I really enjoyed it. I have enjoyed Layla Reyne's romantic suspense books and I knew I would love this one. Miller is an award wining chef and we start the story with him closing his restaurant both because it’s not doing well and because he is sick, very sick. Clancy is getting ready to join his fathers plastic surgery practice and his parents decide that he needs a vacation so his mom answers an add for someone to join Miller and a trip to enjoy some great food. What Clancy doesn’t know is that Miller is reliving his favorite places one more time. I enjoyed all the descriptions of the food they were eating and would have loved to have been there so I could have eaten them. We come to find out during the course of the story, that Clancy is not really happy with joining his fathers practice. We also find out that Miller has decided not to fight as he doesn’t think that he could live with losing his sense of taste. Because if he didn’t have that, he could never continue on as a chef. I really enjoyed watching these two fall in love and Miller helping Clancy come to terms with what he really wanted to do with his life, and Clancy helping Miller fight for them to have a future together. The epilogue was perfect and after all the sad tears, came the happy ones

This book is very food focused and that’s not necessarily a bad thing, but at times it does overshadow the romance somewhat.

It also has a general air of melancholy for a long time as the reader knows what is going on with Miller while Clancy doesn’t. It meant for most of the book I was wanting to kick Miller up the backside and tell him to stop being so defeatist.

Now, that might seem a bit harsh, given that I truly could understand Miller’s fears of losing what he felt made him him – his sense of taste and his reason for being a chef – but I guess I’m a bit less sympathetic to characters who are willing to throw the towel in having watched my mother fight but still lose her life just three weeks after a liver cancer diagnosis. YMMV.

There’s also a lot of focus given to Miller’s ex-wife (never sexual, only ever his best friend) and while I absolutely adored Sloane, sometimes she took a role I’d have prefered to see Clancy move into – or rather move into a little bit quicker than he did.

But, the fact that there was a prominent female character who wasn’t an utter bitch and who also wasn’t just there to prop up the scenery was such a pleasant change.

I will say, although this takes place over a relatively short period of time, I absolutely 100% believed they could have fallen for each other that fast. They had an instant connection not only through the love of food and good eating, but each seemed to know instinctively when the other needed support.

It’s a departure from the action-adventure I’m used to from Layla and I think she handled the unusual narrative really well. I am a total foodie, so I loved the incredibly descriptive passages of text as Miller takes Clancy on his tour of Last Suppers before he finally reaches the point of realising there is something worth living for outside of being a chef.

The epilogue was wonderful but I would have loved to have seen a bit more of what led up to that on page and not just in passing. Still, full praise to Layla for writing this book and for creating something quite different.

I don't want to be unnecessarily harsh on this book, because this is definitely just a matter of taste. But boyyy did I dislike this.

I just wasn't able to suspend my disbelief enough to enjoy this, as it just made zero sense to me why anyone would want to go on a holiday with one (1) total stranger, and how that person could then just fall in love with them so deeply that they already know they want to spend the rest of their life with them. It's honestly just ridiculous.

There's also a pretty big age gap, and even though there's nothing wrong with that, I didn't exactly enjoy it, especially since it's constantly mentioned how young Clancey is and how much Miller is attracted to Clancey because he looks so young. It just weirded me out a little (a lot).

Additionally, I was fairly sure I would enjoy a book about food, because, you know, FOOD. But it turns out I might not actually like food that much? It just all seemed very pretentious to me, and I just did not care for the in-depth descriptions.

Then I also had to read an entire sex scene filled with the grossest food comparisons, which makes me actually never want to eat again. This is probably a me thing most of all, but YIKES.

Rep: gay MC, bi MC

CWs: cancer, hospitals, vomiting, mentions of parental abuse, sex scenes

You better have some food nearby, because there's no way you're gonna read this book and not wanna shove your face in a plate of something! Layla Reyne says she's a huge foodie and that this book is a love letter attesting to that...I can confirm that's 100% accurate! Admittedly, I'm not much of a seafood eater, but some of these meals sounded so damn delicious that I was all "gimme a net and a bucket, and point me to the sea!"

Miller and Clancy are at a crossroads in their lives. Clancy's in a tug of war between expectations and passion when it comes to his medical career, and Miller must decide between life or death. This food tour is almost a type of last hurrah for each man.

