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Member Reviews

What I loved about Chef's Kiss is not only the gorgeous illustrations, but the way that it felt so utterly relatable. We have these ideas about how our future will be when we graduate. Then we see others living the dreams we all talked about and then we look at our life. We wonder what happened. And Chef's Kiss presents not only a realistic look at this situation, but also a journey to finding our passions and unexpected joys.

Chef's Kiss is a celebration of finding our joy. Of realizing that not everything is direct and that the journey can sometimes show us more about who we are. Additionally, Chef's Kiss is charming from the beginning, it has a PIG! The character relationships are quirky and hilarious. I just want to spend so much time with them!

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4 sweet stars

This story is about. He lives with Rachel, Liz and Tom. Ben is originally a write, but he can't seem to get a job, so he ends up getting a job at a restaurant. Here he meets, Liam who is the souschef, and Emily and Mal.

While this story was so cute and sweet. It had some very hostile environment at the restaurant, that I didn't really like. The owner and headchef was a bit of an ass in the beginning, but in the end he ended up supporting Ben and his dream. And I really didn't like Ben's parents at all.

Thanks to netgally for a copy of this in exchange for an honest review

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This was a really cute graphic novel with beautiful art and engaging characters! I have rounded up from 4.5 - I would've liked a bit more of an ending - but still a great read

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What a cute story! I loved this so much. This slice of life story and the characters are so relatable.

Join Ben as he sets out after college to figure out what he wants to do with his life. A daunting task if there ever was one. After getting rejected by many professional level jobs in writing, he decides to answer a help wanted sign at a restaurant. What started as a hobby and fun pass time quickly turns into a passion - and its not just the hot guy Liam making it so.

The characters are all facing new and uncertain futures. Some of them have gotten their dream job right out of college, some decided to stay in college, and others are pursuing interests outside their original majors and disappointing parents. But such is life! I highly recommend picking up a copy of this book and watching as each character stumbles through life's many challenges, figure out who they are, what they want, and fall in love.

Super cute story and the art is really nice to look at. 10/10 would recommend several times over.

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This was so dang cute. From the first sentence to the final panel, I was entertained and invested. It reminded me of Food Wars a bit. I loved the journey Ben takes for his passions.

The pig is my favorite character.

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This was a fast and fun read! Ben and his friends are all ready to enter the “real world” except that Ben can’t find a job as a copywriter to start his career as a writer. He accepts a job in a kitchen to hold him over and falls for the job and the dreamy sous chef Liam.
I loved the characters and the illustrations. I did occasionally find some scenes to be a bit long winded but overall a cute and sweet story.

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*ARC given via Netgalley, thank you!*

This was very cute. We follow Ben Cook as he tries to find a job in writing, but is unsuccesful. On a whim he takes a job at a restaurant, and seems to fall in love with cooking.
I really enjoyed both the art and the story, and I'd definitely read a follow up to this purely for the food, romance, and for Watson. I'd also love to learn more about Ben's three roommates, because I'm curious about their personalities as welll.

Thanks again, Oni Press!

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This was such a cute story. I'm new to the world of graphic novels, and this is a great addition to the one's I've read. I really enjoyed that it wasn't just a fully white group of people and the comedic use of the head chef pig was really well done. The relationship between Ben and Liam was so adorable and showcased a cute side of the gay experience, uncertainty if the other person is gay or not, pining away, and the moment of realization that "oh, they are gay". Overall this graphic novel was a nice quick read, and I hope there's more to come from this series!

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This was such a cute and delicious graphic novel. It's not usual reading about characters who just finished college and are starting to move into the world of work and responsibilities.
Ben's journey is not different from the one if many people who studied one thing then got passionate about something totally different. He was kind of "forced" to look for job outside what he studied because everyone want experience but how can you get experience without people giving you a change to earn this experience? It's messed up! So yeah, he ended up training as a cook and he loved it! He is talented and isn't afraid to take risks.

I really enjoyed it and the romance side was small but still very sweet!

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Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing an eARC of this title in exchange for my honest review.

⭐️⭐️⭐️

If Milo from Atlantis was a chef and gay(er) (let’s be real, he had ✨bi✨wife✨energy✨).

Okay…what is up with Watson the pig? Because I am kind of obsessed with him and his owner… I loved their little side story. It made me laugh. 11/10.

I really liked the art style. It complemented the story well and was super cute.

The transitions between scenes seem kind of abrupt especially when someone is cussing out the main character mid task and then the next page is of the gang at a German themed restaurant drinking beer.

Even though the romance was really cute and thoughtful, I wish there was a tad bit more moments between the two where they actually get a second to flirt. If there was more, then it would have made his parents claims about him only wanting the job because of the love interest somewhat true. Instead, it seems odd that Ben would even entertain that train of thought, because at that point the time spent with Liam is equal or even less than the time he spent with the other characters.

