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Partners In Crime
As Jane Dexter scrambled to keep a secret formula from falling into the wrong hands, her hired accomplice proved useless as a jack-of-all-illegal-trades. Convinced that a gloriously sensual woman lurked beneath Jane's ho-hum outfits and no-nonsense manner, Sandy Caldicott lost all interest in illegal activities as he singlemindedly campaigned to reform Jane.
While Jane was breaking and entering with Sandy in Princeton, New Jersey, the awful truth penetrated her muddled brain. The way things were going, she was bound to end up in the arms of the law-or in the arms of a lawless, dashing, dangerously deluded criminal.
While Jane was breaking and entering with Sandy in Princeton, New Jersey, the awful truth penetrated her muddled brain. The way things were going, she was bound to end up in the arms of the law-or in the arms of a lawless, dashing, dangerously deluded criminal.
251 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1988
14 people are currently reading
156 people want to read
About the author
Anne Stuart
204 books2,065 followersAnne Stuart is a grandmaster of the genre, winner of Romance Writers of America's prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award, survivor of more than thirty-five years in the romance business, and still just keeps getting better.
Her first novel was Barrett's Hill, a gothic romance published by Ballantine in 1974 when Anne had just turned 25. Since then she's written more gothics, regencies, romantic suspense, romantic adventure, series romance, suspense, historical romance, paranormal and mainstream contemporary romance for publishers such as Doubleday, Harlequin, Silhouette, Avon, Zebra, St. Martins Press, Berkley, Dell, Pocket Books and Fawcett.
She’s won numerous awards, appeared on most bestseller lists, and speaks all over the country. Her general outrageousness has gotten her on Entertainment Tonight, as well as in Vogue, People, USA Today, Women’s Day and countless other national newspapers and magazines.
When she’s not traveling, she’s at home in Northern Vermont with her luscious husband of thirty-six years, an empty nest, three cats, four sewing machines, and one Springer Spaniel, and when she’s not working she’s watching movies, listening to rock and roll (preferably Japanese) and spending far too much time quilting.
Anne Stuart also writes as Kristina Douglas.
Her first novel was Barrett's Hill, a gothic romance published by Ballantine in 1974 when Anne had just turned 25. Since then she's written more gothics, regencies, romantic suspense, romantic adventure, series romance, suspense, historical romance, paranormal and mainstream contemporary romance for publishers such as Doubleday, Harlequin, Silhouette, Avon, Zebra, St. Martins Press, Berkley, Dell, Pocket Books and Fawcett.
She’s won numerous awards, appeared on most bestseller lists, and speaks all over the country. Her general outrageousness has gotten her on Entertainment Tonight, as well as in Vogue, People, USA Today, Women’s Day and countless other national newspapers and magazines.
When she’s not traveling, she’s at home in Northern Vermont with her luscious husband of thirty-six years, an empty nest, three cats, four sewing machines, and one Springer Spaniel, and when she’s not working she’s watching movies, listening to rock and roll (preferably Japanese) and spending far too much time quilting.
Anne Stuart also writes as Kristina Douglas.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
February 10, 2022
Plain Jane heroine, whose real name is Jane, is a mousy librarian with a sensual nature and a bloodthirsty streak for justice.
Sexy hero Sandy, whose real name is Alexander, is a suave and successful lawyer bored to death with his charmed life.
That is, until Jane knocks on his motel door. She needs Sandy's help to commit arson. Well, what she really needs is a criminal, but she doesn't know Sandy is just a lawyer. LOL Jane wants to prevent her deceased brother's revolutionary, scientific formula from being sold to the highest and amoral bidder, thus the arson. Sandy doesn't correct her assumption because reasons, and agrees to be her partner in crime. He has one major caveat, though, no torching! And so begin the high jinks and travelogue through America's East Coast (this is a Harlequin American after all).
I enjoy the majority of this author's romantic suspense novels and this book was no exception. Unlike her later ICE series, however, the tone was very lighthearted as evidenced by the mistaken-identity farce, low angst, and especially the unbelievable, comical resolution (more on this later).
