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The Reluctant Nude
Chipping away at her resistance, one touch at a time…
Fallon Frost’s late foster mother had done so much to heal the wounds of her damaged childhood. So when a lecherous developer plans to bulldoze her old home to make room for a strip mall, the practical, ordered life Fallon has built for herself is threatened.
Then he makes a twisted proposal. He’ll leave the land alone if she poses nude for a sculpture that’ll end up in his collection. Seeing no other choice, she heads for Nova Scotia—only to find something totally unexpected. A sexy, hot-blooded, infuriating sculptor.
Guarded, sexually detached Fallon is a challenge Max Emery can’t wait to tackle. Yet with each tap of his chisel, he uncovers a woman who rekindles a dream he thought lost. Home, family…love. And the closer he gets to her core, the harder it becomes to accept that he’s carving her naked body for another man’s eyes.
As progress on the sculpture almost grinds to a halt, their fragile fantasy world collapses under the weight of reality. Threatening Fallon’s one chance to save her foster mother’s land…and any chance she and Max have to find love.
Fallon Frost’s late foster mother had done so much to heal the wounds of her damaged childhood. So when a lecherous developer plans to bulldoze her old home to make room for a strip mall, the practical, ordered life Fallon has built for herself is threatened.
Then he makes a twisted proposal. He’ll leave the land alone if she poses nude for a sculpture that’ll end up in his collection. Seeing no other choice, she heads for Nova Scotia—only to find something totally unexpected. A sexy, hot-blooded, infuriating sculptor.
Guarded, sexually detached Fallon is a challenge Max Emery can’t wait to tackle. Yet with each tap of his chisel, he uncovers a woman who rekindles a dream he thought lost. Home, family…love. And the closer he gets to her core, the harder it becomes to accept that he’s carving her naked body for another man’s eyes.
As progress on the sculpture almost grinds to a halt, their fragile fantasy world collapses under the weight of reality. Threatening Fallon’s one chance to save her foster mother’s land…and any chance she and Max have to find love.
170 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 1, 2011
10 people are currently reading
1285 people want to read
About the author
Meg Maguire
31 books270 followersSince she began writing in 2008, Meg Maguire has published nearly forty romances and erotic novels with a variety of publishers, sometimes under the pen names Cara McKenna and C.M. McKenna. Her stories have been acclaimed for their smart, modern voice and defiance of convention. She was a 2015 RITA Award finalist, a 2014 RT Reviewers’ Choice Award winner, a 2012 and 2011 RT Reviewers’ Choice Award nominee, and a 2010 Golden Heart Award finalist. She lives with her husband and baby son in the Pacific Northwest, though she’ll always be a Boston girl at heart.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 136 reviews
August 15, 2016
3 stars. Review posted August 15, 2016
“You have quite extraordinary eyes,” Max announced suddenly, and Fallon couldn’t help but raise them to meet his.
“Thanks.”
“What would you call that color?”
“Um, gray.”
“Cerulean,” he corrected. “Not the blue. One coat of green cerulean over white stoneware.”
“You’ve lost me. Is this pottery?”
“Your eyes,” Max continued, “are the color of a two-inch-thick pane of tempered glass.”
Cara McKenna (Meg Maguire is her pen name) writes deliciously scrumptious heroes, and Max is no exception to the rule. It goes without saying that he was my main focus because I could not warm up to the heroine, Fallon. I found her to be tedious and boring. Also, the rushed ending fell kind of flat and was a slight disappointment. I think that The Reluctant Nude had the potential to be a great read, just didn't fully deliver, IMO. Regardless, it's still worth reading thanks to Max.
“You have quite extraordinary eyes,” Max announced suddenly, and Fallon couldn’t help but raise them to meet his.
“Thanks.”
“What would you call that color?”
“Um, gray.”
“Cerulean,” he corrected. “Not the blue. One coat of green cerulean over white stoneware.”
“You’ve lost me. Is this pottery?”
“Your eyes,” Max continued, “are the color of a two-inch-thick pane of tempered glass.”
Cara McKenna (Meg Maguire is her pen name) writes deliciously scrumptious heroes, and Max is no exception to the rule. It goes without saying that he was my main focus because I could not warm up to the heroine, Fallon. I found her to be tedious and boring. Also, the rushed ending fell kind of flat and was a slight disappointment. I think that The Reluctant Nude had the potential to be a great read, just didn't fully deliver, IMO. Regardless, it's still worth reading thanks to Max.
April 15, 2011
This was one of those books I read in one sitting because pausing for any length of time was completely out of the question. It's just a shame I started it at 11:30 at night. 3:30 in the morning hit like a ton of bricks.
Not entirely of her own volition, Fallon Frost headed north from her life on Long Island to visit the Cape Breton studio of a world-renowned classical sculptor. A frequent professional adversary, and spurned would-be suitor, has made her a deal as irresistible as it is detestable. He'll give her the deed to her late foster mother's property free and clear if she sits for a nude statue for his collection. If she declines, he'll clear the property for commercial development. Determined to preserve the site of her few happy memories of a childhood spent in foster care, she's put her dignity on hold and fully intends to see to her end of the bargain.
M.L. "Max" Emery finds the woman in his studio an intriguing puzzle. Every time she mentions the "fiancé" who's paying him an absurdly high commission for this statue, she stumbles on the word as though it were "a bit of gristle." She's refused all of the escape opportunities he's offered her, yet she's clearly unhappy to be posing for this statue, or him. She's all but made clear that she needs him and this commission, yet she responds to him with barely disguised dislike. After eight years of self-imposed exile, Max finds Fallon an irresistible challenge and a welcome change of pace.
The story that follows is a deliciously-written, slow-burning romance steeped in emotion. Neither one of them enters into this arrangement terribly willing, and neither is looking for romance. Both have their worlds' knocked a bit off kilter by the other and don't quite know how to react to it. Their initial reaction is confusion, which works its way out in their verbal sparring. The more they talk, the more they begin to realize their attraction, and they begin to flirt. Finally their attraction manifests in passion, and it's all the more powerful for the long build up to get there.
Watching these two talk and flirt was just a joy. I especially enjoyed Max's character. I liked that his speech was written in plain English, but with a unique diction and syntax that set it apart as slightly foreign. He was such a delightful mix of traits, as well, being both self-assured and incredibly vulnerable at the same time. I loved watching him unsettle and intrigue Fallon with his eccentricities as well as his earnestness.
Although this is what I like to think of as a "talky romance," where the focus is on their conversations and the relationship that forms from them, I have to commend the author for how she wrote what sex scenes are present. They're flawlessly integrated into the character development in a way sex scenes rarely are. They go well beyond simple penetration, by which I mean that they seemed to reflect that sex is more than a bit of the old in-out. The focus on foreplay and just the sharing of pleasure between them amplified the uniqueness of the couple. Though they're not especially graphic or risqué, they were some of the hottest love scenes I've read.
Only a very few things held this back from five-star status. For one, I thought Fallon's character was a bit lost and perhaps overwhelmed by Max's presence. There was a lot about her that was hinted at and then just never resolved. Secondly, the ending wasn't worthy of the rest of the book. 90% of the novel is steeped in realism and true-to-life conversation and behavior, then the ending shows up, straight out of Romancelandia. It's not a bad ending, and it's absolutely a HEA, but it was too convenient and too neat for the rest of the book. It's a small quibble, really, but there you have it.
The book was such a sparking joy to read, that I want to just walk up to strangers on the sidewalk and tell them to read it. I can't wait to have my mom read it on her new Nook, and I only give her "conversion-quality" romances, since she's a romance genre doubter. It's just that kind of character-focused book that leaves you with a long-lasting impression. I won't forget Max or Fallon any time soon, that's for sure.
Not entirely of her own volition, Fallon Frost headed north from her life on Long Island to visit the Cape Breton studio of a world-renowned classical sculptor. A frequent professional adversary, and spurned would-be suitor, has made her a deal as irresistible as it is detestable. He'll give her the deed to her late foster mother's property free and clear if she sits for a nude statue for his collection. If she declines, he'll clear the property for commercial development. Determined to preserve the site of her few happy memories of a childhood spent in foster care, she's put her dignity on hold and fully intends to see to her end of the bargain.
M.L. "Max" Emery finds the woman in his studio an intriguing puzzle. Every time she mentions the "fiancé" who's paying him an absurdly high commission for this statue, she stumbles on the word as though it were "a bit of gristle." She's refused all of the escape opportunities he's offered her, yet she's clearly unhappy to be posing for this statue, or him. She's all but made clear that she needs him and this commission, yet she responds to him with barely disguised dislike. After eight years of self-imposed exile, Max finds Fallon an irresistible challenge and a welcome change of pace.
The story that follows is a deliciously-written, slow-burning romance steeped in emotion. Neither one of them enters into this arrangement terribly willing, and neither is looking for romance. Both have their worlds' knocked a bit off kilter by the other and don't quite know how to react to it. Their initial reaction is confusion, which works its way out in their verbal sparring. The more they talk, the more they begin to realize their attraction, and they begin to flirt. Finally their attraction manifests in passion, and it's all the more powerful for the long build up to get there.
Watching these two talk and flirt was just a joy. I especially enjoyed Max's character. I liked that his speech was written in plain English, but with a unique diction and syntax that set it apart as slightly foreign. He was such a delightful mix of traits, as well, being both self-assured and incredibly vulnerable at the same time. I loved watching him unsettle and intrigue Fallon with his eccentricities as well as his earnestness.
Although this is what I like to think of as a "talky romance," where the focus is on their conversations and the relationship that forms from them, I have to commend the author for how she wrote what sex scenes are present. They're flawlessly integrated into the character development in a way sex scenes rarely are. They go well beyond simple penetration, by which I mean that they seemed to reflect that sex is more than a bit of the old in-out. The focus on foreplay and just the sharing of pleasure between them amplified the uniqueness of the couple. Though they're not especially graphic or risqué, they were some of the hottest love scenes I've read.
Only a very few things held this back from five-star status. For one, I thought Fallon's character was a bit lost and perhaps overwhelmed by Max's presence. There was a lot about her that was hinted at and then just never resolved. Secondly, the ending wasn't worthy of the rest of the book. 90% of the novel is steeped in realism and true-to-life conversation and behavior, then the ending shows up, straight out of Romancelandia. It's not a bad ending, and it's absolutely a HEA, but it was too convenient and too neat for the rest of the book. It's a small quibble, really, but there you have it.
