I just finished Salty, Spiced, and a Little Bit Nice by Cynthia Timoti, and what an absolute delight!

This book serves up the perfect recipe of humor, heart, and a dash of spice that had me hooked from start to finish. The witty dialogue and vibrant characters brought so much life to the story—it’s impossible not to root for them. Timoti perfectly balances laugh-out-loud moments with heartfelt, tender scenes, making it a truly memorable read.

If you’re looking for a book that’s equal parts fun and full of feels, Salty, Spiced, and a Little Bit Nice is exactly what you need. You’ll be craving more from Cynthia Timoti in no time! 🌶️✨

A very sweet (pun intended!) romcom with great Type 1 Diabetes representation. The disease played a pivotal role in the plot, but it rarely felt preachy about what the experience of having T1D can be like. The progression of the relationship was well-paced and I loved how Ellie wasn't waiting around to be saved by anyone!

OMGGGGGG A CHINESE/INDONESIAN ROM-COM I'VE BEEN WANTING! IT DELIVERED!

Ellie (fmc) is over it. her parents have been running her life like they’re CEOs of Her, Inc.—picking her clothes, her career, and practically her every thought so, she flips the script and sets out to prove she can do something on her own—like opening a SUGAR-FREE BAKERY. why? because, fun fact, Ellie has type 1 diabetes, and she’s tired of sweet treats being landmines of doom. she wants desserts that won’t spike her blood sugar or send her straight to the ER.

but here’s the catch: running a bakery? turns out, not a solo sport. cue Alec: her brother’s obnoxiously charming, know-it-all best friend. AKA, the worst. Alec swoops in with an offer she can’t refuse: his business know-how in exchange for Ellie pretending to be his girlfriend. (yes yes i'm here for the fake-dating.) why does he need a fake girlfriend? oh, just to get his meddling family off his back. no biggie. it's a win-win, right? except for the part where they can’t stop bickering long enough to bake a cupcake. or the part where Alec is somehow annoyingly good at making her laugh. or that thing where the fake feelings might be turning real. Ellie is an absolute riot, and her story had me hooked from the first page. it's the perfect mix of laugh-out-loud chaos, heartwarming vulnerability, and sizzling chemistry. the way it dives into family expectations, self-discovery, and love feels so real and relatable, yet it’s all wrapped up in humor so sharp it should come with a warning label.

also, the enemies-to-lovers dynamic is pure gold! full of banter that had me grinning like an idiot and tension so thick you could cut it with a spatula. their journey isn’t just about finding each other; it’s about finding themselves, and that emotional depth hits hard in all the best ways. the balance of sweet and spicy is chef’s kiss, and let’s be honest: we all need more sugar-free baked goods and fake-dating disasters in our lives.

what could possibly go wrong when you mix fake dating, real sparks, and sugar-free cake?
spoiler: EVERYTHING! if you’re into rom-coms with big laughs, big feelings, and even bigger swoons, this one’s a must-read.

thank you so much Tor Publishing Group!
i enjoyed this WAY TOO MUCH. I MIGHT READ IT AGAIN.

I really enjoyed this as a romantic comedy novel, it had that element that I was looking for and enjoyed the overall feel of this. The plot was really well done and worked with what was happening in this. I thought the characters felt like they were supposed to be there and worked with the storyline. I was invested in what Cynthia Timoti wrote this and can't wait for more.

I really appreciated the representation in this one! More romances with main characters with disabilities, please, especially from BIPOC authors!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc! Opinions are my own.

This book was just fine to me, nothing special. I did like the two main characters a lot, they had very good chemistry together. However, a lot of the time, Ellie was just bratty or downright mean and I had a hard time a lot of the book justifying her actions.

⭐⭐⭐.5/🌶️ Salty, Spiced, and a Little Bit Nice by Cynthia Timoti is a sweet (pun intended!) rom-com. Ellie is sick and tired of her rich parents doing everything for her, controlling her life, and decides to strike out on her own to build a sugar-free bakery. Since she has type 1 diabetes, she's constantly tracking her sugar intake, and wanted to have sweet treats she didn't have to worry about sending her into a coma. But she can't do it entirely on her own, because, let's face it, we all need help sometimes. The help she gets is from the man she detests most in the world -- her brother's best friend, Alec. If she wants to get her business off the ground, she'll have to let him in her life, and in exchange, be his fake girlfriend. How could this possibly go wrong? 🤣

🧁Fake-dating
🧁Enemies-to-lovers
🧁Asian cultural identity rep
🧁Rom-com
🧁Brother's best friend
🧁Only one bed

Not usually a contemporary romance fan, but this was enjoyable. A FMC with diabetes was a unique and refreshing addition! I would really love to see this book as a movie in the future.

