The Italian Tycoon's Bride

Maisie Burns has just been dumped by her fiancé when she meets Blaine Morosini, the uncle of one of her best friends. He hires her to go to Italy with him to work for his parents for a few months. Their mutual attraction grows over time, but Blaine doesn't want a long-term relationship with anyone. Is Maisie setting herself up to get dumped again?

Maisie is basically a nice, ordinary, girl. The type of girl who could only capture the attention of a hot Italian stud in a romance novel, but I guess that's why we read these books. As for Blaine, he was caught in a bad marriage with an unstable wife who didn't like sex and eventually died of leukaemia. He took to his freedom like a duck to water, by becoming a consummate playboy with never-ending one night stands. He knows from the beginning that Maisie will not indulge in casual sex, but can't deny his attraction to her. Finally, he finds her a permanent job and offers to help her find an apartment so that she can remain in Italy and they can see each other as much as they want for "as long as it lasts". Maisie turns him down flat. I cheered. Finally! A heroine who isn't ruled by her hormones, and actually has enough self-respect to turn a good looking guy down. She returns to England, he eventually follows her there to propose to her, and they live happily ever after.

This was pretty much the epitome of dime-store paperback romance. The sweet, plain, ordinary girl meets the hot studly Italian playboy. They fall in love at first sight and he gives up his playboy ways to marry her. Sweet and totally unrealistic. If you like romances that provide escapism and don't make you think, this one's for you.

His marriage ultimatum

Like so many books in the Harlequin Presents line, the title of this one is completely misleading. It gives the impression that this will be some sort of "Blackmailed into marriage" plot, but it isn't. Carter Blake meets Liberty Fox one day and asks her out. They have a nice relationship that progresses along fairly normal lines, albeit at an accelerated rate. These are small books, so I suppose we don't have time for a normal courtship. Liberty has some serious hang-ups regarding marriage and children, and this is where the "ultimatum" comes in eventually. Carter and Liberty are happy to admit they love each other, but Liberty does not want to commit herself to marriage, preferring instead for them to live together. Carter tells her that he won't have sex with her until they are married.

This was a nice, fairly simple romance. Liberty's hang-ups became very frustrating and annoying, mainly because her reasons for them seem pretty unreasonable to me. Her mother has spent her life going from rich husband to richer husband, and is now on husband number six. Although I can see this affecting Liberty, the degree of angst it causes her is unbelievable. I kept expecting Carter to send her off to therapy. Anyway, they sort themselves out in the end, get married and finally have sex. An enjoyable, if unexciting, read.

Kept by her Greek boss

Katie Connor decides to end her affair with her boss Alexi Demetri. She knows that there is no future in it and wants to have a real and meaningful relationship with someone. She breaks up with him and finds a new job a month later, only to discover that her new boss is none other that Alexi, who has bought over her new company. Then she discovers that she is pregnant. Since his divorce years ago, Alexi has sworn that he will never love anyone again, but when he finds out that Katie is expecting her child, her forces her to marry him.

It was nice to see a heroine working in a high powered job (as opposed to being a secretary or personal assistant). Unfortunately it was not quite believable that a 24 year old would hold the position that Katie does. Someone does comment on her age, and I guess that's supposed to make it all right, but it really didn't ring true. Putting that aside, I started off liking Katie but that didn't last long. She let herself get into a purely physical relationship with Alexi even though it went against her personal beliefs. By the time the story starts, she has realised that she  can't continue like this and chooses to get out. I thought I was finally seeing a heroine with some self respect. Unfortunately, as soon as Alexi finds out about her pregnancy, she lets him walk all over her. He threatens to sue for custody of their child if she doesn't marry him. When she tentatively agrees to the marriage and tries to gain some control by insisting on a long engagement, he railroads her again by making her marry him immediately. The whole time my mind kept screaming "Prenup!". I can't believe all these "Blackmailed into marriage" and "Marriage of convenience" plots where the heroine doesn't insist on a prenuptial agreement, especially in this case where custody of a child is at stake. Katie is terrified of losing custody of her unborn child, yet it never occurs to her that once she marries Alexi, if he divorces her she will almost certainly lose custody. Instead, Alexi whips out his prenup agreement and she doesn't even bother reading it properly. They get married with Katie knowing she loves him but will never be loved in return. I can deal with Alexi not loving Katie, but some basic respect would have been nice. On their wedding night Katie asks if Alexi missed her after they broke up, to which he replies, "You know I've missed you.  You're great in bed, Katie." Yuck, yuck, yuck.  It's excused by the fact that Alexi is fighting against his feelings for Katie, and is thus deliberately rude. Personally, I cannot abide heroes treating heroines like this, and I hate heroines that allow it. Katie is hurt by it, but then immediately has sex with Alexi again. Sigh. Eventually, Alexi realises that Katie isn't happy being married to him and things culminate when Katie has a miscarriage scare. This being a category romance, the baby is not lost, but it forces Alexi to admit that he loves Katie and doesn't want to lose her even if they lose the baby.

