It was okay. I did not like the hero, the TV producer of a "Girls Gone Wild" type of show. He redeemed himself to the heroine by the end, but the about-face from complete misogynist asshole to lovable person didn't work for me. Though the hero is described as beautiful, knowing his attitude toward people I couldn't picture him as attractive. ( )

This was one of my weekend audiobook adventures, and it carried over into listening in the morning while I was getting ready and going to work. The bad thing about listening in short bursts like that (for me, anyway) is that I don't feel totally connected to the story because I am starting and stopping so much.

Our hero in this first installment of the Billionaires and Bridesmaids series is Rob Cannon. Rob owns a TV network known as the Man Channel where he produces a show similar to Girls Gone Wild. After learning all of this about Rob, the only person I could envision him as was Joe Francis. No matter what I did, I just could not get that picture out of my head. So that kinda ruined his character for me. He was a bit of a sleazeball, but I ended up liking him by the end. I just couldn't get into the romance b/c I had the wrong picture in my head.

Marjorie is an old lady in a 24 y/o virgin's body. She even has her friends call her "Marge." Yikes. She is also 6'1", stork-like and insecure. I loved how Rob treated her, helping to build her self-esteem and not intimated when she was 6" taller than him in her heels. I usually like to envision myself as the lead character of the story, but I did not have a single thing in common with Marjorie, so I could not do that here. She was an okay character, just not one I could relate to, and she got on my nerves a little bit.

So this was somewhat of a fluff read, just straight romance from the first meetcute, through the relationship building, then the drama, and a nice epilogue. This is a spinoff of the Billionaire Boys Club series, which I have not had the chance to read yet, so I kinda wish I would have started there. It seems that most of the secondary characters in this book were from that series, and I would have liked to know their backstory. So even though this was not my favorite by this author, I am a big enough fan and interested enough to continue reading the series. 3 stars / 3 flames. ( )

This was one of my weekend audiobook adventures, and it carried over into listening in the morning while I was getting ready and going to work. The bad thing about listening in short bursts like that (for me, anyway) is that I don't feel totally connected to the story because I am starting and stopping so much.

Our hero in this first installment of the Billionaires and Bridesmaids series is Rob Cannon. Rob owns a TV network known as the Man Channel where he produces a show similar to Girls Gone Wild. After learning all of this about Rob, the only person I could envision him as was Joe Francis. No matter what I did, I just could not get that picture out of my head. So that kinda ruined his character for me. He was a bit of a sleazeball, but I ended up liking him by the end. I just couldn't get into the romance b/c I had the wrong picture in my head.

Marjorie is an old lady in a 24 y/o virgin's body. She even has her friends call her "Marge." Yikes. She is also 6'1", stork-like and insecure. I loved how Rob treated her, helping to build her self-esteem and not intimated when she was 6" taller than him in her heels. I usually like to envision myself as the lead character of the story, but I did not have a single thing in common with Marjorie, so I could not do that here. She was an okay character, just not one I could relate to, and she got on my nerves a little bit.

So this was somewhat of a fluff read, just straight romance from the first meetcute, through the relationship building, then the drama, and a nice epilogue. This is a spinoff of the Billionaire Boys Club series, which I have not had the chance to read yet, so I kinda wish I would have started there. It seems that most of the secondary characters in this book were from that series, and I would have liked to know their backstory. So even though this was not my favorite by this author, I am a big enough fan and interested enough to continue reading the series. 3 stars / 3 flames. ( )

Sorry folks, can't say anything nice about this story. The Hero isn't likable, redeemable, nor written with any consistency. The Heroine is... vanilla in a world of 31 flavors. I have listened to few of the author's stories now, and looking back to the first one, each subsequent story was less interesting by half. I made it half way through this one and decided "Enough!" ( )

Review courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales

Quick & Dirty: A fast paced read, but the sleazy hero made it hard for me to truly enjoy my time spent with this book.

