Reading “Piglet” felt like being fused with someone else’s brain. I felt the story in my body, related to it on a deeper level, and simply couldn’t get enough.

The narration style and skillful prose guided me through a vibrant world as seen through Piglet’s current experiences, her past hopes and dreams, and her childhood. I was entranced by her thought processes (and also occasionally frustrated by them). Tantalizing glimpses into her childhood offered up reasons as to why grew into the person she did, but never the full story. In fact, I often felt that there was something happening just out of reach, just off the page, and I kept picking the book up throughout the day searching for whatever that may be.

Highly recommend!

•Plot: 3/5 (A young woman deals with a confession from her fiancé in the run up to their wedding.)

•Characters: 4/5 (You’re going to love Piglet’s sister, mom, and Darren; every girl needs a friend like Margot; and you will hate her in laws.)

•Writing: 4/5 (This writing is brutal and honest…however, there is a MAJOR plot point that is never revealed and it drove me crazy.)

•Ending: 3/5

This one was a lot of fun and also made me very uncomfortable while reading. The writing is just unflinchingly honest- it reminded me of an Ashley Audrain book (which is a compliment). The food descriptions are next level and I spent the entirety of the book craving a baguette. Special thanks to the author and Henry Holt & Company for my ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley and Henry Holt for this ARC! This is a special one—definitely among the most stunning novels I've read in the past few years.

Piglet is an engrossing character who neighbors closely to Fleabag territory: she's insatiable, desperate, and all too faithful to her farces. The biggest fallacy of all is, of course, her impending marriage, and the concept of their relationship only proves harder and harder to reconcile with her emotional reality. As the chapters count down the days to the scrupulous event, you can't help but rubberneck at the subconscious, nearly inevitable wreckage that ensues.

These developments are less of a character falling from grace and more so a woman who resigns herself to the realizations of her performance. Repeatedly, Piglet finds herself mentally disconnected from the social musings of her workplace, her best friend's conflation with motherhood, the differing demands from her bumpkin family versus her fiancé's posh parents. All in all, this is a story about boxes—the ones we pray to tick off, the ones we die squeezing into.

Amidst the scintillating prose ("She swallowed: a child taking medicine, a communicant receiving the Eucharist") lays a table feast of luscious food descriptions ("There would be jazz music, cigarettes smoked on the patio, and a dessert made from one of the new cookbooks she was editing: an espresso semifreddo with warm caramel sauce and glinting shards of praline"). Every word goes down like liquid.

Fans of Sally Rooney will enjoy this character-driven story and its exploration of performative commitment, self-sabotage, and family dynamics. Fans of Hanya Yanagihara will rejoice at the gorgeous prose that allows "Piglet" to be unputdownable.

Honorable mentions to some of my favorite excerpts from this book:

- "Now, they did not kiss over the colanders, the cooling racks, as she had once imagined they would, but Kit asked questions, playing the attentive husband in front of the cashier. She picked up piping bags, stainless-steel nozzles, and leaf gold, and he paid; he carried their bags to the train. If this is what their life was to be, perhaps she could stomach it."
- "She was going to waste, she feared, she knew, the life she had made spoiling around her, turning to rot."
- "As they entered the church, she felt the urge to submit—let it happen, let herself be guided forward; behave nicely, as expected, like the flower girls: sugar, spice, and subordination."
- "[S]he had built a life that relied on the mirrors of others?"

This book is quite delicious and it will make your mouth water! Beyond the food porn though is a deeper story of family relationships and a cast of interesting characters. I felt like I was right there with Piglet in her new home getting to experience all that the author wrote about her life. What a main character! This is a story that will remain with me. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. Five stars.

Thank you very much for the opportunity to read this book early! I really enjoyed it. I thought the writing was very well done, and the story kept me interested. I believe my students/patrons would also love this book and will be acquiring it for the library!

I wanted to love this, and I'll start by saying it's a great premise, but... it fell short for me. Our MC's motives don't feel clear, and some of the commentary felt a bit on the nose. I'm not sure if this was intentional or not! Ultimately not for me. Good writing overall, but not a book I'd pick up again

I truly engaging at super weird experience of a novel. I recommend it to anybody who wants to get to read something a little bit different.

This was such a quirky, unique and well written novel. It is the story about a woman who loved eating so much as a child she was given the nickname Piglet. Now, as an adult, her nickname has stuck even though she has curbed her eating and is leading a dream life with her fiancé Kit. With two weeks out til the wedding day, Piglet is excited and feels that nothing could go wrong to stop her from reaching her goals. That is, until her fiancé shares a secret with her about himself that leaves her devastated and doubting everything about her future husband. Can she brush it under the rug and move forward or will this secret eat her alive. As the story progresses, Piglet slowly begins to lose control of her perfectly ordered life. She self sabotages as her voracious appetite takes over. Will she make it to the big day? Or will Kit’s revelation destroy all hopes for their happiness. I could not put this novel down! This was a solid 5 star read for me.

