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Amour et Chocolat #3
The Chocolate Rose
Her father’s worst enemy...
Top chef Gabriel Delange never forgave his old nemesis Pierre Manon for all the other chef had cost him.
One stolen rose...
And he most certainly couldn’t stand the sight of his own most famous dessert, the legendary Rose, claimed as Pierre’s own on the cover of his new cookbook.
A substitute victim...
But even Gabriel could hardly go through with a lawsuit when he learned the older chef had just had a stroke. Especially not when Pierre had one very cute daughter willing to be Gabriel’s victim instead.
Jolie Manon...
As a child, Jo had seen her family torn apart by her top chef father’s obsession with his work. She had given years of her own adult life to trying to pull him out of depression, after he lost a star. Now a food writer, she might be fascinated with a chef’s work, but she knew how to guard her heart. She would never allow another chef into her life.
Unless he blackmailed her into it...
Welcome to the heat and sun of Provence, where jasmine and roses climb up old colored walls, where fountains play in ancient stone villages, and where even a beast can prove he is a prince at heart…
Top chef Gabriel Delange never forgave his old nemesis Pierre Manon for all the other chef had cost him.
One stolen rose...
And he most certainly couldn’t stand the sight of his own most famous dessert, the legendary Rose, claimed as Pierre’s own on the cover of his new cookbook.
A substitute victim...
But even Gabriel could hardly go through with a lawsuit when he learned the older chef had just had a stroke. Especially not when Pierre had one very cute daughter willing to be Gabriel’s victim instead.
Jolie Manon...
As a child, Jo had seen her family torn apart by her top chef father’s obsession with his work. She had given years of her own adult life to trying to pull him out of depression, after he lost a star. Now a food writer, she might be fascinated with a chef’s work, but she knew how to guard her heart. She would never allow another chef into her life.
Unless he blackmailed her into it...
Welcome to the heat and sun of Provence, where jasmine and roses climb up old colored walls, where fountains play in ancient stone villages, and where even a beast can prove he is a prince at heart…
245 pages, ebook
First published April 9, 2013
108 people are currently reading
1867 people want to read
About the author
Laura Florand
30 books909 followersLaura Florand is the international bestselling and award-winning author of fifteen books, including the Vie en Roses series (Once Upon a Rose), the Paris Hearts series (All for You), and the Amour et Chocolat series (The Chocolate Thief). Selected by NPR for their Top 100 Romance list, her books have appeared in ten languages, been nominated for RT Reviewers’ Choice Best Book of the Year, received the RT Seal of Excellence and numerous starred reviews from Publishers Weekly and Library Journal, and been recommended by USA Today and The Wall Street Journal.
She was born in Georgia, but the travel bug bit her early. After a Fulbright year in Tahiti, a semester in Spain, and backpacking everywhere from New Zealand to Greece, she ended up living in Paris, where she met and married her own handsome Frenchman, a story told in her first book Blame It on Paris. Now a lecturer at Duke University, she is very dedicated to her research into French chocolate. For a glimpse behind the scenes of some of that research as well as recommendations for US chocolate, make sure to check out her website: www.lauraflorand.com.
She was born in Georgia, but the travel bug bit her early. After a Fulbright year in Tahiti, a semester in Spain, and backpacking everywhere from New Zealand to Greece, she ended up living in Paris, where she met and married her own handsome Frenchman, a story told in her first book Blame It on Paris. Now a lecturer at Duke University, she is very dedicated to her research into French chocolate. For a glimpse behind the scenes of some of that research as well as recommendations for US chocolate, make sure to check out her website: www.lauraflorand.com.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 223 reviews
February 10, 2017
Honestly, I love everything Laura Florand writes. I absolutely ADORE her entire Chocolate series. (I inhaled five of them in the space of three days!!).
If you haven't tried her, do!
If you haven't tried her, do!
Want to read
September 13, 2015
FREE on Amazon US today (9/12/2015)
Stand-alone book 3.
BLURB:
Her father’s worst enemy...
Top chef Gabriel Delange never forgave his old nemesis Pierre Manon for all the other chef had cost him.
One stolen rose...
And he most certainly couldn’t stand the sight of his own most famous dessert, the legendary Rose, claimed as Pierre’s own on the cover of his new cookbook.
A substitute victim...
But even Gabriel could hardly go through with a lawsuit when he learned the older chef had just had a stroke. Especially not when Pierre had one very cute daughter willing to be Gabriel’s victim instead.
Jolie Manon...
As a child, Jo had seen her family torn apart by her top chef father’s obsession with his work. She had given years of her own adult life to trying to pull him out of depression, after he lost a star. Now a food writer, she might be fascinated with a chef’s work, but she knew how to guard her heart. She would never allow another chef into her life.
Unless he blackmailed her into it...
Welcome to the heat and sun of Provence, where jasmine and roses climb up old colored walls, where fountains play in ancient stone villages, and where even a beast can prove he is a prince at heart…
http://www.amazon.com/Chocolate-Rose-...
FREEBIES are often good for MORE than one day, I have gathered all my FREEBIES on a special shelf: Kindle-freebies (currently over 470 books)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/list...
August 28, 2015
3.5 stars
Recipe for an almost perfect contemporary romance:
_Prepare the setting: Provence
_Add roses and jasmine to taste
_Get ready to get lost in a small quirky village
(I also live in a small town but unfortunately the thing has no quirkiness at all to it. Also I would be crazy to walk amongst its tiny dark streets in the centre of the old part of the city at night...
Fortunately I have my own Garden, so not all is lost! :D)
_Finally, get ready to meet the love of your life: He's really tall... and big... and sees himself as a Beast, but in truth he's just this big teddy bear who just wants to be loved, forever and ever.
Now we know, you have some trust issues, because parents *emotional vampires that they are* have sucked the life out of you (oh, wait, that's me -_-)... but remember that he'll always be waiting for you.
He'll give you everything you want... like... soft, creamy deserts in the shape of a rose:
Not this! Non! An amazing rose made of chocolate with beautiful petals hiding this creamy pastry of.... -_- something! :D
The only thing he asks is that you'll be by his side forever and ever... and can you please stop mentioning other pretty handsome man? Jolie, you know he has the self confidence of a meringue!
Poor guy :/
As you can see this was a sweet with bits of insane to it romance with likeable characters and laughing out loud dialogues as only the author knows out to do.
There were some points that threatened to become a little problematic _ the first time they look at one another or even the way Gabriel asks her on a date _ but the author _ for me _ was able to avoid a disaster. That is not to say, that I wasn't a little concerned about what I was reading...
Luckilly the author knows how to balance the more serious aspects with some heavy doses of silliness so I just let it pass.
Also the fact that not one, but the two of them are constantly thinking about sex _ although Jolie might beat Gabriel at it _ was a funny change.
p.s. In case there's any doubt _ I think it's unlikely, but strange things happen _ you know the stuff in the dialogue balloons?
I made them up. Please do not bother the author about my atrocious writing skills.
Also, for those who aren't aware of it, this story can be read as part of two different series: As the prequel for the Vie en Rose series, or as the third volume in the "Amour et Chocolat" series.
Author's Official Site
Kobo (get it while it's still free!)
Recipe for an almost perfect contemporary romance:
_Prepare the setting: Provence
_Add roses and jasmine to taste
_Get ready to get lost in a small quirky village
(I also live in a small town but unfortunately the thing has no quirkiness at all to it. Also I would be crazy to walk amongst its tiny dark streets in the centre of the old part of the city at night...
Fortunately I have my own Garden, so not all is lost! :D)
_Finally, get ready to meet the love of your life: He's really tall... and big... and sees himself as a Beast, but in truth he's just this big teddy bear who just wants to be loved, forever and ever.
Now we know, you have some trust issues, because parents *emotional vampires that they are* have sucked the life out of you (oh, wait, that's me -_-)... but remember that he'll always be waiting for you.
He'll give you everything you want... like... soft, creamy deserts in the shape of a rose:
Not this! Non! An amazing rose made of chocolate with beautiful petals hiding this creamy pastry of.... -_- something! :D
The only thing he asks is that you'll be by his side forever and ever... and can you please stop mentioning other pretty handsome man? Jolie, you know he has the self confidence of a meringue!