Opening Sentence: Marjorie Ivarsson adjusted the bow on her behind and craned her neck, trying to look in the mirror at the back of her dress.

The Review:

Marjorie works hard as a waitress. So it feel s a little odd to have some time off at an expensive island resort in order to be bridesmaid in one of her best friend’s weddings. When not occupied with wedding activities, Marjorie enjoys spending time with elderly guests at the resort. Raised by her grandparents, Marjorie has always felt more comfortable with that age group and has tried not to think too much about how much she would like to meet the right man. She can’t help but think of it though when she meets Rob Cannon.

Rob Cannon has worked hard to become the head of the Man Channel – a cable network devoted to a variety of sleazy shows. He has never felt guilty about the work he does. Then he meets Marjorie, and her innocence causes him to reevaluate some aspects of his life. The more time he spends with her, the deeper in love he falls, and the more terrified he gets about what her reaction to his job is going to be. He knows the time is coming when he’ll have to tell her. Will she still like him once she finds out, or will he lose the woman who has become more important to him than any job?

I was pleasantly surprised by the first Jessica Clare book I read, so I was looking forward to reading this one. Unfortunately, this one didn’t quite measure up to my expectations. On the good side, the book is very fast paced and entertaining. I read it in one day, which is usually a great sign. Unfortunately, what drags the book down is a main couple that is very hard to connect to.

On the one hand, we have Marjorie. She’s very sweet, but almost too naive to be believable. Her insecurity about her height also got old quickly. I understand that some tall women can be insecure about always towering over their dates, but the constant repetition about how uncomfortable she was just got to be too much.

And then there’s Rob. From the moment he’s introduced, he just comes off as sleazy. Sure, a lot of it has to do with his job, but the way he keeps confronting Logan (the groom) doesn’t do much to help matters. Plus, every other word out of his mouth is a swear, and that’s just a turn off for me personally. Because of those two things, I never really warmed up to him. I could tell his feelings for Marjorie were genuine, but I just couldn’t see what she liked about him.

All in all, while this was a fast paced and entertaining read, it wasn’t a great one. If the characters had been a bit more likeable, I probably would have a completely different opinion. This won’t stop me from reading other Jessica Clare books, but I will go into them with a bit more trepidation than I did this one.

Notable Scene:

“There. You are now officially rescued, sir.”

Damn it, he wanted that kiss. But if she was missing his signals, maybe he needed to let it go. “You saved me,” he joked. “How can I ever repay you?”

“Why, take me dancing,” she told him in a merry voice. “I promise to vomit all over your shoes and mine.”

Rob threw back his head and laughed, delighted at her sense of humor. This was Marjorie, not the simpering girl from earlier. This was the woman he’d wanted from the moment he’d laid his eyes on her.

Everything she said just convinced him even more that she was right for him.

She nudged his shoulder, still grinning down at him. “You should probably get up out of the water,” she told him. “I think someone’s coming.”

He glanced down the beach, and sure enough, two shapes were heading in this direction. It was a couple, holding hands and walking, and as he squinted, he could just barely make out who it was.

Logan-goddamn-Hawkings and his soon-to-be bride.

Ah, shit. If they saw him here on the beach with Marjorie, everything would be over. Logan’s people would swoop in and hide Marjorie away from him and he’d never see her again. She’d have her ears filled with what a horrible fucking person he was and how she was better off avoiding scum like him.

He had to come up with something, quick. Something to distract the couple heading toward them before they made it any closer. Something to distract Marjorie before she realized just who was approaching. Luckily for him, she still leaned over him, smiling, her focus entirely on him and not the people heading in their direction. He only had seconds to figure something out.

So he did the only thing that came to mind. “I’m pretty sure this wasn’t how it went last time you saved me,” Rob murmured to Marjorie. “If I recall, it went a little something like this.”

And he grabbed her and hauled her down against him, pressing her mouth against his.

FTC Advisory: Penguin provided me with a copy of The Billionaire and the Virgin. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review. ( )