Review: Recipe for Temptation by Gina Gordon (Madewood Brothers #4)
Note: This ARC was provided by Entangled Publishing in exchange for an honest review.
Penn Foster has worked for the Madewood Brothers for three years and she's done a heck of a job in that time. While she gets along with Neil Harrison, Finn O'Reilly, and Jack Vaughn, she and Cole Murphy seem to push each other's buttons, making their working relationship somewhat volatile at times. But Penn is also the one person that can often get Cole to see reason when his emotions get the better of him. They both represent temptations neither has ventured indulging in, but when Cole shows up in Hawaii while Penn is on vacation with her highly competitive family, they finally give in to their needs. Will one week in paradise lead to happily ever after or will Cole's past and Penn's professional ambitions spell heartbreak?
Recipe for Temptation is the fourth and final book in the Gina Gordon-penned contemporary romance series Madewood Brothers. The flirtation and sexual tension between Cole Murphy and Penn Foster has been going on since the first book and I think that it's only fitting that the series ends with their love story. Penn has always been a fierce, loyal, and highly opinionated supporting character in the series, so to see a different side of her when she's surrounded by her family was a surprise for me (as well as Cole). While an annual family vacation may give the appearance of a close-knit and united unit, Penn's family has its own dysfunctions, something that opens Cole's eyes to the true meaning of family and what his own represents.
After learning Jack's, Neil's, and Finn's respective back stories, Cole's own was just as sad and left him emotionally scarred, as was the case of his brothers. Penn's own family situation isn't exactly what you would consider ideal and I'd hate to be stuck in a family that had members that constantly had to up one another in order to attain the approval of their father, but add to that having to participate in an annual multi-event competition to win bragging rights and what I suspect is a tacky trophy and you've got at least one person feeling like a loser. However, when Cole and Penn are together, they bring the best out of each other and help them have the courage to move beyond their past and how other people see either of them.
I liked Cole and Penn's story, both having made missteps on their way to happily ever after, but I did feel that Cole gave up far more than she did for their relationship to work. Still, I liked how they seemed to work well together, professionally and personally, and I guess that certain sacrifices have to be made and the people involved don't really keep score (even though I do). I had no problem with what happened between them lasting a week since they've known each other for three years and have developed a certain amount of trust and respect that serves as the foundation of their relationship. Madewood Brothers has been a fun series and Recipe for Temptation was a good book to now end it on. This story gets four stars. ♥
Read my reviews for the Madewood Brothers series:
Recipe for Satisfaction (book one) - four stars - Goodreads
Recipe for Attraction (book two) - four stars - Goodreads
Recipe for Seduction (book three) - four stars - Bookaholics Not-So-Anonymous
Release Date: 11 August 2015
Date Read: 06 August 2015
Learn more about Gina Gordon here.
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