Mistress to Her Husband

Five years ago Sean suddenly told Kate he wanted a divorce. She found out later that she was pregnant but decided not to let him know. Now Kate has a new boss who turns out to be her ex-husband.

First of all, let me say that this is not the sleazy story the title implies. In fact, the title has absolutely nothing to do with the plot. At no point does Sean ask Kate to be his mistress. What actually happens, is that five years ago Sean discovered that he has a low sperm count and would be highly unlikely to father any children. He does the macho thing and decides all on his own that he has to set his wife free to have children with someone else. Instead of telling her the truth, he tells her that he has been sleeping with someone else and has no interest in having children with Kate; in fact, he only acted like he wanted to have a family with her to get in her pants. Obviously this is so much better than telling her the truth (rolls eyes). As for Kate, she keeps trying to tell herself how much she hates Sean for what he did to her, but keeps trying to jump his bones. Every time they get together they get it on. I couldn't help but wonder if they talked as much as they made out, they may have been able to sort out their marital problems long ago. I got so sick of all the make out sessions that I started skimming through them. The author seems to have gotten a little carried away with being able to use the word "erection" (instead of all those other euphemisms we have seen so much of through the years). I counted it 9 times; in other words there are at least 9 separate sex scenes (though very few of them end up with actual intercourse), which is a lot for a wee little book.

Am I giving the impression that I didn't like this book? Actually I found it all right, but the premise of the plot really annoyed me. Sean's whole self-sacrificing rubbish was so annoying. He loves Kate so much that he can't allow her to stay with him and never have children, even though he knows that he will never want anyone else. It doesn't occur to him that she might feel the same way about him? Then when he finds out that she has a son, he gets mad at her for "betraying" him by sleeping with another man after they were divorced. This, after he told her that he was cheating on her. To add insult to injury, he also tells her that the other woman was just a meaningless fling... so he divorced her and broke her heart over a meaningless fling? He gets brownie points from me for not having another woman over the past five years, but it doesn't make up for his high-handed decision to divorce he due to his low sperm count. Kate's lack of self-control around Sean was really annoying, too. We see this kind of thing a lot in category romances; the heroine is so overcome with passion that she forgets all common sense. It's supposedly a sign of love. I personally see it as a sign of lack of character development. Kate was especially annoying in this aspect because she has a five year old son to protect. I would expect her to be more careful of not letting her son form attachments or get his hopes up, but Kate is too busy jumping Sean's bones. All in all this was not one of Penny Jordan's better works.

The Wealthy Greek's Contract Wife

Ilios Manos, the wealthy greek of the title, needs a wife to prevent his cousin Tino from claiming their ancestral home. English interior designer Elizabeth (Lizzie) Wareham has looked after her two younger sisters and her two nephews after the death of her parents six years ago. Ilios offers to ignore the debt Lizzie inadvertently owes him, as well as give her £100,000 if she agrees to marry him for as long as it takes for Tino to back off.

Ahh yes, another "Blackmailed Into Marriage" story. It never ceases to amaze me how many reasons wealthy men can come up with to blackmail women into marrying them, and how easily the women in question are coerced. I guess the idea is that these women have too much integrity to be seduced by the men's billions or undeniable sex appeal, and therefore need some other inducement. It's generally imperative for the reader to not look too deeply into the reason for the marriage or the blackmail employed, because they are flimsy and not really believable. The Wealthy Greek Contract's Wife is no exception. Apparently Tino wishes to challenge Ilios' right to inherit the family home due to the fact that he isn't married and has no heirs. I seriously doubt Tino has any hope at all of winning, and Ilios' lawyers agree, though they warn Ilios against a lengthy drawn out legal battle. Considering the fact that Ilios is a billionaire whilst his cousin is practically bankrupt, I think it's clear that Tino is the one who can't afford the dispute, not Ilios. Lizzie gets mixed up with Ilios when a client offers her 20% ownership of an apartment block she was hired to decorate, in lieu of payment. Unbeknownst to her, not only was this apartment block built illegally and fraudulently, but under the partnership agreement she is also liable for the debts of the whole partnership. I find it hard to believe that Lizzie's solicitor would have advised her to accept an agreement like this; who accepts 100% liability for only 20% ownership? Ilios sends a threatening legal letter to Lizzie demanding her presence in Thessalonica to deal with undisclosed legal and financial matters. Instead of calling her lawyer, or calling Ilios or his lawyer, she flies out with no idea what is going on... I wondered if she had ever heard of a telephone, but it turns out she has a mobile. Lizzie and Ilios agree to marry, yet there's no mention of a pre-nuptial agreement which I find hard to swallow considering how deliberate and calculating Ilios is. Anyway, if you can suspend your disbelief over the setup of the plot, this was a good read.