The hero elevated this book for me. Any man who can carry the moniker of Sandy yet still ooze sex appeal and charm is a MAN. He'd claimed boredom as his explanation for going along with Jane's scheme, but the reader knows the real reason he allowed himself to be sucked into a life of crime.
Jane was less stupid than the typical Stuart heroine. What was typical but still appreciated was her acerbic and sassy attitude, which she used to hide her vulnerability towards Sandy.
The author had me guessing in spite of the slow pacing of the beginning. The identity of the villain(s) was obvious, but I wasn't sure if they had accomplices and/or if their villainy went deeper than appeared. The biggest letdown was the denouement which ended on a whimper. It's definitely an ideal scenario, but was far from being realistic.
Big Plot Spoiler
P.S. Thanks to Zubee for bringing this to my attention, and to Tapasya for reading this with me and waiting so patiently for my review!
Sexy hero Sandy, whose real name is Alexander, is a suave and successful lawyer bored to death with his charmed life.
That is, until Jane knocks on his motel door. She needs Sandy's help to commit arson. Well, what she really needs is a criminal, but she doesn't know Sandy is just a lawyer. LOL Jane wants to prevent her deceased brother's revolutionary, scientific formula from being sold to the highest and amoral bidder, thus the arson. Sandy doesn't correct her assumption because reasons, and agrees to be her partner in crime. He has one major caveat, though, no torching! And so begin the high jinks and travelogue through America's East Coast (this is a Harlequin American after all).
I enjoy the majority of this author's romantic suspense novels and this book was no exception. Unlike her later ICE series, however, the tone was very lighthearted as evidenced by the mistaken-identity farce, low angst, and especially the unbelievable, comical resolution (more on this later).
The hero elevated this book for me. Any man who can carry the moniker of Sandy yet still ooze sex appeal and charm is a MAN. He'd claimed boredom as his explanation for going along with Jane's scheme, but the reader knows the real reason he allowed himself to be sucked into a life of crime.
Jane was less stupid than the typical Stuart heroine. What was typical but still appreciated was her acerbic and sassy attitude, which she used to hide her vulnerability towards Sandy.
The author had me guessing in spite of the slow pacing of the beginning. The identity of the villain(s) was obvious, but I wasn't sure if they had accomplices and/or if their villainy went deeper than appeared. The biggest letdown was the denouement which ended on a whimper. It's definitely an ideal scenario, but was far from being realistic.
Big Plot Spoiler
P.S. Thanks to Zubee for bringing this to my attention, and to Tapasya for reading this with me and waiting so patiently for my review!
October 26, 2011
From the book blurb:
Sandy was up to no good.
As Jane Dexter scrambled to keep a secret formula from falling into the wrong hands, her hired accomplice proved useless as a jack-of-all-illegal-trades. Convinced that a gloriously sensual woman lurked beneath Jane's ho-hum outfits and non-nonsense manner, Sandy Caldicott lost all interest in illegal activities as he singlemindedly campaigned to reform Jane.
While Jane was breaking and entering with Sandy in Princeton, New Jersey, the awful truth penetrated her muddled brain. The way things were going, she was bound to end up in the arms of the law - or in the arms of a lawless, dashing, dangerously deluded criminal.
**********
Alexander "Sandy" Caldicott was a rich and successful lawyer who was feeling a bit bored with his current life. Not even the prospect of a nice vacation in the tropics was exciting him. When mousy and plain Jane Dexter approached him with her "unusual" proposal, it was like a godsend gift. Goodbye, boredom! The thing is, due to a misprint by the newspaper, Jane believed he was Jimmy the Stoolie, an arsonist Sandy had just gotten acquitted of more-than-deserved charges. You see, she was in dire need of an arsonist because she wanted him to help her commit arson! The right thing for Sandy to do was set her straight and advise her against her criminal plan, but it had been a long time since he had so much fun so he kept the charade going. Before he knew it, he was falling in love with Jane and couldn't not help her.
