Tag Archives: one night stand

having faith

Category Romance Review: Having Faith by Barbara Delinsky

Having Faith, Barabra Delinsky, Harlequin, 1990, cover artist TBD

Harlequin Temptation #297

VERY MILD SPOILERS 😉

2 1/2 stars

Rating: 2.5 out of 5.

I don’t know the qualifications for getting the Harlequin Temptation Award of Excellence, but I wasn’t impressed with Barbara Delinsky’s Having Faith. I think the award was merely a way for editors to play favorites with authors without having to pay them more. That’s just me being cynical.

The Plot

Faith and Sawyer are divorce lawyers on opposite sides of the same nasty case. (Oh my, freaking divorce lawyers in a romance novel!) They’ve been good friends for many years. Both went through rough divorces, and they have a very amicable platonic relationship. For over 15 years, they’ve been friends with no sexual attraction. Then one night, they get rip-roaring drunk and have “oopsie” sex.

The pair reveal a lot more to each other than they ever have before—not only that they’re compatible in the bedroom but also that they’re both jerks. The two of them make fun of their exes: Sawyer complaining how his ex-wife’s boobs sagged, Faith, talking about how her husband was a dud in the sack. They drink some more and have more sex, then wake up with massive hangovers, in shock at what they’ve done.

After their night together, Sawyer decides it’s time to take it to the next level and be together. Faith, on the other hand, has intimacy issues. While she loves being friends with Sawyer, she’s not sure they’re compatible as a couple. And besides, there’s the drama of them representing opposing clients.

My Opinion

I didn’t buy the book’s initial premise as these aren’t kids. Sawyer says he’s a Vietnam vet, and since Delinsky wrote this in 1989-1990, the youngest he can be is in his late 30s. Or more likely early 40s. Faith is in her mid-thirties, at least. Maybe it’s just me, as the older I get, the less sexy it seems to be sloppy, black-out drunk. (I’m certainly no saint, but I haven’t done that in a couple of dogs’ ages). Your eyes get red, you slur your words, your face contorts all weird, and your body gets all wobbly. It’s not a seductive state to be in. Tipsy maybe, but three-sheets-to the wind, no.

It stretches the imagination that these two good-looking, successful people shared no prior sexual connection. They “platonically” flirted like fools with each other. They were BFFs who shared very intimate secrets. Then, “out-of-the-blue” one night of heavy drinking was enough to make them forget their boundaries. I get the whole friends-to-lovers trope, although it’s not one of my favorites. It’s hard to accept when the pair have been friends for almost two decades.

Oh, I’m sure there are plenty of love stories in the real world where people have been lifelong friends and suddenly fall in love, and that’s wonderful. But that story doesn’t make for a romance that I would gladly plunk down cash to buy unless there’s a funny twist on it, as in Lass Small’s Four Dollars and Fifty-One Cents.

Final Analysis of Having Faith

Eh, I always thought the friends-to-lovers film When Harry Met Sally was overrated. It’s not a trope I seek out. I like romances where love springs up unexpectedly. Personally, my best-liked romantic-comedy is Don’t Tell Her It’s Me, aka The Boyfriend School. Shelley Long plays a romance novelist who acts as a matchmaker for her nice but loser of a brother, Steve Guttenberg, with a reporter performed by the wonderful Jami Gertz.

As for this book, I thought it was undeserving of any particular acclaim, especially considering that Harlequin released it in May of 1990. Two other great Temptation novels were released that month: #299 Changing the Rules by Gina Wilkins and #300 Glenda Sanders’ Island Nights. In contrast, Having Faith was not anywhere as enjoyable. It’s not a terrible read, just nothing special.

Category Romance Review: Simply Irresistible by Miranda Lee

Simply Irresistible by Miranda Lee category romance
Simply Irresistible by Miranda Lee
Rating: four-half-stars
Published: 1993
Illustrator: Unknown
Published by: Harlequin, Mills & Boon
Genres: Category Romance, Contemporary Romance
Pages: 195
Format: Paperback
Buy on: AmazonAbeBooks
Reviewed by: Introvert Reader


Category Romance Review: Simply Irresistible by Miranda Lee

The Book

Simply Irresistible by Miranda Lee had everything: sex, humor, and romance. The Australians was a special short run of Harlequin books featuring sexy heroes from the Outback.

If you have never read Harlequin Presents, then maybe this isn’t your style of book, but I loved it!

Simply Irresistible by Miranda Lee
Simply Irresistible, 1993, Mills & Boon edition

The Plot

Vivien gets cruelly dumped by her boyfriend and three days later ends up in the arms of the very sexy Ross Everton at the Bachelor and Spinster’s Ball.

They have an amazingly intense one-night stand, then go their separate ways.

When Vivien finds out she’s pregnant, he’s determined to do the honorable thing, even though Ross had another woman waiting in the wings. In fact, the very night she calls him to tell him of their impending parenthood, he had just proposed to his new girlfriend to marry him!