With each stop and each meal on this adventure, Miller and Clancy open up to each other. And slowly they bond over their love of food and family.

However, as I said in the beginning, this book is a love letter to food, and that unfortunately overshadowed the romance. As in, I didn't really feel much of it. There was more sizzle coming from Clancy's steak at Morton's Steakhouse than between him and Miller for the majority of the book. That spark, that bubbling attraction and sexual tension was missing for me, or at the very least, a watered down feeling compared to the passion that came through when the food was described.

I believe Clancy and Miller developed a deep bond and friendship, but a deep romantic love? I didn't fully buy it....until I got to the epilogue where I couldn't stop smiling and all the warmth on page that I felt was missing for most of the book came blasting at me.

Also, Miller's martyrdom began to grate on me. The fact that he had maybe months to live, yet no one in his family and almost none of his friends knew...what a waste of precious time and how selfish to potentially spring this on them at the last minute.

And as a small personal pet peeve: As someone who wears glasses, it bothered the crap out of me that Clancy wore ill-fitting glasses. He was constantly pushing them up, or Miller was pushing them up, or it was being described how they're hanging off his nose. Do you know how annoying that is?!?! There's no way that anyone would choose to wear their glasses that way. It was supposed to be this endearing quirk, but instead I wanted to take Clancy to Lenscrafters for a fitting.

Overall, this was a story that I enjoyed as a whole, but am left feeling disappointed when it comes to the romance. I'm a romance reader first and foremost, and that's what I expect to shine brightest in my books.

Although this book has a slow start, I kept with it, and I am glad that I did since the last 30% of the book is wonderful, emotional, sweet, and brings all the feels. I just think that it felt like it took so long to get to that last 30%, and while the start of the book is a foodie's dream, I needed more focus on the characters and the romance.

I appreciate all the attention to detail with the food, the meals, the restaurants and experiences that Clancy has while on his whirlwind food tour with Miller. You can tell that a lot of thought and research went into that (and it made me hungry!) However, I wish there had been a bit more between Miller and Clancy - I didn't really get that "sparks fly" feeling when I was reading about them navigating dinner together for the majority of the story.

Deals with some heavy things - cancer and the desire to live - but at the end of the day, this is a romance, and I think people will love the ending for Clancy and Miller!

I received a copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I wish I loved Dine with Me, by the talented Layla Reyne, but the truth is that even though I enjoyed it, it also frustrated me.

I'm pretty snobby about books that involve chefs or food, as I've been to multiple Michelin-starred restaurants and live right outside NYC (yeah, I know that makes me sound like a brat), and I can be pretty critical of chef-romances, but Layla Reyne got the chef stuff right. It's clear that the author loves and respects food, and her culinary tour made my mouth water. Some of the restaurants and experiences that she name-drops are bucket list places for me (I mean, the French Laundry!), and I respected the time and effort she took in getting those details right.

I was curious about the story because of the head and neck cancer angle, and some of my issues stem from there. I really wish that the author at least acknowledged Grant Achatz, the celebrity chef who almost lost his tongue to cancer, as this story seemed heavily influenced by his story. Aside from that, I felt like the cancer aspect was a bit tricky to work into the romance and the romance suffered.

My biggest issue with the story was the lack of romance. I really didn't feel it. The story felt like a beautiful culinary adventure with some very serious undertones, and I appreciated the story for that, but the love and lust fell flat for me. I think the story had a lot of merit and I wish I liked it even more than I did, but it left me just a little bit wanting.

*Copy provided in exchange for an honest review*

This was a different read for me because I do not usually read m/m romance. But since I enjoy romance and reads about food/wine, I thought I would give it a try. The food and travel did not disappoint. Dr. Clancy Rhodes, trying to find the courage to be the person he wants and needs to be. Miller Sykes, successful chef struggling to deal with his diagnosis that may have an impact on his culinary future. I did not feel the connection between Miller and Clancy. I thought that spark was missing. Maybe it was because the balance of talking about food overpowered the relationship between the two guys. I wanted to to know about them and have them share and get to know each other better.