I really liked Sandy and Jane. They were smart, entertaining and had great lines. He kept the deception about his true identify a little longer than I liked, but it was funny to see him try and cover his slips of the tongue - after all, he wasn't an accomplished liar... Oh wait, he was a lawyer! (LOL)
The plot twist at the end came as no surprise to me, and I still don't understand how Jane didn't see it coming. Maybe I've read too many books and I'm jaded. The villain's final act was also a bit of a disappointment. After everything that he'd done, I was braced for a big showdown, but all I got was a dull resolution.
All things considered, this was a very fun and enjoyable read marred by a somewhat unsatisfying ending.
Sandy was up to no good.
As Jane Dexter scrambled to keep a secret formula from falling into the wrong hands, her hired accomplice proved useless as a jack-of-all-illegal-trades. Convinced that a gloriously sensual woman lurked beneath Jane's ho-hum outfits and non-nonsense manner, Sandy Caldicott lost all interest in illegal activities as he singlemindedly campaigned to reform Jane.
While Jane was breaking and entering with Sandy in Princeton, New Jersey, the awful truth penetrated her muddled brain. The way things were going, she was bound to end up in the arms of the law - or in the arms of a lawless, dashing, dangerously deluded criminal.
**********
Alexander "Sandy" Caldicott was a rich and successful lawyer who was feeling a bit bored with his current life. Not even the prospect of a nice vacation in the tropics was exciting him. When mousy and plain Jane Dexter approached him with her "unusual" proposal, it was like a godsend gift. Goodbye, boredom! The thing is, due to a misprint by the newspaper, Jane believed he was Jimmy the Stoolie, an arsonist Sandy had just gotten acquitted of more-than-deserved charges. You see, she was in dire need of an arsonist because she wanted him to help her commit arson! The right thing for Sandy to do was set her straight and advise her against her criminal plan, but it had been a long time since he had so much fun so he kept the charade going. Before he knew it, he was falling in love with Jane and couldn't not help her.
I really liked Sandy and Jane. They were smart, entertaining and had great lines. He kept the deception about his true identify a little longer than I liked, but it was funny to see him try and cover his slips of the tongue - after all, he wasn't an accomplished liar... Oh wait, he was a lawyer! (LOL)
The plot twist at the end came as no surprise to me, and I still don't understand how Jane didn't see it coming. Maybe I've read too many books and I'm jaded. The villain's final act was also a bit of a disappointment. After everything that he'd done, I was braced for a big showdown, but all I got was a dull resolution.
All things considered, this was a very fun and enjoyable read marred by a somewhat unsatisfying ending.
August 25, 2013
What a fun book, the heroine a goody librarian approaches the hero to ask his help, to commit arson. You see the heroine has mistaken the hero for a criminal when in fact he is a successful lawyer. The hero who is in a funk and bored by everything, goes along with the charade never expecting it to go on for so long. Before he knows it, he is Jimmy the criminal, breaking & entering, trying to commit corporate espionage and what not. His lies trap him even when he wants to tell the truth. The heroine meanwhile doesn't get her attraction to him, she has been off men since her divorce plus she has always been plain jane, the understanding one. I have gotta admit this book was wacky fun! It had humor, sexual tension combined with great characters.
August 7, 2019
"Partners In Crime" is the story of Jane and Sandy.
A comedy of errors and deception filled read in which a heroine suspects her wicked uncle of stealing her dead brother's research, and goes to hire an infamous arsonist to torch his lab. Due to a newspaper mixup, she ends up finding the hero- a bored lawyer and confuses him with the criminal. The hero goes along with the charade, initially due to curiosity, and later due to attraction and protectiveness.
The rest of the book is them going on a chase, escaping from goons, falling in love and having hot coitus. The characters are silly and superfluous, and the book dragged for a bit- but I did enjoy the ending.
