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Taste of Port Andrea #2
Last Chance
Jennifer has an assignment she can’t refuse: write a smear article on her ex-girlfriend’s restaurant and drive her from the city forever.
If she accepts? The senior position that food writer Jennifer Allen has dreamed of all her life, pushing so hard for it that her relationship with her girlfriend is near breaking. But if she refuses? Merciless head content writer Genevieve Durant will end her career.
Athena Walker left Port Andrea six years back ago on the back of a scandal that cost her dream. With a lifetime ban from the city’s restauranteurs’ association and a heart-crushing breakup, she gave up her lifelong dream of running a restaurant in Port Andrea—until now.
Returning to Port Andrea to run a culinary gauntlet through November is Athena’s one last chance at getting into the restauranteurs’ association and fulfill her dream. But when the woman who caused her scandal six years back, hard-edged Genevieve Durant, pledges to crush her again, and the writer covering her restaurant is the woman who broke her heart six years back, Jennifer Allen, Athena finds herself in the continuation of a story she thought long over.
For Jennifer, the choice should be easy. Breaking journalistic norms to get rid of her ex-girlfriend and to get seniority at the same time is a win-win situation.
But thirty days in Athena’s restaurant stirs up feelings she thought long-gone.
Last Chance is an 85,000-word second-chance romance in the Taste of Port Andrea collection, an unordered collection of culinary romances set in the fictional city of Port Andrea. Features a workaholic food writer who’s Serious about Everything, a carefree butch restauranteur who’s Not Serious about Anything, LOTS of sarcastic dialogue, and Parker being shifty about what she does for a living. Content warnings for open-door sex scenes, and as usual in Port Andrea, enough descriptions of food I got hungry writing it.
If she accepts? The senior position that food writer Jennifer Allen has dreamed of all her life, pushing so hard for it that her relationship with her girlfriend is near breaking. But if she refuses? Merciless head content writer Genevieve Durant will end her career.
Athena Walker left Port Andrea six years back ago on the back of a scandal that cost her dream. With a lifetime ban from the city’s restauranteurs’ association and a heart-crushing breakup, she gave up her lifelong dream of running a restaurant in Port Andrea—until now.
Returning to Port Andrea to run a culinary gauntlet through November is Athena’s one last chance at getting into the restauranteurs’ association and fulfill her dream. But when the woman who caused her scandal six years back, hard-edged Genevieve Durant, pledges to crush her again, and the writer covering her restaurant is the woman who broke her heart six years back, Jennifer Allen, Athena finds herself in the continuation of a story she thought long over.
For Jennifer, the choice should be easy. Breaking journalistic norms to get rid of her ex-girlfriend and to get seniority at the same time is a win-win situation.
But thirty days in Athena’s restaurant stirs up feelings she thought long-gone.
Last Chance is an 85,000-word second-chance romance in the Taste of Port Andrea collection, an unordered collection of culinary romances set in the fictional city of Port Andrea. Features a workaholic food writer who’s Serious about Everything, a carefree butch restauranteur who’s Not Serious about Anything, LOTS of sarcastic dialogue, and Parker being shifty about what she does for a living. Content warnings for open-door sex scenes, and as usual in Port Andrea, enough descriptions of food I got hungry writing it.
314 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 29, 2021
44 people are currently reading
137 people want to read
About the author
Lily Seabrooke
37 books337 followersLily Seabrooke is a lesbian, trans woman, and author of sapphic romance that stars food, because odds are, at any given time, she's hungry.
Her interests include eating food, thinking about food, writing novels about food, and drinking coffee.
Her interests include eating food, thinking about food, writing novels about food, and drinking coffee.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
September 19, 2021
I’m a pretty big fan of Lily Seabrooke in general, so I went in with bias, knowing I’d enjoy the book. That said, I laughed far more than I expected to, enjoying certain bits of witty banter enough to re-read the scenes a couple times, even reading them out loud while I giggled my way through.
I really enjoyed the different ways break ups were portrayed. In real life, not every break up is heartbreaking and dramatic; they aren’t inherently bad, and there are multiple sides to most stories.
As I’ve come to expect from this author, the characters had a depth to them I greatly enjoyed. The chemistry was built fantastically. I was in love with this author’s work from the first of her books I read, and I generally read them in order of release. Each one becomes my favorite, which could partly be because my enjoyment of it is fresh in my mind, but it could also be because she clearly keeps growing as a writer. She did a fantastic job of showing as opposed to telling, and I was locked in as soon as I started reading and didn’t stop until I was done.
If you are looking for one of those can’t put it down books that remind you why you love reading, this is for sure one to consume. There are a small handful of authors I’d like to have hard copies of all of their books, and Lily Seabrooke is definitely one of them.
If I was forced to find cons to go with all the pros I’ve already expounded on, I would say that there were a few long sentences that I would have split into two smaller sentences for clarity’s sake, which led to me feeling to the need to read them a second or third time to make sure I understood what was being conveyed. This might be more a personal preference though, since I’m very fast reader, and I’ll be paragraphs or even pages ahead before I register that I was confused about something. For some reason concise sentences make it a bit easier to take in. It didn’t detract from my experience enough to factor into my rating in any way, but it’s something I would have noted as an editor.
Okay, back to things I loved, which overshadow the sentence thing. Parker. Now the side characters roles were enough to be engaging but not distracting, so small, but notable. Parker as a character was completely fantastic. Don’t get me wrong, I loved each and every restaurant scene with Misha and Flora, who were hilarious and adorable respectively, and I’d read a book about either of them. Preferably Flora since Misha is apparently straight. But Parker. Parker is absolutely protagonist level quality as a character. She’s quirky and mysterious, she’s big hearted but also a bit of a hard-*ss, and she sounds entirely adorable. It sort of felt like she was being set up to get her own book and I’m not trying to be subtle by saying I will be disappointed if she doesn’t. I’d put money on Ms. Seabrooke already having something in the works for her.
Imagine a romance where all the characters you’re supposed to like or be sympathetic to and their primary social circle being emotionally mature and woke people who still need to grow and change but don’t repeatedly make the same mistakes for the sake of drama, yet those characters lives remain interesting and their development and journeys are consistently engaging. Wait, you don’t have to imagine it, you can just read any book by this author. Particularly this one. That is a rare thing in this genre, and it’s actually quite hard to achieve as a writer, because it means the writer herself has to have an elevated level of emotional maturity and self awareness, something that is pretty much always hard won for everyone who has it - also something demonstrated quite well in this book.
And finally, we’ve got representation of a diverse queer community without tropes. This is something that does affect my ratings positively in this case.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I really enjoyed the different ways break ups were portrayed. In real life, not every break up is heartbreaking and dramatic; they aren’t inherently bad, and there are multiple sides to most stories.
As I’ve come to expect from this author, the characters had a depth to them I greatly enjoyed. The chemistry was built fantastically. I was in love with this author’s work from the first of her books I read, and I generally read them in order of release. Each one becomes my favorite, which could partly be because my enjoyment of it is fresh in my mind, but it could also be because she clearly keeps growing as a writer. She did a fantastic job of showing as opposed to telling, and I was locked in as soon as I started reading and didn’t stop until I was done.
If you are looking for one of those can’t put it down books that remind you why you love reading, this is for sure one to consume. There are a small handful of authors I’d like to have hard copies of all of their books, and Lily Seabrooke is definitely one of them.
If I was forced to find cons to go with all the pros I’ve already expounded on, I would say that there were a few long sentences that I would have split into two smaller sentences for clarity’s sake, which led to me feeling to the need to read them a second or third time to make sure I understood what was being conveyed. This might be more a personal preference though, since I’m very fast reader, and I’ll be paragraphs or even pages ahead before I register that I was confused about something. For some reason concise sentences make it a bit easier to take in. It didn’t detract from my experience enough to factor into my rating in any way, but it’s something I would have noted as an editor.
Okay, back to things I loved, which overshadow the sentence thing. Parker. Now the side characters roles were enough to be engaging but not distracting, so small, but notable. Parker as a character was completely fantastic. Don’t get me wrong, I loved each and every restaurant scene with Misha and Flora, who were hilarious and adorable respectively, and I’d read a book about either of them. Preferably Flora since Misha is apparently straight. But Parker. Parker is absolutely protagonist level quality as a character. She’s quirky and mysterious, she’s big hearted but also a bit of a hard-*ss, and she sounds entirely adorable. It sort of felt like she was being set up to get her own book and I’m not trying to be subtle by saying I will be disappointed if she doesn’t. I’d put money on Ms. Seabrooke already having something in the works for her.
