I LOVED this book! Salty, Bitter, Sweet tackled so many issues, but it never felt like it was trying to take on too much. It can be easy for a book that discusses multiple issues (cultural differences, family struggles, loss, etc) to get lost trying to deal with all of them, but Mayra Cuevas succeeded in this.

There is tension between Isa and her father after she witnesses him kissing a woman that isn't her mother, and this spirals into a divorce and him marrying another woman. Isa moves in with him while she is apprenticing to be a chef. Throw in an odd/awkward romance between her and her stepmother's stepson, and this is practically a soap opera. And I lived for it. It was a page-turner because of the drama, and the other issues it conquered fell into place in between the central family issues.

This is certainly a book I will revisit. I should add a few CWs: ableism, death, colorism/racism, addiction

Warning: this book will make you hungry!

Isabella Fields is an aspiring chef whose life has fallen apart after her parents' divorce and the death of her Cuban grandmother. She moves in with her father and his heavily pregnant wife on their farm in France, mostly because the farm is only a half hour ride away from a famous chef's restaurant and Isabella managed to secure a prestigious and highly competitive apprenticeship in his kitchen. Dreaming of Michelin stars, Isabella blindly focuses on her cooking, hoping it will take her mind off of everything else in her life. But a cute Spanish guy and his adorable dog may make her see there's more to life than Michelin stars.

This was a beautiful coming-of-age story featuring a teenage girl who can be a bit unlikeable. It was a little bit slow to get into at first. Once the apprenticeship started however, the story just flew by, tackling issues like complicated family dynamics, love, grief and how much to sacrifice for one's dream. Although this is a story about a seventeen-year-old, at times it felt like the character was written slightly older.

The descriptions of the locations and the food were exquisite, I could almost see myself sitting in the cherry orchard eating one of Isabella's magnificent creations. And there is plenty of nuance in the discussions about what to sacrifice for one's career. It's made obvious on more than one occasion that what's right for one person doesn't necessarily work for another person, but that what matters most is if you're happy with your choice. An excellent message for teenagers to hear!

An interesting and entertaining story that will make you hungry.
I liked the well thought cast of characters, the vivid descriptions of the places, the romance, and the plot that flows.
A good read, recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

Isa is the only American who got accepted to a prestigious French cooking competition for teenage chefs. However, the pressure she faces makes her wonder whether she has what it takes. Her father’s new wife pregnancy, his wife’s stepson, and a tough teacher complicates things. Cuevas does a good job in showing some of the things Isa is struggling with, whether it’s mourning her grandmother, trying to make sense of the breakup of her parent’s marriage, or trying to live up to the expectations of her cooking teacher. The pressures of the competition quickly gets to her, making her question her cooking abilities. Her relationships with her family and fellow friends is one of the book’s strengths. What doesn’t work quite as well is her romance with her mother’s stepson, Diego. While they share a nice rapport with each, it feels more friendly than romantic until the point of the book which forces them together. Interestingly, the theme of the book is not what the reader would expect at the start of the book. There are a lot of similarities between this book and With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo. Fans of Sarah Dessen and John Green might also like this book.

As someone who enjoys cooking, I found this book to be fascinating. It had a bit of everything and never failed to keep my attention.
I also loved how Isa had flashbacks to her time with her grandmother, Lala.
Romance is just weird when it it between step-siblings. Just don't. Please. Snake Eyes would have been a good possibility :-} (I mean, he didn't seem bad at all. I honestly don't know how he earned the nickname.)
However, there was some language and suggestive comments that would have been better left out.
Rating: 4 Stars
Content: 3 Stars
*I received a complimentary copy of this novel from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own and a positive review was not required.

This book is delicious and so relatable to anyone who has ever been through heartbreak and the growth that comes from it. I would recommend this to anyone who likes contemporary romance and loves a saucy storyline

I received this ARC through Netgalley. Opinions are my own. I enjoyed the cooking aspects of the book the most. I liked the view we got into the world of high-end dining and the progress to becoming a chef. I enjoyed the camaraderie between Isa and the other female chefs in her class. The synopsis left out information about Diego that I would've liked to know because that negatively affected my view of the romance between him and Isa. Based on reading other reviews, most reviewers didn't have this issue.

Salty, Bitter, Sweet is a wonderfully nuanced coming of age story that will definitely leave you hungry! It also features a prickly young heroine who, among other things, finds love. I suspect some mixed or
negative reviews will be due to this "unlikeable" (but realistic?) teen girl character. Prickly girls need love too guys! Honestly, this was little slow to get into, but it really crept up on me and I ended up loving it. It tackles complicated family dynamics, grief, love, identity, and learning to balance what is and isn't worth sacrificing for the career that you want. It really feels like a book for teens and I hope many of them read it. This is #ownvoices for the Latinx representation.

