Romance

Recipe for Persuasion (The Rajes #2)

Recipe for Persuasion (The Rajes #2)

By: Sonali Dev

Blurb:

Chef Ashna Raje desperately needs a new strategy. How else can she save her beloved restaurant and prove to her estranged, overachieving mother that she isn’t a complete screw up? When she’s asked to join the cast of Cooking with the Stars, the latest hit reality show teaming chefs with celebrities, it seems like just the leap of faith she needs to put her restaurant back on the map. She’s a chef, what’s the worst that could happen? 

Rico Silva, that’s what.  

Being paired with a celebrity who was her first love, the man who ghosted her at the worst possible time in her life, only proves what Ashna has always believed: leaps of faith are a recipe for disaster. 

FIFA winning soccer star Rico Silva isn’t too happy to be paired up with Ashna either. Losing Ashna years ago almost destroyed him. The only silver lining to this bizarre situation is that he can finally prove to Ashna that he’s definitely over her. 

But when their catastrophic first meeting goes viral, social media becomes obsessed with their chemistry. The competition on the show is fierce…and so is the simmering desire between Ashna and Rico.  Every minute they spend together rekindles feelings that pull them toward their disastrous past. Will letting go again be another recipe for heartbreak—or a recipe for persuasion…? 

In Recipe for Persuasion, Sonali Dev once again takes readers on an unforgettable adventure in this fresh, fun, and enchanting romantic comedy.

Review:

I thought I’d start this review with a disclaimer. I have not read Jane Austen’s Persuasion. I’ve read Pride and Prejudice and Emma and loved them. I have every intention of reading Persuasion. I just haven’t gotten to it yet—one day. So I have no idea how closely Recipe for Persuasion follows the book that inspired it.

Moving on.

Recipe for Persuasion was lack of communication the book. Whenever anyone talked to each other, they were vague, or they just walked away when things got uncomfortable, or they got frustrated that they weren’t being understood. That was literally the entire conflict behind the book. If any of the three characters had sat down and had a straightforward conversation, things would have been solved in a quarter of the time.

Ashna, the heroine, is a giant ball of anxiety and possibly obsessive-compulsive disorder. She cannot cook anything but the food her father cooked. If she does, she passes out or has a crippling anxiety attack. She cleans obsessively, especially when she’s feeling stressed. She bottles up all of her negative emotions and is basically half a person. Her family has tried to help her with yoga and breathing exercises, but seeking professional help is only mentioned once, in passing, as something she did after a traumatic event. She could have really, really used someone to talk through her problems.

Rico, the love interest, is super attractive, the most successful soccer/football star on the planet, and recently retired after a knee injury. He’s succeeded at everything he wanted, except being with Ashna. Of course, there was a huge misunderstanding between them, and twelve years have passed with no communication between them.

Shobi , Ashna’s mother, is the third person who’s story is told. She has been an absentee parent, leaving her only child with a father she knew was unfit. She comforted herself with the knowledge that it was actually Ashna’s aunt and uncle raising her. Still, she focused on her career and not her child. There is more to the story, of course, but she doesn’t reveal everything to Ashna, preferring to try to make Ashna love her without relevant knowledge to explain her actions.

My least favorite trope is lack of communication. Sometimes it’s acceptable, but I don’t like it when it’s the only source of conflict. Recipe for Persuasion was wonderfully written, but it was not for me.

2.75/5

Side Note: The blurb, in several places, has outright lies. I won’t point them out because I don’t want to spoil, but this is not a light hearted, humorous book, at all.

Tweet Cute

Tweet Cute

By: Emma Lord

Blurb:

Meet Pepper, swim team captain, chronic overachiever, and all-around perfectionist. Her family may be falling apart, but their massive fast-food chain is booming ― mainly thanks to Pepper, who is barely managing to juggle real life while secretly running Big League Burger’s massive Twitter account.

Enter Jack, class clown and constant thorn in Pepper’s side. When he isn’t trying to duck out of his obscenely popular twin’s shadow, he’s busy working in his family’s deli. His relationship with the business that holds his future might be love/hate, but when Big League Burger steals his grandma’s iconic grilled cheese recipe, he’ll do whatever it takes to take them down, one tweet at a time.

All’s fair in love and cheese ― that is, until Pepper and Jack’s spat turns into a viral Twitter war. Little do they know, while they’re publicly duking it out with snarky memes and retweet battles, they’re also falling for each other in real life ― on an anonymous chat app Jack built.

As their relationship deepens and their online shenanigans escalate ― people on the internet are shipping them?? ― their battle gets more and more personal, until even these two rivals can’t ignore they were destined for the most unexpected, awkward, all-the-feels romance that neither of them expected.

Review:

Tweet Cute is a young adult novel about two high school seniors dealing with issues regarding their respective family businesses. As well as all the typical high school stuff that comes with going to a prestigious private school.

Pepper spent the first fourteen years of her life in Nashville. Then her parents divorced, amicably, and her mother moved to New York City to expand their family fast food business. Pepper moved with her and molded herself into the perfect prep school student, but she never felt like she belonged.