Poor guy :/
As you can see this was a sweet with bits of insane to it romance with likeable characters and laughing out loud dialogues as only the author knows out to do.
There were some points that threatened to become a little problematic _ the first time they look at one another or even the way Gabriel asks her on a date _ but the author _ for me _ was able to avoid a disaster. That is not to say, that I wasn't a little concerned about what I was reading...
Luckilly the author knows how to balance the more serious aspects with some heavy doses of silliness so I just let it pass.
Also the fact that not one, but the two of them are constantly thinking about sex _ although Jolie might beat Gabriel at it _ was a funny change.
p.s. In case there's any doubt _ I think it's unlikely, but strange things happen _ you know the stuff in the dialogue balloons?
I made them up. Please do not bother the author about my atrocious writing skills.
Also, for those who aren't aware of it, this story can be read as part of two different series: As the prequel for the Vie en Rose series, or as the third volume in the "Amour et Chocolat" series.
Author's Official Site
Kobo (get it while it's still free!)
June 14, 2013
3 1/2 stars. Once upon a time, a man stole a beautiful rose from a beast. And when the beast roared in anger about the theft, the man's daughter offered to sacrifice herself for her ailing father's sake. So the beast asked her to stay and write a cookbook with him.
Jolie ("pretty" in French) fears that learning he's being sued will be the nail in her father's coffin; he's already depressed after a stroke that left him unable to do the deft work required of a top chef. So she goes to throw herself on the mercy of Gabriel, once her father's pastry chef, and the (uncredited) originator of the chocolate rose that is now the star attraction of the cookbook she wrote for her father.
Gabriel is far from the skinny young man she vaguely remembers:
"He had filled into that space she had used to only imagine him taking up, all muscled now and absolutely sure. His growl started low and built, built, until it filled the kitchen and spilled out into the street as a full-bodied beast's roar, until she clapped her hands to her head to hold her hair on.
Gabriel Delange turned like a lion who had just finished chastising his cubs and spotted her. Her heart thumped as as if she had been caught out on the savannah without a rifle. Her fight instinct urged her to stalk across the small space between them, sink her hands into that thick hair, jerk her body up to him, and kiss that mouth of his until he stopped roaring with it.
That would teach him."
Gabriel is also instantly attracted to Jolie:
"He wanted to catch that fluttering strength and grace. Pick it up and gather it to him. Lose himself in it, kiss her, make sure she knew what good care he could take of it.
Except according to his every attempt at a girlfriend, he took lousy care at that sort of thing."
Since despite his good looks and fame he has never had any luck keeping a woman, Gabriel uses his leverage to insist Jolie stay with him in Provence for half of every week to co-write his cookbook. His feelings for her quickly grow, but she is intensely wary of becoming involved with a chef, knowing better than most how constrained their lives are. And Gabriel is intensely fearful of being left and hurt again:
"No sudden movements. He had known he shouldn't make any sudden movements with her hand gripping his heart like that.
And sure enough, she had ripped it right out of his body, and now she was standing there looking at it as if it was icky and bloody and she wasn't sure where to put it so that it didn't mess anything up."
If I had never read Florand before, I would probably have adored this, because her voice is still unique and enchanting. But I didn't fall as much in love as usual this time. The previous books in this series all made strong use of metaphor and allusion, but this is the first to closely follow a specific story. The lack of subtlety feels a little off somehow, as if there's too much constraint to fit the story into the expected mold. Jolie continued insistence on calling Gabriel a beast -- "you know--brute strength, unshaved, atrocious manners, ready to rend sick old men, roaring." -- gets tiresome, even though Gabriel correctly points out, "You like it when I roar."
I found Jolie tiresome in other ways, too. One minute she's fretting about how impossible it is to have a relationship with a top chef because of their crazy hours, then about a page later she's thinking she can never have a long-term affair, because "Men were just invasive and clingy, draping around her life like some heavy, wet cloak she just had to shrug off." By the time Gabriel points out to her how well their needs mesh, at about two-thirds of the way through, I was ready to smack her for being so dense.
But though Jolie is not the most appealing Beauty, Gabriel does make a fabulous Beast. Unlike other romance rewrites, his beastliness is not in his looks but in his exuberant, larger than life personality.
"He always did seem to feel things more powerfully than anyone else around him. Out there, unshielded, and subjugated by his damn senses."
"He tried to figure out what a guilty or apologetic look would feel like on his face. They weren't emotions he was familiar with much."
"Everything that was the best and most wonderful about himself, what expressed everything in him, all the energy and beauty and love, the heart of him that he could only communicate that way because every other way people always thought it was such a beast's. Everything beautiful--and women always thought it was what made him the worst. What they couldn't love."
(It just occurred to me that though he's miles from the stereotype, I can totally see Gabriel as someone on the autism spectrum. Someone filled with more emotion than he can contain, ruled by his senses, tending to run roughshod over others without realizing it yet incredibly sensitive himself... I know this guy. I'm this guy's mom.)
So this was kind of a mixed bag for me. It's perhaps like a new chocolate, one made from traditional delicious ingredients but which hasn't worked out quite the right balance of flavors.
(This book was a no-strings gift to me from the author.)
Jolie ("pretty" in French) fears that learning he's being sued will be the nail in her father's coffin; he's already depressed after a stroke that left him unable to do the deft work required of a top chef. So she goes to throw herself on the mercy of Gabriel, once her father's pastry chef, and the (uncredited) originator of the chocolate rose that is now the star attraction of the cookbook she wrote for her father.
Gabriel is far from the skinny young man she vaguely remembers:
"He had filled into that space she had used to only imagine him taking up, all muscled now and absolutely sure. His growl started low and built, built, until it filled the kitchen and spilled out into the street as a full-bodied beast's roar, until she clapped her hands to her head to hold her hair on.
Gabriel Delange turned like a lion who had just finished chastising his cubs and spotted her. Her heart thumped as as if she had been caught out on the savannah without a rifle. Her fight instinct urged her to stalk across the small space between them, sink her hands into that thick hair, jerk her body up to him, and kiss that mouth of his until he stopped roaring with it.
That would teach him."
Gabriel is also instantly attracted to Jolie:
"He wanted to catch that fluttering strength and grace. Pick it up and gather it to him. Lose himself in it, kiss her, make sure she knew what good care he could take of it.
Except according to his every attempt at a girlfriend, he took lousy care at that sort of thing."
Since despite his good looks and fame he has never had any luck keeping a woman, Gabriel uses his leverage to insist Jolie stay with him in Provence for half of every week to co-write his cookbook. His feelings for her quickly grow, but she is intensely wary of becoming involved with a chef, knowing better than most how constrained their lives are. And Gabriel is intensely fearful of being left and hurt again:
"No sudden movements. He had known he shouldn't make any sudden movements with her hand gripping his heart like that.
And sure enough, she had ripped it right out of his body, and now she was standing there looking at it as if it was icky and bloody and she wasn't sure where to put it so that it didn't mess anything up."
If I had never read Florand before, I would probably have adored this, because her voice is still unique and enchanting. But I didn't fall as much in love as usual this time. The previous books in this series all made strong use of metaphor and allusion, but this is the first to closely follow a specific story. The lack of subtlety feels a little off somehow, as if there's too much constraint to fit the story into the expected mold. Jolie continued insistence on calling Gabriel a beast -- "you know--brute strength, unshaved, atrocious manners, ready to rend sick old men, roaring." -- gets tiresome, even though Gabriel correctly points out, "You like it when I roar."
I found Jolie tiresome in other ways, too. One minute she's fretting about how impossible it is to have a relationship with a top chef because of their crazy hours, then about a page later she's thinking she can never have a long-term affair, because "Men were just invasive and clingy, draping around her life like some heavy, wet cloak she just had to shrug off." By the time Gabriel points out to her how well their needs mesh, at about two-thirds of the way through, I was ready to smack her for being so dense.
But though Jolie is not the most appealing Beauty, Gabriel does make a fabulous Beast. Unlike other romance rewrites, his beastliness is not in his looks but in his exuberant, larger than life personality.
