When this book says slow burn, Sarah Chamberlain means slow burn 😅 Kieran is a famous chef from a reality show and Ellie is tasked with ghostwriting a cookbook with him. They get off on the wrong foot and their personalities couldn’t be any more different from each other. Kieran has ADHD and Ellie is type A and organized. Ellie is also a widower that is living in her in laws’ guesthouse.
Over time, they realize they work well together once they put their differences aside. I loved the banter and the tension was thick. Yes it was a slow burn but they built a real connection instead of just jumping into a relationship.
Tropes:
⭐️Reverse grumpy/sunshine
⭐️Forced proximity
⭐️Dual POV
⭐️Workplace romance

Thank you NetGalley & St. Martin’s Press for the arc in exchange for an honest review!

With a title like that, I was expecting a deliciously slow-cooked romance, simmering with tension and just the right amount of spice. Instead, what I got was a dish overloaded with heavy-handed drama that left me feeling more bloated than satisfied.

Kieran O’Neill should be living his best life—winning a reality TV show, opening a restaurant, and scoring a cookbook deal before thirty? That’s like the trifecta of culinary success! But instead of savoring his achievements, Kieran’s drowning in a stew of mental health struggles, and not the subtle kind. We’re talking grief, addiction, low self-worth, family drama, and an in-law who seems to have taken a page from the How to Be an Emotional Black Hole of Suck handbook. It’s like the author threw every tragic ingredient into the pot, stirred, and forgot to season it with any hope or lightness.

Then there’s Ellie Wasserman, our ghostwriter heroine, who’s just as weighed down by life. She’s got her own cookbook dreams, but they’re buried under the pressure of taking care of her in-laws and enabling her brother’s refusal to adult. And let’s not forget the looming specter of her late husband. You know, just in case things weren’t depressing enough.

Now, don’t get me wrong—books that tackle real, heavy issues can be powerful and moving. But it felt like I was being hit over the head with a frying pan of misery. The romance between Kieran and Ellie, which should’ve been the sweet, slow-building redemption arc, got lost in all the angst. By the time they finally started cooking up some chemistry, I was too emotionally exhausted to care whether they ended up together or just burned down the kitchen.

And speaking of chemistry, where was the fun? The enemies-to-lovers trope is usually a recipe for sharp banter and laugh-out-loud moments, but here, it was more like watching two people slog through mud while occasionally throwing wet noodles at each other. By the time they finally connected, I was ready to call it quits and order takeout.

In the end, The Slowest Burn just wasn’t to my taste. It tried to serve up a complex dish of love and healing, but instead, it felt more like being stuck in a never-ending episode of Kitchen Nightmares—without Gordon Ramsay to yell, “It’s raw!”

The premise had potential, but in the end, it left me with a bad case of heartburn.

The Slowest Burn follows ghost writing Ellie and hot-shot chef Kieran as they try to produce a cookbook after Kieran wins a big cooking show. This book is a lot more than just a slow burn romance (which in my opinion, was not as slow as some of the reviews made it out to be!) and we're getting insight into so many different parts of Ellie and Kieran's lives and backgrounds. Some of the biggest topics being grief, parental relationships, neurodivergence, and lots of guilt.

This dual POV follows our two MCs over almost an entire year and the chemistry keeps building as Ellie and Kieran get to know each other better, they compliment each other so well, and the growth that each has as individuals is a highlight. With so much personal drama boiling to the surface with Ellie's family members, the 3rd act break up felt inevitable. Unfortunately, I felt like the reconciliation was a little immature given the work they've both put in in the previous year.

This is still a great debut from Sarah Chamberlain and I can't wait to see what she writes next!

Thank you to NetGalley and SMP for the eARC copy. All opinions are my own.

I liked this one, but I didn’t love it. It sometimes felt like too slow of a burn, and I didn’t find myself motivated to read this one. I did like the depictions of grief within Ellie’s family.

I loved the premise of this, and I really enjoyed the setting; as someone who loves to cook (and eat), all the recipe talk and scenes of cooking were really enjoyable. I liked the story, but I feel like it wanted to be an enemies-to lovers but actually turned more into a dislike to friends to lovers with a fake date along the way; not bad, but not great either.

Diane's character annoyed me, I wanted to slap some sense into her, but I adored her husband Ben. Ellie also needed a good slap and to grow a backbone, she frustrated me to no end. Know your worth woman!!

The third act breakup didn't help matters either; in the end I enjoyed it enough to finish it, but it didn't make a lasting impression. I felt the Diane storyline didn't get a proper resolve, only a passing sentence in the epilogue, and I needed more from it.


Thank you to St-Martin's Publishing Group and Netgalley for a copy in exchange for a review. All opinions are my own.