I didn't like this a super large amount but I didn't dislike it in anyway either. A good book, damning it with faint praise I know. The story is one that I should have been all over. A chef going on one last hurrah of all his favorite menus before he dies because confronting losing his sense of taste was too much to handle, a little more melodramatic than I usually do but still great. That the guy that chef falls in love with is a cancer doctor who happens to have been given this once in a lifetime trip by his parents. Yeah that stretched my belief abilities a bit. I did appreciate that he didn't then take on the treatment of the chef because that would have just killed the book for me. I just don't think the length of the book was quite right for the heaviness of the topic. It lent to too much melodrama for me. I didn't need the weird interpersonal conflict that happened where they each accuse the other of running away from their problems. The chef is dying of cancer and grappling with choosing to die or potentially loosing his sense of taste was enough for me.

A Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words Review
Rating: 5 stars out of 5

Life never tasted so good.

Miller Sykes’s meteoric rise to award-winning chef is the stuff of culinary dreams, but it’s all crashing down around him. He’s been given a diagnosis that could cost him something even more precious than his life: his sense of taste. Rather than risk the very thing that defines him, Miller embarks on a last tour of his favorite meals while he still can.

But there’s a catch: he needs a financial backer to make it happen, and he doesn’t want anyone to know he’s sick.

Dr. Clancy Rhodes has two weeks to come to terms with putting aside oncology to work at his father’s thriving plastic surgery practice. When the opportunity to travel with a Michelin-starred chef presents itself, the foodie in him can’t believe it. It doesn’t hurt that Miller’s rugged good looks are exactly Clancy’s cup of joe.

As Clancy and Miller travel from coast to coast and indulge in everything from dive bars to the most decadent of culinary experiences, they’re suddenly sharing a lot more than delicious meals. Sparks fly as they bond over their love of flavors and the pressures of great expectations. But when Miller’s health takes a turn for the worse, Clancy must convince him he’s more—so much more—than just his taste buds. And that together, they can win a battle that once seemed hopeless.

I love stories that mix food with romance.  The two just naturally go together, a exploration of the sensual, the ability to explore new cultures through new  tastes and dishes, just the spices alone can be so heady.  Just like falling in love itself.  They are, as they say, a perfect blend.

When the chef or in this case, the author, gets it right.

And here in Dine With Me by Layla Reyne, the author gets it word for word, recipe by recipe, and scene by scene splendidly right.

I am not familiar enough with this author's stories to know if this is the exception or the rule, but I mean to find out.  From the layered characterizations that spoke to me to the  many restaurants and dishes served up throughout the novel that speaks of the author's love and appreciation of food and the chef's in the kitchens, everything about Dine With Me was a journey to delight in and remember.

The author can go to making your mouth water for truffles to having your heart wrench over the pain being felt by the characters,Miller Sykes especially.   Clancy and Mike, as well as sall the other people here are so well crafted they become alive, and you fall into their lives from the moment you meet them and begin their journey.

And oh what a trip that will be... no spoilers here...but trust that it's one you would wish to take yourself.  It sounds as though the author was intimately familiar with each and every place and for that Im envious and happy for her.  Those descriptions of the dishes and food are rich, you can almost smell the aromas, taste the umami, and let the savory and salt undertones  melt in your mouth.  OK, bring a drool cloth.

That ending?  It was everything I wanted and more.  It made my heart overflow.  Just what I need in my contemporary love stories and maybe even more.

So yes, run , don't walk and get Dine with Me by Layla Reyne.  I love this story and only wish I could have lingered a bit longer is only to savor in this couple's happiness and taste more of that incredible food by proxy.

Cover art by Carina Press does everything but make that table twinkle.  Pull out a chair for me.

If you’re thinking tearjerker I’ve got to tell you… you’re right.

Layla Reyne’s Dine With Me has to be one of the most heartbreaking premises for a story I can imagine. A man who is completely devoted to his life’s passion, finding out the odds are that he’ll never be able to do that work again - much less even survive with treatment - is an incredibly sad story.

Luckily Layla Reyne is a romance novelist so fans, stay the course! It is SO worth it.

In addition to a beautiful story of devoted friendships and a budding love affair, Dine With Me has the most gorgeous descriptions of dining experiences I’ve ever read. Foodies and romance lovers MUST read this book. It’s gorgeous!