The book was such a sparking joy to read, that I want to just walk up to strangers on the sidewalk and tell them to read it. I can't wait to have my mom read it on her new Nook, and I only give her "conversion-quality" romances, since she's a romance genre doubter. It's just that kind of character-focused book that leaves you with a long-lasting impression. I won't forget Max or Fallon any time soon, that's for sure.
June 30, 2011
4.5 stars. The summary for this book sounds like a generic flip contemporary romance, and pretty much every scene that doesn’t involve the hero reads like a generic flip contemporary romance. Fortunately those scenes are very rare. This is one of those lovely romances where the main characters spend almost all of the book together, discovering each other.
Fallon and Max come together through some sort of unconvincing, convoluted scheme by Fallon’s enemy/frenemy Donald. For some neurotic reason of his own, Donald is willing to pay Max $700,000 to sculpt Fallon naked; the reward for her willingness is he won’t destroy property that she cares deeply about. Never mind how dumb this is, it gets them together and that’s the important thing.
Max is a beautifully drawn depiction of a passionate artist. His eccentricities are both charming and believable; I found his backstory and present story completely convincing. I also utterly adored him. Some of my favorite Max moments:
“‘Are you going to make me get naked in public? There’s a lot of boats out there.’
He laughed, the sadness seeming to leave him. ‘Of course not. I’m difficult, not cruel, you know.’”
***
(A note) Running. See you at 9:45 for coffee and awkward, post-coital niceities.
***
“‘That sounds…’ She trailed off, thinking. ‘That sounds very normal.;
Max shrugged. ‘I am willing to be normal, if it will have me.’”
He’s also hot and French and brilliant and a great cook. Love him.
Fallon was iffier. I never understood why she was felt so messed up, and since in some ways she’s such a cliched romance heroine (frigid til she meets the hero), it seem like her issues were more plot shorthand than anything real. But the interactions between Max and Fallon are so electric, poignant and powerful, it never seemed like a mismatch.
At the beginning of the story, Fallon gives Max a magazine clipping showing the risque pose Donald has requested. Max refuses, saying “I’m not a pornographer... if he has seen my work, he knows what I do. Sensual. Not obscene.” That’s a fitting quote for this story, which is all about sensuality that comes from true intimacy. I couldn’t begin to categorize how “graphic” the love scenes are or aren’t, because I didn’t notice; they were just right.
It's not a perfect book, but it comes damn close.
Fallon and Max come together through some sort of unconvincing, convoluted scheme by Fallon’s enemy/frenemy Donald. For some neurotic reason of his own, Donald is willing to pay Max $700,000 to sculpt Fallon naked; the reward for her willingness is he won’t destroy property that she cares deeply about. Never mind how dumb this is, it gets them together and that’s the important thing.
Max is a beautifully drawn depiction of a passionate artist. His eccentricities are both charming and believable; I found his backstory and present story completely convincing. I also utterly adored him. Some of my favorite Max moments:
“‘Are you going to make me get naked in public? There’s a lot of boats out there.’
He laughed, the sadness seeming to leave him. ‘Of course not. I’m difficult, not cruel, you know.’”
***
(A note) Running. See you at 9:45 for coffee and awkward, post-coital niceities.
***
“‘That sounds…’ She trailed off, thinking. ‘That sounds very normal.;
Max shrugged. ‘I am willing to be normal, if it will have me.’”
He’s also hot and French and brilliant and a great cook. Love him.
Fallon was iffier. I never understood why she was felt so messed up, and since in some ways she’s such a cliched romance heroine (frigid til she meets the hero), it seem like her issues were more plot shorthand than anything real. But the interactions between Max and Fallon are so electric, poignant and powerful, it never seemed like a mismatch.
At the beginning of the story, Fallon gives Max a magazine clipping showing the risque pose Donald has requested. Max refuses, saying “I’m not a pornographer... if he has seen my work, he knows what I do. Sensual. Not obscene.” That’s a fitting quote for this story, which is all about sensuality that comes from true intimacy. I couldn’t begin to categorize how “graphic” the love scenes are or aren’t, because I didn’t notice; they were just right.
It's not a perfect book, but it comes damn close.
May 18, 2012
Here I go, jumping on the bandwagon. 4.5 stars.
What I loved about this:
** The pacing.
** The writing.
** The setting. Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. Boy, my country sure has some beautiful scenery.
** The Hero. Oh My God, the Hero. The way he looked, the way he talked (ESPECIALLY the way he talked), everything about him. This was so totally his story, I barely thought Fallon worthy of him. Another heroine that I would like to hip-check right out of her own book and take her place.
** The story. No, scratch that. Not the contrived circumstances that brought them together, but the story the two of them created when they met. And not the grand gesture ending or the super-sweet epilogue, just the character-driven story of their meeting and falling in love.
** The interplay between the characters, the chemistry, the tension.
What I didn't love about this:
** The circumstances of their meeting and the baddish bad guy who commissioned the sculpture felt a bit, what word am I looking for, clunky? It didn't really feel right to me, but hey - it got her to Cape Breton and once she was there I ceased to care about how or why she was there.
** The ending, again, felt a bit clunky. I understand completely what was intended, I understand it's an "Aww" moment, but I thought the characters deserved something a little more understated. That being said, it did make me "aww".
The things I loved far outweighed the things I didn't, so it only brings my rating down 1/2 star.
P.S. My snarky troll has surfaced and wants to know why virtually EVERY. SINGLE. ROMANCE. I've read in the past year or two has an EPILOGUE tacked on to it? Why can't a romance just end? Are we not allowed to imagine for ourselves what happens to the H/h after the HEA? Have we been spoon-fed every single bit of detail in a romance for so long that now we need the authors to PROVE to us that the HEA was just that?
I don't mean to pick on this book in particular, it's just indicative of a bigger trend that sometimes annoys the crap out of me.
June 26, 2011
Fallon's naughty fantasy:
Does it ever come to life in the book? You'll have to read it to find out. ;)
Does it ever come to life in the book? You'll have to read it to find out. ;)
November 19, 2015
There are already a lot of reviews for The Reluctant Nude, so I'll keep mine short.
I enjoyed this book more than I thought I would, because at first I was a little put off by our eccentric hero, Max Emery, who seemed so self centered I wasn’t sure I’d ever connect to him. The same was true for Fallon Frost who initially didn’t strike me as someone I could care for, but as we learned more about them, their lives, their passions, and as they connected as a couple, I found them to be compelling characters who I could help but invest in.
As for the story itself, the writing was good, and even though I had to overlook some of the more predictable twists, honestly, I really did enjoy it. It was romantic in a quirky kind of way, and for me, it was Max that carried the story and made it as enjoyable as it was. He was sexy and demanding and adorably peculiar... I loved him!
3.5/5
April 5, 2011
I wish I could pull the emotions I went through while reading this book out of my brain and implant them into all of yours so I don’t need to think of words to describe this reading experience. I happened to see Penny tweet awhile ago that she read The Reluctant Nude and thought it was fabulous. When I started to investigate the book, I realized Meg Maguire also writes under the name, Cara McKenna. I’ve read Willing Victim by Cara McKenna and was super impressed (although these two books are quite different.)
I found myself on such an intimate level with this book. I literally was pulled into these characters. I was there in the studio as Max worked. I was there in the ocean front town as the two of them fell in love. I can’t say exactly why this happened – the writing style of Meg Maguire, and the depth of her characters perfectly fit in this story. I just know that on the last page, I was not only physically a mess (pass me a tissue!) but this book will stick with me for a very long time.
Fallon is out of her element and she is very uncomfortable. In essence, she is being extorted by a very sleazy man. If she gets a nude marble sculpture of herself done by the world renown M.L. Emery, or Max, he will let her keep the land (that he currently owns) that once belonged to her foster mother. Having no other family, this land is very important to Fallon. So she uproots herself from the east coast of the US to Nova Scotia to go through with posing for this sculpture.
Max is not what she expects. He was a prodigy at 12 years old, and now at 33, he is done with the spotlight. He is now obsessed with sculpting those with severe physical disabilities, always searching for what is within the person. He decides to take this job because the money he will receive for it will allow him freedom to pursue his passion for quite awhile. So they each come into this arrangement not one hundred percent happy about it.
“She is more than just shy,” he said to the cat. “She wants this just a fraction more than she hates the idea of it.”
Fallon is very uncomfortable at first to bear herself to him. Not just taking off her clothes, but even a casual touch sends her into a shaky panic. Max has lived a very full life, and has tried to put the crazy drugs and wild lifestyle behind him these past few years. But his attraction to Fallon wakes him up and makes him want to take a chance again. Max is French and very blunt and this makes Fallon extremely uncomfortable and confused. Her lack of trust frustrates him, but it also intrigues him.
“You have extraordinary eyes,” Max announced suddenly, and Fallon couldn’t help but raise them to meet his.
“Thanks.”
“What would you call that color?”
“Um, gray.”
“Cerulean,” he corrected. “Not the blue. One coat of green cerulean over white stoneware.”
“You’ve lost me. Is this pottery?”
“Your eyes “ Max continued, “are the color of a two-inch-thick pane of tempered glass.”
Fallon couldn’t decide if this was poetry or evidence of some vague mental affliction.
From here, these two start to learn each other and trust each other. And eventually, after a beautiful build-up, they start to love each other. It’s Fallon coming to terms with her sexuality, and Max coming to terms with fame and his life. Their romance takes goes on such a sensual journey. Both of them waking up to where their physical needs now meet with the person they love perfectly.
“But you said you ‘waited so long’ for me. What, like a few weeks? I don’t understand. That’s nothing compared to all that time.”
“I have waited years for you. It took eight years for someone to come along and make me need to be this way again. It took thirty-three to find someone who made it mean something.”
And even though I knew this would have a happily ever after, towards the end I was a mess. I was so invested in Fallon and Max. The epilogue is beautifully done and a perfect ending to this book.
The Reluctant Nude is a gorgeous book that is pure romance. I really can’t recommend this one enough.
