Some say Valentine’s Day is for lovers, while others prefer to think of it as February Fool’s Day. The question is, which one do you believe, and which one rules your heart?The Sweeter Side of Life bakery in Hallbrook is in financial trouble and Amanda is determined to save the business her mother started twenty years ago. While honoring February Fool’s Day, Amanda’s name for the lovey-dovey … name for the lovey-dovey holiday, she learns about the Anything Chocolate contest and is determined to win the cash prize. There’s only two drawbacks, one, it’s a statewide contest and the competition will be fierce, and two, she’s not a big fan of chocolate.
Kevin is trying to adjust to his new job as the Turlington High School chemistry teacher and to small-town living, a task made more difficult by his twin ten-year-old daughters who aren’t happy with the move or the divorce. When the twins demand they go to the Heart-to-Heart festival for a chance to hang with their new friends, he relents knowing it was important. But a fellow teacher turns the night into a matchmaking attempt and Kevin finds himself signing up for the Secret Chef fundraiser dinner to avoid Amanda, the attractive, but off-limits woman his new friend deems perfect for him.
Which worked wonders, at least until his winning dessert bid revealed Amanda as the secret chef and the woman who would come to his home and cook the six-course meal he’d won. So much for avoiding her. When the twins take objection, their shenanigans cause nothing but trouble at home and school. What they didn’t count on though, was their actions forcing him to spend more time with Amanda, putting his custody of the twins in jeopardy.
Twin trouble turns into twin blessings as the girls get to know Amanda and her chocolate lab, Cupcake. Kevin’s in trouble with this much female persuasion working against him, but is he willing to risk custody of the girls over love?
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A bakery owner that hates Valentine’s Day and a high school chemistry teacher who in exchange of custody of his twin daughters has promised his ex he would not date are not a match made in heaven. I loved the characters, the humor and the love shown in this book. Hallbrook residents came out to show support for Amanda, will it be enough to save her bakery? Will Kevin risk the sole custody of his daughters for Amanda? I loved finding out the answer to these questions.
This book is the fourth story in the collection of Holidays in Hallbrook. All of the stories center around the town of Hallbrook so all the characters appear throughout the collection.
This story centers around Valentine’s Day which is called “February’s Fool’s Day” by the main character, Amanda. She has a past of unhappy Valentine’s Day experiences, plus this particular year she finds that her bakery is in financial trouble. That has been her world and her livelihood.
She hears of a chocolate baking contest with a large monetary award, so she enters in hopes that will save her bakery.
Kevin, recently divorced, and his twin daughters are new in town. He is focused on his girls as the agreement with his ex-wife. However, an attraction between Kevin and Amanda begins and they both fight against it. The twins add to the friction as they try to sabotage everything Amanda sets about to do.
This is an easy read – a fun story!
The characters were really well done and the story was a fun read
I love that this story talks about the good parts of small towns––like the townspeople coming together to offer help––along with showing a bit of the not-so-good part in the speed and breadth in which gossip travels.
The narrators were the best. I could so easily visualize each character. Amanda doesn’t care for chocolate and I can’t even imagine because I love chocolate!!! She and Kevin have both sworn off dating and love but their attraction is unstoppable. Or is it? His twins are a handful but I came to really like them as the story went on. Loved how the town came together to help her with Kevin in the lead. I highly recommend listening to this book but definitely read if you can’t.
Amanda doesn’t believe in love. Her father left them when she was a kid, and her fiancé cheated on her in Valentine’s Day. Kevin is focused in raising his twin daughter and can’t have a relationship if he wants to keep them. When Amanda and Kevin meet in Valentine’s ball in Hallbrock, they are sure they are going to be friends, because they can’t have anything else. But can they fight love? A sweet love story.
I really enjoyed reading Love & Chocolate. The characters – Amanda, Kevin, Macy, Lacy, Grandpa and Cupcake – really resonated with me. I could not put the book down as a sweated through the twins pranks, Amanda’s struggle to save her bakery and her fight against falling in love, and Kevin’s ridiculous deal with his ex. This sweet, clean romance has plenty of swoony moments, some laugh out loud moments and is an altogether great escape!
Amanda inherited her mom’s bakery and the debt. The business is good but she needs thousands to pay off the bank. Kevin moved to town with his twin daughters and he is a teacher. His girls are ten and quite the characters. They want their parents back together. Amanda and Kevin meet at a local event where he secretly bids on her treats that wins him a chef baked meal cooked by her. She cooks for the twins and him only to have the girls ruin the main course, but really made the dessert stand out in some way. After repeatedly making the same recipe with different results, Amanda figures out the girls did something to the cake. She needs the secret ingredient to win a recipe contest to save the bakery. The girls are making things very difficult for Kevin and her. Through a series of events, the two adults go on a date, Kevin has to deal with his ex and her demands, and Amanda is trying to help care for her grandpa. Will she be able to save the bakery? Will her and Kevin have a relationship? This book has a HEA~ I received this as an ARC and am leaving a voluntary review.
This book has all the reasons I love a small town setting: a quirky bunch of residents who are all up in each other’s business, a sense of tradition fostered by families that have been there for generations, and a community that pulls together for each other. I loved these characters. Amanda is so fiercely independent. Kevin’s got the loving father role down pat. And Lacy and Macy may be twins, but they’re each very much their own people. I was left scratching my head a couple of times at how easily Amanda and Kevin could back away from something that seemed so powerful. I also thought the reason Kevin was trying to stay single was awfully silly, if for no other reason than it doesn’t have a single legal leg to stand on and is completely unenforceable. On the other side of that coin, I adore the line: February Fool’s Day. And for me, this was just like reading a Hallmark movie, especially the absolutely adorable proposal scene.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher.
Love and Chocolate by Elsie Davis is the fourth delightful tale in Holidays in Hallbrook series. I just love this entertaining series of books and look forward to returning to Hallbrook in each one. Each book in the series can be read on its own. This story contained great characters who live in a charming town. Amanda owns The Sweeter Side of Life Bakery and she is having financial troubles. Kevin is the new chemistry teacher at Turlington High School, and he has custody of his twin girls who take an instant dislike to Amanda. Kevin’s twin daughters and their pranks will have you giggling. There were also some amusing scenes that will have you chuckling out loud (I love a book that makes me laugh). I thought the characters and the situations were realistic. We see the ups and downs of a modern relationship. Love & Chocolate is a clean, wholesome book which I like (no foul language or intimate situations). I loved how the townspeople come together to help when someone is in need. Love & Chocolate is an engaging story with a broke baker, twin terrors, dinner drama, a playful puppy, a close-knit community, and a divorce document dilemma.
This was a wonderful story. I enjoyed the story very much. Amanda Tillman owned a bakery and was on the verge of loosing it. The Sweeter Side of Life has delious sweets. It was coming upon Valentine’s Day and Amanda had given up on men. Her ex boyfriend, Greg Miller, broke up with her on Valentine’s Day. She went to help at a Valentine party. At the party she met up with Jennifer,her best friend. There she met Kevin Thompson, a chemistry teacher at the high school. He didn’t want to get involved with anyone either. He has twin ten years daughter’s. This book has fun, clean and excitement. I received a ARC copy of this book and I highly recommend it.