Book Review – Beauty and The Feast By Julia Barrett

This was one of those books I came across as a freebie that has sat for a little while on my Kindle but I have to say once I started it it got me hooked.

I guess the first thing to address is genre, because this one is firmly sat in the middle between Romance and Erotica, while the sex scenes are very graphic they are well spaced out with plenty of story content inbetween, I think I shall classify it as a Raunchy Romance, which should certainly give you an idea of where this review is going.  It has been a long time since I stopped reading romances, maybe it is the experiences in life that make you cynical that also make it hard to enjoy many of the overly saccharine romances that flooded the market through the Nineties, but I have to say I loved this one.  Eva Raines the ‘heroine’ of the book is not exactly the damsel in distress waiting to be rescued, rather she is street wise, independent and happy to wait for Mr Right rather than settling for Mr Right-now.  On top of all that she is a chef extraordinaire infact that is how she meets the gorgeous and charming Gabe.  The back stories for both characters are compelling and make you care about them where it could very easily have become stereotyped.  The sex scenes are graphic but built up wonderfully of layered sensuality tied in with the the food references which add an extra dimension.  I would say if you reach this point on the bus then put it down and wait until you get home to read more as it is likely a flush will colour your cheeks and you will subconsciously find yourself licking your lips.

I have to say it is of course not Shakespeare, if you are looking for deeper meanings then this is not the book for you but if you are looking for the perfect beach read then look no further, judging on its own merits for what it is it gets a 5 out of 5, which when you consider it made an old cynic like me smile then that says a lot.