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3.75 AVERAGE
3.75 AVERAGE
(ARC REVIEW) Swoon.
Gunnar Erickson has moved to Green Valley to train at his older brother Cage's MMA gym. After a freak accident he finds himself at the hospital, where he meets ER nurse Frankie. Frankie hates violence and complications, and doesn't want to fall for Gunnar's charms. Can he prove to her he's not an uneducated brute, despite his violent career?
Oh man oh man Gunnar Erickson is perfection. Patient, understanding, sensitive, strong, sweet, thoughtful, I could go on and on. Maybe a little more patient and thoughtful than a 22 year old dude normally is, but hey- it's a romance novel, things can be unrealistic and still enjoyable.
There is such a good balance of really difficult topics and humor. Some heavy, emotional things happen and it's written with a delicate hand. It doesn't rely on overly kooky plot lines, its a simple story of two people falling in love while dealing with past trauma.
If you're familiar with the Green Valley universe you'll recognize some of the secondary characters and locations, but I truly don't think you would need to read the rest to understand this book (you should read them anyway though). This was such a great way to kick off the spring SmartyPants Romance launch!
Blog Tour (including excerpt!) can be found here: https://romancereviewed.com/2020/04/01/beef-cake-by-jiffy-kate-blog-tour/
Gunnar Erickson has moved to Green Valley to train at his older brother Cage's MMA gym. After a freak accident he finds himself at the hospital, where he meets ER nurse Frankie. Frankie hates violence and complications, and doesn't want to fall for Gunnar's charms. Can he prove to her he's not an uneducated brute, despite his violent career?
Oh man oh man Gunnar Erickson is perfection. Patient, understanding, sensitive, strong, sweet, thoughtful, I could go on and on. Maybe a little more patient and thoughtful than a 22 year old dude normally is, but hey- it's a romance novel, things can be unrealistic and still enjoyable.
There is such a good balance of really difficult topics and humor. Some heavy, emotional things happen and it's written with a delicate hand. It doesn't rely on overly kooky plot lines, its a simple story of two people falling in love while dealing with past trauma.
If you're familiar with the Green Valley universe you'll recognize some of the secondary characters and locations, but I truly don't think you would need to read the rest to understand this book (you should read them anyway though). This was such a great way to kick off the spring SmartyPants Romance launch!
Blog Tour (including excerpt!) can be found here: https://romancereviewed.com/2020/04/01/beef-cake-by-jiffy-kate-blog-tour/
One of the better Green Valley books. I love the Winston Brothers tie in.
Frankie Reeves and Gunnar Erickson are pretty much on opposite ends of the feelings spectrum. Gunnar is from a boisterous and tight-knit family, and he knows that someone will always have his back. He tells things like he sees them, and doesn't hesitate to go after what he wants. And, yep, he wants Frankie.
Frankie's past has made her guarded, and somewhat of a loner, but even she is not immune to the new Erickson in town. Gunnar sees how hard it is for Frankie to trust, and lets her take her time to warm up to him. He's a true gem, loving and patient, and the perfect foil for Frankie. Gunnar is the sun to Frankie's moon. Where Gunnar is bright and open, Frankie is serious and solitary. But he's used to working hard to achieve his goals, and when he sets his sights on Frankie, Gunnar is going all out.
Being my first read from Jiffy Kate, I had high hopes for BEEF CAKE, and it did not disappoint. The ladies have written a book both romantic and gritty, no mean feat when I think about it. This is the perfect addition to the Smartypants catalog, and I look forward to reading more books by these talented authors. ❤️
I was provided an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
If you've read [b:Stud Muffin|51812934|Stud Muffin (Donner Bakery, #2)|Jiffy Kate|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1564707732l/51812934._SX50_SY75_.jpg|72267250], you will remember Cage mentioning he had a younger brother who was also training to be an MMA fighter. Well, Cage finally has his own gym up and running and his younger brother, Gunnar has moved to Green Valley to train and teach some classes to the locals. Gunnar is used to being pushed hard by his three older brothers, and he's willing to put in the work to be the best. When a random accident at the gym sends him to the ER for stitches, he finds himself drawn to the beautiful yet complicated Frankie. Frankie is an ER nurse who has a complicated past and ties to the Iron Wraiths. She is trying to uncover things she can't remember from her childhood, and the last thing she wants is some meathead MMA fighter flirting with her. When Gunnar lays on the charm, she finds that there is more to him than she gave him credit for.
