
Author: Katie Fforde
Genre: Chick-lit, foodie
Rating: 3.5/5
# pages: 400
Date read: March 2025
Take one aspiring cook, one judge, and a spoonful of romance...
When Zoe Harper wins a coveted place in a televised cookery competition she's thrilled. It's a chance to cook her way to fame and fortune and the little delicatessen she's set her heart on.
The first task has hardly begun when she finds herself with rather too much on her plate. Not only has she got to contend with the fiercely competitive and downright devious Cher, but she's fast developing an inconvenient crush on one of the judges - the truly delicious Gideon Irving.
All too soon there's more than canapés, cupcakes and cordon bleu at stake. Will Zoe win the competition or is Gideon one temptation too far? And is Zoe really prepared to risk it all for love?
There was a lot to love in this book.
And there was a lot to roll my eyes at.
I LOVED all the descriptions of the competition. I wish there had been more of that. I'm a wanna-be foodie, and reading about the different challenges, and how the contestants completed them? Yes, please!
For much the same reason, I enjoyed reading about Zoe helping out in the kitchen as well and loved Fen and Rupert.
Cher was cartoon-like in her cattiness. Her narcissistic tendencies seemed realistic at first, but quickly went overboard, and Zoe was far too much of a doormat.
The relationship with Gideon was equal parts sweet and eye-roll worthy. Part of that was due to awkward writing, and part was due to it being shoved down the reader's throat, rather than letting it evolve organically.
At the end of the day, I found more to like than to dislike, and I'd definitely recommend it thanks to the contest ... but with a huge disclaimer.