The Man In The Mask

by Stephanie James, Jayne Ann Krentz

Look in his eyes. He's hiding something?

Shy daydreamer Tabitha Graham had a vivid imagination. When she rescued tourist Devin Coulter from a back-alley mugging, she imagined that she'd found a soul mate in the sweet, quiet man. But Dev was no tourist, that was no simple mugging and Tabby's perfect gentleman was in fact a ferocious, FABULOUS BEAST.

If there was anything Ariana Warfield couldn't stand, it was a phony. Her beloved aunt Philomena was under the spell of a con artist, and she knew that only master illusionist Lucian Hawk could reveal this swindler's cheap deceptions. But on the NIGHT OF THE MAGICIAN, Ariana would learn to distinguish tricks from real magic.

Genres: Romance, Fiction, Contemporary Romance, Contemporary, Romantic Suspense, M F Romance

416 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published November 1, 2007

About the author

Jayne Ann Castle was born on 28 March 1948 in Borrego Springs, California. Her mother, Alberta Castle, raised her with her two brothers, Stephen and James. In 1970, she obtained a B.A in History at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and later she obtained a Masters degree in Library Science from San Jose State University, where she met Frank Krentz, an engineer. After her graduation, they married and moved to the Virgin Islands. She worked in the Duke University library system, where she began to write her first romance novels. The marriage moved to Seattle, Washington, where they continue living.

Now, Jayne Ann Castle Krentz with her seven pennames is considered a pillar in the contemporary romance genre. For some years, she only uses three pennames for each of three different periods from time: "Jayne Ann Krentz" (her married name) from the present, "Jayne Castle" (her birth name) from the future and her most famous penname: "Amanda Quick" from the past. She is famous for her work ethic, beginning her writing by 7 am six days a week. Her heroins never are damsels in hardships, they are often heroes. Her novels also contain mystery or paranormal elements.

Enthusiastic of the romantic genre, she has always defended its importance. To help educate the public about the romantic genre she became the editor and a contributor to Dangerous Men and Adventurous Women: Romance Writers on the Appeal of the Romance, a non-fiction essay collection that won the prestigious Susan Koppelman Award for Feminist Studies. She established the Castle Humanities Fund at UCSC's University Library to allow the library to purchase additional books and has given money to 15 Seattle-area elementary schools to enhance their library budgets. She is also a member of the Advisory Board for the Writers Programs at the University of Washington extension program.

Psuedonyms:

Jayne Ann Krentz
Amanda Quick
Jayne Castle
Jayne Bentley
Jayne Taylor
Amanda Glass

Reviews

[Becca]

Nada extraordinario, lectura rápida y fácil para un fin de semana

[Maggie Shanley · Rating 2 out of 5]

An early Jayne Ann Krentz, originally published as Stephanie James. This one does explore her later interest in magic and the occult but they were not quite as much fun as her later books.

[Jessi · Rating 3 out of 5]

These stories are part of Jayne Anne Krentz's early work and it's easy to tell. Both stories I've read before, I can't imagine why I keep reading her earlier works. These are definitely products of the eighties with masterful men and women who love to give in to them.
In the first novel, Fabulous Beast, Tabitha Graham comes along on what she believes to be a mugging. She helps to rescue Devin Coulter and get him back to the cruise ship on which they were both traveling. What she doesn't realize is that he is a spy on his last mission. When that's through, he's coming after her.
The second book is the reason I gave this three stars. That and I couldn't give it three and a half. I think this is one of the earliest romances I read and enjoyed. Ariana Warfield is making a lot of money as a financial consultant even though it took her awhile to recover from a "Romantic Disappointment" who also stole all of her money. Now, she only dates safe men who make more money than she does. She doesn't believe that Lucian Hawk falls under that category but she needs a magician to help expose a fraud. It turns out that he is also wealthy and I was happy that Ariana got pissed off about him hiding secrets. But then she gets all shmoopy without any real resolution other than that they're in lurv.

[Patricia Solla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Though published in 2007 these stories were written in 1984. There are two stories and neither of the men in them wears a mask so I don't think the title suited the storylines. The first story is of a man who's doing some undercover work even though he is older. He is rescued by a woman traveling alone on the same cruise ship as he is on. He becomes very interested in her but his undercover business gets her accidentally involved. There is plenty of action and an interesting ending. The second story involves a young who wants to hire a magician to prove to her aunt that the man she believes can communicate with aliens is a fake. How she meets the man and how they interact is all part of the storyline. Again there's plenty of action and an interesting resolution.

[Brianna · Rating 4 out of 5]

pretty good, but i felt like the men were a little bit tooo overbearing for my taste but it got better as i read on. In the second story, the lady pissed me off because the guy didn't have enough money for her taste. geese, talk about money whore.

[rivka · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars overall:
3 stars for Fabulous Beast;
2 stars for Night of the Magician