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Maybe Baby
Dana Wiley's True Confessions (Or How Did I Get into This Mess?) * My mother's being held by kidnappers, and only Nick Maybe, the man I left at the altar six years ago, knows how to find the ransom-a big, smelly, flightless parrot. * Manhattan isn't exactly ideal for wildlife-unless you're talking about me and Nick. How can a man I haven't seen in six years make me so crazy-in all meanings of the word? * So the bird's worth a quarter million, and it turns out we're not the only ones who want it. Great. And Nick keeps looking at me with those eyes and kissing me with those lips...Oh, what the hell. There isn't a statute of limitations on love. Is there?
304 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 1, 2005
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 55 reviews
December 20, 2014
3 ½ stars. It has a slapstick feel. I did not laugh but it kept my interest.
Characters were good, kind of comic-book-like. There is a happy ending with romance, but I wanted an epilogue. BTW there are no babies in this book. The plot has to do with different people trying to steal an expensive New Zealand bird.
A favorite trope for me is seeing a couple meet and watching the relationship develop. This book does not have that. Instead we hear that she ran away during their wedding ceremony because she feared marriage. This story begins six years later. Dana and Nick have been lonely and miss each other. Now they are on a project together to rescue Dana’s mother.
DATA:
Narrative mode: 3rd person. Story length: 268 pages. Swearing language: strong including religious swear words. Sexual language: mild. Number of sex scenes: one brief scene. Setting: current day New York. Copyright: 2005. Genre: contemporary romance, chick lit.
OTHER BOOKS:
I’ve reviewed the following Lani Diane Rich books.
5 stars. Time Off for Good Behavior (you must do the audiobook, the narrator Hillary Hawkins really makes it)
4 ½ stars. Wish You Were Here
4 ½ stars. The Fortune Quilt
3 stars. Crazy in Love
3 stars. Maybe Baby
2 ½ stars. The Comeback Kiss
2 stars. A Little Ray of Sunshine (too sad, teary moments, womens fiction)
2 stars. Ex And The Single Girl
Characters were good, kind of comic-book-like. There is a happy ending with romance, but I wanted an epilogue. BTW there are no babies in this book. The plot has to do with different people trying to steal an expensive New Zealand bird.
A favorite trope for me is seeing a couple meet and watching the relationship develop. This book does not have that. Instead we hear that she ran away during their wedding ceremony because she feared marriage. This story begins six years later. Dana and Nick have been lonely and miss each other. Now they are on a project together to rescue Dana’s mother.
DATA:
Narrative mode: 3rd person. Story length: 268 pages. Swearing language: strong including religious swear words. Sexual language: mild. Number of sex scenes: one brief scene. Setting: current day New York. Copyright: 2005. Genre: contemporary romance, chick lit.
OTHER BOOKS:
I’ve reviewed the following Lani Diane Rich books.
5 stars. Time Off for Good Behavior (you must do the audiobook, the narrator Hillary Hawkins really makes it)
4 ½ stars. Wish You Were Here
4 ½ stars. The Fortune Quilt
3 stars. Crazy in Love
3 stars. Maybe Baby
2 ½ stars. The Comeback Kiss
2 stars. A Little Ray of Sunshine (too sad, teary moments, womens fiction)
2 stars. Ex And The Single Girl
November 8, 2008
This is a wacky, fun little contemporary romance with a heroine who has serious commitment and trust issues and the hero she left at the altar several years ago. Now, she's in danger of losing the family winery and goes to her grandmother to borrow money, but grandma doesn't have any to borrow. Grandma also is still in touch with the hero, and has a habit of doing favors for people, just little things to help them out. Things she gets the hero to help her with. This time, it involves a rare, stinky parrot. Somehow, the heroine gets involved with the hero and the bird, and there's a not-so-amoral bird thief and an ecocop/thug and a wacky sociopathic ditz and the heroine's mortal high-school enemy...and lots of madcap action and a sweet resolution.
I started reading Lani Diane Rich because I moderated a workshop for her at an RWA conference, liked what she had to say about her books, and I've liked them pretty well when I've read them. This was a fun, mostly light contemporary romance with some slightly slapstick suspensey bits. I liked it.
I started reading Lani Diane Rich because I moderated a workshop for her at an RWA conference, liked what she had to say about her books, and I've liked them pretty well when I've read them. This was a fun, mostly light contemporary romance with some slightly slapstick suspensey bits. I liked it.
