The lady of the hour: SEP

I also saw author Tracey Devlyn at the signing, which was pretty cool. She's a part of Lori Foster's Yahoo group, so I knew she'd be there, but didn't know if I'd get a chance to see her with everything going on. She's very nice, and I wish we could have had more of a chance to chat, and see what she's up to writing-wise. But she said she's going to Lori Foster's/Dianne Castell's get-together in June, so hopefully we can catch up.

anyone who's read the Stars books knows about this phrase *g*

Labels: booksignings, SEP

Labels: booksignings, SEP

Labels: reviews, SEP

Labels: reviews, SEP

Labels: reviews, SEP

"Glitter Baby" reads like a sudsy soap opera novel like those remniscent of Danielle Steel, Judith Krantz, and Jackie Collins, though not quite as steamy. Twenty years ago I would have probably loved this book, but reading it now was the equivalent of a bunch of empty potato chip calories for me: I couldn't stop after one page but it didn't offer much substance.

I liked Fleur, mostly. She was incredibly beautiful but had absolutely no idea what all the fuss was about. This wasn't just an act; she truly didn't see what others saw in her. Jake is a sexy and charismatic actor and writer, tormented by his past. Of course he thinks Fleur is too good for him. Belinda, Fleur's mother, is self-absorbed and ditzy, and lives vicariously through her daughter's modeling and acting career. Fleur's stepfather is a creepy, powerful man who is obsessed with beauty. Toss in some golden movie stars of a generation gone by, a betrayal between a mother, daughter and the man she loves, a short-lived career of epic porportions, and you have the frothy dish called "Glitter Baby".

I basically read this because it was a SEP book, and it was enjoyable, but rather forgettable. I know it was re-written (see this post at BookBinge) and I've never read the previous version, so I don't know if it's better or worse. I guess I would recommend it for fans, but don't feel like I would have missed a substantial body of work if I hadn't read it. It's a good read, and it did remind me of those epic sudsers from the early 80's. Now I can say I read it.

Rating: **** out of *****

Labels: quickie reviews, SEP

Genius physics professor Dr. Jane Darlington desperately wants a baby. But finding a father won't be easy. Jne's super-intelligence made her feel like a freak when she was growing up, and she's determined to spare her own child that suffering. Which means she must find someone very special to father her child. Someone very...well...stupid.

Cal Bonner, the Chicago Stars legendary quarterback, seems like the perfect choice. But his champion good looks and down-home ways are deceiving. Dr. Jane learns too late that this good ol' boy is a lot smarter than he lets on - and he's not about to be used and abandoned by a brainy, baby-mad schemer.

A brillian, lonely woman who dreams only of motherhood... A take-no-prisoners tough guy who'll settle for nothing less than surrender... Can passion and physical attraction propel two strong-willed yet vulnerable people to a totally unexpected love?

I had my reservations about this book for a few reasons: first, I hate the idea of a woman tricking a man into getting her pregnant. HATE it. It's one of the lowest things a woman can do, in my not-so-humble opinion. The other is that a friend of mine, Shannon, hated this book because it seemed the hero hated the heroine until the end, and that worried me greatly.

However, it might surprise some to hear this, I think it's my favorite of the 3 Chicago Stars books I've read so far. I know, that shocked me too. I was all prepared to not like it, but somehow, I liked it quite a bit.

Intelligent and lonely Dr. Jane wants a baby so badly that she can't think of anything else. Growing up without a mother and with a cold, unemotional father, she knows she doesn't want her child to suffer as she did, so she figures the only man good enough for the job is one without brains, but since most of the men she knows are smart, she has no idea how to go about finding just the right guy. But Fate decides to give her a helping hand and lands her in the path of football player Cal Bonner, who from the minute he opens his mouth doesn't come across to her as having any intelligence whatsoever. Pretending to be a football groupie, Jane gets her man. And gets pregnant.

