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Taste of Love #1
Digging Up Love
From debut author Chandra Blumberg comes a playful, heartfelt romance about chasing your dreams and finding love in the process.
Alisha Blake works her magic in the kitchen, creating delectable desserts for her grandfather’s restaurant in rural Illinois. Though Alisha relishes the close relationship she has with her family, she can’t help but dream about opening a cookie shop in Chicago. She may be a small-town baker, but Alisha has big ambitions.
Then a dinosaur bone turns up in her grandparents’ backyard. When paleontologist Quentin Harris arrives to see the discovery for himself, he’s hoping that the fossil will distract him from a recent painful breakup. Instead, he finds Alisha—and sparks fly. The big-city academic and the hometown baker seem destined for a happily ever after.
But Alisha is scared to fall in love. And Quentin’s trying to make a name for himself in a competitive field, which gets even more complicated when the press shows up at the dig site. For love to prevail, the two may have to put old bones aside—and focus on the future.
Alisha Blake works her magic in the kitchen, creating delectable desserts for her grandfather’s restaurant in rural Illinois. Though Alisha relishes the close relationship she has with her family, she can’t help but dream about opening a cookie shop in Chicago. She may be a small-town baker, but Alisha has big ambitions.
Then a dinosaur bone turns up in her grandparents’ backyard. When paleontologist Quentin Harris arrives to see the discovery for himself, he’s hoping that the fossil will distract him from a recent painful breakup. Instead, he finds Alisha—and sparks fly. The big-city academic and the hometown baker seem destined for a happily ever after.
But Alisha is scared to fall in love. And Quentin’s trying to make a name for himself in a competitive field, which gets even more complicated when the press shows up at the dig site. For love to prevail, the two may have to put old bones aside—and focus on the future.
345 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2022
About the author
Chandra Blumberg
3 books224 followersChandra Blumberg writes funny, heartwarming love stories about characters that feel real and relatable. When it comes to her writing process, getting to that happily ever after is half the fun.
Born and raised in Michigan, Chandra moved to the Chicago area after majoring in English at Michigan State University. When she’s not writing, she enjoys lifting heavy barbells at the gym, making a mess of the kitchen while baking alongside her four kids, and traveling with her family.
Born and raised in Michigan, Chandra moved to the Chicago area after majoring in English at Michigan State University. When she’s not writing, she enjoys lifting heavy barbells at the gym, making a mess of the kitchen while baking alongside her four kids, and traveling with her family.
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January 6, 2022DNF @ 30%. I just wasn’t feeling anything for these characters
September 2, 2023
Instagram || Threads || Facebook || Amazon || TikTok
If you had polled seven-year-old Nenia and asked what her two favorite things were, she probably would have told you "dinosaurs and cake." So obviously I wasn't about to pass up on a romance novel that features a baker heroine and a paleontologist hero. Especially not with that fossil cake cover that looks straight out of Neopets. Chandra Blumberg clearly wrote this book trying to appeal to all of our inner children... and it WORKED.
That said, after she made the sale... I found this book kind of bland. Initially, I was really surprised by all the mixed reviews because I thought the set-up was great, the food porn was A-MAZING, and I liked that both leads felt parental pressure about their careers. There's a lot of bias when it comes to what a "proper" adult job looks like, and I think people's perspectives on that are still shifting. I also loved that the heroine is biracial and the hero is Black and how their races were both addressed, referenced by other characters, and a part of their identity, but also weren't the total focus of who they were.
Where this book failed for me was the very blatant fan service and pandering, which got old after a while, and so did the conspicuously small town folksy vibes. I know a lot of people love small town romance, but that shit just feels so toxic to me. Part of this is that I'm just not the right audience for this particular book, I think. This feels like a book that was written to cater to BookTok, also. And I think that's a danger of trope-heavy books: sometimes the book becomes more about the tropes than the characters themselves. I'm really torn on how to rate this because the things it did well, it did REALLY well, but the last two acts were such a drag that I just can't really bring myself to round up. I'm sorry.
2 to 2.5 stars
January 26, 2022
Mixed feelings on this one! I love the premise (heroine into baking and weightlifting, hero who's a paleontologist) and there were parts of it that were very cute. I liked their banter, enjoyed the dinosaur nerdiness and thought there were some great moments. However, the unnecessarily excessive angst overshadowed it a bit, and their inability to have an honest conversation with each other and with important people in their lives was incredibly frustrating to read. It is a debut novel so part of the feeling of forced conflict could be chalked up to that. I would be interested to read something from this author again in the future, but this didn't quite hit the way I was hoping.
February 8, 2022
Digging Up Love follows Alisha Blake a baker who works in her grandfather's rural Illinois BBQ restaurant. Quentin Harris is a paleontologist and a professor in Chicago. Their paths cross when dinosaur bones are discovered in Alisha's grandparent's backyard during renovations.
