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Slow Burn
Not yet published
Expected 29 Dec 26In this YA rom-com two teenage contestants compete on a reality cooking show and dish out a fun enemies to lovers romance.
Lizzie Le is determined to win when she's invited to compete on Sweet Heat—a reality cooking show where young cooks compete for a mentorship under a world famous chef. Victory would mean fulfilling her culinary dreams and financially helping her family’s restaurant.
But then Ethan Huang walks into the kitchen.
Lizzie never forgot when the arrogant foodstagrammer nearly tanked the restaurant with a harsh review, and now he’s her competition? Ethan, however, has plans of his own. He's ready to prove to his parents and the world that cooking isn’t just a hobby, it’s his future. And he’s not about to let Lizzie Le stand in his way.
Lizzie and Ethan clash at every turn, but as things come to a boiling point, they begin to realize that their rivalry might be the very thing pushing them to become their best selves…
Can they turn up the heat without getting burned?
Lizzie Le is determined to win when she's invited to compete on Sweet Heat—a reality cooking show where young cooks compete for a mentorship under a world famous chef. Victory would mean fulfilling her culinary dreams and financially helping her family’s restaurant.
But then Ethan Huang walks into the kitchen.
Lizzie never forgot when the arrogant foodstagrammer nearly tanked the restaurant with a harsh review, and now he’s her competition? Ethan, however, has plans of his own. He's ready to prove to his parents and the world that cooking isn’t just a hobby, it’s his future. And he’s not about to let Lizzie Le stand in his way.
Lizzie and Ethan clash at every turn, but as things come to a boiling point, they begin to realize that their rivalry might be the very thing pushing them to become their best selves…
Can they turn up the heat without getting burned?
Kindle Edition
Expected publication December 29, 2026
About the author
Trinity Nguyen
2 books406 followersTrinity Nguyen is a Vietnamese American author and graduate of Franklin & Marshall College. She was born in Viet Nam and raised in Little Saigon, California, and learned English by reading too many young adult novels and never turning off closed captioning. Her debut novel, A BANH MI FOR TWO, is a national independent bookstore bestseller and a 2024 Goodreads Choice Award Nominee. Trinity currently lives in Los Angeles with her cats and the succulents from her mom’s garden.
You can find Trinity on social media as @thetrinitytran on Instagram and Twitter, except for TikTok @eggtarts (because she refuses to retire the username), and otherwise trinity-nguyen.com.
You can find Trinity on social media as @thetrinitytran on Instagram and Twitter, except for TikTok @eggtarts (because she refuses to retire the username), and otherwise trinity-nguyen.com.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
Review of advance copy received from Author
ANHPI Month 2026 #12
I'm a Hoang. For now. Close enough.
If you've been following my journey for some time, you probably remember I loved Trinity's debut, A BANH MI FOR TWO. And that I read it on my first trip to Vietnam, while Vivi (MC) was also on her first trip to Vietnam. I, unfortunately, didn't fall in love with a cute Vietnamese girl. Sad.
So if you, too, loved Vivi and Lan, they make a tiny off-screen cameo here. Is there anything better than two pretty Vietnamese girls wearing ao dai? I don't think so.
But I digress. This book features Lizzie Ly, budding chef, and Ethan Huang, broody influencer. Enemies to lovers is overdone, but these two are rivals to lovers, one of my favorite romance tropes. They're competing on SWEET HEAT, a cooking competition. Sparks fly. I didn't just say that because the author is a Taylor Swift fan. Or did I?
As always in an Asian American novel, family is an important aspect, and a character unto itself. Lizzie has lost her mother, the reason she loves cooking Vietnamese food in the first place. Her father is a supporting character in the background. Ethan physically has both parents, but not emotionally. His father, who he calls Father (rich Chinese people and formality, am I right?), looks down on cooking and social media. He expects him to attend Stanford and join the family business. Life is bleak.
Meanwhile, the other trope we have going on is found family. The other contestants each have their quirks. They all cook things from their respective backgrounds. They also try things from different backgrounds. Make cooking fun.
There's a fun little story with bun bo Hue, but I don't want to spoil anything, and in any case, this is a romance, so we expect our HEA. And we get it. And not a minute too soon.
