Harry and Kevin are so cute! I love a good grumpy sunshine plus pets are involved so I’m in love! A great romcom to read over the holidays!

A fun little Aussie rom-com ft some very cute pets. I hadn’t read Sit, Stay, Love before reading this one but I don’t think that mattered, you get enough back story. In saying that, reading SSL first would give you more of an idea of Ethan I think.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an ARC of Love from Scratch.

Positives first: I loved the two main characters, Ethan and Hazel. Both personalities were appealing (at least, they were to me) and, although obvious, the development of their romance was sweet.

The two pet characters felt completely real. They added a lot to the story. Most people with cats will recognise Kevin.

The budding romance was relatively stress free for the reader.

Set on the Sunshine Coast in Australia was a bonus.

Now for the negatives: Really only one. The F-bombs throughout were completely unnecessary and spoiled my reading enjoyment. Way way way too much. I ended up skimming paragraphs. Lazy writing.

The story did drag a little at times, probably because it was a largely predictable and low stress storyline.

So, overall, a sweet, relatively uncomplicated romance with a great location and a little glimpse into the world of movie making and restaurants. A novel that could do with some extra editing to reduce the usage of the “F” word throughout.

Be aware that there are some relatively mild sex scenes.

Though it was enjoyable, I actually DNFed this book once the protagonist decided she would be fine with a fling, no emotions involved. I could see it all coming from a mile away and just wasn't in the mood for it.

Sweet Insta love celebrity story with the best pet side characters!!!
Ethan needs someone to watch his anxious dog while he films his new movie. Hazel needs a job to tide her over while she finds work in her beloved food industry. The sparks fly between the two as they discover that pets are often good judge of characters.
I’m not a fan of celebrity romances but this one was really fun. I loved the Australian setting and seeing the beaches and descriptions. The romance is instant but I felt that it was attraction that turns into friendship rather than lust. Ethan seems down to earth and very likeable.
A really good summer beach read if you like pets and prickly female main characters.

I voluntarily read an arc in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are mine.

A feel good easy to read rom-com, I enjoyed reading Ethan and Hazel’s love story and their adorable fur babies.
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

Thanks to NetGalley, Simon and Schuster Australia, and the author for the chance to read this book.

This is a great little romance novel, especially if you're an animal lover! The quirks of the pets are endearing, and the attraction and relationship between Ethan and Hazel is sweet. Put it together, and it's an enjoyable story that is easy to zip through. This was the follow-on from Sit, Stay, Love, and it was great to see Ethan find his person.

I originally started this book as an e-arc and just could not get into it. It wasn’t memorable, I didn’t ever feel like picking it up, you know the feeling. So when my Libby hold came in I pretty much immediately started it on audiobook and WOW was that a good decision!!! This story is about Australian characters, and therefore had an Australian narrator and let me tell you, it made ALL the difference. The simple fact that I was hearing an Australian voice made me automatically feel 10 times more connected to the characters and therefore made me more invested in the book🤭

In terms of the characters themselves, they were cute together. I don’t know if they necessarily had the most chemistry in the world, but I liked their relationship and the fact that they connected through their animals was sweet. I definitely liked Hazel the most, her journey through rediscovering her love for her cooking is something I can relate to (not cooking necessarily, but you get me) so I really liked that storyline!

The ending definitely felt a bit quick. Like they were happy, and then they had the conflict and it was resolved again all within the last like, 5%? So I would definitely say that the pacing was a bit off there. I would have liked to see that a bit more drawn out and explored further… plus as someone who went through a similar long distance situation it really didn’t feel like they tried all that hard to make their relationship work… like if I did it then surely these fictional characters could too😭 just made it all feel a little less convincing🤷🏼‍♀️

Overall even though this book had a couple pacing issues and small details I feel could have been better, I really enjoyed it! I highly recommend listening to the audiobook!!

Ok so it completely didn’t occur to me that Love from Scratch would follow on from Sit, Stay, Love, and I was thrilled when I realised we were back with Ethan again! I really love the way linked romance books like this, where it’s sort of a series but also stand alone, give us the chance to check back in with favourite characters, and it was fun to follow along with Ethan onto the set of his new movie.

Hazel made a great leading lady opposite Ethan’s move star hero, I liked the way she was tough and slow to trust, but at the same time so kind and gentle – she is a great example of people not always being quite wat they seem (of course same goes for Ethan and his celebrity facade, one of the reasons they are such a good pair!). I do love a foody focus in a book, so she also gets extra points for being a chef! I liked seeing their relationship develop, and the way they both helped each other through some difficult issues and feelings caused by traumas in their past. Like in Sit, Stay, Love, the banter worked really well for me. Amy Hutton writes such good dialogue between her characters, and this really helped make the relationships feel authentic.

I absolutely recommend this one to anyone who loves a romcom novel and is looking for something a bit spicy with a gorgeous beachy setting and lots of fab food.