Their shotgun wedding turns from a marriage of convenience into a sexual relationship. But is their physical attraction all Ross and Vivien share? Can they make it last forever?

Final Opinion on Simply Irresistible

This plot has been done countless times before, but with Miranda Lee’s witty dialogue and the simply irresistible hero, it comes off very fresh.

Simply Irresistible is definitely a keeper.

Rating Report Card
Plot
4.5
Characters
4
Writing
4.5
Chemistry
4
Fun Factor
4.5
Cover
4
Overall: 4.3

Synopsis

Ross Everton was the sexiest single guy the Outback had to offer! The most eligible man at the annual Bachelors’ and Spinsters’ Ball, the handsome rancher knew WHO he wanted – and he wanted her NOW!…

Vivien Roberts thought she was a streetwise Sydney girl, but dancing in Ross’s arms made it hard to be sensible – and after tonight they might never meet again…

But neither would forget their one night together: Vivien was expecting Ross’s baby. Irresistible sexual attraction was one thing…being married was quite another!

Simply Irresistible by Miranda Lee

Category Romance Review: Fantasy by Emma Darcy

historical romance review
Fantasy by Emma Darcy
Rating: five-stars
Published: 1985
Illustrator: Len Goldberg
Imprint or Line: Harlequin Presents #840
Published by: Harlequin, Mills & Boon
Genres: Category Romance, Contemporary Romance
Pages: 192
Format: Paperback, eBook
Buy on: AmazonAbeBooks
Reviewed by: Introvert Reader


Category Romance Review: Fantasy by Emma Darcy

The Book

Harlequin Presents #840, Fantasy, is a great oldie by Emma Darcy.

The Plot

Fantasy opens with the heroine, Eve, a fashion model, anxious to arrive home and see her fiancé.

Our heroine gets the shock of her life when she catches her boyfriend cheating. She finds him in bed with another man and her heart is crushed!

Despondent, Eve tries to drown herself in the ocean. Luckily the hero is there to save her life.

He also gives her a nice boost to the old self-esteem to show her that–no matter what her fiancé thinks–she’s a desirable woman.

After their one-night stand, Eve figures she’ll never see the stranger again. How wrong she is.

When they meet again, we discover that the hero is a big-shot businessman whose company is releasing a perfume called Fantasy. He’s running a major ad campaign and naturally demands Eve to be the face of Fantasy.

The hero is in charge of the beach photo shoot. Eve is supposed to pose on the sandy shores with a creepy male model in erotic embraces. She keeps freezing up, so the hero comes in and takes his place.

The heat is off the charts, and Eve can’t deny her attraction anymore or dismiss it as just a momentary lapse into madness.

Final Analysis of Fantasy

I’ve read Fantasy one a couple of times, and it’s such a sweet, cheesy read. I don’t care if the plot is a little unbelievable.

This is just the kind of story a Harlequin Presents should be all about. It’s some sexy little fantasy that makes you smile and not want to throttle the douchey hero for being a dominant ass.

Lucky for us readers, the hero is a dream! Eve’s fantasy becomes reality in the end.

Rating Report Card
Plot
5
Characters
4.5
Writing
4.5
Chemistry
5
Fun Factor
5
Cover
4
Overall: 4.7

Synopsis

HAD SHE DREAMED HIM UP — THIS MAN, THIS FANTASY?

Her fiance’s betrayal and her frenzied flight to a secluded beach near Sydney had been for Eve a nightmare — until the moment a stranger held her in his arms and revealed a lotus land where love was possible …

For a while Eve gave herself up to the joy of loving and being loved for herself and not as the money-making image her fiance had devised with his camera.

She wanted the fantasy to go on forever. Surely to stay would be like trying to prolong a dream …

Fantasy by Emma Darcy
CATEGORIES: , , , , , , , , ,

***

Escape From Desire

Category Romance Review: Escape From Desire by Penny Jordan

category romance
Escape From Desire by Penny Jordan
Rating: three-half-stars
Published: 1982
Illustrator: Tom Bjarnason
Imprint or Line: Harlequin Presents #569
Published by: Harlequin, Mills & Boon
Genres: Category Romance, Contemporary Romance
Pages: 186
Format: eBook, Paperback
Buy on: AmazonAbeBooks
Reviewed by: Introvert Reader


Category Romance Review: Escape From Desire by Penny Jordan

TOTAL SPOILER ALERT ⚠

The Book

Penny Jordan’s Escape from Desire was a very satisfying yet silly read.

A Tropical Vacation

Tamara is on vacation on the island of St. Stephen, all by herself, as her stuffy fiancé has no time for frivolities like lounging in the sun.

Tamara is typical of Penny Jordan‘s heroines, slightly repressed due to an overbearing aunt who raised her. But as she sunbathes on the beach, Tamara’s doubts about her engagement come to a head.

