This was a beautiful celebration of trans love and I enjoyed it greatly! A companion novel to Chef's kiss from last year with cameos from Ray and Simone but this still worked as a standalone.

Luna is a recently fired pansexual trans woman looking for a job who runs into Jean Pierre (JP), a wealthy French trans man who finds himself in need of a fake girlfriend and cooking partner to fulfill an inheritance request.

While the set up was a little unusual, I really loved seeing opposites Luna and JP become friends and find unexpected love together. The Paris settings were great and of course lots of delicious food descriptions too!

Good on audio narrated by Nicky Endres and recommended for fans of authors like Anita Kelly. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review.

Steam level: a couple of open door scenes, mild details

thank you to netgalley for the advanced reading copy of Chef's Choice. I did not at first realize this was a book two and I did not read the first one but there was still enough info for book two to be read on its own.

🍴BOOK REVIEW🍴

Chef’s Choice by TJ Alexander
Rating: 5/5 ⭐️

“When Luna O’Shea is unceremoniously fired from her frustrating office job, she tries to count her blessings: she’s a proud trans woman who has plenty of friends, a wonderful roommate, and a good life in New York City. But blessings don’t pay the bills.

Enter Jean-Pierre, a laissez-faire trans man and the heir to a huge culinary empire—which he’ll only inherit if he can jump through all the hoops his celebrity chef grandfather has placed in his path. First hoop: he needs a girlfriend, a role that Luna is happy to play…for the right price. She’s got rent to pay, after all! Second hoop: they both need to learn how to cook a series of elaborate, world-renowned family recipes to prove that Jean-Pierre is a worthy heir. Admittedly, Luna doesn’t even know how to crack an egg, but she’s not going to let that—or any pesky feelings for Jean-Pierre—stop her.”

This trans romance was everything I could have hoped! It managed to be sweet, tender, light-hearted, spicy and serious all at once. I particularly enjoyed Jean-Pierre and Luna discussing how very different their trans experiences had been - Jean-Pierre being very privileged and wealthy/Luna being marginalized and having to make major choices between trans care and education. I love books about food so of course loved all the descriptions of the cooking and recipes. Also loved seeing Ray and Simone (from Chef’s Kiss) make an appearance in this one! Luna and Jean-Pierre’s chemistry was so sweet and I loved their sassy banter. I loved seeing Jean-Pierre’s growth - from eventually acknowledging his privilege, to realizing that perhaps he does need friends in the trans community, to deciding to use his extra wealth to help other trans folks!

Recommend if you like:
- Fake dating
- Trans MC and trans love interest
- Queer romance
- Reality cooking shows
- Celebrity romance
- Trans love and joy

🍴Thanks to @netgalley, @atriabooks and @tjalexandernyc for the ARC! 🍴BOOK REVIEW🍴

Chef’s Choice by TJ Alexander
Rating: 5/5 ⭐️

“When Luna O’Shea is unceremoniously fired from her frustrating office job, she tries to count her blessings: she’s a proud trans woman who has plenty of friends, a wonderful roommate, and a good life in New York City. But blessings don’t pay the bills.

Enter Jean-Pierre, a laissez-faire trans man and the heir to a huge culinary empire—which he’ll only inherit if he can jump through all the hoops his celebrity chef grandfather has placed in his path. First hoop: he needs a girlfriend, a role that Luna is happy to play…for the right price. She’s got rent to pay, after all! Second hoop: they both need to learn how to cook a series of elaborate, world-renowned family recipes to prove that Jean-Pierre is a worthy heir. Admittedly, Luna doesn’t even know how to crack an egg, but she’s not going to let that—or any pesky feelings for Jean-Pierre—stop her.”

This trans romance was everything I could have hoped! It managed to be sweet, tender, light-hearted, spicy and serious all at once. I particularly enjoyed Jean-Pierre and Luna discussing how very different their trans experiences had been - Jean-Pierre being very privileged and wealthy/Luna being marginalized and having to make major choices between trans care and education. I love books about food so of course loved all the descriptions of the cooking and recipes. Also loved seeing Ray and Simone (from Chef’s Kiss) make an appearance in this one! Luna and Jean-Pierre’s chemistry was so sweet and I loved their sassy banter. I loved seeing Jean-Pierre’s growth - from eventually acknowledging his privilege, to realizing that perhaps he does need friends in the trans community, to deciding to use his extra wealth to help other trans folks!