Actual rating: 3.5

I was really excited for this book from the moment I heard about it. I love food romances and I love stories that make me cry, so long as I know the ending will be worth it.

Dine with Me is about Miller Sykes, a Michelin started chef who has recently been diagnosed with throat cancer and refuses treatment for fear of losing his sense of taste, and so decides to do a grand tour over two weeks of all his favorite restaurants. Enter Clancy Rhodes, a 30-year-old doctor who just finished his residency and a major foodie, his parents having applied to the trip as a vacation before he begins working at his father’s plastic surgery practice. Miller doesn’t want anyone knowing about his cancer, but because Clancy’s passion is for oncology, he ends up figuring out the purpose of the grand food tour.

I did enjoy reading this and like the writing style; this is my first book by Layla Reyne though I have her backlist, and reading this I think I’ll enjoy reading her other books. The food descriptions are wonderfully done and left me hungry at many points. But this book didn’t wow me like I’d hoped for. For me, it lacked the emotional gut-punch I was looking forward to. I don’t know if part of that is because the majority of the book takes place over a short time period or what, but I just wasn’t brought to tears like I anticipated from the premise.

The romance is still sweet and I adored the ending of this book, but it definitely read as more a love letter to food and eating rather than a story of fighting a terminal illness. This was an easy read in terms of writing style and I would recommend this as a foodie romance. Overall, made me super hungry but didn’t rip out my heart like I expected (and hoped).

I absolutely LOVE Layla Reyne's romantic suspense books so I thought I'd love this one as well. I liked it but I didn't love it. The two main reasons were the pacing was a bit slow and there was SO MUCH talk about food - yes I understand this book had a chef as an MC and they were going on a food journey so it was inevitable there would be a lot of food talk. However, for me it just bogged the book down even more. I'm FAR from a foodie and I don't like to cook so those aspects of the story didn't interest me.

However, Miller and Sloan had a very sweet slow burn romance. It's definitely a slow build and that fit considering Miller has decided to die. I wanted Miller to want to fight sooner than he did but I also understood a bit where he was coming from ultimately it's a very personal decision so I liked that the author went there. Miller's relationship with his ex-wife was interesting but a little bit too much of the plot for my tastes.

So overall, very nicely written but the pacing was just a bit too slow and the food descriptions to plentiful for me to give this more than 3 stars.

A love letter to the human soul via a love letter to those employed in the restaurant industry. This story is a foodies dream that focuses on more than fine dining but the dining that feeds relationships of everyone. While the instant love trope does exist at least on one side, it works and doesn't feel hokey.. Miller and Clancy are spending almost 24/7 together sharing meals that are bits of Miller's life story. The story itself is well written, well paced and includes secondary characters that are wonderful. Honestly, the description of the Pearl Jam concert describes my love of live music in a way I've never been able to communicate ever. Those description continue on with the food and it makes you hungry while feeling the family that Miller and Clancy both have and you just root for them both.

I received a free copy of this book through Netgalley and voluntarily reviewed it.

Once I saw Dine With me on Netgalley my interest was piqued, then I read the blurb and started doubting as it sounded like a tough read with the cancer topic and sad too. In the end my curiosity won out and the fact that Carina Press promises a HEA or HFN, so I knew it would have some sort of happy ending. Even though for a long time I couldn't see what or how that ending would come to pass.

I really enjoyed Dine With Me. It's well written and I liked how the story progressed. I loved the focus on food and dining and reading about all the dishes they eat, even though unlike both main main characters I am a picky eater and wouldn't eat half or more of the things they ate in this book. It was fun to travel to all these different places and restaurants and read about everything they see, do and eat.

I had expected this to be a bit of a sad and dark book. And while there were parts of that were, it also wasn't as depressing in tone as I would've liked. Having said that, the cancer was a constant shadow, a dark cloud. There were happy moments, but there always was that shadow, that hint of darkness and sadness. So on the one hand I was happy it wasn't as sad as I had hoped, at the same time I would've liked to see some more scenes without that shadow of the cancer as it also never was as happy and uplifting as I would've liked, except for the last chapter.

