title: Salty, Spiced, and a Little Bit Nice
author: Cynthia Timoti
publisher: Bramble
publication date: May 6, 2025
pages: 336
peppers: 3 (on this scale)
warnings: needles, T1D hypo episode
summary: After Ellie rejects the world's most eligible/desirable bachelor in what becomes a viral video, she decides to follow her lifelong dream of opening her own diabetes-friendly bakery. She moves across the country to get as far away from her controlling family as she can, only to find that her brother's best friend and the man who broke her heart ten years earlier not only lives in the town where she now resides but also is her only hope of getting some major and necessary renovations to her new shop. Complicating matters even further, for business reasons of his own, he needs a girlfriend to help his business. They can help each other.
tropes:
- fake dating
- brother's best friend
- enemies-to-lovers
- only one bed
- manipulative family
- starting over
- second-chance romance
- tasty treats
what I liked:
- T1D representation
- family dynamics
- obstacles
- humor
what I didn’t like: mom was too evil to be believable
overall rating: 4 (of 5 stars)