"He always did seem to feel things more powerfully than anyone else around him. Out there, unshielded, and subjugated by his damn senses."
"He tried to figure out what a guilty or apologetic look would feel like on his face. They weren't emotions he was familiar with much."
"Everything that was the best and most wonderful about himself, what expressed everything in him, all the energy and beauty and love, the heart of him that he could only communicate that way because every other way people always thought it was such a beast's. Everything beautiful--and women always thought it was what made him the worst. What they couldn't love."
(It just occurred to me that though he's miles from the stereotype, I can totally see Gabriel as someone on the autism spectrum. Someone filled with more emotion than he can contain, ruled by his senses, tending to run roughshod over others without realizing it yet incredibly sensitive himself... I know this guy. I'm this guy's mom.)
So this was kind of a mixed bag for me. It's perhaps like a new chocolate, one made from traditional delicious ingredients but which hasn't worked out quite the right balance of flavors.
(This book was a no-strings gift to me from the author.)
January 3, 2019
I read these with the same expectations as I read fairytales, fantasy etc. Parts are overdone, overexaggerated, the characters don't feel real necessarily (but not horribly so), but they are sexy breezy reads. And total escapes.
December 8, 2014
She gritted her teeth, torn between the overwhelming desire to hit him and the one to completely give in, to be just -easy. Just go with it. Just get hauled of to somewhere dark and dangerous and growled at some more
I’m going to have to say that The Chocolate Rose has been my favourite book so far of the Amour et Chocolate series, I adored the first two books; The Chocolate Thief and The Chocolate Kiss, and the fantastic antagonistic relationships that Florand was able to weave into her stories, but Gabriel and Jolie’s story just had more of an impact on me.
Again like the previous books, something dire gets our MC Jolie to travel down to meet with Gabriel, what follows is a funny situation which provokes Jolie working in Gabriel’s kitchen for the morning. It’s obvious that’s there an instinct attraction between the two of them and this inextinguishable fire, but with so many hurdles, which could hurt Jolie in more ways than one I did have my doubts whether this relationship would work. But Gabriel really did make me believe. I loved the dual pov’s we were given again in this book, but more so because I truly fell for Gabriel and truly wanted to learn about his inner feelings, desires and secrets, basically everything about him. Gabriel was an arrogant person, but he did have every right to be, he’d lost a lot of his life a while back, but was able to jump back to his feet and make his way up into a very successful person and chef. But under that arrogance was also one of the most vulnerable love interests I had come across in this series so far. It was truly heart wrenching at times seeing him put his heart on the line time and time again, I could understand some of Jolie’s reservations, but on so many occasions Gabriel had demonstrated how much he truly cared about her. And really this was a relationship that Gabriel deserved ( they both really deserved) but then we were given snippets into his past love life or lack thereof, I felt like pushing Jolie out of the way so I could have him to myself, (he’d definitely made it to my list of fictional crushes, this guy just was totally swoon worthy). He was one of those characters who knew how to take care of his girl, yes he was eager to get further within his relationship with Jolie as soon as possible, some may see this as rushing too much, but who wouldn’t want a guy as hot as Gabriel wanting to involve you in his life as much as he could?. I lived seeing him get all defensive when Jolie would be spending time with another chef, but most of all I loved his growls, being a Chef pâtissier he was used to growling at his staff to get order in his kitchen, but when his growl was directed towards Jolie, *sigh* he was super hot!
What I loved the most about this book was even though there was all this heat and sexual tension running between Jolie and Gabriel, and all you want them to do is kiss some more and finally get together. You kind of forget that their relationship in this story only spans a couple of weeks. Some may consider this to be a bit insta-love, but Florand totally makes Gabriel and Jolie’s relationship work and believable; their feelings for each other are so deep and meaningful that it seems as if they’ve known each other for way longer!
Once again I loved the way the story was set in France, the setting certainly added to making the relationship between Gabriel and Jolie appear more romantic. With its gorgeous settings I have truly fallen head over heels by this series by Florand so far, I don’t think anyone can top my love for Gabriel so far, but with Florand’s books I guess I shall just have to wait and see.
Favourite quotes:
"You're not in the way". A little growl slipped into his tone, rubbing all over his skin. "I told you. If I say you can be here you can be here"
"They'll agree to whatever I ask them to or we'll go somewhere else. We can share the last name, so it won't take up that much more space"
"I love the combination of roaring... and sweet"
This review can be found on: The Readers Den
I’m going to have to say that The Chocolate Rose has been my favourite book so far of the Amour et Chocolate series, I adored the first two books; The Chocolate Thief and The Chocolate Kiss, and the fantastic antagonistic relationships that Florand was able to weave into her stories, but Gabriel and Jolie’s story just had more of an impact on me.
Again like the previous books, something dire gets our MC Jolie to travel down to meet with Gabriel, what follows is a funny situation which provokes Jolie working in Gabriel’s kitchen for the morning. It’s obvious that’s there an instinct attraction between the two of them and this inextinguishable fire, but with so many hurdles, which could hurt Jolie in more ways than one I did have my doubts whether this relationship would work. But Gabriel really did make me believe. I loved the dual pov’s we were given again in this book, but more so because I truly fell for Gabriel and truly wanted to learn about his inner feelings, desires and secrets, basically everything about him. Gabriel was an arrogant person, but he did have every right to be, he’d lost a lot of his life a while back, but was able to jump back to his feet and make his way up into a very successful person and chef. But under that arrogance was also one of the most vulnerable love interests I had come across in this series so far. It was truly heart wrenching at times seeing him put his heart on the line time and time again, I could understand some of Jolie’s reservations, but on so many occasions Gabriel had demonstrated how much he truly cared about her. And really this was a relationship that Gabriel deserved ( they both really deserved) but then we were given snippets into his past love life or lack thereof, I felt like pushing Jolie out of the way so I could have him to myself, (he’d definitely made it to my list of fictional crushes, this guy just was totally swoon worthy). He was one of those characters who knew how to take care of his girl, yes he was eager to get further within his relationship with Jolie as soon as possible, some may see this as rushing too much, but who wouldn’t want a guy as hot as Gabriel wanting to involve you in his life as much as he could?. I lived seeing him get all defensive when Jolie would be spending time with another chef, but most of all I loved his growls, being a Chef pâtissier he was used to growling at his staff to get order in his kitchen, but when his growl was directed towards Jolie, *sigh* he was super hot!
What I loved the most about this book was even though there was all this heat and sexual tension running between Jolie and Gabriel, and all you want them to do is kiss some more and finally get together. You kind of forget that their relationship in this story only spans a couple of weeks. Some may consider this to be a bit insta-love, but Florand totally makes Gabriel and Jolie’s relationship work and believable; their feelings for each other are so deep and meaningful that it seems as if they’ve known each other for way longer!
Once again I loved the way the story was set in France, the setting certainly added to making the relationship between Gabriel and Jolie appear more romantic. With its gorgeous settings I have truly fallen head over heels by this series by Florand so far, I don’t think anyone can top my love for Gabriel so far, but with Florand’s books I guess I shall just have to wait and see.
Favourite quotes:
"You're not in the way". A little growl slipped into his tone, rubbing all over his skin. "I told you. If I say you can be here you can be here"
"They'll agree to whatever I ask them to or we'll go somewhere else. We can share the last name, so it won't take up that much more space"
"I love the combination of roaring... and sweet"
This review can be found on: The Readers Den
July 19, 2023
First read; May 2015:
OH MY GOD YOU GUYS
.....yea that's basically my thought about this book, lots of OMGs and !!!!!
Gabriel, Gabriel, Gabriel. He's so much like his cousin Matt, all beastly and alpha male-y, but really just teddy bears in disguise. A marshmallow, said Jolie. I love this a lot lot lot.
Reread; June 2016:
me, a big fan of dirty talk and sexual innuendos in romance, is very very VERY much a fan of this book. but you already know that.
Reread; May 2017:
oh god I forgot how funny this book is. Gabe is simply incorrigible and Jolie is a sweetheart I love them so much.