Isabella is and aspiring chef of mixed identity, finding herself at the intersection of Cuban, American, and French. She is in France competing for a highly coveted culinary apprenticeship, while also dealing with the loss of her Cuban grandmother, the end of her parents marriage, and the imminent arrival of a new half-sibling born to her fathers mistress turned new wife. Isa is a culinary perfectionist, determined to win the sole spot in the apprenticeship, but the arrival of Diego, a very handsome yet frustrating boy (the son of her step-mom's ex-husband, in case things weren't complicated enough) throws a wrench in some of her plans.

Isa is incredibly dedicated to her work in the kitchen, but slowly awakens to the realities of highly competitive, Michillin starred kitchens and must grapple with whether the pressure of being at the top is really what she wants for herself. Throughout the story we also learn more about her relationship with her (wonderful) abuela and the importance of food and recipes to her family history and sense of community. The food descriptions are often mouthwatering, but are also deeply rooted in culture, love, and community. It's incredibly rich, much like all of the French desserts that I am now dying to try!

I love the nuanced discussion here of deciding what is really important to you and what you are willing to sacrifice. And there aren't black and white answers. What might be right for Isa isn't necessarily right for another character. I also loved how this brings in an issue that is too rarely discussed with young people- the difficulty of having work/life balance in high-pressure careers. We meet a side character who had been a top ranked chef with her own restaurant who had to re-evaluate her career when she had her first child. She didn't abandon it, but the realities of motherhood did necessitate some degree of shifting priorities so that she could keep her sense of joy in both career and family. I don't know that teens are always prepared for how true to life that will be when they grow up under such pressure to achieve and be the best. I applaud the author for tackling this in such a practical way.

I could go on, but suffice to say that I think this book is well worth picking up. It is very self-aware and has a lot to unpack. Isa certainly isn't perfect, but she has a clear arc of growth and I can definitely relate to having been a more difficult teenager who needed to develop greater empathy. I received an advance copy of this book for review. All opinions are my own.

CW include divorce, discussions of parental infidelity, high-risk delivery scare with stepmother's pregnancy.

•I am so glad I stumbled upon this book! I love cooking shows and everything related to food, so reading a book with a protagonist who's an aspiring chef seemed really interesting to me. Imagine how delighted how was when certain scenes about cooking delicious desserts came into the pages of the book? The addition of a beautiful European landscape on the background created an amazing bookish recipe for me. Mayra Cuevas' writing style was really mesmerizing. The way she described different places of Europe in the storyline made me feel like I had been travelling with the characters too! France is one of my dream places to visit someday, and after reading Salty, Bitter, Sweet, I wish to go there even more than before.
•Now, let's talk about the characters.
Isa was a complex character, which is acceptable due to her complicated family history. I wanted to hug her a lot of times throughout the story because of how cruelly life treated her at times. Apart from that, her passion for the culinary arts was really inspiring. Her character development made me really happy and proud. One of my favorite parts of the book was seeing her bloom into the best version of herself. She taught me that being afraid is okay, as long as you choose the right thing for yourself in the end.
•The romance was ummm...kinda weird because of how the guy came into the story. I really wish the author chose a different route to introducing Diego in the plot. The romantic part of the book would have been perfect then. That being said, I really loved Diego as a character. He was a really sweet guy! I loved how he cared for Isa and how he played an important role on taking Isa through the right path ~ a path filled with happiness in her life. 😊
• The other side characters, specially Isa's friends Lucia and Pippa were really likable too! The way they supported Isa was really heart-warming.
• Isa's relationship with her Abuela, her grandmother I mean, was my absolute favorite part of Salty, Bitter, Sweet! I loved the intricate pattern in which the author showed how Abuela shaped Isa's passion for cooking through flashbacks and their connections to Isa's present life. It made me really emotional a lot of times too.
• I really wish Isa's mom was mentioned more in the book. It would have been meaningful considering how much she inspired Isa. Their relationship was a missing part of the book sadly. I wanted to know more about them.
• The storyline is filled with important life teachings throughout the book. I really liked the learning aspect of Salty, Bitter, Sweet. The author's love for food was clearing expressed in the book, and that made the story a whole lot enjoyable. Overall, this book was really good read!
Best wishes to the author. 💛

