Chef's Choice is hands down the sweetest, sexiest, most charming romance I've read so far this year! This book centers on Luna O'Shea, roommate of the main character from author TJ Alexander's previous book Chef's Kiss -- Luna is a trans woman, and her love interest in this story is Jean-Pierre, a hot French trans man. I loved that this is a T4T romance, that the supporting characters are largely queer (and all awesome), and that Luna has a loving and supportive mom who just wants her daughter to be happy. I loved how Luna and Jean-Pierre's relationship grew slowly, but with obvious attraction from the very beginning -- this is a slow burn done agonizingly, deliciously well. I did not enjoy the villains of the story, but I did appreciate that they were realistically written and that there was on-page rebuttal and rebuke of their words and actions. I loved Luna, a shining gem of a character that I wish were a real person so that I could be friends with her. And last but not least, I LOVED Jean-Pierre. He is a beautiful cinnamon roll book boyfriend for the ages.

I laughed, I cried, I got super indignant on behalf of these characters, I cheered, and my only regret is that I've finished the book and can't read it again for the first time. TJ Alexander, you did real real good, and I'm so grateful you shared these lovely folks and their love story with us.

From the author of Chef's Kiss, this book follows Luna, roommate of Simone from the previous book. She finds herself in a fake relationship to help make rent after getting fired. Ultimately though, she finds herself enjoying time with Jean-Pierre and hoping their fake relationship will turn into a real one.

This was a really cute romance! I liked Luna and Jean-Pierre's dynamic, and enjoyed that there was no huge fight or anything. I think I enjoyed this even more than Chef's Kiss!

I received my copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Chef’s Choice is a super funny and queer cooking romcom, featuring a recently fired takes-no-shit trans woman, and an absurdly rich trans son to a celebrity chef family. They don’t seem like a pairing that would work well together, but their progression from publicity relationship to genuine feelings is so seamless it’s absolutely heartwarming. Luna is an absolute delight of a narrator, with her relatable internal comments, and abundance of attitude. Jean-Pierre is a emo little french guy, and reading his experience was so validating.
I didn’t realize until I started reading that it was directly tied to Chef’s Kiss, with the story revolving around other characters from the first novel, and I was delighted to find out I’d be learning more about Simone’s roommate, who was already a blast. It made Simone and Ray’s appearance all the more special, to check in on how they’ve been doing since the end of Chef’s Kiss.
Overall, a really fun read!

Chef’s Kiss was very enjoyable so was excited to be approved to read the second book in the series

This is the first book I've ever read that features TWO! trans main characters and I think it's awesome that we are seeing more and more representation in romance - everyone deserves love :). I learned a lot while reading and it opened my eyes to some issues that I would never consider as a cisgender person.

Luna is a dissatisfied personal assistant, but at least it pays the bills--until she gets fired. She meets Jean-Pierre, a brash Frenchman who offers her a ridiculous amount of money to be his fake girlfriend. Soon the two are stuck together in a cooking competition, despite the fact that neither can cook. And there might be more of a connection between them than just a business arrangement.

Enjoyable, fun, easy read!Thank you to Atria Books, Atria/Emily Bestler Books & Netgalley for allowing me to read this book

Absolutely love this book. This is my first reading of a book with trans main characters. I really liked the story and enjoyed the outcome even though it was a bit obvious where it was going. I would recommend it to others for sure.

TJ Alexander returns with a delicious fake dating arrangement that turns to real love in their follow-up to Chef’s Kiss.

When Luna O’Shea is unexpectedly fired from her frustrating administrative assistant job, she tries to think of all the things she’s got going for her: she’s a proud trans woman who has plenty of friends, an awesome roommate and a great life in New York City. But blessings won’t keep a roof over her head.

Enter Jean-Pierre, a laissez-faire trans man and heir to a huge culinary empire—which he’ll only inherit if he keep his celebrity chef grandfather happy, which means: have an acceptable girlfriend. Which is where Luna comes in, for the right price of course. What starts as a fake dating arrangement turns to the both of them having to learn to cook fancy meals, and prove that Jean-Pierre is a worthy heir…all while juggling the real feelings that are slowly emerging between the two.

