Just One Bite
Celebrity chef Brittany Cole serves up perfection. Her Vermont farmhouse, wholesome brand, and flawless family inspire millions. But one unfiltered moment, a fleeting frustration caught on video, shatters her carefully constructed world into a PR disaster.
It begins with a viral clip of Brittany snapping at her four-year-old. Soon, more damning footage emerges, fueling the #bitchmom trend and threatening to obliterate her career. But Brittany knows a terrifying truth: these new videos are fake. Deepfakes. Someone is meticulously crafting her downfall, watching her every move, twisting her image into a monstrous parody.
As sponsors abandon her and her husband files for divorce, Brittany’s life spirals into a nightmare. Then, murder strikes close to home, and the police turn their suspicion on her. With her reputation destroyed and her freedom hanging by a thread, Brittany must unmask her tormentor. Because this isn't just about ruining her life—it's about ending it.
- Brittany - Celebrity chef with Oak and Olive Productions, 40
- Tyler - Brittany’s husband, owner of Oak and Olive Productions
- Alisa - Brittany and Tyler’s daughter, 4
- Charlene - Tyler’s mother
- Riley - Alisa’s nanny, 25
- Dave - Foreman for the renovation
- Beau - Producer at Oak and Olive
- Michele - Editor at Oak and Olive
- Jasmine - Brittany’s sister
- Kai Underwood - Owner of Caseus Protection, security company
- Lucie Halley - Therapist
- Helena - Jasmine’s caregiver
- Darius - Beau’s husband, attorney
- Alisa throws a tantrum in a grocery store and Brittany yells at her to calm down.
- A clip of Alisa’s tantrum goes viral.
- Oak and Olive Productions is converting the barn on Tyler and Brittany’s property into a production studio.
- A year earlier, Tyler had what Brittany believed was a one-night stand.
- During Tyler’s birthday party, someone plays a video on a large screen showing Brittany yelling at Alisa and trying to hit her.
- Brittany says the video is a deepfake but no-one believes her.
- Someone texts Brittany the video of her yelling at and hitting Alisa and demands $50,000.
- Brittany shows Tyler the video and the blackmail request.
- Tyler insists that they not go to the police.
- Brittany hires Kai to prove the videos are fake.
- Brittany finds Riley’s diary tracking her moods, confronts Riley, learns someone has been paying Riley to monitor her and fires her.
- Brittany pays the blackmailer.
- Brittany finds Riley dead in the barn being remodeled.
- Police determine that Riley was pushed to her death.
- Brittany is questioned by police and released.
- Brittany is ordered to stay away from Alisa pending a child protective services hearing.
- Police receive a video of Brittany and Riley arguing in the barn on the day of Riley’s death.
- Brittany is arrested for Riley’s murder and gets out on bail.
- Tyler admits his “one-night stand” with Michele was actually a months-long affair.
- Brittany agrees to be interviewed for Michele’s podcast and pays Kai to set up hidden cameras in the barn.
- Michele admits she created the deepfakes to ruin Brittany’s life and win Tyler back.
- Brittany and Michele struggle and Michele falls from the scaffolding in the barn and dies.
- Police review Kai’s footage and determine Michele’s fall was an accident.
- Six months later: The videos are proven to be deepfakes and Brittany regains custody of Alisa.
- Police drop the charges against Brittany for Riley’s death.
- Brittany files for divorce from Tyler and gets a job as a cooking school instructor.
- Charlene tries to poison Brittany with a cupcake laced with sleeping pills but Alisa eats it instead.
- Charlene tells Brittany she wanted it to look like Brittany killed herself so she couldn’t take Alisa away from her.
- Charlene admits she paid Michele to create the deepfakes and killed Riley after Riley realized Michele was not the mastermind behind them.
- Charlene is arrested and dies of a heart attack five days later.
Miranda Rijks knows exactly how to build a tense atmosphere that refuses to let up. Just One Bite delivers a constant, nagging sense of suspense that hooked me right away. The pacing is fast, driven by short chapters that make it easy to fly through.
The core of this story is the psychological tightrope it walks. I spent most of the book trying to figure out if Brittany was losing her grip on reality or if she was the only one seeing the truth. What amplifies the tension is her profound isolation. No one believes her version of events, and watching even her husband and sister doubt her character creates a paranoia that kept me second-guessing every interaction.
While the initial wrap-up fell a little flat for me, Rijks pulls the rug out with a sharp, unexpected twist after the ending that completely redeems the finale. It is a tight thriller that gets straight to the point without dragging anything out. If you like paranoid protagonists, and late-game twists, then you will enjoy this book.
- Riley - Dead - Pushed to her death by Charlene
- Alisa - Alive - Made a full recovery
- Michele - Dead - Accidental fall
- Charlene - Dead - Heart attack
- Brittany - Alive - Happily settled into a more normal lifestyle
- Postpartum depression
- Child abuse
- Blackmail
- Rape
- Car accident
- Infidelity
- Abortion
- Gaslighting
ISBN: 9781837567607
Publication Date: June 25, 2026
Note: Details are for the original edition. Other formats, editions, and audiobook versions may be available.
