Two POVs, interesting characters, & a Fast-paced entertaining read. 👏
PSA: Some content could be triggering to some people.

A bit complicated at times. There were definitely plenty of twists and turns but it all gets a bit out of hand at times. If you can concentrate on following it, it's not a bad thriller.

Thank you to Samantha Verant, Storm Publishing, and NetGalley for an arc of this novel in exchange for my honest opinion.

The job of her dreams....the family of her nightmares!

This was one perfectly "delicious" thriller! I like to describe it as a crockpot- the ingredients work beautifully together, perfectly blending secrets, red herrings, lies, jealousy, and revenge all together for one magnificent feast. The characters are well developed, completely unreliable, and many times I didn't know who to trust. I was hooked throughout the entire story and found the final chapters to be satisfying and shocking. I can't wait to read more from this author.

I wanted to like this book. I loved the premise but all of the characters were unlikable and the writing was very wordy. I felt like the story could have been told 100 pages less than it was. The story line was silly and was a DNF for me.

Chef Julie Fouquet dreams of owning a restaurant someday. When the wealthy, glamorous movie actress Erica Drake hires her as the family's personal chef, and she moves into their beautiful home along the beach, she is convinced that her dream is finally one step closer. But is it really?
Erica Drake is anything but glamorous. Due to her heavy drinking, she constantly exhibits erratic behavior. One minute, she is kind and generous, and the next, she becomes angry and argumentative. Julie soon discovers she may have made a big mistake in taking the job.

Soon, the dirty secrets the family hides come to the surface, but Julie remains cool. She, too, holds a deep, dark secret that she must never reveal. She must keep her calm and continue to work through the family drama. Her relationship with the Drakes is critical to her future. If they discover what she is hiding, her plans for her future will be destroyed.

This book was decent. It started off very good I was immediately into it. The chapters leading to the end were a bit long winded, too much unnecessary details. BUT the ending was pretty good I guessed who was behind everything just not how it went down. The french in this book had me reading out loud and laughing at myself

Bon appétit J (Lol if you read it you will understand)

My first Samantha Verant novel but definitely not my last! I read this in one day, I just could not stop reading. The premise was fresh and characters smashing. Packed with secrets and lies, was impossible to know who to trust. Great read.
Thank you NetGalley, Samantha Verant and Storm Publishing for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I loved the premise of this book, but sorry to say, it didn't work for me.

I found it difficult to connect with, or care about, any of the characters and the plot was convoluted and not particularly thrilling.

The twists weren't surprising or shocking, so I was hopeful for something massive at the end, but there was nothing unexpected. The writing didn't flow for me and the whole thing felt disjointed.

It was an ok read, but no more than that for me. Sorry :(

2 ⭐️ Thanks to Netgalley, Samantha Verant and Storm for an ARC in return for an honest review.

I first discovered Samantha Verant's work in June of this year, and I was immediately drawn to her writing style. This book was just as good as the last!

"The Private Chef" is a captivating tale that weaves together revenge, deception, and intrigue into a compelling narrative. The author skillfully manipulates the characters, turning them into pawns in a high-stakes game of deceit. The dual perspective intensifies the story, keeping the reader thoroughly engrossed. The characters are well-developed, the premise is intriguing, and the unexpected plot twists kept me eagerly turning the pages from start to finish. While I managed to unravel some of the mystery, the book remained a twisty and engaging read. The final chapters provided a perfect conclusion to this gripping story, serving as the icing on the cake.

I highly recommend it to anyone who loves a good, twisty thriller. This one will keep you on your toes and guessing til the very last page. A solid four stars. ✨🔪

Many thanks to Storm Publishing for providing me with this ARC. I devoured this one!

Pub Date: Oct 17, 2024. Add this to your TBRs and snag a copy at your local bookstore.

⭐⭐⭐⭐
The Private Chef by Samantha Verant it's a gripping thriller full of questions and manipulations.
This book took me straight away. it was so easy to connect with the book and characters. I was invested in the storyline and was amazing to find out everyone's motives to understand their actions.
Many moments made me guess who was behind the actions and most of the time I was happy with it.
I am not sure how I feel about the ending, it kind of didn't work for me. There was potential to do a crazy twist that would leave readers with an open mouth!
In general, this was really yummy thriller served with secrets and lies, jealousy and revenge seasoned with some twists.
And that cover! So stunning!

