A received a review copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.
Synopsis
This novel is a fresh edition to what I like to call the sub-genre LGBTQ cooking graphic novels. Others in the genre include Basil and Oregano and Chef’s Kiss. The genre itself tends to be light and bright, even when dealing with serious issues.
First let me address the story. Hungry Heart follows a enthusiastic young writer Laurie who gets his big break interviewing cooking show star and heartthrob Oryan Adiei, a British-Ghanaian cooking star who achieved fame at an early age on the competition show British Kitchen trials. For anyone who watches things like Masterchef, think those vibes.
At first Laurie is starstruck when meeting Oryan, but soon realizes that Oryan’s life is more complicated than it seems on the surface. Oryan despite being famous feels more alone than ever and is worried people are seeing him as a object and not as himself. He also worries about the direction his career is taking and isn’t sure he wants to continue.
Laurie takes the time to get to know Oryan as a person. The two bonding over their lives in London, their shared love of cooking, and their growing affection for each other.
What started as a work relationship over cheese stakes quickly becomes a whirlwind friendship of stealing hors d’oeuvres and hanging out at parties together. But each of them has something at risk. Laurie is being pushed by his editor to get the ‘scoop’ on Oryan. But Laurie doesn’t want to push for more personal details about someone he’s coming to care about.
Oryan is also feeling the heat, as he makes changes in his career after talking with Laurie about how he was feeling trapped. He is facing problems both professionally and personally as his change of direction lets down a former mentor and an old flame seeks to regain his attention. But will Laurie and Oryan’s budding relationship prove strong enough to handle the searing heat of the life as a celebrity and the scandal that can come about with it.
Can Laurie get past his self doubt and let Oryan in? Or will the two of them flop like a souffle. The volume finishes up on a positive note, but it leaves the door open for future scandal.
Review
The art in this graphic novel supports the story, with the food being pictured as bright and vibrant. Also whoever did the coloring for Oryan’s different colored hair did a great job, it jumps off the page and creates almost like a halo about him when he appears on the page. It’s an interesting contrast compared to Laurie’s more muted color scheme.
Finally the content warnings, this book deals with some serious stuff including coming out, and a fairly important side plot about a former eating disorder with images that match visible on page. This is noted at the beginning of the graphic novel though and is approached in a sensitive and caring way.
This book is five stars, I can’t wait to read the next cute Volume from the Jem Milton if they decide to produce another.
Hungry Heart releases November 19th.
Pre-Order Your Copy Here
About the Author
Jem Milton is a nonbinary artist based in Glasgow, Scotland. Jem has been drawing since they could hold a pencil and currently works as an illustrator, comic artist, and graphic recorder. Jem is also the author of the fantasy webcomic The Flying Ship.
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