Safe
2.5/5
A comedy of errors and deception filled read in which a heroine suspects her wicked uncle of stealing her dead brother's research, and goes to hire an infamous arsonist to torch his lab. Due to a newspaper mixup, she ends up finding the hero- a bored lawyer and confuses him with the criminal. The hero goes along with the charade, initially due to curiosity, and later due to attraction and protectiveness.
The rest of the book is them going on a chase, escaping from goons, falling in love and having hot coitus. The characters are silly and superfluous, and the book dragged for a bit- but I did enjoy the ending.
Safe
2.5/5
August 26, 2015
Anne Stuart books are a treasure I keep, to indulge in between books, or whenever I hit a reading stump because there is no other author who scratches the reading itch as well as Anne Stuart does. Book 4 in her Bad Boy series, Partners in Crime is actually quite mellow compared to most of her stories. I wouldn’t label Alexander Caldicott (Sandy) as a bad boy. Nevertheless, in true Anne Stuart style, Sandy gives the sexy to the story in a way you can’t get enough of.
An erroneous caption in a newspaper leaves small town librarian Jane Dexter with the belief that Sandy is one of the shadiest criminals in the country, capable of committing the crime that she wants. When Jane knocks on the door of Sandy’s motel room, he can barely muster enough interest in her, that is before she opens her mouth, demanding him that he commit arson for her. Sandy’s view of Jane the minute he opens the motel door is definitely interesting enough to highlight.
Jane believes that its just her rotten luck that the man who stirs in her a carnal interest of the type she had never felt before turns out to be the man who could actually fulfill her needs when it comes to committing crimes of the kind that could get her locked up for good. However, that doesn’t deter Jane from seeking him out and making a play to entice Sandy into working for her. Jane’s view of Sandy is just as fascinating as Sandy’s view of her, worthy of a mention.
When Jane turns up on Sandy’s doorstep, for the first time in weeks, hell, for the first time in months, Sandy feels alive, invigorated about the next day and what’s to come. Life had been losing all meaning for him of late, his career not giving him that jolt of satisfaction, his life seemingly a benign existence that he just wakes up to face every morning.
The adventure that Jane and Sandy embark upon is a hilarious one. True to Anne Stuart’s legendary style, the dialogues between Sandy and Jane are laugh out loud worthy at times. No two ways about it. Jane’s snarky attitude entices Sandy to get into her mind, to explore the curves that she hides behind the drab suits, the persona that she hides behind lest anyone take enough notice of her.
Sandy continues to live the lie that Jane believes him to be, and all along, these two fall in love, a love based on a lie that could have devastating consequences if and when Jane were to find out. But then again, Anne Stuart writes characters of the type that do not wallow in what cannot be changed and the ending with tiny bites of surprising aspects to it, gave the story a well rounded edge to it.
Like I said earlier on, I wouldn’t describe Sandy as the dark bad boys of the type that Anne Stuart is well known in the romance genre for. Sandy is sexy, smart, with a core of goodness and integrity to him that shines through as he tries to divert Jane from her bloodthirsty mission by any means possible. That doesn’t mean that Sandy doesn’t bring along the vitality to the story as required. He does that, in spades and I believe he was the right fit for the story under the circumstances. But then again, I keep envisioning a bit of an edgier Sandy, someone who forces Jane out of her shell with the “cruelty” that only heroes of that nature are capable of. Alas, that wasn’t meant to be in Partners in Crime.
Jane is a character who had come from one of those families that aren’t actually trying to be cruel, but ends up being just that towards one of their children. Jane had learnt long ago to expect her dues and move on. Never in a hundred years would she have expected to fall for a seedy criminal, but that is exactly what she thinks she has fallen for, in the process of committing the only crime she had ever wanted to commit in her straight and narrow life.
Sandy brings to Jane’s life, the color that had been missing in it. The sensations that she had never gotten to experience with another. The kind of feelings that she had always shunned because she thought they weren’t for someone like her. To find it with Sandy, to accept it, well, that’s the fun part of the story.
Recommended for fans of Anne Stuart. If you want one of her darker heroes, this won’t do any good. But nevertheless it does provide the sort of storytelling that only Anne Stuart can deliver.
