The Slowest Burn
A Novel
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3.8 • 11 Ratings
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
Most Anticipated by The Nerd Daily * Brit + Co
"A five course feast of longing, banter, gourmet cooking, heaps of spice, and a cherry on top happily ever after. I devoured this fake dating, celebrity chef romance." —Erin La Rosa, author of Plot Twist and For Butter or Worse
Business or Pleasure meets Evvie Drake Starts Over in this delicious opposites-attract romance from debut author Sarah Chamberlain.
Sometimes the perfect recipe just needs a little extra heat.
Ellie Wasserman’s life is neat and tidy, and that’s exactly how she wants it. Really. A top ghostwriter for celebrity cookbooks, she was widowed three years ago and has no interest in taking chances—not on writing her own cookbook, not on telling her still-grieving in-laws she wants to move out, and certainly not on dating, which is about as intimidating as a recipe with fifty steps.
Kieran O’Neill isn’t known for being organized. An up-and-coming chef who scored big on a reality television competition, he’s been the guy who cracks jokes and makes messes—something his chilly family has never let him forget. The only place he feels truly capable is at the stove. But when he’s paired with an uptight ghostwriter with cool blue eyes and distracting curves to write his debut cookbook, she shreds his class clown act like a paring knife cuts an orange peel.
As Ellie and Kieran are forced to work closely together in a hot kitchen for weeks on end, their sharp edges and harsh judgments slowly soften and sweeten into a wildly delicious attraction. Long, steamy days turn into even steamier nights, but they have to face their painful pasts to know if this tender new love can transform into something lasting.
"A romance as sharp as it is sweet. Fans of Emily Henry will devour this delectable story of love lost and found." —Cecilia Rabess
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
Opposites attract like an oddly perfect flavor pairing in this rom-com set in the food world. Ellie is struggling. A tragically young widow, she’s constantly taking care of her late husband’s parents and her immature younger brother—and on top of all that, she’s ghostwriting a cookbook for some guy named Kieran who just won a cooking show. Meanwhile, Kieran feels like nothing he does is good enough for his own cold, distant parents, and the icily aloof woman ghostwriting his book is almost as bad. Sarah Chamberlain plays with the tropes of a classic enemies-to-lovers rom-com beautifully here, letting Ellie and Kieran get closer and closer in a way that definitely lives up to the book’s title. Ellie’s feelings of responsibility toward everyone but herself are tragically relatable, and we were impressed with how sensitively Chamberlain handles issues like grief, depression, ADHD, and family dysfunction. She’ll have you rooting for this couple to keep turning up the heat.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Chamberlain's heartfelt opposites attract debut introduces two beautifully flawed characters who learn through cooking just how much they complement each other. Three years after her husband's sudden death, Ellie Wasserman, still in mourning, lives in a cottage behind her in-laws' home and makes a living ghostwriting cookbooks. Her newest client is Kieran O'Neill, who made a name for himself on a reality cooking show. Laidback Kieran, who struggles with ADHD and dyslexia, immediately clashes with uptight Ellie, who favors hyperorganization and intense focus. To help them work together, their editor sends them to wine country for a week to work with no distractions. The plan pays off; as they learn more about each other, their animosity falls away. Once back in the real world, Kieran must face his judgmental parents, who don't approve of his career or perpetual singledom, at a family party and asks Ellie to come with him as his fake girlfriend. Their attraction is intense and mutual, but are they ready for a real relationship? Chamberlain makes finding the answer to that question an emotional roller-coaster ride. Readers won't be able to get enough.