Imagine a romance where all the characters you’re supposed to like or be sympathetic to and their primary social circle being emotionally mature and woke people who still need to grow and change but don’t repeatedly make the same mistakes for the sake of drama, yet those characters lives remain interesting and their development and journeys are consistently engaging. Wait, you don’t have to imagine it, you can just read any book by this author. Particularly this one. That is a rare thing in this genre, and it’s actually quite hard to achieve as a writer, because it means the writer herself has to have an elevated level of emotional maturity and self awareness, something that is pretty much always hard won for everyone who has it - also something demonstrated quite well in this book.
And finally, we’ve got representation of a diverse queer community without tropes. This is something that does affect my ratings positively in this case.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
September 30, 2021
Another good read by Lily. Set in the same town as Fake It and another in the restaurant business Jennifer and Athena have a broken history. Athena was run out town after being framed for the collapse of a restaurant. Jennifer a food writer and her girlfriend dumped her. Jennifer more worried how it would affect her career. But Athena is determined to have her restaurant. After 6 yrs she is back in town. You can feel the chemistry between the two. There is several up and downs. And a villainous editor out to ruin Athena again. Just a wonderful read. And some steamy scenes. Of course. I loved the side characters. Misha, Parker, Louise, and Flora. Maybe another story. I did receive an ACR. But this is just a must read.
October 17, 2021
I’m having a good run with books with some quality witty banter. I loved the bite these two had in their interactions.
This is an angsty second chance sapphic romance between a food writer (Jennifer) and a restaurant owner (Athena). I fell head over heels in love with Athena throughout the course of this story. This led me to want to give Jennifer a good shake at times.
These two had great chemistry and the sex scenes in this book were sooooooo good. Really really really good.
This is an angsty second chance sapphic romance between a food writer (Jennifer) and a restaurant owner (Athena). I fell head over heels in love with Athena throughout the course of this story. This led me to want to give Jennifer a good shake at times.
These two had great chemistry and the sex scenes in this book were sooooooo good. Really really really good.
March 27, 2023
~ Reading Only Lily Seabrooke Novels Until I Remember How To Enjoy Things, #3 ~
I still don't remember, but I am having fun! They're good fodder for whenever I feel moody, generally. The first two were Fake It and its spinoff, What Makes A Moment. Mild spoilers for Last Chance.
What I'm finding generally is that despite each of her books having at least one weird quirk or flaw that prevents it from reaching true greatness, from This-Book-Fucks status, I enjoy Seabrooke as an author a lot, and her brand of fluffy, slightly sentimental inspirational wisdom actually resonates. That's a big win in my books!
I figured I would hate most second chance romances, because getting back with your ex is almost always an awful idea irl, but I like this one! The pairing is maverick restauranteur and resident butch Athena, with sulky food critic(real job) and general high femme Jennifer. Athena was working for some other aspiring chow joint owner six years ago, but some bad shit went down, she ended up trying to renegotiate contracts with a corrupt food supplier that was choking out new businesses, and it cost Athena her job, her reputation in the industry and eventually her girlfriend, though it's not immediately clear why. Athena is back in Port Andrea, the series' slightly lightweight food-city, and Jennifer is fuming/moping about it.
The intrigue is a very strong element of Last Chance, here; when Jennifer and Athena meet by chance, on one of Athena's late-night pizza excursions to an italian place, Jen literally cannot stand the sight of Athena for various reasons(stupid sexy butch, how dare you come back, you broke my heart and I still care) and pretty much loses it on her... about her choice of pizza topping. Pepperoni is a sin, y'all. For her part, after shaking off the shock, Athena is an incredibly good sport about it, happily trading jokey jabs with Jen about her apparently awful taste in food. It's a funny scene, and their love-to-hate-to-love-you dynamic is charming and very clear from minute 1. It left me wondering, what DID happen that split up these two obvious lovebirds??? I must know!
Most of what you'll see in this novel is Athena being a total fucking chad and all-around great person, she's pretty much the book's selling point. It's not lacking in other charms; seeing characters actually brood and ponder moodily at night, as portrayed by Lily Seabrooke, is pretty neat, I think. I didn't mind the happily upbeat tone of the previous two, but I like a touch of angst sometimes, so this was a nice change of pace. Athena pretty much takes life on the chin though, with a big shit-eating grin. Aside from genuinely and firmly believing in justice and doing the right thing, she's roguishly charming, chasing her dreams of restauranting in Port Andrea(and regaining access to the restauranter's union thingy) relentlessly and with passion, pretty much cheerily telling naysayers to get bent, and that she'll work it out, she always does. It's hard not to hold high respect for Athena; sure, she's the opposite of pragmatic or practical, but she's both charming and daring, spitting in the face of an entire cabal of evil businesstypes, knowingly getting ready to go down burning, just because anything else would be wrong. Her sense of hard-headed justice appeals to me innately. Athena is not 100% a boundless optimism type, though, and the moments of unsureness shared with her flatmate, or her line cooks, or late at night over the cityscape in her narration lend her a grounded feel. Mostly, I just found it impossible to dislike her jokey demeanor, can-do attitude and tendency to barb casually with Jen, much to Jen's non-chargin(she wants to kiss Athena still).
Jen, by contrast, is kind of a problem for the book. She's okay as a personality, and it's humorous to watch her flit between being incredibly irritated at Athena's antics and wanting to tear her clothes off, but her arc is pretty much bad.
So Jen has worked at Foodie Magazine(the one Holly and Avery were on front of, y'know) for ages, but nowadays she's under the foot of this evil boss lady, Genevieve. Genevieve was the boss at Silver Thread, the restaurant that Athena allegedly caused to go bankrupt, leading Genevieve here. She wants Jen to go write a month-long smear piece on Athena's new place--which is running a special, a new menu every 30 days--in the interest of protecting the Port Andrea Restauranteur Association, ostensibly. Obviously that's not gonna fly because A) Athena fuckin rules, B) her food is awesome and Jen can't resist it or her ex, C) Genevieve is so obviously the evil villain with ulterior motives it's not even funny. When this all becomes clear in-narrative, I figured it would turn into a two-on-one, with both Jen and Athena taking on the evil badlady, destroying corruption in the food industry once and for all!
That isn't what happens, though. When it becomes clear to Genevieve that there's nothing bad to write about Athena's joint, she says point-blank to Jen, 'look aight, Imma pull strings and sabotage the supply to Athena's place, she was totally really the badguy who downed my old restaurant okay'. Jen, being literally stupid I guess, is all shocked and goes to Athena like "How could you have renegotiated the contracts???? ARE YOU THE REAL VILLAIN HOW COULD YOU" and as a reader I was like, no, it's probably the crotchety old lady coded as evil. Which it is, and Athena says as much, that Genevieve basically ordered her to take the fall, and seriously Jen how could you take her word for it?
Upon hearing this, for SOME REASON, Jen is all "I want to believe u but I just cant soz" and goes and mopes from 70%-85% of the book. It all turns out to be 100% true, and this is just after they've had a whirlwind 50 First Dates II: The Squeakwuel and rekindled the fire of their loving, infuriatingly sexy relationship. It's irritating to watch Jen constantly cowtow to this evil lady and take her word over the word of THE WOMAN SHE LOVES, FOR DAYS ON END, and only really snap out of it and say "Y'know what? Fuck Genevieve!" randomly, later on, upon remembering Athena's uh, fighting spirit. She takes way the fuck too long to do the right thing.
So the plot construction is a little off, which is a shame because in terms of everything else, Last Chance is highly enjoyable. Seabrooke's leads have a grounded sense of honesty, emotional openness and are generally very mature and true to themselves, which means 90% less miscommunication drama. The combination of a restauranteur and a food critic as a couple is both fun and funny on its own, with lots of sass traded about menu choices. There are an increased amount of well-set and memorable scenes here, like Athena's flatmate Parker having a heart to heart with a miserable Jen in an ice cream shop at 2am. I've always thought Port Andrea was kind of a wobbly setting, mostly just being wallpaper for whatever is going on in the story, so this was great to see. Athena is possibly my favourite Seabrooke lead thus far, with her stupid wisecracks and willful ignorance of observed social norms, and it's always fun to watch people go from heated bickering to making out. It's also fun to watch both Athena and Jen remember how good they are together, and do things like rent a hotel room just to roll in the sheets for days, or revisit old haunts from early in their history. Charming, fun.
