Title: Reinventing Ruby
Author: Deborah Blake
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Chic lit, Food, Romance
Pace: Fast
Format: Novel
Publisher: Deborah Blake
Year: 2017
5th sentence, 74th page: As always, she found making bread to be a sensual experience, but this time it brought on a vivid erotic flashback to that wild night – something that had been happening on a regular basis ever since her unaccustomed fling.

Ruby Tate is a cautious and controlled woman; her only passions are cooking and her restaurant, Jewels. Unless you count the uncharacteristic one-night stand she had with a charming stranger the night of her sister’s bachelorette party. And she doesn’t. After all, she got out of his bed the next morning and returned to her real life—dealing with a failing restaurant, a not-so-silent silent partner, and a difficult family. And now there’s this new problem, like a ticking time bomb hiding beneath her white chef’s jacket.

Jonathan Gautier is a rising star in the culinary world. With three successful restaurants, a best-selling cookbook, and a new television show, he should be happy, but after six months on the road filming Seven Worth Saving and working in everyone’s kitchens but his own, Jonathan is burned-out and uninspired. The closest thing he’s had to a social life was one amazing night with a woman whose name he isn’t even sure of. All he wants is to wrap up this last episode and get back to his own kitchen. Maybe there he’ll be able to recapture his love of cooking, because if he can’t, he doesn’t know what on earth he’ll do with his life.

When Jonathan walks into Jewels, Ruby is horrified. She can’t believe that the famous chef who is her only hope for saving her restaurant is the man who gave her the best night of her life, and a little something extra. All she wants now is for him to help her save her dreams—and then go away. But Jonathan has other ideas. Lots of other ideas; most of which involve Ruby, food, and nakedness. And Jonathan didn’t get to be the success that he is by taking “no” for an answer. Together, they must find a way to save Jewels, even if that means completely Reinventing Ruby.

Reading this made me incredibly hungry. And kind of sleepy to be honest. Because I just couldn’t put it down and so I didn’t go to sleep like a normal person.

I’m a bit disappointed that I read the blurb before this story though. It hinted at Ruby’s secret and she doesn’t even find out until about halfway through the story. Talk about a spoiler alert! But that didn’t truly ruin the story. It was so simply romantic and sweet. The combination of Ruby and Jonathan’s budding romance, and the cooking and the risk of her restaurant… it gave the story just enough spice and risk, but not enough that my heart was completely pounding throughout.

I can’t quite explain why, but on completing this book, I was completely relaxed, happy and ready to jump into the kitchen and try out some different recipes again. Although I don’t ever want to be a chef, I do love cooking, and this, combined with the romance of the story just worked so completely. Plus, there are recipes in the back of the story that I really, really, really want to try!

Image source: Amazon