Aftertaste

Feast upon this year's most delicious debut novel: 'A fun romp through New York's food scene' Sunday Times

De: Daria Lavelle

Narrado por: André Santana, Ari Fliakos, Kristen Sieh, Tessa Albertson

Bloomsbury presents Aftertaste by Daria Lavelle, read by Ari Fliakos, Tessa Albertson, André Santana, and Kristen Sieh.

‘Practically exploding with love, life and flavour’ LOUISE KENNEDY
‘Bitingly inventive, written with humour and heart’ ELIZABETH DAY
‘A hauntingly evocative journey through the realms of pain, pleasure and the power of food’ NIGELLA LAWSON

A food story to binge. A ghost story to devour. A love story to savour.

When dead-end dishwasher Kostya discovers the ability to summon spirits through the food he cooks, he embarks on a journey to open a New York City restaurant that serves closure – something he’s craved for as long as he can remember.

There are just three problems:

1. Kostya has some ghosts of his own.

2. His advancing menu of spirit cuisine is threatening the stability of the Afterlife itself.

3. He’s falling in love with Maura, a party psychic with her own secret connection to the Afterlife – who also happens to be the one person who knows he must be stopped.

A bittersweet cocktail of humour and heart, Aftertaste is an imaginative odyssey through food and love, life and death: the things that sustain us, connect us, transport us, and remind us who we are.(P)2025 Simon & Schuster US

Reseñas de la Crítica

An amalgamation of hypermodern satire, slushy romance and savvy cultural allusion that is as vigorously brought together as its lead character’s recipes … Lavelle excels in conjuring the scenes behind the swinging doors … Aftertaste pulls together familiar elements of romance and the supernatural, adding a dash of Anthony Bourdain-style bullishness and a pinch of Davelle’s own authorial smarts. I’ll bet there’s a run on fleur de sel right after publication day

An imaginative blend of ghost story, culinary fiction and romance served with a generous helping of magical realism … Many will find this ghostly, gastronomic romp hard to resist

I savoured every minute reading this epic story about life, death, love and loss ... Original and addictive

There’s Stephen King in this novel’s ancestry, in style as well as scares ... Lavelle’s writing pounds with bada-boom dialogue and the kind of adrenaline found in an over-heated kitchen during service ... Lavelle evokes Bret Easton Ellis in American Psycho ... Macho chefs and hidden speakeasies abound; the East Village is still cool, and Anthony Bourdain’s Kitchen Confidential very much alive

Aftertaste is a gourmet delight; it's highly original and hugely evocative, it definitely tugs at the heartstrings

A heart-warming read – a fascinating mix of food, romance and the supernatural

Food lovers will find a huge amount to enjoy here, as will anyone who enjoys ghost stories with a twist

Aftertaste is practically exploding with love, life and flavour. I relished every word (Louise Kennedy, author of TRESPASSES)

A wondrous work where the culinary transcends the ordinary. Lavelle's debut of grief, memory and loss is deftly and satisfyingly layered (Kevin Jared Hosein, author of HUNGRY GHOSTS)

Aftertaste is simply one of those books everyone's going to be talking about

A highly original, entertaining tour-de-force ... It had me in mind of The Ministry of Time, whose readers I think will love this

A gloriously rich story

A raucously witty and entertaining novel. This expertly crafted, suspenseful tale is seasoned with a perfectly judged amount of the supernatural. The genuinely heartfelt, touching moments elevate Lavelle’s writing to a level that is nigh on impossible to put down. Meanwhile, the lavish culinary descriptions are a real danger – do not read on an empty stomach! (Leo Vardiashvili, author of HARD BY A GREAT FOREST)

A breathtaking novel. Combining the grit of the restaurant world with the magic of the afterlife, Daria Lavelle perfectly blends unexpected ingredients into a book you’ll want to savour. It's a story about grief that's filled with humour, warmth and astounding creativity (Laura Hankin, author of ONE-STAR ROMANCE and THE DAYDREAMS)