Recommend if you like:
- Fake dating
- Trans MC and trans love interest
- Queer romance
- Reality cooking shows
- Celebrity romance
- Trans love and joy

🍴Thanks to @netgalley, @atriabooks and @tjalexandernyc for the ARC!

Luna O’Shea has unexpectedly lost her job and isn’t sure how she’s going to pay her bills. Then she
literally bumps into Jean-Pierre, the heir to a culinary empire, who offers her a hefty sum to pretend to
be his girlfriend and win a cooking competition that his famous-chef grandfather has cooked up in order
to pass on his inheritance. Luna may not know how to cook, but she can certainly turn up the heat!
This book was a light-hearted escape from reality. It’s certainly not life-altering, but it will make you
chuckle and lift your spirits if the events of the world are getting you down. The queer representation is
top notch, with both Luna and Jean-Pierre being trans. They have some excellent discussions, including
whether their relationship would be considered straight, given that they are a male/female couple, and
how does their trans identity factor into their own definitions of their relationship? It will make you
consider both perspectives. Overall, I enjoyed this book. I may read Chef’s Kiss, which has non-binary
representation, if I need another escape from reality for an afternoon. I am giving this a 4 out of 5 stars.
There is definitely some spice, and it didn’t disappoint! TJ Alexander didn’t shy away from detailed trans
spice scenes, and I was so happy to see that! Due to the necessary explicitness of the descriptions in
order to paint an accurate scene, I would give this 3 peppers on the spice scale.

So I really enjoyed Chef's Kiss by this author and I was DELIGHTED that Luna was getting a story! This is the first book that I've read where both main characters are transgender and I really love seeing this representation in print with such a cute cover and getting out into the world. I really enjoy a good fake dating trope and this was just such a good one! Alexander does a great job establishing both Luna and JP's different journies with such insight and care. I really enjoyed the world and the characters that Alexander has created, these characters just make my heart happy.

This is a wonderfully swoony queer romance and I'm just so happy it exists.

Thank you to TJ Alexander, Atria Books, and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review

After being fired from her job Luna finds herself seeking comfort from her roommate Simone. Instead she finds herself being the pretend long term girlfriend to Jean Pierre. A Frenchman and the grandson of two famous chef's he has to compete in a ridiculous challenge in order to remain in his grandfathers will. The issue is neither him nor Luna can cook, so asking her to help him isn't really very helpful. JP offers to pay Luna a ridiculous amount of money to play along with the charade and he stays with Luna while the two try to learn how to cook. But the two grow closer as Luna exposes JP to aspects of life he hasn't experienced before.

What a perfect and lovable story. The romance is believable and so very sweet. I typically hate a fake dating troupe because the love also often feels fake, however this one was well done and felt real. It was clear the characters were attracted to each other before their fake dating scheme started. I did love how being Queer and Trans were part of the regular conversation, and although it was part of the story it wasn't the main part. It was just two trans people falling for each other and working together to explore what that meant for them. Even breaking down some of the aspects of being queer and how it relates to those who aren't in the queer community.

This t4t queer romance was amazing from the first page to the last. Luna just unexpectedly lost her job, and now by happenstance, she's been asked to pretend to be Jean-Pierre, the heir to a huge culinary empire, girlfriend for more money than she can afford to say no to. Now they just need to convince his family they are happily in love and learn to cook a series of elaborate, world-renowned family recipes in order to prove Jean-Pierre is worthy of taking on his grandfather's mantle. Chef's Choice is light-hearted while being real and showing some of the real day-to-day ups and downs of trans lives. If your looking for an amazing queer romance, this is it! And if you love faking dating you'll love this one.

What a book! I read this after a very dense high fantasy, and it was the perfect read. It provided fun romance with t4t fake dating. I absolutely adored Luna in Chef's Kiss, so I was very excited to see her get her own book! Luna is such a lovable character, and Jean-Pierre added an amazing counter perspective to her. This story showcased trans joy and love as well as highlighting different beliefs and comfort levels with labels that exist within the community. TJ Alexander is an auto-read author for me. I can't wait to see what is next!

Not a super big fan of hate to love but I loved the first book and had to try this one out anyway. While the last 40% was absolutely perfect, the first half was lacking a lot for me and I honestly did not enjoy it. Because the ending was so good though, the book as a whole ended up balancing out in the end.