I've gotten hooked on food books recently. The description for Mayra Cuevas's ,"Salty, Bitter, Sweet" intrigued me, so of course I requested it from NetGalley. I was NOT disappointed in the book.
Isabella wants nothing more to be a top chef with a restaurant and Michelin stars of her own. Attending an elite class with a dozen of teenagers from around the world, she plans to impress the owner with her skills and win a year-long apprenticeship. Of course, it cannot be that simple. Not only does she struggle in the kitchen, her life at home with her father and his new (second) wife and her teenage son, Diego, is not a piece of cake either.
Cuevas balances Isa's time in the restaurant kitchen and with her family, both in the present day and in flashbacks, well. Isabella is thoroughly fleshed out, and though a bit immature at times, she's a real person that keeps you interested in the story. I had trouble stopping reading to go to work or do things around the house. A definite read if you enjoy food or a good story-especially one that takes place in Europe.

Isabella wants to be a Michelin star chef and will do anything to be the best. But with family turmoil and loss, she finds that maybe she isn't as great of a chef as she thought as she starts an exclusive training opportunity at a top French restaurant. Isa will have to overcome self doubt and competition to trust herself and decide what she really wants in life.
I really enjoyed the characters in this book and the slow-burn romance. This story will leave you hungry for more.

A nice little YA novel about realising what you’ve worked hard towards might not be what you want after all. Isabella is fighting to win an apprenticeship in a world class restaurant whilst coming to terms with her parents divorce and grandmothers death. There’s a lot of issues going on in the background - the aftermath of her father cheating in her mother, her relationship with her new stepmother, her friendships and rivalries with her fellow chefs, and of course, a boy. Ultimately it’s all these sub plots that let the book down as we touch on them all so briefly it’s hard to get really invested in their resolutions. I really enjoyed her experiences with the apprenticeship and look into behind the scenes at Michalen starred restaurants.

I had high hopes for this book. It seemed like the kind of thing I would fall into and yet I found myself a little disappointed.

My main issue is that for the majority of the book, I didn't really like Isa as a character. I kept waiting for her to become more likable and yet, there were very few scenes that I actually liked her in.

The pacing felt a little slow, while not a lot seemed to be happening.

I feel like this book had a lot of potential but fell a little short. Had it been a little more fleshed out with a bit more depth to the characters. I think I would have enjoyed it a lot more.

As it stands, I liked few parts of it and like I said, the story had a lot of potentail.

I'd give it a 2.5/5.

Salty, Bitter, Sweet:

Is a YA contemporary #OwnVoices novel written by CNN producer Mayra CuevasFeatures a Latina main character who is trilingualIs inspired by the author’s relationships with food and familyExplores complicated family dynamics and relatable themes of friendship, acceptance, and learning to care for yourself.

Salty, Bitter, Sweet was a very moving read, which themes concerning the loss of a loved one which inspired the main character to pursue her dream of becoming a chef. I thought this was quite a slow read, although it was still enjoyable and I do enjoy a book with diversity and character struggles rather than cis white characters with privilege.

Thank you Netgalley for sending me a pre-release copy of this book.

I do love how this novel has the main theme of cooking but it also unpacks another can of worms within the novel that I do think weren’t really selves into as much because there was so much to discuss.
I will admit though and this is a spoiler
Was a bit of an odd choice for Isa and Diego to get together, like I knew it was going to happen, however, whilst not incestuous, Diego is Isa’s Step Mother’s Step Son from her first marriage. So still family???

Salty Bitter Sweet is a moving, introspective, and DELICIOUS read! It’s about Isa, a French-Cuban American girl who speaks three languages and is a talented cook who grew up learning her grandma Lala’s recipes, like her county fair famous apple pie.

What I loved about this book is that Isa isn’t a plain white girl who thinks she’s better than everyone because she has talent in the kitchen. Ugh what a cliche. Isa is French-Cuban and works damn hard to be a good cook and baker. She toils hard in the kitchen to make sure she gets the recipes correctly. She doesn’t think she’s the best cook there is, but she wants to be the best she can be. I liked that it didn’t just come easily to her. I always hate when main characters are talented but don’t work hard to be good at their talent. That’s not to say she isn’t talented though because Isa is enrolled at a renowned and competitive kitchen apprenticeship.

Isa works hard in the kitchen due to the fact that her life has gone through some serious changes recently: her grandma Lala passing away, her parents getting divorced, and now her dad is having a kid with her new stepmom. It would be tough for any teen to deal with, so it makes sense that Isa turns to cooking.

