Review: Fun, romantic read!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 06 10, 2013
This book had everything that makes up a great romance read.It was fun and light at times, with many sexy, sensual kisses. Throw in a bit of conflict, a few broken souls who constantly disregard their true feelings and it's a match made in heaven.The characters are all really great...okay maybe not all...Gina was a real skank. I was immediately thrown into Jill's world of culinary pleasure. Her passion for cooking was clearly visible but when the dashing Chet Castle entered her kitchen it all went up in smoke, or more accurately, ended up all over Chet and the floor. Her job wasn't the only thing she lost that night with his tantalizing kiss, and from then on she struggled to find her way in the world. I enjoyed Jill's determination. Even with everything she'd had to go through, her mind was set on opening her own business and she would do just about anything to make her new dream a reality. Chet's a broken man. A bit of a womanizer, he closely guarded his heart, as well as his bank account.It was exciting to watch Chet and Jill navigate their agreement. Their constant play at cat and mouse kept the story flowing. Although Chet's intentions weren't entirely admirable, I believe neither were Jill's, she just refused to admit it. She'd agreed to become Chet's personal chef for financial reasons but her body and mind often betrayed her desire.I was a little surprised that she initiated things in the pool, and by the way she fled afterwards, it seemed that so was she. It was great that Jill and Chet were adult enough to continue their friendship regardless of their actions, but it did add a new level of sexual awareness to their game. Things kind of simmered down until Gina poked her nose into things and stirred up a storm of deceit and lies. I was just happy that Chet wasn't foolish enough to fall for her tricks.Even though his fears made him say nasty, hurtful things to Jill, I loved that he was willing to stand by her no matter what. Jill had her own fears, and I can understand why she wasn't prepared to accept less than she deserved; another testament to her strong character.This book was a fun, quick read. I didn't necessarily feel as emotionally connected to the characters as I'd normally like, and the sexual tension didn't ooze from the pages, but that didn't keep me from enjoying it. Too often, books in this genre tend to rely on the high level of sexiness to make them appealing, but this story was more a tale of two people finding themselves while fixing each other.