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A review by lakeshorelibrarian
The Romance Recipe by Ruby Barrett
2.0
I read this book as an e-arc, provided by the publisher in exchange for my honest review. #Harlequin #NetGalley #RomanceRecipe
I requested this book because I wanted to see how Harlequin would handle a queer romance within their standard formulas. I'm not a huge romance reader, and have not read a Harlequin title for many years, so I may be more critical than I am of my favorites, the cozy mysteries. Let me start by saying that if you like the Harlequin brand and want a queer romance, you may like this better than I did.
The author has some talent, including some surprising humor. The setting and characters have some promise as well, but they need a lot of work.
SPOILER SPACE
I found the two main characters problematic, because I couldn't tell them apart. They are given very different stories and personalities, as we are TOLD, but not shown. There is a lot of dialogue and sex scenes, and it was often difficult to know which character was speaking, or acting, because they didn't have distinct voices.
The sex is extremely explicit, without being either romantic or erotic. I actually questioned if the author was a man; it just did not sound authentic to me, but I realize I am not an authority on the subject. Still, for any romance reader, you don't want to be taken out of the moment to question the author's authority or the character's authenticity.
The minor characters also have promise, and three-dimensional characters are not the expectation in the genre. I liked the brother, and I liked the ex, though he was a little too good to be true. (The reason for their breakup wasn't very believable, but par for the course).
I know this isn't non-fiction, but if you are going to make the finances of the restaurant a huge part of the plot, then you have to make those problems and solutions at least possible, if not realistic. The character's parents also appear in the story, so these women are not independently wealthy and just working for the fun of it, which leads me to wonder how they can afford incredibly expensive apartments or condos in the best parts of town, if they are not taking salaries from the business they're supposed to be running.
I expect that the writer at some time has been a server or other type of restaurant employee, but not an owner of any type of small business, which is fine, but do a little research.
I was glad to see Harlequin make the attempt to enter this space, because everyone deserves a little romance. Perhaps others in the series will be better, or perhaps other readers will be less critical. I hope, however, that if they are going to continue the series, they make the effort to recruit writers who are active members of the LGBTQIA community.
I requested this book because I wanted to see how Harlequin would handle a queer romance within their standard formulas. I'm not a huge romance reader, and have not read a Harlequin title for many years, so I may be more critical than I am of my favorites, the cozy mysteries. Let me start by saying that if you like the Harlequin brand and want a queer romance, you may like this better than I did.
The author has some talent, including some surprising humor. The setting and characters have some promise as well, but they need a lot of work.
SPOILER SPACE
I found the two main characters problematic, because I couldn't tell them apart. They are given very different stories and personalities, as we are TOLD, but not shown. There is a lot of dialogue and sex scenes, and it was often difficult to know which character was speaking, or acting, because they didn't have distinct voices.
The sex is extremely explicit, without being either romantic or erotic. I actually questioned if the author was a man; it just did not sound authentic to me, but I realize I am not an authority on the subject. Still, for any romance reader, you don't want to be taken out of the moment to question the author's authority or the character's authenticity.
The minor characters also have promise, and three-dimensional characters are not the expectation in the genre. I liked the brother, and I liked the ex, though he was a little too good to be true. (The reason for their breakup wasn't very believable, but par for the course).
I know this isn't non-fiction, but if you are going to make the finances of the restaurant a huge part of the plot, then you have to make those problems and solutions at least possible, if not realistic. The character's parents also appear in the story, so these women are not independently wealthy and just working for the fun of it, which leads me to wonder how they can afford incredibly expensive apartments or condos in the best parts of town, if they are not taking salaries from the business they're supposed to be running.
I expect that the writer at some time has been a server or other type of restaurant employee, but not an owner of any type of small business, which is fine, but do a little research.
I was glad to see Harlequin make the attempt to enter this space, because everyone deserves a little romance. Perhaps others in the series will be better, or perhaps other readers will be less critical. I hope, however, that if they are going to continue the series, they make the effort to recruit writers who are active members of the LGBTQIA community.