Red Hot Reunion (Pocket) by Bella Andre is up first. Emma Cartwright is dying to know what it will be like to see Jason Roberts again at their class reunion, whether there will still be an attraction between them. Whether he's still angry with what she did ten years ago. Their meeting is as hot as she might have hoped, but doesn't resolve anything for either of them. But what she doesn't know is Jason is plotting revenge. And for me, that was the key element that made me dislike this one. There were other issues--Emma is almost too perfect, despite their past, and rather wishy-washy--but Jason's plan keeps me from liking him from the beginning, and his turnaround at the end doesn't make my feelings change as his apparently do. To believe in him then is impossible.
What She Craves (Aphrodisia) by Lacy Danes is next with three stories in this collection. Hannah Rosworth is still quite innocent, despite her marriage. Now she gets a chance to find out what should really be happening in the bedchamber when she reunites with her first love, Kenneth Walker, in 'Lust's Vow'. In 'Checkmate', Cora Durand is ready to stop being the one in charge again, to let a man command her. Just not the one who hurt her many years ago. But Rupert Roland isn't exactly the sort of man she'd hoped to find; he's too like her former lover, isn't he? And in 'Night of the Taking', Jessica is carried off from the country village and claimed by a cat-man, who says she's his mate. If you're looking for hot sex, you'll find plenty of it here. You'll even find some romance, which is pretty uncommon on the 'erotic romance' lines around these days. This one was okay for me, but not a keeper. It's earned three of Cupid's five arrows.
Sugar Daddy (St. Martin's Press) by Lisa Kleypas is her first contemporary novel. Liberty Jones loses her father when she's very young, and she and her mother are a tight little family unit for a long time. Then things change, and suddenly Liberty is not only on her own, but has a younger sister to care for. Along the way, she loved a wonderful boy, and lost him as well, though she never quite lost hope he'd return. Aside from the first person narrative of the story which put me off for quite a while in the beginning, I liked this one, but I wouldn't call it a romance, because there's not nearly enough of that in this book. I'd call this one women's fiction with a strong romantic element, as the currently-popular phrase goes these days. If you're a die-hard romance fan, too, you'll be disappointed with that aspect of the story; aside from her young love, you have to wait until nearly the end of the book for any more of it. Rather, this one is Liberty's story, who she is, how she makes her way in life, and the cast of characters around her, supporting her along the way. If you don't mind the lack of romance, you may like this one just fine.
Until next time, happy reading!