I suppose in the end I did enjoy this book, but the miscarriage scare was too convenient. I would have found it far more believable is Katie had actually had a miscarriage rather than just thinking there was a problem. This book was pretty standard fare. Arrogant jerk of a hero finally succumbs to love. It wasn't bad, but there was really nothing special here.

The Salvatore Marriage

Two years ago, Luca Salvatore ended his engagement to Shannon Gilbraith after catching her cheating on him. They are reunited after his brother and her sister (who have been married for six years) die tragically, leaving a new-born daughter behind.

Since this is a category romance, it is clear from the start that Shannon was not unfaithful to Luca two years ago, but was wrongfully accused. It turns out that Luca came home unexpectedly one day to find Shannon cleaning up the bedroom, with the bed unmade, a pair of men's boxer shorts on the floor, and a packet of condoms on the table. He came to the obvious conclusion; unfortunately for Shannon, it was actually her sister who was guilty but Luca would not believe her. This whole scenario was pretty tacky and unbelievable... What kind of woman conducts an affair in her sister's home, and not only that but in her sister's bed? Ever heard of hotels? Anyway, I thought it was excusable for Luca to think what he did, but his pride caused him to completely cut Shannon out of his life without allowing her to tell her side of the story at all. In fact, he admits to himself that he regretted the fact that they were only engaged and not married, because his pride would have allowed him to try and reconcile with her if they had already been married. Not very admirable. As for Shannon, it's understandable that after a while she gave up trying to convince Luca of her innocence. He believes unequivocally that she was cheating on him and would not even entertain the possibility that her sister would cheat on his brother.

Anyway, after Luca and Shannon find themselves joint guardians of their baby niece, they agree to marry each other without actually resolving any of their past. Shannon agrees to the marriage on the priviso that Luca doesn't bring up the past. I found this pretty fatalistic. Does not mentioning it make it all right? Luca eventually discovers the truth that it was Shannon's sister who was guilty, and that his brother also knew about it and never told him. Finally everything comes out, Luca and Shannon forgive each other and everyone is happy. Everyone apart from me. Shannon seems to think that Luca's willingness to marry her means that he has forgiven her; if he has forgiven her for cheating on him, then he must love her. That reasoning would be fine except for the fact that he is marrying her for the sake of their niece, and not because he loves her. Luca's lack of trust in Shannon is never really addressed. Luca's family is another loose end. They all hate Shannon for being unfaithful to him. Looks like Shannon just has to continue living with their condemnation. Luca's brother and Shannon's sister were willing to let Luca believe Shannon cheated on him rather than tell him the truth; since they are dead, this can't really be resolved, but I still found it hard to stomach.

Overall this wasn't a bad book, but I was left feeling dissatisfied. I guess the whole conflict in the first place is so sordid and hard to stomach that I needed a more complete resolution. The guilty parties didn't really suffer. Luca himself was forgiven far too easily. Shannon just seemed to get short-changed and I don't think she deserved that.

Valentino's Love-Child

Faith Williams and Valentino Grisafi have been lovers for almost a year. The relationship has been strictly physical with no intention of making it anything more. Then Faith discovers she is pregnant. She knows that Valentino will do the honourable thing and propose to her, but can she marry a man who doesn't love her for the sake of their child?

Valentino was actually a pretty decent guy. After his wife died six years ago, he swore that she would never be replaced in his heart. He cannot resolve his feelings for Faith with his feelings for his dead wife; loving Faith feels like he is betraying his wife. Faith also lost her husband six years ago in a car accident. Unlike Valentino, she has worked through her grief and been able to let go of her husband. She loves Valentino and accepts that he doesn't love her, though she knows that he will marry her when he finds out that she is pregnant. She doesn't mind the idea of being married to a man that doesn't love her, but then she discovers how adamantly opposed he is to the idea of marriage (before he finds out about her pregnancy). Marrying someone who doesn't love her is one thing. Marrying a man who actively doesn't want to marry her is something else. Faith breaks up with Valentino before telling him that she is pregnant. He subsequently finds out about her pregnancy and proposes to her. She turns him down saying they should at least wait until the baby is born since she may miscarry anyway. Valentino finally admits that he loves her and wants to be with her regardless of the pregnancy, but he can't stop feeling guilty about it. They resolve their issues and live happily ever after.