Chef’s Choice is a quick, fun romance read that will tick a lot of boxes. We have a fake dating arrangement which happens when a chance encounter puts Luna at the right place at the right time, a ridiculous, and slightly extensive, cooking test that made for a lot of opportunities to get closer to each other. Luna and Jean-Pierre have a wonderful, sparkling chemistry between them and the relationship development from strangers to fake dating to something more felt very genuine. I also liked that we had this offset between Luna’s humour and her way to try to make everything sound upbeat even when the reality isn’t as rosy and then Jean-Pierre’s rather doomy-gloomy attitude toward most things. While the characters could have been a bit more fleshed-out, I feel like the high stakes of the plot and the banter between Luna and Jean-Pierre made up for it in spades. I also loved that we got to see Simone and Ray (the couple from Chef’s Kiss) in this story and catch up with them and their relationship.

My favourite part by far was that we got to see them opening up to each other about being trans, how they feel about passing and the ways in which they handle or choose not to engage with transphobic experiences. They also discuss what it means to have the trans community to connect with and feel at home with and I thought that was just so heartwarming. There can never be enough queer stories that make you feel seen and I’m glad this one is joining the ranks.

A wonderful blend of swoony and funny, Chef’s Choice is the trans for trans romance that is sure to make you fall in love with the fake dating trope all over again.

I ADORED THIS BOOK! I already knew that I loved Luna from her appearances in Chef’s Kiss. However, I didn’t realize I could love her even MORE ahhhhhh.

Quick Premise: Luna has just been let go from her job at the worst time. Luna had already been worrying about her room mate and friend Simone moving out (Simone has been spending the majority of her time at her partner Ray’s home) and either having to find a new roommate or affording the apartment on her own, which she could not. She bumps into trans nepo baby, Jean-Pierre or affectionately called JP as he is frantically trying to find someone to pretend to be his girlfriend for a quick FaceTime call to his grandfather, who is a famous French chef! Jean-Pierre offers Luna money to pretend to be his fake girlfriend and thus begins a funny, sweet journey of fake dating (my favorite trope, so don’t mind me as I eat this up like catnip)

I actually appreciated the fact that Luna had enough moral aptitude to ~*~consider~*~ not taking the money that JP offered her because I would’ve immediately agreed, as the peasant I am. It goes to show that Luna is a better person than most of us, and we have no choice but to stan.

Jean-Pierre and Luna are also the sweetest grumpy x sunshine match and I will never get enough. I appreciated their conversations on their perspectives of being a queer couple, “passing,” and their family upbringings.

*patiently waiting for someone to sweep me away to France to cook and fake date me* (though I am in a monogamous relationship, but a maladaptive daydream is still a dream, okay?)

TJ writes such layered, tender characters and gives us all the trans / queer / nonbinary joyful representation that we need! I’ll continue to read anything TJ writes.

When I say I adored this book, I mean I ADORED this book. TJ Alexander has voice for days and the cast of characters is memorable and lovely. Fake dating is one of my favorite tropes and to see two (trans) characters get their happy ending made me all warm and fuzzy inside. TJ Alexander has become an instaread for me.

Luna's story begins when she's fired from a job that she really didn't love, that didn't compensate her enough for her expertise, and accused her of being cold or standoffish. She can't bring herself to tell her supportive mother or her best friend about her bad news, but when she goes to visit her friend at her new job, everything changes. She meets Jean-Pierre who is in desperate need of a fake girlfriend to prove a point to his grandfather. He's willing to pay a lot of money for the job and Luna finds herself accepting it. The two are forced into a fake-dating scenario that ensures they'll learn a lot about each other and themselves individually. This is a great romance between two trans characters who've come to embrace their identities in wholly different ways.

TJ Alexander is great at creating a story with big emotions and drama that still feel cozy, which is really impressive. Luna is immediately lovable and fun to read, and watching her unravel JP's prickly exterior to uncover someone with a lot of love in his heart but not much idea how to show it is a delight. It was wonderful to see the contrast between Luna's supportive, warm, and loving family and friends and JP's lack of emotional connections, especially as those family and friends came to embrace JP too. I also loved that the fake dating conceit had a bit of a spin to it—learning to cook JP's grandfather's gourmet menu together eventually overshadows convincing everyone they're a couple.

