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The Drace Brothers #3
Closer To You: Lee
The ultimate bachelor, Lee Drace never thought there was a woman out there who could stop in his tracks. He only wanted three things out of money, power, and more money. He wasn't going to become attached to any woman who wouldn't be staying around that long. Besides, he had never met a woman strong enough to stand up to him until... Cherise Roberts hated that she was attracted to her mouth-watering brother in-law, Lee Drace. He had been nothing but a pain in her side since his brother Zack married her sister, Traci. She tried to stay out of his way as much as possible because she couldn't let him find out her secret. She wanted him like CRAZY!! Will these two be able to overcome each others' tough exteriors to find love?
161 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 2008
9 people are currently reading
297 people want to read
About the author
Marie Rochelle
120 books185 followers"The Queen of Tease" offers interracial romance stories that will leave you eager for more and turning the pages faster than you can read them. If you enjoy that, Marie's writing is perfect for you. Marie was inspired to become a writer after reading her first "racy" book as a teenager. She started writing years ago to pursue her dream and create characters who embody the idea of "Happily Ever After" for her fans.
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
March 26, 2009
The most romantic and similar to my life. Cherise is a strong, independent woman who is shocked that a person such as Lee Drace is interested in her. She is a great person with great things in mind but her attraction to Lee makes her rethink her thoughts in her life. Their pairing is romantic and endearing.
October 28, 2014
Barb Manning's Review:
Finger Lickin' Good is a sweet, little tale by Shawn Bailey about a budding romance between head chef Auguste Carrier and Mikeal Badeaux, a new employee in the New Orleans restaurant, Chez Auguste. The tale is full of authentic language and kitchen detail. I loved the details on dish preparations and the interpersonal relationships of staff working in the well-known local eatery. Shawn Bailey provides some tantalizing glimpses into the lives of the main characters beyond the walls of Chez Auguste. The beginning overtures of the relationship building between Mikeal and Auguste are sweet, as well. Read More...
Finger Lickin' Good is a sweet, little tale by Shawn Bailey about a budding romance between head chef Auguste Carrier and Mikeal Badeaux, a new employee in the New Orleans restaurant, Chez Auguste. The tale is full of authentic language and kitchen detail. I loved the details on dish preparations and the interpersonal relationships of staff working in the well-known local eatery. Shawn Bailey provides some tantalizing glimpses into the lives of the main characters beyond the walls of Chez Auguste. The beginning overtures of the relationship building between Mikeal and Auguste are sweet, as well. Read More...
April 13, 2013
This was a very short story but I loved this book from all of the other Marie Rochelle books I've read. I would have given it five stars if it was 200 pages longer instead of just 90 pages. The story was short, sweet and to the point but Lee and Cherise had so many issues that could've better detailed in a longer story.
March 29, 2014
This was Lee and Cherise's story. I loved that she was a curvy woman and that did not matter to Lee. she did give him a run for his money and kept finding excuses why their relationship would not work and Lee just kept on chasing her.
This was enjoyable story and a great read. I would highly recommend this story!
This was enjoyable story and a great read. I would highly recommend this story!
June 25, 2011
Great with a lot of passion. I loved Lee's character.
October 30, 2014
Finger Lickin' Good is a sweet little tale by Shawn Bailey about a budding romance between head chef Auguste Carrier and Mikeal Badeaux, a new employee in New Orleans restaurant, Chez Auguste. The tale is full of authentic language and kitchen detail. I loved the details on dish preparations and the interpersonal relationships of staff working in the well-known local eatery. Bailey provides some tantalizing glimpses into the lives of the main characters beyond the walls of Chez Auguste. The beginning overtures of the relationship building between Mikeal and Auguste are sweet, as well.
Mikeal comes from Lafitte, Louisiana. He grew up fishing from his back porch for dinner. He's been to the city with his older brothers in the past, so he's not blindsided by the sights and sounds of New Orleans. He is, however, not sure what to make of Auguste and his bigger than life personality. Auguste, on the other hand, is a mature chef from France and owns his own restaurant. Auguste finds Mikael's cooking skills impressive, as well as his calming effect upon him. However, Mikeal's physical likeness to Auguste's deceased lover has him pausing to reconsider things.