And at the same time, it almost felt like the book didn't go as deep as it could've gone with the cancer. You don't read as much about Miller's doubt as decision or tackle the question of if it's worth living without his taste and who is without that. You don't see as much about Clancy's struggle with what he wants to do and the expectations people have. Maybe I was just preparing for the worst, but I felt like it could've gone even deeper into all those topics. And actually I am happy it didn't go as deep as now the topics were addressed and the implications were there, but it also wasn't as dark as it could've been. It was a nice balance the book had.

The book has an awesome epilogue, I loved seeing the life they build and how everything turned out. It does skip over a whole lot though and I almost felt like I missed part by not having seen that part of the journey and on the other hand thought the skip was perfect as we still get the feel of what happened in those three years, but not all the details.

I liked both Clancy and Miller. They both have their dreams and hopes and both have suffered on the wight of expectations, going along with them even though it might not be what they wanted. And along the way they realize what it is they want. I liked how they both loved food. It was interesting to see how Clancy loved being a doctor and he sounds like the perfect type of doctor who really cares about his patients, although he see very little of him actually doctoring, there are a lot of little touches in his behavior. With Miller his love of food was everywhere, but also a sense of stubbornness and also loyalty to his friends that was everywhere. Seeing his through Clancy's eyes really gives a good image for the type of person he is. And while Miller might be down and sad at times, Clancy always was this ray of brightness, it was exactly what Miller needed.

I really liked the romance, it build at a good pace. There was an instant attraction, but it takes a while before either acts on it. I liked seeing them bond over food and how they slowly grow closer. The book is full of scenes where you see these two connect and only has two sex scenes later on in the book. It's low on the drama, which I liked. The romance does progress fast in actual time, but it never feels that way when reading it. These two were great together and I enjoyed reading about them.

It also has some great side characters that show up now and then, even though the focus stays on the tow main characters. Both main characters have incredible supportive and caring families and friends around them, which was great to see. I really liked seeing Miller's friendship with Sloane, they had a beautiful friendship and it was great to see how close they were and when you learn a piece of their past it all makes more sense.

To summarize: I really enjoyed reading this book and definitely plan to read more books by this author. It was well written and even with the heavy topic the book still feels pretty light most of the time. Although there is an ever persistent shadow over everything and I would've liked a few scenes without the shadow. Clancy and Miller are both great main characters and I feel like they really came to life. I enjoyed seeing their romance build slowly throughout this book. These two were great for each other. The epilogue was an awesome wrap up for this book. I also enjoyed the focus of food that this book had. There is a great cast of side characters too and I liked how supportive everyone was. All in all this was a great romantic read with a focus on food and it deals with a difficult topic.

This one was ok, there was a lot of potentials, but the pacing was off. There wasn't enough relationship action- I don't know, it was slow. The best part of the book was the travels and the food- not the romance.

You know that gif of the woman eating ice cream and crying? Yeah. That was me. Multiple times during DWM. This hits both the heart and, quite frankly, the stomach. The food descriptions are enough to make a reader (okay me) raid the fridge while reading.

This is not to say that DWM is not powerful in the feelings department as well. TW for a character with cancer. Clancy and Miller bond over food and travel at first, but their relationship deepens with each stop along the way.

This is a departure from romantic suspense for the author, but DWM had an angst and a rhythm that felt as much of a roller coaster as the author’s rom suspense.

Highly recommend but you need snacks and tissues for all your hunger and feels needs.

"Dine with me" est l'histoire du "reste" de la vie de Miller Sykes, un chef cuisinier. Miller a un cancer de la gorge à un stade avancé mais il refuse tout traitement qui pourrait, dans le meilleur des cas, lui enlever sa raison de vivre : le goût. Sa dernière volonté est de faire le tour de ses meilleurs endroits, de ses meilleurs plats et il va le faire avec Clancy Rhodes qui va avoir l'opportunité de voyager en présence d'un grand Chef.