So how much do I care about all of that bitching up there?
The book has genuine construction problems, yes; Jen ends up looking hopelessly naive bordering on actually stupid, for disbelieving her girlfriend constantly. Her whole "I was afraid of being in love" reasoning doesn't ring authentic when the reader is given no reason why, and she takes WAY too long to finally twig that yes, the evil sabotage lady behind the desk is evil. Her arc is kind of stretched out and a little dumb, and it's legit maddening watching her slink back to Genevieve and do her evil bidding in small ways for the runtime.
But it's like, I like Athena and Jen as a pair(grr grr you suck I love you), I like the extended cast quite a bit--Parker's weird bit being evasive about her career is a good spot of absurdist humour, and Louise goes from being contemptible to a cool, smooth and supportive friend--and I find I just LOVE Athena way too much, because what can I say? She's awesome. I wrote "Ugh I love Athena" in my notes like a fangirl.
So if I enjoyed Last Chance, and also What Makes a Moment, and also Fake it this thoroughly in spite of their flaws(respectively Jen's poor arc, Sage's dumb choices late-plot and Fake It's lacking villain team), how much do those flaws in construction really matter? I'm not saying I'd just never bring them up, but how important can they be if I still enjoyed the entire thing? Gave it four whole stars, even, which in my library means "pretty dang good"? Perfection is not a requirement, and maybe not even always the goal, huh. Maybe this represents a slight shift in my priorities. I'd still prefer it if each of these books went through another revision and ironed out some of these problems, but I enjoyed my time, fuck you very much.
I still don't remember, but I am having fun! They're good fodder for whenever I feel moody, generally. The first two were Fake It and its spinoff, What Makes A Moment. Mild spoilers for Last Chance.
What I'm finding generally is that despite each of her books having at least one weird quirk or flaw that prevents it from reaching true greatness, from This-Book-Fucks status, I enjoy Seabrooke as an author a lot, and her brand of fluffy, slightly sentimental inspirational wisdom actually resonates. That's a big win in my books!
I figured I would hate most second chance romances, because getting back with your ex is almost always an awful idea irl, but I like this one! The pairing is maverick restauranteur and resident butch Athena, with sulky food critic(real job) and general high femme Jennifer. Athena was working for some other aspiring chow joint owner six years ago, but some bad shit went down, she ended up trying to renegotiate contracts with a corrupt food supplier that was choking out new businesses, and it cost Athena her job, her reputation in the industry and eventually her girlfriend, though it's not immediately clear why. Athena is back in Port Andrea, the series' slightly lightweight food-city, and Jennifer is fuming/moping about it.
The intrigue is a very strong element of Last Chance, here; when Jennifer and Athena meet by chance, on one of Athena's late-night pizza excursions to an italian place, Jen literally cannot stand the sight of Athena for various reasons(stupid sexy butch, how dare you come back, you broke my heart and I still care) and pretty much loses it on her... about her choice of pizza topping. Pepperoni is a sin, y'all. For her part, after shaking off the shock, Athena is an incredibly good sport about it, happily trading jokey jabs with Jen about her apparently awful taste in food. It's a funny scene, and their love-to-hate-to-love-you dynamic is charming and very clear from minute 1. It left me wondering, what DID happen that split up these two obvious lovebirds??? I must know!
Most of what you'll see in this novel is Athena being a total fucking chad and all-around great person, she's pretty much the book's selling point. It's not lacking in other charms; seeing characters actually brood and ponder moodily at night, as portrayed by Lily Seabrooke, is pretty neat, I think. I didn't mind the happily upbeat tone of the previous two, but I like a touch of angst sometimes, so this was a nice change of pace. Athena pretty much takes life on the chin though, with a big shit-eating grin. Aside from genuinely and firmly believing in justice and doing the right thing, she's roguishly charming, chasing her dreams of restauranting in Port Andrea(and regaining access to the restauranter's union thingy) relentlessly and with passion, pretty much cheerily telling naysayers to get bent, and that she'll work it out, she always does. It's hard not to hold high respect for Athena; sure, she's the opposite of pragmatic or practical, but she's both charming and daring, spitting in the face of an entire cabal of evil businesstypes, knowingly getting ready to go down burning, just because anything else would be wrong. Her sense of hard-headed justice appeals to me innately. Athena is not 100% a boundless optimism type, though, and the moments of unsureness shared with her flatmate, or her line cooks, or late at night over the cityscape in her narration lend her a grounded feel. Mostly, I just found it impossible to dislike her jokey demeanor, can-do attitude and tendency to barb casually with Jen, much to Jen's non-chargin(she wants to kiss Athena still).
Jen, by contrast, is kind of a problem for the book. She's okay as a personality, and it's humorous to watch her flit between being incredibly irritated at Athena's antics and wanting to tear her clothes off, but her arc is pretty much bad.
So Jen has worked at Foodie Magazine(the one Holly and Avery were on front of, y'know) for ages, but nowadays she's under the foot of this evil boss lady, Genevieve. Genevieve was the boss at Silver Thread, the restaurant that Athena allegedly caused to go bankrupt, leading Genevieve here. She wants Jen to go write a month-long smear piece on Athena's new place--which is running a special, a new menu every 30 days--in the interest of protecting the Port Andrea Restauranteur Association, ostensibly. Obviously that's not gonna fly because A) Athena fuckin rules, B) her food is awesome and Jen can't resist it or her ex, C) Genevieve is so obviously the evil villain with ulterior motives it's not even funny. When this all becomes clear in-narrative, I figured it would turn into a two-on-one, with both Jen and Athena taking on the evil badlady, destroying corruption in the food industry once and for all!
That isn't what happens, though. When it becomes clear to Genevieve that there's nothing bad to write about Athena's joint, she says point-blank to Jen, 'look aight, Imma pull strings and sabotage the supply to Athena's place, she was totally really the badguy who downed my old restaurant okay'. Jen, being literally stupid I guess, is all shocked and goes to Athena like "How could you have renegotiated the contracts???? ARE YOU THE REAL VILLAIN HOW COULD YOU" and as a reader I was like, no, it's probably the crotchety old lady coded as evil. Which it is, and Athena says as much, that Genevieve basically ordered her to take the fall, and seriously Jen how could you take her word for it?
Upon hearing this, for SOME REASON, Jen is all "I want to believe u but I just cant soz" and goes and mopes from 70%-85% of the book. It all turns out to be 100% true, and this is just after they've had a whirlwind 50 First Dates II: The Squeakwuel and rekindled the fire of their loving, infuriatingly sexy relationship. It's irritating to watch Jen constantly cowtow to this evil lady and take her word over the word of THE WOMAN SHE LOVES, FOR DAYS ON END, and only really snap out of it and say "Y'know what? Fuck Genevieve!" randomly, later on, upon remembering Athena's uh, fighting spirit. She takes way the fuck too long to do the right thing.
So the plot construction is a little off, which is a shame because in terms of everything else, Last Chance is highly enjoyable. Seabrooke's leads have a grounded sense of honesty, emotional openness and are generally very mature and true to themselves, which means 90% less miscommunication drama. The combination of a restauranteur and a food critic as a couple is both fun and funny on its own, with lots of sass traded about menu choices. There are an increased amount of well-set and memorable scenes here, like Athena's flatmate Parker having a heart to heart with a miserable Jen in an ice cream shop at 2am. I've always thought Port Andrea was kind of a wobbly setting, mostly just being wallpaper for whatever is going on in the story, so this was great to see. Athena is possibly my favourite Seabrooke lead thus far, with her stupid wisecracks and willful ignorance of observed social norms, and it's always fun to watch people go from heated bickering to making out. It's also fun to watch both Athena and Jen remember how good they are together, and do things like rent a hotel room just to roll in the sheets for days, or revisit old haunts from early in their history. Charming, fun.
So how much do I care about all of that bitching up there?