Rating: A+
I found myself on such an intimate level with this book. I literally was pulled into these characters. I was there in the studio as Max worked. I was there in the ocean front town as the two of them fell in love. I can’t say exactly why this happened – the writing style of Meg Maguire, and the depth of her characters perfectly fit in this story. I just know that on the last page, I was not only physically a mess (pass me a tissue!) but this book will stick with me for a very long time.
Fallon is out of her element and she is very uncomfortable. In essence, she is being extorted by a very sleazy man. If she gets a nude marble sculpture of herself done by the world renown M.L. Emery, or Max, he will let her keep the land (that he currently owns) that once belonged to her foster mother. Having no other family, this land is very important to Fallon. So she uproots herself from the east coast of the US to Nova Scotia to go through with posing for this sculpture.
Max is not what she expects. He was a prodigy at 12 years old, and now at 33, he is done with the spotlight. He is now obsessed with sculpting those with severe physical disabilities, always searching for what is within the person. He decides to take this job because the money he will receive for it will allow him freedom to pursue his passion for quite awhile. So they each come into this arrangement not one hundred percent happy about it.
“She is more than just shy,” he said to the cat. “She wants this just a fraction more than she hates the idea of it.”
Fallon is very uncomfortable at first to bear herself to him. Not just taking off her clothes, but even a casual touch sends her into a shaky panic. Max has lived a very full life, and has tried to put the crazy drugs and wild lifestyle behind him these past few years. But his attraction to Fallon wakes him up and makes him want to take a chance again. Max is French and very blunt and this makes Fallon extremely uncomfortable and confused. Her lack of trust frustrates him, but it also intrigues him.
“You have extraordinary eyes,” Max announced suddenly, and Fallon couldn’t help but raise them to meet his.
“Thanks.”
“What would you call that color?”
“Um, gray.”
“Cerulean,” he corrected. “Not the blue. One coat of green cerulean over white stoneware.”
“You’ve lost me. Is this pottery?”
“Your eyes “ Max continued, “are the color of a two-inch-thick pane of tempered glass.”
Fallon couldn’t decide if this was poetry or evidence of some vague mental affliction.
From here, these two start to learn each other and trust each other. And eventually, after a beautiful build-up, they start to love each other. It’s Fallon coming to terms with her sexuality, and Max coming to terms with fame and his life. Their romance takes goes on such a sensual journey. Both of them waking up to where their physical needs now meet with the person they love perfectly.
“But you said you ‘waited so long’ for me. What, like a few weeks? I don’t understand. That’s nothing compared to all that time.”
“I have waited years for you. It took eight years for someone to come along and make me need to be this way again. It took thirty-three to find someone who made it mean something.”
And even though I knew this would have a happily ever after, towards the end I was a mess. I was so invested in Fallon and Max. The epilogue is beautifully done and a perfect ending to this book.
The Reluctant Nude is a gorgeous book that is pure romance. I really can’t recommend this one enough.
Rating: A+
March 31, 2011
The Reluctant Nude by Meg Maguire
I have been seduced by a most alluring book.
It didn't seduce with flash or bling.
It had no pissing werewolves. No shapeshifting Orca whales. No explosions in outer space.
It had bread and cheese and coffee and wine. Alluring characters who were prickly and real and layered and lovely, seductive in a most charming and subtle way. It had a hero who was French, and sexy, but also quirky and odd and delicious. It had a heroine who was impatient and short-tempered and insecure and vulnerable. Their love developed slowly, as the artist chips away at his model's stony exterior, as she finally opens herself up to be loved. Slowly, seductively, wonderfully real.
I actually felt as though I were falling in love as I read this book. That has never happened to me before. I wasn't merely reading about these characters. I was falling in love just as they were--anxious, uncertain, joyful and happy.
There are not many authors who can capture the simple moments. Mary Balogh can. She can take a simple gesture, a moment, a scene, and transform it into something incredibly powerful, emotional and lovely. Which is why her books are so very romantic and satisfying.
Meg Maguire has this magic, too. She has the uncanny ability to transport the reader into her literary world, seduce us with her story, and make us feel the power of a loving connection. She takes simple moments and imbues them with incredible romantic intensity.
Her hero, Max, is extraordinary. One of the best heroes I've seen in romance. He is not your typical character. He is slightly odd but so charming and endearing, I fell hopelessly in love with him. Her heroine, Fallon, is less appealing. She is a prickly hedgehog. But the way Max coaxes her into opening up for him--in every way--is so wonderful, you are cheering for their happy ending. And worried about what will, or will not transpire, at the end of this book.
The plot is not really important here. It's the characters and their blossoming love that make this story sing. The storyline gets somewhat ridiculous at the end of the book, and unneccessary in my opinion. Max's heroic nature doesn't need to be revealed by any grand gesture. It's revealed in the smallest detail, in the way he loves Fallon.
I am just amazed by Maguire's talent, and by the lusciousness of this story. The ending is superb. I cried with the beauty and balance and perfection of it.
Although I have professed my dislike of contemporary romance repeatedly, I think this author might be swaying me over to the dark side. Her books are addictive, seductive, and powerful. I just can't get enough!
I fell in love with this book. It's going on my Top 10 Favorites List. And Max is definitely going on my Favorite Hero List.
Grade: A+
P.S. This book will be released on April 5!
Blissfully happy and jonesing for a French coffee,
Penelope
I have been seduced by a most alluring book.
It didn't seduce with flash or bling.
It had no pissing werewolves. No shapeshifting Orca whales. No explosions in outer space.
It had bread and cheese and coffee and wine. Alluring characters who were prickly and real and layered and lovely, seductive in a most charming and subtle way. It had a hero who was French, and sexy, but also quirky and odd and delicious. It had a heroine who was impatient and short-tempered and insecure and vulnerable. Their love developed slowly, as the artist chips away at his model's stony exterior, as she finally opens herself up to be loved. Slowly, seductively, wonderfully real.
I actually felt as though I were falling in love as I read this book. That has never happened to me before. I wasn't merely reading about these characters. I was falling in love just as they were--anxious, uncertain, joyful and happy.
There are not many authors who can capture the simple moments. Mary Balogh can. She can take a simple gesture, a moment, a scene, and transform it into something incredibly powerful, emotional and lovely. Which is why her books are so very romantic and satisfying.
Meg Maguire has this magic, too. She has the uncanny ability to transport the reader into her literary world, seduce us with her story, and make us feel the power of a loving connection. She takes simple moments and imbues them with incredible romantic intensity.
Her hero, Max, is extraordinary. One of the best heroes I've seen in romance. He is not your typical character. He is slightly odd but so charming and endearing, I fell hopelessly in love with him. Her heroine, Fallon, is less appealing. She is a prickly hedgehog. But the way Max coaxes her into opening up for him--in every way--is so wonderful, you are cheering for their happy ending. And worried about what will, or will not transpire, at the end of this book.
The plot is not really important here. It's the characters and their blossoming love that make this story sing. The storyline gets somewhat ridiculous at the end of the book, and unneccessary in my opinion. Max's heroic nature doesn't need to be revealed by any grand gesture. It's revealed in the smallest detail, in the way he loves Fallon.
I am just amazed by Maguire's talent, and by the lusciousness of this story. The ending is superb. I cried with the beauty and balance and perfection of it.
Although I have professed my dislike of contemporary romance repeatedly, I think this author might be swaying me over to the dark side. Her books are addictive, seductive, and powerful. I just can't get enough!
I fell in love with this book. It's going on my Top 10 Favorites List. And Max is definitely going on my Favorite Hero List.
Grade: A+
P.S. This book will be released on April 5!
Blissfully happy and jonesing for a French coffee,
Penelope
November 19, 2011
Story Rating 3.5 stars
Hero 5 stars
Heroine 2 stars
Romance Rating 4 stars
Heat level 3 stars
Overall Rating 3.5
I really did like this book but it just kind of lagged in the story for me and I did not care for the heroine much. Now the hero I absolutely loved.The relationship building in the book was really good and lots of dialog too. The sex/love scenes were few but were very well done and did fit in right were they should be.
I had a problem with the way the story ended and the epilog started but I was glad to see where their lives ended up.
Looking at all the 4 and 5 star ratings on this book's makes me feel off. I have to say if your planning to read this book, don't let my review sway you not to do so.
Hero 5 stars
Heroine 2 stars
Romance Rating 4 stars
Heat level 3 stars
Overall Rating 3.5
I really did like this book but it just kind of lagged in the story for me and I did not care for the heroine much. Now the hero I absolutely loved.The relationship building in the book was really good and lots of dialog too. The sex/love scenes were few but were very well done and did fit in right were they should be.
I had a problem with the way the story ended and the epilog started but I was glad to see where their lives ended up.
Looking at all the 4 and 5 star ratings on this book's makes me feel off. I have to say if your planning to read this book, don't let my review sway you not to do so.
April 24, 2011
4-Stars Contemporary Romance
Meg Maguire is a totally new author for me and though I added this to my wish-list way back in February/March when this title's blurb and release date became available under the "coming soon" section in Samhain, what really propelled me to get a copy was the rave reviews this book received right from the very day of its release. Though my reading progress has been slow with this one, it had nothing to do with the book but rather my busy schedule which prevented me from reading and reviewing this book as soon as I would have liked to.
The Reluctant Nude is the story of 33 year old sculptor Maxence Luc Èmery (Max) and 29 year old Fallon Frost who reluctantly comes to seek Max's services to fulfill her part of a bargain she makes with the devil himself. Most of the story takes place in Nova Scotia, Canada where Max has made a home for himself after his shot to fame when he was a mere 12 years old. An only child, Max though a world renowned sculptor prefers to live his life in seclusion, taking in clients as he sees fit.
The only thing that has him agreeing to take Donald Forrester on as a client is the large sum of money that he agrees to pay Max upon completion of Fallon's sculptor, an agreement that Max starts to regret as he chips away the resistance that Fallon hides behind so very well to reveal the passionate woman who Max comes to fall in love with.
One of the things I appreciated most about the story is the fact that Max and Fallon's relationship wasn't about being in lust at first sight. Rather, the story developed at a pace that was believable, lending the sexual tension that practically brought the pages alive a quality which it otherwise would have lacked. Though Max might not be an alpha hero through and through, nevertheless Max proves to be a dreamy and albeit a bit of an unusual hero who managed to squeeze a lot of emotion from me as the story progressed along.