Also I love that we get the Lauriers in this too; I have a newfound appreciation for them after I reread their book a while ago, and I love the advice Lea's given to Jolie re: loving somebody and still keeping yourself.
Reread: March 2019
“Jolie. I really think we know this is going to work out.”
When will my queen Laura Florand return home from war-
OH MY GOD YOU GUYS
.....yea that's basically my thought about this book, lots of OMGs and !!!!!
Gabriel, Gabriel, Gabriel. He's so much like his cousin Matt, all beastly and alpha male-y, but really just teddy bears in disguise. A marshmallow, said Jolie. I love this a lot lot lot.
Reread; June 2016:
me, a big fan of dirty talk and sexual innuendos in romance, is very very VERY much a fan of this book. but you already know that.
Reread; May 2017:
oh god I forgot how funny this book is. Gabe is simply incorrigible and Jolie is a sweetheart I love them so much.
Also I love that we get the Lauriers in this too; I have a newfound appreciation for them after I reread their book a while ago, and I love the advice Lea's given to Jolie re: loving somebody and still keeping yourself.
Reread: March 2019
“Jolie. I really think we know this is going to work out.”
When will my queen Laura Florand return home from war-
November 24, 2013
Oh, I am having so much fun reading this great series.
Its charming. I adore the heroes and the heroines. This one is very funny as neither the heroine or the heroine can stop thinking about sex. This smoldering makes for a great slow seduction and make outs
I love how open hearted and steadfast the hero is. Love it. I love that the heroine faces real dilemmas.
And then we have chocolate and the South of France and romantic gestures and everything else.
Another five star read for me. I don't think I have given one writer so many five star reviews in a row since Julie Garwood, Pamala Morsi, or SEP.
I think it is because Florland really masters her contermpary romance with a dash of comedy genre. The little details make each book special and the quality of her couples are comforting. Each book is such a pleasure.
I will be rereading this series for years to come.
Its charming. I adore the heroes and the heroines. This one is very funny as neither the heroine or the heroine can stop thinking about sex. This smoldering makes for a great slow seduction and make outs
I love how open hearted and steadfast the hero is. Love it. I love that the heroine faces real dilemmas.
And then we have chocolate and the South of France and romantic gestures and everything else.
Another five star read for me. I don't think I have given one writer so many five star reviews in a row since Julie Garwood, Pamala Morsi, or SEP.
I think it is because Florland really masters her contermpary romance with a dash of comedy genre. The little details make each book special and the quality of her couples are comforting. Each book is such a pleasure.
I will be rereading this series for years to come.
January 25, 2015
Top chef Gabriel Delange has an ax to grind. He can’t believe that the man who fired him after he’d earned him a three-star now has the gall to put out a book with his recipes.
So then he filed a lawsuit against him, and once again couldn’t believe that the man would send his daughter to try and soothe his feathers. But maybe all is not lost. Because as soon as he sees the beautiful Jolie Manon and mistakes her for prospective sous chef, albeit, an incompetent one, he knows he can try to work it to his advantage.
Jolie only ever wanted to do what’s best for her ailing father. Taking care of him while he writes his book makes up for all the time they spent estranged. Jolie knows what it’s like to lose a loved one to the profession. The family always takes a backseat to the restaurant no matter what. It’s what happened to her parents; estranged for as long as she can remember. So she must be crazy to be entertaining thoughts of a relationship with Gabriel Delange. Oh but she can’t resist!
I’ve been reading these books out of order, but it’s no biggie. In fact, you can probably treat them as stand-alones in the same world. It’s been fun reading these books no matter how I felt about the first. Romance novels are only as good as the characters in them, and these books, at least, have consistently introduced me to some pretty larger than life personalities.
Gabriel Delange is one of those. I’ve noticed that Ms. Florand do like her men big, burly, and so outside of my perception of how chefs should look like. But if there’s one thing I’ve been learning about them, is that they are incredibly dedicated people. It’s like being married to a surgeon, almost. You’ll be constantly vying for their attention, and who does painstaking work.
Chefs are like artists, too. And Ms. Florand perfectly describes the beauty of their work. I’m sort of happy Gabriel is not a pâtissier or a chocolatier. Truth be told, I’ve been experiencing phantom toothaches from reading these books. A twinge in my teeth whenever a character pops a chocolate in their mouth. Which is the most ridiculous thing I could ever admit to , I know.
Jolie is a person who likes making people happy. She coddles her father, and strokes his ego. The poor girl got stuck between two magnanimous forces (her father and Gabriel) that I felt like she rightfully deserved a bitch-fit.
In summary, aside from my experience with the first book, Amour et Chocolat is a series that I can recommend if you’re on the look out for fast, decadent romance reads. The characters are perfectly drawn out, and the plots, well conceptualized. Fall in love with the characters, and enjoy the sceneries of France!
So then he filed a lawsuit against him, and once again couldn’t believe that the man would send his daughter to try and soothe his feathers. But maybe all is not lost. Because as soon as he sees the beautiful Jolie Manon and mistakes her for prospective sous chef, albeit, an incompetent one, he knows he can try to work it to his advantage.
Jolie only ever wanted to do what’s best for her ailing father. Taking care of him while he writes his book makes up for all the time they spent estranged. Jolie knows what it’s like to lose a loved one to the profession. The family always takes a backseat to the restaurant no matter what. It’s what happened to her parents; estranged for as long as she can remember. So she must be crazy to be entertaining thoughts of a relationship with Gabriel Delange. Oh but she can’t resist!
I’ve been reading these books out of order, but it’s no biggie. In fact, you can probably treat them as stand-alones in the same world. It’s been fun reading these books no matter how I felt about the first. Romance novels are only as good as the characters in them, and these books, at least, have consistently introduced me to some pretty larger than life personalities.
Gabriel Delange is one of those. I’ve noticed that Ms. Florand do like her men big, burly, and so outside of my perception of how chefs should look like. But if there’s one thing I’ve been learning about them, is that they are incredibly dedicated people. It’s like being married to a surgeon, almost. You’ll be constantly vying for their attention, and who does painstaking work.
Chefs are like artists, too. And Ms. Florand perfectly describes the beauty of their work. I’m sort of happy Gabriel is not a pâtissier or a chocolatier. Truth be told, I’ve been experiencing phantom toothaches from reading these books. A twinge in my teeth whenever a character pops a chocolate in their mouth. Which is the most ridiculous thing I could ever admit to , I know.
Jolie is a person who likes making people happy. She coddles her father, and strokes his ego. The poor girl got stuck between two magnanimous forces (her father and Gabriel) that I felt like she rightfully deserved a bitch-fit.
In summary, aside from my experience with the first book, Amour et Chocolat is a series that I can recommend if you’re on the look out for fast, decadent romance reads. The characters are perfectly drawn out, and the plots, well conceptualized. Fall in love with the characters, and enjoy the sceneries of France!
February 20, 2014
There's a confidence in this Frenchman that is alluring, and loveliness in the language that immersed me in food and sensuality and lust. It's the sort of romance that is unashamedly romantic and I loved it.
April 11, 2013
I liked this so much. I said this to Grace yesterday, but I really enjoy the way Laura Florand takes these controlling, know-it-all alphas and introduces them to these women that utterly FLUMMOX them. It just completely and totally works for me.
Random things: I see what she meant about this being a bridge book and I'm defintely into the world she's building around the Rosier clan. That doorway scene. *fans self* Do we get Luc Leroi as a hero? Because I would be into that. He didn't seem like a straight up chocalatier the way her other heroes in that series have been, though, so I didn't want to get my hopes up that he'd be the hero of book four. Or however we're numbering them now, I'm very confused by that.
Random things: I see what she meant about this being a bridge book and I'm defintely into the world she's building around the Rosier clan. That doorway scene. *fans self* Do we get Luc Leroi as a hero? Because I would be into that. He didn't seem like a straight up chocalatier the way her other heroes in that series have been, though, so I didn't want to get my hopes up that he'd be the hero of book four. Or however we're numbering them now, I'm very confused by that.