While Quentin and Alisha had decent chemistry the book was rather clunky at parts. I didn't pick up this book expecting read about microaggressions from racist white people and I didn't enjoy reading about them. The angst in this book relies heavily on both characters lacking communication skills both with each other and their immediate family members. While I understood why Alisha stayed in the town for so long nothing about it was charming enough to resist in another book for me.
Full review below.
https://womenofcolorreadtoo.blogspot....
While Quentin and Alisha had decent chemistry the book was rather clunky at parts. I didn't pick up this book expecting read about microaggressions from racist white people and I didn't enjoy reading about them. The angst in this book relies heavily on both characters lacking communication skills both with each other and their immediate family members. While I understood why Alisha stayed in the town for so long nothing about it was charming enough to resist in another book for me.
Full review below.
https://womenofcolorreadtoo.blogspot....
January 25, 2022
Super cute! I loved the banter between the two leads. Their text exchanges were especially fun. There's a ton of dinosaur talk and yummy cookie descriptions, so have a snack nearby when you read this one.
I read to the book in audio form and I thought the narrators were perfect for Quinton and Alisha.
January 10, 2022
I was expecting so much from this and it didn't deliver. It was just alright, cute in some places, dragging in others.
The food descriptions were top notch however. They made me want to visit the restaurant and eat all their food.
I really wish this worked for me more, because I was so so excited to read it. But don't let what I said put you off from reading the book, it deserves a chance.
The food descriptions were top notch however. They made me want to visit the restaurant and eat all their food.
I really wish this worked for me more, because I was so so excited to read it. But don't let what I said put you off from reading the book, it deserves a chance.
January 12, 2022
Bland!
I struggled so much with this book. It was packed with unnecessary, barely believable angst. This couple was so whiny and insecure. The backdrop of the lily white Midwest town was very underwhelming for me. The whole story was desperately in need of some flavor. It was too bland for my liking. I kept pushing because I thought there was a cute romance novel buried in there. It never got any better. They whined and acted like fools until the last few pages. I won’t even waste my time with the next book in the series.
I struggled so much with this book. It was packed with unnecessary, barely believable angst. This couple was so whiny and insecure. The backdrop of the lily white Midwest town was very underwhelming for me. The whole story was desperately in need of some flavor. It was too bland for my liking. I kept pushing because I thought there was a cute romance novel buried in there. It never got any better. They whined and acted like fools until the last few pages. I won’t even waste my time with the next book in the series.
February 23, 2024
It needed more dinosaurs and more cakes. The characters felt a bit juvenile with their reasoning and such. I think they each just needed a long chat with a therapist before getting together 😭 I wish the next books also involved paleontologists!!! We need more!! I loved the Jurassic References 💯
January 21, 2022
3.75. While slow in some parts, I still had a great time reading this book and absolutely love Alisha and Quentin. Rtc.
January 27, 2022
The romance Digging Up Love by Chandra Blumberg is refreshingly new and different! Sweet, joyful, and well-written, I had fun falling for all the characters—main and side ones. Impressive and smart, it’s a debut from an author to watch!
When I read the premise for this one—a baker who falls for the paleontologist who comes to unearth the dinosaur bones discovered in her grandparents’ backyard—I could not resist. I feel like I read a lot of romance, and this is a plot I’ve never come across. Plus, I might have had a thing for Ross on Friends once upon a time.
But while this one is unique, it’s probably not for every romance fan. If you’re not a fan of the miscommunication trope, you might want to steer clear of this one. Every problem Alisha and Quentin face could have simply been solved with a five minute conversation. BUT I think that’s what’s at the heart of this story: two people who aren’t being honest with themselves so they can’t be honest with each other. But rest assured no one’s lying in this story! They just don’t want to face the truth so they’re not digging very deep. See what I did there??
I didn’t mind the miscommunication in this one though, because it leads our characters to learn about themselves and each other, pushing them to the happiness they deserve.
This dual point of view romance is also very PG, which some of you will love while others will be left wishing for more. I usually fall somewhere in between, and I would have liked a little more romance because the bits we got were swoon-y!
Blumberg has also created several side characters with potential for further stories, and I was happy to see that a book about Alisha’s sister Simone is coming this summer!
There’s a mix of many worlds in this one, Alisha’s small-town setting and Quentin’s more academic life in the city, plus even some adventures in a cornfield and on a beach! And so so many references to delicious food. I fully expected some recipes at the end of this one. Maybe they’ll include some in the final copies. One can hope!
Thank you to the publisher Montlake and Netgalley for providing me with an advance copy.
Check out my reviews and playlists at A Book Wanderer
#popsugarreadingchallenge2022 (prompt #18 - A romance novel by a BIPOC author)
When I read the premise for this one—a baker who falls for the paleontologist who comes to unearth the dinosaur bones discovered in her grandparents’ backyard—I could not resist. I feel like I read a lot of romance, and this is a plot I’ve never come across. Plus, I might have had a thing for Ross on Friends once upon a time.
