Sweetbitter is a mood—if you're into atmospheric, sensory writing about food and the specific ache of being young in New York, Danler delivers. The restaurant world details are sharp, the prose is confident, and the honesty about drugs, sex, and bad decisions is refreshing in its lack of moralizing.

But it's also kind of a slog. Tess is intentionally passive and frustrating, the plot is barely there, and the whole thing reads like a very long, very pretty shrug. The 3.7 Amazon rating isn't a fluke—this book divides readers hard. Some find it brilliant and evocative; others find it self-indulgent and empty.

For parents: this is absolutely not for kids or teens. It's adult fiction with adult content, full stop. If you're looking for something enriching or uplifting, look elsewhere. But if you want a well-written, unsentimental portrait of a specific time and place, with gorgeous food writing and zero redemption arcs, pour yourself a glass of wine and give it a shot.