Cal is not the young guy he once was, but as long as he plays the game and surrounds himself with young bimbos, he can convince himself otherwise. When an aggressive and bossy groupie pounces on him and runs, he can't figure out why he can't stop thinking about her. After all, she's not the twenty-two year old babe that he prefers. When he finds out she's pregnant, he goes ballistic. Before he knows it, his life is turned upside-down by a Professor who has to be at least, what, twenty-eight? He is so not happy about the way things are going...

My thoughts:

Despite Jane's scheme to get pregnant without the father knowing, I found myself liking her a lot. She just had so much love to give, and with no husband prospects in sight, she had the means to support herself and her child without a man. She never means for Cal to find out, and when he does, she feels awful. But not as badly as she's going to feel when he's done with her.

Cal is in denial about the longevity of his football career. Thirty-six and feeling the pain, he's not ready to give up the life he's known for so long, and as long as he keeps playing and dates only young women, how can anyone think he's old? He's not going to throw in the towel just yet, especially with a hot-shot newbie named Kevin Tucker breathing down his neck.

When he finds out that his groupie is pregnant, Cal is livid. He's not about to turn away from his child, planned or not, and forces Ms. Smarty Pants to marry him. I couldn't blame him for being so angry, though he did hold onto his anger longer than was absolutely necessary. Once he got to know Jane, he could see what type of woman she was, and it wasn't a gold-digging opportunist or a cold-hearted bitch. But Cal refuses to listen to what his heart is telling him, and tries to do things his own way. Only he doesn't realize that not only is he hurting the best woman he's ever known, he's hurting himself by denying the happiness he could have with Jane.

I loved that Jane was so smart and that she actually stood up to Cal, and that he challenged her and kept her on her toes while also making her weak in the knees. I loved that Cal wasn't the stereotypical dumb jock but one with a legitimate college degree. He's just afraid to face a life without football because he has no clue what he'll do when his career ends, so he holds on tightly to a dying dream.

I also loved that Jane didn't need to go through a makeover for Cal to notice her. It may not have been her looks that first attracted his attention, it was her brain, and the fact that she didn't back down from him like his previous girlfriends did. Once he found a woman who could match him, he saw past her Professor clothes to the lovely woman she was on the inside, and fell completely in love with her. Only as smart as he was, he's still a guy and it took him awhile to figure it out.

I liked the secondary storyline with Cal's parents, and how after several decades together, they both had a lot to learn about each other. It was a lesson that was a long time in coming, and it took a tragedy to bring it out into the open. I loved Cal's grandmother Annie, who may have been a mountain woman but who was as wise as she was cantankerous, and who had a very big heart.

Despite Jane's lies, and even Cal's ferocious temper, I enjoyed this book very much, and felt they both suffered and made amends for the pain they both caused. I don't think Jane really realized that her plan to have a baby without telling the father was wrong. She truly didn't think of Cal as "her baby's father", but more of a solution to her problem. Once she was aware of Cal's feelings about taking responsibility and not abandoning his child, she did know how wrong she was, and so she agreed to the terms Cal demanded.

I'll repeat that I did feel like Cal's anger was too extreme in the beginning. He seriously intended to destroy the career she held dear, maybe because he felt she was destroying his. However after a time, Cal let go of his anger. It took him awhile longer to let go of his stubborn pride and to admit that she was the best thing that had ever happened to him. He realizes he's going to have to prove to her, his Professor, that he loves her. He's going to have to show her that she is worthy of love, and that he's just the man to make her happy for the rest of her days. He's going to face forever with a woman close to his age who's having his baby, and nothing pleased him more. And eventually, he figures out what he is going to do with the rest of his life, and things were just about as perfect as they could get...

Rating: ****1/2 out of *****

Labels: reviews, SEP

As exasperating as Bobby Tom is, he's also the most generous and colorful person Gracie has ever come across. He plays down his smarts by acting the part of good ole boy, and hides his hurts behind a dazzling smile and armloads of women. Gracie can see past all the glitzy showmanship Bobby Tom displays to the world straight into the heart of a decent, caring man who can't say no. Gracie doesn't want to be just another person Bobby Tom gives money to, so instead of letting him do her any favors, she pays her own way. She wants him to know that there's at least one person out there who's not asking him for a hand-out. Though wait until she finds out about the secret B.T.'s been keeping from her....

