Title: Standing By
Series: A Knight’s Tale Book 2
Author: Claudia Y. Burgoa
Genre: Contemporary
Blurb: Mitch Knight :
- Loves a good challenge
2. Never turns his back on a dare
3. Loves to create nicknames
4. Nobody cooks better than him
5. Doesn’t believe in love
When Parker Welsh sells Mitch Knight his organic restaurant, Willows, he not only gives Mitch ownership; but everything entangled with it. Including the annoying pastry chef who supplies the muffins and cupcakes.
Hayley Roth-Welsh :
- Loves To-Do Lists and Five-Year Plans
2. Has her dream job of baking sweets
3. Always tries to make others happy
4. Never seems to succeed with her family
5. Is still a virgin, waiting for love
Hayley played by her mother’s rules for the first eighteen years of her life, instead of heading to college as her family expected, she rebelled and opened a bakery, Pieces of Heaven. Her family expects her to fail and head back to school and their wish may come true once Parker sells his restaurant to the handsome, arrogant Mitchel Knight. It’s either join forces with him or lose her dream.
Thoughts: This was a bit of an odd read for me. If your looking for a stand out romance this isn’t it. The romance portion is very, very slow going….so much so that at times I’m wondering if there really is anything going on here at all romantically. Sometimes, I don’t mind it being drawn out, but this was a bit excessive, not to mention that when it did finally happen it seemed sort of – anti-climactic. It definitely didn’t feel like it was worth all the build-up, and for me that romance and angst is an integral part of the story so it was a bit of a downer for me with this book.
What really kept me reading was the very real familial relationships built up within the book, and ones which Hayley struggles with on a daily basis. In conjunction with that, Burgoa hits on a topic I have yet to see tackled in any other book, and she did not shy away from it…explaining in terms that I think readers would find easy to understand and sympathize with, giving Hayley a depth and reality that I found impossible to pull myself away from.
A strong story, light on the romance.
Rate: B
