Tal Como Eres

Lost Hearts #1

by Christina Dodd

Con la desaparición de sus padres, la vida de adolescente libre de preocupaciones de Hope Prescott se esfumó para siempre. Ella y sus tres hermanos fueron separados y enviados a diferentes familias adoptivas.

Ahora, siete años después, Hope continúa buscándolos. Para mantenerse, trabaja para un servicio de contestador telefónico y se preocupa por sus clientes como si fueran familiares suyos. Cuando Zachariah Givens, un acaudalado empresario, contrata el servicio de Hope, ésta lo toma por su mayordomo.

Cansado de verse siempre adulado por su dinero, Zack queda cautivado por el candor de Hope, así como por su voz sexy, y sigue adelante con la mentira.

Conforme su amistad va transformándose en amor, Zack toma la decisión de hacerla suya. Pero cuando Hope descubre su engaño, Zack comprende que ha de resolver el misterio que se cierne sobre el pasado de la mujer a la que ama para convencerla de que los caminos de ambos están destinados a unirse.

Genres: Romance, Contemporary Romance, Contemporary, Romantic Suspense, Audiobook, Fiction, Mystery

352 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2003

About the author

Upcoming:
— 6/30/26 TEACH THE TORCHES TO BURN: Daughter of Montague Historical Fiction #3 https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...

New and Now!
—MUCH ADO ABOUT MISTLETOE: Daughter of Montague Christmas novella https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
— THUS WITH A KISS I DIE Daughter of Montague Historical Fiction #2
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
— A DAUGHTER OF FAIR VERONA Historical Fiction Trade Paperback Once upon a time a young couple met and fell in love. You probably know that story, and how it ended (hint: badly). Only here’s the thing: That’s not how it ended at all…
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...
— WELCOME TO GOTHIC: A Gothic novella in ebook (at last!) https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
— WHAT DREAMS MAY COME Daughter of Montague novella 1.5 "I’m the daughter of Romeo and Juliet. Yes, that Romeo and Juliet. No, they didn’t die in the tomb…" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
— GIRL ANONYMOUS “Crackling sexual chemistry and a few love scenes guaranteed to scorch readers’ fingers as they turn the pages." — ⭐️ Booklist
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...

Readers become writers, and Christina has always been a reader. Ultimately she discovered she liked to read romance best because the relationship between a man and a woman is always humorous. A woman wants world peace, a clean house, and a deep and meaningful relationship based on mutual understanding and love. A man wants a Craftsman router, undisputed control of the TV remote, and a red Corvette which will make his bald spot disappear.
When Christina’s first daughter was born, she told her husband she was going to write a book. It was a good time to start a new career, because how much trouble could one little infant be?
Ha! It took ten years, two children and three completed manuscripts before she was published. Now her suspense, paranormal, historical, and mystery novels have been translated into 30 languages and sold more than 15 million copies in print. Praised for her “brilliantly etched characters, polished writing, and unexpected flashes of sharp humor that are pure Dodd” (Booklist), her award-winning books have landed on numerous Best of the Year lists and, much to her mother's delight, Dodd was once a clue in the Los Angeles Times crossword puzzle. She lives with her family in the Pacific Northwest, where her 700 lavender plants share the yard with her husband’s various “Big Projects,” including a treehouse, zipline, and their very own Stonehenge.
Enter Christina’s worlds and join her mailing list for humor, book news and entertainment (yes, she’s the proud author with the infamous three-armed cover) at christinadodd.com. For more information on A DAUGHTER OF FAIR VERONA, visit daughterofmontague.com. Her legions of fans know that when they pick up a Christina Dodd book, they'll find the story, "Wildly entertaining, wickedly witty!"
Christina is married to a man with all his hair and no Corvette, but many Craftsman tools.

(Source: http://www.christinadodd.com )