But while this one is unique, it’s probably not for every romance fan. If you’re not a fan of the miscommunication trope, you might want to steer clear of this one. Every problem Alisha and Quentin face could have simply been solved with a five minute conversation. BUT I think that’s what’s at the heart of this story: two people who aren’t being honest with themselves so they can’t be honest with each other. But rest assured no one’s lying in this story! They just don’t want to face the truth so they’re not digging very deep. See what I did there??
I didn’t mind the miscommunication in this one though, because it leads our characters to learn about themselves and each other, pushing them to the happiness they deserve.
This dual point of view romance is also very PG, which some of you will love while others will be left wishing for more. I usually fall somewhere in between, and I would have liked a little more romance because the bits we got were swoon-y!
Blumberg has also created several side characters with potential for further stories, and I was happy to see that a book about Alisha’s sister Simone is coming this summer!
There’s a mix of many worlds in this one, Alisha’s small-town setting and Quentin’s more academic life in the city, plus even some adventures in a cornfield and on a beach! And so so many references to delicious food. I fully expected some recipes at the end of this one. Maybe they’ll include some in the final copies. One can hope!
Thank you to the publisher Montlake and Netgalley for providing me with an advance copy.
Check out my reviews and playlists at A Book Wanderer
#popsugarreadingchallenge2022 (prompt #18 - A romance novel by a BIPOC author)
January 13, 2022
3.5 stars rounded up.
This book was great in some parts and then not so great in other parts. I loved the characters and how passionate they were about their work. Alisha's food descriptions made me drool and if her cookies were real I'd be first in line to go and buy some. Quinton sounded so dreamy esp. thanks to the audiobook, and I loved his love for paleontology and could relate to his conflict with his parents.
But oh my God this book could have been cut in half if they just talked to each other!! It wasn't like they weren't familiar with each other. They'd spent so much time together and really should've been comfortable to air things out. They'd talk about things, someone would say something that rubbed the other wrong, and then they'd just leave it. Um nooo, it was like reading three steps forward and three steps back. Even Alisha's conflict with her sister, could've been rectified over yearssss if they just talked.
The miscommunication trope can really ruin some books sigh.
This book was great in some parts and then not so great in other parts. I loved the characters and how passionate they were about their work. Alisha's food descriptions made me drool and if her cookies were real I'd be first in line to go and buy some. Quinton sounded so dreamy esp. thanks to the audiobook, and I loved his love for paleontology and could relate to his conflict with his parents.
But oh my God this book could have been cut in half if they just talked to each other!! It wasn't like they weren't familiar with each other. They'd spent so much time together and really should've been comfortable to air things out. They'd talk about things, someone would say something that rubbed the other wrong, and then they'd just leave it. Um nooo, it was like reading three steps forward and three steps back. Even Alisha's conflict with her sister, could've been rectified over yearssss if they just talked.
The miscommunication trope can really ruin some books sigh.
Read
August 21, 2023This was not it for me. The conflicts seemed trivial but exaggerated, and nonsensical. Unfortunate. It was also hard to mesh with the main characters. & for some reason I couldn't always differentiate the side characters from each other (and sometimes from the main characters. My thoughts: "Like girl, who's talking right now?" "And who the hell is cait?" "Who the hell is meg?" It was a lot of that). I was listening to just the audio sometimes and that's when i was most confused.
& the romance didn't do what I wanted it to do.
& the romance didn't do what I wanted it to do.
March 16, 2022
The sparks fly when a paleontologist and a baker square off and have to figure out how to navigate family expectations, past hurts, and chasing their own dreams along with that pesky bone of contention called love. I was eager for a light and fun contemporary romance by a new to me author and it didn’t hurt that a dinosaur bones discovery in the backyard is what gets it all started.
Alisha Blake has been working at her granddad’s barbecue restaurant and helping care for her grandmother feeling she owes them for raising her and her sister after her parents were gone, but lately she has felt the urge to see her own dream of opening a cookie bakery come into being. She’s on the point of presenting her plan to her grandparents when her granddad reinforces her place at the restaurant and she keeps silent about her baking dreams once again and chooses to keep the status quo. Meanwhile, her sister Simone is working her career in the city and nagging her about her lack of dating life which Alisha needs no reminders about. If she’s honest, she feels safer focusing on family and job because a commitment to love scares her.
Dr. Quentin Harris gets the assignment from his boss in the department to head out to western Illinois and check out the big bone the locals claim is a dinosaur. He’s spent fifteen years working hard at his career and is an assistant professor in a field he loves, but his family thinks he’s wasting his time since his career doesn’t pull in the big bucks and it still hurts that his fiancée left him for her career abroad. Quentin is eager to investigate the bones, but one glimpse of Alisha standing in his dig pit and his attention is decidedly split between the discovery and the attraction between them.