The book has genuine construction problems, yes; Jen ends up looking hopelessly naive bordering on actually stupid, for disbelieving her girlfriend constantly. Her whole "I was afraid of being in love" reasoning doesn't ring authentic when the reader is given no reason why, and she takes WAY too long to finally twig that yes, the evil sabotage lady behind the desk is evil. Her arc is kind of stretched out and a little dumb, and it's legit maddening watching her slink back to Genevieve and do her evil bidding in small ways for the runtime.
But it's like, I like Athena and Jen as a pair(grr grr you suck I love you), I like the extended cast quite a bit--Parker's weird bit being evasive about her career is a good spot of absurdist humour, and Louise goes from being contemptible to a cool, smooth and supportive friend--and I find I just LOVE Athena way too much, because what can I say? She's awesome. I wrote "Ugh I love Athena" in my notes like a fangirl.
So if I enjoyed Last Chance, and also What Makes a Moment, and also Fake it this thoroughly in spite of their flaws(respectively Jen's poor arc, Sage's dumb choices late-plot and Fake It's lacking villain team), how much do those flaws in construction really matter? I'm not saying I'd just never bring them up, but how important can they be if I still enjoyed the entire thing? Gave it four whole stars, even, which in my library means "pretty dang good"? Perfection is not a requirement, and maybe not even always the goal, huh. Maybe this represents a slight shift in my priorities. I'd still prefer it if each of these books went through another revision and ironed out some of these problems, but I enjoyed my time, fuck you very much.
September 22, 2021
After I loved the first book in this series Fake It I was so happy to come back to Port Andrea.
Once again food is one of the most important topics in it which is perfect for me. Besides that it’s a fantastic slow burn enemies to lover story. Athena and Jennifer were actually together several years ago but split up because Athena‘s career went downhill. Both feel let down and try to make themselves believe that they hate the other.
And omg there was so much chemistry between them. Their dialogues were amazing and made me laugh so many times. While they try to continue hating each other, Jen also tries to find something negative about Athena’s restaurant for her article. But of course happens is them getting closer and closer. Also with some little help of their friends that are the most fun combination. For example Jen‘s ex Louise that I didn’t like much at the beginning but then changed and I started to like very much. Or Misha Athena‘s sous-chef. I just loved her. And last but not least Athena’s roommate Parker that has the most secretive job and loves pepperoni on Pizza. ☺️ She and Misha definitely have the potential for their own story.
I finished reading with a smile on my face and thank Lily once more for bringing me so much joy. Fake It is still my favourite book by her but this one definitely is a must read as well.
I received an ARC of this book via booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Once again food is one of the most important topics in it which is perfect for me. Besides that it’s a fantastic slow burn enemies to lover story. Athena and Jennifer were actually together several years ago but split up because Athena‘s career went downhill. Both feel let down and try to make themselves believe that they hate the other.
And omg there was so much chemistry between them. Their dialogues were amazing and made me laugh so many times. While they try to continue hating each other, Jen also tries to find something negative about Athena’s restaurant for her article. But of course happens is them getting closer and closer. Also with some little help of their friends that are the most fun combination. For example Jen‘s ex Louise that I didn’t like much at the beginning but then changed and I started to like very much. Or Misha Athena‘s sous-chef. I just loved her. And last but not least Athena’s roommate Parker that has the most secretive job and loves pepperoni on Pizza. ☺️ She and Misha definitely have the potential for their own story.
I finished reading with a smile on my face and thank Lily once more for bringing me so much joy. Fake It is still my favourite book by her but this one definitely is a must read as well.
I received an ARC of this book via booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
September 28, 2021
I liked this book, but it took me a while to feel fully engaged. The writing is very good, as is the editing. There's a good bit of humor, and I like the style of the humor better than that of the humor in Fake It!, the most recent of Ms. Seabrooke's novels.
More details...
*Spoilers*
I liked the characters and the setting of the novel. The fictional town of Port Andrea sounds like a nice place to be, fun and interesting. The protagonists, Jennifer and Athena, are both smart, accomplished, and ambitious young women, and their close friends are appealing as well.
However, throughout the first half of the book, the two protagonists kept focusing on how angry they were at each other and how betrayed they felt, all because of an event that led to their breakup and ended their friendship years ago.
But that long-ago conflict was the only real dramatic tension in that half of the book, and it wasn't very much fun to keep reading about this. I kept getting little teases of information about what had caused their breakup, but I didn't really get a full explanation until much later in the book.
Once the two of them stopped being angry and connected with their love and attraction to each other, the story become more comfortable and enjoyable to read. But this didn't happen until about 50% of the way through. Even then, there still was not a whole lot of dramatic tension until at about 80%, when the villain (the head of the Foodie magazine and Jennifer's boss) appeared and started trying to wreck the writer's career as well as destroy Athena's restaurant and ruin her career too. At that point, I felt fully engaged. Would Jennifer and Athena be able to stop the powerful villain from ruining them?
Another issue was that during dialog, it was often hard to tell which character was speaking. I'd often have to go back and go down the page until I could identify who was talking, and then step through the dialog, keeping track paragraph by paragraph. Sometimes it felt like the two characters were almost identical in terms of their personalities and their speech patterns. I think it would help if the speaker was identified more often in the dialog, and perhaps each main character could have some characteristics which better differentiated them from the other.
Once the battle between our two heroes and the nasty boss ramped up, the story became a fun ride I enjoyed that last 20% of the book very much, and overall I found the book to be an enjoyable read.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
More details...
*Spoilers*
I liked the characters and the setting of the novel. The fictional town of Port Andrea sounds like a nice place to be, fun and interesting. The protagonists, Jennifer and Athena, are both smart, accomplished, and ambitious young women, and their close friends are appealing as well.
However, throughout the first half of the book, the two protagonists kept focusing on how angry they were at each other and how betrayed they felt, all because of an event that led to their breakup and ended their friendship years ago.
But that long-ago conflict was the only real dramatic tension in that half of the book, and it wasn't very much fun to keep reading about this. I kept getting little teases of information about what had caused their breakup, but I didn't really get a full explanation until much later in the book.
Once the two of them stopped being angry and connected with their love and attraction to each other, the story become more comfortable and enjoyable to read. But this didn't happen until about 50% of the way through. Even then, there still was not a whole lot of dramatic tension until at about 80%, when the villain (the head of the Foodie magazine and Jennifer's boss) appeared and started trying to wreck the writer's career as well as destroy Athena's restaurant and ruin her career too. At that point, I felt fully engaged. Would Jennifer and Athena be able to stop the powerful villain from ruining them?
Another issue was that during dialog, it was often hard to tell which character was speaking. I'd often have to go back and go down the page until I could identify who was talking, and then step through the dialog, keeping track paragraph by paragraph. Sometimes it felt like the two characters were almost identical in terms of their personalities and their speech patterns. I think it would help if the speaker was identified more often in the dialog, and perhaps each main character could have some characteristics which better differentiated them from the other.
Once the battle between our two heroes and the nasty boss ramped up, the story became a fun ride I enjoyed that last 20% of the book very much, and overall I found the book to be an enjoyable read.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 31, 2021
This angsty opposites attract second chance romance is funny, sexy, passionate, and absolutely wonderful. Seabrooke did a fantastic job with this story and these characters.
This delightful cast of characters was a perfect blend of personalities and kept a steady stream of humor flowing throughout the story. The side characters like Misha and Parker both of whom have meanness as a love language constantly tried to steal the show. I was head over heels in love with how Seabrooke handled Louise’s character and her relationship with Jennifer, perfection in every sense of the word. And Genevieve is a despicable antagonist who drove the story and I loved to hate.
Jennifer was a complicated character. She lets her fear consume her and drive her choices, she is also supremely selfish and willing to completely ruin Athena just so she doesn’t have to see her and confront her feelings. I spent most of the book really disliking Jennifer but she has a slow and super bumpy redemption arc that eventually brought up my opinion of her and by the end I was happy with her growth and deemed her worthy of Athena. Athena is too good for this world. She is sweet, silly, funny, impulsive, chaotic, and loving. I Couldn’t get enough of her. Athena was my favorite character in this story and I loved how well she was able to handle Jennifer, Misha, and Genevieve.
The dynamic between Jennifer and Athena is this fiery, passionate, love/hate relationship. I am not usually a fan of the type of passion where yelling at the person is how you say you love and miss them. but Seabrooke did a phenomenal job with the tension and banter and it was beyond entertaining. From yelling and arguing about food to aggressive public kisses the passion was always present and crystal clear and I loved how obviously these two wanted each other. They bring each other to life and are really good for one another.
