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The Missing Ingredient
What do you do when life dares you to take a detour from your well-planned route to personal fulfillment? Would you keep your eyes on the prize and hope you weren’t missing out on something better? Or would you deviate from the yellow brick road and risk it all for love?
Seven years after beginning her career in the hospitality industry, Rachel is enjoying a well-earned management position at the Covington Hotel. With a fantastic job, a small circle of loyal friends, and a loving family, what more could she want? She dreams of owning a lodging establishment, but the day when she’ll be her own boss is still a long way off. In the meantime, it’s work, work, and more work. Since every dollar earned puts her closer to her financial goal, Rachel is content to keep her nose to the grindstone—that is, until she crosses paths with a delectable British expat. Can this charming executive chef convince her that he’s exactly what she needs?
Seven years after beginning her career in the hospitality industry, Rachel is enjoying a well-earned management position at the Covington Hotel. With a fantastic job, a small circle of loyal friends, and a loving family, what more could she want? She dreams of owning a lodging establishment, but the day when she’ll be her own boss is still a long way off. In the meantime, it’s work, work, and more work. Since every dollar earned puts her closer to her financial goal, Rachel is content to keep her nose to the grindstone—that is, until she crosses paths with a delectable British expat. Can this charming executive chef convince her that he’s exactly what she needs?
203 pages, ebook
Published May 1, 2019
8 people are currently reading
19 people want to read
About the author
Natasha Lockhart
11 books39 followersNatasha Lockhart is the pen name for a former primary school teacher. After completing eleven years as an educator, she decided to pursue her dream of being a writer. Her love of historical novels began in fourth grade when she was introduced to the books of Laura Ingalls Wilder. Since then, Natasha has been time travelling through literature and enjoying every minute of it. Her obsession with romance novels came years later after a couple of less-than-satisfying relationships. Books detailing the happily ever afters of fictional characters were like an oasis in the desert during her single years.
Natasha is now happily married and the mother of two precocious daughters and one laid-back son. When she's not writing or tending to her husband's demands, she works as an on-call chauffeur, personal assistant, and cheerleader for her three children.
*****************************************
I've heard it said by a few Goodreads' members that authors should not review books . . . that it's somehow a conflict of interest. I respectfully disagree. I was a reader long before I sat in front of my laptop to pen a story.
On the one hand, I can see how getting a negative review from a bestselling author could crush a newbie or a less successful author. It is therefore good that the overwhelming majority of the chart toppers don't write book reviews. Oh, we've all seen endorsement quotes on book covers to help a fellow writer sell a book. I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about a regular review on Goodreads or Amazon.
On the other hand, I believe anyone who purchases a book has the right to express their opinions about that book. Anyone who puts themselves out there in the public eye should be prepared to handle criticism and praise.
Having said that, since I read far more books each year than I write, I will continue to review books. I respect the hard work of each author whose work I read. I am never critical to be malicious. If I don't like something, I just don't like it. If I enjoy something, I praise it. Should the day ever come that I feel my success warrants my stepping back from writing book reviews, I will do that. Until then . . .
Here's my simple system for rating books:
- Five stars
Perfection! A Masterpiece! All the boxes in my What Constitutes a Good Book list were checked off.
(Very rarely do I come across a five-star book. It's hard as hell to create something that's so masterfully written it will wow an avid reader. In my opinion, less than 10% of writers fall in this category. Only a handful of authors in my favorite genre, Romance, ever manage to hit this mark. Most of us have learned the hard way that just because an author writes one amazing book does not necessarily mean the books that follow it will be just as good.) I think five-star ratings are given out too freely. Just my opinion. Feel free to disagree.
- Four stars
Really good! With a few tweaks, it would be damn near perfect. I want to read more from this author.
- Three stars
Good story! I loved the premise, but something failed in the execution. One or both of the main characters were unlikable.
Instalove? Get out of here! Instalust? Not cool unless the book is categorized as Erotica.
- Two stars
Just meh. The plot didn't hold my attention. I forced myself to finish the book. I didn't hate it, but I wouldn't recommend it to another reader.
