I loved this book so much. Between the cooking, the yearning, and the characters who have so much going on in their heads, Anita Kelly hit a lot of my happy buttons. Love and Other Disasters will probably be on a lot of best of lists and most anticipated lists next year. So, plan your pre-orders accordingly.
London and Dahlia have been selected to be contestants on a tv cooking competition show for home cooks (not professionals). There is a substantial monetary prize, and for each of them it would make a big difference in their lives. Dahlia is recently divorced and struggling with the guilt she feels about her failed marriage. London is about to introduce themselves to the world as non-binary. Dahlia thinks London looks interesting and tries to strike up a conversation. London is initially irritated by Dahlia and her hair, and then fascinated.
They strike up a friendship and then a romantic relationship as the reality competition swirls around them. Other people bump into their world, but Kelly keeps it largely focused on Dahlia and London. It felt like a comfy chair in a cozy nook.
Heat levels can be tough to convey and what’s hot is so subjective. The emotion that Kelly conveys in her romantic scenes felt so intimate and steamy to me. London and Dahlia are so sweet and tender with each other, and they come into the relationship so bruised from the world that I could feel the exquisite pain of being touched lovingly.
Anita Kelley has two other books out right now that I’ve heard good things about, Sing Anyway and Our Favorite Songs. I’m so glad I have a little bit of a backlist to dive into because I loved their writing and I want more of it.
I received this as an advance reader copy from the publisher via NetGalley. My opinions are my own.