Rating = 4/5
For more reviews & quotes, please visit, www.maldivianbookreviewer.com
An erroneous caption in a newspaper leaves small town librarian Jane Dexter with the belief that Sandy is one of the shadiest criminals in the country, capable of committing the crime that she wants. When Jane knocks on the door of Sandy’s motel room, he can barely muster enough interest in her, that is before she opens her mouth, demanding him that he commit arson for her. Sandy’s view of Jane the minute he opens the motel door is definitely interesting enough to highlight.
“She was short, and he liked tall women. She had mousy brown hair, and he was partial to blondes. Her eyes were brown, too, and partially obscured by wire-rimmed glasses that gave her a faintly startled look. Her mouth was too generous, and so was her nose, and her clothes were drab, boring, the sort of things worn by a Midwestern librarian. She couldn’t have been much older than thirty, or much younger, either. He stood in the doorway, looking down at her, trying to summon up at least an ounce of polite interest.”
Jane believes that its just her rotten luck that the man who stirs in her a carnal interest of the type she had never felt before turns out to be the man who could actually fulfill her needs when it comes to committing crimes of the kind that could get her locked up for good. However, that doesn’t deter Jane from seeking him out and making a play to entice Sandy into working for her. Jane’s view of Sandy is just as fascinating as Sandy’s view of her, worthy of a mention.
“He was tall, a bit over six feet, and beautifully coordinated. His shoulders were just broad enough, his legs long, his hands, from what she could see from a distance, were well shaped. His hair was blond, probably lightened from hours on the deck of a yacht or racing around a tennis court, and his remaining tan set off features that were just this side of perfection. She hadn’t gotten close enough to see his eyes, but she knew they had to be perfect Aryan blue. His mouth was thin but sexy, his teeth very white, his cheekbones and jaw chiseled. He even had a perfect nose, damn him.”
When Jane turns up on Sandy’s doorstep, for the first time in weeks, hell, for the first time in months, Sandy feels alive, invigorated about the next day and what’s to come. Life had been losing all meaning for him of late, his career not giving him that jolt of satisfaction, his life seemingly a benign existence that he just wakes up to face every morning.
The adventure that Jane and Sandy embark upon is a hilarious one. True to Anne Stuart’s legendary style, the dialogues between Sandy and Jane are laugh out loud worthy at times. No two ways about it. Jane’s snarky attitude entices Sandy to get into her mind, to explore the curves that she hides behind the drab suits, the persona that she hides behind lest anyone take enough notice of her.
Sandy continues to live the lie that Jane believes him to be, and all along, these two fall in love, a love based on a lie that could have devastating consequences if and when Jane were to find out. But then again, Anne Stuart writes characters of the type that do not wallow in what cannot be changed and the ending with tiny bites of surprising aspects to it, gave the story a well rounded edge to it.
Like I said earlier on, I wouldn’t describe Sandy as the dark bad boys of the type that Anne Stuart is well known in the romance genre for. Sandy is sexy, smart, with a core of goodness and integrity to him that shines through as he tries to divert Jane from her bloodthirsty mission by any means possible. That doesn’t mean that Sandy doesn’t bring along the vitality to the story as required. He does that, in spades and I believe he was the right fit for the story under the circumstances. But then again, I keep envisioning a bit of an edgier Sandy, someone who forces Jane out of her shell with the “cruelty” that only heroes of that nature are capable of. Alas, that wasn’t meant to be in Partners in Crime.
Jane is a character who had come from one of those families that aren’t actually trying to be cruel, but ends up being just that towards one of their children. Jane had learnt long ago to expect her dues and move on. Never in a hundred years would she have expected to fall for a seedy criminal, but that is exactly what she thinks she has fallen for, in the process of committing the only crime she had ever wanted to commit in her straight and narrow life.
Sandy brings to Jane’s life, the color that had been missing in it. The sensations that she had never gotten to experience with another. The kind of feelings that she had always shunned because she thought they weren’t for someone like her. To find it with Sandy, to accept it, well, that’s the fun part of the story.