I like Isa as a character because she works hard at cooking, she’s friendly and kind, cares deeply for people, and thinks a lot about the past and the things she would’ve done differently. Despite the upheaval of her life courtesy of her dad and her new stepmom not warming to Isa (and vice versa), Isa still cooks for her dad and her new stepmom. She isn’t a grumpy, moody teenager. She takes the steps to be there for her dad and be kind to her stepmom.

And Diego! OMG! I liked him right from the get-go! Yes, he’s Isa’s stepmom’s stepson, (that’s a mouthful!) but it isn’t creepy or weird at all. Isa and Diego aren’t related and don’t even live in the same house. Diego, and his cute dog Beluga, lives in the guest house. He’s fun and adventurous and kind and he’s there for Isa.

And the FOOD! I wanted everything that Isa cooked or ate throughout the book, from her grandma Lala’s apple pies to the foods she tortured over at the apprenticeship to the bakery goods she ate with Pippa and Lucia to the meals she shared with Diego. *drool*

A few minor things I didn’t like: that it seemed like the tension between Isa and her dad never really got resolved. Their relationship got better with time, but she was so hung up about why he left her mom and that was never resolved. Or at least to me it didn’t seem like it. And why was her mom barely in this book? No phone calls or texts or visits. She went to visit her mom once and it was so quick. It was just weird to me.

I really enjoyed reading this and seeing what it’s like to be a chef apprentice and compete again other talented cooks in France. It was moving and fun and made me want to eat all the things!

Seventeen-year-old aspiring chef Isabella Fields’ family life has fallen apart after the death of her Cuban abuela and the divorce of her parents. She moves in with her dad and his new wife in France, where Isabella feels like an outsider in her father’s new life, studiously avoiding the awkward, “Why did you cheat on Mom?” conversation. The upside of Isabella’s world being turned upside down? Her father’s house is located only 30 minutes away from the restaurant of world-famous Chef Pascal Grattard, who runs a prestigious and competitive international kitchen apprenticeship. The prize job at Chef Grattard’s renowned restaurant also represents a transformative opportunity for Isabella, who is desperate to get her life back in order. But how can Isabella expect to hold it together when she’s at the bottom of her class at the apprenticeship, her new stepmom is pregnant, she misses her abuela dearly, and a mysterious new guy and his albino dog fall into her life?

As a bit of a foodie, I really loved the vast and different cultures represented by all the cooking & baking in this book. (Be warned do NOT read on an empty stomach.) Isa's Lala stole my heart. Overall I liked this book about redefining your dreams, family, friendship, and fabulous food.

I received a copy of this book via Netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review.

This one started out okay and interesting.

We have a heroine, Isabella Fields, who's an aspiring chef on the verge of starting an important course in France. Temporarily living with her father and step-mother, she has a lot of pent-up anger she's holding onto. Losing her grandmother, her parents getting a divorce, Isabella's one rock was her dream of becoming a chef. In her mind, things were going well, until her step-mother's step-son decided to crash their home, for a while.

Somehow, in theory, it all sounded good. But I think there were too many details or too many descriptions because I found myself skipping a few times, skimming through the book, stopping to read a bit here and a bit there, and well, it made sense. Sorry to say that I still got the gist of it by sometimes reading only the dialogues. I realized I do that when I don't want to DNF a book because I want to read it, yet I kind of want to be done with it - I'm not that fast of a reader - so I read the dialogues.

I guess it was okay. If you're a huge foodie fan you could try and read it.

I voluntarily agreed to read an early copy via Netgalley. My rating is 3 stars.

Salty, Bitter, Sweet is a young adult novel focusing on family and food! I love cooking shows and books revolving around the kitchen, so this was a really going choice for me. The story didn't move along quite as quickly as I'd like but I did enjoy the novel.

I really loved this book! It was one that I kept putting down because I just didn't want the story to be over. It's a little slow to start, but Isa is quite relatable and I was really rooting for her throughout the story. Part of why I enjoyed this story so much is because many of the topics and places throughout the book were new to me and I love a book that teaches me something, even if it's just a little something. I learned a little bit about France, a little bit about Spain, and a little bit about cooking.

I loved every character in this book, which is pretty rare for me! The villains were perfectly villainous, and each character had depth. This story is partly Isa figuring out who she is and what she wants, and that's something that every teenager faces. It's a good coming-of-age story, and also includes a sort-of enemies to lovers romance which is always a plus for me. I loved all of the back story with her grandma, her parents, and her new family and friends woven together. I can't wait to see what else Ms. Cuevas puts out in the future.