Just One Taste is a book about grief, reconnection, and finding oneself.

Olive Stone is a food critic who discovers she inherited her late father's restaurant. After her parents divorced many years prior, her relationship with him was strained and remained as such up until he passed. Her goal with the restaurant is to sell, and she intends to do so until she meets Leo, her father's sous chef. Tasked with the job of finishing her late father's cookbook, she and Leo take off to Italy.

I think the grief in this book was done perfectly. Olive Stone is dealing with grief, confused as to why she got the restaurant and not Leo, regret in their estrangement, and figuring out what she wants for herself, not what she could do as a rebellion. Leo, like a son to Nicky, is grieving because Nicky was like a father to him and spent years by his side and traveling to Italy. All of this and now dealing with finishing his cookbook filled with his memories and his words and what to do with his restaurant.

I think this book was heartbreaking in the sense that her father has passed and she’s going through all these revelations and I would just wish she could pause and pick up the phone and tell her himself. We were feeling her grief with everyone one of Nicky’s friends she would encounter with their stories and prodding questions, The little twist near the ends was perfect and made sense to her story line to help her begin the healing process.

The only negative of this book were the characters and how long it took me to connect with them. I did not like Leo until about midway through the book. The beginning and progression of their relationship, or those scenes before they become a couple, felt a bit one sided and didn’t feel at all palpable until they hook up and then it’s, “there it is!” Some of the side characters were not my favorite and or were even used for comedic relief.


Thank you again NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam Group for this arc in exchange for an honest review!

This book was such a great read that I finished in one sitting! I absolutely loved the writing and the way the author incorporated grief into romance.

As someone who has a similarly complex relationship with my dad this book made me cry (which is a good thing). The setting being places in Italy was also super close to my heart and background.

3.5/5 — Who doesn’t dream of the Tuscan hills and golden sun of Italy? For those who love a light summery read and also love all things food, this is the book for you. Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC as my introduction to Lizzie Dent, I definitely will be exploring the rest of her works.

This is a fun read. The characters had a good weight to them. Their emotions and thoughts were just the right mix of realistic and idealistic the way you would want your main characters to be. The development of Olive’s understanding of herself and her relationship with her father were well paced and it was clear the warming was not just based on infatuation with Leo. The different regions of the Italian journey all glowed on their individuality where you could feel the change of culture and importance of the food with each region.

My only real critique were the few pop culture references that sometimes took me out of that book binging fog. The references are just a little too new to feel natural in the course of the story, it takes the timelessness of a book away and placed it within a too narrow margin in the course of my own reading.

Overall, this is going to be a perfect book for summer 2024 for anyone who loves a light heartfelt sun-drenched romance!

JUST ONE TASTE is a wonderful book about a woman who inherits an Italian restaurant from her estranged father and is tasked with finishing a cookbook with his hot sous chef. This book has such vivid scenes, amazing characters and an emotional story that is the perfect fun read!
I actually swooned and Leo was so kind (I am a little in love with him)!

I am not sure I would've loved this one as much had I not just spent 10 days in Italy, but nonetheless, I thoroughly enjoyed it! Loved the slow burn, tension-filled romance and it felt authentic and sweet with a satisfying ending. Now, give me all the pasta and wine and let me dream I'm back hiking the hills of Tuscany or swimming in the Ligurian sea!

Fairly predictable rom com but it was still a good read that I enjoyed. I'm a sucker for rom coms involving food.

I am a big fan of Lizzy Dent books and was thrilled to be approved for this ARC! I think Dent’s writing has gotten better and better with every book I’ve read.

I loved this story and following along in Olive’s journey - there was definitely romance, but there was also more than that and a lot of character building throughout. The humor and wit kept me interested. I will definitely be recommending this to others!

Olive and her late father’s sous chef were challenged with finishing a book all while traveling through Italy. While Olive and Leo taste their way through Italy, developing recipes and stories, they both find that life brings unexpected twists and turns. The plan you start the journey with isn’t always the one you end up with!

I adored this book and the character development, especially Olive. She was so relatable and flawed in all the best ways. This is a feel-good, well-written work of fiction. I cannot wait to read more by Lizzy Dent.

My only negative is that the proposed cover art work does not match the story. I believe the cartoonish depiction of Olive and Leo under represent the loveliness of this story.

This book was a fun read! I enjoyed how it took place primarily in Italy and I could almost envision the scenery. It was a nice unique setting! Definitely made me want to visit Italy and eat so much food. I wish there would have been some recipes at the end.

I didn’t really like the somewhat estranged dad plot. I think the chemistry between the two characters Olive and Leo could have been better as well. I think going deeper into both plot lines would have really made this a 5 star read.

Overall I enjoyed the book and would definitely read the others from the author. The writing really transported me to a different country!