December 16, 2009
While I'm not generally a romance reader, this was a fun read. I liked just about every character in this book, except of course the ones the reader wasn't supposed to like (and even those, such as the idiotic kidnappers Vivian and Gary, I enjoyed). The plotting was fast-paced and extra twisty, but not hard to follow.
While the book at times felt slightly larger-than-life, the emotions in it rang true, even the more mundane ones, such as Dana's sheer frustration at the absurdity of the situation she'd found herself in. The ending was satisfying, and I didn't see it coming. Overall, just a fun, silly, light-hearted read.
While the book at times felt slightly larger-than-life, the emotions in it rang true, even the more mundane ones, such as Dana's sheer frustration at the absurdity of the situation she'd found herself in. The ending was satisfying, and I didn't see it coming. Overall, just a fun, silly, light-hearted read.
January 31, 2014
The description of this one tickled my fancy when I saw it as an example of a winning pitch in a handout on writing pitches. I finally found the book in a two-book bundle and am glad I did. The pace is fast and the story is loaded with humor and vivid, unique characters. The leads are engaging, and I really root for Nick since Dana puts him through hell with her anxieties. He's a real hero just for that--not to mention how he helps her mother. The only quibble is the title. If you're looking for a book about a baby, this is not it. No babies, just a smelly, noisy, and very valuable bird.
August 12, 2009
Good. I'm really liking Lani Diane Rich. This was not as good as Ex - it got bogged down a little in its own plot in the middle of the book. (Also, I'm a sucker for the "Southern girl goes home, makes good" trope, so some of the better-ness is not Maybe's fault.) But, fun characters, silly caper, good relationship and believable reactions from people. LDR is good at drawing people who act like real people.
January 24, 2019
This book was very funny. Dana’s life is a mess Dana ran out of her wedding six years ago and is questioning her behavior. She is about to lose the winery she inherited, her mother is involved in a rare bird theft and is kidnapped and Dana’s ex- fiancé has to help Dana rescue her mother. The book is a comedy of errors.
May 15, 2018
Another funny & sweet LDR. Reading that she was a screenwriter prior makes sense. Many of her books read like romantic comedies that I would love. Plus I just love the quirky characters that she creates.
October 21, 2018
4- stars
November 8, 2018
It's a good book,but too similar to her other stories.
January 5, 2020
Not a clean read.
August 23, 2024
Rich nails it again!
Lani Diane Rich knows how to make us laugh, make us cry, and then make us laugh through our tears. It is precisely what I need when life becomes too much.
Lani Diane Rich knows how to make us laugh, make us cry, and then make us laugh through our tears. It is precisely what I need when life becomes too much.
January 7, 2013
An amusing novel, pretty short, sometimes funny, sometimes silly. On one hand, a typical romance, but on the other, I don’t quite get the obstacles in the way to the heroes’ married bliss. Why is Dana so afraid of marriage? Her aversion seems artificial to me, and as the entire story is based on it, I can’t help thinking: stupid!
There is a rare bird in the story too, and everyone is trying to steal it from each other. The bird sequences are hilarious, even when the human motivations are often incomprehensible.
Dana’s estranged mother Babs is one of the most interesting secondary characters in romantic fiction. She appears in another, later novel by the same author – The Comeback Kiss – and I liked her there too. Quite a colorful personage, much more interesting than her daughter.
Overall, an average novel, pleasurable enough to read. What I strongly disliked was the last name of the protagonist Nick Maybe. It’s kind of unbelievable. Couldn’t the author name him Nick Smith or something equally normal?
There is a rare bird in the story too, and everyone is trying to steal it from each other. The bird sequences are hilarious, even when the human motivations are often incomprehensible.
Dana’s estranged mother Babs is one of the most interesting secondary characters in romantic fiction. She appears in another, later novel by the same author – The Comeback Kiss – and I liked her there too. Quite a colorful personage, much more interesting than her daughter.
Overall, an average novel, pleasurable enough to read. What I strongly disliked was the last name of the protagonist Nick Maybe. It’s kind of unbelievable. Couldn’t the author name him Nick Smith or something equally normal?
October 7, 2013
I love screwball romance, and this definitely fit the bill. Got it as a freebie from Amazon a while back and just got around to reading it.
It's standard romance stuff, with a twist of humor. The one thing that was distracting was the title!! There are numerous other books out there with the identical title, and typically you'd expect the plot to be a standard "had a baby, didn't tell father", or "surprise pregnancy", or something along those lines. In fact, that was one of the reasons I never read it until now.
