This was an eat your way through Italy book if there ever was one. 🤤

I spent most of the story drooling, thinking about the scenery and the dishes Leo and Olive were eating and creating.

This was a close proximity, not fully enemies to lovers but the true plot was the finishing of the cook book her father had started and wanted her and Leo to finish on his behalf after he passed. As Leo and Olive venture around Italy with thr goal of picking the last few dishes for the remaining regions, I enjoyed so many things about this story, minus, uh, the romance 🫢. Their connection really didn't bloom and I didn't really get butterflies rooting for Olive and Leo to *finally* get together. I loved being immersed in Italy through this book but I really wanted more from the romance.

Thank you Netgalley and PENGUIN GROUP Putnam for the ARC in exchange for my review!

I really enjoyed this. We have two mature main characters (no absurd second act breakup) and most of the book takes place in Italy where Olive and Leo are writing a cookbook. Beautiful setting and amazing food. The romance is sweet and there is a compelling subplot involving Olive and her recently deceased estranged father. I thought the emotional vulnerability that Olive was experiencing and the added stressor of dealing with her inheritance took this book to the next level. I even got a little teary-eyed at a few parts! It ticked all my boxes.

I wanted to jump into the pages of this book. The setting all over Italy is incredible. The descriptions transported me directly into Italy. The food descriptions made me hungry. Dent has an incredible gift of describing things so vividly that you are transported to the location or to tasting the meal. Unfortunately, the rest of the book fell flat for me. I did not love the characters and was not invested in their story. Although there was clearly a spark between the main characters, it did not seem strong or one of those "I can't look away" type of situations. It was just meh. If you are looking for banter, chemistry and an adorable romance, this may not be the right book. However, it was a quick read and if you want to be transported to another place or a delicious meal, it is definitely worth reading.

Thank you Netgalley for my advanced reader copy.

Thank you, NetGalley for the eARC of ”Just One Taste” by Lizzy Dent! This was a great summer read with a mix of adventure, emotion and love.

This story follows Olive, whose estranged father recently passed away and left her his restaurant and a mission to finish his cookbook. The only probably is she will have to work with his sous chef Leo in Italy to finish the cookbook so she can move on and sell the restaurant. The journey to Italy is one of discovery and love that will change Olive’s life forever.

I enjoyed this book. I think it had a lot of potential, but the Italian food and imagery made for a dreamy summer read. I do wish we got more for the main characters. Olive hates her job, but she comes to the realization so quickly. Leo was a good book boyfriend and I got the attraction, but I also wasn’t wowed by it. I think many people will enjoy this book and parts of ending still made me cry.

When Olive and her Italian chef father fell out years ago, annoyingly handsome Leo slipped right in as his surrogate son and sous-chef. No one is more surprised than Olive when her father wills her his beloved (and now failing) restaurant. Or that his dying wish was for Olive and Leo to complete his cookbook…together.

Lizzy's books have always been joyful, funny, & a comfort read for me. They always involve train-wreck heroines & are more focused on women's fiction. So no one was more surprised and amused when this was more high on romance, featured a less train-wreck heroine. Gosh, this is definitely my favorite by her.

I cried, I laughed, & I swooned throughout this book. Olive & Leo's banter was everything. The perfect black cat & golden retriever energy going on between them! I loved loved their journey throughout Italy - writing a cookbook, making memories, seeing each other in another light, discovering so much along the way.

Apart from the romance, Olive's self journey was wonderful. There was so much to unpack & boy, did everything end up for the best.

I think the eastern egg was in the cover, & I should've realized that it was more of a romance than a women's fiction because this is her first book that contained both MCs on the cover!! Gahh. Simply loved it so much!

<i>Thank you Netgalley and publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.<i>

Plan this reading around meals because this book made me HUNGRY!!

This sweet little book was a perfect lighthearted summer read with a little more emotional depth. Olive Stone’s father died suddenly- leaving her his restaurant, an unfinished manuscript, and his trip to Italy to finish writing. The catch is that she’s joined by his sous chef, Leo, who is making her rethink all her plans.

The romance in this story was cute, the little banter moments, the tension- but the real star of the show was the FOOD! The decadent descriptions of foods across Sicily, Tuscany, and Liguria were mouth watering and also provided great insight to regional cuisine!!

Thank you so much to Lizzy Dent and NetGalley for a chance to read this in exchange for an honest review!