Digging for Love is a blend of light and flirty with some angsty romance and deeper conflicts with family that gave some depth to the story. I loved that his research got some front and center time at the dig as did her delicious baking skills. It was a fun combo as backdrop for the romance. I thought the small town setting was painted well down to the gossipy neighbor and Alisha’s friendships and the one-signal main street, but it was also neat to catch some scenes in the city and along the shore as well. The situation with their respective families pushing them and not taking into account their wants and dreams out of misplaced sense of love had me sympathizing and cheering them on from the get-go.
Reading easy and swiftly for the most part, there were a few dragging moments to the pacing. Partly, this is because one of the big recurring conflicts is the fact that lack of communication was constantly happening between the romance pair and between them and their family members which would cause unnecessary ansty moments as I saw it. Without it, this story would have been over in short order. They needed to have honest conversations with their families and with each other, but I could appreciate that the reason they didn’t was because that involved being honest with themselves first.
I liked both Alisha and Quentin and, for all their lack of communication, I thought they were a fun pair. They had some good flirty dialogue moments, particularly in texts, and encounters. The romance is more spicy than full-on steam. They do tend to take two steps forward and three frustrating steps backward often enough so the reader has to show great patience to see them through to the end when they finally get on the right track.
In summary, this debut book offered some bright moments and a few that weren’t. It met my expectation level and hit the right tone with the banter and fun career backgrounds. I think some might enjoy this one more than others because of the conflict type, but I’m pretty sure that most would adore having the hero be a paleontologist and the heroine a baker in this slightly spicy light contemporary romance.
I rec'd an eARC from Montlake via NetGalley to read in exchange for an honest review.
Alisha Blake has been working at her granddad’s barbecue restaurant and helping care for her grandmother feeling she owes them for raising her and her sister after her parents were gone, but lately she has felt the urge to see her own dream of opening a cookie bakery come into being. She’s on the point of presenting her plan to her grandparents when her granddad reinforces her place at the restaurant and she keeps silent about her baking dreams once again and chooses to keep the status quo. Meanwhile, her sister Simone is working her career in the city and nagging her about her lack of dating life which Alisha needs no reminders about. If she’s honest, she feels safer focusing on family and job because a commitment to love scares her.
Dr. Quentin Harris gets the assignment from his boss in the department to head out to western Illinois and check out the big bone the locals claim is a dinosaur. He’s spent fifteen years working hard at his career and is an assistant professor in a field he loves, but his family thinks he’s wasting his time since his career doesn’t pull in the big bucks and it still hurts that his fiancée left him for her career abroad. Quentin is eager to investigate the bones, but one glimpse of Alisha standing in his dig pit and his attention is decidedly split between the discovery and the attraction between them.
Digging for Love is a blend of light and flirty with some angsty romance and deeper conflicts with family that gave some depth to the story. I loved that his research got some front and center time at the dig as did her delicious baking skills. It was a fun combo as backdrop for the romance. I thought the small town setting was painted well down to the gossipy neighbor and Alisha’s friendships and the one-signal main street, but it was also neat to catch some scenes in the city and along the shore as well. The situation with their respective families pushing them and not taking into account their wants and dreams out of misplaced sense of love had me sympathizing and cheering them on from the get-go.
Reading easy and swiftly for the most part, there were a few dragging moments to the pacing. Partly, this is because one of the big recurring conflicts is the fact that lack of communication was constantly happening between the romance pair and between them and their family members which would cause unnecessary ansty moments as I saw it. Without it, this story would have been over in short order. They needed to have honest conversations with their families and with each other, but I could appreciate that the reason they didn’t was because that involved being honest with themselves first.
I liked both Alisha and Quentin and, for all their lack of communication, I thought they were a fun pair. They had some good flirty dialogue moments, particularly in texts, and encounters. The romance is more spicy than full-on steam. They do tend to take two steps forward and three frustrating steps backward often enough so the reader has to show great patience to see them through to the end when they finally get on the right track.
In summary, this debut book offered some bright moments and a few that weren’t. It met my expectation level and hit the right tone with the banter and fun career backgrounds. I think some might enjoy this one more than others because of the conflict type, but I’m pretty sure that most would adore having the hero be a paleontologist and the heroine a baker in this slightly spicy light contemporary romance.
I rec'd an eARC from Montlake via NetGalley to read in exchange for an honest review.
January 15, 2022
so much fun
This book was a breath of fresh air, a ton of fun, and e very easy read. I didn’t know how much I wanted to have a romance novel involving a paleontologist before now, but I’ll never be the same. All of the characters are likable and have depth that makes them both relatable and believable. I will definitely be reading more by this author.
This book was a breath of fresh air, a ton of fun, and e very easy read. I didn’t know how much I wanted to have a romance novel involving a paleontologist before now, but I’ll never be the same. All of the characters are likable and have depth that makes them both relatable and believable. I will definitely be reading more by this author.