July 8, 2013
None of the books in this series have managed to compare to the first one for me, but I really enjoyed this. It cuts straight to the chase and is filled with sexual tension, not to mention Florand's language and engaging plots. Yet another feel-good contemporary romance that I wouldn't hesitate to recommend and if you haven't already started on this series, you're missing out on something delicious! ;)
April 15, 2013
Enjoyed a lot. THe hero in this one is the one that falls in love first and is so worried about getting his heart broken. Yet he is still all beastly and arrogant. Nice combo. Review coming
March 27, 2020
reread march 2020: i want a big roaring gabriel to call me "minette", s'il vous plaît and merci.
January 24, 2025
I loved this heartwarming novel set in the world of haute cuisine and extraordinary dessert creations. Especially enjoyable was the way Florand wove in the Beauty and the Beast theme in a new and refreshing way.
I really really liked Gabriel and the way he had to 'keep sitting on himself' to keep himself from overwhelming Jolie. Something about love at first sight and a strong man who goes after what he wants, with integrity, really does it for me.
Highly recommended if you need a make-you-happy read!
And, as always, I highly recommend Florand's other books. She has been one of my favorite new-to-me author 'finds' this last year.
Reread again 12/6/14.
I really really liked Gabriel and the way he had to 'keep sitting on himself' to keep himself from overwhelming Jolie. Something about love at first sight and a strong man who goes after what he wants, with integrity, really does it for me.
Highly recommended if you need a make-you-happy read!
And, as always, I highly recommend Florand's other books. She has been one of my favorite new-to-me author 'finds' this last year.
Reread again 12/6/14.
November 29, 2015
FIRST THOUGHTS: I do love a good romance. Throw in some chocolate and it's a winning situation for all! The swoons and the banter were so cute.
December 21, 2025
I love that the consistent throughline of this novel is that Jolie has been dragged down so deep into her father's depression that she can't even bring herself to believe that a man who was previously on the verge of suing her father could separately be attracted to her. Poor Gabe is trying desperately at every turn to convince her that she's gorgeous and lovely and he maybe possibly can't go on without her, and in her head, Jolie is like, He's trying to seduce me to get back at my dad. I'm only agreeing to write this cookbook with him because if I don't, he'll sue my dad, and then my dad will get another stroke, and that would be really, really bad. There's no way he's seriously attracted to me even though he's tried to convey this to me in a gazillion different ways. There's no way he dropped the idea of suing my dad the minute he heard my dad had a stroke, because he's a human of common decency.
It's hilarious, their banter is electric, and I love, love, love the Beauty and the Beast spoof of it all. The comparisons of Philippe to a beast in the prior novel were so relentless as to be annoying, but there's an actual purpose to it here that makes the comparisons nothing short of delightful. Oh, woe is me, bestial man, too big and bursting for any room I walk into, too bogged down by my work hours as a chef at a three-star restaurant to maintain a girlfriend, so unlucky to be in the position of having developed a notorious enmity with the father of the woman I've fallen in love with, who is uniquely positioned to be averse to a relationship with a chef. Like, wow, I would never have expected this of a Beauty and the Beast adaptation, but it works!
And Jolie and Gabe are so ridiculously cute. Gabe is a little bit of a man child at times - he's lonely, and he loves without abandon, and with possession - but it's endearing to see what his persistence and inability to contain himself does for Jolie, who is so sheltered in her fear of developing a relationship with a chef that Gabe's forward advances alarm her. In complementary style, Jolie's passion as a food writer puts her in a place to appreciate everything about Gabe that his prior ex-girlfriends couldn't tolerate, so it's ultimately a relationship of many small surprises between them, as they each realize that no other person in the world could appreciate either of them as much as they do each other.
I do, on a critical note, wish there was a little more meat to Jolie's arc as an individual - more stories about her in her father's restaurant growing up, the development of her passion for food writing, etc. - but that's my only real complaint. I already can't wait to reread this!
FINAL RATING: 4.5
It's hilarious, their banter is electric, and I love, love, love the Beauty and the Beast spoof of it all. The comparisons of Philippe to a beast in the prior novel were so relentless as to be annoying, but there's an actual purpose to it here that makes the comparisons nothing short of delightful. Oh, woe is me, bestial man, too big and bursting for any room I walk into, too bogged down by my work hours as a chef at a three-star restaurant to maintain a girlfriend, so unlucky to be in the position of having developed a notorious enmity with the father of the woman I've fallen in love with, who is uniquely positioned to be averse to a relationship with a chef. Like, wow, I would never have expected this of a Beauty and the Beast adaptation, but it works!
And Jolie and Gabe are so ridiculously cute. Gabe is a little bit of a man child at times - he's lonely, and he loves without abandon, and with possession - but it's endearing to see what his persistence and inability to contain himself does for Jolie, who is so sheltered in her fear of developing a relationship with a chef that Gabe's forward advances alarm her. In complementary style, Jolie's passion as a food writer puts her in a place to appreciate everything about Gabe that his prior ex-girlfriends couldn't tolerate, so it's ultimately a relationship of many small surprises between them, as they each realize that no other person in the world could appreciate either of them as much as they do each other.
I do, on a critical note, wish there was a little more meat to Jolie's arc as an individual - more stories about her in her father's restaurant growing up, the development of her passion for food writing, etc. - but that's my only real complaint. I already can't wait to reread this!
FINAL RATING: 4.5
December 1, 2019
There is an emotional richness to Laura Florand's writing that makes for sensual and satisfying romance.
April 14, 2017
I want a Gabriel of my own. His words, his actions all made me swoon!The chemistry in this book is also off the charts
May 9, 2013
I've read a few books by Laura Florand now (The Chocolate Kiss, Turning Up the Heat) and the thing I love most about Florand's writing is that it's more like a immersive experience rather than just reading words off the page. You can taste the food, feel textures, smell flowers. Her writing is very evocative and makes me want to travel the world or eat a giant box of chocolate. (OK - so I always want to eat a box of chocolate but still…)
In The Chocolate Rose, Jolie Manon, a food writer, has co-written a cookbook with her father. He's recovering from a stroke and Jo hopes that this project will give him the motivation he needs to make a comeback. Tiny problem. The picture she used for the cover, a beautiful chocolate rose his restaurant is famous for, is not her father's creation as credited in the book but that of a former employee, top Gabriel Delange, and he's suing them.
Jo travels to Provence to try to make a deal with Gabriel but instead is captivated by this beast of a man that takes up all the space and air of a room while still spilling his heart and feelings out like an open book.
Gabriel loves big, with everything he has, but hasn't been able to make any of his relationships work because of the hours he dedicates to his restaurant. No woman has been able to handle the late nights and being second to his creations. That is until Jo walks in. She understands his lifestyle and actually likes time alone and early morning walks. The only problem is she's seen how her own egotistical chef of a father led to a broken family and doesn't want that for herself. Gabriel is determined to change her point of view.
The great thing about this story, and something that was very unexpected to me, is that it wasn't about the lawsuit or even very adversarial between Gabriel and Jo. He has hated Jo's father for so long that you would think those feelings would carry over to his daughter but Gabriel sees that her own career aspirations are being kept down in favor of her fathers need for the spotlight. Instead, he seeks ways to build her up and give her credit. The man is definitely an alpha but not at the expense of demeaning Jo in any way.
I mentioned that Gabriel is an alpha. Jo feels completely overwhelmed by him. She compares him to a lion stalking his prey but what's funny is this lion is just a big ole pussy cat. I don't think I've ever read about a more sensitive alpha. He's always worried about being hurt or saying too much too soon to Jo and scaring her off, which he does, repeatedly, but you just have to love him anyway. His intentions are good even if his delivery is too much.
If you read the Amour et Chocolat series, you might start to see some repetitions of phrases and storylines carrying over. They are basically the same story with new characters but in this case, instead of finding that annoying, I find a certain comfort in it the writing style. I'm also a sucker for anything about chefs and food so….
Final thoughts: For me Laura Florand's writing is comfort food and I enjoy every bite. I like the whirlwind romances and talk of food, flowers and love that this series provides. I also enjoyed seeing characters from the previous books in this series make appearances.
