Reviewed by Nikyta
Title: In the Raw
Author: Eileen Griffin and Nikka Michaels
Series: In the Kitchen #1
Heroes: James Lassiter/Ethan Martin
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 209 Pages
Publisher: Carina Press
Release Date: October 6, 2014
Available at: Carina Press, Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads
Blurb: If you can’t take the heat…
James Lassiter has had a crush on fellow culinary student Ethan Martin for three years, but has never had the guts to make a move. Putting himself out there is hard, especially when under the thumb–and wallet–of his overbearing parents. Now that bad boy chef Ethan–who is always vying with Jamie for best in class–is struggling with the pastry course, Jamie suddenly has a reason to reach out.
Ethan doesn’t mean to be an ass–okay, so mostly he does–but even though he’s secretly hot for Jamie, he sure as hell doesn’t want help with pastry. Ever since his dad walked out, Ethan has been the one to hold things together and he’s done fine on his own. Except that he can’t get his cake to rise.
Jamie could be the answer to what Ethan’s been missing his whole life–someone to depend on. But with the two competing for the same scholarship, things suddenly get too hot to handle. And if Jamie finds the strength to go for what he wants, he isn’t about to settle for what he needs.
Review:
Jamie and Ethan have been culinary classmates for three years and have crushed on each other just as long. Now as juniors, they’re competing to win a scholarship that won’t only pay for their tuition in their final year of culinary school but also give them the opportunity to work with the best chefs in Paris. But when Ethan’s struggle in their pastry course becomes obvious, Jamie takes it upon himself to give Ethan lessons even if he doesn’t want them in the hopes of finally acting on his desire to be with Ethan. With their different backgrounds and their obvious love of food, can these boys get passed the struggles that come not only with school but with family and their own emotions, too?
I’m very conflicted over my feelings for this book. On one hand, I liked the premise of the story. The whole competitors vying for the same scholarship plus the bad boy/golden boy and rich/poor aspect of the characters gave the story a bit of intrigue. I liked that Jamie and Ethan were so different in not just social class but personality as well. Jamie is calm and collected, always serene and mellow while Ethan can easily be described as a hothead. He’s bad-tempered and doesn’t hold any punches when he decides to make you his target. They’re complete opposites with Jamie being able to charm everyone and Ethan being able to piss everyone off. I really liked that contrast and while, at times, they could be immature and firmly embraced the “we need to talk but let’s have sex first” strategy, I still liked that they found a great connection after years of yearning for one another.
Unfortunately, while I liked the characters, it was hard for me to really get into the story knowing that it wouldn’t end with them together. Sadly, if I had known this had a bittersweet ending, I wouldn’t have read it. I read romances because I want to see the characters end up together in the end so, for me, agreeing to review this and then finding out that it didn’t have a traditional HEA really put a damper on my enjoyment. This is a personal preferences and I’ll freely admit that knowing how it ended had a HUGE impact in my enjoyment to the point where it was hard for me to really let myself get into the story for fear that I’d come to love a book and then get brokenhearted with the ending (I’m not really one for crying my eyes out or angst).
Now, that’s not to say the book isn’t good. As I said, I enjoyed the premise and I liked the characters. If it had an HEA or even an HFN, I probably would have really liked this one. As it is, I didn’t let myself get into the story because I knew it ended bittersweet to the point that obviously something happens while one of them is in Paris because the sequel picks up 8 years later where it is noted they are NOT together. There were a few moments in the story that I questioned and couldn’t understand like when Reed tried to blackmail Jamie why Ethan didn’t just take the camera away from Reed when he was manhandling him because he was right there, it would have been extremely easy to put a stop to the threat before it got far enough to be blackmail. There were also one or two other instances that bothered me but nothing too extravagant.
Overall, my biggest issue was the ending. I just couldn’t let myself get into it because of that and that’s all on me and why I’m going with a neutral rating. I felt like the authors wrote a lovely story (sans ending) and had a good voice together. The characters were vastly different, a little immature at times, but definitely unique in their own way. Their conflicts and ultimate clashing were interesting to see play out.
While I might not have allowed myself to enjoy this one as much as I would have liked, I think others who like a bit of angst, unconventional endings and the rich/poor; bad boy/golden boy characteristics will enjoy this one. And while I couldn’t really get into this one, I bet I’ll be able to enjoy the sequel, In the Fire, much more knowing that after 8 years, these boys will end up together… as long as they DO end up together in an HEA LMAO.
Overall Impression: It was good
*I received a copy of this book from the publisher in return for a fair and honest review.*
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