December 6, 2021
I really liked the premise and it could have been great but there were too many bits where I just wanted to slap everyone involved for their lack of emotional maturity and inability to communicate . Also, instalove and angst with no real basis.
February 4, 2022
It took me a while to get into this, mainly because I encountered a few instances of toxic masculinity early on in the book (not from the love interest) that put me off. But luckily the rest of the book made up for that and honestly, who can resist a story with a DINOSAUR? The concept of this was just so fun. Still, keeping this at 3 stars because I didn't feel as invested as I would have liked. I'm not sure yet if I'll read the sequel but it does sound great, so I probably will!
August 28, 2022
this was really cute!! tbh i skipped some parts, i feel like this book could have been 50-80 pages shorter… but it was still like so fun to read. i really do like the characters, and it was just a cute little rom com book🤞 just wasn’t super into it for some reason
February 22, 2022
Might lower this to one star later, haven't decided. This isn't the worst thing I've ever read but it really has too many problems for me to say I enjoyed it. The TL;DR is that it feels shallow. More specific issues are:
*Protagonist and love interest are both in their thirties. Both act like they're thirteen year olds. (Example: guy will say something like "sure let's do it" and then he'll immediately start blushing and stammering and he'll be like
"I--I didn't mean it like THAT--OWO I didn't MEAN to mention S*X..oh no frick frack")
*Author claims on Twitter protagonist is "strong female." Said strong female is so passive that it's actually (and I hate this word but have to use it anyway) toxic. It being mentioned three times that she lifts weights doesn't make her strong.
*So many pop-culture references that it makes me want to burn a building down (in Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga).
*In many ways this book feels like it's written for tweens because of the extensive pointless text conversations we see between protagonist and love interest that are literally just them exchanging GIFS. Like...I do not give a flying fuck if the protagonist sent a Barney GIF oh my Godddd who cares? Like all of those bulked up the book so badly and made me feel like I was reading something from the YA section. Just summarize in one sentence that they've been texting and talk about how it's making the characters feel, so it actually progresses the plot.
*This story could have been half the length, as other reviewers have pointed out. There is sooo much filler and unnecessary information that it made the story drag and made me feel fed up as a reader.
*The language often felt extremely fanfiction-y and melodramatic. Alisha meets Quentin and her knees nearly give out, and her stomach turns inside out. Girl are you okay??? I was expecting her to explode when Quentin kissed her.
*I really don't understand why Quentin likes or is chasing this woman who repeatedly told him throughout the story that she wasn't ready for a relationship and was too damaged to date him. Like I'm sorry but if someone tells you that shit over and over the move is not to continue chasing them, the move is to just say 'ok' and move on and date Bridget or whoever. I would understand if Quentin and Alisha had been in a relationship at that point because it's like ok maybe he knew she was self-sabotaging but the bottom line is that he DIDN'T and they never even established they were bf/gf and literally went on like 2.5 dates like you do NOT know someone well enough at that point to know what's good for them.
*Alisha throughout this book just comes across as a woman who wants to just work on her bakery and lift weights and vibe without a man. It's literally every other character who is pressuring her to 'get yourself a man girrrrrl' when she repeatedly says she isn't emotionally ready and has a duty to her family. This story's resolution is that she should not trust her own instincts that are telling her she is not ready and instead just bite the bullet and date some hot guy she has nothing but liking Jurassic Park in common with. It's honestly really antifeminist and kind of...not a great message. Just because she's thirty and has been single for seven years doesn't mean that she NEEDS to get a man. Maybe she's not done healing or isn't mature enough? She certainly seems that way, even at the end of the book.
*Truly I didn't feel like Quentin had a super distinct personality and it made it hard to find him dreamy. He just felt like Dream Boat Professor Guy (who sorta kinda has romantic baggage that's mentioned twice) but he didn't have any weird quirks or interesting personality traits that made him come to life. I think this made him feel like a shallowly developed character. I know he wants to impress his father too but idk it's just all so trope-y and stereotypical. There wasn't anything really special about him.
*This book almost would have been better written as a literary fiction bittersweet kind of thing, maybe about Alisha gaining her independence and realizing that she was trying to please others and put others before herself in dating Quentin, just like she always does. I feel like that would have felt more real. Quentin does not feel like an end-game love interest, he and Alisha are just at too different parts of their lives. That's not bad, it just would have worked better as this maybe more sweeping, covering many years, scientific dark academia magnum opus.
Anyway this author is not Bad per se this book just felt like a not super great execution. However it's an interesting enough concept that I could see her books getting better over the years. This author also definitely uses TikTok. That's just the vibe and it's not serving.
Oh also.
DYSTOPIA
*Protagonist and love interest are both in their thirties. Both act like they're thirteen year olds. (Example: guy will say something like "sure let's do it" and then he'll immediately start blushing and stammering and he'll be like
"I--I didn't mean it like THAT--OWO I didn't MEAN to mention S*X..oh no frick frack")
*Author claims on Twitter protagonist is "strong female." Said strong female is so passive that it's actually (and I hate this word but have to use it anyway) toxic. It being mentioned three times that she lifts weights doesn't make her strong.