This story is brimming with sexual tension that builds to the most delicious boiling point. The way Seabrooke was able to keep up the tension between the two women but draw it out was masterfully done and made the payoff that much more satisfying when these two crashed together.
This second chance love story is such a fun ride. Full of love, growth, humor, and passion. From the lovable characters to the to the wonderful romance Seabrooke has another winner on her hands.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This delightful cast of characters was a perfect blend of personalities and kept a steady stream of humor flowing throughout the story. The side characters like Misha and Parker both of whom have meanness as a love language constantly tried to steal the show. I was head over heels in love with how Seabrooke handled Louise’s character and her relationship with Jennifer, perfection in every sense of the word. And Genevieve is a despicable antagonist who drove the story and I loved to hate.
Jennifer was a complicated character. She lets her fear consume her and drive her choices, she is also supremely selfish and willing to completely ruin Athena just so she doesn’t have to see her and confront her feelings. I spent most of the book really disliking Jennifer but she has a slow and super bumpy redemption arc that eventually brought up my opinion of her and by the end I was happy with her growth and deemed her worthy of Athena. Athena is too good for this world. She is sweet, silly, funny, impulsive, chaotic, and loving. I Couldn’t get enough of her. Athena was my favorite character in this story and I loved how well she was able to handle Jennifer, Misha, and Genevieve.
The dynamic between Jennifer and Athena is this fiery, passionate, love/hate relationship. I am not usually a fan of the type of passion where yelling at the person is how you say you love and miss them. but Seabrooke did a phenomenal job with the tension and banter and it was beyond entertaining. From yelling and arguing about food to aggressive public kisses the passion was always present and crystal clear and I loved how obviously these two wanted each other. They bring each other to life and are really good for one another.
This story is brimming with sexual tension that builds to the most delicious boiling point. The way Seabrooke was able to keep up the tension between the two women but draw it out was masterfully done and made the payoff that much more satisfying when these two crashed together.
This second chance love story is such a fun ride. Full of love, growth, humor, and passion. From the lovable characters to the to the wonderful romance Seabrooke has another winner on her hands.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
September 27, 2021
This book will make you hungry! Being an ex-chef, this really made me miss getting creative in the kitchen and talking flavors with other people in the industry. But experiencing in these pages was really enjoyable.
Both MCs are like-able and have great chemistry. Second chance romance 6 years after their breakup. Bonus to this, they’re emotionally mature and don’t hold back. They did have help (3 really great side characters) keep them in line so I’d consider this low-med angst.
Lily Seabrooke does great at creating a villain that is necessary to the story and you love to see them fall.
Overall okay his book made my hungry and gave me warm swooning feeling that I love in a romance.
Im excited to see more installments set in this wonderful town!
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Both MCs are like-able and have great chemistry. Second chance romance 6 years after their breakup. Bonus to this, they’re emotionally mature and don’t hold back. They did have help (3 really great side characters) keep them in line so I’d consider this low-med angst.
Lily Seabrooke does great at creating a villain that is necessary to the story and you love to see them fall.
Overall okay his book made my hungry and gave me warm swooning feeling that I love in a romance.
Im excited to see more installments set in this wonderful town!
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
January 16, 2022
As any Lily Seabrooke books this is a comfortable story with cozy friend groups, some relationship drama and the differential of being the one with the most jokes in all her books. One of the characters was clearly a Mae Martin inspired stand in and it actually works fine. In comparison with the other Port Andrea book this one is weaker but that is not the characters or main relationship fault per se, just that Fake It is clearly a hard comparison to go against.
September 28, 2021
I loved this story so much! The chemistry between Jennifer and Athena is so palpable and I keep rooting for them to kiss already! I'm also still thinking about that sex scene. I also loved the ending and the way the character's stories progressed so naturally.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
October 3, 2021
I like food; I've been eating it all my life. Joking aside, I am fascinated by the food industry. I have spent thousands of hours watching shows on the Food Network: cooking competitions like Chopped, cooking instruction like Aarti Party and Giada at Home, restaurant rescue, like Robert Irvine's Restaurant: Impossible, and restaurant reviews like Guy Fieri's Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives.
Lily Seabrooke's "A Taste of Port Andrea" is a foodie romance series set in the culinary industry in the (fictional) eponymous city of Port Andrea. It's a decent sized city; Holly lives in a 30th-floor penthouse. Her TV show, "Kitchen Rescue" (similar to Restaurant: Impossible) is filmed in the city. Prestigious Foodie Magazine is published in that city. In Fake It, the first novel, Holly Mason is the aforementioned celebrity chef with a TV show and Avery Lindt is the founder of an upscale new restaurant in the fancy Southport district. In Last Chance, the second novel, just out a few days ago, Jennifer Allen is a writer for Foodie Magazine and Athena Walker is the founder of yet another upscale restaurant.
In both books, the restaurateur had previously been in Port Andrea five or so years earlier to have a go at a career in food, had failed at it, had fled (Avery to "home" and Athena to Chicago), and has now returned to give it another go. And in both novels, they had left an ex-girlfriend (Avery left Cecelia and Athena left Jennifer) who makes a significant appearance upon their return.
Fake It was a slow-burn "fake romance to friends to lovers" story. Last Chance is a "second chance at love" story.
In this book, Athena had been a manager at Genevieve Durant's "Silver Thread". When that restaurant had been hit by a scandal - the fault of, it seems, Athena - it closed, Athena was ejected from the Port Andrea Restaurateurs' Association, and barred from working with that organization every again. She slinks away, tail between her legs, works in Chicago, gaining skills and money and returns to Port Andrea to start a new restaurant, "Rose Bloom", in Garden Square.
Genevieve does not take this well. In the interim, she has clawed her way to position of Head Content Director at Foodie Magazine. It is time to (re)crush the pushy upstart. Athena is having a flashy event. Every day in November - all thirty of them - will have a new themed menu. Unheard of, but very bold - and attracting lots of attention. The solution: put talented writer Jennifer Allen onto it with the instructions to attend all thirty nights and to write scathingly critical reviews of the restaurant, regardless of reality. Focus exclusively on the flaws and ignore the good points, if any. She'll do it, of course; (carrot) if she succeeds, Senior Writer (stick) if she fails, pink slip.
Jennifer loathes the lack of journalistic ethics, but it's infinitely worse when she learns who runs the Rose Bloom: Athena was her girlfriend during her earlier stay in Port Andrea, whom she dumped after the scandal broke.
I'll leave the plot summary at that. Seems like neither character ever really fell out of love, but can they get back together, keep Jennifer employed, let Athena regain the good graces of PARA, and get revenge on the evil Genevieve?
It is a delicious story.
Port Andrea is a wonderful setting. (And if you join Lily Seabrooke's mailing list, you can read What Makes a Moment, a subscriber-only novella set in that city.) The novels are independent - although characters are cross-mentioned: Fake it mentions Jennifer and Last Chance mentions Holly and Avery. The characters are wonderful and sympathetic.
The main characters are lovable. And the side characters - Parker, Misha, Flora, and even Louise - were hilarious and distinctive.
This novel was everything I had been hoping it would be.
Please, Lily Seabrooke, more Port Andrea!
Lily Seabrooke's "A Taste of Port Andrea" is a foodie romance series set in the culinary industry in the (fictional) eponymous city of Port Andrea. It's a decent sized city; Holly lives in a 30th-floor penthouse. Her TV show, "Kitchen Rescue" (similar to Restaurant: Impossible) is filmed in the city. Prestigious Foodie Magazine is published in that city. In Fake It, the first novel, Holly Mason is the aforementioned celebrity chef with a TV show and Avery Lindt is the founder of an upscale new restaurant in the fancy Southport district. In Last Chance, the second novel, just out a few days ago, Jennifer Allen is a writer for Foodie Magazine and Athena Walker is the founder of yet another upscale restaurant.
In both books, the restaurateur had previously been in Port Andrea five or so years earlier to have a go at a career in food, had failed at it, had fled (Avery to "home" and Athena to Chicago), and has now returned to give it another go. And in both novels, they had left an ex-girlfriend (Avery left Cecelia and Athena left Jennifer) who makes a significant appearance upon their return.
