Emilie Rose

Bending to the Bachelor's Will
4 Stars

Glass artist Holly Prescott and banker Eric Alden are exact opposites, but this doesn't stop them from becoming an unlikely couple when Eric asks Holly to bid on him at the Bachelor Auction so that he can escape the clutches of the money hungry socialites. Unfortunately, their plan to skip out on the required dates falls flat when a local journalist insists on documenting their every move. Soon Holly and Eric are actually dating and enjoying each other much more than either expected.

A sweet romance with a charming couple.

Holly and Eric have great chemistry and it is fun watching them put aside their preconceived notions about one another and see who the other person really is.

… (altro)

The Ties that Bind
4 Stars

Pierce Hollister never wanted to be a father. Nevertheless, when his ex-girlfriend disappears and he is left with their son, Pierce realizes that he needs help. Anna Aronson, a recently terminated kindergarten teacher, is overqualified for the job and has a child of her own. But desperate times call for desperate measures, and soon Anna and the toddlers are working their way past Pierce's defenses. Can he overcome his distrust to find family, love and happiness?

Hmm... this is one of those books that is enjoyable because of rather than despite its problems. The hero is an obnoxious jerk for 2/3s of the book, but it is impossible not to fall for him because the heroine sees his potential to be a loving father and giving lover, and the reader wants him to live up to her expectations.

The romance is excellent as Pierce and Anna have tangible chemistry and their snarky interactions are very entertaining. Anna is more than capable of standing up to Pierce's domineering and overbearing tendencies, and she gives as good as she gets.

The two toddlers, Cody and Graham, are simply adorable and their shenanigans could melt even the hardest of hearts - as they do with Pierce.

The ending is somewhat contrived and the epilogue saccharine sweet, but this is a Harlequin romance so it is to be expected.… (altro)

This turned out better than I expected after reading the first 40 pages. These 2 have been separated for 11 years. The day of their wedding they were in a car accident. Each of them blames themselves for the wreck. The heroine, Nadia, had been told that her husband had died too. He on the other hand was told that she blamed him for the accident and didn't want to be married to him anymore. He takes money from her father to leave and never see her again. I had trouble forgiving him for that. The author did an okay job getting around it and making him somewhat forgivable for it. Plus he does eventually near the end of the book regret it and acknowledge that he had been a coward to take it. Anyhoo, the book starts after the manipulative father has died and has set up a very wonky will. The hero and heroine meet again. The part of the story that bothered me the most is that even knowing that he took money to leave her, Nadia basically lets him walk all over her. I have no gripe with them falling back in love but I felt like she should have been slamming a few more doors in his arrogant face. It picked up a bit later on and I felt like the relationship was more balanced. There was a fairly good grovel scene at the end and over all I enjoyed the book.… (altro)