*So many pop-culture references that it makes me want to burn a building down (in Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga).
*In many ways this book feels like it's written for tweens because of the extensive pointless text conversations we see between protagonist and love interest that are literally just them exchanging GIFS. Like...I do not give a flying fuck if the protagonist sent a Barney GIF oh my Godddd who cares? Like all of those bulked up the book so badly and made me feel like I was reading something from the YA section. Just summarize in one sentence that they've been texting and talk about how it's making the characters feel, so it actually progresses the plot.
*This story could have been half the length, as other reviewers have pointed out. There is sooo much filler and unnecessary information that it made the story drag and made me feel fed up as a reader.
*The language often felt extremely fanfiction-y and melodramatic. Alisha meets Quentin and her knees nearly give out, and her stomach turns inside out. Girl are you okay??? I was expecting her to explode when Quentin kissed her.
*I really don't understand why Quentin likes or is chasing this woman who repeatedly told him throughout the story that she wasn't ready for a relationship and was too damaged to date him. Like I'm sorry but if someone tells you that shit over and over the move is not to continue chasing them, the move is to just say 'ok' and move on and date Bridget or whoever. I would understand if Quentin and Alisha had been in a relationship at that point because it's like ok maybe he knew she was self-sabotaging but the bottom line is that he DIDN'T and they never even established they were bf/gf and literally went on like 2.5 dates like you do NOT know someone well enough at that point to know what's good for them.
*Alisha throughout this book just comes across as a woman who wants to just work on her bakery and lift weights and vibe without a man. It's literally every other character who is pressuring her to 'get yourself a man girrrrrl' when she repeatedly says she isn't emotionally ready and has a duty to her family. This story's resolution is that she should not trust her own instincts that are telling her she is not ready and instead just bite the bullet and date some hot guy she has nothing but liking Jurassic Park in common with. It's honestly really antifeminist and kind of...not a great message. Just because she's thirty and has been single for seven years doesn't mean that she NEEDS to get a man. Maybe she's not done healing or isn't mature enough? She certainly seems that way, even at the end of the book.
*Truly I didn't feel like Quentin had a super distinct personality and it made it hard to find him dreamy. He just felt like Dream Boat Professor Guy (who sorta kinda has romantic baggage that's mentioned twice) but he didn't have any weird quirks or interesting personality traits that made him come to life. I think this made him feel like a shallowly developed character. I know he wants to impress his father too but idk it's just all so trope-y and stereotypical. There wasn't anything really special about him.
*This book almost would have been better written as a literary fiction bittersweet kind of thing, maybe about Alisha gaining her independence and realizing that she was trying to please others and put others before herself in dating Quentin, just like she always does. I feel like that would have felt more real. Quentin does not feel like an end-game love interest, he and Alisha are just at too different parts of their lives. That's not bad, it just would have worked better as this maybe more sweeping, covering many years, scientific dark academia magnum opus.
Anyway this author is not Bad per se this book just felt like a not super great execution. However it's an interesting enough concept that I could see her books getting better over the years. This author also definitely uses TikTok. That's just the vibe and it's not serving.
Oh also.
DYSTOPIA
Want to read
August 23, 2021i wanna dig this up from the future and read it NOW
November 23, 2022
There was a lot unique to like in this book - a hot paleontologist hero, a powerlifting heroine, and a backstory that was meaningful without being too dramatic. Unfortunately a lot of the plot revolved around lack of communication, and there were like four 80% breakups, which didn’t work for me.
September 13, 2022
Full Review on The Candid Cover
Digging Up Love by Chandra Blumberg is an upbeat story about following your dreams. Following a baker and a paleontologist, this one contains two ambitious main characters and heartfelt family dynamics. Those who enjoy delicious desserts and dinosaur facts will not want to miss this sweet romance.
Talented baker Alisha enjoys her peaceful life in a small town, where she creates mouthwatering desserts for her grandfather’s restaurant. However, when a dinosaur bone turns up in her grandparents’ backyard, bringing a team of researchers and one particularly cute paleontologist to her home, Alisha’s quiet life is interrupted. While sparks fly between her and Quentin, they each have something holding them back from falling in love, and they must learn to put the past behind them in order to move forward together.
❀ INTERESTING CHARACTERS
Alisha and Quentin are interesting characters, and I enjoyed their dynamic. Alisha is a baker and powerlifter with big dreams of opening a cookie shop of her own, and I admired her commitment to do what she truly enjoys, regardless of what others think. Quentin is a paleontologist, which I have never read about before, and he is also determined to follow his dream, despite his father’s disapproval. I will say that the constant miscommunication between Alisha and Quentin can be frustrating at times, but overall, their relationship feels natural.
