Reviewed by Carissa
TITLE: Whitewater
SERIES: Under the Southern Cross Anthology
AUTHOR: Meredith Shayne
PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press
LENGTH: 117 pages
BLURB:
Baker Luke Henderson loves his job, and owning a bakery at Coogee Beach makes it even better. When he opens the shop before dawn, he hears the waves. When he walks along the beach after sunrise, he admires the surfers—one in particular: Cameron Brown. A chef and café owner, Cameron secretly watches Luke right back. When Luke proposes a business deal, Cameron seizes the chance to get close. But Cameron’s ideal man is physically perfect, and Luke’s awkward limp could be the flaw that fractures their romance.
Part of the Under the Southern Cross anthology.
REVIEW:
For once I can honestly say that I am not craving cheesecake because I’ve got to write a review of a foody book. Granted, that is mostly because I am currently eating cheesecake, but I figure you got to take your wins where you can get them. And this win tastes like caramel and apples, so alls the better (well, at least if you ignore the fact that I am writing this review at 7am. Cheesecake has no time limits, people. No time limits…).
But even if the lure of heavenly cheesecake is enough to divert my attention for a bit, I have to say that this book was chock full of sweet and savory treats to drool over. And some of them are even sold in the bakery. ;p
I liked Luke. And not just because he fills this book with so many delectable sweets. He is not what some people would call physically normal, but he doesn’t let that stop him from going after his dreams. He has a full life, with friends and a job that he loves, and even if he might someday wish for someone special to share it with he does not let the lack of said person really derail his life. Then he meets Cameron.
Well, then he talks to Cameron, since he’s been not to subtly watching (from a safe distance) the dude surf for ages. Too bad for everyone that Cameron is a bit of a douche. Not a major douche, but douchiness does appear. Though I can’t come down too hard on the man–even if his casual and careless dismissal of Luke was a bit harsh–because I think there is certainly a part in all of us, whether we wish to acknowledge it or not, that is a little bit vain and shallow. I think sometimes we want our MCs to be perfect little men who think and talk the correct way, and that just isn’t real life. Cameron is not perfect, and he certianly fucks up, but he changes and tries to be better. I liked that about him.
I did have a problem though with Luke at the end. I guess it just started to grate on me how Luke was always going on about how Cameron couldn’t possibly want him because he was less than the ‘ideal man.’ I get that Luke has issues (and those issues have volumes) but his lack of self-worth started to get annoying. Especially when it started to sound like the only thing good about Cameron, the only thing Luke saw when he looked at Cameron, was how hot he was. I think I can more easily forgive Cameron’s douchery than I can Luke’s constant and persistent disregard for Cameron as a person and not just a hot body. Mostly because Cameron made an effort to change.
Still, it was a very good story. There is not a lot of sex here, but nice combination of flirting and angst make it an enjoyable 100+ pages. And yes, you don’t want to read this one hungry (or within walking distance of a bakery) unless you want to find yourself knuckles deep in hot, sticky, buns (cinnamon buns, that is).
RATING: 
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