Thank you @netgalley for the Advanced Readers Copy. Piglet by Lottie Hazell is the story of a woman who was nicknamed Piglet by her family when she was a young girl-she ate a lot, and we find out more about why partway through the story. The nickname stuck. She is now successful, an amazing and creative cook, and about to be married. Things seem perfect, until 13 days before the wedding, her fiancé confesses a terrible secret that threatens their relationship. Piglet finds her whole persona shattered, and has a hunger that she can’t eat enough to fulfill. She keeps moving forward toward the wedding, but things are not good. I had a hard time with this book, it was so hard to watch what Piglet was going through, and live through it with her. #piglet #lottiehazell #advancedreaderscopy #netgalley #debutnovel #bookstagram #booklover #reader #bookblog #lovetoread #fictionreader #bookreview #bookrecommendation #readersofinstagram #bookloversofinstagram #takeapagefrommybook #readallthebooks #booksbooksbooks #booksofinstagram #bookwormproblems #bookaholic #booknerd #whattoread #readingtime #bookaddict #ilovetoread #ilovebooks #needtoread #readallday

Piglet has always been a big eater. Embracing what was perhaps seen as a childhood quirk--even earning her the nickname Piglet--she is climbing the ranks at a cookbook publishing house, a hobby culinarian, and 98 days from marrying the love of her life, Kit, and his well-to-do Oxford family. Two weeks before the wedding, Kit makes a destabilizing admission to Pig. As the wedding inches closer, we are privy to Pig's appetite for a stable, respectable life, and the chasm inside her grows larger.

Piglet is somewhat a classic will-they-won't-they story but is made infinitely more interesting by Hazell's treatment of Pig's relationship with food, image, and acceptance. Kit's indiscretion is assumed but is never explicitly stated, which is a testament to just how much this story is about Pig and herself and not at all about her need for a man. I also commend Hazell for writing a novel of such tidy length--it is exactly what it needs to be.

This book was different. I think in a good way? It’s not necessarily a style I want to read more books in, but for this one it made an impact and was unique. The way the author uses primarily descriptions of food to evoke the emotion throughout the book is fascinating. It was a rollercoaster from beginning to end of “oh hey that sounds good” to “I want to puke let me off of this thing.” The nuances and details of the story aren’t there- but I think that was on purpose. The heart of the story is the emotion of piglet and how she tries (or fails) to gain control through food. The details behind what is triggering the behavior is secondary. I wish the characters were more likable.

Lottie Hazell's debut novel, "Piglet," serves up a tantalizing exploration of modern womanhood, appetites, and the courage to forge a new path.
The story revolves around Piglet, an up-and-coming cookbook editor in London, leading what appears to be an idyllic life. She has a loving fiancé, Kit, and a close-knit group of friends who adore her culinary skills. Piglet's talent for crafting exquisite meals has become her trademark, endearing her to Kit and his eccentric upper-class family.
Two weeks before their wedding, Kit reveals a devastating betrayal, shaking Piglet's world to its core. Yet, in a surprising turn of events, they choose to proceed with their wedding plans, setting the stage for an emotionally charged narrative.
As the wedding day approaches, Piglet grapples with mounting pressures at work, her family's expectations, and her relentless pursuit of the perfect wedding cake. Hazell skillfully portrays Piglet's internal turmoil and her growing sense of disquiet, rendering her character profoundly relatable.
What sets "Piglet" apart is its incisive critique of societal norms and the unrealistic standards imposed on brides-to-be. Piglet's journey from conformity to self-discovery is marked by moments of doubt and bold choices that challenge convention, making her character endearing and empowering.
In conclusion, "Piglet" is a captivating literary experience that leaves readers hungry for more. Hazell's debut is a must-read for those seeking a fresh perspective on the complexities of modern life, making it clear that she is a talent to watch in the world of literatur

Ninety-eight days before the wedding, already installed in their Oxford home, Kit proposed a toast to Piglet, his WTB (wife to be). "to my good fortune-new home, dear friends, astonishing woman to marry...". Piglet served one of her exquisite dinners complete with dessert. As assistant cookbook editor at Fork House, she chose a dessert featured in one of those cookbooks. She let compliments on her culinary skills "fill and invigorate her".

Kit would tell her thirteen days before their wedding of his indiscretion and deception. Piglet thought her wedding would be "a fusion of images-she and Kit laughing, embracing...but now there were some things you could not tell your friends. She knew that truths, once spoken, had the power to strip her of the life she had so carefully built..." She filled the opening chasm the only way she knew how, a hunger satisfied by binge eating, a way to fill her inner void.