But - there was nothing even remotely like that in this book's plot. The male lead's name (Nick Maybe) was obviously contrived to give the book this title, but it was a poor editorial choice.
It's standard romance stuff, with a twist of humor. The one thing that was distracting was the title!! There are numerous other books out there with the identical title, and typically you'd expect the plot to be a standard "had a baby, didn't tell father", or "surprise pregnancy", or something along those lines. In fact, that was one of the reasons I never read it until now.
But - there was nothing even remotely like that in this book's plot. The male lead's name (Nick Maybe) was obviously contrived to give the book this title, but it was a poor editorial choice.
April 24, 2013
I have found a new favorite author. I wish I would've read this before The Comeback Kiss but I didn't. Didn't matter a lot but it would've been nice.
Anyhow, I've been reading a lot of "heavy" stuff lately. Then I stumbled across this author and decided I needed a change of pace. I loved this book and the rest of her books so far. I plan to read every one of them.
I'm a total sucker for second chance romance. And quirky leads and this had both.
Anyhow, I've been reading a lot of "heavy" stuff lately. Then I stumbled across this author and decided I needed a change of pace. I loved this book and the rest of her books so far. I plan to read every one of them.
I'm a total sucker for second chance romance. And quirky leads and this had both.
February 7, 2008
This is a very nice easy read - something light and cute to fill in the time. I think Nick and Dana have good chemistry, and I always love the idea of getting back to the one "who got away". Secondary characters, including Dana's gutsy mother Babs, and the wise-crack bird thief Finn brings more merriment to the story. Goodreads won't let me do 3.5 rating because that's what I'll give to this :)
August 20, 2011
I picked this one up at a used book store. I don't usually do that without looking it up but I took a chance and bought it. And after I read it I am glad that I did. It was a very good book and I would suggest it to anyone. It has been a while since I read it but I don't think there was any boring parts in it and that's hard to find in a book.
May 22, 2012
Maybe if I hadn't read this book before I would have liked it more and gotten through it much quicker, but I just got bored towards the end.
I know for a fact though that I really liked Finn & the whole thief growing a conscience thing. After all, it's part of what drew me to White Collar
I know for a fact though that I really liked Finn & the whole thief growing a conscience thing. After all, it's part of what drew me to White Collar
August 6, 2012
I'm somewhere between "it was ok" and "I liked it". Not normally my type of book, but it was a free book on Amazon and I was looking for an easy read on vacation. I liked the witty banter in the book and had a few laugh out loud moments.
August 6, 2012
This was a Kindle freebie on Amazon and a perfect summer weekend read. Silly and farfetched, a little predictable, but fun! I would certainly read another book by the same author sometime in the future if it crossed my path.
April 22, 2014
This was not your typical chick lit. It was actually quite funny and amusing with this random bird theft going on. I did like her writing style, when I am in the mood for something light and quick, I will try her again.
April 11, 2013
Got this as a free read on amazon and it took me a while to finish (got distracted by new releases from some series I've been following), but I'm glad I did. It's sweet, funny and has the screwball comedy vibe that I really enjoy. I'll look for more from this writer.
April 18, 2015
Muy divertido, gracioso, muy muy romántico y la eocena intima no estuvo mal. Los personajes muy emocionales y el gran problema el matrimonio fue un poco tradicional para nuestros días pero me gusto mucho el libro.
February 23, 2015
Madcap capers involving a rare Kakapo and a jilted groom. Six years after leaving him at the alter, Dana and Nick find themselves caught up in the oddest series of thefts and kidnappings. Entertaining, quick read.
June 18, 2015
Oh dear... This was recommended to me because I like Jennifer Crusie, and Lani Rich is the co-author of Dogs and Goddesses, which I thought was OK. Anyway, could barely get through twenty pages of this. Thick with cliche and very offputting kiss descriptions.
August 21, 2009
Terrible book - finished it in 2 hours (yes it's that short). This book is a feeble attempt at romance & suspense. Humor almost non-existant, I have definately read books funnier than this.
June 2, 2010
cute, romantic comedy. A nice light read
April 1, 2011
great rom com!!!!
December 26, 2011
Fun, easy read about a group of mismatched characters trying to steal/save a big smelly exotic bird.
April 25, 2012
Good, lighthearted book - great for that transitional read between the heavier stuff.
May 15, 2012
Loved the characters
Displaying 1 - 30 of 55 reviews