Vietnamese American Cookbooks I Use: DI AN, THE RED BOAT FISH SAUCE COOKBOOK
Vietnamese Restaurants I Recommend in OC: Canton for cha ca, Pho Tau Bay for banh cuon, Pho Thin for northern style pho
The Triple Dippers made it into the acknowledgements! IYKYK
📱 Thank you to Trinity
"Huangs don't make mistakes. Huangs are perfect."
I'm a Hoang. For now. Close enough.
If you've been following my journey for some time, you probably remember I loved Trinity's debut, A BANH MI FOR TWO. And that I read it on my first trip to Vietnam, while Vivi (MC) was also on her first trip to Vietnam. I, unfortunately, didn't fall in love with a cute Vietnamese girl. Sad.
So if you, too, loved Vivi and Lan, they make a tiny off-screen cameo here. Is there anything better than two pretty Vietnamese girls wearing ao dai? I don't think so.
But I digress. This book features Lizzie Ly, budding chef, and Ethan Huang, broody influencer. Enemies to lovers is overdone, but these two are rivals to lovers, one of my favorite romance tropes. They're competing on SWEET HEAT, a cooking competition. Sparks fly. I didn't just say that because the author is a Taylor Swift fan. Or did I?
As always in an Asian American novel, family is an important aspect, and a character unto itself. Lizzie has lost her mother, the reason she loves cooking Vietnamese food in the first place. Her father is a supporting character in the background. Ethan physically has both parents, but not emotionally. His father, who he calls Father (rich Chinese people and formality, am I right?), looks down on cooking and social media. He expects him to attend Stanford and join the family business. Life is bleak.
Meanwhile, the other trope we have going on is found family. The other contestants each have their quirks. They all cook things from their respective backgrounds. They also try things from different backgrounds. Make cooking fun.
There's a fun little story with bun bo Hue, but I don't want to spoil anything, and in any case, this is a romance, so we expect our HEA. And we get it. And not a minute too soon.
Vietnamese American Cookbooks I Use: DI AN, THE RED BOAT FISH SAUCE COOKBOOK
Vietnamese Restaurants I Recommend in OC: Canton for cha ca, Pho Tau Bay for banh cuon, Pho Thin for northern style pho
The Triple Dippers made it into the acknowledgements! IYKYK
📱 Thank you to Trinity
January 24, 2025
I can't wait for you all to meet Lizzie Ly and Ethan Huang :)
June 15, 2026
Slow Burn by Trinity Nguyen was a breath of fresh air in the YA genre. From the very first page I was hooked!
I've always been a huge fan of cooking competition shows. There's just something special about watching people fight for their dreams and seeing how passionate they are about food. Everything I love about watching those shows was in this book. The food competition really sets Slow Burn apart from other YA stories. Both Lizzie Ly and Ethan Huang were such great characters, and I adored that they had a passion for cooking in different ways.
Readers will easily root for both of them (maybe one more than the other haha), but both Lizzie and Ethan are so likable! They each bring charm to the story even though they are dealing with emotional trauma as well. They aren't the only two lovable characters either! I seriously loved all of the side characters, too. If you're a fan of found family stories then I think you will love this one.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book! It was full of heart and a very (VERY) sweet romance! I'm a sucker for rivals-to-lovers and this one did not disappoint! I would definitely recommend Slow Burn to anyone who loves a wholesome YA story.
I've always been a huge fan of cooking competition shows. There's just something special about watching people fight for their dreams and seeing how passionate they are about food. Everything I love about watching those shows was in this book. The food competition really sets Slow Burn apart from other YA stories. Both Lizzie Ly and Ethan Huang were such great characters, and I adored that they had a passion for cooking in different ways.
Readers will easily root for both of them (maybe one more than the other haha), but both Lizzie and Ethan are so likable! They each bring charm to the story even though they are dealing with emotional trauma as well. They aren't the only two lovable characters either! I seriously loved all of the side characters, too. If you're a fan of found family stories then I think you will love this one.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book! It was full of heart and a very (VERY) sweet romance! I'm a sucker for rivals-to-lovers and this one did not disappoint! I would definitely recommend Slow Burn to anyone who loves a wholesome YA story.
May 20, 2026
automatic 5 stars for this queen
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews