First, a trigger warning: I actually almost DNFed this book after reading the first few chapters because they heavily featured animal abuse which was incredibly distressing to read. However, I am glad I kept going because I ended up enjoying the story.

The vibrant food-based worldbuilding and magic system easily the best part of the book. This was one of the more unique concepts I've come across, and the explosive execution did it justice. I loved how much the characters loved food, and I appreciated how the recipes and their stats were included in the book as well - my only nitpick would be that many of the emphon recipes were quite similar in their usage of ingredients. I also really enjoyed the format of switching between past and present events, which managed to keep the intrigue going until the end of the book. Moreover, I was delighted that the story took place in a queernormative world featuring a cast of queer characters.

Unfortunately, I hated the romance, which not only took up more of the book than expected, but also added absolutely nothing to the story. I honestly cringed every time there was any romance on-page. Also why was an explicit scene included???

Lastly, I wasn't a huge fan of the ending as the pacing was very rushed and the book finished quite abruptly. Will definitely be picking up the next book in the series because I need to know what happens next!

Thank you to NetGalley and Daphne Press for providing a copy of this book for review. All opinions are my own.

This book was coined as fans for Attack on Titan, and since that anime is my absolute FAVOURITE, I knew that I had to request it! And it's also about a butcher? This premise was genuinely so interesting and so intriguing that I knew I couldn't pass it. The writing was light and easy and emotional at times and the plot was easy to navigate. There is constant action happening, the plot always moving forward and more subplots emerging, and I'm an absolute sucker for books set in univerisities so that was a yes from me! I can't wait for the rest of the series, as this book definitely sets up for a bigger narrative and world!

Woof. What a debut!

This was action-packed, clearly written and SO SO GOOD. VERY excited for the next instalments in the series!

Thank you for the ARC

This was a fun enjoyable read!

We follow our mmc Paprick, a common butcher with a passion for cooking, who discovers a new recipe which makes him grow tall. The rulers want this recipe and in exchange for it Paprick convinces them to make him a chef apprentice, something not usually done for a common.

I loved the food based magic system, it was such a unique and different take on the fantasy genre. I thought it was fun and interesting, without being too complicated or complex, and so was easy to follow.

I also enjoyed the story telling style of the book, we have older Paprick telling us the story of what happened when he was younger and this included occasional comments in the present time where he speaks to the archivists and then goes back to the story, which added to the suspense of the book as you are also waiting to see what they decide to do with Paprick at the end.

Overall I really enjoyed this and it was refreshing to read something with a magic system I haven’t read before.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I picked this up because the cover and tagline of THE BEAR meets ATTACK ON TITAN. I wanted to love it, especially with such a unique hook. But I just couldn't really get into this, probably just because of the food aspect. I was hoping for more fantasy and was just disappointed. But this would really appeal to those who love a goof food sci/fantasy tale. It wasn't for me, but has a lot of potential for the right audience. Thank you to the Ryan, Titan Books, and NetGalley for giving me the chance to read this arc in exchange for an honest review.

"Seven Recipes for Revolution" by Ryan Rose is a truly engaging and thought-provoking read that offers a fresh perspective. Rose masterfully blends compelling narrative with insightful ideas, crafting a story that is both entertaining and intellectually stimulating. I particularly enjoyed the unique approach to its themes, which felt both timely and timeless. The writing is sharp and precise, pulling you deeper into its world with every page. While I found myself occasionally wanting a little more depth in a specific area, it ultimately delivers a powerful and memorable experience. Highly recommended for those looking for a story with substance.

Very unique style of writing that I still don't know how to feel about. I liked the story, it was fun and I was interested to see where it went. That said I didn't know how to take the level of absurdity, it made it hard to take seriously. I liked the unusual take on the food based magic but it was just too much with all the food based names and puns. It wasn't just like it was an important tradition with food having a massive part of their culture. It was like a weird semi comic food insiped world with utensil weapons and food based curse words, people are named after food, places are named after food. It's just too much for me.

I had to DNF this. This was overcomplicating the story and the pacing was too slow.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a chance to read this eARC in exchange for my honest opinions.

Seven Recipes for Revolution is the debut novel from Ryan Rose. A fast paced first person story told from the point of view of Paprick.

This book revolves around our protagonist, Paprick, telling his life story and how he went from a lowly butcher to a highly esteemed chef. Quickly along your read you realise things are not as they seem, facts don’t align and Paprick becomes a very unreliable narrator.