First things first, I'm not actually sure that I'd consider this to be a slow burn, let alone the slowest burn. It's not even the slowest burn I've read this week, lol. So the title set me up for some expectations that simply were not met, however, I still had a great time reading this debut. There are so many strong elements - I loved the journey from instant enemies to friends to more, the emotional undercurrents, and the representation of a young widow paired with a hero who isn't the kind you typically see in a romance novel. Our hero has insecurities about being short (5'7"), redheaded, sober, and dealing with the everyday realities of his dyslexia and ADHD. He was so sweet and endearing, this playful cinnamon roll of a man. I liked that the heroine was steady and strong, even though she's been dealt a rough hand in her own life. She understands him in a way few others do, and that was the best part of the journey for me. There were a few moments when the story felt slow and a few small time jumps that diffused the tension, but it's strong for a debut, and I'd definitely read more from the author.

The story follows Ellie (30), a ghostwriter who has helped write some of the best cookbooks out there - all without receiving any public credit for her work. When she meets the chef she'll be working with on her next assignment, it's clear that things are off to a rocky start. Kieran (27) is a ball of energy, and he's played up his "pirate leprechaun" persona to gain an audience following a win in a cooking competition. Kieran doesn't seem to be taking his cookbook seriously though, nor does he seem to realize how difficult he's making Ellie's job. Required to work together to get things right, it's not long before Ellie and Kieran discover they're great in the kitchen together. They may be opposites in nearly every other way, but they have an obvious connection. As feuding becomes flirting, Ellie and Kieran's relationship evolves.

To be fair, I can see why some readers would consider this a slower burn. Ellie and Kieran have an instant dislike for each other, which causes plenty of friction between them. They don't acknowledge their feelings to themselves for a while, but there was still internal discussion of falling before the halfway point and spice shortly after, so that's not a slow burn to me. It's not a slow burn if they're banging for almost half the book, lol. Regardless, it does have a laidback, introspective feel that lends itself to a slower burn. They've both got obstacles to overcome before they can even think of getting together in a real way, and I liked that they truly did make each other better. The story tackles some heavier topics while still feeling light overall, and I thought the author did such a good job for a debut. There were a few rougher patches that could've used some fine-tuning (especially that messy conflict), but I really did like it overall.

Thank you St. Martin's Griffin and NetGalley for the ARC!

The Slowest Burn was entertaining, but also a tricky read for me. I waffled between liking and hating the characters, and I wasn't sure if I was rooting for them or not. Ellie and Kieran were equal parts frustrating and endearing, but I think that speaks to how truly human they were written (thanks to Sarah Chamberlain's writing talents!)

If you're a fan of cooking shows, slow burn romances, and slightly frustrating characters, this is the book for you!

Thank you again for the ARC!

Grief and healing can be hard topics to navigate within romance novels in my opinion, but Sarah Chamberlain does a wonderful job at weaving a beautiful story of healing. The food descriptions were so fun and mouth watering. Fantastic love story.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for their statement earlier this week and now that the boycott organized by Readers for Accountability has ceased, I’m happy to review this title and posting my review closer to publication date.

I thought this book did a great job with the complications of grief, even while some move on and others are struggling. The positives of this were definitely the characters and their relationships to each other and with themselves. I definitely had some tears while reading. Some of the dialogue was a bit “cringy” and may not age super well with so many pop culture references. Overall I had a really good time with this and would read future works by this author.

𝕋𝕙𝕖 𝔾𝕚𝕤𝕥:
Kieran O'Neill, a cooking reality TV show winner, is set to open his own restaurant and has a cookbook deal, but struggles with his family's disapproval and his ADHD. His ghostwriter, Ellie Wasserman, is a thirty-year-old widow managing her in-laws and brother, while trying to ghostwrite for the chaotic Kieran.

As their deadline nears, their professional relationship heats up. Can they overcome their pasts to create something sweet together, or will their budding love go up in smoke?

𝕋𝕙𝕖𝕞𝕖𝕤 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕋𝕣𝕠𝕡𝕖𝕤:
😒 Adversaries-to-lovers
🔥 Slowwwww burn
❤️‍🩹 Healing and grieving
🍳 Love in the kitchen
🧲 Opposites attract
👥 Duak POV

𝕊𝕚𝕞𝕚𝕝𝕒𝕣 𝕍𝕚𝕓𝕖𝕤:
📚 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗼𝗺-𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗯𝘆 𝗞𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗖𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿
📚 𝗦𝗮𝘃𝗼𝗿 𝗜𝘁 𝗯𝘆 𝗧𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗵 𝗗𝗲𝗪𝗶𝘁𝘁

𝕄𝕪 𝕋𝕙𝕠𝕦𝕘𝕙𝕥𝕤:
The title doesn’t lie, this was a slowwww burn. It didn’t take anything away from the story or relationship, though. I was immediately invested in the character’s individual stories and development, as well as their budding romance.

