What if you could have one last meal with someone you’ve loved, someone you’ve lost? Aftertaste is an epic love story, a dark comedy, and a synesthetic adventure through food and grief.
Mark your calendars, LitStackers! Aftertaste by Daria Lavelle is in presale (the best time to buy a book), and ready to hit the bookshelf. Our anticipation is palpable. Published by Simon & Schuster, Aftertaste is already making waves with early readers. Here’s a sneak peek at what’s on the cover from the publisher’s official description to early reviews that will help you pre-order your copy ASAP. Let’s dive in!
In This Spotlight On Aftertaste
About Aftertaste
A food story to binge.
A ghost story to devour.
A love story to savor.
Konstantin Duhovny is a haunted man. His father died when he was ten, and ghosts have been hovering around him ever since. Kostya can’t exactly see the ghosts, but he can taste their favorite foods. Flavors of meals he’s never eaten will flood his mouth, a sign that a spirit is present. Kostya has kept these aftertastes a secret for most of his life, but one night, he decides to act on what he’s tasting. And everything changes.
Kostya discovers he can reunite people with their deceased loved ones—at least for the length of time it takes them to eat a dish that he’s prepared. His life’s purpose might be to offer closure to grieving strangers, and he sets out to learn all he can by entering a particularly fiery ring of Hell: the New York culinary scene. But as his kitchen skills catch up with his ambitions, Kostya is too blind to see the catastrophe looming in the Afterlife. And the one person who knows Kostya must be stopped also happens to be falling in love with him.
Set in the bustling world of New York restaurants and teeming with mouthwatering food writing, Aftertaste is a whirlwind romance, a heart-wrenching look at love and loss, and a ghost story about all the ways we hunger—and how far we’d go to find satisfaction.
Praise for Aftertaste
“This is a terrific book. Aftertaste offers the glories of food and cooking—all the yes-chef details we now love—in a cool, brilliant, and suspenseful novel whose spec-fic plot wants to talk about the mysteries of sense-memory and death. I could not put it down.”—Joan Silber, author of Secrets of Happiness and Improvement
“An original concept perfectly realized. Witty and poignant, surprising and satisfying, this lovely book about death is brimming with life.”—Karen Joy Fowler, award-winning author of We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves
“Daria Lavelle’s Aftertaste is pure magic; a story that nourishes the soul, breaks the heart, and lingers on the tongue long after reading. I am so glad to have been haunted by it. A sparkling debut from a writer gifted with wit and imagination to spare.”—Violet Kupersmith, author of Build Your House Around My Body
“Aftertaste is practically exploding with love, life and flavour. I relished every word.”—Louise Kennedy, bestselling author of Trespasses
“Brilliantly constructed and wholly original, Aftertaste is like no novel you’ve ever tried before. It’s much more than your usual dish—it’s a whole literary tasting menu. Packed with ghosts, romance, fine dining, and the mob, it will leave you stunned, thrilled, and totally satiated.”—Julia Phillips, author of Bear
“A decadent debut that marks the arrival of a sparkling new voice. Dark and delicious, sincerely moving and at times laugh out loud funny, a heady, bittersweet, beautiful novel about life and death, grief and closure, passion and hunger. A must-read.”—Rachel Harrison, author of So Thirsty and Black Sheep
“Aftertaste is 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 savor. It’s a story about grief that’s filled with humor, warmth, and astounding creativity, and I already can’t wait to read it again.”—Laura Hankin, author of One-Star Romance and The Daydreams
About Daria Lavelle, Author of Aftertaste
Daria Lavelle is an American fiction writer. Born in Kyiv, Ukraine, and raised in the New York metro area, her work explores themes of identity and belonging through magic and the uncanny. Her short stories have appeared in The Deadlands, Dread Machine, and elsewhere.
She holds degrees in writing from Princeton University and Sarah Lawrence College. She lives in New Jersey with her husband, children, and goldendoodle, all of whom love a great meal almost as much as she does.
You can connect with Daria Lavelle on their website, on Instagram, BlueSky, and TikTok.
Source: Publisher
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
ISBN: 9781668061596
Pub Date: May 20, 2025
Other Titles
Other LitStack Resources
Be sure and check out other LitStack Spotlights that shine a light on books we think you should read.
As a Bookshop, Malaprop’s, BAM, Barnes & Noble, Audiobooks.com, Amazon, and Envato affiliate, LitStack may earn a commission at no cost to you when you purchase products through our affiliate links.