There are some interesting secondary characters rounding out Finger Lickin' Good, including Mikeal's best friend, Marquis Smith, a gorgeous, young mixed race African-American fry chef and Joel Legree, another new employee at Chez Auguste. There are some interesting interchanges between new and established staff at the restaurant. This adds a nice touch to the story.
Finger Lickin' Good is a nice story and perhaps that is part of the problem. There's no real conflict or drama. There are suggestions of possible conflict, such as the one between Mikael and Pascal Simon, the young maitre d' who's been yearning after Auguste for some time. Or, Auguste's jealously over Mikael's relationships with other men in light of his former lover, Basile's indiscretions. But this is just a sweet interlude with a couple of semi-spicy love scenes thrown in for good measure.
I would have liked for Finger Lickin' Good to come with a little more Cajun spice plot wise. It's a nice afternoon distraction if you're looking for something harmless to invest your time in, but the drama is mild. I'm giving this one 3 stars for the quality of the writing. I liked the main characters Mikael and Auguste. They share some warm moments and their relationship appears to be off to a nice start, but the plot of Finger Lickin' Good lacks luster.
More reviews from Barb Manning are available at Creative Ink Romance Reviews
Mikeal comes from Lafitte, Louisiana. He grew up fishing from his back porch for dinner. He's been to the city with his older brothers in the past, so he's not blindsided by the sights and sounds of New Orleans. He is, however, not sure what to make of Auguste and his bigger than life personality. Auguste, on the other hand, is a mature chef from France and owns his own restaurant. Auguste finds Mikael's cooking skills impressive, as well as his calming effect upon him. However, Mikeal's physical likeness to Auguste's deceased lover has him pausing to reconsider things.
There are some interesting secondary characters rounding out Finger Lickin' Good, including Mikeal's best friend, Marquis Smith, a gorgeous, young mixed race African-American fry chef and Joel Legree, another new employee at Chez Auguste. There are some interesting interchanges between new and established staff at the restaurant. This adds a nice touch to the story.
Finger Lickin' Good is a nice story and perhaps that is part of the problem. There's no real conflict or drama. There are suggestions of possible conflict, such as the one between Mikael and Pascal Simon, the young maitre d' who's been yearning after Auguste for some time. Or, Auguste's jealously over Mikael's relationships with other men in light of his former lover, Basile's indiscretions. But this is just a sweet interlude with a couple of semi-spicy love scenes thrown in for good measure.
I would have liked for Finger Lickin' Good to come with a little more Cajun spice plot wise. It's a nice afternoon distraction if you're looking for something harmless to invest your time in, but the drama is mild. I'm giving this one 3 stars for the quality of the writing. I liked the main characters Mikael and Auguste. They share some warm moments and their relationship appears to be off to a nice start, but the plot of Finger Lickin' Good lacks luster.
More reviews from Barb Manning are available at Creative Ink Romance Reviews
September 17, 2014
This was an interesting synopsis and a sexy cover that I thought had the potential for a great story.
Mikael gets a job in New Orleans working at Chez Auguste. It's his dream job working for an extremely sexy, hulk of a man, Auguste.
Auguste spends all his time working on his restaurant since he lost his partner years prior. He vowed never to love again after the pain that his last love caused him.
I absolutely loved that there were intricate details about cooking and the process of working in a kitchen that you don't get in a lot of books, even ones centered around a kitchen/restaurant. I liked that the speech was authentic and how it would be used in New Orleans (such as some French words mixed in with English)
I didn't care for the lack of drama. There didn't really seem any end point that we were striving for. It just was another day or week in their lives. While there was some hinted at with the ex lover and the matre d' that didn't like Mikael, but it was all so sweetly resolved and no confrontations or intense situations. Along with the medical issue that came into play late in the book with Mikael.
I also had issues with the terminology used in the love scenes. For example, 'humping' is a word I personally haven't used in years as to me it is a children's word. 'You make me go pop' is also another phrase that sticks out in my mind as not quite working for a love scene.