Both of our main characters are dealing with a lot of grief and past traumas. I really enjoyed watching them heal throughout the story. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝗹𝗼𝘄𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗕𝘂𝗿𝗻 touches on topics like sobriety, ADHD, depression, grief, and loss. All are dealt with in a beautiful way that felt genuine and real, not put on.

An outstanding debut from Sarah Chamberlain! I can’t wait to read more from her in the future.

𝗧𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗸 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗡𝗲𝘁𝗚𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝘆, 𝗦𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗵 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿𝗹𝗮𝗶𝗻, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗦𝘁. 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗻𝘀 𝗣𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗲𝗔𝗥𝗖 𝗶𝗻 𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗺𝘆 𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄.

𝕄𝕪 ℝ𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕟𝕘:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (𝟰/𝟱)

𝕊𝕡𝕚𝕔𝕖 ℝ𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕟𝕘:
🌶️ (𝟭/𝟱)

I’m grateful to Sarah Chamberlain, St. Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for providing me with this ARC in exchange for a fair & honest review. I was super excited to read The Slowest Burn, and sadly, the flame was snuffed out pretty quickly for me.

Here’s a quick breakdown:

Tropes:
* Insta-lust
* Opposites attract
* Workplace romance

TW:
* Death of a loved one
* Abandonment
* Alcoholism (mentioned, not shown on page)

Pro’s:
+ The food in the book sounded great
+ Floyd was a cutie pawtootie

Con’s:

- It felt like there were too many cooks in the kitchen (pun intended) when it came to the sub-topics. You saw complex grief, abandonment, inadequacy, addiction, mental health struggles, and so many more. A lot of these were never fully addressed, and by the end of the book I feel like the focus was only on the HEA and not on their own individual growth.

- I feel like Kieran was portrayed to be this childish for how his ADHD impacted his life. I think if we would have seen him go to a therapist specifically about his adhd, and was given healthy ways to cope with it and how to see it as an asset, this could have been a nice full circle moment. Instead, it felt like he was making changes to impress Ellie.

- As someone who has been around addiction/alcoholism, I would have loved for more research to gone into this aspect of the book. If you’re going to include something like that, it would be helpful to include resources for where people can find meetings, or even write the sobriety journey into the characters backstory. I felt like Kieran was portrayed as almost being ashamed of being sober. While everyone has a different sobriety journey, I felt like this was an interesting take considering his character had nearly 5 years.

- The pet names really did me in on this one. “Wild thing” did not in fact make my heart sing.

- “I shot up and exploded like a firework.” 👀 I think this speaks for itself

I am such a sucker for foodie romances and this one is no exception! I loved the combo of food, writing and grief - perfect ingredients for a beautiful story! Chamberlain has whipped up a beautiful story of reluctant friendship that blossoms into love. She deals expertly with neurodiversity and grief, bringing rawness to the page in a way that I admire. I loved the history that the characters have with food, why they love or can’t stand certain dishes, and the way that eating is more than about one sense…

Really enjoyed this debut from @sarahchamberlainauthor with both love after loss and workplace tropes.

I loved that she was ghostwriting his cookbook for him. But I especially loved that she was quite the cook in her own right. I loved their banter. And the forced proximity while working was fun.

Chamberlain is an author I would read again.

I received an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. This is my honest review.

The Slowest Burn is a dual POV enemies-to-lovers romance. Kieran is a new celebrity, having recently won a cooking reality show. He’s encouraged to write a cookbook and his manager brings on talented ghostwriter Ellie, a widow, and perfectionist who clashes with Kieran’s fly by the seat of his pants style!

What an excellent debut! I’ll definitely look for more from this author. I loved the ADHD representation with Kieran, it was really well done. I loved how the two challenged and pushed each other to grow and become better versions of themselves.


Read dates: 08/22/2024 - 08/25/2024
Goodreads review: 08/25/2024
Instagram review: 08/26/2024
Blog review: 09/24/2024

4 stars. A lovely romance between an organized cookbook writer and a chaotic celebrity chef. I loved Ellie and Kieran’s characters, they felt very real. The book is a bit slow to start, but once it gets going, the romance is so tender, you can feel the care they have for each other. I just want nice things for them both. The book also has ADHD and dyslexia rep for the MMC and plus-sized rep for the FMC, and both are handled so well — Kieran is aware of and actively works on his ADHD; Ellie’s plus-sized rep involves zero outside criticism and no self-loathing (thank god).