Au fil des pages, on va ressentir vraiment la passion qui anime Miller. La cuisine est plus qu'un métier pour lui, c'est sa vocation, sa vie. La cuisine est donc un élément important dans ce livre, c'est une déclaration d'amour envers la gastronomie. Les plats confectionnés, des plus grands établissements ou bien une simple tarte familiale reflètent toute la vie de Miller, chacune de ses étapes...
Clancy aime la cuisine, il sait apprécier les bonnes choses et va être impressionné par Miller.
Il y a une vraie complicité entre les deux hommes. La romance arrive naturellement et tardivement, c'était adorable de les voir tous les deux. J'ai vraiment beaucoup aimé leurs discussions.

J'ai douté de la fin jusqu'au bout, même si l'éditeur nous promet une HEA... et je n'en parlerai pas, mais j'ai aimé la manière de traiter la maladie de Miller de l'auteur, notamment à la fin du roman, même si j'ai trouvé celle-ci un peu trop précipitée à mon goût.
(3,5/5)

Listen, I knew going into this that one of the MC's has cancer. But I also knew going into this that is a HFN/HEA (it does) so I always wasn't crazy worried. Still didn't make this all that much easier to read.

Even though Miller lives, and makes it through, it's still tough reading about everything before that happens. And this is truly a HFN because you never know when cancer might come back with someone in remission (it fucking sucks. Cancer can fuck right off.) But since it's a HFN and a romance and readers can do whatever they want with endings if they so choose, I can choose to believe that Miller is fine for the rest of their lives and they live HEA, mmmkay.

While Miller frustrated me in this quite at bit for awhile - <spoiler>he doesn't want to get treatment because he could lose his taste buds, and he's a chef and eating and cooking food is his passion, so....ergo....</spoiler> - it was as understandable as it was selfish. I mean...Miller was all well meaning and everything, but his primary concern was <spoiler>if he would be able to taste food and not, you know <i>live</i>.</spoiler> Gotta say, the dependent relationship in this book was Miller and food. Like dude, you can <spoiler>live without the taste if it means</spoiler> you get to live!

Anyway, aside from that frustration, I enjoyed this very much overall. It had a slow beginning that was a little hard to get into, but once I got past that hurdle it was fairly smooth sailing form there. Miller and Clancy (which, such a bad name lol, but the character was very much not) had really good chemistry and were so sweet together, especially at the end, they made me go "aww."

This was fairly low on steam with only one and a half sex scenes - we were in the middle of one, the first one, full on penetration and everything, before it faded to black for some unknown reason - but what we did get was pretty damn good, especially the love shining between these two.

This also had great secondary characters, and I felt the friendships between all of them, and their parents and everything.

I think this is definitely worth a read, definitely a departure from Reyne's usual action packed thrillers - which she is definitely best at, but these non-action ones have a certain charm to them as well that I like.

So if you feel like reading something angsty but that you know will end with a strong HFN, then definitely read this. Even though this ends happily and feels as fluffy as it is angsty, reading about cancer is never easy or fun, but Miller and Clancy make it so worth it.

Definitely recommend if you're a fan of Reyne, even if it is a bit of a departure from her usual action packed stories. Two thumbs up from me!

This was a pretty good read that I was unsure about when I started it. From the other books that I have read of Ms. Reyne's this one was different from the rest. I enjoyed Miller and Clancy's story as they were well written characters that had believable issues that a reader could relate to. The chemistry between the pair was palpable and the push pull between them throughout their story. Where the story revolved around Miller's food tour, at times I felt that I could taste some of the dishes that were described. The story moved along well and did not drag at all. I was hooked on it once I started reading it. The ending seemed like it ended quickly but it worked well for their story. I enjoyed this entire story and would recommend it to others

So...I mostly really enjoyed this. DO NOT READ ON AN EMPTY STOMACH. I really liked the romance and the "dates" of the journey. But what I didn't like was the judgement and pressure on Miller and how he decided to handle HIS diagnosis. I did not like it one bit. It's his life to decide how to handle it. No one else's. Period. I recognize that this is probably an unpopular opinion but I'm okay with that. Also didn't care for his ex-wife or the random worship she seemed to inspire from strangers. But that's just an aside not a real flaw. Again, the romance with Miller and Clancy was well done. I *do* enjoy that they each inspired the other one to go for what they want and to live to the fullest (it's a not a contradiction, I'm okay with Miller changing his mind because it's his choice). Overall, it's really a sweet romance and I enjoyed that more than the other part irked me.