I really loved how sweet and soft this romance is. With the arrival of Madeline, and her interest in both Audrey and Victor, they redevelop their relationship in a new way that works better for where they are now.
#Cooking companions summary full#
All three embark on a sweet polyamorous romance full of warmth and history.Īudrey and Victor have a history where they used to be together, but Victor’s anxieties and the strain of being in the city eventually put pressures on their relationship that resulted in them splitting up. While there she meets Audrey who works the land while Madeline was exploring the woods and Audrey was mushrooming. This in no way influences my review all words, thoughts, and opinions are my own.Ĭontent notes available in front matter of book.įrom the moment I heard about this book, I knew I needed to read it, and I’m so glad I was able to read it early! Madeline has been trying to make it in the writing scene in New York but when a friend tells her about Victor needing a companion, she moves in with him. I received an advance copy from the author for review purposes. I'm excited to get into more work from this author.ĬW: explicit sexual content, discussions of internalized transphobia + sexual shame, references to transphobia + general threat of harm, references to fetishization and predatory behavior toward trans women, reference to medical gaslighting, chronic migraines depicted, recreational drug use The prose in this book can't be described as anything other than romantic. I, too, want a pretty red-headed lady to take me into the woods to find mushrooms while I come home to the handsome horror writer. With a slow start in order to ease our way into the story with character intros, we follow Madeline's perspective as she goes off to be a live in companion to fellow (and more accomplished) writer, Victor, whose neighbor is his ex-lover, the statuesque Audrey. In a polyamorous love story involving a second chance romance and sexual exploration, we see feelings of safety and community be prioritized above all else in our all trans cast of characters. I definitely recommend, and I plan to read more by Ottoman.įirst and foremost, I am not a member of the trans community and cannot speak to any discussions surrounding the trans experience. However, overall it was a really good read. I felt like it ended abruptly and there were some scenes that progressed quicker than I expected. Sometimes a bit more transition was needed particularly to convey the passage of time better, and I definitely needed an epilogue. To me that felt triumphant, these characters deserved that. The focus was that they had found a safe place to be who they were and with who they wanted. Rather than showing the objectification/judgement of society, it was just touched on or hinted at, through insecurities or mentions of the past in passing.
This book is carefully written and very considerate to the characters. Madeline is the connecting glue and focus of the story. Victor had done the NYC literary scene as well, along with his former lover and neighbor, Audrey. She moves away from NYC to live with Viktor as his companion, an arrangement made through a friend. She managed, but in order to succeed, she knew she would need to make herself available to be used, something she was not willing to do. Madeline is an aspiring one, who couldn't quite make it in NYC and needed to get away from the scene there. Victor is a successful one, who never leaves his home. I loved how it created a safe place for the queer characters to love each other in their own way. I couldn't believe how quiet and heartfelt it was. And if that's not the essence of romance, I don't know what is. (Victor says, "I am good at being hurt and bad at being loved." Ooof.) Instead this is very much a story of repair and regrowth, and learning to believe you can have happiness, in whatever shape fits you. The romance isn't conflict driven-we have three very hurt people here. It's faintly melancholy in the recognition that the outer world is brutally hostile, but the power of the world they build for themselves is also palpable. This is very much a book about healing, which can't happen till people stop stabbing you. The tiny society of love, sex, friendship, and real acceptance they build together and with Audrey next door allows her to start living and creating, and it's glorious. Madeline is hurting, afraid, and unable to write when she decides to become Victor's companion in his isolated home.
All three have fled to the country after New York's art scene proved too hostile and unwelcoming, its people exploitative and predatory. This is a remarkable romance between two trans women, one trans man, and a place of safety.
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