Jack has always lived in New York, working at the deli his family owns. He attends the same private school as Pepper. He has a bit of an inferiority complex when it comes to his twin brother. Jack also feels like he’s being forced into taking over the family business.

For whatever reason, Pepper’s mom has decided not to hire a social media manager for her multi-million dollar company, who can handle snarky tweets. Instead, she relies on her teenage daughter to go after a small mom and pop deli when they have issues with Pepper’s mom stealing a family grilled cheese recipe. Her mom is not sympathetic in this story at all. After everything her mom does and says, Pepper keeps trying to stay in her good graces, even though she knows her mom is in the wrong. Even with the reveal at the end, her mother comes off as a bad parent.

Meanwhile, Jack’s parents have regular parenting conflicts with him. Pepper and Jack (way too on the nose with those names) both need to sit down and talk to some people. Pepper does at least try several times with her mom, but her mom steamrolls over her.

Pepper and Jack’s romance is super sweet, and what makes the book for me. I’m not an angsty teenage fan, and I was not too fond of Pepper’s mother, but the romance made me enjoy Tweet Cute. They were engaged in a Twitter feud that spawned fanfic, they started talking a lot at school, and they were anonymously chatting to each other. I love the anonymous letter-writing trope.

There were never any super embarrassing moments. Watching their friendship develop, and then their romance was entertaining. I liked Pepper and Jack as characters as well. Plus, there were lots of yummy food references.

3.75/5

Tools of Engagement (Hot and Hammered #3)

Tools of Engagement (Hot and Hammered #3)

By: Tessa Bailey

Blurb:

Hair, makeup, clothing, decor… everything in Bethany Castle’s world is organized, planned, and styled to perfection. Which is why the homes she designs for her family’s real estate business are the most coveted in town. The only thing not perfect? Her track record with men. She’s on a dating hiatus and after helping her friends achieve their dreams, Bethany finally has time to focus on her own: flip a house, from framework to furnishings, all by herself. Except her older brother runs the company and refuses to take her seriously.

When a television producer gets wind of the Castle sibling rivalry, they’re invited on Flip Off, a competition to see who can do the best renovation. Bethany wants bragging rights, but she needs a crew and the only member of her brother’s construction team willing to jump ship is Wes Daniels, the new guy in town. His Texas drawl and handsome face got under Bethany’s skin on day one, but the last thing she needs is some cocky young cowboy in her way.

As the race to renovate heats up, Wes and Bethany are forced into close quarters, trading barbs and biting banter as they remodel the ugliest house on the block. It’s a labor of love, hate, and everything in between, and soon sparks are flying. But Bethany’s perfectly structured life is one kiss away from going up in smoke and she knows falling for a guy like Wes would be a flipping disaster.

Review:

I felt a lot of emotion while reading Tools of Engagement. I’m not a type-A personality, but I think just about everyone can relate to the anxieties and pressure that Bethany put on herself. Especially with the prevalence of social media, that desire to present a perfect façade is ever-present. It doesn’t bother me most of the time, but Tools of Engagement perfectly hit the feelings when it does.

As we’ve seen in the previous two books, Bethany always seems to have things together. Her appearance is perfect, her home is continuously ready for a photo shoot, and she knows exactly what she wants to do with her life. Only, it turns out she’s a constant ball of nerves and anxiety. Bethany over analyzes everything and second-guesses herself at every opportunity. It’s exhausting to read, let alone live.

Wes is a former bronco rider who has found himself in New Jersey taking care of his niece. He’s younger than Bethany, and it borders on the age difference I’m uncomfortable with, especially since he’s in his early twenties. His life has given him experience that others of his age don’t have, though. He doesn’t plan to stay, but it’s clear, even before he and Bethany get together, that he’s not going anywhere.

You saw their reaction to each other in the previous book, and it was obvious that they were attracted to each other, even as they traded verbal barbs. When Bethany finally gains the courage to strike out on her own, away from her brother’s company, Wes joins her immediately. There’s a lot of chemistry here, and they brought out the best in each other.

Tools of Engagement, like the other books in the Hot and Hammered series, was very emotional. The main characters were fleshed out and well written. There weren’t many supporting characters, so I’m not sure if there’s going to be a book after this one, and if that’s the case, this is a high note to end a series on.

4/5

Crazy Stupid Bromance (Bromance Book Club #3)

Crazy Stupid Bromance (Bromance Book Club #3)

By: Lyssa Kay Adams

Blurb:

Alexis Carlisle and her cat café, ToeBeans, have shot to fame after she came forward as a victim of a celebrity chef’s sexual harassment. When a new customer approaches to confide in her, the last thing Alexis expects is for the woman to claim they’re sisters. Unsure what to do, Alexis turns to the only man she trusts—her best friend, Noah Logan.
 
Computer genius Noah left his rebellious teenage hacker past behind to become a computer security expert. Now he only uses his old skills for the right cause. But Noah’s got a secret: He’s madly in love with Alexis. When she asks for his help, he wonders if the timing will ever be right to confess his crush. 
 