Recommended for fans of Anne Stuart. If you want one of her darker heroes, this won’t do any good. But nevertheless it does provide the sort of storytelling that only Anne Stuart can deliver.
Rating = 4/5
For more reviews & quotes, please visit, www.maldivianbookreviewer.com
July 19, 2019
Great fun. Super-smooth NY lawyer intrigued by plain Jane librarian, launching them both into a soft-centred caper plot. Lots of back chat, a heroine who doesn't stand any nonsense, and a more vulnerable hero than Anne Stuart usually offers.
January 9, 2019
4 stars for a hilarious, funny rom-com about a bored of his life, lawyer H and an outwardly repressed but inwardly blood-thirsty h with criminal tendencies
Even the villain is stupidly funny and h's brother, because of whom the whole drama started, is a nutty professor type
Plus the h likes to eat a lot; H has a great mind to come up with schemes but not the know-how to execute them (like opening doors with a credit card - she knows a bit more than he does about such things) and she throws things at him when she finds out he is a lawyer and not the criminal arsonist she thought he was
She never hesitates to take revenge on him and he makes a great picture of the sulky, offended male!
Also, when he proposes, he tells her that even though her brother is nutty and eccentric, he still loves her and wants to marry her; she turns around and tells him; he is not such a great catch himself as he is a pathological liar
Worth reading ...
Even the villain is stupidly funny and h's brother, because of whom the whole drama started, is a nutty professor type
Plus the h likes to eat a lot; H has a great mind to come up with schemes but not the know-how to execute them (like opening doors with a credit card - she knows a bit more than he does about such things) and she throws things at him when she finds out he is a lawyer and not the criminal arsonist she thought he was
She never hesitates to take revenge on him and he makes a great picture of the sulky, offended male!
Also, when he proposes, he tells her that even though her brother is nutty and eccentric, he still loves her and wants to marry her; she turns around and tells him; he is not such a great catch himself as he is a pathological liar
Worth reading ...
March 1, 2019
Loved it.
This book has just about everything in it.
A perfect mix of Mystery, Romance, Adventure, and just a bit of Suspense.
An extremely enjoyable read.
I would like to thank my friend KC who recommended me this book.
This book has just about everything in it.
A perfect mix of Mystery, Romance, Adventure, and just a bit of Suspense.
An extremely enjoyable read.
I would like to thank my friend KC who recommended me this book.
April 24, 2016
Jane Dexter wants to hire an arsonist and mistakens Sandi Caldicott,a lawyer, for one of his clients. Sandi is in need of some adventure and pretends to be a criminal. What follows is a romantic suspense plot involving secret inventions whose plans are going to be sold to foreign countries and be used with less than peaceful intentions and Jane and Sandi are going to try and avoid that.
To avoid the selling of the plans, her late brother's invention, Jane needs to set his laboratory on fire since she doesn't know where the plans are but they must surely be there. But soon they find that her uncle might have been her brother's killer and may be after the plans himself.
It's another pleasurable read, Jane and Sandi are interesting characters. Jane starts off a bit too shy, sensible and plain but she slowly evolves under Sandi's influence and provocations. It's a case of opposites attract between a self-effacing librarian and a big shot high society lawyer. The attraction is sooner recognised by Sandi than Jane, even after she finds the truth about him. The book is especially funny while Jane doesn't know about the identity mistake and there's a scene where they visit a crime lord in which Sandi pretends to be his client and his client pretends to be him and it's obvious that Jane is the only one that doesn't have a clue that was really hilarious! By the way Sandi is short for Alexander, in the beginning I was a bit puzzled as I'm more used to Sandi being a female name.
In the end - that comes about with some interesting plot twists and a really disappointing villain (or maybe just a not so villanous one) - she is ready to truly be his Partner In Crime and give him a hard time in the process. I thought the wrap up in the end could have been a bit better, Stuart comes up with some surprising events but somehow we have no real suspense, the tension is just not there.
