TITLE: Can't Stand the HeatAUTHOR: Louisa Edwards
SENSUALITY: Hot
THOUGHTS/OPINIONS:
If you have never heard of Louisa Edwards before that's because Can't Stand the Heat is her debut book. And what a debut! I was quite impressed. I love stories where some conflict pits the hero and heroine against each other. I recently read and loved Julie James' Practice Makes Perfect which features this type of story. So when I heard the buzz about this book I had to give it a try since it also features a restaurant critic and a chef. Miranda Wake is a sharp-tongued restaurant critic who would love to write a book about restaurant culture but can't find an interested publisher. Adam Temple is a chef working hard to open his new restaurant - Market - which specializes in organic dishes with the freshest ingredients straight from local growers.
At Market's opening party Miranda gets a bit tipsy and shoots off her mouth. Adam loses his temper and issues a dare, kinda like "Oh yeah, you think this is easy - you wouldn't last a month in my kitchen." Adam's publicist thinks this is a great idea and will make lots of publicity for the restaurant and bring in the customers. Only problem is Miranda can't cook but she sells the idea to a publisher and receives a book advance. This is when the fun begins. The dialogue is crisp and snappy with lots of realistic restaurant jargon, the food descriptions are mouth watering and the pacing is fast and furious. The book is filled with wonderfully realistic characters and features a secondary M/M romance that was well done. I loved Adam much more than Miranda whose motivations sometimes puzzled me even though the story alternates between Adam and Miranda's point of view. The real strength of this book is the how the relationship grows. The sensuality between Adam and Miranda was hot and spicy and blended together with the cooking and food preparation making some very yummy scenes.
This is the first book in Edwards' "Recipe for Love" series and I can't wait to get my hands on the next book.
GRADE: B+
6 comments:
This is the 2nd review I've seen for this book. The first was not favorable, especially to Miranda. I like the concept and storyline, I may have to look for this one.
Oh, yes, I saw a couple reviewers that hated Miranda but I was more forgiving. I didn't love her but I didn't hate her either. Adam was the star of the show here and he made the whole book worthwhile. Miranda seemed to have some issues with her parents dying when she was young and left to raise her baby brother so I was willing to give her some slack.
Hi Renee! I like the new layout! Very cheerful. :)
I bought this book about a month ago, but haven't picked it up yet. Your review is inspiring me to move it up! So glad you enjoyed it.
Thanks Christine, but I think the background image is screwed up. I need to look into it. Yes, please move it up your list. I will be interested in seeing some other reviews. I may be the only one who didn't hate Miranda.
I got part way through this one but I'm not sure if I'll finish it. I really don't care about Miranda - won't say I hate her - but if I don't care about the heroine in a book, I struggle to read it.
Kristie: I can see how you and others don't like her but I just didn't have a big problem with her. But I see your point, it is hard to finish a book when you don't care about a major character. When that happens to me I toss it into the DNF pile and it ends up at the UBS eventually.
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