Guest Review: When I'm With You by Beth Kery

I first want to say that this was my first time reading a serial novel. Since I had the entire thing and was able to move right through it like it was an entire novel the experience wasn’t too bad; however, I feel that if I had to go out and purchase each individual part and wait for each to be released I would probably pass up this kind of book altogether. With that being said I wasn’t very impressed with this novel.

It had a very strong resemblance to 50 Shades of Grey but with French characters instead. Lucien Lenault is a self-made billionaire from his many hotels and restaurants. He has a very large inheritance but refuses to touch it as his father is in prison for embezzlement. In the beginning Lucien is walking into his restaurant on a day the place is closed when he hears voices coming from the bar area and immediately he thinks he is being robbed. Upon going further into his restaurant he sees the new chef he hired with a woman and they are drinking. Outraged with his employee he makes himself known and demands to know what is going on when he notices the woman is none other than Elise Martin, a girl from his past.

Elise just moved to Chicago from Paris trying to get away from the heiress lifestyle she led and become a serious chef. To finish her culinary education she has to serve under an accomplished chef sort of like an apprenticeship. Her school set her up with Mario the new chef of Fusion which she later finds out is owned by Lucien, the man she had a crush on her entire life.

Lucien quickly fires Mario and Elise forces her way into Lucien’s life and steps up as the interim chef until he can find a replacement. Once he finds a new chef Elise stays on to complete her training and enters into a sexual arrangement with Lucien. I didn’t find myself connecting to either Elise or Lucien and that in turn didn’t help me connect to the book. Some books can suck you in and make you feel like you are a part of the story as opposed to reading it and I just didn’t feel that.

The ending felt pretty abrupt to me and didn’t really answer the major question of Lucien’s mother. I feel like that part of the story didn’t get closure and felt like it was pointless to even include that if it was going to be seen to the end. Overall I would recommend this to someone who is looking for something similar to 50 Shades of Grey but with not as in-depth of a story and more of a fast moving novel.

**ARC provided by publisher**