I do think there were times the book suffered slightly from not having JP's POV—at times he is a REAL pill, especially at the beginning, and sometimes it was possible to infer why, but it was tough to watch him hurt Luna's feelings and not get an insight into his perspective. The end felt slightly rushed to me, and personally I would have liked to see a bit more of Luna kicking ass at her job and JP's little sister, but the climactic scene was INCREDIBLY decadent fun drama worthy of a fake dating, uber-rich celebrity family story. I really, really enjoyed it.

CW: transmisia, panic attacks, blood

I would like to thank NetGalley and Atria Books for providing me with a free e-ARC of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Following the success of Alexander’s first novel, Chef’s Kiss, Chef’s Choice follows Simone’s best friend and roommate Luna as she somehow gets involved in a fake-dating situation with a French culinary heir who has to compete in a major culinary test in order to avoid being left out of his grandfather’s will.

While I haven’t read Chef’s Kiss (but has been on my radar for a while), I think I would absolutely be reading Alexander’s future works.

Chef’s Choice brings out Alexander’s delightful spin on the fake dating trope. It was very easy to get into the plot and I think Alexander’s usage of the trope really allows for some interesting dynamics between Luna and Jean-Pierre. Considering how it almost became like a strangers to frenemies to lovers situation (if that’s even a thing), I was really able to immerse myself in the plot. Plus, the swoonful things that Jean-Pierre would do for Luna and just being totally obsessed with her was truly a highlight for this book, in my opinion.

Just a quick note about Chef’s Choice being the sequel to Chef’s Kiss that I want to bring up. Even though you might get more out of the book if you read Chef’s Kiss (there are several references mentioned throughout), I don’t think it’s not too bad where you would end up getting lost if you haven’t had the chance to read it.

Another thing I really like about Chef’s Choice is the cast of characters that Alexander creates for this book. I think that was another aspect that kept me drawn into the book since there were characters that I thought were really or that I found to be interesting. Most of the characters do get their own moments to shine and are able to understand who they are as people. Because of this, I think it helped me get to know the dynamics between Simone and Luna in both Chef’s Kiss and Chef’s Choice while getting to know various other characters, both old and new, alongside them.

Overall, Chef’s Choice is an easy-to-read queer rom-com just in time for summer. If you like rom-coms featuring a MC that fake dates a celebrity with a strong friend group and found families, Chef’s Choice is the book to keep your eye on.

My face is in pain from how much I was smiling by the end of this book.

Luna, our recently fired protagonist, is in dire need of money. Luckily for her, she runs into rich Frenchman Jean-Pierre, who happens to be in dire need of a fake girlfriend to help him convince his family that he deserves to inherit their culinary empire. For a truly wild amount of money, Luna agrees to pretend to be JP’s girlfriend and assist him in an elaborate cooking challenge set by his grandfather.

While there are a lot of circumstantial elements that drive the plot, the characters are so lovable and interesting that I was easily able to overlook that. In the beginning, Luna and JP have several disagreements about class, money, and their fundamental understanding about what it means to be in a queer relationship. I found this completely refreshing. There are a lot of romcoms out there that have their two leads bicker about things that seem inconsequential, which is not necessarily bad, but I care about those conversations a lot less. Chef’s Choice handles these disagreements well, and it feels so much more satisfying when the two characters learn about each other’s point of view.

It was impossible for me not to become fully invested in Luna and JP finding happiness and falling in love, especially as they overcome family conflicts and, unfortunately, a spectrum of transphobic experiences together. I would absolutely recommend this book to anyone interested in a funny, heartwarming T4T romance. Also, it involves fake dating AND a food competition! What more could you want?

Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Okay i am going to be honest and say i did not expect to like this book very much, and just requested it on NetGalley because everyone else was reading it and i wanted to be part of the crowd! I had not liked the first book in this series too much, and i tend to dislike books with heirs.

But i was very pleasantly surprised! Luna was of course great, and i even started liking Jean-Pierre after only a quarter of the book or so (unlikable rich people as main characters/love interests ruin romances for me). I love the t4t energy and how Jean-Pierre, in particular, grows based on being around other trans people. Also compelling food plot!

Not sure why this author is so obsessed with nicknames though.

NetGalley ARC.

A recently fired Luna can't keep living in her NYC apartment without money. Jean-Pierre needs a girlfriend and a partner to help him win his inheritance from his grandfather via a cooking competition. The two enter into a fake dating pact to help each other out.

