The Secret Ingredient, by Nancy Naigle

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Isn't this a delicious book cover?

I watched The Secret Ingredient  a couple days after it premiered this month on The Hallmark Channel. Then I heard about a book club that would be reading the book, which was published by Hallmark. Say whaaaaaat??? A club that combines two of my favorite things - books and Hallmark movies?? Sign me up! I enjoyed the movie and I had a feeling the book would be even better (as it often goes).

Unfortunately, the book club this month meets on a day when I cannot attend. Also unfortunate is that I was unable to obtain the book before Valentine's Day. Since the book (and movie) takes place around Valentine's Day, I wanted to read it that week even though I knew I would not be able to attend the book club. So I decided to listen to the audiobook.

So far on this blog, all of my reviews have been about cozy mysteries in both books and movies. I am expanding on this and including other genres that still feel cozy. This is my first review on my blog that ventures into a different realm - the romance genre. 

This book was almost exactly what I hoped it would be. It was a light and fluffy romance, much like the Hannah Swensen Mysteries, but without the murder. The book gave us the background of the two main characters, which I appreciated. As expected, it also provided more details than the movie did. These weren't frivolous details. They really enhanced my experience. 

What I didn't like about this audiobook had nothing to do with the story, which was as perfect as a light and fluffy romance can get. What I didn't like were some of the character voices. My biggest dislike with audiobooks in general is when female narrators voice male characters and vice versa. It almost always feels off with me and that didn't change with this audiobook. I guess that's why I've always preferred non-fiction audiobooks over fiction ones and why I prefer to read print books instead of listening to audiobooks. I think if I had read the book instead of listening to the audiobook I might have given it a perfect rating.

If you're a fan of audiobooks and light and fluffy Hallmark-ish romances, then I recommend The Secret Ingredient, by Nancy Naigle. And if you enjoy such clean romances, but in print format, then I definitely recommend reading the book. Although the book is, in my opinion, better, I do also recommend the movie. While the end is predictable, as usual with Hallmark movies, the journey to get there is different than most of their movies.

Have you seen The Secret Ingredient on The Hallmark Channel or read the book? If you have, I'd love to know what you thought of them. Let's chat about it in the comments below.