A Rom-Com in an Apple Orchard: A Review of Violina Sytnik's First Pancake

First pancake, first flop: when theory collides with real feelings.

Have you heard of the 'first pancake' theory? According to it, the first relationship after a difficult breakup almost never has a real chance of success. As if the heart, like a frying pan, needs a bit of time to 'warm up.' The first pancake, so the saying goes, always comes out a flop. This theory becomes the starting point for the story of Violina Sytnik's book of the same name.

This Ukrainian author writes in the genres of rom-com, thriller-mystery, and fantasy. First Pancake came out in 2025.

One reader, Khrystyna, described the book in an exclusive comment for DeTalks as a rescue from a reading slump that brought her real joy, adding that despite following a seemingly classic plot, many of its events were unexpected and kept her pleasantly on edge.

The Book's Plot

Young kindergarten teacher Mira finds herself at the center of a loud scandal that destroys her career. But the streak of bad luck is just beginning — the girl is forced to move out of her rented apartment.

When the protagonist can't find housing in the city, Mira has to move to a village for a while. There, a house awaits her that she's inherited. But because of her relationship with her biological father, this option feels more like a trap than a rescue. Still, it's exactly this forced move that opens up another side of Myroslava's past and leads her to a place where things aren't quite what they seem at first.

Waiting for Myroslava is a cozy little house, a huge apple orchard, and a guy from a club who was supposed to be a one-night stand — that very 'first pancake.' Max falls for the stranger instantly. But he soon learns that this same girl is a contender not just for his attention, but for the orchard too. Max is ready to fight for the cause of his whole life, even as his heart wants Mira.

In the story's central conflict, the orchard becomes a crossing point for different emotional histories: for Myroslava, it's an unpleasant reminder of her father, while for Maksym, it's a source of strength.

The Book's Category

First Pancake belongs to the New Adult (NA) category. This genre is often seen as a bridge between Young Adult (YA) and Adult, since stories like these usually center on characters aged 18 to 25.

NA themes partly overlap with YA, but focus more on independent decisions. In the book, for instance, Mira faces a reevaluation of her life — moving to a village, starting a blog, and forming serious relationships.

The author combines two storylines in the work — an external one (life changes, the inheritance, the fight over the orchard) and an internal one (the characters' inner experiences). This lets readers track how the change in setting affects Mira's decisions, and how the pressure of circumstance kicks off her emotional growth. The trip to the village functions here as a reset, within which the love story becomes part of a broader process of self-renewal.

One reader, Mariana Vasylenko, wrote in an Instagram comment that the book struck exactly the right mood and hit her right in the heart, saying she believed in the characters and appreciated how it wasn't just about romance, and

added that the book is about choice, about inner storms, about the growing up that sneaks up on you when you're no longer a child but not yet an adult, and about the moments that teach us through our mistakes and leave a mark deeper than we realize.

The Characters' Relationship

The book shows how important it is to communicate in a relationship. At the start of the story, for instance, Max is ready to take legal action against the person trying to take his orchard. But soon after learning who the heir actually is, he plans to resolve the problem through conversation instead.

Violina Sytnik puts the emphasis on communication as the key mechanism driving the couple's development. The conflict between the characters is built on everyday questions of honesty and trust, rather than exaggerated dramatic events.

Might Mira suspect that Max made her fall for him just to secure the orchard? Max puts off the conversation until Myroslava finds out the truth by accident. As a result, Mira gets angry and hurt at Maksym, but the guy has no intention of ending things there.

In the book, Max tells Mira that while she might be used to cutting people who've hurt her out of her life, he won't be so easy to get rid of, since adults deal with their problems instead of running from them.

The romantic dynamic forms through the clash of different behavioral patterns — Max wants to talk problems through, while Mira is surprised by his approach. These differences affect how capable the characters are of meeting each other halfway.

What Questions the Book Raises

The book explores the theme of accepting the past and the ability to forgive. Myroslava grows up believing her biological father left nothing behind in her life but a shadow and disappointment. The girl's childhood memory clings to the image of a man who once behaved dishonorably.

A contrast emerges here, since Max sees a different version of that same person. For Maksym, this man is a bright memory, a kind mentor who taught him a great deal. This forces Myroslava to reflect and look at the past more broadly than she'd allowed herself to before.

Accepting the past ripens slowly, like apples in the orchard. Myroslava doesn't forget her old wounds, but starts to see her father's inheritance not as a burden, but as a chance to move forward. Through this thread, the author shows how the past can shape her characters' relationships.

A paradox of life emerges: if not for this inheritance, Max and Mira's paths might never have crossed again. So it shows that the past can wound us, but sometimes it also sends us people who change the course of our lives.

First Pancake will appeal to anyone looking for an easygoing, warm romantic comedy who wants to hold onto that cozy autumn feeling a little longer. The novel rests on light humor and familiar life situations.