The Theory of Second Best (Cake #2)

I really enjoyed this book; funny and entertaining, it was great!

Kyle is the younger brother of Jake McKallister, a rock-star (see Cake – Book 1) he works for Jake, without feeling that he’s more than a hanger on who draws a salary because his brother trusts him. When the opportunity arises for hit to compete in a “Survivor Type reality show” he decides to take the plunge and joins the cast. Written off as a light weight by other cast members, he starts to realize that he has more to offer than he thought.

Kenzie Williams comes on the show with the intention of winning! She’s a small town girl raised by her wiowed father and has been the responsible child, helping raise her 3 siblings. She needs the money to help her family and give herself an opportunity to leave the small town she lives in and move to the city.

When Kyle and Kenzie meet they become friends and of course they form an alliance with other team members. This was a really fun read, the personalities of the other contestants in the show are diverse and often comical. There’s a lot to read and enjoy and the love story is a definite plus.

Loved this one too. Based on my deep and abiding love of the first book, Cake, I preordered this even knowing it would have been a free read for me on Kindle Unlimited. I would generally never intentionally pay extra for something but I knew this was a book I’d want to own and I wasn’t disappointed.

Kyle, is the overshadowed brother and tour companion of the wildly popular singer Jake Macallister. He wasn’t featured too much in the first book as he was off competing on a Survivor-like reality TV show. This is the story of that experience. I’ve watched a few seasons of Survivor myself and enjoyed the setting of the story. There are the typical players; the coach, the model, the nerd, the gay guy, the crazy older lady. But Kenzie is the sheltered, small town girl that he plays the game with. The story is a nice balance of game details without the mechanics of the reality show taking over completely. It was the setting. In the background. And I appreciated the focus being on the relationships between the players, especially Kyle and Kenzie. We do get some Jake and Casey in the beginning and in the end. I especially liked Kyle’s POV of Cake’s beginning at the wedding.

Is this book as good as Cake? Not sure. Close but probably not quite. Off by a smidge. It didn’t have the emotional impact that came with Jake’s early horrifying trauma. Kyle went through a bit of an an emotional rebirth but it couldn’t be like Jake. If it had been, I’d be questioning the author’s need for all her H’s to have overwhelmingly horrible back stories! So the book was great. Lived up to my expectations and easily a happy 5 star read for me.

After reading Cake, the first book in the Cake series, I knew I wanted to read all the books in this series. I just loved Cake so much and couldnt put it down. So as soon as I was able to start, I got myself the eBook of The Theory of Second Best and started reading right away.

The Theory of Second Best is the story of Kyle McKallister, it follows the same timeframe as Cake but is a standalone novel. Kyle is the brother of Cakes main character Jake. Jake is a famous rock star who had something horrible happen to him when he was a kid. What everyone seems to forget is that Kyle witnessed his brother being kidnapped. And ever since his brother returned, Kyle shadows him wherever he goes. Kyle definitely has a comfortable life, but now he is in his twenties and its time to do something for himself. And when the opportunity to join a popular reality show arises, he doesnt hesitate long and signs up. During this reality show Kyle is left on island with a few other people. One of them is Kenzie, a small town girl who really wants to win the show and make life better for her and her siblings.

To be completely honest, I didnt really like Kyle in the beginning of this book. He just seemed like this lazy, arrogant guy who hooks up with a different girl every night. Definitely the type of guy I really dont like at all. So I was a bit worried I wouldnt enjoy this book as much. But I figured there must be something about this guy we hadnt seen before, so I kept going. And Im so glad I did. After the first few chapters I began to like Kyle more and more, and he even made me laugh out loud a few times. Yes, he was kind of lazy and arrogant.. but he grew up and became this person I definitely liked.

Kenzies character was one I liked from the start. Yes, she seems to be this perfect innocent girl.. but she is definitely not a little girl. Kenzie had to grow up fast when her mom died years ago and she takes care of her dad and siblings. I loved how tough she was, and how determined she was to win the reality show even though she had to do things out of her comfort zone.

The romance between Kyle and Kenzie, was a slow burning one.. and it was just perfect. I loved how their romance developed. It was kind of original and not something you read a lot. And I just loved it. I also really enjoyed reading little bits about Jake and Cassie again. Although its definitely not necessary to read the first book before reading this one, I enjoyed knowing Jakes story.

The Theory of Second Best was definitely another great read I enjoyed immensely. And I cant wait read the other books about the other McKallister siblings.

WOW! I dont know how to describe this amazing book. A sweet and funny love story, a heartbreaking story of a brothers guilt, a personal struggle of violence and a family saga are all in this one book. I liked Kyle in Cake, but love him more now as we learn how what happened to Jake impacted Kyle with serious survivor’s guilt and formed a complex relationship with Jake. The book was hilarious with the reality competition show and its characters and had a sweet love story with Kyle and Kenzie. Kyle seems like the fun loving easy going younger brother of the mega-rock star brother, but oh the heartache and guilt hidden behind his jokes. The ability to see parts of events from a different viewpoint is so rare and such a gift from the author. I read the book when it was first published and I thought I had left a review, but I hadn’t and realized it as I was doing a quick reread before Book 3 in the series was released. I admit I have read and listened to Cake and The Theory of Second Best several times and I enjoy them more each time.

I really enjoyed the book, the second in the series. The start and finish were exceptional. I did struggle with the main plot. That aside the series has pulled me in and the writer is managing some serious issues with sensitivity and compassion.
I would definitely recommend this book, but ensure that you read the first book.
Cannot wait for the next book

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