Noah’s pals in The Bromance Book Club are more than willing to share their beloved “manuals” to help him go from bud to boyfriend. But he must decide if telling the truth is worth risking the best friendship he’s ever had.

Review:

Alexis is a survivor of sexual assault. You met her in a previous book when she came forward to accuse her celebrity boss of the assault. This is about a year or so later, and she’s come a long way. During this time, she’s made a best friend in Noah. They were able to bond over their geeky hobbies and the fact that they both lost a parent young.

Pretty much since the beginning of their relationship, Noah has had a crush on Alexis, but he doesn’t want to destroy the relationship they already have to pursue something more. She is the best friend he’s ever had. They’re almost codependent, and it feels like they’re already in a romantic relationship without the sex.

In the beginning, he’s not a member of the Bromance Book Club, but he’s friends with several of the members and always hanging out with them. They spend most of their time with him trying to get him to join so he can get out of the friend zone. There were several good moments with the book club that I enjoyed. Listening to them explain toxic masculinity and push to form healthier relationships with each other were some of the book’s best parts. By far, my favorite scene was when they were at the spa. I laughed soooooooo hard.

The big conflict in the book was Alexis’ family drama.

BEWARE SPOILERS AHEAD

Alexis was raised by a single mom and never knew her dad. She didn’t feel like she needed to know him, even though there was a part of her that wanted a family. One day a woman comes into her café and tells Alexis that she’s her sister. Then the real bombshell, their father is dying, and he needs a kidney. I knew as soon as this happened, Alexis was going to give him the kidney. The man did not deserve it. He’d known about her for three years and hadn’t attempted to reach out. He’d sent flowers when Alexis’ mom had died, but that was it. Now he was asking for a kidney. The rest of the family wasn’t any better. The sister was weird, and the brother was a dick. That plotline was the worst part of the book, and I’m taking away a whole star because of it.

I could never be a romance heroine because there is no way I’m giving a long lost relative a vital organ. Other people in my life have first dibs on that shit. Alexis was nice and was supposed to learn to stand up for herself, and she kind of did, but not in something as huge as organ donation. It was disappointing, but I’m petty. If you aren’t, you might not care.

Alexis and Noah were a cute couple, but there was a lot of angst since there was no getting to know you period. I liked seeing the other members of the book club, but there were a few things that I didn’t like about Crazy Stupid Bromance. However, the spa scene alone is worth reading the book for.

3.75

Side note: The geeky references were clearly written by someone who knew some of nerd culture, but not enough to make the type of references that were made. There was always something just a bit off, not in a way that can be pawned off on a creative license. There weren’t many of them, so it didn’t hurt the book’s quality. It was just something I noticed.

A Rogue of One’s Own (A League of Extraordinary Women #2)

A Rogue of One’s Own (A League of Extraordinary Women #2)

By: Evie Dunmore

Blurb:

Lady Lucie is fuming. She and her band of Oxford suffragists have finally scraped together enough capital to control one of London’s major publishing houses, with one purpose: to use it in a coup against Parliament. But who could have predicted that the one person standing between her and success is her old nemesis, Lord Ballentine? Or that he would be willing to hand over the reins for an outrageous price—a night in her bed.

Lucie tempts Tristan like no other woman, burning him up with her fierceness and determination every time they clash. But as their battle of wills and words fans the flames of long-smouldering devotion, the silver-tongued seducer runs the risk of becoming caught in his own snare.

As Lucie tries to out-manoeuvre Tristan in the boardroom and the bedchamber, she soon discovers there’s truth in what the poets say: all is fair in love and war…

Review:

I was two-thirds of the way through this book before I started liking it. It was well written, and I enjoyed parts, but it didn’t live up to the previous book.

Lucie, the heroine, was not very likable. She was dedicated to the Cause to the detriment of everything else. She was furious, and rightfully so, but several times she lashed out at people who didn’t deserve it. She also wasn’t as smart as she was described.

Lucie maneuvered things so that her people were in an incredible position to change things, but instead, she wanted to burn it all to the ground in one move. It wasn’t until I was two hundred pages into the book that she finally realized the position she was in. I want to say she wasn’t thinking long term, but she was, so it was frustrating that she didn’t in this one area.

Maybe I’m too critical of her. I wanted to like her, but her stubbornness, and often time’s meanness, pushed me away. She was resistant to anything that wasn’t her way.

Tristan was your usual rogue rake. He was ridiculously handsome, tortured, and had hidden depths. He was also very privileged, and it took him several moments of that being blatantly pointed out before he realized just how much. His own life was difficult, so it was hard for him to see how much better it was than others.

There were several things I thought A Rogue of One’s Own did very well, specifically, Tristan’s moments of realization. It also seemed very well researched when it came to the suffragette movement. I liked how the book ended, as well. It allowed the couple to be together without Lucie abandoning her convictions. They were a nice couple, in the end, and I intend to read the next book in the series. I’m less excited about it than I was previously, though.

3/5