Max's playful nature when it comes to Fallon with whom he feels comfortable with enough to let go of his celibacy for the past 8 years is an enjoyable facet in a story where the heroine is the more serious of the two, an aftereffect of the foster care system through which Fallon had grown up.
Both Max and Fallon are broken in their own way and come together to create scenes of lovemaking so beautiful and vivid that it just about took my breathe away and picked up my pulse damn near every single time. As I said before, its the pace that the author sets with the story and the beautiful way in which she brings to life the tormented soul of Max as well as that of Fallon's that makes this story a contemporary romance that all lovers of this genre must read.
Though I found Fallon to be lacking in some way which I can't really describe, I still loved the story that unfolded and absolutely adored Max right from the very beginning. The epilogue left a huge smile on my face, a fitting ending to a story that held me enthralled all throughout.
I finish off the review with a scene of seduction in the story where Max and Fallon lose themselves in a world of magic that they both can create only when they are together.
Meg Maguire is a totally new author for me and though I added this to my wish-list way back in February/March when this title's blurb and release date became available under the "coming soon" section in Samhain, what really propelled me to get a copy was the rave reviews this book received right from the very day of its release. Though my reading progress has been slow with this one, it had nothing to do with the book but rather my busy schedule which prevented me from reading and reviewing this book as soon as I would have liked to.
The Reluctant Nude is the story of 33 year old sculptor Maxence Luc Èmery (Max) and 29 year old Fallon Frost who reluctantly comes to seek Max's services to fulfill her part of a bargain she makes with the devil himself. Most of the story takes place in Nova Scotia, Canada where Max has made a home for himself after his shot to fame when he was a mere 12 years old. An only child, Max though a world renowned sculptor prefers to live his life in seclusion, taking in clients as he sees fit.
The only thing that has him agreeing to take Donald Forrester on as a client is the large sum of money that he agrees to pay Max upon completion of Fallon's sculptor, an agreement that Max starts to regret as he chips away the resistance that Fallon hides behind so very well to reveal the passionate woman who Max comes to fall in love with.
One of the things I appreciated most about the story is the fact that Max and Fallon's relationship wasn't about being in lust at first sight. Rather, the story developed at a pace that was believable, lending the sexual tension that practically brought the pages alive a quality which it otherwise would have lacked. Though Max might not be an alpha hero through and through, nevertheless Max proves to be a dreamy and albeit a bit of an unusual hero who managed to squeeze a lot of emotion from me as the story progressed along.
Max's playful nature when it comes to Fallon with whom he feels comfortable with enough to let go of his celibacy for the past 8 years is an enjoyable facet in a story where the heroine is the more serious of the two, an aftereffect of the foster care system through which Fallon had grown up.
Both Max and Fallon are broken in their own way and come together to create scenes of lovemaking so beautiful and vivid that it just about took my breathe away and picked up my pulse damn near every single time. As I said before, its the pace that the author sets with the story and the beautiful way in which she brings to life the tormented soul of Max as well as that of Fallon's that makes this story a contemporary romance that all lovers of this genre must read.
Though I found Fallon to be lacking in some way which I can't really describe, I still loved the story that unfolded and absolutely adored Max right from the very beginning. The epilogue left a huge smile on my face, a fitting ending to a story that held me enthralled all throughout.
I finish off the review with a scene of seduction in the story where Max and Fallon lose themselves in a world of magic that they both can create only when they are together.
April 7, 2011
This book is a romance novel with a very different feel. If it were a film, it would be an Indie or art house flick. It really 'reads' like one of those small, indie flicks that allow the characters to take time to think and react and have long silences. It allows a slow, seductive build of a relationship and of the characters themselves.
Continuing with my film analogy, it is a two-character study in several acts with only a few additional walk-on characters. This story belongs solely and exclusively to Fallon and Max.
I have to talk about Max, though. For me he is the heart of this story and an incredibly provocative character. He is a French ex-pat living in Canada. An ex-enfant terrible art prodigy, famous in art circles, and he even was a New York Times crossword clue.
What makes him so interesting (and for this I give the author major kudos) is that he felt very much alive and living in the body of the character the author created for him. From his effortless style, to his tattoos, to his cooking and wine and lapses into French, to his artistic tantrums...he just felt so darned real. At one point, Fallon muses that she wants to hold a mirror under the nose of one of Max's sculptures, so alive did it look. I felt the same way about Max. It got so bad that while I was reading Max's part in my head, I was doing it with a french accent. LOL.
He was also sweet and sweetly funny at the same time. At one point he takes Fallon to the movies because he finds out she likes musicals:
"How accurately would you say An American in Paris reflects the typical artists' lifestyle?" Fallon asked studiously as she squeezed water from her sweatshirt.
"Quite accurate. When you're not here I am forever dancing about with Parisian school children."
Fallon, otoh, gets a tiny bit lost amidst Max's brilliance. But to be fair, the book is told mostly from her POV so we are seeing Max through her eyes and getting her reactions to him. She is a really repressed, shut down character. She is the second romance novel heroine this week that I read about who grew up in foster homes (Kat in Bone Deep being the other) where the author used that to create a somewhat closed person.
But Fallon gets to blossom under Max. She is wary and somewhat antagonistic at first but max has an holistic artistic process that absorbs her. She just doesn't model for him, they talk and share history and eat together and ...well...they get nude. She because that is the reason she is there to have a nude statue made of herself, he because he is just very comfortable in his skin.
They slowly, inexorably draw closer. Their attraction and lust for each other becomes a palpable thing. Here I think the author excelled in drawing out the tension and letting it build and build. There was nothing overtly erotic about the story, but it is nonetheless very sexy and very romantic. But still in a quiet, indie-art house kinda way.
The conflict between the two comes because of the sculpture. Fallon is an unwilling model and is having the sculpture done to preserve a piece of her past but it is at a big cost to her personally. Max is falling in love and the reader is very clear about that. He can't finish the piece because that means their interlude will be over. This part of the book worked really well because by now the reader should really get Max and so his reactions here make total and utter sense. Fallon's does as well, but again ...sorry to say...Max's characterization just overwhelms hers a bit, imo.
But in the end this is a romance and it ends the way romances do. The epilogue was lovely and I felt really good that Max got what he wanted.
Really good book. Highly recommend.
Continuing with my film analogy, it is a two-character study in several acts with only a few additional walk-on characters. This story belongs solely and exclusively to Fallon and Max.
I have to talk about Max, though. For me he is the heart of this story and an incredibly provocative character. He is a French ex-pat living in Canada. An ex-enfant terrible art prodigy, famous in art circles, and he even was a New York Times crossword clue.
What makes him so interesting (and for this I give the author major kudos) is that he felt very much alive and living in the body of the character the author created for him. From his effortless style, to his tattoos, to his cooking and wine and lapses into French, to his artistic tantrums...he just felt so darned real. At one point, Fallon muses that she wants to hold a mirror under the nose of one of Max's sculptures, so alive did it look. I felt the same way about Max. It got so bad that while I was reading Max's part in my head, I was doing it with a french accent. LOL.
He was also sweet and sweetly funny at the same time. At one point he takes Fallon to the movies because he finds out she likes musicals:
"How accurately would you say An American in Paris reflects the typical artists' lifestyle?" Fallon asked studiously as she squeezed water from her sweatshirt.
"Quite accurate. When you're not here I am forever dancing about with Parisian school children."
Fallon, otoh, gets a tiny bit lost amidst Max's brilliance. But to be fair, the book is told mostly from her POV so we are seeing Max through her eyes and getting her reactions to him. She is a really repressed, shut down character. She is the second romance novel heroine this week that I read about who grew up in foster homes (Kat in Bone Deep being the other) where the author used that to create a somewhat closed person.
But Fallon gets to blossom under Max. She is wary and somewhat antagonistic at first but max has an holistic artistic process that absorbs her. She just doesn't model for him, they talk and share history and eat together and ...well...they get nude. She because that is the reason she is there to have a nude statue made of herself, he because he is just very comfortable in his skin.
They slowly, inexorably draw closer. Their attraction and lust for each other becomes a palpable thing. Here I think the author excelled in drawing out the tension and letting it build and build. There was nothing overtly erotic about the story, but it is nonetheless very sexy and very romantic. But still in a quiet, indie-art house kinda way.
The conflict between the two comes because of the sculpture. Fallon is an unwilling model and is having the sculpture done to preserve a piece of her past but it is at a big cost to her personally. Max is falling in love and the reader is very clear about that. He can't finish the piece because that means their interlude will be over. This part of the book worked really well because by now the reader should really get Max and so his reactions here make total and utter sense. Fallon's does as well, but again ...sorry to say...Max's characterization just overwhelms hers a bit, imo.
But in the end this is a romance and it ends the way romances do. The epilogue was lovely and I felt really good that Max got what he wanted.
Really good book. Highly recommend.
April 23, 2011
The Reluctant Nude by Meg Maguire was one I thought I’d really enjoy from all the buzz and raving reviews behind it. Halfway through, this story stalled for me. The major reason was the underdevelopment of the heroine, Fallon Frost. We’re told she has some deep seated issues and doesn’t seem comfortable with affection. I really couldn’t see it at all because of not showing and using the good old fall back device of telling to get a point across. Fallon is too one-dimensional and flat. I didn’t believe at any point the chemistry and passion world-renowned classical sculptor, Max Emery has for Fallon. Meg tries to make a good case why Max is attracted to Fallon and wants to break down those self-imposed walls she has placed around her, but the way it’s shown doesn’t have enough reasoning to back it up.
Fallon is trying to save her house from an evil, rich man, who we only see in passing through phone calls Fallon has with him. Fallon will be able to keep her house if she poses nude and has a sculptor made into her likeness by Max. With no other choice, Fallon accepts and will spend the three months it will take Max to create this work of art. He thinks Fallon is doing this for her fiancé and since he’s been given a great deal of money for the commission, he has no qualms about doing it. Right from the beginning he figures out Fallon is hiding something and he’ll get to the bottom of it. Max has a way of taunting Fallon into opening up, which slowly evolves into an interesting friendship between them that leads into the bedroom. As Fallon puts her heart on the line, she’ll eventually have to leave Max for her life she has put on hold, as well as try and tell him the truth about the why she’s being sculpted into stone.