- One star
Riddled with distracting spelling and grammatical errors. The plot is severely disjointed and doesn't flow smoothly. Whoever published this book has shown a blatant lack of respect for the reader.
I've gotten much better at selecting books. I don't think I'll ever rate a book one-star again.
Natasha is now happily married and the mother of two precocious daughters and one laid-back son. When she's not writing or tending to her husband's demands, she works as an on-call chauffeur, personal assistant, and cheerleader for her three children.
*****************************************
I've heard it said by a few Goodreads' members that authors should not review books . . . that it's somehow a conflict of interest. I respectfully disagree. I was a reader long before I sat in front of my laptop to pen a story.
On the one hand, I can see how getting a negative review from a bestselling author could crush a newbie or a less successful author. It is therefore good that the overwhelming majority of the chart toppers don't write book reviews. Oh, we've all seen endorsement quotes on book covers to help a fellow writer sell a book. I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about a regular review on Goodreads or Amazon.
On the other hand, I believe anyone who purchases a book has the right to express their opinions about that book. Anyone who puts themselves out there in the public eye should be prepared to handle criticism and praise.
Having said that, since I read far more books each year than I write, I will continue to review books. I respect the hard work of each author whose work I read. I am never critical to be malicious. If I don't like something, I just don't like it. If I enjoy something, I praise it. Should the day ever come that I feel my success warrants my stepping back from writing book reviews, I will do that. Until then . . .
Here's my simple system for rating books:
- Five stars
Perfection! A Masterpiece! All the boxes in my What Constitutes a Good Book list were checked off.
(Very rarely do I come across a five-star book. It's hard as hell to create something that's so masterfully written it will wow an avid reader. In my opinion, less than 10% of writers fall in this category. Only a handful of authors in my favorite genre, Romance, ever manage to hit this mark. Most of us have learned the hard way that just because an author writes one amazing book does not necessarily mean the books that follow it will be just as good.) I think five-star ratings are given out too freely. Just my opinion. Feel free to disagree.
- Four stars
Really good! With a few tweaks, it would be damn near perfect. I want to read more from this author.
- Three stars
Good story! I loved the premise, but something failed in the execution. One or both of the main characters were unlikable.
Instalove? Get out of here! Instalust? Not cool unless the book is categorized as Erotica.
- Two stars
Just meh. The plot didn't hold my attention. I forced myself to finish the book. I didn't hate it, but I wouldn't recommend it to another reader.
- One star
Riddled with distracting spelling and grammatical errors. The plot is severely disjointed and doesn't flow smoothly. Whoever published this book has shown a blatant lack of respect for the reader.
I've gotten much better at selecting books. I don't think I'll ever rate a book one-star again.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
Want to read
June 14, 2019🎁 FREE on Amazon today (6/14/2019)! 🎁
September 21, 2019
I sort of have a thing for romance books featuring American women and British men. British accents are so sexy! Well, the posh accent is sexy. The banter back and forth between these two kept me turning the page to find out what would happen next. I enjoyed reading about the healthy relationships between the women in the story as well. From start to finish, this was a great example of a contemporary romance novel. I look forward to reading more books from this series.
June 16, 2019
Beautiful
Rachel is the lucky one of the trio of friends this time. She has never been lucky finding the long term guy. Nigel was in Middlebrook for the opening of a new restaurant. But something about Rachel but him hard. Can the English Chef & the girl from LA, and Reservations Manager make it work.
Rachel is the lucky one of the trio of friends this time. She has never been lucky finding the long term guy. Nigel was in Middlebrook for the opening of a new restaurant. But something about Rachel but him hard. Can the English Chef & the girl from LA, and Reservations Manager make it work.
September 21, 2019
Loved both characters and their interactions!
September 21, 2019
Witty, fun, gut-wrenching, sexy, and romantic! I enjoyed this book.
September 21, 2019
Food, family, and friendship set the perfect scene for this trans-Atlantic romance. I loved the dialogue between the hero and heroine. I loved their adventures together. Sweet and sexy!
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews