The Family Recipe

The Ortiz Family #1

by Blue Huxley, Jade Behr

When the rich and famous fall in fairytale love, it's the domestic staff who quietly take care of the details...
Sparks fly when Ana, a billionaire's talented chef, and Clark, a pop star's security expert, suddenly have to work—and live—together!

Ana has kept her love life on the back burner for more years than she'd care to count, but she can't help being intrigued by her tough, unflappable new acquaintance. The problem is, the attraction doesn't seem to be mutual.

When Clark finds himself the sole guardian of a young relative, he's determined to put familial duty above frustrating feelings for the woman he's secretly obsessing over.

With the help of their scheming siblings, can this resourceful chef and stubborn bodyguard find a way to create the perfect family recipe—together?

This clean, slow-burn, comedic contemporary romance novel is volume 1 of the standalone Ortiz Family series.

Genres: Romance, Contemporary

260 pages, ebook

Published September 18, 2023

About the author

Blue Huxley is the cheesier (yet personally dairy-free) half of Blue Jade Books, a writing collaboration with Jade Behr. They write contemporary AND historical romances. (Their books are clean/closed door: they don't contain swearing or explicit sexual details.)

Follow them on Instagram: @bluejadebooks; Facebook: www.facebook.com/bluejadebooks;
Amazon: www.amazon.com/author/bluehuxley/

Join Blue Jade News to keep in touch with Blue + Jade and receive new release notifications: https://bluejadebooks.com/newsletter/

Reviews

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute Downstairs Proximity Romance

This was a fast, cute, and clean proximity romance about the characters normally in the background and I was here for it! It was like reading about how your assume working for Taylor Swift would be, I’m here for it!

I love the Ortiz sisters banter with Clark and the Beast. This book had me giggling as their story progressed, almost as much as it made me hungry from the descriptions of Ana’s food…

I don’t normally like stories where a kid gets added to the mix, but I really enjoyed that character addition to the story. It opened for so many more jokes and cute scenes.

I have as really in love with all the characters by the end, and can wait to read more stories in this little universe!

[Marissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I truly loved this book. I really enjoyed the writing and how easy it was to fall in love with the characters. If I could read it again for the first time I would. I loved how clean this romance book is and not very much language in it as well.

I highly recommend if you are wanting an age gap, body guards, singers, artist and a chef book. You’ll fall in love with the characters as I did. I’m excited to read more of the series.

I want to thank the authors for reaching out to me. I’m definitely going to read more of their work! You should give them a try as well.

[A · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Complete Romantic Delight!!!

I received an ARC from the author in exchange of an honest review.
Ana a Software mogul's chef is attracted to Clark a pop star's bodyguard when they get to work under the same roof. Though Clark finds her irresistible, he tries to remain in friendly terms with Ana.
Then suddenly he becomes a guardian to this younger brother & he finds hard to keep his hands off her.
It was truly unputdownable. Sweet & slow burn romance, a well crafted plot, swoony kitchen kisses, friendship & sibling bonding! I finished reading it in a day! Highly recommend it!

[Amanda Marlowe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ana is a chef working for a billionaire, Gavin, her younger sister, Carmen, lives with her. She loves her job. Gavin hasn't got much of a social life until he meets Ellie, a well known singer. Then everything changes and they all move to live in Ellie's house, where Ana meets her bodyguard, Clark, they both feel the sparks but won't act on them until pushed to.

A great first book from this couple

[Gerrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars rounded up to 4

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Felt like reading a modern version of the best type of Betty Neels novels. Sweet, charming characters, that you want to have a HEA.

[Kirsten Anderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

the family recipe
4

This was cute and fun!! The diverse cast of characters were entertaining and I loved watching the little friendships/romances bloom. Some found family vibes!!

A couple mentions of a girl characters being on their period. “Pita” is used as a nickname and someone says it meant “pain in the butt” instead.

———

most ardently, kirsten <3

[Christina · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was fine. Easy, clean read. The characters were enjoyable and I liked the premise. It mostly felt very shallow -- I wanted to know so much more from the characters! It was almost hard to believe when they started sharing feelings with each other because there had been very little chemistry for so long. It also took much longer than "normal" for anyone to get together, so it felt a little slow in waiting for the romance. Nothing wrong with it, but not a lot of depth.

[Sarah Nolan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story was sweet, spunky, and full of delicious mouth watering food! The witty banter, humor, and camaraderie between our main group of characters was so much fun!

Ana works as a live-in personal chef for a billionaire businessman, Gavin Cohen. When Gavin strikes up a new romance with pop star sensation, Ellie, sparks fly between Ana and Ellie’s serious and brooding bodyguard, Clark. Ana cannot deny her growing feelings for Clark, but Clark gives her the impression that he isn’t interested, even though he is actually head over heels in love with her from the get go. With the help of their meddling coworkers and siblings, Clark and Ana overcome hurdles, misunderstandings, and learn to take a chance on life and love. Oh, and I did I mention that Ana makes them all the most delicious food? I was hungry the entire time I read this.

