From the publisher:
These childhood best friends swore they’d never speak again. But a surprise summer reunion changes everything when it gives them the chance to turn up the heat.
Effie Olsen thought she’d never live on the tiny Maine island where she grew up, but she’s returning from sixteen years as a professional chef in far-flung countries for one summer and one summer only. Her hometown boasts one of the best restaurants in the US, and lucky for her, Brown Butter needs a sous chef. Effie’s eager for a chance at redemption after her last job went up in flames, but reluctant to set down roots in a place that reminds her of the ghosts of her past.
Until, that is, she runs into Ernie Callahan, her onetime best friend who now works in the very same restaurant. Early morning swims and late-night games of truth or dare with Ernie remind her of what she’s been missing while traveling the world. He knows her better than anyone, and it doesn’t hurt that his smile lights her up brighter than the lighthouses dotting the craggy coastline.
But their restaurant has a secret that’s bursting at the seams, and if Effie doesn’t keep it, her job will vanish into the foggy Maine air. As summer draws to a close, her dream job and the perfect guy are both within reach. Her salty seaside hometown might be the key to Effie’s sweet ending…if she can learn to let her heart lead the way in time.“A much less intense version of The Bear, but with all the same familial bonds and restaurant drama. Bilow, a classically trained chef and food writer, serves up a full dish of romance, humor, and meaty plot, with a perfect portion of sexiness on the side.”—Library Journal (starred review)
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“Bilow’s sweet and summery sophomore outing delivers a tender second-chance romance…Bilow slowly turns up the heat on the central romance as the protagonists try and fail to stifle their feelings. Readers will have no trouble seeing that these two belong together.”—Publisher’s Weekly
The Brown Butter restaurant on a tiny island off the Maine Coast has earned one Michelin star. It’s a completely local, farm to table type restaurant, with all the ingredients sourced from the island and Maine itself. Or is it?
Effie left the tiny island as soon as she graduated high school, then went to culinary school and traveled the world, working in a variety of restaurants. She finally landed her dream job as head chef at a fine dining restaurant in San Francisco, but she is completely overwhelmed by all her new responsibilities. Six months in, she gets fired. Completely broke, her father buys her a ticket home, and she moves back into her childhood bedroom. She gets a lucky break when the Brown Butter is in need of a sous chef. She applies and gets the job. After the interview, she goes drinking with Jarrod, the head chef who hired her, and wakes up the next morning half-naked with no memory of the previous night. Jarrod reassures her that nothing happened. Wandering his apartment above the restaurant, she is surprised to see he has a deep freezer. When she opens it, it is full of monkfish. That was my first inkling that trouble was afoot.
Turns out that Jarrod is a nightmare of a boss. He is rude, condescending, and misogynistic, and those are his better qualities. Screaming at the staff is his favorite pastime, or maybe it’s hitting on the wait staff. Effie had only planned to stay for the summer and get back on her feet, so she tries not to get involved. But she can’t help herself. She then gains more insight into what is really happening in the restaurant when Jarrod shows off some Italian truffles. When she questions how they are going to serve a product from Italy in their 100% locally sourced restaurant, he bites her head off and she backs down. That is just the beginning of that issue, however.
One of her co-workers is Ernie, whom she grew up with. They were best friends for most of her life, but as high school graduation approaches, Ernie tells Effie that he loves her, and she freaks out. The friendship is ruined, and they don’t speak for the next sixteen years until Effie moves back. To her surprise, Ernie is as kind to her as he ever was, and he’s grown up to be a really good-looking man. Her attraction surprises her, but as they learn to be friends again, she keeps that in check. They decide to spend their Mondays off together, revisiting many of the places they loved in their youth. Things start getting a bit flirtatious, but Ernie knows she is leaving at the end of the summer. It took him years to get over her when she left the first time, and he has no desire to revisit that kind of pain again.
This is a second chance, small-town, friends-to-lovers romance, and the restaurant setting was just a bonus for me. Apparently, the author is a trained chef and food writer, so the kitchen stuff really rings true. Fans of the TV series, The Bear, will love that aspect; I know I did. This was a compelling romance with great characters I couldn’t help but root for. I missed this author’s first couple of books, but I will be hunting them down. Don’t miss this one!
4/2024 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch
EFFIE OLSEN’S SUMMER SPECIAL by Rochelle Bilow. Berkley (April 30, 2024). ISBN: 978-0593547908. 384p.
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