I really enjoyed the first book of this series. I think that that book had more of the representation that I wanted than this book. The t4t romance was great still. I just couldn't get on board with some of the plot details. After finishing the book, I can't remember why JP needed a girlfriend. I didn't love the execution of the fake dating either. I can't put my finger on it but something felt off.

I look forward to any other books that TJ Alexander writes though because they're fun.

🥘song: kiss me by sixpence bone the richer
🥘recommend to:
- anyone looking for a rom com vibe
- fans of chefs kiss (because we get some Simone and Ray)
- anyone looking for an lgbtq feel good story
🥘 synopsis: Luna is down on her luck. Her roommate is probably moving out and she just got fired from her less than ideal job. While she’s trying to figure out how she’s going to make rent, fate intervenes and has her walking smack into Jean Pierre, a very rich and famous chefs grandson. JP needs a girlfriend to joint him in his quest to gain his inheritance through a cooking competition. Despite being hopeless in the kitchen, Luna volunteers as tribute.
🥘 thoughts: this was so cute! I was really hoping after chefs kiss that Luna would get a story because I LOVED her relationship with Simone so much. I love that we get this trans love story that shows that people within the same community can have completely different views about their lived experiences. I think it brings up some really important discussion points. I love that friendship is still centralized despite budding romance. And I mean, who doesn’t love a fake dating trope?

I had a lot of fun with this one, maybe even more than Chef's Kiss! I thought the fake dating setup and the "we have to do a cooking thing to win my inheritance" were both done well. We didn't get quite enough depth to the moments Luna and Jean-Pierre have to fall for each other for my taste but I was still excited for them to finally get together for real. I'm so happy to have gotten a trad pub t4t romance (the first I've personally read!) like this and I hope we will only see more and more of them in the future 🏳️‍⚧️

Luna just happens to be hurting for cash at the exact moment Jean-Pierre is looking to pay someone to be his fake girlfriend. But their fifteen-minute agreement spins out into something bigger. Jean-Pierre’s grandfather, a famous chef, has challenged him to cook a nine-course formal French meal in order to earn his inheritance. Can these inexperienced cooks’ fake relationship stand the heat of the challenge?

With hilarious banter, culinary delights, meaningful self-discovery, and two hot idiots I couldn’t wait to watch fall in love, this novel is everything I wanted and more. T.J. Alexander’s blend of humor and heart is unmatched. Chef’s Choice is a delicious, satisfying, and impeccably cheesy romance, and I adored every morsel.

I really enjoyed "Chef's Choice" by TJ Alexander. This transgender romance was funny, light and fast-paced. But it also dealt with some heavier issues about gender and family relationships. Luna and Jean-Pierre meet and make a deal to be in a fake relationship and learn to cook a 9 course menu to become Jean-Pierre's grandfather's heir. The characters are thrown into many funny and tough situations that they learn to navigate together. For anyone who needs a little romance in their lives, this serves up a healthy serving.

The Chef’s Kiss series by TJ Alexander is underrated. Reading Chef’s Choice only convinced me further of this opinion. A rom-com with two trans leads is a rarity in and of itself, and to have one that both made me laugh and plucked at my heartstrings (okay—I’ll say it, I bawled) as Chef’s Choice did is even more of a rarity. With a dramatic fake dating premise, characters you can’t help but love, a meaningful and nuanced incorporation of trans identity throughout the novel, and a joyful conclusion, Chef’s Choice has made its place on my favourites of 2023 already. As TJ Alexander said in the acknowledgments, this novel is a love letter to trans readers, and we’re so, so lucky to have it.

Thank you to Atria/Emily Bestler Books and NetGalley for an advance review copy. All opinions are my own.

Alexander does it again! Bringing us another swoon worthy story.

Chef's Choice by TJ Alexander is a ravishing fake dating queer rom-com.

I adored the heck out of this cute, sweet, low angst, full of feels romance!!!
It was so well written and had so many feelings.
I loved the characters, both main and secondary.
I liked how I was able to lose myself to this charming tale full of sweet moments and divine characters.
It kept me wanting more and the author did amazing describing each character and scenes.
I loved Chef's Kiss and this was no different.

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

Thank You NetGalley and Atria/Emily Bestler Books for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!