Grade: B-
To avoid the selling of the plans, her late brother's invention, Jane needs to set his laboratory on fire since she doesn't know where the plans are but they must surely be there. But soon they find that her uncle might have been her brother's killer and may be after the plans himself.
It's another pleasurable read, Jane and Sandi are interesting characters. Jane starts off a bit too shy, sensible and plain but she slowly evolves under Sandi's influence and provocations. It's a case of opposites attract between a self-effacing librarian and a big shot high society lawyer. The attraction is sooner recognised by Sandi than Jane, even after she finds the truth about him. The book is especially funny while Jane doesn't know about the identity mistake and there's a scene where they visit a crime lord in which Sandi pretends to be his client and his client pretends to be him and it's obvious that Jane is the only one that doesn't have a clue that was really hilarious! By the way Sandi is short for Alexander, in the beginning I was a bit puzzled as I'm more used to Sandi being a female name.
In the end - that comes about with some interesting plot twists and a really disappointing villain (or maybe just a not so villanous one) - she is ready to truly be his Partner In Crime and give him a hard time in the process. I thought the wrap up in the end could have been a bit better, Stuart comes up with some surprising events but somehow we have no real suspense, the tension is just not there.
Grade: B-
September 24, 2020
This started off very promising, but didn't work for me in the end. I liked the idea of 'plain Jane', and I was looking forward to seeing how her character would develop throughout the book. I think Sandy was good at drawing her out of her shell and her own preconceptions.
Sandy was the best character, I have to say. He is much less ambiguous than AS' other male leads and has more scruples. That doesn't mean he was a boring character; no, I enjoyed his struggles and his personality.
However, where this book disappointed, was for me, Jane's violent tendencies. It's only human to get frustrated and have violent thoughts, but I wasn't comfortable with her throwing objects at Sandy in anger and actually hurting him. I also greatly disliked when she recklessly and childishly drove fast around bends in the road because she was pissed off at him - and their lives ended up in danger. Jane has childhood factors affecting the way she is as an adult, but it's not an excuse and I couldn't bring myself to like her. At this point, I was no longer interested in finishing the last 20% or so.
Anyway, I skipped to the end from around 80% to get some closure, but it was flabbergasting and flat. Sorry to say that I didn't enjoy this as much as I thought I would.
P.S. The other dated moment is that there is a scene between Sandy and Jane where Jane is saying 'no', but then Sandy is like 'yes, you really want it despite you saying no'. And Jane is overcome with passion etc. etc. I do notice this in some romance books from earlier decades, so it is not exclusive just to this book
Sandy was the best character, I have to say. He is much less ambiguous than AS' other male leads and has more scruples. That doesn't mean he was a boring character; no, I enjoyed his struggles and his personality.
However, where this book disappointed, was for me, Jane's violent tendencies. It's only human to get frustrated and have violent thoughts, but I wasn't comfortable with her throwing objects at Sandy in anger and actually hurting him. I also greatly disliked when she recklessly and childishly drove fast around bends in the road because she was pissed off at him - and their lives ended up in danger. Jane has childhood factors affecting the way she is as an adult, but it's not an excuse and I couldn't bring myself to like her. At this point, I was no longer interested in finishing the last 20% or so.
Anyway, I skipped to the end from around 80% to get some closure, but it was flabbergasting and flat. Sorry to say that I didn't enjoy this as much as I thought I would.
P.S. The other dated moment is that there is a scene between Sandy and Jane where Jane is saying 'no', but then Sandy is like 'yes, you really want it despite you saying no'. And Jane is overcome with passion etc. etc. I do notice this in some romance books from earlier decades, so it is not exclusive just to this book
June 30, 2023
Bad Boy
Anne Stuart, just a great job in creating outstanding stories. In this book she created one of the most outstanding annoying, female characters ever. I don’t know anybody put up with her I wouldn’t. The male hero of the story. Sandy is a saint to put up with all the nonsense she directed towards him. I don’t know sometimes love is blind. In this case it’s also tone deaf. Well, I gave it a five star of red better books by Anne Stuart
Anne Stuart, just a great job in creating outstanding stories. In this book she created one of the most outstanding annoying, female characters ever. I don’t know anybody put up with her I wouldn’t. The male hero of the story. Sandy is a saint to put up with all the nonsense she directed towards him. I don’t know sometimes love is blind. In this case it’s also tone deaf. Well, I gave it a five star of red better books by Anne Stuart
February 8, 2019
A good older-style romantic suspense. Liked the dialogue between Sandy and Jane. I also enjoyed their thoughts.
