Kiss the Cook
Grade : C-

This Duets novel promises two romantic comedies about the "good ol' Cook Brothers" introduced in Molly O'Keefe's Too Many Cooks (Duets #62). When I began this book, I hadn't a clue as to who these Cook people were, but soon discovered they're a warm-hearted and somewhat meddling bunch of nice folks. Unfortunately, neither of these recent Cook escapades into love gave me the overwhelming urge to run out and track down the prequel that started it all.

Kiss the Cook features another pair of ridiculously obstinate lovers. There's no movie star in this one, but instead there's a baby thrown in as a tactic to keep the characters together because they're too stupid, er stubborn, to open up to each other without such devices keeping them together.

Kate Jensen is the pregnant heroine. At one time she was the screenwriter of a successful Hollywood movie (the one Dirk was researching) but now she's a has-been suffering from writer's block. To make matters worse, she allowed her ex-lover (and father of her baby-to-be) to blow all her money on a bad investment, leaving her dirt broke. On a whim, she decides to pack up her meager belongings and take her very pregnant self on a four day road trip to the Morning Glory Ranch (can you imagine all the stops she must have made to pee?!) - the only place she ever felt accepted and loved, but also the place she was oh-so-eager to flee twelve years earlier.

As Billy Cook is driving home in the middle of a winter storm, he discovers the road blocked. Unable to continue, he turns around and heads for the family cabin where he finds a woman smack dab in the latter throes of labor. Of course she's not just any woman - she's Kate Jenkins, the woman responsible for his inability to commit and the only woman he ever allowed himself to love. Kate broke his heart twelve years earlier when he was only seventeen and he's been a confirmed bachelor and heartbreaker ever since. Despite his shock at seeing Kate again, he manages to deliver her child in a scene that I'm guessing was supposed to induce laughter, but instead only succeeded in making me cringe.

Kate decides to stick around, basking in the warmth and easy acceptance of the Cook family, all the while bound and determined to remain "just friends" with Billy when she learns he's never gotten over her. Billy finds himself wanting Kate with all of the blazing passion of his youth, a passion he hasn't experienced since (even though he's practiced with nearly every woman in town). But Billy is wary (and he should be) of getting close to Kate, fearing she'll bolt as soon the urge strikes. Fortunately for these two, there's the baby (who Billy instantly loves) and plenty of other contrived plot ploys around to keep them close. They spend the rest of the book as "friends" pining away for each other, all the while denying their ever increasing feelings of love/lust. Maybe it's just me, but I don't find anything interesting, entertaining or charming about this sort of tedious relationship. With its lack of witty dialogue and a plot that went around in circles, this story ranks right up there as one of the dullest "romantic comedies" I've ever come across.

Without Billy this story would have failed utterly. While he's not exactly my ideal Prince Charming (he's too stubborn for that), Billy is sweet, loving, persistent and an all-around nice guy. It's easy to see why Kate is attracted to him, but why Billy is attracted to her remains a mystery. This "queen of no commitments," as she calls herself, is an all-round mess and isn't even sure if she ever loved the baby's father. She's also irresponsible and thinks it's ever-so-cute to rename her newborn child every few weeks. Though we're told she's an outspoken, fun-loving gal, this isn't shown convincingly through any of her actions. She comes across as selfish and weepy rather than strong and entertaining. But what bothered me most is that she appears to have absolutely no remorse for ripping out Billy's heart years earlier. My question is not whether she'll do it again, but when. These two did not mesh and their love scenes were tepid at best, leading to a a C- on the verge of being a D.

If you're looking for a romantic comedy to lift your spirits, I recommend passing by Kiss the Cook as it was neither funny nor romantic, unless, of course, oozing breast milk makes you giggle and last page "I love you's" set you to swooning.

Reviewed by Laurie Shallah
Grade : C-
Book Type: Series Romance

Sensuality: Warm

Review Date : May 25, 2003

Publication Date: 2003/03

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Laurie Shallah

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