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s for the ARC!

This book is perfectly titled! It truly was the slowest burn, and when it was time, it went from 0 to 1000 real quick! I loved the characters and their development. They both has some heavy things to deal with, but it added real depth to the story. The dual narration really worked well, especially since they were such opposites. I also really liked that this was more slow paced, and took place over the course of nearly a year. This was a wonderful debut novel!

4.5 stars
This is an entertaining, fun read. Kieran and Ellie are strong, complex, interesting, wounded intriguing, relatable, entertaining, fun characters. I enjoyed their romance and the path it took to get to their HEA. These two are fun to spend time with. I loved the growth of these characters through the course of the story. The secondary characters added to the fabric of the story and my enjoyment. This story has emotional parts as it deals with the grief process and how it differs person to person.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The Slowest Burn by Sarah Chamberlain follows newly dubbed celebrity chef Kieran O'Neill and ghostwriter Eleanor "Ellie" Wasserman. Ellie thought writing a cookbook with celebrity chef and recent reality cooking show winner Kieran O'Neill would be a great opportunity for her. The only problem is the man himself is impossible. They are oil and water. Where she's tidy, he's messy. Where Ellie's organized, Kieran flies by the seat of his pants. When she's open, he's evasive. So of course, working on a consumer cookbook together is a nightmare...until it isn't. Until they start to work, blend, and add pinches of their past and personalities. Until they create a recipe for a brilliant book...and maybe even romance.

The Slowest Burn had everything I wanted in a contemporary rom-com. It had me cackling at the witty banter. Sniffling at their backstories. Shaking my fist in frustration. Kicking my feet at the sweetness. Clapping for consent and diversity and inclusion! It had a 👏WIDOWED 👏ADULT 👏female 👏main 👏character! There was therapy, self-awareness, and so much more. And are you a fan of romance tropes? This story has so many tropes in the best way.

The main characters/couple were lovely and had a lot of depth. I was rooting for Ellie and Kieran's happiness the entire time---and it was a long time. Though the book is a little sluggish at times, the title doesn't lie; it's the slowest of burns but in the most delicious way. The spice is light but worth the wait. I was so happy this story was told in Dual Pov and it helped to stretch that romantic and personal/internal tension. The side characters were also great and lent themselves to the found family trope. If there was a spin-off featuring them, I'd pick up another book.

Sarah Chamberlain cooked up a scrumptious, cozy debut romance that will have you hungry for more.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐.25
📖 Forced Proximity
👨‍🍳 Slow Burn
📖 Widowed, over 30 FMC
📖 Found Family
👨‍🍳 Reverse Grumpy x Sunshine
📖 Learning Disorder and Mental Health Rep
👨‍🍳 Opposites Attract
📖 Love after Loss
👨‍🍳 He's a short king

This book was so good! Such a respectful and healthy way to display emotions like grief and traits like ADHD. I loved the immediate pivots each MC took when discovering these things about the other.

I wasn't sure how I'd feel about the FMC being a widow, but it was beautifully done. The growth she had from her first marriage and being so confident in herself.

I loved the emotional maturity of the arguments and apologies. Each MC sitting down with themselves and self-reflecting where they went wrong in the moment. The ability to immediately apologize and acknowledge those wrongs. Such a healthy representation that I don't think a lot of books include, yet.

What I loved the most, is that we didn't get bogged down in the cooking. I've read a few cooking romances before and it would just go so down into the weeds of the act that I'd get bored and loose myself. Almost as though the author is trying to show off what they know? In fact, I'm currently listening to a different book about a chef and whiskey distiller and thought to myself, "This is it, no more food romances" and then I queued up this ARC and groaned. But, not once did I get that feeling with The Slowest Burn. Once I started reading, I couldn't put the book down, I stayed up way too late to finish it!

If this is Sarah Chamberlain's debut novel, I cannot wait to see what else she writes! I think she just may be my next auto-buy author.

I loved the initial will they won't they chemistry between Ellie and Kiernan. It was a fun take on the enemies to lovers trope. I thought that portion was really well done and didn't feel too cheesy, more like the perfect amount of cheese for a cute rom-com.

This was a really slow burn just as the the title advertised, and I didn't mind that for most of the book. There was a point about 3/4 of the way through this story just dropped off for me. Something about how their chemistry changed during that portion of the book made it hard to pick up the book again. The ending was a little over the top for me to the point where it stopped being interesting. This surprised me because I was quite invested in both characters. I liked the final resolution, but would have enjoyed it more if everything had been dialed back a bit.

I really appreciate that the author tackled some difficult themes despite this being a romantic comedy. I think it's important to show representation for ADHD, dyslexia, and mental health even in romance books.