Tag Archives: two sisters one man

come back to me catherine george

Category Romance Review: Come Back to Me by Catherine George

Synopsis:

Julia’s new job was a step up in her career

She was personal assistant to the autocratic Marcus Lang. That hadn’t been Julia’s main objective when she started–though she’d gone to a great deal of trouble to get the position.

She had plans for Marcus Lang–and especially for his brother, Garrett-and once she’d achieved her aims she didn’t think she’d be staying long with Lang Holdings.

Marcus was a difficult, demanding employer, but gradually Julia had to admit that she found him attractive. Too bad that he was the one man she couldn’t let herself fall in love with.

COME BACK TO ME by CATHERINE GEORGE

The Book

Catherine George is a category romance author who rarely disappoints. Sadly, Come Back to Me is one of those rare occasions.

The Plot

The plot centers around revenge, a trope I usually enjoy. However, the execution in this book… It’s quite odd. The heroine’s sister had a one-night stand with a married man and became impregnated. The sister dies and then Julia, our heroine, is forced to care for the baby. Mistakenly, she believes it’s the hero Marcus’s happily married brother who slept with and then abandoned her sister.

So Julia plots the lamest revenge ever conceived. Oh, she’ll get back at that man for his evil deeds. How? By putting herself through school and learning to be the most efficient secretary ever hired by a corporation. She’ll deal with the hero’s clients, organize his social calendar, and capably smooth over his troubles until he becomes so reliant on her, then she’ll somehow inveigle her way into the hero’s family and ruin the brother.

How’s that supposed to work? Will she quit, forcing Marcus to run after her, offer her a raise, and declare that he’s never had an assistant as competent as she and damn his brother to hell on top of that?

Or will Julia just let her bizarre revenge plot disintegrate as she falls in love with the actual man who fathered her dead sister’s child after a drunken night of misplaced passion? Yup, that’s more like it.

Big old spoiler here: Marcus Lang, the hero of this book, had sex with the heroine’s sister, not knowing she was a virgin–heck, he didn’t even know who she was–and a baby resulted from that night. He was drunk and mistook her for another woman.

Final Analysis of Come Back to Me

Yuck. Worst revenge plan ever! Sorry, there are some places in romance where it’s too weird for me to delve into, and sloppy seconds from sister to another sister is one of them. I’m a hypocrite here, I admit because I enjoy a good love triangle romance where two brothers butt heads over the same woman, but even this was too far.

If you’re looking for an angsty revenge story in the Harlequin Presents line, just read Sally Wentworth.

Oh, and that cover is terrible. That hot-pink dress with off-the-shoulder ruffles screams 1983 prom night.

1.5 Stars

stay through the night kebic

Category Romance Review: Stay Through the Night by Flora Kidd

Synopsis:

“I warned you from the start,”

Burt Sharaton said. “You had no right to come between Nancy and me.”

But putting an end to her sister Nancy’s affair with him was a responsibility Charlotte had just had to take on. She’d told him her sister refused to cruise with him on his yacht, the White Cockatoo.

Unfortunately, her plan hadn’t worked and Charlotte was caught in a trap of her own making. For Burt was determined that if he couldn’t have Nancy, he would take Charlotte instead!

STAY THROUGH THE NIGHT by FLORA KIDD

I’ve been looking for someone like you for a long time, a long, long time…

Stay Through the Night

The Book

Feeling lazy, (as always), so here’s a quick review of Stay Through the Night by Flora Kidd hacked together from my reading updates:

The Plot

In Stay Through the Night, Charlotte is a single, fiercely independent, and career-minded woman, who never had her sights set on marriage, although she at least respects the institution. When she sees how her very married sister, Nancy, drapes herself all over multi-millionaire Burt Sharaton, she quite naturally believes they’re having an affair. Charlotte is disappointed in her sister. Moreover, she’s angry on behalf of her as she cares for her brother-in-law, who’s a decent man.

Determined to put a stop to this madness, Charlotte confronts Burt. There’s no way she’s going to let Nancy sail across the world with Burt in his flashy white yacht.

However, Burt surprises Charlotte when he decides to settle for Nancy’s younger and unmarried sister instead. Charlotte’s plan backfires on her, as Burt all but takes her captive.

Stay Through the Night, Flora Kidd, Mills & Boon, 1980, cover artist unknown

My Opinion

This sweet, little romance seems to have low ratings on book sites around the internet and I don’t share the opinion. But then, my tastes do run contrarian to what’s popular.

It has everything that makes a classic HP so much fun:

#1 – A wealthy, arrogant hero, whose brutish ways are just a defense mechanism for his troubled past.

#2 – A virginal heroine who’s intelligent, a working woman, moral & strong-willed.

#3 – A married older sister trying to get her hooks in the hero.

#4 – Blackmail, kidnapping, and a quickie marriage to avoid scandal.

So what’s not to like?

Final Analysis of Stay Through the Night

Stay Through The Night was a fun little read from start to finish. What I enjoyed best of all, was this drunken confession of love from the stoic, brutish hero. It really got to me…

“‘You’re warm and soft and rounded,’ he murmured. Again his speech was a little slurred and she wondered if he were lightheaded. ‘I’ve been looking for someone like you for a long time, a long, long time…’ He broke off and stiffened.

“‘Who was that talking?’ He demanded suddenly, very clearly and coldly.

‘You,’ [Charlotte informed him.]

STAY THROUGH THE NIGHT

(SIGH!)

I’m a sucker for dramatic revelations of love. With Burt, there’s more to him than meets the eye. He’s not the flashy playboy Charlotte thought he was. He’s a true gem of a hero.

3 1/2 Stars