Reviewer: Lori Graham
Title: Table for Two
Author: Karen Sandler
Publisher: Hard Shell Word Factory
ISBN: 0-7599-0618-1
Release Date: February 2005
Genre/Sub-genre: Contemporary Romance
Year/Setting: Current
Overall rating: 3.8
Sexual content rating: Sensual
Language (profanity) content rating: None
Karen's Website:
home.pacbell.net/sandler0/index.html
Rachael Reeves is a seamstress who is trying to stay ahead of the game. She can design and create some beautiful clothing but she keeps getting interrupted by the antics of her two stepsisters. The latest one is Beulah and Bonnie have seen an ad stating that Hanford House of Pancakes is looking for a new spokeswoman and they just have to have pancake costumes so they can go audition. In spite of their promise they will never ask her for another thing, Rachael knows she can’t pull together what they are asking for by that afternoon but as the loving sister she is, she does come up with something. Not only does she come up with something they can audition in, but she goes along to the audition for support. Or did she?? The article had also mentioned that Jack Hanford, the son of Henry Hanford, who made the chain famous, would be there and he was something dreams could be created around. And Lord knows her dreams needed some help.
Jack Hanford is there but not particularly thrilled about it. He agrees with his father about the need for something new and dramatic for the new restaurants being opened but as he looks out at a sea of pancakes and various other breakfast food clothed women, he is really struggling to figure out how this will help. To humor his father though, they begin.
Just as Rachael had noticed Jack, he had noticed her sitting in the back of the room, which made it difficult for him to keep his mind on the groups of ten coming up to audition. With his father’s eyes roaming at all of the beautiful women and getting very tired of looking at the strange costumes and feeling as if he was in the loony bin, Jack finally declares he has chosen a winner. No one is more surprised than Rachael when he walks to the back and picks her. And so her whirlwind life change begins. Little did Jack know that his began as well.
Karen creates a fun love story with Table for Two. I had no problem envisioning many women parading around a room dressed like pancakes with large dollops of butter on them or maybe a sausage or… I found myself chuckling at the thought of it. Karen is quite descriptive.
I found my heart going out to Rachael. She is trying so hard to keep their life together at home and Beulah and Bonnie don’t quite seem to get that. They are so focused on their life they have no idea how they impact Rachael. Now, they don’t do it in a mean fashion but just without thinking. In many ways this story is reminiscent of Cinderella without the evil step mother.
My only problem with Table for Two is I couldn’t quite grasp the jump from Rachael living her life in quietness and believing she is the ugly duckling to her climbing aboard the Hanford express to a new life. I understand this was a publicity gimmick and there is more to the gimmick I don’t want to give away but I just struggled a bit with a woman of today just heading off with people she didn’t even know especially as more of the gimmick is revealed.
This Cinderella didn’t need a fairy godmother – she had Jack’s lecherous yet sweet father to help her out! Cute story.
Lori
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