hates posting on social media and has been bringing in less and less patrons since she broke up with her ex-fiance.
When Sophie came out to her ex-fiance as bisexual, he suggested that she keep it a secret. Crushed by the person she thought she could trust, she left him behind. In doing so, she cuts off the majority of her connections and loses fame. Being pressured to post consistently on social media stresses Sophie out and she’s been losing her passion for cooking ever since she turned it into a job. Sophie has no plans to return to the glaring public spotlight, but when a potential opportunity for Amy & May’s to go on a foodie TV show run by her ex-fiance arises, it may be the only solution to keep the restaurant open.
Another thing the author does well is introducing background information about the characters seamlessly without interfering with the current narrative. This book is also full of awkward flirting (which I enjoyed).
Despite the characters feeling relatable, there wasn’t as much character development as I would have preferred. There’s definitely development later on in the book that I didn’t get to experience, but I’m not invested in the characters at the current point I’m at. Also, some of the physical descriptions of the characters weirded me out. They weren’t uncomfortable, per se, but the wording felt unnatural. However, I’m looking forward to seeing how the story plays out when it comes out in June 2022.

Rating: 3.5/5
Thank you to Netgalley and Carina Press & Carina Adores (Harlequin) for this preview!

A restaurant owner and head chef, each with secret crushes on the other, both hiding more than just that secret, and about to go on national TV to appear on a reality TV show...what could go wrong?! This preview was so cute! The perfect tease to leave me HUNGRY for more when this book comes out.
Thank you to NetGalley for giving me this preview to read. #TheRomanceRecipePREVIEW #NetGalley

This has delicious pining and workplace, close-proximity tension. I love the dual POV of Amy and Sophie and am so glad to see more into Amy's character after being introduced to her by Ruby Barrett's Hot Copy. I'm looking forward to reading the whole book!