Julia is ready to serve her best meal! She has great ideas but unfortunately no game plan. But she has a perfect set of kitchen knives so probably this is a good start!
Oscar-nominated actress Erica is ready for the biggest performance in her career. She has all the necessary ingredients ready all she needs is a perfect private chef - Julia!
Film director and Erica's husband David is ready to eat anything that Julia will serve, looks like he can enjoy anything and everything minus Erica!
Everyone has something to hide so they will use their secret ingredients to get perfection...

Thank you, NetGalley and Storm Publishing for this copy!

Chef, Julia Fouquet was thrilled to learn that she was chosen to be the Private Chef for David Drake, LA Producer and his wife and actress, Erica, who was nominated for an Oscar. Settling in, Julia finds the household is in constant upheaval. Erica has mood swings, infidelity rumors are rampant about David and unfortunately death seems to follows this couple. Everyone has secrets, no one can be trusted and this book is a recipe for revenge. Thank you Netgalley and Storm Publishing for an early copy of this clever book. This review is my honest opinion.

This didn't do it for me. I dont know if I went into it with expectations from recent films and TV series with similar premise and that's why it felt a let down but I just couldn't click. I usually love thrillers about the rich and obnoxious but I struggled with this for some reason. The plot didn't flow and it felt really disjointed and scatty. There also seemed to be a lot of parts that were long winded and pointless so I found myself kinda skimming a lot. I do admit that maybe if I'd gone into it blind and not having comparisons then it might have hit better but as it was, it just didn't live up to what I'd want

While this book was full of twists and edge-of-your-seat suspense, I found the plot to be a bit all over the place. I went back and reread some pages more times than I care to remember because the plot kind of went off the rails at times. I also couldn't really connect to any of the characters. I would've liked for this to have been reworked a little to smooth out the plot as it was otherwise a decent read.

I had high expectations going into this as I loved the book “The Lucky Widow” by the same author.

This book just didn’t do it for me. It felt long winded, all over the place, the characters were all obnoxious, and the plot honestly made zero sense. The twists were twisty but when the story is entirely unbelievable and/or you can’t imagine people being so dumb - it just falls flat.

Totally wasn’t for me- I did hold out and read until the end hoping it’d somehow get better.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

Plot twists and edge of your seat story, this was fantastic! I stayed into it the entire time! Thank you Netgalley!

The Private Chef was an intense read full of lovely cooking, betrayals and lies. It’s a quick read that flows easily. When Julia gets a job as a private chef she’s thrown into the job, but she has a secret. Her new boss Erica is an actress who likes everything to be her way, wants to plot a plan. Really enjoyed this book, fast paced and loved the plot. The characters are easy to like with a dark side. A brillant 5 star read.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for a copy.

Secrets and Lies..
A seemingly perfect employment opportunity awaits - chef, Julia, takes up an opportunity to chef privately for a wealthy family in Malibu. She’ll be living the dream, right? Not exactly, as nothing is quite as it first appears - then again, nothing is as it first seems with Julia either. Secrets and lies may well out in this psychological suspense with a well drawn cast and well placed setting, a pacy narrative and snappy chapters.

Good grief! This book!! Such a powerful, thrilling read I couldn't put it down! The way the story unfolded with all the twists and turns kept me gripped, fantastic characters, fantastic story, Bravo!

This was a quick, interesting read! I enjoyed the story and the characters although I felt it was a bit unrealistic, although isn’t this what fiction is? Overall a good read that I would recommend!

The Private Chef is about people with unlimited money, desiring more and behaving badly, and certainly not in an entertaining manner.

Sadly I couldn’t connect with the characters, the plot was so convoluted and disjointed that I often needed to back track and re-read.

For me, the book was neither page turning nor thrilling. I just didn’t care what happened, my aim was to reach The End, whilst hoping something interesting or unexpected might occur. Unfortunately there were no surprises, the last pages turned out exactly as I anticipated.

ARC generously supplied by Storm Publishing and NetGalley, this review is my personal, unbiased opinion.