I found Max to be very appealing as a playful, hermit like Frenchman who loves to eat and drink wine. Fallon is just too weakly written to keep up with him and carry along the story and the growing sexual tension between them. Max’s courting of Fallon is very slow until it builds up and explodes. The love scenes were tastefully done, but again because I couldn’t believe the bond Fallon and Max have created, I wasn’t involved emotionally. The writing isn’t bad, but I wasn’t swept up in what should have been a grand and all-consuming romance.
Fallon is trying to save her house from an evil, rich man, who we only see in passing through phone calls Fallon has with him. Fallon will be able to keep her house if she poses nude and has a sculptor made into her likeness by Max. With no other choice, Fallon accepts and will spend the three months it will take Max to create this work of art. He thinks Fallon is doing this for her fiancé and since he’s been given a great deal of money for the commission, he has no qualms about doing it. Right from the beginning he figures out Fallon is hiding something and he’ll get to the bottom of it. Max has a way of taunting Fallon into opening up, which slowly evolves into an interesting friendship between them that leads into the bedroom. As Fallon puts her heart on the line, she’ll eventually have to leave Max for her life she has put on hold, as well as try and tell him the truth about the why she’s being sculpted into stone.
I found Max to be very appealing as a playful, hermit like Frenchman who loves to eat and drink wine. Fallon is just too weakly written to keep up with him and carry along the story and the growing sexual tension between them. Max’s courting of Fallon is very slow until it builds up and explodes. The love scenes were tastefully done, but again because I couldn’t believe the bond Fallon and Max have created, I wasn’t involved emotionally. The writing isn’t bad, but I wasn’t swept up in what should have been a grand and all-consuming romance.
July 31, 2011
4.5 stars.
You know that delicious prickly feeling that you get on the nape of your neck when all your senses are on full alert? I had that so many times whilst reading parts of this book - usually in scenes that involved the hero, Max. Maguire's writing was flawless, poetic, resonant. I was whirled up into its magic for the 6 hours it took me to read this and felt its effect long after.
In saying that, The Reluctant Nude wasn't a perfect book. While it started right in the thick of things fairly quickly and didn't subject us to the boring where, what, why and when that's already covered in the blurb; it seemed to slow right down in the middle and I felt that we were going around in circles a little bit.
The heroine Fallon started off likable enough but grew tiresome at times. Especially as the H/h relationship was developing and I began to really wish she had just been honest with Max from the very beginning. I could understand the reasoning behind her motivations, but as the story went on that just wasn't enough for me and I actually started to resent her a little.
Max was perfect. Perfect. While I don't think he was particularly alpha or beta, I found it fascinating that he could wear his heart on his sleeve so passionately and yet still retain his amazing strength and masculinity. The hotness! And god he was so honest and had no problem with saying or doing what he wanted to and screw what anyone else thinks.
It broke my heart as I felt them becoming more involved. The sex scenes were beautifully written and were a perfect reflection of their feelings for one another. And Max's suffering as he was creating a sensual sculpture of the woman he was falling in love with for another man was palpable. He was literally falling apart.
Can I just say too that I felt the epilogue was one of the most poignant and beautifully written that I've ever read. It was perfect.
(Oh and thank you Jill for the rec!)
You know that delicious prickly feeling that you get on the nape of your neck when all your senses are on full alert? I had that so many times whilst reading parts of this book - usually in scenes that involved the hero, Max. Maguire's writing was flawless, poetic, resonant. I was whirled up into its magic for the 6 hours it took me to read this and felt its effect long after.
In saying that, The Reluctant Nude wasn't a perfect book. While it started right in the thick of things fairly quickly and didn't subject us to the boring where, what, why and when that's already covered in the blurb; it seemed to slow right down in the middle and I felt that we were going around in circles a little bit.
The heroine Fallon started off likable enough but grew tiresome at times. Especially as the H/h relationship was developing and I began to really wish she had just been honest with Max from the very beginning. I could understand the reasoning behind her motivations, but as the story went on that just wasn't enough for me and I actually started to resent her a little.
Max was perfect. Perfect. While I don't think he was particularly alpha or beta, I found it fascinating that he could wear his heart on his sleeve so passionately and yet still retain his amazing strength and masculinity. The hotness! And god he was so honest and had no problem with saying or doing what he wanted to and screw what anyone else thinks.
It broke my heart as I felt them becoming more involved. The sex scenes were beautifully written and were a perfect reflection of their feelings for one another. And Max's suffering as he was creating a sensual sculpture of the woman he was falling in love with for another man was palpable. He was literally falling apart.
Fallon sucked on her lower lip and stared up into the stars.And when you're thinking how on earth is this all going to work itself out, it does in its own rough and tumble way.
"Oh, she has reached her capacity for earnestness." Max tucked himself against her again. "Now we have to go back to fucking and talking about the weather."
"Shut up," she whispered.
"We can't talk about what I want to talk about," he said in a paper-thin imitation of levity. "We can't talk about what happens after the statue is done. We can't talk about the future or family or how much I'm bloody going to miss her---"
Fallon rolled out of bed and went to the stairs.
Can I just say too that I felt the epilogue was one of the most poignant and beautifully written that I've ever read. It was perfect.
(Oh and thank you Jill for the rec!)
October 17, 2012
This was an interesting story. I really liked the characters and the intense focus on them learning each other and slowly changing. I felt out of sync with the emotions most of the time, but everything clicked into place in that scene where Max finds out what led Fallon to posing for him. I think it was the only time I was caught up in the passion and emotion of the moment.
I really, really liked the hero, and while I enjoyed the heroine for the most part, on the whole she was much less interesting. I wish the ending had felt more natural. Their build up was so subtle and evenly paced throughout the rest of the book, and then the ending was dropped into the story, which didn't feel at all natural to the previous development between them.
Overall I enjoyed it and am interested in seeing what else this author has out.
I really, really liked the hero, and while I enjoyed the heroine for the most part, on the whole she was much less interesting. I wish the ending had felt more natural. Their build up was so subtle and evenly paced throughout the rest of the book, and then the ending was dropped into the story, which didn't feel at all natural to the previous development between them.
Overall I enjoyed it and am interested in seeing what else this author has out.
August 16, 2016
THREE & A HALF STARS-- Fallon Frost is being blackmailed into posing nude to save her late foster mother's home by villainous Donald Forrester, some creepy old man with an obsession (?). So much so that he shells out $700,000 to a reclusive French sculptor by the name of M.L. Emery, the story's hero.
Hmm...can I say I didn't like either one of these characters in the first quarter of this book. Max was a jerk and Fallon even more so. She was abrasive. Their dialogue showed the strain between them but their relationship gets better as the story progresses. Both characters felt like they became comfortable with themselves ad made the story better.
And at the end of the story, I like Fallon.
And Max? What he does for her? Maxence Luc Emery, je pense que je t'aime. I don't even speak French.
The blurb for this story was accurate but even after finishing this story, I still question this Donald Forrester character. Why does he have so much pull over Fallon's life? Why does he like her so much as to spend over half a million on a nude statue of her? And then since he was the huge chip on her shoulder...the way things ended for him and the way he just took it, doesn't make as much sense. Spending so much money on something like that means to me that this man has a lot of feelings for her, lecherous they might be. And he just gave them up, so quickly? *shrug*
But it's still a sweet little story. Romance readers should give this one a try.
Hmm...can I say I didn't like either one of these characters in the first quarter of this book. Max was a jerk and Fallon even more so. She was abrasive. Their dialogue showed the strain between them but their relationship gets better as the story progresses. Both characters felt like they became comfortable with themselves ad made the story better.
And at the end of the story, I like Fallon.
And Max? What he does for her? Maxence Luc Emery, je pense que je t'aime. I don't even speak French.
The blurb for this story was accurate but even after finishing this story, I still question this Donald Forrester character. Why does he have so much pull over Fallon's life? Why does he like her so much as to spend over half a million on a nude statue of her? And then since he was the huge chip on her shoulder...the way things ended for him and the way he just took it, doesn't make as much sense. Spending so much money on something like that means to me that this man has a lot of feelings for her, lecherous they might be. And he just gave them up, so quickly? *shrug*
But it's still a sweet little story. Romance readers should give this one a try.
April 9, 2011
The last place Fallon Frost wants to be is Nova Scotia. And the absolute last thing she wants to be doing is giving in to her perverted business opponent’s disturbing blackmail plan . . . but that’s just where Fallon finds herself. Sitting in the dusty studio of sculptor genius Max Emery, posing naked for three months while he renders a marble nude of her for a whopping $700, 000 blackmail fee. Joy.
‘The Reluctant Nude’ is a stand-alone contemporary erotica novel from new writer on the block, Meg Maguire . . . and with this book I think I have found a new must-read author!
This is a beautifully sensual, character-driven erotic novel. There are extenuating circumstances as to how Fallon and Max find themselves sharing an art studio for three months . . . These outside forces are somewhat outlandish and bizarre, but they’re not the driving force of this novel. What the book is really about is Max and Fallon – two polar opposites who have to share a very intimate experience together. The unique brilliance of this erotica novel lies in the exchanges between these two, between the lines and in the matters of the heart.
Max has been a child prodigy since the age of twelve. He is, to some extent, the typical artist –blunt, brazen and laissez-faire. He is French-born and dripping in easy sensuality and masculinity. But because he has been infamous since childhood Max is somewhat burned out by fame. He lives in Nova Scotia and shies away from the spotlight – considered an infamous hermit; he is no longer interested in parties or one-night-stands. Max just wants to dedicate himself to his art, and if a hefty (if suspicious) benefactor wants to fund his work for the sake of one commission, then so be it.
Fallon Frost lives up to her name; she is emotionally closed-off and stubbornly shielded. Her job as a marine-life conservationist demands that she be combative and mulish. Coupled with a less-than-idyllic childhood, Fallon has met her polar opposite in the carefree and ethereal Max Emery. Fallon is on the back-foot from the get-go with Max, when a perverted business rival insists on commissioning a nude of her to settle an ongoing land dispute.
I loved the premise of ‘The Reluctant Nude’. Maguire has come up with such an ingenious set-up; pairing two of the most unlikely individuals up in the most awkward of circumstances. Max; the light-hearted and passionate artist, and Fallon; his cold-hearted and unwilling model.