Ilios grew up without any love but with a strong sense of duty. Unlike many heroes, he is not cruel and arrogant, and he isn't a serial womaniser. In fact, he hasn't had sex in over a year. It's so refreshing to have a Greek tycoon hero who doesn't have a string of mistresses to make the heroine's life hell. The only time Ilios is cruel is right at the end when he says some nasty things in the heat of the moment to create the conflict that makes him admit his love. Cheesy yes, but acceptable under the circumstances, and he regrets it almost immediately.

Lizzie was nice, too. She is a genuinely loving person and doesn't play any weird games with Ilios. She does have a couple clichéd romance heroine responses to things namely

1. Upon realising her love for Ilios, Lizzie "realises" that she must never let him know;
2. Upon finding out she is pregnant, Lizzie decides she wants to go from the "Blackmailed Into Marriage" plot to the "Secret Baby" plot. She doesn't want to tell Ilios that she is pregnant, but would rather go home to her sisters and raise her baby secretly.

Nevertheless, I actually liked Lizzie. She's just nice and refreshingly honest with Ilios about her desire for him and we have none of that annoying, "I hate him but I want him" angst so often seen in other heroines.

Overall, I recommend this book. I liked the characters and it was an enjoyable way to pass the time.

Yesterday's Echoes

Rosie was raped by Ritchie when she was 16. Ritchie's cousin, 23 year old Jake Lucas, found them just after the deed was done, and assumed that Rosie had been a willing participant and exploring her own sexuality. Jake had been in love with Rosie and was already despising himself for falling in love with a teenager. Upon finding her postcoitus with his cousin, he is insanely jealous and hates himself even more for it. Rosie saw his derision and assumed it was directed at herself. Jake's condemnation combines with her guilt and shame to make her unable to ever tell anyone what really happened, and the story begins 15 years later with Rosie still suffering from the trauma of her rape; she has never been able to have a relationship with a man because she can't face the possibility that they will blame her for the rape. Jake and Rosie meet up, she finally tells him what happened and he realises how much he inadvertently hurt her and why she has always hated him.

I found Rosie's trauma quite realistic. What wasn't realistic was the almost instant sexual healing at Jake's hands. Of course this is a common theme in category romances; the sexually frigid heroine who has never been able to respond to any man magically comes alive and orgasms with the studly hero. This is naturally because she loves him. No reason is ever given for Rosie and Jakes feelings for each other and the reader just has to accept the fact that they have always been in love with each other. If you can accept these things without delving too deeply, this was a nice read.

Second best husband

Sara has been in love with her boss Ian for the past 10 years, but he has just announced his engagement. She quits her job (after a fairly nasty scene with Ian's fiancée, Anna) and goes back to her parents' home to lick her wounds. Before she goes, her friend Margaret has a frank talk with her, encouraging her to look at the possibility of marrying someone she likes and respects, rather than waiting to fall in love (with possibly another jerk like Ian). Sara starts seriously thinking about this, and meets her parents' new neighbour Stuart Delaney, who is, of course, gorgeous and perfect in every way.

This was a lovely book, but a trifle boring. Sara herself is quite a boring character, with no real hobbies, interests or much of anything to give her personality. Maybe this was the only type of character the author could envision being open to marriage without passion. Still, it was a nice read and I quite enjoyed it.