Dine With Me
by Layla Reyne
Life never tasted so good.
Miller Sykes’s meteoric rise to award-winning chef is the stuff of culinary dreams, but it’s all crashing down around him. He’s been given a diagnosis that could cost him something even more precious than his life: his sense of taste. Rather than risk the very thing that defines him, Miller embarks on a last tour of his favorite meals while he still can.
But there’s a catch: he needs a financial backer to make it happen, and he doesn’t want anyone to know he’s sick.
Dr. Clancy Rhodes has two weeks to come to terms with putting aside oncology to work at his father’s thriving plastic surgery practice. When the opportunity to travel with a Michelin-starred chef presents itself, the foodie in him can’t believe it. It doesn’t hurt that Miller’s rugged good looks are exactly Clancy’s cup of joe.
As Clancy and Miller travel from coast to coast and indulge in everything from dive bars to the most decadent of culinary experiences, they’re suddenly sharing a lot more than delicious meals. Sparks fly as they bond over their love of flavors and the pressures of great expectations. But when Miller’s health takes a turn for the worse, Clancy must convince him he’s more—so much more—than just his taste buds. And that together, they can win a battle that once seemed hopeless.
Momma Says: 3 stars⭐⭐⭐
Lots of food, lots and lots of food. I like food, and I realize that Miller is a chef and Clancy is along for a food-filled tour, but more time is spent on the food than on the romance. I mean, this is technically supposed to be a romance, right? Nevertheless, the first half of this one revolves mostly around the food with a little get to know you conversation thrown in as Clancy attempts to get to know Miller, who is doing his best to remain closed-off to anything personal.
Things do pick up in the second half and given the circumstances, the emotions also pick up dramatically. This is where the focus is on Miller's diagnosis and his decisions about that. Despite my feelings about the lack of romance, I still really liked both Miller and Clancy, and this part of the book certainly tugged on my heartstrings.
In the end, Dine with Me is sweet, emotional, and a little bit steamy, but between the food tour and Miller's diagnosis and determination to follow through with his plan, I feel like the romance suffered. Yes, we're told that these guys care about each other, we get Clancy's distress over the situation, and they certainly have chemistry between the sheets. But, so little time was spent on the whole falling in love that it was hard to believe it when they finally professed those feelings. We do get an oh, so sweet ending to wrap things up, but for me, it was too little too late to entirely sell me on the romance.
The book is well-written, and I'm glad I read it, but it's not something I'll remember down the road in terms of recommended romances.
Lots of food, lots and lots of food. I like food, and I realize that Miller is a chef and Clancy is along for a food-filled tour, but more time is spent on the food than on the romance. I mean, this is technically supposed to be a romance, right? Nevertheless, the first half of this one revolves mostly around the food with a little get to know you conversation thrown in as Clancy attempts to get to know Miller, who is doing his best to remain closed-off to anything personal.
Things do pick up in the second half and given the circumstances, the emotions also pick up dramatically. This is where the focus is on Miller's diagnosis and his decisions about that. Despite my feelings about the lack of romance, I still really liked both Miller and Clancy, and this part of the book certainly tugged on my heartstrings.
In the end, Dine with Me is sweet, emotional, and a little bit steamy, but between the food tour and Miller's diagnosis and determination to follow through with his plan, I feel like the romance suffered. Yes, we're told that these guys care about each other, we get Clancy's distress over the situation, and they certainly have chemistry between the sheets. But, so little time was spent on the whole falling in love that it was hard to believe it when they finally professed those feelings. We do get an oh, so sweet ending to wrap things up, but for me, it was too little too late to entirely sell me on the romance.
The book is well-written, and I'm glad I read it, but it's not something I'll remember down the road in terms of recommended romances.
❃❃ARC provided by NetGalley and Carina Press
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