Working for restauranteur Raffe Washburn hasn’t been all that chef Sarah Thomas had hoped it would be. The two have conflicting philosophies on how to run the kitchen and it’s put a big strain on their personal relationship. When Sarah quits to work for O’Rourke Enterprises and decide what to do about the Raffe situation among friends, she gets more than she bargained for. Someone is trying to sabotage an important upcoming event and figuring out who is behind it is certainly a good way to keep her mind off her love life.
Until... it turns out her biggest suspect is Raffe.
Raffe Washburn has no clue what he’s done to make Sarah so mad. All he knows is that he wants her back and he’ll do anything to get her. Too bad he really has no idea what women actually want.
A surprising event causes Raffe to join Sarah in her search for the culprit, and they soon discover that differing philosophies can sometimes come in handy.
But is it too late to stop the threat from their past who harbors a festering grudge against almost everyone at O’Rourke Enterprises?
USA Today bestselling author, Leighann Dobbs, discovered her passion for writing after a twenty year career as a software engineer. She lives in New Hampshire with her husband Bruce, their trusty Chihuahua mix Mojo and beautiful rescue cat, Kitty.
Her book "Dead Wrong" won the "Best Mystery Romance" award at the 2014 Indie Romance Convention.
Her book "Ghostly Paws" was the 2015 Chanticleer Mystery & Mayhem First Place category winner in the Animal Mystery category.
This book is well written by Leighann Dobbs and Lisa Fenwick. There is a mixture of business, romance and mystery. Gertie O'Rourke is planning a big VIP tasting and a charity ball for the Kidney Foundation at Signature Events. Someone from the Chef Masters Challenge a couple of years ago still holds a grudge for being beat in the contest. They are out to destroy Sarah, the cook and Gertie any way they can. You will laugh at some of the things they do to try to shut the business down. We find all of the wonderful characters from the past books in the series in this one. We have Jasper and Marly Kenny and Jasper's father, Edward. Edward is stil in love with Gertie and pursues her every day. Of course we have Kidney, Gertie's cat as a mainstay in the story. Even if you have not read the first four books in the series you can pick this one up and enjoy it by itself. I receommend this book and the entire series. You will love it! I received an advance copy of this book. This is my honest review.
A well-written book! It’s described as a rom-com cozy mystery, and it was rom and com and cozy and had suspense in the form of sabotage, but it was not a mystery in the sense of puzzling along whodunit; we knew whodunit from the start. But that was really fun, to know and learn the reasons and follow her in her evil plans, live inside her mind. My favorite part of the book was right before the end, when everything came together. That suspense was great! It was still very light though, nothing too scary. Lots of different POVs to provide you all sides of the story. It meant that the POV continually changed, which did keep me on my toes! Interesting storyline. I loved Kidney the Cat! Some hilarious moments in the kitchen made for an enjoyable read! I can’t tell you what, but there was one unexpected thing that made me snort!
BTW, best read the previous books in the series first. While the story itself stands on its own perfectly fine, for the characters and their development it’s best to read books 1-4 first.
A really fun Rom-Com with a bit of mystery thrown in. Gertie is hosting a major fundraiser banquet for the Kidney Foundation. Someone with a grudge from the past is out to destroy Gertie, her head cook Sarah, and everyone else who was in a cooking contest a few years ago reputations. And they don't care who gets hurt in the process.
This is the 5th book in this series. It is a stand alone story that had defined characters, a bit of humor, and a business owner who is always willing to give someone a second chance. Even if she was the targeted person.
I appreciate that this book is marketed as a Rom-Com instead of a mystery only. I've read others, and am always disappointed that the book was misrepresented for marketing purposes.
While reading this I could only think of it as a pre-teen book. These characters are suppose to be adults but aren’t even acting like teenagers. They really have a lot of growing up to and at times I see glimpses of that. I feel this installment missed the boat and wasn’t at all as light-hearted as the previous installments.
I felt like this was more Peyton Place at grade school. Gertie is throwing a fundraiser at her event salon. She is avoiding Edward. Sarah is avoiding Raffe. Sarah is feeling watched and overwhelmed. Any of these taken separately would be fine but all in this book just intensifies the childishness of Brenda.
I would label this book as audience: YA.
I did enjoy that there was a resolution to the sabotage, Edward is redirected to look at others as potential companions, and that Raffe and Sarah actually talk.
Hoping the series continues with writing as in the first three books. I looked forward to each of those.
Fun, fast-paced, clean cozy/foodie mystery+ romance. With important taste-testing and charity event to prepare, can Sarah figure out how to salvage her relationship with Raffe?? Is she getting paranoid, or is someone trying to sabotage the Charity Ball, and why?? With a great cast of characters, and a tux-wearing cat this is another good read!! This is part of a series, but can be read as a stand-alone.
This was a light, fun romance/comedy/mystery that was a quick read. I enjoy all the characters in this series but especially Gertie who owns the venue where most of the story takes place. There is enough information on each of the characters that this works well as a stand-alone. This one's a good escape that allowed me to shake my head and laugh out loud!
Gertie gave her a second chance and her revenge plot failed. She really was out of her mind. It is a good thing that she is going to get a cat and therapy. Raffe and Sarah realized they were better off not working together . Jasper and Marly are happy about her pregnancy. Things worked out for the best.
Another good book in this series! With all the mayhem going on to try & ruin Gertie's events and Sarah's reputation, it keeps you in suspense as to the success of it. I would recommend this series to people who like romance, chaos & suspense. Look forward to the next book in this series!
A good clean mystery/revenge with a touch of romance; I enjoyed the story but need to know if there's going to be a book on Gertie's grandson Noah since that part of the story was left hanging. I would recommend the book.
I have always been a fan of cozy mysteries, and Leighann doesn’t disappoint with her last novel in the Corporate Chaos series. A welcome respite from the day to day, Dobbs brings us back to the lives of the ladies at O’Rourke Industries, where mayhem and romance will follow.