It’s quite unusual in the erotica genre to down-play the plot and concentrate on dialogue and character exchanges. In the case of ‘The Reluctant Nude’, there’s really no explosive trigger that catapults the storyline. Most of the book takes place in Max’s studio, where it’s just him and Fallon as she models and he sculpts. The brilliance lies in the interplay between these two, the ups and downs, pitfalls and triumphs of their burgeoning friendship and eventual romantic relationship.
She addressed his back. “Don’t act like you pity me.”
“You read so much into the spaces between words.”
“My sex life is none of your business, anyway.”
He turned to face her again, catching her eyes in that inescapable pull. “Right now, and for the next ten weeks, your body and its history are the centre of my universe. Everything.” He gestured, fingertips to his chest then waving out to encompass the studio. “It is all in your orbit. And you – your body – you’re as cold as the stone I'm using to render it.”
Fallon bit back a hundred retorts as a flash of heat and anger coursed through her pulse points. She took a deep breath, and slapped him.
Only a slight flare of his nostrils and a colouring where her palm struck evidenced Max’s surprise. He didn’t speak for several breaths.
He licked his lips and cracked a tiny smile. “Better.”
Meg Maguire has nuanced and finessed these characters so that their dialogues and exchanges are works of art unto themselves – tiny fragments of truths and explorations, as each conversation peels back the layers and lets them know one another more intimately. And pulsing beneath the surface of their talks is magnetism and heat, as Max and Fallon fall more and more towards an unlikely romance . . .
‘The Reluctant Nude’ is a wonderfully thoughtful and sensuous erotica novel. Maguire has such a gorgeous cadence to her writing, and her character-driven focus is wonderfully refreshing. All the talking and dialogue run-arounds between Max and Fallon keep things tense and heated, and the focus on their clashing personalities is unusual for a genre that normally concentrates wholly on the physical;
She seemed to consider her defeatist body position. “I'm not sad.”
“This pose begs to differ,” he said, feeling energized. “You wear malaise like a silk gown.”
‘The Reluctant Nude’ is a character-driven erotica novel. It’s inventive, exploratory and slow-burningly sensual. Meg Maguire is a star on the rise in the erotic genre, and I will definitely be reading more of her work.
‘The Reluctant Nude’ is a stand-alone contemporary erotica novel from new writer on the block, Meg Maguire . . . and with this book I think I have found a new must-read author!
This is a beautifully sensual, character-driven erotic novel. There are extenuating circumstances as to how Fallon and Max find themselves sharing an art studio for three months . . . These outside forces are somewhat outlandish and bizarre, but they’re not the driving force of this novel. What the book is really about is Max and Fallon – two polar opposites who have to share a very intimate experience together. The unique brilliance of this erotica novel lies in the exchanges between these two, between the lines and in the matters of the heart.
Max has been a child prodigy since the age of twelve. He is, to some extent, the typical artist –blunt, brazen and laissez-faire. He is French-born and dripping in easy sensuality and masculinity. But because he has been infamous since childhood Max is somewhat burned out by fame. He lives in Nova Scotia and shies away from the spotlight – considered an infamous hermit; he is no longer interested in parties or one-night-stands. Max just wants to dedicate himself to his art, and if a hefty (if suspicious) benefactor wants to fund his work for the sake of one commission, then so be it.
Fallon Frost lives up to her name; she is emotionally closed-off and stubbornly shielded. Her job as a marine-life conservationist demands that she be combative and mulish. Coupled with a less-than-idyllic childhood, Fallon has met her polar opposite in the carefree and ethereal Max Emery. Fallon is on the back-foot from the get-go with Max, when a perverted business rival insists on commissioning a nude of her to settle an ongoing land dispute.
I loved the premise of ‘The Reluctant Nude’. Maguire has come up with such an ingenious set-up; pairing two of the most unlikely individuals up in the most awkward of circumstances. Max; the light-hearted and passionate artist, and Fallon; his cold-hearted and unwilling model.
It’s quite unusual in the erotica genre to down-play the plot and concentrate on dialogue and character exchanges. In the case of ‘The Reluctant Nude’, there’s really no explosive trigger that catapults the storyline. Most of the book takes place in Max’s studio, where it’s just him and Fallon as she models and he sculpts. The brilliance lies in the interplay between these two, the ups and downs, pitfalls and triumphs of their burgeoning friendship and eventual romantic relationship.
She addressed his back. “Don’t act like you pity me.”
“You read so much into the spaces between words.”
“My sex life is none of your business, anyway.”
He turned to face her again, catching her eyes in that inescapable pull. “Right now, and for the next ten weeks, your body and its history are the centre of my universe. Everything.” He gestured, fingertips to his chest then waving out to encompass the studio. “It is all in your orbit. And you – your body – you’re as cold as the stone I'm using to render it.”
Fallon bit back a hundred retorts as a flash of heat and anger coursed through her pulse points. She took a deep breath, and slapped him.
Only a slight flare of his nostrils and a colouring where her palm struck evidenced Max’s surprise. He didn’t speak for several breaths.
He licked his lips and cracked a tiny smile. “Better.”
Meg Maguire has nuanced and finessed these characters so that their dialogues and exchanges are works of art unto themselves – tiny fragments of truths and explorations, as each conversation peels back the layers and lets them know one another more intimately. And pulsing beneath the surface of their talks is magnetism and heat, as Max and Fallon fall more and more towards an unlikely romance . . .
‘The Reluctant Nude’ is a wonderfully thoughtful and sensuous erotica novel. Maguire has such a gorgeous cadence to her writing, and her character-driven focus is wonderfully refreshing. All the talking and dialogue run-arounds between Max and Fallon keep things tense and heated, and the focus on their clashing personalities is unusual for a genre that normally concentrates wholly on the physical;
She seemed to consider her defeatist body position. “I'm not sad.”
“This pose begs to differ,” he said, feeling energized. “You wear malaise like a silk gown.”
‘The Reluctant Nude’ is a character-driven erotica novel. It’s inventive, exploratory and slow-burningly sensual. Meg Maguire is a star on the rise in the erotic genre, and I will definitely be reading more of her work.
October 17, 2011
2 ½ stars. Perfect hero, but heroine is uninteresting and too passive.
STORY BRIEF:
Fallon had no parents and grew up in foster care. She was close to and loved one foster parent (Grace I think) who died. Donald a real estate developer bought Grace’s home and plans to demolish it. He lusts after Fallon and asks her out, but she refuses. He then makes her an offer. He will give her the property if she will pose nude for a statue to be made by the famous sculptor Max. She agrees and goes to Nova Scotia to spend three months posing for Max. She refuses to tell Max what she will get from Donald for doing this. At first she is uptight, unpleasant, and hesitant around Max. She dislikes him. But with time she loosens up and is comfortable with him.
REVIEWER’S OPINION:
It’s different, but I wasn’t pulled in. I couldn’t get interested. Female readers will enjoy Max. He’s super sexy, pays lots of attention to Fallon, thinks her body is beautiful, cooks for her, takes her on walks, and woos her in wonderful and sensual ways. But I found nothing enjoyable or interesting about Fallon. She’s uptight. She won’t tell him things. I don’t see what she brings to Max. I don’t think she ever did anything for him. She’s passive in this story. Max left the city eight years ago and enjoys living in solitude. He has not desired a woman for eight years. All of a sudden Fallon arrives, and he quickly falls in love with her and does things for her.
The ending was murky. I wanted things spelled out better. I wanted to hear the conversations between Donald and Max about the project, especially at the end. Although not required, it might have been nice to hear more conversation between Donald and Fallon early in the story.
DATA:
Reading time: 2 hrs. Kindle count story length: 4185 (736 KB). Swearing language: moderate to strong, including religious swear words. Sexual language: strong. Number of sex scenes: 5. Setting: current day Nova Scotia, New York, and Connecticut. Copyright: 2011. Genre: contemporary romance.
STORY BRIEF:
Fallon had no parents and grew up in foster care. She was close to and loved one foster parent (Grace I think) who died. Donald a real estate developer bought Grace’s home and plans to demolish it. He lusts after Fallon and asks her out, but she refuses. He then makes her an offer. He will give her the property if she will pose nude for a statue to be made by the famous sculptor Max. She agrees and goes to Nova Scotia to spend three months posing for Max. She refuses to tell Max what she will get from Donald for doing this. At first she is uptight, unpleasant, and hesitant around Max. She dislikes him. But with time she loosens up and is comfortable with him.
REVIEWER’S OPINION:
It’s different, but I wasn’t pulled in. I couldn’t get interested. Female readers will enjoy Max. He’s super sexy, pays lots of attention to Fallon, thinks her body is beautiful, cooks for her, takes her on walks, and woos her in wonderful and sensual ways. But I found nothing enjoyable or interesting about Fallon. She’s uptight. She won’t tell him things. I don’t see what she brings to Max. I don’t think she ever did anything for him. She’s passive in this story. Max left the city eight years ago and enjoys living in solitude. He has not desired a woman for eight years. All of a sudden Fallon arrives, and he quickly falls in love with her and does things for her.
The ending was murky. I wanted things spelled out better. I wanted to hear the conversations between Donald and Max about the project, especially at the end. Although not required, it might have been nice to hear more conversation between Donald and Fallon early in the story.
DATA:
Reading time: 2 hrs. Kindle count story length: 4185 (736 KB). Swearing language: moderate to strong, including religious swear words. Sexual language: strong. Number of sex scenes: 5. Setting: current day Nova Scotia, New York, and Connecticut. Copyright: 2011. Genre: contemporary romance.
April 13, 2011
This is the fourth book I've read from this author (between both her pennames) and every time she tricks me. I'm impatient, as a lot of readers are, and usually her books are a slow burn for me. If I'm not immediately wowed, I think "oh, maybe this will be the one that won't work for me." But I keep reading. Inevitably by chapter two, she inexorably sucks me in to the incredibly real, nuanced worlds she crafts. This has happened four times now. One would think I would learn. Nope. So is the magic of McKenna/Maguire.
I loved the journey this book took me on. It was a slow ride and every detail layered over the rest until I felt as if I were falling for Max as surely as Fallon. He's by far one of the most quirky, unique - and sexy - heroes I've ever read. I know I'll never forget him or his and Fallon's beautiful story.
Seriously loved it and I know this is a story I will definitely reread.