❀ FAMILY DYNAMICS
As a fan of books about family, I enjoyed the family dynamics in this one and the tension they bring to the plot. While Alisha dreams of opening her own shop, she is currently working for her grandparents and feels almost guilty for wanting more. The balance between the loyalty and love she feels for her family and her fierce determination to chase her own dream is touching, I enjoyed following her as she slowly starts to live her own life and go after what she truly wants.
❀ A HEARTFELT STORY
Digging Up Love by Chandra Blumberg is a heartfelt story about following your dreams. I enjoyed the unique pairing of a baker and a paleontologist, and the family dynamics bring a lot of heart to the plot. This is a great read for those looking for something as sweet as Alisha’s cookies.
Digging Up Love by Chandra Blumberg is an upbeat story about following your dreams. Following a baker and a paleontologist, this one contains two ambitious main characters and heartfelt family dynamics. Those who enjoy delicious desserts and dinosaur facts will not want to miss this sweet romance.
Talented baker Alisha enjoys her peaceful life in a small town, where she creates mouthwatering desserts for her grandfather’s restaurant. However, when a dinosaur bone turns up in her grandparents’ backyard, bringing a team of researchers and one particularly cute paleontologist to her home, Alisha’s quiet life is interrupted. While sparks fly between her and Quentin, they each have something holding them back from falling in love, and they must learn to put the past behind them in order to move forward together.
❀ INTERESTING CHARACTERS
Alisha and Quentin are interesting characters, and I enjoyed their dynamic. Alisha is a baker and powerlifter with big dreams of opening a cookie shop of her own, and I admired her commitment to do what she truly enjoys, regardless of what others think. Quentin is a paleontologist, which I have never read about before, and he is also determined to follow his dream, despite his father’s disapproval. I will say that the constant miscommunication between Alisha and Quentin can be frustrating at times, but overall, their relationship feels natural.
❀ FAMILY DYNAMICS
As a fan of books about family, I enjoyed the family dynamics in this one and the tension they bring to the plot. While Alisha dreams of opening her own shop, she is currently working for her grandparents and feels almost guilty for wanting more. The balance between the loyalty and love she feels for her family and her fierce determination to chase her own dream is touching, I enjoyed following her as she slowly starts to live her own life and go after what she truly wants.
❀ A HEARTFELT STORY
Digging Up Love by Chandra Blumberg is a heartfelt story about following your dreams. I enjoyed the unique pairing of a baker and a paleontologist, and the family dynamics bring a lot of heart to the plot. This is a great read for those looking for something as sweet as Alisha’s cookies.
March 4, 2022
A Baker and a Paleontologist walk into a romance novel… and it’s the cutest book ever!
🧡First of all, this cover is amazing!!! Title, art, color scheme- love it all. 😍
🤎Secondly, this book won extra points for all of the Jurassic Park and Ross Gellar references. 🤓
💚Alisha meets Quentin when dinosaur bones are discovered in her grandparents back yard. These two are so likable and have wonderful chemistry from the start. They are just so perfect for each other and I adored their unique story. 🥰
•Playful Banter
•Chasing Dreams
•Family Support
•A bit of Miscommunication
🧡First of all, this cover is amazing!!! Title, art, color scheme- love it all. 😍
🤎Secondly, this book won extra points for all of the Jurassic Park and Ross Gellar references. 🤓
💚Alisha meets Quentin when dinosaur bones are discovered in her grandparents back yard. These two are so likable and have wonderful chemistry from the start. They are just so perfect for each other and I adored their unique story. 🥰
•Playful Banter
•Chasing Dreams
•Family Support
•A bit of Miscommunication
December 28, 2021
I was looking for an easy and light-hearted read and "Digging Up Love" just ticked all the boxes.
The premise is original - who wouldn't want to find a dinosaur's remains in their backyard and meet their own personal Ross Geller? - and the characters are all quite likeable, although the protagonists often lack emotional maturity and I would have just liked to step in myself and say "Just talk to each other, for heaven's sake". This resulted in a few instances where the plot felt a little repetitive, as the main characters seemed to be caught in the same trust issues over and over again.
Overall though, it was a rather enjoyable book, with plenty of cheesy moments.
The premise is original - who wouldn't want to find a dinosaur's remains in their backyard and meet their own personal Ross Geller? - and the characters are all quite likeable, although the protagonists often lack emotional maturity and I would have just liked to step in myself and say "Just talk to each other, for heaven's sake". This resulted in a few instances where the plot felt a little repetitive, as the main characters seemed to be caught in the same trust issues over and over again.
Overall though, it was a rather enjoyable book, with plenty of cheesy moments.
