Appetite

A propulsive, heartfelt, and utterly original debut about a young chef trying to find her way in a world that’s not built for her to succeed—and the pro wrestler she idolizes who derails everything Zarina, a prep cook at a fancy New Haven restaurant, is underpaid, overworked, and might as well be invisible. The only upside: they get to take home leftover ingredients. Every night, Zarina whips up modern spins on the Bangladeshi dishes she grew up eating, all while enjoying her second greatest passion: professional wrestling. Namely, Zarina’s hero Sierra Myst—the massively successful, high-flying heel who’s built like a superhero and is every bit as confident and daring as one. One night, Zarina posts online about one of Sierra Myst’s wins, and the most improbable thing happens: Sierra reaches out to Zarina. Zarina is elated at the chance to become closer with her idol, and at first, their friendship is everything Zarina’s ever dreamed of. Zarina’s confidence grows, their world gets bigger, and opening their own restaurant doesn’t feel quite so impossible. But as the weeks fly by, Zarina starts to feel more like Sierra’s unpaid personal assistant and relationship counselor—and her desire to make Sierra happy eclipses their own goals and threatens everything they’ve worked for. Deliciously unsettling and ultimately uplifting, Appetite is about the unique torture of being a twenty-something who’s torn between the person someone else wants you to be and the person you really are.