Fake It was a slow-burn "fake romance to friends to lovers" story. Last Chance is a "second chance at love" story.
In this book, Athena had been a manager at Genevieve Durant's "Silver Thread". When that restaurant had been hit by a scandal - the fault of, it seems, Athena - it closed, Athena was ejected from the Port Andrea Restaurateurs' Association, and barred from working with that organization every again. She slinks away, tail between her legs, works in Chicago, gaining skills and money and returns to Port Andrea to start a new restaurant, "Rose Bloom", in Garden Square.
Genevieve does not take this well. In the interim, she has clawed her way to position of Head Content Director at Foodie Magazine. It is time to (re)crush the pushy upstart. Athena is having a flashy event. Every day in November - all thirty of them - will have a new themed menu. Unheard of, but very bold - and attracting lots of attention. The solution: put talented writer Jennifer Allen onto it with the instructions to attend all thirty nights and to write scathingly critical reviews of the restaurant, regardless of reality. Focus exclusively on the flaws and ignore the good points, if any. She'll do it, of course; (carrot) if she succeeds, Senior Writer (stick) if she fails, pink slip.
Jennifer loathes the lack of journalistic ethics, but it's infinitely worse when she learns who runs the Rose Bloom: Athena was her girlfriend during her earlier stay in Port Andrea, whom she dumped after the scandal broke.
I'll leave the plot summary at that. Seems like neither character ever really fell out of love, but can they get back together, keep Jennifer employed, let Athena regain the good graces of PARA, and get revenge on the evil Genevieve?
It is a delicious story.
Port Andrea is a wonderful setting. (And if you join Lily Seabrooke's mailing list, you can read What Makes a Moment, a subscriber-only novella set in that city.) The novels are independent - although characters are cross-mentioned: Fake it mentions Jennifer and Last Chance mentions Holly and Avery. The characters are wonderful and sympathetic.
The main characters are lovable. And the side characters - Parker, Misha, Flora, and even Louise - were hilarious and distinctive.
This novel was everything I had been hoping it would be.
Please, Lily Seabrooke, more Port Andrea!
September 27, 2021
First let me get the absolute adoration for this love story off my chest. Athena is adorable, and made me laugh (if not anyone else) and I was rooting for her the whole book. Jennifer was calm cool and collected or so she wants you to think and I wanted to whack her upside the head...in the best way possible.
Now for the more serious review. Lily Seabrooke takes you back into the world of her food blessed city of Port Andrea for another great lesbian romance. We meet Athena, a brilliant chef who is making up for lost chances in her personal and professional life. Then there's Jennifer who seemingly has it all, the job, the promotion, and the girl. Spoiler she really really doesn't. These characters are the definition of opposites attract, their chemistry is a magnetic pull neither can resist and the way Seabrooke writes them trying to move forward has you yearning right alongside of the two useless lesbians. In an amazing lover to enemies to lovers romance you await the horrible outcome that will tear them apart and hold onto hope for how they can possible save themselves, usually from themselves the whole plot through. Not to mention the way Seabrooke lays out her setting, if I didn't know better I would assume Port Andrea should be next on my get-aways list and be writing down every restaurant to try while I am there. She brought this place to life and made you starving too.
And if you are here for the STEAM, let me assure you, you will need a fan because when things get hot in this book, no reader is safe from the incredible way these love scenes have been given to us, both in craft and plot- they scratch the itch for sure.
As I get over my book hangover from this wonderful romance I will be eating chocolate ice cream with gummy frogs, taste be damned!
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Now for the more serious review. Lily Seabrooke takes you back into the world of her food blessed city of Port Andrea for another great lesbian romance. We meet Athena, a brilliant chef who is making up for lost chances in her personal and professional life. Then there's Jennifer who seemingly has it all, the job, the promotion, and the girl. Spoiler she really really doesn't. These characters are the definition of opposites attract, their chemistry is a magnetic pull neither can resist and the way Seabrooke writes them trying to move forward has you yearning right alongside of the two useless lesbians. In an amazing lover to enemies to lovers romance you await the horrible outcome that will tear them apart and hold onto hope for how they can possible save themselves, usually from themselves the whole plot through. Not to mention the way Seabrooke lays out her setting, if I didn't know better I would assume Port Andrea should be next on my get-aways list and be writing down every restaurant to try while I am there. She brought this place to life and made you starving too.
And if you are here for the STEAM, let me assure you, you will need a fan because when things get hot in this book, no reader is safe from the incredible way these love scenes have been given to us, both in craft and plot- they scratch the itch for sure.
As I get over my book hangover from this wonderful romance I will be eating chocolate ice cream with gummy frogs, taste be damned!
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
September 28, 2021
Once again this book hits the spot for foodies and wine lovers. This time based in the cut throat backrooms of the restaurant industry.
Foodie Magazine critic Jennifer finds herself in a career changing situation - the huge carrot of senior writer dangled before her. Holding that carrot is Genevieve, the head content director. Okay, the assignment has a huge thorn - hatchet critique the 30 days of menus put up by Athena (co-incidentally Jennifer's ex) owner/chef of the new upstart restaurant Rose Bloom. So much history between the three women. I learned quite a bit about supply contracts, restaurant associations (i.e. PARA) and the power they wield as well as on the fly food prep all woven into this romance with a sparkling supporting cast in the mysterious Parker, Misha, Louise and the adorable Flora. This plot has it all, humor, burned exes, dastardly behavior, revenge, lovers to friends, wonderful descriptions of food/wine, sex, sabotage and the re-igniting of intense burning between leads Athena and Jennifer. When truths come to light, there's only one course of action to follow and I rooted for a HEA. On my re-read shelf. I easily recommend this book with 5 stars and eagerly anticipate meeting more of Port Andrea's diverse residents in the near future.
I rec'd a copy through Booksprout and this is a totally unbiased and voluntary review.
Foodie Magazine critic Jennifer finds herself in a career changing situation - the huge carrot of senior writer dangled before her. Holding that carrot is Genevieve, the head content director. Okay, the assignment has a huge thorn - hatchet critique the 30 days of menus put up by Athena (co-incidentally Jennifer's ex) owner/chef of the new upstart restaurant Rose Bloom. So much history between the three women. I learned quite a bit about supply contracts, restaurant associations (i.e. PARA) and the power they wield as well as on the fly food prep all woven into this romance with a sparkling supporting cast in the mysterious Parker, Misha, Louise and the adorable Flora. This plot has it all, humor, burned exes, dastardly behavior, revenge, lovers to friends, wonderful descriptions of food/wine, sex, sabotage and the re-igniting of intense burning between leads Athena and Jennifer. When truths come to light, there's only one course of action to follow and I rooted for a HEA. On my re-read shelf. I easily recommend this book with 5 stars and eagerly anticipate meeting more of Port Andrea's diverse residents in the near future.
I rec'd a copy through Booksprout and this is a totally unbiased and voluntary review.
February 9, 2023
After reading 'Fake It' last year, I really enjoyed returning to Port Andrea for another romantic restaurant battle. Because the world Lily Seabrooke creates is all wine-sampling and snowy walks though bougie brick streets, it really felt like going on some idyllic long weekend. The insanely likable resturanteur this time is Athena, a bubbly butch who won't let getting run out-of-town years ago crush her. This woman has such an amazing dynamic with literally everyone in the book. Yes, her ex-girlfriend turn restaurant critic Jennifer, but also her grumpy kitchen manager and her grumpy roommate (can't wait for these two to meet their sunshines in subsequent books!) I have to admit, Jennifer kinda drove me crazy for much of this book. Her consistent projections onto Athena of everything she fears in life (loss of control, not having a plan, etc) was a lot. But, as in the grand tradition of soap operas, this annoyance didn't particularly detract from my enjoyment of the book. There is a kind of hyper-reality to this series that really helps with the escapism - like how people under thirty with no evident family money or app developing skills are sole owners of high-end restaurants. But by paring this rarefied world with some very real, flawed, and beautifully developed character, the author has really found my sweet spot.
September 29, 2021
Another day, another Lily Seabrooke novel that I have absolutely adored. Seabrooke has been a safe harbor in the storm of the last few years, her books a calm place to find love and romance (and some delightful amount of steam). Not to mention her vivid description of food that will leave almost any reader hungry for more.