In The Chocolate Rose, Jolie Manon, a food writer, has co-written a cookbook with her father. He's recovering from a stroke and Jo hopes that this project will give him the motivation he needs to make a comeback. Tiny problem. The picture she used for the cover, a beautiful chocolate rose his restaurant is famous for, is not her father's creation as credited in the book but that of a former employee, top Gabriel Delange, and he's suing them.
Jo travels to Provence to try to make a deal with Gabriel but instead is captivated by this beast of a man that takes up all the space and air of a room while still spilling his heart and feelings out like an open book.
Gabriel loves big, with everything he has, but hasn't been able to make any of his relationships work because of the hours he dedicates to his restaurant. No woman has been able to handle the late nights and being second to his creations. That is until Jo walks in. She understands his lifestyle and actually likes time alone and early morning walks. The only problem is she's seen how her own egotistical chef of a father led to a broken family and doesn't want that for herself. Gabriel is determined to change her point of view.
The great thing about this story, and something that was very unexpected to me, is that it wasn't about the lawsuit or even very adversarial between Gabriel and Jo. He has hated Jo's father for so long that you would think those feelings would carry over to his daughter but Gabriel sees that her own career aspirations are being kept down in favor of her fathers need for the spotlight. Instead, he seeks ways to build her up and give her credit. The man is definitely an alpha but not at the expense of demeaning Jo in any way.
I mentioned that Gabriel is an alpha. Jo feels completely overwhelmed by him. She compares him to a lion stalking his prey but what's funny is this lion is just a big ole pussy cat. I don't think I've ever read about a more sensitive alpha. He's always worried about being hurt or saying too much too soon to Jo and scaring her off, which he does, repeatedly, but you just have to love him anyway. His intentions are good even if his delivery is too much.
If you read the Amour et Chocolat series, you might start to see some repetitions of phrases and storylines carrying over. They are basically the same story with new characters but in this case, instead of finding that annoying, I find a certain comfort in it the writing style. I'm also a sucker for anything about chefs and food so….
Final thoughts: For me Laura Florand's writing is comfort food and I enjoy every bite. I like the whirlwind romances and talk of food, flowers and love that this series provides. I also enjoyed seeing characters from the previous books in this series make appearances.
December 18, 2013
Sadly, not nearly as good as the others in this series. This was barely three stars for me- I almost gave it two, in fact. Maybe I'm being a little hard on this book but after the perfection that was The Chocolate Touch, this felt uncharacteristically flat and almost lifeless, which is so unlike the other books in the Amour et Chocolate series. This was quite a bit shorter than the other books too and you could feel that in the story. There was so much potential, especially in the complicated relationship that Jolie has with her father- and also that Gabriel has with her father- but it felt like there wasn't enough time spent developing and using that potential. Instead it felt rushed and some things we're just a bit too easily fixed. I wish it had been a touch longer to flesh out some things and if it had, it probably would have fixed a lot of my problems with this book. This felt more like a long novella, more of an introduction to Florands new La Vie en Roses series (The Chocolate Rose is a part of both series) than strong stand alone.
I can't say that I particularly liked either of our leads either. Gabriel had his moments but Jolie never grew on me. But again, if things had been fleshed out a bit more I think both of their characters would have worked better for me. I liked the complexities of Jolie's problems getting involved with someone involved in the chef business yet her love for that world, and I wish there had been more time to explore those warring feelings. I did like this book overall though- it's hard not to like Florand's writing and the settings she uses- but The Chocolate Heart definitely pales in comparison to the other winners in this series.
I can't say that I particularly liked either of our leads either. Gabriel had his moments but Jolie never grew on me. But again, if things had been fleshed out a bit more I think both of their characters would have worked better for me. I liked the complexities of Jolie's problems getting involved with someone involved in the chef business yet her love for that world, and I wish there had been more time to explore those warring feelings. I did like this book overall though- it's hard not to like Florand's writing and the settings she uses- but The Chocolate Heart definitely pales in comparison to the other winners in this series.
August 13, 2013
Am I slow or what? Because I didn’t catch that this story was going to draw on the Beauty-and-the-Beast fairy tale until about the third time Gabriel Delange thinks of himself as a “beast.”
After that the shoe finally dropped: A beast, a beautiful girl, her father who steals the rose from the beast, hello. I don’t want to make too much of this, because the fairy tale just echoes gently through The Chocolate Rose, so don’t pick this story up thinking it’s actually a retelling. It’s not. But the fairy tale does add an extra layer – I’m trying not to say it’s the icing on the cake, but I can’t help it; all the beautiful desserts in the story are getting to me.
Let me just add that The Chocolate Rose also has one of my favorite lines ever, because after Jolie has just peeled and sectioned a zillion grapefruit, we get this: “She was not without kitchen skills, not by any means. But the speed, the intensity, the amount of competing motion she had to dodge, and the sheer repetition of task surpassed anything she had ever done before. Jo hated grapefruit. She hadn’t known that before, but not she hated it with a profound and utter passion. Maybe she should give up cookbook writing, become a microbiologist, and create a fungus that would wipe grapefruit trees of the planet.”
People, I laughed out loud. I honestly did.
I also really enjoyed Jolie – because she’s a writer, see, and also because I personally own like a hundred cookbooks and usually read them straight through, like novels, so I can easily imagine the effort that goes into writing a cookbook with a top chef. I enjoyed watching Gabriel struggle with the concept of “recipes a talented amateur could pull off”. I also definitely appreciated how a chef’s crazy hours would be absolutely perfect for a writer who needs a lot of time to herself.
After that the shoe finally dropped: A beast, a beautiful girl, her father who steals the rose from the beast, hello. I don’t want to make too much of this, because the fairy tale just echoes gently through The Chocolate Rose, so don’t pick this story up thinking it’s actually a retelling. It’s not. But the fairy tale does add an extra layer – I’m trying not to say it’s the icing on the cake, but I can’t help it; all the beautiful desserts in the story are getting to me.
Let me just add that The Chocolate Rose also has one of my favorite lines ever, because after Jolie has just peeled and sectioned a zillion grapefruit, we get this: “She was not without kitchen skills, not by any means. But the speed, the intensity, the amount of competing motion she had to dodge, and the sheer repetition of task surpassed anything she had ever done before. Jo hated grapefruit. She hadn’t known that before, but not she hated it with a profound and utter passion. Maybe she should give up cookbook writing, become a microbiologist, and create a fungus that would wipe grapefruit trees of the planet.”
People, I laughed out loud. I honestly did.
I also really enjoyed Jolie – because she’s a writer, see, and also because I personally own like a hundred cookbooks and usually read them straight through, like novels, so I can easily imagine the effort that goes into writing a cookbook with a top chef. I enjoyed watching Gabriel struggle with the concept of “recipes a talented amateur could pull off”. I also definitely appreciated how a chef’s crazy hours would be absolutely perfect for a writer who needs a lot of time to herself.
August 1, 2013
4.5 stars.
So after finishing the second one at work yesterday, I then couldn't wait to get to the next one. Which I promptly read all last night.
I like so much that she has characters that can be brash and arrogant, but are humbled through the course of the book, but not in a bad way? It's not the traditional formula of bad guy with terrible manners meets the girl who changes him completely. Both our main stars have so many parts of them that make them who they are, and it's just refreshing to see a complex story that deals with the reality of people and what makes people the way they are.
Also, may I say that I waited eagerly to get to the jumping balcony scene and it did not disappoint.
So after finishing the second one at work yesterday, I then couldn't wait to get to the next one. Which I promptly read all last night.
I like so much that she has characters that can be brash and arrogant, but are humbled through the course of the book, but not in a bad way? It's not the traditional formula of bad guy with terrible manners meets the girl who changes him completely. Both our main stars have so many parts of them that make them who they are, and it's just refreshing to see a complex story that deals with the reality of people and what makes people the way they are.
Also, may I say that I waited eagerly to get to the jumping balcony scene and it did not disappoint.
March 11, 2016
I love Laura Florand's books...all of them...but this one is my absolute favorite. Gabriel is perfect, so larger than life, vibrant, wonderful and hot! Laura Florand is brilliant at mixing romance and chocolate/ perfume/ food. I enjoyed sinking into the romance as much as I wanted to live in Gabe's kitchen. Love, love, love. I wish I hadn't read it so I could read it all over again for the first time.