I loved the journey this book took me on. It was a slow ride and every detail layered over the rest until I felt as if I were falling for Max as surely as Fallon. He's by far one of the most quirky, unique - and sexy - heroes I've ever read. I know I'll never forget him or his and Fallon's beautiful story.
Seriously loved it and I know this is a story I will definitely reread.
September 7, 2011
This is the kind of book I love. Having never read anything by this author before, I went into this story with no expectations and so I was more than pleased to find a good story with great characters. I have to admit, I wasn't sure about Max in the beginning of the book. I'm typically a fan of macho alpha type heroes, and Max is a sensitive, broody artistic genius so I was a little worried. But he more than proved himself as he turned poor Fallon-the heroine's world upside down. My biggest complaint would probably have to be the very abrupt ending, which knocked my rating from a 5 to a 4, but overall this was a fabulous book and I highly recommend it. I look forward to reading more from this author in the near future.
June 25, 2016
A beautifully written story about a 30 year old environmental activist woman and a French/Canadian sculptor who moves to Nova Scotia trying to escape some teenage debauchery foisted upon him by the art community in New York thinking him to be a child prodigy. The sculptor is hired for an obscene amount of money to sculpt a nude statute of the woman activist by a unscrupulous land developer (is there any other kind) who will tear down the beloved home of the activist if she doesn't pose for the statue. Yes, it sounds overdramatic and a little over the top, and some things that happen just don't ring completely true. But, it is a lovely romance between the sculptor and the activist and the writing is first rate so I did enjoy the book.
August 29, 2011
Long and dry. Not much else to say. It's not really an erotica, even though it looks to be one, so if you like slow building love stories, you may actually enjoy this one more than I did.
March 23, 2017
I'm such a sucker for artiste-related romances. This one was well-written and had a strong heroine (who is a biologist!).
Recommended.
Recommended.
May 2, 2012
I really, really liked this at the beginning. While I wasn't all that connected to our heroine, Fallon, I was immediately intrigued by tall, dark and handsome sculptor, Max. I mean. A tattooed Frenchman who'd learned to speak English in Great Britain? I'M DED.
So, Max had me hook, line and sinker from the beginning. He was intriguing in his intensity and his passion. Fallon, unfortunately, I never really warmed to her. I thought she was cold and harsh, mean at times. And in the end, she just didn't grow enough as a character for me to ever really root for her.
For the first half of the book, I was invested and hoping that this might be something I really loved. Ultimately, the sex ruined it for me. :(
All in all, it was a good book with a really enjoyable hero, if a heroine that got on my nerves. Not a bad way to pass an afternoon, but definitely not a re-read.
So, Max had me hook, line and sinker from the beginning. He was intriguing in his intensity and his passion. Fallon, unfortunately, I never really warmed to her. I thought she was cold and harsh, mean at times. And in the end, she just didn't grow enough as a character for me to ever really root for her.
For the first half of the book, I was invested and hoping that this might be something I really loved. Ultimately, the sex ruined it for me. :(
All in all, it was a good book with a really enjoyable hero, if a heroine that got on my nerves. Not a bad way to pass an afternoon, but definitely not a re-read.
April 23, 2012
Spoiler Free Review
"Right now, and for the next ten weeks, your body and its history are the center of my universe. Everything."- Max in The Reluctant Nude
The Reluctant Nude is a story about a woman named Fallon trying to save her aunt's land from the hands of Billionaire Donald Forrester. After years of fighting in court Forrester makes a proposition to Fallon, by telling her if she poses for famed artist M.L.Emery for a one of a kind sculpture he will give her the land back. So off goes Fallon to Nova Scotia to the current residence of the famed Mr.Emery.
Max Emery is not at all what she is expecting he is sexy but she also finds him weird and let's him know often. Fallon comes to Max under the pretense that Forrester is her fiancee but Max is not buying it. Attraction builds btwn the two and soon questions are asked and when Max gets his answers he is none to happy. Nothing is worse than an artist scorned.... The question is who will pay the ex-lover or the arrogant Billionaire???
My Ratings
Characters- Good
Writing Style- Mediocre/Average
Plot/Storyline- Okay/Average
Overall- Okay read->Nothing stood out.
"Right now, and for the next ten weeks, your body and its history are the center of my universe. Everything."- Max in The Reluctant Nude
The Reluctant Nude is a story about a woman named Fallon trying to save her aunt's land from the hands of Billionaire Donald Forrester. After years of fighting in court Forrester makes a proposition to Fallon, by telling her if she poses for famed artist M.L.Emery for a one of a kind sculpture he will give her the land back. So off goes Fallon to Nova Scotia to the current residence of the famed Mr.Emery.
Max Emery is not at all what she is expecting he is sexy but she also finds him weird and let's him know often. Fallon comes to Max under the pretense that Forrester is her fiancee but Max is not buying it. Attraction builds btwn the two and soon questions are asked and when Max gets his answers he is none to happy. Nothing is worse than an artist scorned.... The question is who will pay the ex-lover or the arrogant Billionaire???
My Ratings
Characters- Good
Writing Style- Mediocre/Average
Plot/Storyline- Okay/Average
Overall- Okay read->Nothing stood out.
August 29, 2011
Pretty good book. 3.5 stars. A little unrealistic but I'm not reading it for its deep insight or literary significance. I liked the ending. The sexual tension was good, the sex scenes.. even better.
June 6, 2011
Wow...what a sexy hero:) Loved this book!
April 12, 2011
I’ve read three books by Meg Maguire (two in a row this week alone) and her alter ego Cara McKenna and if there is one thing I’ve noticed about her style of writing is that she has the ability to simply take two characters and tell a fabulous, emotional, heartfelt story. No real secondary characters of note to cloud the canvas, no crazy antics, just a well told story that grabs you and makes you care about her characters.
M.L. Emery was a child protégé at 12, a renowned sculptor but for the past eight years by choice he has been living a quite existence and doing this thing in the picturesque countryside of Cape Breton (second book in a row with a Canadian setting. I believe Meg Maguire is secretly Canadian and I approve).
I thought Ms. Maguire did a great job of capturing Max’s French essence from the cadence of his speech pattern, his expressions and his penchant for wine and bread and cheese. I could actually hear Max’s French accent in my head and I definitely got iz French vibe while reading this story.
Fallon Frost is a lobbyist and environmentalist, who has agreed to suspend her life including her job for months and pose reluctantly, for a commissioned nude sculpture for a man she detests - Donald Forrester.
Max and Fallon do not start off their journey under the best of terms. These are two people who for their own reasons have entered into an uneasy working relationship to create a masterpiece. The problem at the start is that neither one of them really has their heart in the project.
I will admit when I was about 30% into the story I still had no clear vision as to why Fallon had agreed to go along with this preposterous plan to have her likeness permanently carved in stone, financed by a man infatuated with her, who she disliked immensely.
I had no such qualms as to M.L. Emery’s motivation. This quirky, dark, sexy Frenchman definitely marched to the beat of his own drummer and I found his character totally intriguing. He made Fallon uncomfortable and wary of him while being tantalized and intrigued at the same time. I totally felt the same way.
I liken Max to a mad scientist. He was fascinated with capturing imperfect models in marble and in fact has numerous pieces missing limbs and body parts littering his property. Max didn't want to do the likeness of Fallon, but realized the money - $700,000 being offered by her “fiancé” for his latest work of art was too good to turn down. The money would allow him to do the work he loved and not the commercial nonsense he had no tolerance for. I totally got Max’s motivation.
As these two work together in close quarters, Fallon nude for the most part, Max absorbed in his work, their relationship grows and loves starts to blossom between them and when Max discovers the true reasons behind Fallon’s agreeing to pose - he feels betrayed, hurt and angry that Fallon would allow his craft to be debased and herself used in that manner.
He is totally gutted. Here's an emotional passage showcasing Max’s feelings:
He sighed and set he cat down, eyes caught once again by the stone shape of the woman he’d driven from this house. He stared at the sky, crisscrossed by a thousand mullions. At this moment his home looked an awful lot like a cage. Without Fallon it looked like ribs with no heart beating inside them. He rubbed that spot on his own chest, trying to ease the ache. Quietly insert my own sobs here.
My absolute favorite part of The Reluctant Nude was the epilogue. It was a wonderful and satisfying ending to a beautifully told love story wrapped up with a nice, neat bow.
M.L. Emery was a child protégé at 12, a renowned sculptor but for the past eight years by choice he has been living a quite existence and doing this thing in the picturesque countryside of Cape Breton (second book in a row with a Canadian setting. I believe Meg Maguire is secretly Canadian and I approve).
I thought Ms. Maguire did a great job of capturing Max’s French essence from the cadence of his speech pattern, his expressions and his penchant for wine and bread and cheese. I could actually hear Max’s French accent in my head and I definitely got iz French vibe while reading this story.
Fallon Frost is a lobbyist and environmentalist, who has agreed to suspend her life including her job for months and pose reluctantly, for a commissioned nude sculpture for a man she detests - Donald Forrester.
Max and Fallon do not start off their journey under the best of terms. These are two people who for their own reasons have entered into an uneasy working relationship to create a masterpiece. The problem at the start is that neither one of them really has their heart in the project.
I will admit when I was about 30% into the story I still had no clear vision as to why Fallon had agreed to go along with this preposterous plan to have her likeness permanently carved in stone, financed by a man infatuated with her, who she disliked immensely.
I had no such qualms as to M.L. Emery’s motivation. This quirky, dark, sexy Frenchman definitely marched to the beat of his own drummer and I found his character totally intriguing. He made Fallon uncomfortable and wary of him while being tantalized and intrigued at the same time. I totally felt the same way.
I liken Max to a mad scientist. He was fascinated with capturing imperfect models in marble and in fact has numerous pieces missing limbs and body parts littering his property. Max didn't want to do the likeness of Fallon, but realized the money - $700,000 being offered by her “fiancé” for his latest work of art was too good to turn down. The money would allow him to do the work he loved and not the commercial nonsense he had no tolerance for. I totally got Max’s motivation.
As these two work together in close quarters, Fallon nude for the most part, Max absorbed in his work, their relationship grows and loves starts to blossom between them and when Max discovers the true reasons behind Fallon’s agreeing to pose - he feels betrayed, hurt and angry that Fallon would allow his craft to be debased and herself used in that manner.