For this story, we once again return to Port Andrea (the setting of Seabrooke's previous novel, Fake It ), though this time it's to meet Jennifer Allen. Food writer and pizza snob (pepperoni is GOOD, darn it). She's strong-armed into covering the opening of a new restaurant, with a few fairly big catches. The first is that her boss wants her to drag the restaurant. Find what she can that's bad and blow it up so the new place has zero chance to succeed. The other catch? It's opened and being run by Athena Walker, Jennifer's ex.
I believe this is when we cue the wackiness ensuing, yes?
As much as I joke, this was a really heartfelt novel. We got to see two characters, still helplessly and hopelessly attached to one another, and how they deal with the past. We can see the breakup through a number of different lenses, and are so drawn in that the triumphs and occasional setbacks feel like our own. We're cheering for Athena, definitely hoping Genevieve gets what's coming to her, and silently praying that Jennifer sees how good she and Athena can be together.
The banter, sometimes witty and lovable, sometimes sharp and dangerous, is to die for, and the characters feel, for the most part, completely fleshed out. And PARKER. CAN WE TALK ABOUT PARKER? Regardless of whether or not the author meant to make her so, we all know that the secret protagonist for this novel is Parker.
Note: I received a complementary copy of this book via Booksprout and am leaving a voluntary review.
For this story, we once again return to Port Andrea (the setting of Seabrooke's previous novel, Fake It ), though this time it's to meet Jennifer Allen. Food writer and pizza snob (pepperoni is GOOD, darn it). She's strong-armed into covering the opening of a new restaurant, with a few fairly big catches. The first is that her boss wants her to drag the restaurant. Find what she can that's bad and blow it up so the new place has zero chance to succeed. The other catch? It's opened and being run by Athena Walker, Jennifer's ex.
I believe this is when we cue the wackiness ensuing, yes?
As much as I joke, this was a really heartfelt novel. We got to see two characters, still helplessly and hopelessly attached to one another, and how they deal with the past. We can see the breakup through a number of different lenses, and are so drawn in that the triumphs and occasional setbacks feel like our own. We're cheering for Athena, definitely hoping Genevieve gets what's coming to her, and silently praying that Jennifer sees how good she and Athena can be together.
The banter, sometimes witty and lovable, sometimes sharp and dangerous, is to die for, and the characters feel, for the most part, completely fleshed out. And PARKER. CAN WE TALK ABOUT PARKER? Regardless of whether or not the author meant to make her so, we all know that the secret protagonist for this novel is Parker.
Note: I received a complementary copy of this book via Booksprout and am leaving a voluntary review.
October 11, 2021
Jennifer and Athena
I loved this long culinary slow burn F/F romance. This is a great follow up to _Fake It_., and it ups the ante even more. Jennifer is blackmailed by a ruthless boss: write a certain article or lose her job. It doesn't help that the article is on her ex's restaurant. What makes this work is how Jennifer navigates her emotions in seeing and dealing with her ex again. Does time heal all wounds and will close proximity cause the two to fall in love again? The ruthless boss is a well-written secondary character whose complexity helps to make the book. The tension rises as it is clear that the desire to twist multiple lives to her direction and satisfaction is what makes the underlying conflict strong. I could not stop reading, if only to find out whether ruthlessness or a renewed romance would win. The steam between Jennifer and Athena is so hot that I found myself fanning off at times. Yum! I loved the twists, turns, and naturally, the FOOD! Oh, I was hungry and wanted to eat my way the book. I want Port Andrea to be a place I can visit now for some great dishes. This book does not disappoint and I especially found the ending quite satisfying.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I loved this long culinary slow burn F/F romance. This is a great follow up to _Fake It_., and it ups the ante even more. Jennifer is blackmailed by a ruthless boss: write a certain article or lose her job. It doesn't help that the article is on her ex's restaurant. What makes this work is how Jennifer navigates her emotions in seeing and dealing with her ex again. Does time heal all wounds and will close proximity cause the two to fall in love again? The ruthless boss is a well-written secondary character whose complexity helps to make the book. The tension rises as it is clear that the desire to twist multiple lives to her direction and satisfaction is what makes the underlying conflict strong. I could not stop reading, if only to find out whether ruthlessness or a renewed romance would win. The steam between Jennifer and Athena is so hot that I found myself fanning off at times. Yum! I loved the twists, turns, and naturally, the FOOD! Oh, I was hungry and wanted to eat my way the book. I want Port Andrea to be a place I can visit now for some great dishes. This book does not disappoint and I especially found the ending quite satisfying.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
February 6, 2022
Last Chance (full-length novel, 310 pages, bi MC, lesbian MC, second chance romance, opposites attracts). It is the 2nd book in the Port Andrea series (not counting the novella What Makes a Moment also set in that world).
A food critic and a restaurant owner clash over broken hearts. 6 years ago one of them made a mistake and was booted out of her job, her GF broke up with her and she had to flee town. Now she’s back, opening the best and most outrageous restaurant in town. She’s betting all she has on this place and the food critic is out to write the worst review ever, hoping it will drive her out of town again. But the food is too good and her heart flutters again for the lovely chef-restaurateur. The chef, meanwhile, is surrounded by the best supporting characters (which I really hope will get their own book, or even a novella) who add lots of humor to the story and encourage the re-awakened feelings.
The banter between the MCs is funny, they talk like an old married couple, they remember everything about each other and they have their own language, repeated phrases and jokes. I could really relate to that. It was, as one MC likes to say, Super-Amazing!
Content warning: do not read hungry! Otherwise, prepare a snack in advance. This book contains seriously delicious descriptions of food, wine, desserts, coffee, and it is an absolute culinary celebration. I loved it!
To conclude: The chef cooks from the heart and the food critic describes the food and you know she listened with her heart. Like I said - super amazing :)
A food critic and a restaurant owner clash over broken hearts. 6 years ago one of them made a mistake and was booted out of her job, her GF broke up with her and she had to flee town. Now she’s back, opening the best and most outrageous restaurant in town. She’s betting all she has on this place and the food critic is out to write the worst review ever, hoping it will drive her out of town again. But the food is too good and her heart flutters again for the lovely chef-restaurateur. The chef, meanwhile, is surrounded by the best supporting characters (which I really hope will get their own book, or even a novella) who add lots of humor to the story and encourage the re-awakened feelings.
The banter between the MCs is funny, they talk like an old married couple, they remember everything about each other and they have their own language, repeated phrases and jokes. I could really relate to that. It was, as one MC likes to say, Super-Amazing!
Content warning: do not read hungry! Otherwise, prepare a snack in advance. This book contains seriously delicious descriptions of food, wine, desserts, coffee, and it is an absolute culinary celebration. I loved it!
To conclude: The chef cooks from the heart and the food critic describes the food and you know she listened with her heart. Like I said - super amazing :)
May 20, 2022
Screwball Success 💕
To begin with, throughout reading this very well constructed novel, I felt like I was reading the final draft of a 1930’s screwball comedy, that would attract the attention of Hollywood’s highest paid comedic actors.
In a way, the sarcasm and one liners are so good that they take away from your realization that this a very good novel that deals with simple concepts such as honesty, self respect, fear of being alone, and the persistent belief that there is that one special person out there who is our perfect mate 💕
Not only is this a top both house here story, filled with intrigue, deception, a real villain, moral decisions and bearing their consequences, this is a top notch love story filled with unique characters and the ability to see the world through a number of pairs of glasses belonging to a team of unique characters.
You will fall sleep in love with Parker and Misha and so many others.
Lastly, I need to thank our author for providing me with one of the hottest and hilarious public sex scenes I have ever read.
I loved this book. Thank you Lily for your gift to my library.
♥️😘
To begin with, throughout reading this very well constructed novel, I felt like I was reading the final draft of a 1930’s screwball comedy, that would attract the attention of Hollywood’s highest paid comedic actors.
In a way, the sarcasm and one liners are so good that they take away from your realization that this a very good novel that deals with simple concepts such as honesty, self respect, fear of being alone, and the persistent belief that there is that one special person out there who is our perfect mate 💕
Not only is this a top both house here story, filled with intrigue, deception, a real villain, moral decisions and bearing their consequences, this is a top notch love story filled with unique characters and the ability to see the world through a number of pairs of glasses belonging to a team of unique characters.
You will fall sleep in love with Parker and Misha and so many others.