February 25, 2018
2-2.5
The lowest rating I’ve given a Florand book! I think my biggest issue was how rushed it all felt. The other two had some more individual development and for this one, I feel like Jolie just couldn’t hold her own and it really disappointed me. Not only that, but her and Gabriel’s meeting was so quick and abrupt. I just wish there was more like there was in the previous two. I won’t be continuing this series.
The lowest rating I’ve given a Florand book! I think my biggest issue was how rushed it all felt. The other two had some more individual development and for this one, I feel like Jolie just couldn’t hold her own and it really disappointed me. Not only that, but her and Gabriel’s meeting was so quick and abrupt. I just wish there was more like there was in the previous two. I won’t be continuing this series.
June 8, 2013
Is someone had told me you could take "Beauty and the Beast" and rewrite it as a contemporary realistic romance involving pastry chefs I would have laughed. But I'll be darned if that isn't exactly what Laura Florand did. And you know what else? It's wonderful. I loved it, and this is my absolute favorite fairy tale. It is hard to impress me with stories that come from it.
August 14, 2015
I've tried twice to get through this book, but Gabriel's incessant comments that Jolie's asking for it and blaming her for his sexual aggression seriously rubs me the wrong way.
The rest of the books in this series are all kinds of wonderful and whimsical, but I absolutely can't stand the hero's misogyny disguised as romantic longing and "charm" in this one.
The rest of the books in this series are all kinds of wonderful and whimsical, but I absolutely can't stand the hero's misogyny disguised as romantic longing and "charm" in this one.
August 4, 2013
3.5/5 (C+)
In general, I did enjoy The Chocolate Rose. I love Ms Florand's writing style and The Chocolate Rose did not change that. In the past couple of years, cooking shows have become more popular and there seems to be this new awareness about chefs and cuisines... at least in North America. I myself have become a fan of Masterchef Australia and have learned more about international chefs. As such, I've been wanting to read more about chefs characters in romance books, but I found that few authors can pull it out and Ms Florand is one of them. When it comes to the intensity of the culinary world environment, nobody writes it like Ms Florand. The passion, work, dedication, sacrifice and competition are palpable. In Ms Florand's books, you're not simply reading it, you really can feel it how much hard work and how tough being a chef is, but the pride and joy it brings... and The Chocolate Rose is no exception. Also, when it comes to the romance, I feel that Ms Florand has really hit her stride at writing the sexual tension between the H/H. As a result, the romance is always very intense and it works for me :) So on the writing front, I'm happy as a clam LOL.
Where I had issues with The Chocolate Rose was mainly with the characters. As a whole, I actually quite liked Gabriel's character. I felt for him about not getting recognition after all that hard work and admired him for proving his worth to the world. I liked his expressiveness LOL. He definitively wasn't shy to express his opinions and he was also very honest :) Also, I thought his desire to have a girlfriend, to be in a relationship was funny. It was cute that he was jealous of Daniel for having found the woman of his life so young LOL. However at times, this desire of Gabriel to have a girlfriend seemed a bit too exaggerated, felt a bit too juvenile and is actually connected to my issue with Gabriel. So when Gabriel and Jolie first met, he wasn't aware that she was Pierre Manon's daughter. Instead, he thought she was his new employee and immediately put her to work. And then, after the lunch service, he fired her and right away, asked her out on a date. I know he fired her because she was not good enough to work in his kitchen, but the situation still made me quite uncomfortable. The scene was written in a way that it was supposed to be lighthearted and funny; however, it just bothered me. Had she been competent, would he still have fired her and asked her out? And then later, the whole bargain of dropping the lawsuit and her writing his cookbook so they could spend time together so he could convince her to go on a date with him. The whole thing just felt a bit too forced and didn't work for me. I also had some issues with Jolie. Unfortunately, I did not like her as much as I liked Gabriel mainly because of her personality. Oh, she wasn't a bad or anything. Actually, if you think about it, her character was quite realistic and believable. However, I just didn't connect with her. Jolie wasn't weak per se, but she was a bit too conciliatory, trying to please everyone and as a result, didn't seem to have a lot of self-confidence. And as much as I admired her for being there for her father, I really disliked the way she coddled him. Yes, he just recovered from a stroke, but her father is someone with very strong personality. What he needed to get out of his funk was tough love, not someone who would give in his every whim. I would have liked to see her stand up to him more, especially since at times, it was clear he was emotionally manipulating her. Another thing that bothered me as well was the mixed signals she kept sending to Gabriel. She was obviously attracted to him, but whenever Gabriel would ask her out or say/do something, she would get offended. I know she misunderstood his behavior a time or two, thinking he was treating her a bit too casually, but seriously, I didn't see where she got that impressions and as a result, I felt she was a tad too susceptible ^_^; Overall, it feels like Jolie didn't understand the two men in her life... Finally, my last issue with The Chocolate Rose was the timeline. I feel everything happened too quickly, that the timeline of the book was too short for Gabriel and Jolie to really get to know each other, especially with Gabriel who kept pushing for a relationship. I think the romance in The Chocolate Rose would have been better if Jolie had been a bit more self-assured and if the romance had more time to develop.
All in all, as I said, I did enjoy The Chocolate Rose, even if it was flawed :) In addition to everything I've written above, I also enjoyed the cameo appearance of Daniel and Léa Laurier, the H/H of Turning Up the Heat, although I can't help but wish they had a meatier role :P I also liked the change of setting, moving from Paris to Nice. Ms Florand didn't expand as much as she usually does on the setting, but already, you can see the difference as it seems cozier and more serene :) And I fully expect we will discover Nice and Provence more in the future books! Speaking of future books, if I'm not wrong, The Chocolate Rose is supposed to gap Ms Florand's Amour et Chocolat (which I named Paris Chocolatiers series) and La Vie en Rose series and I think it fulfill its role perfectly :) I hope we get to read Raphaël and Matt's books in the future! For now, I know that The Chocolate Touch is coming out in July and I can't wait! I read the excerpt that was at the end of The Chocolate Rose and already, I know we're in for another sweet and intense treat :) Ahhhh, so happy that Ms Florand is back writing romance books!
In general, I did enjoy The Chocolate Rose. I love Ms Florand's writing style and The Chocolate Rose did not change that. In the past couple of years, cooking shows have become more popular and there seems to be this new awareness about chefs and cuisines... at least in North America. I myself have become a fan of Masterchef Australia and have learned more about international chefs. As such, I've been wanting to read more about chefs characters in romance books, but I found that few authors can pull it out and Ms Florand is one of them. When it comes to the intensity of the culinary world environment, nobody writes it like Ms Florand. The passion, work, dedication, sacrifice and competition are palpable. In Ms Florand's books, you're not simply reading it, you really can feel it how much hard work and how tough being a chef is, but the pride and joy it brings... and The Chocolate Rose is no exception. Also, when it comes to the romance, I feel that Ms Florand has really hit her stride at writing the sexual tension between the H/H. As a result, the romance is always very intense and it works for me :) So on the writing front, I'm happy as a clam LOL.