While Malcolm is everything Tamara thought she wanted in a husband–staid, unemotional, professional–she recalls her parents’ happy, loving marriage and ponders if she can go through a loveless union so different from her deceased parents.

Meanwhile, a mysterious stranger on the beach admires her bikini-clad body with his eyes. When he notices her engagement ring, he’s cruel to her, thinking she’s just out in the Caribbean for one last hurrah.

A Jungle Nightmare

Tamara signs up for a jungle trek to take her mind off her worries when who should show up, but the mysterious stranger from the beach, our hero Zach Fletcher. However, what should have been a three-hour tour turns into a nightmare when the guide lures them into a trap.

Rebels armed with Ak-47s take the group hostage for the usual political reasons. Zach manages to convince the terrorists to release all the hostages except himself. Unfortunately, the terrorists, thinking Tamara is Zach’s woman, demand Tamara stay as well.

Days pass, and eventually, when the terrorists make a supply run, leaving behind just one man to guard the pair, Zach makes his move.

It appears that Zach is no run-of-the-mill Harlequin Present m/billionaire hero. He’s a member of the Special Air Service of the British Army and was recently scarred in a melee in Africa. As their captor attempts to force himself on Tamara, Zach stabs him dead, and the couple flees through the jungle.

The near-death/near-rape experience is traumatizing for Tamara and Zach, and they make love. Zach is shocked to find that she’s a virgin. Rather than handling the situation with normal, human-like emotions (this is, after all, a Penny Jordan Harlequin Presents), he accuses her of having held on to her virginity to tease her fiancé.

Tamara gets bitten by a lethal spider on their march through the rainforest. She awakens in a hospital, safe and sound, but dismayed to hear that Zach hightailed it back to England.

escape from desire penny jordan
Escape From Desire, Penny Jordan, Harlequin, 2017 re-issue

A Bunch of Silly Coincidences

The life-and-death trauma awakens something in Tamara, and she vows to change her repressed ways, first by getting a makeover and then by dumping her stuffed-shirt fiancé.

But as I said, this being a Penny Jordan Harlequin Presents, normal human-like behavior is not be expected. So instead of breaking up with her boyfriend ASAP, Tamara waits until they’re on a weekend trip at his parents’ home in the Cotswolds. Then, Malcolm asks Tamara to pretend their engagement is still on to save face temporarily.

Who should show up but Malcolm’s parents’ new neighbor… Zach!

Zach is disgusted with Tamara and accuses her of being a slut. Sure, she was a virgin when she slept with Zach, but now that she’s not a virgin, indeed, she’s sharing all her newfound sexuality with her fiancé. (None of this sounds like standard human thinking, but something like Tommy Wiseau would come up with.)

Tamara goes on with her life as an assistant to an editor when she finds out she is pregnant. She’s delighted by the fact but vows never to let Zach know the truth. Why? I don’t know, Zach was mean to her, and that’s reason enough to hide her child’s parentage.

But Zach is still not out of her life because, in coincidence number #2, who should be the secret client her boss has been trying to lure? Why it’s Zach, of course! Zach’s writing a book demands Tamara as his secretary.

Unfortunately, Tamara’s morning sickness is of the virulent type, and Zach realizes she’s pregnant. With her fiancé’s child, of course, the slut!

How Will They Ever Get Together?

Sure, she was a virgin until she met Zach, but virginity was only a tool to get her fiancé. Then after Zach initiated Tamara in the ways of love, she used that knowledge to dig her claws into her fiancé some more. And now she’s utilizing the oldest trick in the book to keep her fiancé. The tramp!

Despite it all, Zach can’t keep his hands off Tamara, who he believes is engaged and pregnant with another man’s child. And Tamara loves Zach, although she can’t let him know. Why not?

Will these two crazy kids ever get over their hang-ups and just be honest with each other?

Sure, they could, but it’s more dramatic when a letter reveals all the truths because communication is for human adults on Planet Earth, not for our heroes and heroines of Harlequin-Presentslandia.

Final Analysis of Escape From Desire

What a crazy, unforgettable read was Escape From Desire! Penny Jordan really upped the zaniness in this romance.

It’s not her best, although it’s definitely a memorable one.

3.75 Stars

Rating Report Card
Plot
4
Characters
3.5
Writing
3.5
Chemistry
3.5
Fun Factor
4
Cover
4
Overall: 3.8

Synopsis:

When Tamara’s Caribbean holiday turned into a nightmare, there was only one man shecould turn to—Zach Fletcher! With their lives in jeopardy, in the heat of the jungle, Zach took Tamara’s innocence for his own. They escaped from danger—but not from the consequences of their passion!

Neither of them could know that their heated fling would leave Tamara pregnant. Reunited in London, Tamara is reminded of the claim Zach has on her body. And he’ll doanything to prove their chemistry means more than just an affair…

ESCAPE FROME DESIRE by PENNY JORDAN