A feel-good story about the joy of Italian food, grieving over the death of a parent, finding love in unexpected places and traveling around Italy. I absolutely LOVED this latest from Lizzy Dent who is an auto-read author for me. It was also great on audio narrated by Sarah Sampino and perfect for fans of authors like Amanda Elliot. Many thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Romance for an early digital copy and @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review!

Don’t read this book on an empty stomach ! This book has me craving everything. The characters were adorable. What a cute story

There was nothing about this book that I hated, but nothing in it that I particularly loved, either. It was fine, I guess, but I got bored FAST. I didn’t really want to finish it and almost DNF’d, but I felt like I was just too far into it to give up. Thanks to NetGalley and Putnam for the ARC copy!

Olive is estranged from her Italian father, Nicolo. He’s the chef of the restaurant Nicky’s in her hometown of London. He dies and leaves the restaurant to Olive, who wants nothing to do with it. However, his dying wish was that she take a 4-week trip around Italy with his sous chef, who also happens to be an attractive man from Italy so they can co-write the last three chapters of a cookbook Nicolo had been working on in his dying days.

Everything is set up to play out exactly how you expect it. I will admit, the plot twist at the end caught me a little off guard, so kudos to Lizzy Dent for that, but it didn’t knock my socks off and I definitely don’t feel like the resolution felt authentic.

This story takes the reader to Italy for what turns in to both a journey of food exploration and and the possibilities between Olive and Leo. I enjoyed the journey these two embarked on and am pleased with the book as a whole. Thanks to the author, NetGalley, and the publisher for the early copy of this read! I will definitely read more from this author in the future!

I LOVE Lizzy Dent so much--The Setup was one of my favorite reads from last year (or the year before?), full of heart and yearning and all good things. Unfortunately, this one fell slightly flatter to me...but I think that's a me-problem: I'm drawn to more character-driven romances (I will excuse a lot of bad plot decisions if I love the characters), and this one leaned more plot- and setting-driven. Not bad in any sense of the word. I just felt as if I was lacking more interiority from the main character, Olive, and especially her love interest, Leo. Nonetheless, I'll be (im)patiently waiting to see what Lizzy Dent does next!

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

After chapter two I was hooked, and also knew I needed snacks on deck before reading more. This book had me craving some amazing food that I couldn't even tell you how to cook. Side note- Lizzy, did you taste all these things too? Because they were described perfectly.

Talk about eating your way through Italy (in more ways than one).

Cute, fun romance that was a delicious read, much like the food that Olive and Leo enjoyed all around Italy (needed this pun because wine not, okay I'm done). This book was honestly a love letter to Italian food (and no, not OG, real legit Italian food), and it was kind of an Eat, Pray, Love story for Olive, just in her own way.

Just One Taste is the perfect summer read.

Thank you NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons for the E-ARC!

Thank you so much to netgalley and the publisher for the arc of this book in exchange for an honest review!

I requested a bunch of romance on here because I wanted to try it out. However, romance is just not working for me at the moment. I think its more me than the books themselves so I will be giving this one a neutral rating.

I love the cover and the food in this one. However. I just wasn't feeling the connection between the characters and I didn't care for the relationship.

This was not a bad book, it just wasn't for me. I hope others love it!

As someone who loves food and dreams of going to Italy, this was a fantastic summer read for me. Olive's estranged father passed away and left her his restaurant, but she has to take a trip to Italy to finish the last three chapters of his cookbook, and she has to work with his sous chef (Leo, who her friends refer to as "Hot Chef").
A couple of wéeks in Italy, sightseeing, drinking, eating, remembering the trips she took with her parents when she was a girl and they were still together. Olive starts out fully intending to sell the restaurant, but as she remembers more of the good times, she starts to question her initial reaction. Plus, she's sick of being a food critic.
I loved reading this. All the travel, the beauty of Italy, the slow burn between Olive and Leo. Olive is working through grief, but the book overall was lighthearted.

The second half of this book really took off -- much more so than the first half. So if it's a slow start for you like it was for me, just know that. If you like Emily Henry and past Lizzy Dent books, you will like this. It was just ok for me even with all the food and traveling through Italy ... I just didn't love Olive and found her self-sabotaging annoying. Still a good beach read!

Just One Taste comes out next week on July 16, 2024 and you can purchase HERE.

