Sheila Claydon

Ellie Masters and "Andy Smith" are called in to work on a luxury cruise liner after the previous cruise director's drunkenness almost ruined the liner's reputation. Andy takes over as cruise director, and Ellie is a lead dancer in charge of organizing rehearsals and creating a new show. As the two work closely together to bring the ship up to standards, they fnd themselves facing an undeniable attraction. But Andy has a secret. He is really Drew Pennington-Smith, a well-known playboy whose family owns the company. Just when he decides to tell Ellie the truth, he discovers a traitor is on board, and things begin to spiral out of control.

I really enjoyed the way this book began, but before long it began relying on cliched plot twists, and I quickly lost interest. I finished the book for the sake of this review, but it fell flat and certainly did not live up to my expectations, considering the other favorable reviews. First of all, Drew/Andy and Ellie have an instant spark. He realizes right away that it's more than physical, even though he doesn't really know anything about her, and he's a well-known womanizer. As if the love-at-first-sight element isn't hard enough to swallow, these two overreact constantly in the beginning. They both get jealous and angry for no reason, and as a result, Drew acts like a jerk. In real life, I'd be concerned about his possessive behavior. There is a misunderstanding of sorts that separates the couple, and then they get back together in an obvious, scripted way. If this were an on-screen musical, it might be over-the-top fun, but in a book, it comes across as slightly boring and ridiculous.

I enjoy witty dialogue between main characters, and that was sadly missing from this book. It's too bad, because I felt the setting and basic premise had a lot of potential.… (altro)