This is a lighthearted, easy to read romantic comedy.

Probably not one I'll remember but I enjoyed the read.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

I didn't realise this was a sequel when i picked it up but i don't think you need to read the first book to get the gist of what happened.

There's not much depth to the characters and the story is pretty predictable but that was just what i needed after a few big days at work. It did make me realise that i need to read more books with cute dogs and cats in them as they make me happy

A fabulous light hearted romantic comedy read. I loved that this had an Australian setting. Banter & chemistry between hazel & ethan was amazing. And the antics of Kevin & Harry added so much humor to this story.

This was such a nice light read. The characters were built very well and I felt like i was very much there in the moment with them.

This was my first Amy Hutton read but certainly will not be my last. I love a book I can get lost into without it being too heavy. I am not going to reiterate the blurb or give any spoilers but I would definitely recommend this story to my best friend... which means you should read it too.

I LOVED THIS BOOK!!!

Ethan James is an actor who is about to start filming a movie but needs someone to take care of his dog. He puts out an ad and Hazel Conor applies. Hazel herself has just lost her job as a sous chef and needs a new job to afford all her never ending bills - especially feeding her cat!

It was so so cute that Kevin her cat loved Ethan even though she found him so annoying! Deep down she just really liked him.

Overall this was a cute read and I will definitely be checking out more of Amy's books.

Thank you to Netgalley for kindly sending me this arc to read and review.

Ethan James is a movie actor, who needs a dog sitter to look after his nervous dog Harry whilst he is away at set. Hazel is a sous chef currently working as a dog sitter to keep her crazy cat Kevin fed and happy.

Ethan is instantly infatuated with Hazel when they meet so he initially chooses another pet sitter but circumstances change and he is forced to give her a chance even though he knows she is going to send him off centre. Hazel on the other hand doesn't know him as an actor and doesn't fall for his actor charm.

Gradually a friendship grows which leads to attraction and a relationship between them, however temporary as they know Ethan plans to move to LA to further his career.
They both have their own insecurities and phobias to deal with. Ethan is afraid of dogs but is gradually trying to overcome it with Harry and by starring in a dog film. Hazel is trying to get up the courage to be passionate about cooking again after quitting her sous chef role in Sydney when an entitled actor customer yells at her.

I love the build up and having pets in romances always add a fun element of pet love to the story. Also I can never resist a story set in Australia.
This was an easy read that works as a standalone as I haven't read the previous book.

Thanks to Netgalley.com for this Arc copy.

⭐️5/5

Love from Scratch was the perfect cozy romantic comedy! I loved the main characters, Ethan and Hazel, so much. The slow burn between them was perfection. Grumpy sunshine is always a favourite trope of mine, but especially when it’s the female in the grumpy role! If you’re looking for a cute happy romance with some fur-babies involved then this book is it. I highly recommend!

A sweet and funny book that I whole heartedly enjoyed! I tend to stay away from Aussie books as they aren't always genuine, but Amy Hutton easily captures the humour and complexities needed to pull it off and I will happily read any other books she writes :)

I did enjoy both main characters and you definitely get to experience two whole people chasing their dreams and dealing with their pasts maturely.
The hardest part of the book was their families, both Ethan's and Hazel's equally. It was difficult to read particular scenes when the main characters were clearly at a crossroad, desperately needing to move forward, but struggling with feeling safe in their choices. Hazel's sister was the most insufferable for this...

You could tell by reading the first few scenes that the story is the second in a series, which I didn't know before reading, but it never felt like I was missing anything.

A fun romance set in Australia in the present time. Etham James is an actor and hires Hazel Conor as a dog minder.
Hazel has a cat called Kevin. Kevin is difficult and unfriendly but takes a liking to Etham.

Hazel is a chef and needs time out from her job. I loved the descriptions of Hazel’s cat Kevin. There were lots of descriptions of delicious food as Hazel finds a desire to start cooking again.

Hazel’s cat Kevin and Etham’s dog Harry are the stars in this romance.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher Simon & Schuster for a chance to read and review this E-Book. All opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Having not read the preceding book I was worried this might leave me feeling a bit lost with the characters but I found this was not the case as the author filled in the backstory where needed so I felt I knew what was going on. The story was fun and lighthearted so I was happy that I decided to go ahead and dive in.

I really enjoyed this book! It was such a fun romcom, I really loved Hazel and Ethan’s chemistry and banter, watching them get to know each other and fall in love while pretending they aren’t had me feeling all warm and fuzzy inside. I also love love loved Harry the dog but cranky cat Kevin stole my heart (although I don’t know how I would cope with a cat that hot and cold with affection).

Love From Scratch, was heart warming and had so many laugh out loud moments it had me eating up chapter after chapter! Now I need to read the first book in the series since I didn’t realise it was a sequel 😂 didn’t impact my experience at all though!!

I also felt that the third act breakup was totally realistic for both characters.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for providing me with an eARC in return for an honest review.