This book deserves all the stars! What a wonderful sophomore novel by Chef's Choice!! This was my first T4T romance and it was just so so sweet. I loved that we got to see so much of Ray and Simone from the first book in this series. It is a slow burn but the pay off is sooooo good. ;) ALSO this book had a little unexpected celerity trope and I was living for it.

My co-host and I picked this for our June romance book club pick and it is such a good book club book! Would highly recommend!

Thank you so much to Atria for my advanced copy! CHEF'S CHOICE is out now so yall rush to go buy this cute pink cover! :)

Trigger Warnings: dysphoria, transphobia, fired, cursing, misgendering, heteronormativity, alcohol, needles for HRT, harassment, panic attack, internalized misogyny, sex

Representation: Transgender, gender affirming care, Pansexual, Black, they/them pronouns

Chef’s Choice is a contemporary romance with a fake dating arrangement that turns to real love. When Luna O’Shea is unceremoniously fired from her frustrating office job, she tries to count her blessings: she’s a proud trans woman who has plenty of friends, a wonderful roommate, and a good life in New York City, but blessings don’t pay the bills.

Enter Jean-Pierre, a laissez-faire trans man and the heir to a huge culinary empire—which he’ll only inherit if he can jump through all the hoops his celebrity chef grandfather has placed in his path. First hoop: he needs a girlfriend, a role that Luna is happy to play for the right price. (She’s got rent to pay, after all!) Second hoop: they both need to learn how to cook a series of elaborate, world-renowned family recipes to prove that Jean-Pierre is a worthy heir. Admittedly, Luna doesn’t even know how to crack an egg, but she’s not going to let that—or any pesky feelings for Jean-Pierre—stop her.

I just love a food-centric book! There’s no faster way to my heart than through my stomach! This was a great story with a heartfelt theme! I loved the love story, obviously, and the characters had great depth and development. The story is most definitely a “do they/don’t they” for anyone looking for the romance, it’s also a fake dating situation to start. The romance story arc is a bit steamy, but also very beautiful. I loved all of the information I learned about the Trans community in both America and France. The book handles some difficult topics with ease and respect, but still allows a light-hearted story to make you laugh.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I will admit it. I am 100% a sucker for fake dating romances, and this one was particularly good. It was sweet, funny, swoon worthy, inspiring, and the food descriptions were drool worthy. So much cheese! Yummmmm.

While I adored Chef’s Kiss, I think I loved this one even more (but seeing glimpses into the progression of Simone and Ray’s relationship was so nice!). This may have to do with this book being slightly less of a slow burn? Although Luna and JP were just as much total (lovable!) idiots about their feeling for each other as Simone and Ray were.

All in all, a very fun, cute read that made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside, just like a good romance should.

I really enjoyed this follow up book to Chef's Kiss. After reading CK, I knew I wanted to get Luna's story next so I was so happy that Chef's Choice focused on her!

I really liked the focus on Luna and JP's relationship as two trans characters, each with their own experience and acceptance of themselves with different levels of support from their family and friends.

This book has fake dating, a huge focus on food (duh) and would pair perfectly with mac & cheese!

Luna is reeling from a less than subtle transphobic termination at her job when she finds herself volunteering to be the fake girlfriend of a looming Jean-Pierre. JP needs a fake girlfriend and Luna can't turn down the cash. What Luna expects to be a brief charade turns into a spectacle in an effort to keep JP from getting cut out of his inheritance by a surly (bigoted) grandfather.

Alexander molds these characters well to show two very different trans experiences. Luna has transitioned with a deep support network and commitment to being her authentic self while JP has done everything possible to make himself unremarkable as he navigated transition alone. In the end, JP allows her to dream big, and Luna shows him what it means to be seen and cared for. It is tender, protective, and frequently funny. In comparison to the first book in the series, I think it does a better job of nailing the characters.

French accents, fine dining, and fake fiancees make this flirty follow-up to TJ Alexander's "Chef's Kiss" a frolicking good time.

"Chef's Choice" centers on Luna, a trans woman scrambling to make ends meet after unceremoniously being let go by her thankless job as an administrative assistant.

Opportunity comes knocking when she meets Jean-Pierre, a too-serious trans man and verified celebrity who offers her $500,000 to pose as his partner to appease his discerning but beneficent grandfather.