Through his struggles we see his knowledge of the magic system increase and expand pushing the boundaries of what this hard magic system can do. With a world steeped in food, a culture built around meals, and a magic system which is consumed via recipes, this book has your brain thinking and your stomach rumbling.

As with most debuts it has places where it can improve, at times a slightly heavy hand has the ability to be softened. Foreshadowing toned down to be whispered rather than screamed, and representation sometimes added for the sake of it. There is one off the hand comment that I picked up on which ruined any danger which that character may or may not get into later in the book.

All in all I really enjoyed this book and cannot wait to leap back into this world whenever the time comes to do so.

this was a mix of all sorts of different media i love. if you’re a fan of any of these i’d recommend giving this a try:
attack on titan, delicious in dungeon, monster hunter, hunger games.
as much as i loved the multiple similarities it still fell a bit flat for me. i didn’t feel any sort of connection to the characters. i struggled with the pacing, it had a slow start but became cluttered at the end. the change of timelines between past and future -(recounting the past) which felt kind of unnecessary and maybe would’ve flowed better without it?
the whole food and endurance side was super cool though, i loved the addition of the detailed meals and their buffs, it was a nice touch. i wish we could’ve seen more of these in action. overall was a fun read but didn’t grip me as much.

thank you to netgalley for providing me with an e arc :)

“Nothing I can do will stop violence. Not without violence”

“Seven Recipes for Revolution” is a debut fantasy from American author @realryanprose and is described as “The Bear meets Attack on Titan”, got your attention already? It certainly did mine!

I really enjoy fantasies that approach magic/power systems with a unique and interesting spin and Rose really does that here with a magic system based on cooking. Essentially chefs can invent “greater” recipes that provide some kind of magical benefits via the meat obtained from emphon’s, massive beasts with regenerating flesh that are captured and kept alive whilst being butchered for their magical properties.

Paprick intuitively stumbles into creating his very own “greater” recipe that allows him to grow kaiju sized and in the process writes his own legend by defending the commons from a rampaging beast. Creating “greaters” is for the “rares” and not for the likes of Paprick. Every revolution needs a spark and Paprick may have inadvertently lit it.

We follow Paprick on his journey to adapt to high society life from his humble beginnings as a common butcher and the prejudices he faces along the way. Paprick recounts the story from his jail cell during conversations with “the archivist” in what is essentially his trial. This creates the possibility (and even acknowledged in the text) of an unreliable narrator. I think this is a good inclusion as it adds to the uncertainty. Paprick is “the butcher king”, he is a legend, his whole story is about the mythos around him, the legend that grew from whispers amongst commons, the hope that this myth provided and the spark that it lit. An unreliable narrator adds to this mythos as you have no idea how true the story is and whether some parts may have been made up or embellished to add to it.

The focus on food and cooking isn’t lost amongst the fantasy though. There are extensive periods spent detailing cooking, more technical processes (but not too complicated to be off putting), the emotional aspect of cooking and what it can represent, and small additions to the text like the commoners having “greeting snacks” and the use of cooking terms in every day conversation like “go starve”, “famines” and “a whole scalding greater”. Cooking isn’t just a small side part of the story, it is the beating heart of it.

I really enjoyed the chapters spent at the academy, I am really into dark academia at the moment and love anything school/academy based. There isn’t too much time spent there but there is enough to satiate my hunger for it.

There are also some serious underlying messages with regards to the meat industry, class divides in society, and the reminder that the power lies with the few at the expense of the many. On the face of it “Seven Recipes for Revolution” comes across as a fun, unique fantasy experience, but there are layers to it beyond that and it does leave you thinking a little deeper.

A massive thank you to Daphne Press and Net Galley for enabling me to have access to this digital arc. It was one of my most anticipated releases and it lived up to and exceeded all my hype!