Overall this was a nice read, but everything was resolved far too quickly. It just didn't flow. Suddenly Faith believes that Valentino loves her. Suddenly Valentino is able to finally let go of his wife. Some of this abrupt emotional change is put down to the Faith's hormonal changes due to pregnancy, but I found that something of a cop out. There is this big build up where you slowly learn why Valentino has been holding himself back from Faith and he gradually begins to accept how he feels about her. He struggles through about 95% of the book, then, bam! Right at the end, he's happy and all right with everything. Since this is a category romance, I knew there would be a happy ending and I knew he'd sort himself out, but I still felt blind-sided by the suddenness of it all. This abrupt ending stopped this from being a great book, but it was still very enjoyable.

A Convenient Marriage

Javier D'Alessandro needs a British passport to say in England and adopt his orphaned niece. He meets 37 year old Sabrina Kendricks who needs an injection of capital to boost her ailing business. He offers to give her business whatever assistance he can in return for marrying him; once the adoption has gone through successfully they will have an amicable divorce and go their separate ways.

It was nice to read a marriage of convenience plot with characters who were not antagonistic and were actually making an effort to respect each other. Another thing different in this story was that Javier was 30, whilsts Sabrina was 37. It's was a nice change to have an older woman, though Sabrina does have quite a few hang-ups around this which get tedious quickly. Javier and Sabrina are basically strangers who find themselves living together and trying to look after a grieving 11 year old girl. They don't really know what to do with each other. On one hand, Javier is grateful for Sabrina and wants to make her happy. Sabrina is attracted to Javier and cares deeply for his niece, but is wary of letting herself get too involved when she is aware that their marriage is a temporary one.

I found Javier a little bit annoying. He gets frustrated that Sabrina doesn't want to have a sexual relationship with him, basically accusing her of being frigid and scared to live passionately. However he himself acknowledges that he only wants a physical relationship with her; after the grief of losing both his sister and his brother-in-law, Javier is afraid of caring too deeply for anyone. Sabrina's concerns about their relationship are quite valid. The purpose of their marriage was to allow Javier to migrate to England, providing more stability for his niece. If Sabrina gets too close to either of them, what will happen when they break up? I kept expecting Javier and Sabrina to discuss this, but the conversation never happens. As for Sabrina, I found her to be quite bland. When Javier's sexy ex-girlfriend appears at the breakfast table (after having spent the night), Sabrina jumps to the obvious conclusions and has a brief spark of life. Unfortunately, this is very short lived and ends with her apologising to Javier. Sigh. No backbone at all.

Overall, this was bland and disappointing. It had potential and was generally pleasant to read, but  not really worth the time.

Desperate Measures

Philippa Roscoe needs money for expensive medical treatment for her father. Alain de Courcy wants a wife to counter rumours of his involvement with a married woman. He offers to give Philippa the money she requires in exchange for marrying him.

Yes, yes, the plot is silly and clichéd but I'm not one to hold that against a category romance. The problem was, Philippa was an idiot. She agrees to the marriage with the understanding that it will eventually be consummated and is not merely a marriage in name alone. When Alain comes to her bed on their wedding night, Philippa objects strenuously and he rapes her. In the ensuing weeks, Philippa realises that she is attracted to her husband but decides that she must never give in to that attraction. Meanwhile, rumours are still rife regarding Alain and the married woman he has been involved with. Philippa is mugged one day and rescued by the charming Fabrice. She happily hops in his car and lets him drive her home (never mind that he's a complete stranger). The relationship with Fabrice progresses until the fateful day that Philippa decides to run away from Alain. Fabrice offers to go with her and Philippa accepts, reasoning that  she can now tell Alain she is leaving him for another man. She has no intention of sleeping with Fabrice but assumes she can handle his amorous advances. Right, because she's so smart and experienced I suppose. Ugh, ugh, ugh. I spent this whole book being irritated with Philippa. This was written in 1992 but reads more like something written in the 70s. Philippa enjoys painting and was studying at art college at the start of the book. After her marriage, she decides to continue studying painting. Alain can't understand why she would want any hobby but learning to please him in bed. Philippa's art teacher can't understand why she wants to keep painting when she has a husband rich enough to support her. Huh? Really odd views to have in something written in the 90s. Anyway, my final verdict is simply give this book a miss. There are certainly worse ones but reading this would be a waste of time.