I really enjoyed this. Both of the characters were complex and I liked that their romance developed at a nice pace. I love that this covers difficult topics such as domestic abuse, drug use, mental health, and more in such a relatable way. Frankie has been through a lot in her life, and while she's surviving, she's not really living. It isn't until she meets Gunnar that she starts to let her defenses down and starts to really experience life. With those experiences come traumatic memories from the past that she has to face with to move forward. I also really appreciated the way that Gunnar never gave up on her, he gave her the space and permission she needed to deal with things the way she needed to in every situation.
I do wish this had more interaction at the actual bakery. I really just loved those characters and the baking aspect, but they only talk about they bakery in passing as neither of the characters work there. That's OK, we do get mention of it and Tempest is still creating her crazy muffins. This offering is fairly independent of the the original Pennyverse. That in no way is a deterrent from reading the story, it is actually nice to see the authors take the original beloved world of Green Valley and make something wholly unique.
This book is a complete standalone. You do not need to have read the previous books in The Donner Bakery Series to follow along. You should read them because they are also great!
Check out my Blog: Buttercup’s Book Blog
If you've read [b:Stud Muffin|51812934|Stud Muffin (Donner Bakery, #2)|Jiffy Kate|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1564707732l/51812934._SX50_SY75_.jpg|72267250], you will remember Cage mentioning he had a younger brother who was also training to be an MMA fighter. Well, Cage finally has his own gym up and running and his younger brother, Gunnar has moved to Green Valley to train and teach some classes to the locals. Gunnar is used to being pushed hard by his three older brothers, and he's willing to put in the work to be the best. When a random accident at the gym sends him to the ER for stitches, he finds himself drawn to the beautiful yet complicated Frankie. Frankie is an ER nurse who has a complicated past and ties to the Iron Wraiths. She is trying to uncover things she can't remember from her childhood, and the last thing she wants is some meathead MMA fighter flirting with her. When Gunnar lays on the charm, she finds that there is more to him than she gave him credit for.
I really enjoyed this. Both of the characters were complex and I liked that their romance developed at a nice pace. I love that this covers difficult topics such as domestic abuse, drug use, mental health, and more in such a relatable way. Frankie has been through a lot in her life, and while she's surviving, she's not really living. It isn't until she meets Gunnar that she starts to let her defenses down and starts to really experience life. With those experiences come traumatic memories from the past that she has to face with to move forward. I also really appreciated the way that Gunnar never gave up on her, he gave her the space and permission she needed to deal with things the way she needed to in every situation.
I do wish this had more interaction at the actual bakery. I really just loved those characters and the baking aspect, but they only talk about they bakery in passing as neither of the characters work there. That's OK, we do get mention of it and Tempest is still creating her crazy muffins. This offering is fairly independent of the the original Pennyverse. That in no way is a deterrent from reading the story, it is actually nice to see the authors take the original beloved world of Green Valley and make something wholly unique.
This book is a complete standalone. You do not need to have read the previous books in The Donner Bakery Series to follow along. You should read them because they are also great!
Check out my Blog: Buttercup’s Book Blog
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Another great addition to the Green Valley/Smartypants Romance world! I loved pretty much everything about this story except for the "reveal" of the information Frankie was looking for...well more of what the information was than the revealing of it. Seemed so dark and heavy and excessive. While the book did take some tough topics, I just felt like that part was over the top.
emotional
funny
fast-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
2.5-3/5?
It was okay and Gunnar and Frankie were cute, but it was too insta love and their story and characters weren’t developed enough
It was okay and Gunnar and Frankie were cute, but it was too insta love and their story and characters weren’t developed enough