Betsy Endicott’s society wedding of the year to Richard W.D. Stribling, IV is only three days away and Henri, the caterer Lauren has booked to provide the sumptuous wedding feast, has suddenly passed away. Now Lauren is forced to scour the phone listings to locate a caterer who is not attending Henri’s funeral, which just happens to fall on the same day as the wedding. In desperation, she tries the only company left in the phone book, the Born To Be Wild catering service, crossing her fingers that this company will be up to the standards of Palm Beach society.

When caterer Max Wilde shows up on a Harley, wearing black leather, a goatee, earrings and a tattoo, Lauren’s certain the wedding will be a disaster. This is obviously a man experienced in providing fried chicken or barbecue, not the poached quail eggs and medallions of grilled salmon she had so carefully planned. But Lauren has no other option, so Max Wilde is hired.

Of course there’s much more to Max than simply rugged good looks. Although he’s an exceptional caterer more than capable of handling the Palm Beach crowd, he’s always lived on the other side of the tracks. A one-time foster child who is now a foster father to two children himself, he has little interest in the snooty society scene. But he senses Lauren’s desperation and he’s also inexplicably attracted to her, so he reluctantly agrees to whip up the frivolous goodies for the high society wedding.

There’s no complicated plot in Born To Be Wild, it’s a simple story of two very different people, from two completely different worlds, who try to make a relationship work. To me, these are the best kind of romances, because the focus is entirely on the characters. And these are two endearing, fully realized characters.

Max is caring, thoughtful, but just a bit uncertain that a man with this family history might be the right choice for a woman with Lauren’s background. When Max interacts with Lauren’s snooty friends, he’s at his best. You know for certain that Max is precisely what Lauren needs in her life.

Lauren is the character that experiences the most growth throughout the story. The author does a fine job making her a sympathetic character from the start. It’s only as Lauren spends more time with Max and his friends, that she, and the reader, realize that perhaps she’s been a bit of a snob herself.

Born To Be Wild does what a really good romance should do...unite two people that bring out the best in one another.

Born To Be Wild is the sequel to Wife For A Day. It’s not necessary to read the first book, I haven’t and never for a moment felt lost or confused when characters from the previous book make an appearance.

If you’re a reader that enjoys light contemporary romance sprinkled with humor, I think you’ll enjoy spending time with Lauren and Max. I know I did.

--Karen Lynch