Romance Book Reviews
Page Two of TwoOn a Wicked Dawn by Stephanie Laurens
Avon, May, 2002Paperback, 421 pages
ISBN: 0060002050
Subgenre: Historical
Ordering information:
Amazon.com
Lucien Ashford has finally righted his family's finances,
after years of near-penury caused by his profligate
father. When he returns to his London townhome
after a night of celebration, he finds his old friend
Amelia Cynster on his doorstep. Amelia is quite wealthy
and has always been in love with Lucien. She has
found out about his family's difficult circumstances,
and sees her chance. She offers to marry him, and to
bail him out financially. She also agrees to a marriage
of convenience -- no love is necessary. Lucien decides to take her up
on her offer, realizing that he's always cared for Amelia.
But he doesn't tell her that he doesn't need her money.
Instead, he determines that she will fall in love with him.
They agree to publicly court for four weeks to avoid a
scandal, and then to wed. Because the couple is working
at cross purposes, their courtship is quite funny.
Lucien and Amelia both strive to get the other to admit that he/she
is really in love, and not just interested in a marriage
of convenience, and they both decide to use seduction
as a way to force the issue. Which of these two hardheaded
people will crack first under the pressure? And what kind of
fireworks will ensue when the mutual deceptions are
revealed?
On a Wicked Dawn is wicked good fun. Amelia, twin of Amanda whose story was detailed in On a Wild Night, is supposed to be the logical one in the family and her determination to snag the man she loves under cover of society's rules provides for some very entertaining reading. Lucien is just as strong-willed, and he also has an appealing sense of humor. With steamy love scenes and quick-witted dialogue, this is another welcome entry in the popular Cynster series.
Pretend I'm Not Here by Chris Gavaler
HarperCollins, July, 2002Paperback, 320 pages
ISBN: 0060002530
Subgenre: Romantic Suspense
Ordering information:
Amazon.com
Ashley Farell is a thirty-something New Yorker
with a job that most people would envy. She spends
many weekends on the island of St. Thomas and works
in the glamorous television industry. But Ashley sees
it somewhat differently. She works for a less-than-sophisticated show entitled
Who Wants to Be a Blind Date, and her island weekends
are spent chaperoning hormonally-charged couples while
she orders dinner for one. On her latest assignment,
Ashley must escort show winners Melissa and Randy
on their weekend getaway to a plush island resort owned by
the production company. At the airport, Ashely meets a
handsome stranger, who also turns out to be staying
at the resort. When the notorious estranged wife of a wealthy
Mafioso turns up at the resort, things get very strange indeed.
First, Ashley finds a dead body on the beach,
then she is followed by the local police and the FBI…and
the mysterious stranger seems to think she's some kind
of expert assassin. Then Ashley is arrested for murder.
Could her stranger be the real assassin? And is he gunning
for her? And how will Ashley enforce the celibacy rules
of the show upon Randy and Melissa if she's sitting in a jail
cell?
Pretend I'm Not Here is the debut novel of Chris Gavaler, a major new talent in the comedic romantic suspense genre. The book is written in first person, allowing the reader to hear all of Ashley's irreverent, somewhat neurotic and always hilarious thought processes. Gavaler has a concise, clear and witty writing style which is part urban sophisticate, and all modern, single woman. The author has a way with dialogue and pacing; this is the kind of book that you will immediately become involved with -- and woe betide anyone who tries to distract you as you follow Ashley's adventures in detection, chaperoning, and the pursuit of the perfect man.
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