I also feel like Tom didn’t fit in well. Maybe if him and Rachel had been more involved/spent more time with each other then it could have paralleled how well Ben and Liz get along. I did really like their friendship. I appreciate that Ben and Liz both put in effort to make sure the other person was happy and supported and that it wasn’t a one-way street.

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A delightful, breezy title perfect for teens and adults. Chef's Kiss follows Ben Cook as he navigates post-college living while starting a new job as a cook. The main conflicts are relatable for older readers and educational for high school and college aged students. The struggles between friends, parents and oneself during a time of change is deftly handled with humor and charm.

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Thank you so much to the publisher for sending me a copy of this! I was super excited to read this because it looked amazing (both the artwork and the synopsis). I enjoy reading this type of graphic novel so much! That said, and regarding the content of the story, this book was super fun to read! I saw myself reflected in the main character so much; an english degree and barely any experience in the real world. I am glad it ended up working for him!!
The characters were super likable and the pig was the best! The illustrations looked amazing and the food looked so delicious.

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2.5 stars. I received an ARC of this graphic novel through Netgalley.

I really enjoyed aspects of this: the art style was fun, it was easy to read and digest, and it had a few sweet moments between friends and mentors. I also thought the creation of the different dishes was creative and exciting and definitely made me wish I was able to eat them. One of my main issues was that a lot of the characters felt one note. The friends/roommates Ben lived with all felt like a copy and paste of each other and each of the chef's at the restaurant also felt pretty surface level.

I also felt like a few of the scenes were too long and other scenes weren't long enough. For example, the scene with the explanation of the pig between the owner of the restaurant and Ben felt out of place and the yoga scene was boring and tonally off compared to the rest of the story. I loved the scenes with Ben and Liam and I wish those would have taken up that extra space and allowed for more character development.

Overall a quick and fun LGBTQ+ read. I definitely would recommend this graphic novel to people who love food and the process that goes into making food!

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This was a fun story to read! The graphics were beautifully made. Ben was so sweet which made him a lovable main character. Each character had quirks that I enjoyed immensely!

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Cuuuuuuute!!!! What an absolute delight of a story!!
I didn’t mean to read this so early but I couldn’t stop once I had it open! Definitely keep this one on your radar, friends!! It's the perfect combination of important self-discovery centred conversations and fluffy, happy, cuteness!
Will definitely need this one on my Fav Graphic Novels display shelf once print copies are available!


(And to the publisher - I've reviewed this in my Instagram stories, for now. And will have a proper post about it in my feed closer to publication!)

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I adored this book-- read it through in two quick sessions. I loved the characters and the graphics and the story-- and especially the pig! The little "story within a story" of how the pig came to the bakery was the most fun.

I did think the parents' objections were a bit overdone and made them out to be meaner than necessary, a bit of a downer for such a joyous book.

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I absolutely adored this. As an English major myself, working a job not in my field of study, I get that sometimes you have to take what you can get, but it helps here that Ben actually enjoys the positions he's in.

Dealing with disappointment from his parents and ultimately having to decide where he want to go with his life really hits home for me.

The writing was really well done and the art style was pleasant. The romance felt a bit rushed for how short the story was, but overall was very wholesome.

10/10 would read again.

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This is very cute! I enjoyed the visuals, the dialogue, the plot -- and especially Gabe the pig. :)

The only reason this didn't get a full 5 stars from me was that I wanted a little more at the end. I wanted to see what happened with Ben's parents -- and with Ben and Liam! Plus, I wanted to know how Ben succeeded as a chef too. Really, it could have been twice as long, and I would've gobbled it all up.

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Food in graphic novels is always a real favourite, so a whole graphic novel about food?! Sign me straight up! This was quite adorable, although a little odd at times (the pig?!). I loved the art style and very much adored, slightly geeky, awkward Ben. I remember this period of life all too well. You're expected to make such huge decisions, at such a young age, on what you want to do with the entire rest of your life. That whole idea is captured very well.

So many great side characters, Ben has a lovely group of friends. The story was just generally gentle and heart warming. All in all a charming little book.

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Simply delightful, this book is so relatable to younger adults leaving college or university and facing having to decide who they really are away from school and family pressure -as well as anyone who remembers those days themselves!

There is a very cute romance subplot, and a wonderful, quirky taste-testing pig, but really the star of the show is Ben Cook, the protagonist. Facing the hurdle of not being able to get a foot in the door when it comes to what he assumes is his dream writing career, and increasing bills, he spots a help wanted sign in a restaurant and discovers a new passion in cooking.

Facing misunderstandings with friends, kooky chefs, embarrassing drunken mishaps, a cute co-worker who may or may not like him back, and parental pressure, Ben has to decide what's really important to him, and where his true passion really lies. Definitely recommended!

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