I throughly enjoyed the banter, humor, and found family dynamic that Ana, her sister Carmen, Clark, and his coworker Tim aka Beast find with each other! While I love Ana and Clark’s relationship, I am totally shipping another relationship (Carmen and Tim) that I am hoping will happen! I need their story in my life 😍

I am so excited to see and read what comes next!

I received a complimentary copy of this story but am leaving my thoughts and review happily and voluntarily.

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. When their rich and famous employers began dating, it brought private chef Ana and bodyguard Clark into frequent contact. Attraction was immediate and stronger feelings developed, but they had obstacles to overcome. One of the most significant being Clark’s reluctance. “She wasn’t going to beg a man to treat her lie she was valuable.” It was fun to read a story with a rich boss and an employee where the romance was between two employees, instead of boss and employee, as is more common. I found the story very engaging and well written. The romance was sweet and had lovely development. There was also good banter and funny interactions. I really liked the characters. There was quite a biit of focus on some of the secondary characters and it looks like this will be a series so I really hope there will be a Carmen and Tim story. This is a clean story with no harsh language.

[Tami Willard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Clean Standalone Rom-com Interconnected Series HEA

When you work for the rich and famous your private life is their life too. Anna is the personal chef to a billionaire. She's also trying to help support her younger sister. Clark is a personal security guard for a famous singer. When their clients fall in love, sparks fly between them. Anna's willing to try but Clark has a lot of walls up due to his past. Will he give themselves a chance? What happens when one of his half-brothers calls? This story has a lot of different characters talking in it with various personalities and nicknames. It will be interesting to see what happens in the next book.

I received a copy of this book from the authors. Review voluntarily given.

[Tristen Willis · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Family Recipe by Blue Huxley and Jade Behr

A billionaire and a famous singer have hired two sisters, around whom a sweet romance unfolds when the two male bodyguards fall in love with them.

The book had a character focused narrative that was sweet and endearing. The characters were well-written and likable, which is why I loved them all.

The writing style was written in the first person, but it switched POV constantly in every scene, making it challenging to identify whose POV it was.

For anyone searching for a light read, this story is both sweet and satisfying.

[Kelsey Kushnir · Rating 4 out of 5]

Storyline was engaging and overall had some great humor.

[Julie Leister · Rating 3 out of 5]

There was too much head hopping for me to truly enjoy this story.

[Brianna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute story with different perspectives from each character. The characters were down to earth and relate able, it was almost like watching a movie. Looking forward to the next one in the series!

[Tabitha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book! It has great characters and plenty of twists to keep your attention. Really enjoyed it.

[Moni · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review. Being that it's their debut book, I wasn't sure what to expect from Blue and Jade. But, I was pleasantly surprised and am definitely interested in reading more from them! This is the first book in the Bodyguards Series and is a standalone. I know omniscient third person pov may not appeal to everyone but I loved the fresh and fun feeling that it brought to the story. The book's blurb is straightforward. It's a great story about family and love.

Taking care of Carmen, her younger sister, as she grew into adulthood has given Ana a knack for taking care of others. She may have put her own love life on hold but she appears content with the way things are and focused on her career. As a chef, she likes showing her care through the food that she feeds others. When she meets Clark, her interest in him is piqued. Although he tries his best to hide it, Clark is also interested in Ana but his family situation makes him hold back from acting on his interest. He has good discipline and is able to mostly hide his feelings from Ana. However, once he becomes a guardian to his younger brother, it becomes difficult for him to ignore his growing feelings for Ana.

Although the romance is a slow burn, the pacing of the story will allow you to enjoy getting to know Ana and Clark as individuals and as love interests for each other. Ana was a sweetheart with the way she cared for others and how she found joy in cooking for others. Meanwhile, Clark was the serious bodyguard who had a lighter side when he was with Ana, Carmen, and Tim, his friend and fellow bodyguard. I also liked how loyal he was to family. And, given Clark's feelings about relationships, I liked that things weren't rushed between him and Ana. Their romance is the clean and subtly sweet kind. While there was conflict, it wasn't anything too dramatic or drawn out. Aside from their romance, I loved Ana's relationship with Carmen, Clark developing a relationship with his brother, and the friendships that Ana and Carmen made with Clark and Tim. Overall, this was such an easy and enjoyable read. It was a great debut that has me looking forward to more from the series and whatever else the authors' have in store for us.

[Priscila · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Family Recipe was such a great read! I love the romcom style of Blue and Jade and they never disappoint on the swoon, the banter, and the family relationships. This was my first Contemporary experience with them, and I definitely enjoyed it, especially with how they blended the distinct cultures (namely music and food) that were comprised in the Ortizes' ancestry. I loved that they included Spanish phrases (since Ana and Carmen's family is Cuban), though I also learned, along with Clark, that Cuban Spanish can be its own. The message and importance of family were really sweet, and I loved how fiercely both Clark and Ana portrayed that in their relationships with their siblings. But if we're solely speaking of Clark... Wow. My heart definitely went out to him and his sense of responsibility. There are past wounds that need healing, and I sometimes wanted to shake some sense into him at the beginning, but I also understand how every part of this story was necessary for his growth as well as Ana's. In this regard, I appreciated a lot how Brandon ended up helping him and pointing him in the right direction.

