“I’ve never met a problem a proper cupcake couldn’t fix.” ― Sarah Ockler
Title: Cupcakes
Author: Sean Michael
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Pages/Word Count: 188
Rating: 4.5 Stars
Blurb: Allen Jameson had it all—the perfect house, the perfect partner, the perfect life—until his partner, Gary, died suddenly, leaving him alone in the real world, where life isn’t so pretty and people make mistakes. Now Allen is the owner of Sweet ‘n’ Sassy Cupcake Shop, a cute boutique downtown, where he invents delicious flavors like strawberry and French meringue. Between working long hours and making special orders, Allen barely has time to think.
Then a hunky contractor walks into his shop looking for a treat. Allen and Byron Bannigan are total opposites, but they’re perfect together—salty and sweet like Allen’s signature peanut butter and chocolate ganache cupcakes. But as Allen struggles to juggle his business and his boyfriend, he learns he can only handle so much. He may have to choose between the cupcakes in his store and the cupcake in his bed.
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Review: What happens when a big burly contractor walks into a cupcake boutique? Well, first the cupcake maker falls under the contractor’s spell, and then the contractor falls right back.
Allen Jameson has fallen into the same trap a lot of young people in May/December romances can fall into. Allen was loved very deeply, but he was also coddled. He fell into the role of househusband and he loved it. He supported his partner from the sidelines. Whether it was decorating their home, taking care of Gary’s clothing, or cooking for dinner, Allen reveled in taking care of Gary. When Gary died suddenly, Allen realized that he was in no way prepared to survive in the world without Gary’s guiding hand.
Allen has always loved to cook, but his favorite thing to make is original cupcake flavors. Eventually, he decides to open a small cupcake boutique. He is wallowing in happiness while creating new cupcake flavors, and nurturing a small but loyal clientele. Little did he know the day he created some pink and blue cupcakes for a very hot man to give to his assistant would be the day he truly started living again.
Byron “Bit” Bannigan is stressing because his personal assistant and right hand woman is leaving to have a baby, and he needs something amazing to serve at her going away party. When he wanders into Sweet ‘n’ Sassy Cupcake Shop to order some treats, Byron is instantly smitten with Allen. When he picks up the cupcakes, he goes out on a limb and asks Allen out. Allen surprises them both by saying yes.
Dinner turns into dessert and the two men find themselves spending every spare moment with one another. The only problem they find is there isn’t much of that spare time to spend together. Allen’s dream of a small quaint cupcake boutique is growing faster than he can keep up with. Byron tries to be there for him and ends up feeding him and putting him to bed more often than not. They fall in love with one another quickly, but Allen has to come to terms with loving again after losing Gary, and he has to adjust to a more…passionate love life than he is used to.
Everything seems to be going better until Allen makes a bad business decision, and all of his dreams may be going up in smoke. He and Byron have to make some adjustments to their lives and decide if they are in this for the long haul or admit that it was just a rebound relationship.
Sean Michael is such a versatile author you never quite know what you are going to get. There are the books in the Hammer series that will push you past what you thought your limits were, and then there are the contemporaries that are so heartwarming they will bring a tear to your eye. This book was more of a heartwarming love story with plenty of hot sex thrown in to keep you on your toes.
It was amazing to watch Allen’s personality start to blossom when he was allowed to stand on his own two feet. Allen turned into a strong man who relied on his partner for support instead of just following his lead. It took a while, but Byron finally got through to Allen and proved that he would be there for him no matter what.
I love Sean Michael’s books, and I would highly recommend this newest title.
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