January 4, 2022
An utterly sweet and heartfelt romance between a Black baker and a paleontologist. I loved these characters who were trying to find the courage to take a chance at love while also pursuing their individual career aspirations. Full of a great cast of secondary characters. Perfect for fans of Jasmine Guillory or Abby Collette's Ice Cream Parlor cozy mysteries (with a little less murder and a little more romance). Excellent on audio with two narrators. I'm excited to read the next book in this new Taste of love series by debut author Chandra Blumberg!
🔥Steam level: kissing only
🔥Steam level: kissing only
December 11, 2021
Loved this
This was a very quirky and different romance! Loved learning about the career of paleontology and desserts! It was a very different, yet fun read. I only wish ot was more steamy scenes that included desserts and naked bodies 🤤. Overall great book! Looking forward to reading more from the author!
This was a very quirky and different romance! Loved learning about the career of paleontology and desserts! It was a very different, yet fun read. I only wish ot was more steamy scenes that included desserts and naked bodies 🤤. Overall great book! Looking forward to reading more from the author!
July 20, 2022
I was super excited to read Digging Up Love. I mean, who doesn't love dinosaurs?! Alisha is an aspiring cookie bakery owner working at her grandpa's barbecue restaurant, when they discover a possible dinosaur fossil in their backyard. Enter Professor Quentin Harris, paleontologist and Alisha's dream man. The two strike up a friendship before Quentin's team comes back to excavate, but there's definitely an underlying attraction which ignites once the dig starts. I absolutely loved this set up! It was a cute Romance, but there did seem to be a lack of focus, as it jumped around from issue to issue.
One other thing that I loved about Digging Up Love which didn't get nearly enough page time was Alisha's power-lifting. She's a buff woman and very strong, and she won't let a man make her feel bad for being bigger or stronger than him. This is brought up just a few times, but it's such an interesting topic, I wish it had been explored more! Sure, everyone loves cookies, but I was getting a bit annoyed with Alisha's business (or lack thereof), and wanted more of her lifting! That's just not something I've come across in a Romance novel before, while every other one does seem to feature baking. It was just a lost opportunity.
While I did enjoy Digging Up Love overall, I was not here for that "drama." It was really forced, came out of nowhere, and detracted from the real issues. Why is it any of Quentin's business when Alisha tells her family about her bakery dreams? She knows them and herself way better than he does, so shouldn't she be the judge of when she let's them know she wants to leave? I feel like the author tried to rationalize this with Quentin's past, but it didn't work. It was nonsense. Their other issues surrounding the university was much more believable and interesting. And definitely relevant to today's social media culture.
Read more at Pinkadot Pages.
One other thing that I loved about Digging Up Love which didn't get nearly enough page time was Alisha's power-lifting. She's a buff woman and very strong, and she won't let a man make her feel bad for being bigger or stronger than him. This is brought up just a few times, but it's such an interesting topic, I wish it had been explored more! Sure, everyone loves cookies, but I was getting a bit annoyed with Alisha's business (or lack thereof), and wanted more of her lifting! That's just not something I've come across in a Romance novel before, while every other one does seem to feature baking. It was just a lost opportunity.
While I did enjoy Digging Up Love overall, I was not here for that "drama." It was really forced, came out of nowhere, and detracted from the real issues. Why is it any of Quentin's business when Alisha tells her family about her bakery dreams? She knows them and herself way better than he does, so shouldn't she be the judge of when she let's them know she wants to leave? I feel like the author tried to rationalize this with Quentin's past, but it didn't work. It was nonsense. Their other issues surrounding the university was much more believable and interesting. And definitely relevant to today's social media culture.
Read more at Pinkadot Pages.
February 11, 2022
Trigger warnings: death of a parent (in the past), parental abandonment (in the past)
I wanted to love this because, like, a baker falls in love with a palaeontologist after dinosaur bones are found in her grandparents' back garden. Everything about that premise ticks boxes for me. And I really did enjoy the early stages of the story! It's fun and funny and sweet and a slow burn romance, and they bond over Jurassic Park.
And then the pace dropped and I realised that this is a romance book where they kiss a couple of times and that's it. Like, it's not even IMPLIED that they're doing more off the page. Which, like, FINE. It just wasn't at all what I expected going into this (and honestly, that may in part be because I read it on Kindle Unlimited hahaha).
I think ultimately my final assessment on this is "cute but forgettable".
I wanted to love this because, like, a baker falls in love with a palaeontologist after dinosaur bones are found in her grandparents' back garden. Everything about that premise ticks boxes for me. And I really did enjoy the early stages of the story! It's fun and funny and sweet and a slow burn romance, and they bond over Jurassic Park.
And then the pace dropped and I realised that this is a romance book where they kiss a couple of times and that's it. Like, it's not even IMPLIED that they're doing more off the page. Which, like, FINE. It just wasn't at all what I expected going into this (and honestly, that may in part be because I read it on Kindle Unlimited hahaha).
I think ultimately my final assessment on this is "cute but forgettable".
February 10, 2022
-1 star because of the startling amount of miscommunication
September 27, 2022
kinda low key cringy but cute
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