A Novel with Thoughts and Ponderings

SCRUMPTOUS

Author: Amanda Usen ISBN: 9781402259821 1/2012 CONTEMPORARY Publisher: SOURCEBOOKS CASABLANCA

Scrumptious by Amanda Usen
TALL, DARK & DELICIOUS

Joe Rafferty is just as mouthwatering as the food he cooks. But if he thinks he's going to waltz in and take over her kitchen, he's denser than a thick slice of chocolate ripple cheesecake. Marly has invested too much of her life in Chameleon to hand off the restaurant to someone else—especially a cocky-as-all-get-out superstar chef. But there's no denying the man knows how to light her fire. Question is: Can she have the sizzle without feeling the burn?

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

SCRUMPTIOUS is exactly what the cover suggests—cute, flirty, and dessert-filled.  Featuring two likable, realistically flawed characters, SCRUMPTIOUS is a really good introduction to new author Amanda Usen.  What I liked about this foodie romance was that the story didn’t revolve around the two main characters going against each other, whether for a job or in competition.  So many of this sub-genre focus on that as the central point of the story.  Here, the two, for the most part, are working together to help a mutual friend. 

Additionally, I thought Usen did a good job delving into the issues that Marly and Joe both had with their parents’ relationships and their interactions, or lack thereof, with their fathers in particular.  I found that it kept the story from being too light, overall.  However, I felt that the background characters seemed a bit thrown together, not fully thought out.  And the story may have been better served without the extra drama Olivia’s husband Keith brings, especially near the end. These are things that I believe the author will overcome in future novels.

Christina Baker

Close Window or Back to Previous Page