"One day, Olive, you'll fall in love, and there will be no more running," says Kate, who thinks I reject men because I don't wish to be rejected. Whereas I think the problem is simply that most men eventually have an insurmountable fault. Like clapping when a plane lands, or pronouncing David Bowie's name wrong, or over- using exclamation marks.

Ginny thinks I could find fault in a sunset.

"Just One Taste" was a lovely romance that was just as delicious as the food described throughout (sorry, I had to). But seriously, this book was a love letter to Italian food as much as it was a love letter to love and now I'm craving really good pasta.

I loved both Leo and Olive and how they both grew and developed throughout their journey together. I liked that they both were able to process their relationship with Olive's father through the trip, and work out their differences and tension without them having full animosity towards each other. As I say about many books, I think that this book could have benefited from being dual POV. However, I understand that at the end of the day it was more about Olive than Leo and I appreciate that.

With beautiful and evocative descriptions of Italy and Italian food and culture, "Just One Taste" was the perfect summer read. I really appreciated how Olive and Leo got to connect over their heritage. I enjoyed hearing about their travels and the food they were eating just as much as I enjoyed reading about the romance.

This one was fun. 4 stars.

Thank you NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons for the eARC. All opinions are my own.

Having enjoyed Lizzy Dent's 'The Summer Job,' I eagerly picked up 'Just One Taste.' While it was enjoyable, it didn't quite reach the depth of its predecessor. Unlike 'The Summer Job,' 'Just One Taste' felt lighter in character development and chemistry.

The surprise conflict towards the end was a bit out of pocket. But it added depth without resorting to complicated drama between Olive and Leo. It shed light on Olive's estranged relationship with her father and possible reasons why they never really reconnected after the initial estrangement.

There was a lot of focus on Italian food and recipes throughout the story. The story really takes us through the process of them completing the recipe book. At times it felt a bit overwhelming, but Dent's culinary expertise and knowledge remains impressive.

One thing about Lizzy Dent is that she knows how to really immerse readers in her settings. While 'Just One Taste' isn't my favorite of Dent's works, her descriptions brought Italy to life, making it a worthwhile, quick, and engaging read that transports you to the heart of the country, exploring themes of food, family, and love.

If a book makes me cry, it’s pretty much a guaranteed 5-star rating from me. Something about this book just really drew me in and allowed me to feel fully absorbed in the entire atmosphere of it.

For starters, foodies will certainly be enthralled by the descriptive passages around the cuisine and ingredients throughout the book. I loved that as Olive and Leo traveled, each region truly did have a specific ingredient they stood out above the rest, much like their mission for the cookbook they were working to complete. It all sounded amazing and added another sense to the scenery of the region being portrayed in the setting.

I loved the gentle progression of Olive and Leo’s relationship. It felt authentic and natural that it would take them some time to figure out how to truly work together. From there, they had a shared passion around the culinary world and combined with the complicated history they both had with Olive’s father, it made sense that a deeper connection would eventually form. Leo was a stand up guy who wasn’t afraid to voice his ideas and opinions while also respecting, understanding, supporting, and conceding when necessary to Olive’s feelings and ideas. They also both communicated so well. It felt like a very solid, mature, true partnership.

I also loved Olive’s friends, Kate and Ginny. I love displays of great female friendship and they provided that in spades. The three of them balanced each other so well, and there was never a question of if they’d be there for each other. The family dynamics with Olive, her mother, and her late father were complicated but rounded out the whole story being told. All of these secondary characters contributed solidly to Olive’s overall character.

This book was a wonderful read for me. Thank you to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam’s Sons for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This may be my favorite book by Lizzy Dent yet! Leo is a phenomenal book boyfriend and I loved seeing Olive and him fall for each other. Also the descriptions of food and Italy are so amazing- I want to go now!

If you’re looking for an atmospheric read you can travel vicariously through to Italy this summer, then Just One Taste might be for you! Lizzy Dent’s descriptive imagery will fully immerse you in the story. I absolutely loved the setting.

I wish I had loved the romance and the story more, though. I liked both Olive and Leo separately, but I didn’t love them together. Other than their physical attraction to one another and their love of food, I’m not sure what else they had going for them.

And while I enjoyed the story a lot in the first half, it ended up becoming very repetitive in the second half.

Still, if you’re looking for a quick beach read, or a book you can travel vicariously through, you may want to give this one a try.

Just One Taste comes out 07/16/24.

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for an early copy. All opinions are my own.