Would marrying Kit satisfy Piglet's needs? It seemed so, initially, as she pursued a different hunger, one of upward mobility and greed. Middle class life in Derby would now be replaced by upscale Oxford, in a new home purchased and supplemented by Kit's parents. Kit's parents would pay all wedding expenses and bankroll the honeymoon in the family owned chalet in France. "Marriage is a commitment: You'll make a good wife," said Kit's mum.

Thirteen days to go! Piglet's "industriousness, her private productivity" started to unravel as the impact of Kit's betrayal became known. Earmarked for a job promotion, she failed to apply. Her friendship with bestie, Margot would falter as Margot gave birth and the constraints as wife/mother took precedence. The tale of how Piglet got her nickname would be recounted. As an aside, the reader learns that Piglet's binge eating might have developed as a cover for her sister's anorexia.

Knowing what she knows now, would Piglet enter a marriage that "looks good rather than feels good?" The quest for upward mobility must be reached, however, Piglet's hunger can no longer be quenched. It is a hunger of desperation, a search for love and support, a voracious appetite that cannot be suppressed. She craves more and more.

"Piglet" by Lottie Hazell is a character study of a woman with the goal of shedding her middle class roots to climb the ladder of success only to be betrayed and left even more fractured and unsatisfied. Highly recommended.

Thank you Henry Holt & Co. and Net Galley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The way this book read was very intriguing- it often feels as if piglets thoughts or even just her thought process is very similar to that of our own. It felt like looking into her mind and made it easy to be in her shoes, feel what she felt. When she discovers her fiancé has been cheating on her, the initial reaction to the reader would be to leave him… but piglet stays and with the background given, it almost makes sense why it took her until her wedding day to decide. She had what seemed to be the perfect life, it was what would make people proud of her and think highly of her. But it wasn’t HER they would be proud with - and eventually she realized that. The courage it took for her to move on was great. My main critique of the story would be that there was no further development with her eating disorder. It’s very clearly there and by the end I’m not even sure she realized that she had it. That being such a pivotal part of the story I felt there should have been a bit more discussion on it.

Regardless, this was a thought provoking read and I enjoyed it.

A darkly funny novel about women and their desires - I loved Piglet for all her sins.
Food, class, gender, Waitrose, it’s all here, skewering society.
Five mealy stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and Henry Holt & Company for the eARC.

It’s fair to say that I have never read a book in which the author described food the way Lottie Hazell did in Piglet. Piglet’s relationship with food changes with the plot. At first, you’re like “Man, I wish I could make food like her” but as the plot progresses you’re like “I think she needs to go to therapy”. The way we could understand her emotions through the process of her making the food was astonishing. Especially, when she’s making the wedding cake. Her relationship with food and how it was affected by her emotions was relatable.

I think Miss Hazell did a remarkable job and is a skilful storyteller.

P.S. Why do men have to ruin everything good in life? Honestly, Kit and his family deserved worse than what happened at the wedding.

This remarkable story is told almost entirely through 1) dialogue and 2) descriptions of food. I think it shouldn't work, but it does. I was rapt. The protagonist's attention to food, her relationship with food, her history of covering for her anorexic sister, the class divides between two families, the ambitions of the characters...it's all there, and much more, revealed to us in conversations and also in menu plans, and the relationships between the characters seem deeply complicated and tangled and human. The details of these lives are revealed to us in a breezy style where there is much left up to me as a reader to infer, or to trust in. Maybe a good word for this book is "deft." It's skillfully told, the author is as skillful at storytelling as the protagonist is at cooking up elaborate meals. The writing and storytelling are perfect for a story that is in one way small in scope and in another way is meant to answer a very big question: "why do we live?"...Good.

I don't know what I expected about this book but I got Waitrose, food obsession, Oxford, family drama and dynamics, and a countdown to a wedding. It was more satirical than I was expecting but it was done in an even way. Having the plot hing on Kit's reveal was a brave choice but it worked!

It started in a lighthearted way and then it got depressing and dark very quickly. You never reach a resolution at the end and she was not likeable at the end.


Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

This is a fantastic story about hunger, longing, and truly not knowing what you want. We follow our protagonist, cruelly nicknamed Piglet for her obsession with food, as she decides between the lower class home she came from and the picture perfect one that betrayed her. The long passages of succulent dishes are juxtaposed with the messiness of Piglet's dilemma. Quite honestly, I didn't know I would be enthralled by the culinary descriptions as I'm not much of a foodie, but they were beautifully written and kept me hungry the whole time.