Monday, February 5, 2018

Cocky Chef

I don't want to brag, but this book puts me SEVEN books ahead of schedule in my Goodreads challenge this year. I'm on fire, baby!

Cocky Chef - J.D. Hawkins

You can call me arrogant as much as you want. But when you're the best at what you do and have the hottest restaurant on the west coast, with enough Michelin stars to make Gordon Ramsay's head spin, you've earned the right to your confidence.

When I give an instruction in the kitchen, it's not a suggestion--it's an order. So when a new chef thinks she can do things her way, and dares to say so to my face, even her sharp wit and gorgeous pouty lips don't make it okay. 

But I have to admit, she's got talent. She's creative in the kitchen and not even that double-breasted chef jacket can hide her perfect body. As I get to know her, I can't help wanting to know everything she thinks. I've never met a more talented chef. And I've never met a sassier and sexier woman in my life.

There's only one way this push and pull can end.

With her in my bed, begging for more. 

I bought this one on a whim because it was in my suggested books on Amazon, and I've never read this author before so everything about this was unpredictable. I'm going to start off and say I'm giving this one... 3 stars. It's not quite a 4 for me because it was kind of slow, surprising considering it's only 200some pages, it's not that long at all, but it took me awhile to get through it, it wasn't something I couldn't put down. I put it down.... a lot.

In this book we have Cole, a hot chef who knows what he wants and keeps a high expectation of himself at all times. We have Willow (Seriously? Was this the name of 2017?? I have read SO MANY books with Willow as the main character in 2017, it's unreal!), fresh to Los Angeles for a new start on her way to owning her own restaurant. She's a little gun shy since her last one was a bit of a failure, but she's getting her legs under her again by working at Knife, the restaurant of TV personality Cole Chambers.

After a particularly humiliating meeting, they soon become a hot item after a rendezvous in the back office after a shared burger, but it doesn't take long before Willow's dreams stand in the way of their relationship. Can she have her dream and the guy? Can Cole withstand someone else's dream surpassing his own? You'll have to find out on your own.

Overall? It was alright. Once I heard Cole's story on how Knife came to be, I knew exactly how the story was going to end and how we got there. Very predictable, and the sex scenes aren't enough to make up for it. It feels like a rushed book following the same cookie cutter formula of other romance novels with a chef. In fact, I've read two others very similar to this recently so I should have known better.
   

2 comments:

Shooting Stars Mag said...

Sorry to hear this one was a bit formulaic! Sometimes it can work, but it all depends on the author. Thanks for sharing though. :)

-Lauren
www.shootingstarsmag.net

Vivi L. said...

I have seen this book a few times, and have been thinking of buying so I really appreciate your take on it before I actually went to get it. Disapointing that it was predictable :S

- Vivi (vivismessykitchen.com)