My thoughts:

At first I didn't think I was going to like this book, mainly because of Bobby Tom. I figured he was going to be a total pig while Gracie had to sit back and watch him sleep with a bunch of women while he treated her like crap. But he wasn't like that, and then he grew on me, and soon I could understand why Gracie fell so hard for him. He was a star, whether he knew it or not, and people gravitated towards him, women especially. Gracie saw this, and though a part of her was intimidated, she also saw how the only one he paid attention to was her. She made him laugh, and got him angry, and didn't put up with his bullshit. Even still, Bobby Tom thought he could manage Gracie, and when he realized he couldn't, things started to change for him. His feelings for Gracie became real to him, more real than anything he's ever known, and he finally figures this out and still almost loses the best thing that's ever happened to him. The guy deserved a good smack upside the head. I think Gracie was just the woman for the job.

In addition to Bobby Tom's & Gracie's budding romance, I also pretty much liked the developing relationship between Bobby Tom's mother and a man whom B.T. absolutely hated. It was not an easy one; there's a lot of history there, anger and hurt as well, and even some deception in the beginning that got my back up. But it was a complicated situation, and while it wasn't completely pretty at times, the way it played out was believable, and soon I was rooting for them just as much as I was for Bobby Tom and Gracie.

The few things that I didn't like about this book were the obligatory make-over scene for Gracie, although I was relieved it wasn't more dramatic than it ended up being. I'll admit, she really didn't know how to play up her assets and make the most of her hair and slim body. So yeah, I kinda justified that one.

The other thing that drove me nuts is how everything was on Bobby Tom's schedule. So what if a whole movie crew was waiting on him? Let 'em. That attitude bothered the hell out of me. I just felt he would never have been so disrespectful to his football coach, so what gave him the right to to so while working on this movie he signed on to do? A job's a job, and I didn't always like how he blew things off like that. I got that making movies wasn't a passion of his, and that his career ended sooner than expected because of a serious injury. But he was 33 years old, and it was time for him to grow up. I think Gracie really helped him do that because she tried to give him options. She didn't like to see him hurting, but she also saw all the potential he had bubbling inside of him. His life was not over, even if he'd never play football again.

This was a really engrossing book, and I stayed up all Sunday night reading it. Once I started I couldn't stop. It made me crazy at times, but it also made me cry a bit, laugh a lot, and generally fall in love with the characters. I've since gone ahead and ordered the rest of the Chicago Stars books, and can't wait til they're in my hot little hands. I can see why SEP has such a following. Good stuff, Maynard.

Rating: ****1/2 out of *****

Labels: reviews, SEP

The Windy City isn't quite ready for Phoebe Somerville -- the outrageous, curvaceous New York knockout who has just inherited the Chicago Stars football team. And Phoebe is definitely not ready for teh Stars' head coach, former gridiron legend Dan Calebow, a sexist jock taskmaster with a one-track mind. Calebow is everything Phoebe abhors. And the sexy new boss is everything Dan despises -- a meddling bimbo who doesn't know a pigskin from a pitcher's mound.

So why is Dan drawn to the shameless sexpot like a heat-seeking missile? And why does the coach's good ol' boy charm leave cosmopolitan Phoebe feeling awkward, tongue-tied...and ready to fight?

The sexy, heartwarmingm, and hilarious "prequel" to "This Heart of Mine" -- Susan Elizabeth Phillips' New York Times bestselling blockbuster -- "It Had To Be You" is an enchanting story of two stubborn people who believe in playing for keeps.

I am so late to jump on the SEP bandwagon, but the real cool thing is that it's never TOO late to start up a good thing. (Plus I had read "Ain't She Sweet?" already, so I'm not completely clueless about SEP). Tracy had written a good review of this book several months ago and I ended up buying the book soon after reading her review, and now finally, because SEP lives in my area and she's having a booksigning in February, I decided to prepare myself.