He is totally gutted. Here's an emotional passage showcasing Max’s feelings:
He sighed and set he cat down, eyes caught once again by the stone shape of the woman he’d driven from this house. He stared at the sky, crisscrossed by a thousand mullions. At this moment his home looked an awful lot like a cage. Without Fallon it looked like ribs with no heart beating inside them. He rubbed that spot on his own chest, trying to ease the ache. Quietly insert my own sobs here.
My absolute favorite part of The Reluctant Nude was the epilogue. It was a wonderful and satisfying ending to a beautifully told love story wrapped up with a nice, neat bow.
February 2, 2015
This is one I will likely remember because it wasn't the traditional tropes. At first, it reminded me a bit of Curio, but I think that had to do with (a) Max being originally French, and (b) him being a bit of a recluse. Oh, and hot. ;-) But it was definitely a different story.
Fallon traveled to Max's sculpting studio to fulfill the terms of what is basically extortion by a man who wants but can't have her. Donald Forrester is a land developer. Fallon works to save environmental lands. They stand on opposite sides of land issues, but over time Donald apparently developed a crush on Fallon, and Fallon wants nothing to do with him. When Donald buys the only home in which Fallon had any semblance of childhood and threatens to destroy it, Fallon agrees to model nude for a statue. She's not comfortable with this idea, but it's better than actually dating the man.
Max was a phenom when he was younger, discovered at a very early age, and then more or less exploited. At some point, he decided he didn't want any of it anymore, so he moved to a remote location in Nova Scotia. His life has been as full as he wants it for many years, but Fallon's arrival shakes up his routine. She doesn't care who he was. She isn't even sure that she likes him at first, and she says things to him that most people wouldn't, because of who he is. But as time goes by, they grow closer. Both of them try to keep it platonic -- she will eventually go home, and he'll go back to what he's always done -- but the pull is too strong.
I liked how they both grew during the story. I liked how Fallon was able to give Max a chance and get under his skin. I liked that they were able to share with each other things they'd never told others. I liked that Max wasn't a man whore (even though he could have been). I liked that they didn't just fall into bed, even when it did happen. I loved that Max didn't take his own pleasure that first time, and that he was so excited and anxious when it did happen. My heart broke a few times at the callous things Fallon would say, even though she didn't really intend them to be so. I totally saw how Max could be hurt by them, even with him knowing she didn't intend them to be hurtful. And I loved Max's solution to the statue issue.
I really enjoyed the epilogue. It's always nice to have a little window into what happens next, and what happened was really sweet. I was glad to see it end where it did.
Fallon traveled to Max's sculpting studio to fulfill the terms of what is basically extortion by a man who wants but can't have her. Donald Forrester is a land developer. Fallon works to save environmental lands. They stand on opposite sides of land issues, but over time Donald apparently developed a crush on Fallon, and Fallon wants nothing to do with him. When Donald buys the only home in which Fallon had any semblance of childhood and threatens to destroy it, Fallon agrees to model nude for a statue. She's not comfortable with this idea, but it's better than actually dating the man.
Max was a phenom when he was younger, discovered at a very early age, and then more or less exploited. At some point, he decided he didn't want any of it anymore, so he moved to a remote location in Nova Scotia. His life has been as full as he wants it for many years, but Fallon's arrival shakes up his routine. She doesn't care who he was. She isn't even sure that she likes him at first, and she says things to him that most people wouldn't, because of who he is. But as time goes by, they grow closer. Both of them try to keep it platonic -- she will eventually go home, and he'll go back to what he's always done -- but the pull is too strong.
I liked how they both grew during the story. I liked how Fallon was able to give Max a chance and get under his skin. I liked that they were able to share with each other things they'd never told others. I liked that Max wasn't a man whore (even though he could have been). I liked that they didn't just fall into bed, even when it did happen. I loved that Max didn't take his own pleasure that first time, and that he was so excited and anxious when it did happen. My heart broke a few times at the callous things Fallon would say, even though she didn't really intend them to be so. I totally saw how Max could be hurt by them, even with him knowing she didn't intend them to be hurtful. And I loved Max's solution to the statue issue.
I really enjoyed the epilogue. It's always nice to have a little window into what happens next, and what happened was really sweet. I was glad to see it end where it did.
May 12, 2011
Fallon will have to willingly take off her clothes for the eccentric artist but will Max strip away the protective layers around her closely guarded heart in the process?
Do you enjoy a story where the relationship builds at a steady pace and you’re able to savor the romance? Do you enjoy characters that are so layered with personality they practically jump off the page? If you answered yes to these questions I can guarantee you will love The Reluctant Nude. Ms. Maguire sets this heart tugging love story in beautiful Nova Scotia. Her writing and descriptions are amazingly vivid and enable the reader to imagine the picturesque town and smell the ocean breezes blowing in off the sandy coast.
Fallon has embarked on a journey that will force her to face her fears, her past and her short comings. Her voyage into self-discovery begins from the moment Max answers the door of his unique little studio. Max is such an enigma and keeps Fallon on her toes trying to understand this “weird” and yet charismatic artist. Max has such a terrific sense of humor, you never know what he’s going to say or do. To say that he's direct would be an understatement.
Watching the uptight Fallon unwind and fall in love with the tortured self-possessed Max was a delicious tension filled adventure. They're both flawed characters with even more flawed childhoods that shaped their formative and adult years. It affected their ability to relate to others and offer trust and genuine affection. The emotion between these two is so tangible I hurt along with Max and Fallon when reality crept into their little hideaway haven.
Ms. Maguire’s characterization of Max left me breathless. His childhood was cut short and distorted because of his talent and subsequent free fall from fame. Likewise, Fallon’s nomadic foster home experience has made her strong but sometimes distant. They each crave the stability of “home” and a normal life. Ms. Maguire paints an awe inspiring and well earned HEA for this precious couple and gives the reader a lovely closure to their story, it feels complete.
The Reluctant Nude is a steamy romance with a well-developed plot that kept me engaged from beginning to end. The dialogue is often witty and had me laughing out loud more than once. This is Ms. Maguire's second book with more on the way. This reviewer has put her on automatic buy list and looks forward to seeing what she offers up next.
originally posted at http://longandshortreviews.blogspot.c...
Do you enjoy a story where the relationship builds at a steady pace and you’re able to savor the romance? Do you enjoy characters that are so layered with personality they practically jump off the page? If you answered yes to these questions I can guarantee you will love The Reluctant Nude. Ms. Maguire sets this heart tugging love story in beautiful Nova Scotia. Her writing and descriptions are amazingly vivid and enable the reader to imagine the picturesque town and smell the ocean breezes blowing in off the sandy coast.
Fallon has embarked on a journey that will force her to face her fears, her past and her short comings. Her voyage into self-discovery begins from the moment Max answers the door of his unique little studio. Max is such an enigma and keeps Fallon on her toes trying to understand this “weird” and yet charismatic artist. Max has such a terrific sense of humor, you never know what he’s going to say or do. To say that he's direct would be an understatement.
Watching the uptight Fallon unwind and fall in love with the tortured self-possessed Max was a delicious tension filled adventure. They're both flawed characters with even more flawed childhoods that shaped their formative and adult years. It affected their ability to relate to others and offer trust and genuine affection. The emotion between these two is so tangible I hurt along with Max and Fallon when reality crept into their little hideaway haven.
Ms. Maguire’s characterization of Max left me breathless. His childhood was cut short and distorted because of his talent and subsequent free fall from fame. Likewise, Fallon’s nomadic foster home experience has made her strong but sometimes distant. They each crave the stability of “home” and a normal life. Ms. Maguire paints an awe inspiring and well earned HEA for this precious couple and gives the reader a lovely closure to their story, it feels complete.
The Reluctant Nude is a steamy romance with a well-developed plot that kept me engaged from beginning to end. The dialogue is often witty and had me laughing out loud more than once. This is Ms. Maguire's second book with more on the way. This reviewer has put her on automatic buy list and looks forward to seeing what she offers up next.
originally posted at http://longandshortreviews.blogspot.c...
February 25, 2013
A difficult book to read, unsatisfying romance.
This book was tough going from the beginning...... I did not realize this author also writes as Cara Mckenna. As I read the book I felt the complete detachment of the heroine , Fallon, and realized later that made sense because it seems to be a type of woman -heroine for this author. There's always a cruel aura around her women characters and a kind of toughness that seems too edgy and harsh. I would not read this book again because it made feel frustrated with Fallon, and that's just not something to look forward to when reading a romance and not a particularly erotic one at that. The conflict in the book was completely and utterly unbelievable, a villain who is willing to pay somebody a fortune to make a provocative statue of a young woman whose only connection to him is that she opposes his construction projects, hmmmmm! The only saving grace of this book was the hero Max, who shone in contrast to Fallon dullness, even when he brokedown and cried out what was in his heart she kept berating him and yelling at him for letting her down, I was pretty let down myself by this point and in any reality, I dont think that a man who has so much to offer is going to make a grand gesture of love to a woman who is so unfeeling. It wasn't as if she was a high- maintenance beyaatch type that some men love either......so I just did not get her at all. The only piece of the puzzle that i can figure out is that this is just typical for this author, and that i will not read this book again.
This book was tough going from the beginning...... I did not realize this author also writes as Cara Mckenna. As I read the book I felt the complete detachment of the heroine , Fallon, and realized later that made sense because it seems to be a type of woman -heroine for this author. There's always a cruel aura around her women characters and a kind of toughness that seems too edgy and harsh. I would not read this book again because it made feel frustrated with Fallon, and that's just not something to look forward to when reading a romance and not a particularly erotic one at that. The conflict in the book was completely and utterly unbelievable, a villain who is willing to pay somebody a fortune to make a provocative statue of a young woman whose only connection to him is that she opposes his construction projects, hmmmmm! The only saving grace of this book was the hero Max, who shone in contrast to Fallon dullness, even when he brokedown and cried out what was in his heart she kept berating him and yelling at him for letting her down, I was pretty let down myself by this point and in any reality, I dont think that a man who has so much to offer is going to make a grand gesture of love to a woman who is so unfeeling. It wasn't as if she was a high- maintenance beyaatch type that some men love either......so I just did not get her at all. The only piece of the puzzle that i can figure out is that this is just typical for this author, and that i will not read this book again.
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