Summer Kitchen

Saving Home, Book 1

By: E.J. Russell

Narrated by: Greg Boudreaux

Length: 7 hrs and 54 mins

Publisher's summary

The foolproof recipe for personal redemption and perfect love...

Take:

• One former rock musician
• One almost-MBA turned cooking school student

Add two heaping spoonfuls (each) of:

• responsibility
• familial obligation
• regret

And a dash of:

• misunderstanding (optional)

Stir together in:

• one small Vermont town

Season with:

• friends
• family
• foes
• and one large ginger cat

Garnish with:

• validation
• laughter
• just deserts (also desserts)

Simmer for one entire summer before serving up a delicious (well-deserved) HEA. Bon Appetit!

©2024 E.J. Russell (P)2024 E.J. Russell

Good listen

I enjoyed the story. I really enjoy this narrator. I think they did a great job with the story. The characters were great in this book.

Home

Oh my gosh! This one is so good! I think this is one of my favorite EJ Russell stories now. Casey and Dev and the town of Home, VT have stolen my heart. Talk about finding what and where you are supposed to be!!!! And Greg Boudreaux gives another stellar performance bringing these characters to life. Absolutely amazing!!!🤩 🥰

Highly Entertaining; I highly recommend it!

I loved this book the characters were amazing and relatable! I related the most to Casey since he felt the obligation to do something because his uncle was counting on him. I’ve felt the same way not with cooking, but in other aspects of my life and in certain situations. But, I also understood Dev on a deep level. He had an obligation to the town, but it conflicted with his personal interests. When Casey and Dev got together, with some misunderstandings beforehand, they complimented each other beautifully.

Author E.J. Russell and narrator Greg Boudreaux are fast becoming my favorite duo. I can’t say enough good things about this audiobook!

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this audiobook.

Wonderful

So sweet and wonderful- loved the home town feel and the diverse characters. It was super fun to hear Greg sing though the random guitar riffs startled me every time (they were beautiful but loud and unexpected). Overall a wonderful treat to read ❤️

One of my favourite E.J. Russel books!

Very compelling story. It was easy to follow the characters and get to know them. I loved them all, even the annoying EXs. Can’t wait to hear more of them. Even loved the little nod to other E.J. Russel books. And Greg Boudreaux does an amazing job with distinction of characters. He’s very talented.

Absolutely loved this one!

Home is where the heart is!! This one shows how true this old adage really hits. Although Casey wasn’t “home” Dev was. From that point a cat helped things along! Great listen!

Very fun romance

This was a really good story Casey and Dev were really cute together and helped each other to make hard decisions and accept help dev was having a hard time with his job responsibilities and Casey was having a hard time standing up for what he wanted and they helped each other find their way to a happier life as well as help others around them it was really sweet and I enjoyed everything about it

Just Lovely

I needed a warm comfort book, and this one hit the spot. Loved the characters and the story line. And then add Greg Boudreaux singing. Loved the lyrics of the songs and the background music (which I usually don't appreciate). This was a wonderfully warm story that I'll come back to. Look forward to seeing what other story lines come from Russell in the hometown of Home.

Fantastic Story & Listen🎧A Heartwarming Delight!

This fabulous small-town romance is the first book of E.J. Russell’s new “Saving Home” series and what a wonderful start it is. I even loved the blurb, the foolproof recipe for personal redemption and perfect love and all the rest describe the book completely. I adored the two lead characters, Casey and Dev, some of the secondary characters are pretty amazing too, including R.S. the mystical ginger cat. Casey’s dad was a renowned and award-winning chef and his uncle wants him to follow his late father’s footsteps and bring back his restaurant and famous dishes. Despite practically growing up in kitchens, Casey is the worst cook ever, but that did not stop his uncle from enrolling him in cooking classes, but after getting thrown out of them all his uncle finds a school for him to attend in Home, Vermont. Dev is a rock star, but he left his band and his ex and returned to Home after a tragic accident took the lives of his family. He inherited the Harrison House and the town manager position, and he is struggling with keeping up with the books and finances. Casey’s uncle enrolled him in the Summer Kitchen cooking class for three months and is staying at Harrison House. The chemistry between Dev and Casey was electric, and I enjoyed watching them get to know each other. There is a hiccup in their budding relationship when Bradley comes to visit, making demands and stirring up trouble for them and the town. I loved how everything played out in this book, the writing, plot and world building are fantastic, as are the character growth and development. The story is captivating from start to end and has the perfect balance of drama, charm, humor, heartfelt emotions and a slow burn but worth the wait romance. E.J. Russell, thank you for another wonderful story and emotional rollercoaster ride.

🎧📚🎧 Greg Boudreaux is a wonderfully talented voice artist, and he did an amazing job bringing the characters and story to life, from the pages to your ears. His character voices are fitting and I loved how he took each role and made it his own, sounding believable and just as I imagined the characters would sound. He set the perfect tone for the story, captured all the characters’ emotions and has you feeling every single one. Great Boudreaux is an entertaining storyteller and his performance elevates the story to another level. Thank you for another exceptional listen.

Budding chef meets former rockstar

The Summer Kitchen is both a delightful establishment and a great, small-town vibe, book.
Greg Boudreaux’s performance is dynamic as ever, lending each character their own authentic voice.

In this charming romantic story, Casey is a chef in-the-making, trying to recreate his departed father’s world-class recipes. In an effort to please his uncle, he enrolls in the Summer Kitchen culinary school in Vermont. There he meets the innkeeper, Dev, and his family and friends who live and work in the area.

Assumptions lead to misunderstandings, and the protagonists’ efforts to avoid being hurt lead to them, of course, being hurt. Luckily, this is a low-angst / mid-level steam novel and the two eventually do resolve their tension.

The town has a quaint village feel, yet the residents are intelligent, world-traveled, and great at what they do. The error of dismissing their skills based on where they live comes back to haunt the antagonists, who make appearances throughout the book and get their comeuppance…mostly.

Russell’s obvious respect, if not love, for the kitchen and challenging recipes is evident in the time she gives describing the complex ingredients and steps, down to the cookware and color. The feeling of REALness of the town is further solidified with her descriptions of everyday activities, such as reviewing spreadsheets and administering vaccines to a pet.

The cousins, friends and visitors to the town all have unique personalities and hints of interesting backgrounds and will hopefully have their own HEAs in the not-too-distant future.