When we first meet Phoebe Somerville, it is at the funeral of her father Bert, where she tottles in with her poodle and Hungarian lover. Needless to say she causes a scene. This does not impress Coach Calebow or any of the other men working for the Stars. When they later find out that she is their new owner, well, lets just say nobody's happy, and that includes Phoebe.

Phoebe only ever wanted her father's love, and when she finds out that he left her the Chicago Stars, with conditions of course, she's hurt and angry. She's never liked football, and can't believe that even in death he would continue to humiliate and reject her. She has a younger sister who hates her, a football team she doesn't know what to do with, and until the team is turned over to her cousin Reed, she has no money. Phoebe decides to go back to New York and leave the team to their own devices.

Dan Calebow has had just about all he can take of this spoiled airhead who refuses to answer her phone or deal with any decisions involving the team. He flies to New York to give her a piece of his mind, and to drag her back to Chicago and face her responsibilities. Reluctantly Phoebe agrees to return, though she's definitely not happy about it. To top it all off, Dan affects her more strongly than any other man ever has, and this makes her nervous. Used to using her blatant sexuality to scare men off, she doesn't know how to deal with one who ends up intimidating her instead.

Once Phoebe returns to Chicago, she starts getting involved in the business, and going to the games. She learns how superstitious ballplayers are, and must follow certain traditions in order to appease the players. She still doesn't know much about football, but Phoebe can talk a good game to get what she wants. Over time, she begins to care for the players, and her feelings for Dan grow stronger. She tries to keep her distance, but because he's the coach, he's always around.

As for Dan, he's not sure what to make of Phoebe, but he knows he doesn't like her very much. She's brassy, over-the-top sexy, and comes across as a bimbo, and he knows he doesn't want to be another notch on her bedpost, even though he's incredibly hot for her. No, Dan is tired of games and of high maintenance women. He's looking for a nice girl, one who loves kids and won't give him any trouble. He thinks he's found one in a shy school teacher, and goes about courting her. But why can't he get Phoebe out of his head???

My thoughts:

When I first started reading the book, I didn't like Phoebe or Dan very much. But then I got to know them, and find out what drives them to be the way they are. Both have been affected by what happened to them when they were younger, Phoebe moreso than Dan, and it sets the tone for their actions. I'm not big on heroines who hide their intelligence like Phoebe does, but we learn what's behind her motivation and we see how it works for her. I did find it clever how she would use her physical appearance to outwit men who expected to get what they saw on the outside, and didn't pay much attention to what Phoebe had going on upstairs.

As for Dan, it took him awhile, but he finally caught on to Phoebe, and he realized just how smart she really was. He also had to own up to the fact that sometimes, she might just be right about how strict he was with the team, and that maybe she knew best. He was just as guilty as others when he pegged her as a stupid bimbo, but as he got to know her and see her around her younger sister, and how warm and caring and smart and sassy she was, he fell like a ton of bricks. Only he fought it every step of the way. Dan could be just as stubborn as Phoebe, and this lead to some heartache for both of them until a dangerous situation wakes them both up to their feelings.

I ended up devouring the book, and liking how once again, like she did in "Ain't She Sweet?", Susan Elizabeth Phillips can take initially unlikeable characters and endear them to the reader. I loved it when Phoebe would get the best of some guy who thought she was just an airhead, and I loved that Dan gave her props for her unconventional way of using her smarts, even admiring her for it.

What I didn't like, and anyone who's read the book can probably guess, is the way a traumatic experience from Phoebe's past, one that still haunted her years later, was neatly forgotten almost from the moment she fell in love with Dan. Once she revealed to Dan what had happened to her, it was like she was healed almost immediately, and it didn't feel right to me. And I would have liked it if Dan would have been a man and actually been more apologetic for being such a jerk to her, like he was better than her or something. Eventually though, the guy grew on me, and I was just so happy that Phoebe found a man who understood her, and loved her for the free spirit she was.

Overall though, I enjoyed the book, and I'm glad I have the next 2 in the Stars series. I would definitely recommend it to the one or two romance readers on the planet who haven't yet read SEP.

Rating: **** out of *****

Labels: SEP