Seriously, the pace was great, slowly revealing the characters' past and just enough to know about who they are and hook the reader into the story. The multiple POV was also appreciated, since it helped understand different events and/or relationships that were happening, besides Ana and Clark: friendship between Clark and Tim, Beast and Carmen, bonding between Clark and Brandon, etc. It was also fun getting a story with the staff being the MCs while also learning in the background about the life of the rich and famous (billionaire nerd + famous singer).

I would completely recommend this Clean/Sweet Romance story to anyone looking for a different take on the bodyguard trope (this is security agent + chef). Honestly, you won't go wrong with a Blue Jade book. 😉 Can't wait for their next one! ~ 5 stars!

[Celebrilomiel · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was cute but fell a little flat — felt unfinished, somehow, like a second or third draft rather than a polished novel. I struggle to put my finger on exactly what went wrong for me, though.

The head-hopping didn't help. Each POV was clearly labeled and always occurred after a chapter or section break to demarcate it, but we had at least six points of view, which felt excessive and a little jerky, especially since there was little to no distinction in narrative voice between them. I'm not sure a third-person omniscient narrator would have worked better, and I understand the difficulty of depicting events that are happening away from the main POV characters. It's just that having everyone's inner thoughts felt a bit much, and (excepting the far-flung scenes) the change in POV usually didn't feel like it furthered the story more than the main POV would have. This resulted in the POV switches feeling unnecessary and disruptive.

The characters were charming, but although they were fleshed out in a technical sense, they still felt a little... two-dimensional? It feels unfair to say that, because they weren't flat or cliched, and I appreciated the lifelike depictions of sibling dynamics. I suppose it's more that the characters kept ticking plot boxes, so the action felt scripted rather than like I was reading an account of living, breathing humans. I was amused and sympathetic, but I wasn't invested.

I plan to finish the trilogy — and I expect that the use of multiple points of view is because each character is a main character (and would be a POV character) in his or her own novel. Still, I was a little disappointed that this wasn't quite so good as Helen of Castleford: Have Yourself a Marriage of Convenience.

[3boysmom · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have loved all of their books and this one is no exception! The little world built in this book was so fun and emotionally satisfying. (And the food sounded delicious!) The book had chapters written by four of the main characters but it never got confusing and I loved to see what was going on with each character. So much pining between Ana and Clark with a great ending. I am excited for the next book already, I hope it doesn’t take long!

[Teresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a really good read. I enjoyed reading about the Ortiz sisters. Ana and Clark's story is really cute. I like that the love story isn't about the billionaire and the chef. I like those too, but this was great.

I received a copy of this book from the author and am voluntarily sharing my honest opinion.

[Shelby Harbour · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Ortiz sisters quickly became some of my favorite Blue Jade characters! They are spunky, loyal, and brighten up every room they enter. This story focuses on Ana, but you get to hear parts of the story from other characters’ perspectives as well (be prepared for some jumping around). Watching this romance develop is truly a delight! Excited for the next book in the series!

[Zapora · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very pleasant story about kind people getting together. I loved all the fun food, and the fact that it was clean.
It was written a little too cheesy / cheery to be taken totally seriously, I felt, and all the characters felt a little too young / innocent / cartoonized.
But it was a fun quick read!

[Grace · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was cute! I loved that the characters had Cuban heritage! As a Cuban/American(bc I was born here) myself, I appreciated the little details incorporated into the story. Some of the lingo I did not get and some dishes had names I had not heard bc we have different names for them..a few scenes that were a bit much for me but overall a good read!
3.75 I’ll round up :)

[Megan Timmons · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun and relaxing read, despite occasionally needing to look up a few words here and there! This book establishes a good baseline for future storylines and character development, which is what I seek from a series - not just the same formulaic plot in every book. I recommend reading it!

[Hannah Crawford · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story is glorious and so is the food described in it! The book is fun and family driven and I was so glad to hear it was the first of a series because I wanted more of these characters.

[Regency_Fan_ Michelle RegencyFanMichelleAndMore · Rating 5 out of 5]

New Favorite Series

Loved it! I’m thrilled to have discovered it. It's truly one-of-a-kind, refreshingly clean, and offers delightful entertainment! I would recommend the authors!

[E'Who'Reads'a'Thousand'Mysteries · Rating 3 out of 5]

Funny

The witty, hilarious dialogue had me laughing from the beginning, but there's not a lot of plot or pacing in the book. I'll still try another book by this author though.

[Angela - Enjoy Life With Me Podcast · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm always a bit hesitant reading a new-to-me author because I don't know what to expect but this was so great!

It was a storyline I don't feel like I've read a ton. Loved the “below stairs” vibes in a contemporary.

[R 23 · Rating 3 out of 5]

No tengo m uha palabras para describir este libro. Fue un buen libro pero tuvo sus altibajos, nada al extremo. Debo de decir que si quede impactada en como todo se fue desarrollando, la primera parte se me paso un poco lenta y la la última parte un poco rápida.

Perp más allá de todo esto simplemente fue un buen libro que disfrute pero que probablemente no se vaya a quedar en mi mete por mucho tiempo.