Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this eARC of 'Lavash at First Sight' by Taleen at First Sight.

This is my second Taleen Voskuni and I loved this one so much more. The writing style was gorgeous and I loved all of the characters even when some of them frustrated me. I have to compliment the ending because although it wrapped the story up very quickly, I don't feel like it was a bad ending which is rare for books of this genre.

Nazeli "Ellie" has a good job in tech in California, a handsome white boyfriend and a great upcoming project she's excited for. She did not plan for said great boyfriend to end their relationship right before her decisive presentation in front of her boss. To take a break from everything, she goes to Chicago to help her parents in a food competition where she meets the charming Vanya. They're immediately drawn to each other and bond over their Armenian culture and their families' Lebanese-Armenian food business. But meeting the parents doesn't go as planned as they have been rivals for decades and will now compete for an ad slot at the Superbowl. A competition that will both draw the families closer and apart and unearth old animosities while the girls sneak around and grow fonder.

The food references were great and sounded delicious. I know some people are not the biggest fan of food romances but it is my sweet spot and especially when it is about Mediterranean food culture that I can relate too.

I do find the prose as simplistic as in Sorry Bro which was a source of annoyance back then and was still now. Similarly Nazeli seems really trapped in a horrible, useless tech job (it's not me, the book says that) without her reconsidering her life and job.

I really wanted to love this book but unfortunately it just wasn’t for me. I enjoyed the rival families competing against one another (although, it was a bit dry at times), The Armenian culture and the pressure to be successful explored by Nazeli. It was the romance that was lacking for me: I loved the characters and just wanted more of them. There’s a few closed door moments which I felt should have been counteracted with more on page romance. They fell hard and fast and more romance would have made their story more believable.

Thank you NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Sticking to your culture and your identity is really important, knowing who you are and accepting that is always the best way to live. I have and always will stick by that.

Ok I think this book has finally shown me my romance niche which is 'people who like each other from the off and are forthright with their feelings' - does that have a name? I feel like that's a really basic type of romance to enjoy but this is one of the only books I've found that follows this trope.

Of course, there's the classic misunderstanding which could ruin everything moment but I just found the communication between Nazeli and Vanya really refreshing and enjoyable.

I loved learning about Armenian culture and food, the romance was well cute and best of all (for me) was no on page s*x (no shame to those who enjoy it but if that's what you're looking for this is not the book for you.

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

Lavash At First Sight is a romantic comedy novel about a woman who helps her parents with their Armenian food business at a food packaging conference, only to meet the daughter of her parents' rivals and fall for her. Nazeli works for a San Francisco tech company, but when her parents ask her to come with them to Chicago to help promote their business, she gives in, wanting to prove to her parents that they should listen to her advice. Once there, she meets Vanya, who seems amazing, until it turns out that Vanya's parents are enemies of her parents, due to some mysterious happening years before. As the competition unfolds, they must navigate their parents' feelings, wanting to win, and the attraction they feel for each other.

Like Voskuni's previous romcom, Sorry Bro, this is a novel that centres around Armenian American experiences, but this time there's also a conference competition and an old rivalry to get in the way. The concept is a fun one, and it was a bit different to the many romantic comedies that now seem to be set in a Bake Off style competition. How prevalent the competition itself is fluctuates, but it provides structure to the narrative, even whilst it is a bit ridiculous (but many elements in romcoms tend to be).

The book also has a lot of Nazeli's job, from the opening to the constant drama around her boss getting in touch with urgent work, and the ending does make all of this feel a bit flat, as after all that drama (and a lot of detail), it's not really that important. The romance itself is quite low key, despite being important to the narrative. It has a good set up, with some tension built up, but Vanya isn't really given enough space as a character, and again, the ending doesn't quite deliver, suddenly fixing things because it is needed for the narrative.

The descriptions of food in the book are great, and it definitely makes you hungry, but some of the more emotional moments were clumsy, with a lot of stating how Nazeli felt rather than showing things that displayed her feelings. Overall, this is a pretty fun book packed with Armenian food, but the ending didn't really work for me, rushing through things and not really engaging with the characters.

This is the exact type of romantic comedy that I love, I found it easy to read and wanted to see how they relationship developed.

An updated version of the Montagues and the Capulets, this charming tale explores what happens when two young women find themselves facing a magnetic attraction that is as strong as the utter revulsion that both sets of parents involved in this romance have for each other.

Ellie is coming off a bad breakup with an ex boyfriend who dumped her at work, and Vanya is supporting her parents to realise their American Dream of an ethnic food business.

Unfortunately, their parents end up being not only competitors in their food businesses, but also in seeking to win a special prize at the food packing conference that they are all attending. Needless to say, sparks fly in more ways than one...

This is a cute story with the added attractions of multiculturalism (Armenian families), diversity (female protagonists) and food preparation (lavash isn't all that's served up warm here) included in the content. A nice little amuse bouche (or perhaps a sharing platter would be a more appropriate metaphor!) for romance readers.