This book is, in as few words as possible, a high fantasy inspired by food. Via greater recipes and some special ingredients, the characters are able to make food that grant them superhuman abilities, some as 'simple' as healing and others a bit more specific, like seeing the past or even the future.
The passion the author has for cooking (or his dedication in creating this food-filled world, no less impressive) is reflected in all the expressions and slang he created for the book. In addition, trying to figure out which spice each name was based on was a fun little bonus.
The story starts when our main character, Paprick, discovers a new greater recipe in the least subtle way possible: transforming into a 20 meter version of himself in the middle of the city. This causes the common people of this world to idiolize him and turn him into a symbol. This, with the use of propaganda for him and his insistence that he does not want to be anyone's symbol reminded me of Katniss in the Hunger Games, even if the books aren’t even of the same genre.
Paprick convinces the leaders of this world not to kill him but to allow him to study to be a Chef, elevating him from Common to Rare. He has two choices now, forget about his family and friends or try to fight for them. Comfort or goodness. I loved that this was discussed, even if there wasn’t much discussion about this question it’s not often that a high fantasy, a story about overthrowing an injust and abusive system, poses this question. Most times the very characters say that it’s not a choice. It is and, if we were in their position, would we do the right thing? Can we even demand it? Usually, these characters do make a difference in their world but in ours it’s not so straightforward so this duality, this choice, was an important one to notice.
However, what I enjoyed most of this book was how it was framed, the story is told directly from Paprick to the archivist. A character in the present of the book, as Paprick tells the story, but also a person that appears in the story we are being told. The archivist interrupts Paprick from time to time, noting lies and contradictions. They sometimes return to old discussions we are reading about, for us a few paragraphs apart, for them nearly a decade ago. This framing of a story within the book is something that I’ve always loved but even more this time, when mixed with an unreliable narrator that’s been continuously called out.
In conclusion, Seven Recipes for Revolution is a fast-paced high fantasy, with a novel magic system and tropes that are different to the ones we’re seeing nowadays.

A hefty slice of grimdark fantasy elevated by its unique culinary-magical premise and anime-style accessibility, it stumbles a little on pacing and overcomplicating its plot somewhat but is an intriguing opener for a new series.

¿Qué pasaría si la magia no viniera de conjuros, sino de comida? Si cocinar no solo nutriera, sino que liberara, destruyera… y despertara revoluciones.

Imagina un mundo donde los platos mágicos cocinados con carne de monstruos colosales pueden alterar la realidad: curar el agotamiento, provocar visiones, manipular recuerdos… o incluso hacer crecer a alguien al tamaño de un kaiju. Así funciona la sociedad en la que vive Paprick, un joven de clase baja destinado a ser carnicero, no chef. Pero su verdadera pasión es cocinar, y su sueño más profundo es que esa magia no sea privilegio de unos pocos, sino un derecho para todos.

Cuando Paprick roba ingredientes mágicos para practicar en secreto y termina cocinando un platillo jamás visto con una especia misteriosa, desencadena sin querer una serie de eventos que lo transformarán en leyenda. De carnicero clandestino a aprendiz en la academia culinaria más elitista, su historia está narrada desde el futuro por un Paprick adulto, encarcelado y lleno de secretos.



----

La premisa me parecio interesante, la construcción del mundo me gusto, pero por alguna extraña razon no termino de atraparme.


Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the ARC in exchange for an honest.

I've been struggling with this book for months and I am putting it to rest. Did finish it though!

The very premise of the story was the most intriguing to me, also why I requested the ARC. And that part is still the most promising part of the story - how recipes and the food itself are a big cultural part of this society and the way it operates, that was so amazing and intriguing to read and learn.

However, I don't think I was the intended audience for this book and the two stars are my own personal rating as I am sure there are people out who already do or will love this. I didn't vibe with certain things in the book, couldn't connect with Patrick and sadly that was it.

At the heart of the story is Paprick, a boy born on the wrong side of a divided society. Though passionate about food, his upbringing among the Commons means he’s destined for the factory lines until a forbidden spice changes everything…

Paprick’s journey from meat-processing grunt to student at the elite culinary Academy is full of emotional highs and devastating lows. Through him, we see how systemic injustice shapes people and how revolution starts small, often by accident.

The supporting cast shines too. His two mothers, whose fierce love anchors his early life. Academy friends, whose subtle sympathies challenge the Rare/Commons binary, whilst Academy not-so-friends reinforce it. And a rebel companion, whose influence adds urgency and danger to the story

Adult Paprick, narrating the story as a memoir to an archivist with history of her own, gives the book additional emotional weight and suggests he may not be telling the full truth as an unreliable narrator.

This world runs on recipes – literally. Magical meals crafted from monstrous creatures can do everything from removing exhaustion to creating chaos on a massive scale. When Paprick discovers a rare ingredient that transforms him into a legendary giant, he’s swept into a new life… and a growing rebellion.

