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Batteries Not Included –
Linda Lael
Miller
When
Gayle
Hayes returns to her hometown in Montana
to help her mom sell the family bar, she sets aside her
battery-operated
boyfriend for the time being. Years ago she fell in love with Tristan
McCullough, who eventually broke her heart. But now back home and
seeing him
again for the first time in years, she realizes he still sets her pulse
racing
and drives her wild. Do they have a second chance at love?
Ms. Miller
pens an emotional story with characters that have more than just sexual
attraction to build a relationship on. I love a great reconciliation
romance
that touches my heart, and Ms. Miller prides that very well. Batteries Not Included is a sweet
romance that will put a smile on one’s face.
Sara Smiles – Alison Kent
Sara
Wade
had her reasons for turning down her boyfriend, Jax Stacey’s marriage
proposals. But when she realizes that she’s made a mistake and wants to
take
the next step with Jax, he has doubts. Not about marrying her, he still
wants
that, but that she’s changed her mind for the wrong reasons, for fear
of losing
him. Can Sara show Jax that she wants forever with him, before it’s too
late?
Sizzle,
heat and emotion is paced into this short story by Alison Kent. Jax and
Sara
are friends, lovers and one another’s confidants, the perfect
ingredients for
marriage. While a reader can understand Sara’s hesitation to marry Jax,
I was
frustrated with Sara…at first. Sara’s quest to prove to Jax that she
wants
forever with him is fun, a great read once she makes up her mind, and
does
leave one smiling when the last word of Sara
Smiles is read.
Seducing Tabby – Lucy
Monroe
Tabby
Paxton could never compete with her sister Helene’s beauty and feminine
wiles.
Every man in Port Diamond wanted Helene. When Englishman, Calder
Maxwell comes
to town, every woman wants him. Tabby knows he’d never notice her,
especially
when he meets Helene. So why is it then that Calder is asking Helene
about
Tabby? Will Tabby realize that the new man in town wants her, and only
her?
Endearing
is a great way to describe Lucy Monroe’s short story, Seducing
Tabby. My favourite character of course was Tabby. She is
down to earth, sweet and through everything, she never shows any
jealousy over
her sister’s popularity, as some women might. Ms. Monroe pens a sweet
story
that is heated and awakens Tabby’s sensuality as we watch her blossom
under
Calder’s tutelage. This is a wonderful story with wonderful characters.
Captivated – Jill Shalvis
P.I. Ella
Scott loves her job. Forever curious about everything, she enjoys the
thrill of
figuring things out….to bad her soon to be ex husband, James, doesn’t
share her
enthusiasm for her job. James, a cop,
understands the dangers of a job, but hates the risks that Ella takes,
which
causes discontentment in their marriage. When James finds Ella
handcuffed to a
towel bar in Baja, could it be the right time to work out their
differences and
stay together?
Captivated is a fun romp that is
hot and sexy.
This is a great story by author, Jill Shalvis, with characters who
really want
to stay together, but aren’t sure how to bend a bit and find a way to
make it
happen. I found James’ worry over Ella’s job however, a bit of a double
standard. James being a cop faces danger as well, which Ella has to
live with,
yet he couldn’t deal with her job? I found this very obnoxious and
disappointed
of him. It isn’t an easy journey for Ella and James, but the reader
watches
them grow as they try to find compromise and make their marriage work.
A fun
story with lots of sizzle.
Sister Switch – Susanna
Carr
Identical
twins, Jessica and Tracy Parks should know better than to try and pull
a switch
and fool people about their real identities right? One would think so,
but Tracy
is desperate and
needs Jessica’s help. To seal a deal for business, she must meet her
clients on
the eve of her wedding, Tracy
convinces Jessica to stand in for her at the rehearsal. Reluctantly
Jessica
agrees, confident that nothing will go wrong. But when Tracy doesn’t
return in time for the wedding
and tries to sneak into the honeymoon suite, she’s caught in the act…by
the only
man she’ll ever truly love. Will Tracy
end things with her fiancé, whom she doesn’t even love, and
fight for a second
chance with the man she does?
Sister Switch was a fun story to read.
Nick was a
sweltering type of hero who makes a woman melt. While this is a work of
fiction, I did find it to be a bit of a crazy and disappointing story
where the
heroine uses others to get what she wants. In the end she learns her
lesson –
but too little to late. It was rather fun to watch Tracy stay on her toes throughout
this story
I will admit. It’s one of those stories that you have
to finish just to see how it all plays out, even if the
heroine doesn’t live up to what you would like.
Spencer For…Ever – Morgan
Leigh
Heiress,
Arden
Prescott, wants to turn her family’s summer home into a bed and
breakfast. She
returns to Martha’s Vineyard, older
and wiser,
so she believes, and hopes to make great changes for the future. Seeing
Kip
Spencer again for the first time in a decade, she realizes that she
wants him
back in her life and sets out to prove to him that this time, she’s
there to
stay.
Another
reconciliation story that proves second chances are possible. How Arden could ever
have
walked away from Kip before…shame on her!!
Kip heats up the pages with his intensity and the
feelings he battles
over Arden. At times Arden seemed like the spoiled rich
girl we
would perceive an Heiress to be, but she is a character that a reader
enjoys
getting to know. In the end, I was rooting for Arden to get her Spencer
For…Ever. This is a sizzling, endearing story that is a
great ending to this collection.
Beach Blanket Bad Boys heats up the summer in a
huge way. Six
talented authors together in one book will please many vicarious
readers. Grab
blanket, ice water, a copy of Beach
Blanket Bad Boys and head to the beach! But remember to put the
sunscreen on first…a reader will be so wrapped up in this anthology,
they might
just forget to put it on later!
Reviewed by Tracey West
for The Road
to Romance
June 11, 2005
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