But feigned romance becomes all too real when Luna and JP must learn to work together to replicate a nine-course meal's worth of finicky family recipes.

Let's call it love at 350 degrees.

Funny and lighthearted, this offbeat romance also makes some interesting points about queerness and identity, and the vagueness of the labels we sometimes force on ourselves, even within the 2SLGBTQIA+ community.

Chef's Choice is the fun, sexy t4t fake-dating romcom of my dreams.

Luna O'Shea has just been unexpectedly fired from her office job and is wondering how she'll continue to pay her rent when she meets Jean-Pierre, a French trans man who just so happens to be heir to a huge culinary empire. When Jean-Pierre offers Luna an exorbitant amount of money to pretend to be his girlfriend and complete an elaborate culinary test with him in order to prove his worth and win his inheritance, Luna is in no position to say no. The last thing Luna expects is to fall for the infuriating frenchman, but the more time she spends with him, the easier it gets to fake falling for him, despite all the reasons she knows she shouldn't.

TJ Alexander blew me away with Chef's Kiss, and they've done it again with Chef's Choice, This is the first story I've read following two post-op trans leads (and the first with a post-op trans man), and the subject was handled with such grace and care. I particularly loved the explorations of the different ways in which Luna and Jean-Pierre each felt about their trans and queer identities, and the growth they experience through learning to understand one another better. This book has certainly solidified Alexander as an auto-buy author for me.

LGBTQIA+ Pride Month #9 ❤️🧡💛💚💙💜

rep: T4T, trans

First of all, can we all just be extremely pleased that a trans romance has been traditionally published? More diversity in publishing, please and thank you.

I am not embarrassed to say I 100% requested this book for the cover. I love the height difference. I love books about food. I go back and forth about Frenchmen, but in this case, I think I prefer Jean-Pierre to Luna.

Admittedly, there are reasons why Luna is very "woe is me." Life doesn't come easily to marginalized people.

While the romance didn't feed me, I will say learning more about differences in trans people did. I like that this book didn't shy away from sex scenes. I don't like closed door romances, no matter who is starring in it. I'm trash. It's me.

I had an issue with the French stereotypes. One second JP speaks perfect English. The next he is fumbling around for a particular word.

And are we just going to gloss over the fact that Luna studied French for a few weeks and was suddenly fluent in Paris?

So yes, I have a few problems with the plot, but we are tacking on a star because trans voices deserve to be heard. And I would've had problems with this plot had it been a M/F white cishet romance, so just throwing that out there.

Ah, one more thing, and this is just because my best friend works in TV. Do not hire a showrunner that has never worked in TV. Please please please.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher.

Thank you to Atria and NetGalley for the eARC! This book was everything. Fake Dating is my favorite romance novel trope and this delivered! So funny, so swoonworthy, great characters, and an entertaining set up for the fake dating. I loved it. Both of our main characters were delightful and the side characters were very entertaining as well - I definitely have to go back and read Chef’s Kiss now (the companion novel about Ray and Simone). I’m hoping for more in this series!

A joyous, unique T4T romance with sweet, loveable characters. Parts of this reminded me of 'Nevada', focusing more on trans people enjoying and experiencing life rather than detailing trauma (though discrimination is addressed). And tons of detail for those who love cooking-themed stories, just don't read whilst hungry.

The fake dating trope isn't my favourite - it can be very much over-the-top, requiring disbelief to be suspended to a certain extent, but it does seem to work well for this story even though the concept seemed a little far-fetched! An excellent cosy romance to get lost in, perfect for lovers of diverse characters and food.

I'm really loving this series & these characters! The parameters of the fake dating situationship seemed a bit forced in the beginning, but I'm still such a sucker for the fake dating trope! And the added bonus of the one bed trope? Absolutely loved it! This book is so cute & swoony but provides much needed representation as well! After reading this and Chef's Kiss, I'd love to be part of Luna & Simone's friend group! They seem like the best people to surround yourself with!

This was the first book I've read where both main characters are transgender & I'd love to read more like it! Luna & JP both have their own opinions on what it means to be trans & they've had vastly different experiences as well. As someone who's cis-gendered, this was really insightful into another part of the queer experience.

Thank you to TJ Alexander, Atria Books, and Net Galley for sending me an early copy!