The magic system is one of the most unique aspects of the book. The recipes are imaginative, the ingredients horrifying and grand, and the consequences often deadly. You get the sense that the world extends far beyond Paprick’s story, with political games and rebellion constantly simmering behind the scenes.

As the story progresses, Paprick becomes more involved in the revolutionary undercurrent, whether he wants to or not. There’s action, sabotage, betrayal, and loss. The final chapters leave plenty open for a sequel, and I’m already invested in where this messy, delicious rebellion goes next.

Written as a memoir, Seven Recipes for Revolution uses a clever frame narrative where an older Paprick tells his story to an archivist who may or may not trust him. There’s a constant tension between memory and myth, and the book is laced with hints that this story may be a version crafted for legacy more than truth.

The pacing is slower in places, especially during training scenes or deep dives into cooking methods, but it fits the tone and allows for proper worldbuilding. The writing style is gritty, thoughtful, and sometimes poetic without ever becoming pretentious.

The world of Seven Recipes for Revolution is split between the Rares (the elite, magical class) and the Commons (overworked and overlooked). With this, the book explores classism and propaganda, rebellion and systemic oppression, cultural erasure and violence and at it’s core power through food, culture, and memory

While there’s magic, it’s never used to soften the story. This is a world where inequality is violent, where power corrupts, and where even a miracle can be weaponised. There are also some graphic elements, including cannibalistic undertones and scenes of physical brutality.

This book comfortably sits in Epic Fantasy and borders into Grimdark territory. It’s heavy with themes of power, sacrifice, and survival, but told through the voice of a teenager trying to do the right thing in a world built to keep him down.

Overall it’s a richly imagined, emotionally layered fantasy with a unique magic system and a compelling, tragic lead. Deliciously dark and devastating in equal measure.

Positives of Seven Recipes for Revolution
Unique and unsettling magic system based on magical meals
Clever narrative structure with unreliable memoir tone
Emotional stakes and rich character relationships
Strong political themes without losing fantasy appeal
Brilliant sense of worldbuilding beyond what we see on the page
Perfect blend of personal story and larger rebellion arc

Negatives of Seven Recipes for Revolution
Slow pacing in certain training/kitchen segments
Some violent or disturbing content, including cannibalism
Gaps in explanation for some political mechanics (left for sequels?)
Readers may struggle with Paprick’s unreliability at times

I’ve read a lot of books that contain magical systems and political structures that most definitely differ from the norm, and food has figured in them but, Seven Recipes for Revolution by Ryan Rose takes this to a whole new level of magical cookery! Told from the perspective and narrative of the protagonist, Paprick as he sits in his cell awaiting a decision on his execution, who we find out very quickly has an allergy to the truth and can politely be termed as a most unreliable narrator.

The worldbuilding and politics development in Seven Recipes for Resolution is pretty robust and I enjoyed how food and recipes were at the core of culture and society – I found this truly appetising. The whole culture, language, customs, faith and focus of the people revolved around food – from exchanging snacks when you greet someone to starving being defined as a curse/swear word. I adored the diversity, it wasn’t an exception, it was the norm, nothing special, just how life worked, Paprick has two mums – nothing out of the ordinary about that.

Yet, despite all the of the positives I still didn’t connect with this book. I’m not the audience of choice for this book and if I’d watched The Bear before I requested it, I wouldn’t have made the request. I’m not saying this is a bad book, I’m saying, it’s not for me but, for those of you who love The Bear, and aren’t squeamish about butchery, cannibalism and other powerful and dark themes, this will be the book for you.

Thank you Daphne Press and NetGalley for this arc in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

This is a difficult book to review as elements of it sit at different ends of the enjoyment spectrum. The world, the characters and even the overarching plot and book concept are all excellent and I’m interested to see where this story goes next. But having said that I found the writing style, structure and the first act in general to be more difficult to manage and a struggle to follow at times. There are some very odd choices in the presentation of the narrative frame and how it works or doesn’t work alongside the bulk of the narrative that I found jarring. Overall now the world and rules are established and I have a better idea of what to expect I’m curious to find out if Book 2 can improve on this shaky but promising start

his book is a really wild ride from start to finish, I wasn’t sure what to expect but the description of The Bear crossed with Attack on Titan was entirely spot on

This is like an anime in book form- utterly devourable, tasteful, and fun.

Every time I thought I just saw the craziest thing imaginable and nothing can top that, the book proved me wrong. What a WILD ride