Thank you Lizzy Dent - I am ready to eat my way through Italy! 🇮🇹 Just One Taste is a romantic drama featuring Olive Stone, a food critic, and Leo, her recently deceased father’s sous chef, as they spend several weeks together in Italy sampling various foods in order to finish her father’s regional Italian cookbook. The novel begins as a sweet romance and love letter to Italy, then becomes more dramatic as Olive works through her grief and choices about her future with her father’s restaurant and a relationship with Leo. The descriptions of food are incredible! 🍝 And I loved Olive’s relationship with her 2 best friends. This is going to be a great summer read! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Thank you to NetGalley and Putnam books for this E-ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Pub date: 7/15/2024

Just One Taste was my first Lizzy Dent read, and I am ABSOLUTELY adding her other books to by TBR list! I loved the chemistry between Olive and Leo - I'm a sucker for the "he is my enemy but hot damn" trope, and that is very much there in the beginning of this book. I also enjoyed how this was very much a romcom, but also focused heavily on Olive's journey of finding herself and making peace with her past. For me, the ending felt a little bit rushed and abrupt - also, I can appreciate it in fiction, but if Olive was my friend who was debating starting a relationship with someone who a) was trying to convince her to not sell a business, and/or b) wanted to become business partners of any kind, I would tell her to RUN!! Even if he's hot!! Regardless, I truly enjoyed reading Just One Taste, and look forward to reading more from Lizzy Dent!

This book was a veritable Italian feast! The food descriptions were plentiful and made me crave cacio e pepe and orange cake. I was fully immersed in the Italian coast (and countryside) during Olive and Leo's adventure and was on pins and needles hoping for them to finally get together. Olive's journey through her grief was compelling, and I was happy with the conclusion. This story was lighteron the romance, but given the subject matter that aspect made sense.

If I had custom ordered this book straight from the deepest book desires of my heart, it could not have been any better. Leo and Olive are one of my TOP favorite book couples ever.

So many good things: The food, the boy, the food...but it just didn't come together in a way that felt good. Which, too bad, because there are real Emily Henry vibes here.

I read The Summer Job and loved it, so when I saw Just One Taste—I was so excited to read. Lizzy Dent’s writing has only gotten better. The Italian scenery made me long for a place I’ve never been. This is my first 5 star book of the year. I loved reading it. Thank you to NetGalley for providing me a copy of this wonderful book early!

I had a hard time reading this book due to formatting issues. I would definitely like to reread once it is edited and published to form a better review

Thank you to Net Galley & Penguin Group Putnam for the ARC of this book!

This story seemed more like a love story for Italy, rather than a love story happening in Italy. If you are someone who loves cooking & Italian culture this would be a great pick for you!

I loved the last third of the book, but it was a very slow start. I felt like there was an overload of background story building, which made the actual plot of the story feel rushed.

With this book coming out this summer I think it it would be a good beach read or a great pick for laying by the pool!

Food critic Olive Stone is forced to confront her past after her estranged chef father Nicolo dies, leaving her his failing restaurant, Nicky's, and instructions to travel to Italy with his protege Leo Ricci to complete his cookbook.

Once again Lizzy Dent crafts a warm and engaging story about grief, fractured relationships and allowing yourself to change direction if you've made life choices to punish someone.

There are so many heartfelt moments as Olive wrestles with her pain and grief for a father she felt loved his restaurant more than her. Her parents' divorce, which left her and her mother struggling financially due to her father's reckless decisions, made her deliberately choose to not go to culinary school and instead become a critic, and guard her heart.

I loved the chemistry between Olive and Leo. There's insta-lust but their story develops slowly as there's too much at stake professionally and professionally. Leo is just the perfect some of hero. He shares Olive's passion for food and matches her banter and knowledge in a way that made their chemistry palpable. Importantly, he is supportive of Olive, even though her decision to sell Nicky's affects his job, and gets her to open up in a way which is just swoony.

Coupled with vivid descriptions of Sicily, Tuscany and the Italian coast, plus all the wonderful meals Olive and Leo sample and banter over, I felt fully immersed in the story. I really wanted to pack my bags and go to all the places they went to! 'Just One Taste' is yet another winner from Lizzy Dent. I devoured it like one of the many meals consumed by Olive and Leo.

Thanks to Putnam/Penguin Group and NetGalley for the ARC.

4 forks out of 5. Do not read if hungry! The author has a magnificent way of making you feel like you are in Italy eating all the dishes. The scenery makes me long for a trip around Italy. Great romance story, but the base of the book is really about how to make amends and grieve an estranged parent. This, plus the romance, was kept at a lighter level though. I think the author could have gotten deeper with both. There was great chemistry in Olive and Leo even being closed/maybe ever so slightly cracked door. I would recommend this.

Thank you Putnam for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Just One Taste is advertised as a romance, but the romance in this felt more like a subplot, with the majority of the focus being on Olive figuring out her life and emotions after her father dies and she inherits his Italian restaurant. Leo and Olive are still very cute together, and I really enjoyed that there was no big third act breakup between them, it was just a very slow burn kind of romance. I wasn't expecting there to be a plot twist, but it definitely made it a more interesting read. Grab a snack, this book will make you hungry! Italy and the foods described were brought to life and I found myself desperately wanting some good Italian food while reading this! Thanks to Netgalley for the e-arc of this book!

"The restaurant is important, but like I said in Tuscany. I have a plan B. There is no plan B when it comes to you. There is only you."