A very quick read, often bittersweet and dark. I'm a sucker for emotionally stunted bastard heroes seeking redemption so it worked for me. I also really enjoyed the intertwined YA fantasy aspect of this story. As an avid cake baker/decorator, I totally dug all the sugar talk. I want that brownie recipe.

If you like dark, brooding, tortured souls and the damaged women who want to love them whole again...this is worth a read.

This was my first look at Inez Kelley's work...I'll definitely check her out again.
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Sweet in the most literal sense, Kelley takes her romance into the kitchen as Murphy and Liv fall in love. Both characters are artists in their own right, and both have baggage. Neither Murhpy nor Liv spoke particularly to me, though I was certainly happy when they got their HEA. SWEET AS SIN was a well-written escape of a book, though I don't think I'll be back for a re-read. ( )

SWEET AS SIN just didn't turn my crank. It's a well-written book and it's full of emotion, but there's always a fussy individual element to whether or not a romance really works for you, and this one wasn't for me.

So...here's why not.

(1) I picked up this book right after listening to a podcast where Dan Savage gave a really eloquent rant about why chocolate/frosting/syrup sex toys are - a direct quote here, to the best of my memory - "sex negativity repackaged as sex positivity" - and I happen to agree with him, so all of the chocolate/frosting sex play in SWEET AS SIN put me in a very unsexy headspace. I kept thinking, "You know, that Dan Savage is right, we find enough excuses to eat chocolate, sex is great without added calories...." So. Yeah. Bad timing there.

(2) The hero, John Murphy, is presented as this dangerous bad boy player character, but he's a young adult author who spends all of his time making cute cartoon drawings and writing about furry monsters. Yes, he is haunted by some pretty serious inner demons, but he's found ways to exorcise them in ways that don't strike me as particularly dangerous or bad-boy-ish. No, he's never fallen in love before, but he develops feelings for Livvy quickly and accepts them without much protest. There are some bumps along the road but they're normal, everyday bumps, not "how will this bad boy player ever come around" bumps.

I wish I'd started the book knowing that John Murphy is more of a feisty beta male than a macho alpha. I had the wrong idea of what would happen, and that diminished my enjoyment. We like the kind of heroes that we like; John Murphy is an appealing, authentic character - he's jut not quite manly enough for my tastes.

(3) The story of John's YA book is threaded through SWEET AS SIN. I read a LOT of YA and when I'd read these excerpts from Jondi the blue monster's adventures, my first thought would be, "This is not nearly exciting enough to make John Murphy into the bestselling author he is presented as," and my second thought - especially as the romance between John and Livvy is filtered through the YA novel - was generally, "All these longing looks belong in Twilight, not a book about muppets".

SWEET IS SIN delivers on what it promises to be: a steamy, character-driven romance between a pastry chef and an author, both of whom have skeletons in their closets. If that's what you're looking for, don't let my reaction dissuade you from picking it up. If, on the other hand, you find frosting unsexy and don't like beta males, SWEET AS SIN is probably not for you.
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It is an emotional rollercoaster ride through the lives of John Murphy and and his neighbor Livvy. We watch their relationship grow into an intimate affair. Livvy’s influence over an emotionally scared John as he faces his own monsters, brings him full circle through his life. Ms. Kelley deftly takes us through his pain and her despair as their relationship grows. We aren’t left to wallow in a pit, though. When we believe all is lost, she pulls us out of the dark to a place where light and joy have a firm grasp. Ms. Kelley lifts us up with John in the hope and conviction found in a very special person. Livvy is the light that gives John the courage to face his past demons and become the man she knows him to be.

Awesome story. Touching and romantic and I highly recommend it.

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I only got 35 pages in but in that time there was a lot of telling not showing and I didn't see any chemistry between the characters - they actually seemed kind of mean and I didn't know why, beyond the physical attraction, they were interested in each other. I think it was meant to be snappy sizzling banter but to me it came off as just sniping and aggressive. Maybe I will go back to it one of these days and will feel more kindly disposed to finishing but right now, I'm just not interested. This book has received other great reviews (that's why I picked it up) so I am an outlier as far as my response is concerned. And, hey, maybe it gets better. I'm not ruling out another try at some point. ( )