Overall, I think there needed to either drop the love scenes or make them more sensual and sexual as that's what the characters are supposed to be feeling and experiencing. Speaking of love, I couldn't believe that the characters were so against being together, you know -- the whole boss/staff member situation, yet they were expressing love for each other within a week. The time was easy to lose as it wasn't always clear if it had been two hours or two days that had passed, which made things a bit more confusing for me.
I was given this in return for an honest review by Inked Rainbow Reads.
~Renee
Mikael gets a job in New Orleans working at Chez Auguste. It's his dream job working for an extremely sexy, hulk of a man, Auguste.
Auguste spends all his time working on his restaurant since he lost his partner years prior. He vowed never to love again after the pain that his last love caused him.
I absolutely loved that there were intricate details about cooking and the process of working in a kitchen that you don't get in a lot of books, even ones centered around a kitchen/restaurant. I liked that the speech was authentic and how it would be used in New Orleans (such as some French words mixed in with English)
I didn't care for the lack of drama. There didn't really seem any end point that we were striving for. It just was another day or week in their lives. While there was some hinted at with the ex lover and the matre d' that didn't like Mikael, but it was all so sweetly resolved and no confrontations or intense situations. Along with the medical issue that came into play late in the book with Mikael.
I also had issues with the terminology used in the love scenes. For example, 'humping' is a word I personally haven't used in years as to me it is a children's word. 'You make me go pop' is also another phrase that sticks out in my mind as not quite working for a love scene.
Overall, I think there needed to either drop the love scenes or make them more sensual and sexual as that's what the characters are supposed to be feeling and experiencing. Speaking of love, I couldn't believe that the characters were so against being together, you know -- the whole boss/staff member situation, yet they were expressing love for each other within a week. The time was easy to lose as it wasn't always clear if it had been two hours or two days that had passed, which made things a bit more confusing for me.
I was given this in return for an honest review by Inked Rainbow Reads.
~Renee
September 16, 2014
I like Chef/ kitchen/ cooking talent related books and this one didn't disappoint. Although from what I see on TV and hear from my DinL (who is a chef) things aren't usually as friendly in most kitchens as this one. I'm not sure if this is a standalone or a series but I would read more.
May 18, 2011
I love this book. There's something about the main characters that I really liked. This is my favorite in the entire Drace brothers series.
December 30, 2011
Ahhh lee lee lee. That's it lol good book on to the last book in the series Brad!!
June 12, 2014
I am sorry, but Cherise got on my last nerve. I understand that she had bad relationship, but she shouldn't have let it control her. Lee was a great guy and she was punishing him because of some other man did her wrong. I love Zack and Richard stories. Now I have to read Brad story, i hope it will not get on my nerves
August 16, 2015
This was another easy to read romance featuring the Drace brothers. This story focused on Lee Drace and his obsession with his sister-in-law Cherise. Of course in the end they get together after a lot of back and forth of annoying each other, bad dialogue and misunderstandings. Still, it was a fun read and I look forward to reading the other 2 books in the series.
January 9, 2012
its okay
September 3, 2012
I just wish there was a little more depth to the story.
December 28, 2021
my fav. out of all of them.she got on my nerves a lil bit tho.
Read
May 16, 2013I relly love the older of the Drace brother,Lee!
October 25, 2014
This book was going great until the end. I loved the sexual tension between the hero and heroine and enjoyed the hero's pursuit of the heroine but then
December 31, 2015
Lee and Cherise are always butting heads, but their arguments hide a steaming attraction between them. While Lee is open with his feelings, Cherise keeps her heart close, but nothing will stop Lee from getting Cherise, the woman of his dreams. Or maybe not, becuase Lee makes a big mistake and it could end up causing him to lose Cherise forever.
October 19, 2014
I like the storyline but the dialogue is too corny
August 29, 2016
3.25 stars
August 27, 2017
Shawn Bailey's books are like comfort food, I like the family and friends thing she always has going, I usually feel like its more than one story!!
June 7, 2022
Hubungan yang terjalin di antara mereka sangat cepat terjadinya dan kurang chemistry.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews