Cooking Up Trouble by Elizabeth Coldwell

Cooking Up Trouble Reviews

• 
  Never Stop Reading or Dreaming

  2 1/2 stars
  
  Why wasn't his public humiliation never addressed here? It's not like he forgot about it. He even mentioned it. But other than that it was decent enough. Except that big unanswered question that ultimately makes me see the h as weak.
• 
  ☽ Rhiannon ✭ Mistwalker ☾

  Super promising premise - sexy hero insults the plus-size heroine's figure publicly, and now they're forced to work together. I was ready for some angst and groveling. Instead, the very short story is mostly the character's detailed sexual fantasies, which is really not my thing at all - I've found I don't want to read what a character think about during masturbation sessions, I want to read about them actually doing it. Also, I just couldn't buy the total 180 the hero pulls. He derides the heroine for being fat, then suddenly gets a boner whenever he's in her presence? Maybe if the book had spent more time showing them get to know eachother while doing promotion in the weeks leading up to the show, that might have felt more plausible. He never apologizes for what he said, never takes it back or says or does anything to indicate that he actually finds her attractive, and then she just jumps him for some perfunctory sex at a party? I dunno, just feels weird to me. Oh and girl, showing up at his restaurant after he bones you and then tells you he doesn't want any kind of repeat or relationship looks... a little sad. My preference in stories like this is for the hero to grovel and work to help the heroine overcome her insecurities. In this story, somehow it is the gorgeous, talented, wealthy hero that is insecure, whereas the plus-size heroine is blase about the whole thing? Leaving aside the implausibility, this is just not my kinda thing.
  
  Oh, and the friend, Carrie? She says,“You’ve made this ridiculous pact that you’re not going to mix business with pleasure, but trust me, becoming a couple doesn’t have to change anything about the way you work together.”One, that is completely, demonstrably untrue! Terrible advice! And two, what is it with Carrie and Morgan searching for proof of their belief that Scott has feelings for her? The dude has given NO indication of that, and explicitly told her he does not want a relationship with her! Women have got to stop reading into men's actions and chasing the belief that he secretly DOES want a relationship with her when he says he does not. I mean, I know this is a romance so obviously they are going to end up together, but in the real world, we all know how this would actually play out. And when she confronts him and tells him she "knows" he has feelings for her??? What the hell are you thinking, girl??? If she had just been trying to convince him they could do friends with benefits or be booty calls or something, that would be one thing, but she insists that they clearly both want a Relationship and expects him to admit he secretly does? Absurd. And then they just fuck again and say they're falling in love. This story is the exact fantasy that women tell themselves and then are so bewildered when men dump them.
  
  Dang, this book made me hungry and wishing I could eat all the delicious food described in it!
• 
  SW

  First of all the cover, which doesn't appear on Goodreads for some reason, but the girl on the cover does NOT depict Morgan in the book at all. She's supposed to be a size 10+ girl with curves and that girl on the cover is like size 4. So that's my little rant of the evening but otherwise I thought the book was fairly well written for such a sort book.
  It's 59 pages so really quick read but I instantly liked the main character Morgan, headstrong and chubby baker and local TV star vs. world renown Michelin rated chef and TV star of the most popular cooking show in Britain. Before even meeting him Morgan already doesn't like him since he said some nasty stuff about her in an interview a while back, and then they are suddenly thrown together in a cable cooking talk show. And you know how it goes from there sparks fly, they try to resist each other for a while and their fantasy's about each other are the steamiest parts in the book, so you know when they do get together they'll be dynamite.
  I thought for a smexy book it was written well, you get to know Morgan a bit more than Scott but its' Okay his description of sexiness makes up for his lack of character description and development. Essentially he's the mean cook on the TV shows and totally arrogant and womanizer. But when they meet there's instant attraction.
  It's a good read fast, and steamy. A good smexy book for those that don't want to commit to a roller coaster novel of emotions and sex like some longer books.
• 
  Kathy (Kindle-aholic)

  I ended up getting this as a freebie way back when. I think in the summer? Anyways, I read it in about 30 minutes.
  
  There was chemistry between the 2 leads. It's steamier than my usual reads, although most of the action is very elaborate fantasies that the characters have. In the middle of making their show.
  
  Not kidding. Full-page (or more), orgasm-inducing fantasies in the middle of making a souffle (or some other dish). I got a little bored.
  
  I just wanted everything to get going.
• 
  Diana's

  Downloaded this one free from Amazon cute short read!!!
  I'm off to the next Amazon Free read I've downloaded :)
• 
  Sultan * Baby Mama Smut-a-teer*

  
  
  Cute free short read. It had some heat and nice sex and a good storyline. Makes you look at honey in a different way too ;)
• 
  Ashley

  Loved the chemistry between the characters.
• 
  Irene

  Predictable, but entertaining enough.
• 
  Stace

  2.5
• 
  Anne-Kathrine

  Cute, sexy books, quick read leaving you wanting for more :)