Book: The Art of French Kissing
Author: Brianna R. Shrum
Pages: 180 (E-ARC)
Publisher: Sky Pony Press
expected publication date: June 5th, 2018
Synopsis:
Carter Lane has one big dream: becoming a chef. Then she gets the chance to get a scholarship for one of the best culinary schools in the country. But to be able to get that scholarship, she has to compete in a food-making competition over the summer months. She leaves home for a college in Savannah. There she meets Reid, who screws her over at the first challenge. After she gets her revenge, they start a serious feud and it soon starts to affect both their culinary skills. Can they mend what happened between them?
My opinion:
Thank you to Sky Pony Press and NetGalley for providing me with the e-ARC of this book.
Um, food? Hell yes, sign me up for that.
First of all, that cover is so cute and lovely. It seems to hold a super cute story inside and guess what? It does!
We get thrown right into the story, with Carter getting her acceptance letter. Without further ado, she flies into another state. There, drama starts as soon as she arrives on campus and drops her suitcase on a woman’s foot. Carter is such a fun character, she makes mistakes and is sassy but she is incredibly passionate about what she loves. Following her character, the book is written incredibly funny, with hilarious but also very real situations. And all the food? I had just eaten but all the descriptions made my mouth water. I want Reid’s macarons and Carter’s chicken. I want Baked Alaska. I want all of the delicious food described in this book. The story itself was also very interesting to read about. I love reading about competitions and this was no exception. I love all the friendships that are built during the story.
But not only the story was great. So were the characters.
Reid seems to be so nice but then, because of what he does to Carter, the reader automatically turns against him. The two of them manipulate each other all the time, but then they get paired off and have to work together and Reid finally shows his real character. And oh, he is such a cutie. And also he defines as queer.
Then there is Riya, Carter’s Indian roommate and new friend. Because Carter is not really much of a social person, she kind of clings to Riya at first. But Riya is also the nicest and sweetest person. She is understanding and loveable and an incredibly cook, especially when it comes to dessert. Plus she doesn’t take shit from racists.
Aside from Carter, those two are the most important characters.
Unfortunately, the reader doesn’t get to know the other characters as well. Carter’s parents exist for only two sentences, her sister texts her every 50 pages or something like that. And there are so many other contestants, where we only scratch the surface.
But I guess the book was just too short to get to know other, less important characters better. Because it really was short. I wish it was longer because it was so much fun to read.
Apart from the length of the book, or lack thereof, I enjoyed the book a lot. It was a light, very cute and summer-y contemporary about teenagers who all share the same passion and dream. Plus, there is a Japanese queer boy, an Indian girl and three lesbians.
Rating:
★★★★/5