Lastly, I need to thank our author for providing me with one of the hottest and hilarious public sex scenes I have ever read.
I loved this book. Thank you Lily for your gift to my library.
♥️😘
December 27, 2023
Once again, the characters and their banter just killed it. To the point that the plot almost didn’t matter; I get the feeling I could read about them going about their daily lives and laugh my way through it. Not just Jen and Athena, but Parker and Misha as well. And not that Louise and Flora weren’t great, it was just in other ways.
But then, the story was great too, with a number of things going on; Jen trying to satisfy both her boss and her girlfriend while navigating forced proximity to her ex; Athena trying to make her restaurant succeed against an array of opposition; Parker busy hiding what exactly she does with her life; Louise trying to score a big promotion; Misha trying to verbally beat some sense into everybody around her. There were plenty of moving parts and they just all… worked. And while it was often laugh out loud funny, the serious parts — tough decisions and breakups and revisiting major life choices — went well too. If I could have Parker randomly bump into me in an ice cream shop to talk me through every life problem, I’d die happy.
I don’t know what else to say besides I’m definitely sticking with the series.
But then, the story was great too, with a number of things going on; Jen trying to satisfy both her boss and her girlfriend while navigating forced proximity to her ex; Athena trying to make her restaurant succeed against an array of opposition; Parker busy hiding what exactly she does with her life; Louise trying to score a big promotion; Misha trying to verbally beat some sense into everybody around her. There were plenty of moving parts and they just all… worked. And while it was often laugh out loud funny, the serious parts — tough decisions and breakups and revisiting major life choices — went well too. If I could have Parker randomly bump into me in an ice cream shop to talk me through every life problem, I’d die happy.
I don’t know what else to say besides I’m definitely sticking with the series.
August 2, 2023
I loved this so much!! Athena is a delicious and free-spirited soft butch who was forced out of Port Andrea six years ago. When she returns with wild and passionate ideas about a new restaurant, Rose Bloom, everyone in the city is keen to see what happens.
Jennifer is a writer for a well-known food magazine, and is tasked with writing up a smear campaign to force Athena back out. Jennifer's boss is the one responsible for forcing Athena out in the first place. But Athena is Jennifer's ex-girlfriend, and she never truly stopped loving her...
A well-written second chance romance. I loved Athena, she was so freaking sweet and I loved her sense of humour (don't listen to Jen or Misha; she is hilarious!) I loved the comedy throughout the book, as well as the fantastic navigation of Jen and Louise's relationship. Someone definitely gets their comeuppance, and it's soooo satisfying.
A brilliant (that means super amazing) story and my favourite of Lily's (so far!)
Jennifer is a writer for a well-known food magazine, and is tasked with writing up a smear campaign to force Athena back out. Jennifer's boss is the one responsible for forcing Athena out in the first place. But Athena is Jennifer's ex-girlfriend, and she never truly stopped loving her...
A well-written second chance romance. I loved Athena, she was so freaking sweet and I loved her sense of humour (don't listen to Jen or Misha; she is hilarious!) I loved the comedy throughout the book, as well as the fantastic navigation of Jen and Louise's relationship. Someone definitely gets their comeuppance, and it's soooo satisfying.
A brilliant (that means super amazing) story and my favourite of Lily's (so far!)
September 29, 2021
The thing I love about starting a new Lily Seabrooke book is that I know it is going to be a cute story leaving me feeling a warm glow inside. Set in the world of restaurants, food and food critics, this story highlighted that not everything is black and white and therefore cannot be taken at face value.
I warmed to the two main characters, Jennifer and Athena, instantly and was cheering them on to find more than what they'd had 6 years ago. Trying to pretend to hate each other wears them out so much they seem unable to fight the magnetism that keeps drawing them together.
The supporting characters were intriguing and funny and fit right in with the tone of the book.
Another winner from this talented author for sure!
I warmed to the two main characters, Jennifer and Athena, instantly and was cheering them on to find more than what they'd had 6 years ago. Trying to pretend to hate each other wears them out so much they seem unable to fight the magnetism that keeps drawing them together.
The supporting characters were intriguing and funny and fit right in with the tone of the book.
Another winner from this talented author for sure!
September 26, 2021
Parker, the star of this book. I'm not even kidding when I say this. But really, the entire story was absolutely lovely, heartbreaking, and the MCs were brilliant. At first I didn't really know who I liked more of the two, and now that I'm done, I still can't tell. I went back and forth and I just love them both. As well as Parker, Louise and Misha. Because it's impossible not to love all the characters in this book. Okay maybe all but one of them. I loved how easy this story was to read without lacking depth. I secretly wish I could forget everything about it just so I could read it again for the first time.
May 5, 2022
The Taste of The World
Athena has the month to make a success of her new restaurant in Port Andrea. Driven from the city six years ago by a vengeful boss whose restaurant failed she’s bet everything on this chance. Jennifer is a writer for Foodie Magazine and her ex. The editor is Athena’s former boss whose determined to drive her out of town forever. Will love be able to finally triumph over evil? A steamy and sexy butch woman her staff leap into thirty days of menus. Great series.
Athena has the month to make a success of her new restaurant in Port Andrea. Driven from the city six years ago by a vengeful boss whose restaurant failed she’s bet everything on this chance. Jennifer is a writer for Foodie Magazine and her ex. The editor is Athena’s former boss whose determined to drive her out of town forever. Will love be able to finally triumph over evil? A steamy and sexy butch woman her staff leap into thirty days of menus. Great series.
December 30, 2023
The first book in this series was just kind of okay for whatever reason despite it being the one I was the most excited about because transbiens, but this one really hit for me. Maybe I'm an enemies to lovers girlie despite that not being something I think about myself? I just loved the way they talked about food with each other and the way both of them were still pining after one another - so gay. I loved it. I love that I always have this series to go back to if I want a sapphic foodie romance that I know is going to be cozy and cute.
September 15, 2021
Lily Seabrooke is one of those authors that are a guarantee, like your favourite restaurant where no matter what you order you know you're going to love it and Last Chance is further proof of that. The book is cute and funny and flirty and I loved every page. I loved that Athena and Jen have such great banter, humour makes everything better and Lily nailed it this book.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
February 17, 2022
Good book
As Jen is up for senior writer which is her dream job, she is given an alternative by her boss to write a bad review of the up and coming new restaurant Rose Bloom or be fired. When Jen find out the new owner is her ex. Up for the challenge and to see why a the a has come back to Port Andrea. A lovely story of great food, wine and desert. See if second chances are really worth it.
As Jen is up for senior writer which is her dream job, she is given an alternative by her boss to write a bad review of the up and coming new restaurant Rose Bloom or be fired. When Jen find out the new owner is her ex. Up for the challenge and to see why a the a has come back to Port Andrea. A lovely story of great food, wine and desert. See if second chances are really worth it.
July 2, 2023
Last Chance by Lily Seabrooke is a wonderfully witty and charming second chance, enemies to lovers romance set in her Port Andrea restaurant world. Food plays a critical part in both the plot and the relationship between Jennifer and Athena. This book is really well written and thankfully avoids many of the cliched pitfalls of the genre. The food descriptions are as steamy as the chemistry between the two main characters, who are supported by a delightful cast of secondary characters.
April 2, 2025
It was better than I expected.
A compelling story with a sweet romance.
Athena and Jennifer, two forces of nature fit together somehow perfectly.
Athena, that wild-eyed girl carefree and Jennifer with that controlling personality.
Their history and their longing so beautiful.
Loved their banter and some really cute rom-com moments.
Looking forward to Parker and Misha's story.
A compelling story with a sweet romance.
Athena and Jennifer, two forces of nature fit together somehow perfectly.
Athena, that wild-eyed girl carefree and Jennifer with that controlling personality.
Their history and their longing so beautiful.
Loved their banter and some really cute rom-com moments.
Looking forward to Parker and Misha's story.
September 27, 2021
I love second chances in romance, this one was no different. Jennifer never loved anyone the way she loved Athena, so she could never let herself open up to anyone else.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
November 26, 2021
What a beautiful story
Great storyline and loveable characters. Ms Seabtooke does it again. Can't wait for the next one. Going to check for anything I haven't already read by her right now.
Great storyline and loveable characters. Ms Seabtooke does it again. Can't wait for the next one. Going to check for anything I haven't already read by her right now.
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