Where I had issues with The Chocolate Rose was mainly with the characters. As a whole, I actually quite liked Gabriel's character. I felt for him about not getting recognition after all that hard work and admired him for proving his worth to the world. I liked his expressiveness LOL. He definitively wasn't shy to express his opinions and he was also very honest :) Also, I thought his desire to have a girlfriend, to be in a relationship was funny. It was cute that he was jealous of Daniel for having found the woman of his life so young LOL. However at times, this desire of Gabriel to have a girlfriend seemed a bit too exaggerated, felt a bit too juvenile and is actually connected to my issue with Gabriel. So when Gabriel and Jolie first met, he wasn't aware that she was Pierre Manon's daughter. Instead, he thought she was his new employee and immediately put her to work. And then, after the lunch service, he fired her and right away, asked her out on a date. I know he fired her because she was not good enough to work in his kitchen, but the situation still made me quite uncomfortable. The scene was written in a way that it was supposed to be lighthearted and funny; however, it just bothered me. Had she been competent, would he still have fired her and asked her out? And then later, the whole bargain of dropping the lawsuit and her writing his cookbook so they could spend time together so he could convince her to go on a date with him. The whole thing just felt a bit too forced and didn't work for me. I also had some issues with Jolie. Unfortunately, I did not like her as much as I liked Gabriel mainly because of her personality. Oh, she wasn't a bad or anything. Actually, if you think about it, her character was quite realistic and believable. However, I just didn't connect with her. Jolie wasn't weak per se, but she was a bit too conciliatory, trying to please everyone and as a result, didn't seem to have a lot of self-confidence. And as much as I admired her for being there for her father, I really disliked the way she coddled him. Yes, he just recovered from a stroke, but her father is someone with very strong personality. What he needed to get out of his funk was tough love, not someone who would give in his every whim. I would have liked to see her stand up to him more, especially since at times, it was clear he was emotionally manipulating her. Another thing that bothered me as well was the mixed signals she kept sending to Gabriel. She was obviously attracted to him, but whenever Gabriel would ask her out or say/do something, she would get offended. I know she misunderstood his behavior a time or two, thinking he was treating her a bit too casually, but seriously, I didn't see where she got that impressions and as a result, I felt she was a tad too susceptible ^_^; Overall, it feels like Jolie didn't understand the two men in her life... Finally, my last issue with The Chocolate Rose was the timeline. I feel everything happened too quickly, that the timeline of the book was too short for Gabriel and Jolie to really get to know each other, especially with Gabriel who kept pushing for a relationship. I think the romance in The Chocolate Rose would have been better if Jolie had been a bit more self-assured and if the romance had more time to develop.
All in all, as I said, I did enjoy The Chocolate Rose, even if it was flawed :) In addition to everything I've written above, I also enjoyed the cameo appearance of Daniel and Léa Laurier, the H/H of Turning Up the Heat, although I can't help but wish they had a meatier role :P I also liked the change of setting, moving from Paris to Nice. Ms Florand didn't expand as much as she usually does on the setting, but already, you can see the difference as it seems cozier and more serene :) And I fully expect we will discover Nice and Provence more in the future books! Speaking of future books, if I'm not wrong, The Chocolate Rose is supposed to gap Ms Florand's Amour et Chocolat (which I named Paris Chocolatiers series) and La Vie en Rose series and I think it fulfill its role perfectly :) I hope we get to read Raphaël and Matt's books in the future! For now, I know that The Chocolate Touch is coming out in July and I can't wait! I read the excerpt that was at the end of The Chocolate Rose and already, I know we're in for another sweet and intense treat :) Ahhhh, so happy that Ms Florand is back writing romance books!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 8, 2021
I adore Gabriel. He is... so precious.
May 13, 2013
Laura Florand does it again! This title brings two of her series together-- the "Amour et Chocolat" series (which so far has been mostly Paris-based) and her new "La Vie en Roses" series (which I think focuses on a family of rose-growers in the French countryside). The author decided to self-pub this one, so it might be a little harder to get ahold of, but it's definitely worth it.
As with all her Amour et Chocolat books, this follows a specific formula: master chef/chocolatier + woman somehow associated with the food industry = romance. Really, I don't know why someone hasn't hit on this combination before. Consider all of the passion, persistence, drive, and focus (as well as patience, creativity, and exquisite attention to detail) that a top chef requires to excel in his position. Now imagine him bringing all of those qualities to bear on a woman he desires. Add the ability (the *need*, really) too cook for her and feed her. Oh, and chocolate, of course-- decadent, exquisite, fanciful delights of chocolate from his own hands. (Seriously, I can't read this series without having plenty of good-quality chocolate to hand.) Really, the only wonder is how the heroines manage to hold out against them as long as they do without melting like cocoa butter. (The chemistry and sexual tension in this one nearly killed me, I swear.)
I loved the way this title worked the "Beauty and the Beast" theme into the story, from Gabriel, the leonine chef with bestial manners (if you don't think a chef can ROAR, clearly you've never watched one of Gordon Ramsay's cooking shows) to Jolie, the self-sacrificing beauty who offers herself as a target for his anger, to spare her beloved father. There's even a stolen rose-- the recipe for Gabriel's Chocolate Rose, stolen by Jolie's father and (at Jolie's unknowing insistence) featured on the cover of the elder chef's new cookbook.
I really liked Jolie, and I could empathize with her distrust of giving her heart to another work-absorbed, arrogant man after witnessing the wreck of her parents' marriage. But it was Gabriel who really made my heart break. Gabriel, who doesn't know HOW to hold himself back. Gabriel, whose very passion for the work he loves is what drives so many women away from him. Gabriel, who gives his heart only to have it tossed away like trash time after time. "Why... did women always act so fastidious about his heart? What was wrong with it?" (Oh, Gabriel. And to think, he has a brother who's still single. If only he weren't fictional...!)
The language is gorgeous, too. The descriptions (particularly the descriptions of food) are to die for, but the author also has a knack for making Gabriel really *sound* French, even when he's not cursing in it. (Really, her chefs DO need to learn more curse words than "putain.") Something about the rhythm of his speech, specific word choices that don't sound like a native English speaker's, and turns of phrase that sound like translated idiom really bring that Gallic flavor to her hero. (I don't speak French, so I'm guessing, but the author visits Paris regularly, and her husband is French, so she's certainly got the grounding for it.) If she ever gets an audiobook of this, she needs to finagle Gerard Depardieu into reading for her. (HA. But a girl can dream.)
I most eagerly await the next treat from Florand's literary kitchens.
As with all her Amour et Chocolat books, this follows a specific formula: master chef/chocolatier + woman somehow associated with the food industry = romance. Really, I don't know why someone hasn't hit on this combination before. Consider all of the passion, persistence, drive, and focus (as well as patience, creativity, and exquisite attention to detail) that a top chef requires to excel in his position. Now imagine him bringing all of those qualities to bear on a woman he desires. Add the ability (the *need*, really) too cook for her and feed her. Oh, and chocolate, of course-- decadent, exquisite, fanciful delights of chocolate from his own hands. (Seriously, I can't read this series without having plenty of good-quality chocolate to hand.) Really, the only wonder is how the heroines manage to hold out against them as long as they do without melting like cocoa butter. (The chemistry and sexual tension in this one nearly killed me, I swear.)
I loved the way this title worked the "Beauty and the Beast" theme into the story, from Gabriel, the leonine chef with bestial manners (if you don't think a chef can ROAR, clearly you've never watched one of Gordon Ramsay's cooking shows) to Jolie, the self-sacrificing beauty who offers herself as a target for his anger, to spare her beloved father. There's even a stolen rose-- the recipe for Gabriel's Chocolate Rose, stolen by Jolie's father and (at Jolie's unknowing insistence) featured on the cover of the elder chef's new cookbook.
I really liked Jolie, and I could empathize with her distrust of giving her heart to another work-absorbed, arrogant man after witnessing the wreck of her parents' marriage. But it was Gabriel who really made my heart break. Gabriel, who doesn't know HOW to hold himself back. Gabriel, whose very passion for the work he loves is what drives so many women away from him. Gabriel, who gives his heart only to have it tossed away like trash time after time. "Why... did women always act so fastidious about his heart? What was wrong with it?" (Oh, Gabriel. And to think, he has a brother who's still single. If only he weren't fictional...!)
The language is gorgeous, too. The descriptions (particularly the descriptions of food) are to die for, but the author also has a knack for making Gabriel really *sound* French, even when he's not cursing in it. (Really, her chefs DO need to learn more curse words than "putain.") Something about the rhythm of his speech, specific word choices that don't sound like a native English speaker's, and turns of phrase that sound like translated idiom really bring that Gallic flavor to her hero. (I don't speak French, so I'm guessing, but the author visits Paris regularly, and her husband is French, so she's certainly got the grounding for it.) If she ever gets an audiobook of this, she needs to finagle Gerard Depardieu into reading for her. (HA. But a girl can dream.)
I most eagerly await the next treat from Florand's literary kitchens.
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