December 12, 2020
This very much feels like Anne Stuart trying to write a Jennifer Crusie book, which isn’t bad, but its tone is very difficult from most of her other books
June 13, 2013
Usually I'm not a huge fan of books where one of the characters hides their identity from the other, but this time it worked for me. I definitely enjoyed this book, and found it fun to read.
I liked that the hero wasn't infallible—he might make a great lawyer, but he was charmingly inept at a life of crime, even somewhat cowardly at times. And this made him more likable to me.
I actually liked that the villain wasn't over the top evil. He seemed far more human than your average villain, and that's something I appreciate. Yes, there may be truly evil people in the world, but far more real-life villains are not really all that evil, just selfish or greedy or whatever, and I wish more books reflected that.
All this might sound rather lackluster praise, but it really isn't. I'm just not good at all at describing what I like about books, which is why my positive reviews are always much, much shorter than my negative ones.
I will say that it is odd to read books written in the eighties when they start describing fashion. Shoulder pads! Feathers! Strange things done to hair! Leather bra with metal studs?!
I liked that the hero wasn't infallible—he might make a great lawyer, but he was charmingly inept at a life of crime, even somewhat cowardly at times. And this made him more likable to me.
I actually liked that the villain wasn't over the top evil. He seemed far more human than your average villain, and that's something I appreciate. Yes, there may be truly evil people in the world, but far more real-life villains are not really all that evil, just selfish or greedy or whatever, and I wish more books reflected that.
All this might sound rather lackluster praise, but it really isn't. I'm just not good at all at describing what I like about books, which is why my positive reviews are always much, much shorter than my negative ones.
I will say that it is odd to read books written in the eighties when they start describing fashion. Shoulder pads! Feathers! Strange things done to hair! Leather bra with metal studs?!
September 25, 2012
I honestly don't know how to rate this book. It was a perfectly enjoyable 3-star read until the last 30 or so pages, when it took a turn for the bizarre and all the plot points built up throughout the book were resolved in such a way as to make futile the entire point of the story. I am still very confused, so am waiting a few hours before settling on a rating.
Update: I think I'm going to have to give this two stars. The weirdness of how the ending was handled is overshadowing my experience of the rest of the book, which is kind of sad. Maybe the key is to read up until the last 26 pages or so.
Update: I think I'm going to have to give this two stars. The weirdness of how the ending was handled is overshadowing my experience of the rest of the book, which is kind of sad. Maybe the key is to read up until the last 26 pages or so.
August 4, 2015
Really Good
I thought it good not quite extant but still good enough for high stair rating.
Two people brought together by chance she wants to bun her dead brothers lab Dow along with the secrets there.
He is a lawyer who 's got me dead with a bad he was defending.
The story was really good and it was an enjoy an enjoy use read.
Some parts are just to funny.
I really like. Ann Stuart
Her books are never the same and each I have read so far has been a winner.
I thought it good not quite extant but still good enough for high stair rating.
Two people brought together by chance she wants to bun her dead brothers lab Dow along with the secrets there.
He is a lawyer who 's got me dead with a bad he was defending.
The story was really good and it was an enjoy an enjoy use read.
Some parts are just to funny.
I really like. Ann Stuart
Her books are never the same and each I have read so far has been a winner.
September 22, 2010
enjoyed reading about this couple falling in love
September 21, 2015
Great! Somewhat different hero than her usual, but still an enjoyable read.
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