Sizzle in the kitchen
Katrina Kwan’s romance is set in the high-stakes world of fine dining.
September 19th, 2024
Katrina Kwan is a Chinese-Canadian author and actress. She lives in Vancouver.
In this spicy workplace romance, a hotheaded celebrity chef and his bubbly new hire clash, and spark unexpected love.
Review by Senuri Wasalathanthri
Picture this: It’s been a long week. And you’ve been looking forward to coming home on Friday evening, having a long, hot bath, cooking or ordering in your favorite comfort meal and getting under the blankets with a good book that will make you blush, laugh, catch your breath and your toes curl. Well, I can confidently say that Katrina Kwan’s debut novel, Knives, Seasoning and a Dash of Love (Penguin Random House $24.95) would be a great companion for such a relaxing, yet steamy night in.
Meet Eden Monroe, a chef with the gift of being able to pick up intricate cooking skills by observing others and an unparalleled palette that helps her easily identify missing ingredients that can make a good dish great. However, she holds a dark secret that makes her desperate to raise a substantial amount of money within a short period of time. It leads Eden to embellish her resume and apply for a sous chef position at one of the most prestigious French Haute cuisine restaurants—La Rouge.
The book jacket of Knives, Seasoning and a Dash of Love
Here’s where the excitement is ratcheted up a notch. Eden meets Alexander Chen, a talented chef who earned La Rouge three Michelin Stars. At the time she applied, Eden didn’t realize that she already knew Alexander from many years ago, back when he went by his real name, Shang. Eden and Shang (Alexander) had both enrolled the same year at the Gagnon-Allard School of Culinary Arts, but Eden was forced to drop out because her caretaker at the time gambled all their money away.
Alexander, now a famous chef, doesn’t seem to remember Eden, and Eden aims to keep it that way, so that he won’t know she lied to get the La Rouge job. But things don’t quite work that way.
Alexander is captivated by Eden from the beginning, as her mannerisms don’t fit the profile of an experienced sous chef, and her leadership style is the complete opposite of how he runs his kitchen. While he bears down his employees like a scary “Gordon Ramsay” during service, Eden showers them with compliments and is the first to give others a helping hand. Yet the two are completely smitten with each other. “He likes her more than he cares to admit,” writes Kwan. “He hadn’t realized until now, but seeing her every day at work is a breath of fresh air. She makes it easier on him. Makes him give a shit.” Thus begins their fiery romance, with Eden constantly surprising Alexander and taking him out of his comfort zone, and Alexander’s kind-hearted nature (even though he tries his absolute best to subdue it) warming Eden’s heart.
Their romance progresses like wildfire, with heat, passion and sexual tension radiating between them. With that, their personal lives become intertwined, and Eden and Alexander are forced to navigate the secrets they both harbor and the weight of the troubled pasts they both carry—threatening the security of their relationship. To make things worse, their colleague, Hector, is hell bent on getting Eden fired, as he is adamant that he deserved Eden’s job. In one scene, Hector is caught red handed, attempting to get Eden in trouble: “Eden stalks to the walk-in and shuts the door behind her, effectively trapping Hector inside. She’s caught him standing in between two of the produce shelves, one hand holding onto the cilantro in question, while the other is about to dump an entire handful of salt on top of the garnish. It’s an act of sabotage.”
Also, Sebastian, the slimy, scheming owner of La Rouge is looming over Alexander constantly, pressuring him to do work he has no interest in.
Are Eden and Alexander strong enough to survive once their secrets are out in the open? Can they come to terms with their own personal insecurities and struggles that are hurting one another? Kwan answers all these questions effortlessly as the story builds.
This book has everything a hopeless romantic could ever dream of—adequate levels of romance, spice, tension, and emotional twists and turns that make you want to keep turning page after page. Kwan also touches on the importance of healing scars from our past, realizing one’s worth, and not giving up during difficult times, because “Love doesn’t pick and choose.”
9781039012417
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Senuri Wasalathanthri is a Vancouver based publishing assistant, writer and student. Her uncle, Edward Mallawaarachchi is a bestselling Sinhalese romance author in Sri Lanka.
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