I really enjoyed this book! The characters were great and relatable and I liked the plot overall! I would definitely recommend!

This was a fun quick read for me. It truly is a mix of Crazy Rich Asians and Always Be My Maybe, I literally had those vibes from the first chapter. Cynthia really created fun, quirky, and interesting characters that really make an impact with a slow burn, revealing love story. Also the impact and influence of family is big in this story. Really cute and also made me crave baked goods.

Thank you Tor Publishing Group, Bramble, and NetGalley.

Romcom with heart and some cultural twists. Can her first crush be her true love? Ellie fell in love with her brother's best friend Alec when she was just a girl. After he broke her heart and left town, she hadn't seen him in years. Present day, Ellie has just gone viral for refusing a proposal - which her family pushed for. Ellie's family is all about their business and the bottom line - so when Ellie turns down the proposal, they cut her off. With her family always controlling her life, Ellie decides to pick up and move away to focus on her dream of starting a bakery. Not just any kind of bakery - but a low sugar/carb one that specializes in treats for people like her with type 1 diabetes. But who does she run into in this new town? But of course it's Alec. With Ellie needing help with repairs on her bakery, and Alec needing a fake girlfriend to help his business - they decide to make a deal. But what if the feelings aren't all that fake?
I loved Ellie. She is a strong independent woman with a good sense of humour. And I like that she stood up for herself and the type of love and relationships she deserves.

I enjoyed this contemporary romance. My one peeve was the extreme emphasis that Ellie's family put on her Diabetes diagnosis. I think I was as annoyed as poor Ellie. Given my family's own experience with the condition, I could relate - yes it is serious and can be life threatening but if managed, people live fulfilling, normal lives.

this was such a cute read!!!! the two main characters and their chemistry!!!! i liked that this was a slow burn where he fell first. i ate it up!!!!

This was such a cute read, I really want to read more from the author cause I love her easy and fun writing style. The fmc in this book has overprotective parents because of her diabetes diagnosis and is stifled. Everything comes to a headway when she finds out her mom paid her boss to fire her because she declined a proposal that would have benefited their business. The fmc decides to leave her family and the inheritance and start her own business that's a bakery that makes diabetic-friendly cookies and pastries. The mmc is her brother's best friend, they aren't on the best terms because of what happened in the past but they they agree to fake date.

I really liked the part about the fmc struggle with her immigrant parents and them being overbearing about her and her diagnosis because that seemed very realistic. I also just liked the FMC's voice and how fun she was. The romance is a slow burn with the ' he fell first' and the 'It's always been you' and one-room trope. There is a bit of steam but that's toward the end. I wanted more emotional romantic scenes but I thought the romance was very real. Overall this was a good debut, i loved the diverse voices and characters and I enjoyed it. Thanks to Bramble for this arc.

I didn't like it, but glad it exists for those who will. Lots of multicultural (Chinese / Indonesian food, culture) and disability rep (main character has diabetes!!) that are major plot points and character developments in the book. Super positive education and talk about those who are differently abled and fully capable of living their own lives! It was the romance that fell short for me.

The third act especially was rough. The back and forth of her accepting and rejecting her feelings for him felt sloppy, and I disliked that being formerly incarcerated was seemingly a fate worse than death to everyone in the story. The author also had a flair for the dramatic that fell flat at the end when the reveals were piling on top of each other - so much so that I stopped rooting for Alec all together, even when I was supposed to forgive him.

Not that a book has to be realistic to be worthy of reading, but I ended up enjoying the most realistic part so I'll mention that here to finish on a positive: her relationship with her mother didn't magically heal overnight, if at all. That was a good touch and much needed to balance out the other fairytale endings.

Like I said, overall not great for me, but lots of good parts that maybe someone else will enjoy.

Ellie Pang is a firecracker, and her story is an absolute joy from start to finish. I loved how the book dug into themes of family pressure, self-discovery, and love with a hefty dose of humor. There’s this perfect balance between laugh-out-loud moments and real, raw vulnerability as Ellie and Alec uncover not only each other but also themselves. The chemistry between them is electric, and the whole hate-to-love vibe has me fanning myself. Their dynamic kept me turning pages, and I couldn’t help but root for them. It’s everything I want in a rom-com, tension, heart, and enough sweetness to balance out the spice. I would definitely recommend for anyone looking for a fun, flirty, and genuinely heartfelt read.