Reviews

[Ivana Azap Feješ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is about two people, Hope Prescott and Zach Given, who lived completely different lives, yet both were alone and lonely. Hope lived through great trauma of her parents being killed in a car crash while supposedly running from town after embezzling from the church her father worked as a minister and abandoning their 4 children. The children were separated by the town leaders and Hope, 8 years later is barley surviving, living only to find her siblings and getting to the truth about her parents death. Zach is the poor little rich boy, incredibly handsome but ruthless in business. Zach is a rich bachelor who is used to people liking him as a result of his money. Hope is a poor young woman struggling to make ends meet as she chases her dream of tracking down her family. A phone conversation between Zach and his answering service operator leads to Hope mistaking Zach for his butler. Zack was just so wrong! And it took forever for him to be right! But I guess that's what makes it such a good book. This was a great story about a young woman who has a horrible past due to separation from her siblings and the death of her parents and Zach Givens, a powerful, wealthy man who is lonely and has a grudge pretty much against everyone. The story is about two people falling in love nontraditional and about secrets that are going to come out... I put this book in the contemporary stack although it's some what a mystery/suspense story as well. I didn't like Zach for much of the book and the identity of "Ma" surprised me. Looks like book 2 is Pepper's story and I look forward to reading it. While taking classes, Hope works for an answering service. She gets to know all her "clients" and they are all fond of her. Poor girl, Hope falls in love with rich guy, Zack but doesn't know he's rich, he leads her to believe he is only the butler. Zack has been burned too many times by women who only want his money. Hope is poor but a wonderful caring person. Seven years ago the Prescott siblings were separated after their parent's tragic death. Hope, the oldest, is still searching for the others, while earning a living working for an answering service. Zachariah Givens, a wealthy businessman, hires her service, but Hope foolishly mistakes him for the butler. Charmed and tired of being treated like royalty because of his wealth, Zack doesn't correct her. When Hope Prescott's parents disappeared, her carefree teenage life vanished forever. She and her three siblings were separated and sent to different foster homes around the country. Now, seven years later, Hope is still searching for them. To support herself, she works for an answering service, and cares for her clients as if they were family.

I liked this book. I had read it before from the library and when it was reissued I bought myself a copy. A nice story of involving a masquerade and a rich unfeeling man falling in love and becoming more human. The heroine was super sweet and everyone loved her. Just the Way You Are was a fast, fun read that kept you turning the pages to see what would happen next. I love people who care and who help. I got involved in this story quickly and enjoyed it. Good book! I'm interested to see what the Big Secret is at the end of the series. Dodd is brilliant at keeping the suspense mounting. Light and amusing, despite the mild foreshadowing of darker happenings in the prologue. The main relationship was so cute I was more than willing to overlook the utterly ridiculous turns the plot abruptly took halfway through the book and still really enjoy it. The core relationship was a sweet, though predictable romance. The heroine seemed lovely and genuine, if a bit all over the place and at one point rather glaringly stupid. This a feel good story about an orphaned girl that lost her parents tragically, and was separated from her siblings. She settles in Boston and starts college, determined to get the best job, that pays the most money, so she will be able to find her family. This isn't a new idea but it is a well-told story. Written, I believe, before FSOG and is in no way erotica but there was something Fifty Shades fans would really relate and like about this novel. Maybe it's the brooding gorgeous billionaire taking a very unusual interest in a plain young virgin who is the polar opposite of him on the social status totem pole. Or that he demanded things from her and seduced her into a life she was very unfamiliar with. Either way it's a very good read one that I personally found a million times more romantic than FSOG.

Aunt Cecily launched the first attack. “I suppose you know my nephew is eating his heart out over you.” Hope snapped back, “As long as he’s drinking the right wine with it, everything will be fine.”

He demanded, “Are you so open and trusting that you dare criticize Mr. Givens?”
“Oh, I dare criticize anyone.” She loaded the plates into the dishwasher. “Whether I have that right is another matter altogether.”

“I thought society would do the right thing. Now I look around and I think -- society never does the right thing. Sometimes people do the right thing. Sometimes one person makes a difference. But civilization has rules, and I've learned them well -- never be helpless, never be sick, never be poor.”

[Shelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

I just don't know where to start on this one, about half way through I wanted to throw my hands up and bitch slap the heroine. Hope, hope my ass. Talk about a good character that just went downhill fast, and become more and more stupid. Seriously, I thought I had found a wonderful gem of a book, I've heard rave reviews of Dodd's historical romances, but I haven't read any yet. But I figured writing historicals has got to be more difficult, so the contemporaries must be good too. Don't you believe it!!

When the book first started, and all the way to about halfway, I really liked Hope. She was sweet, and the 'milk of human kindness,' I found that phrase a little overused, but it fit. She was kind to everyone who deserved it and had a quick sense of humor about herself, everything was going so well! But then we get a shady character come into the phone service office and he wants her to be his accounting partner, but she can't look at his accounting, and oh, by the way, just sign this financial form you have no clue about, kay? Riiight - because we all want to help our fellow man. This way, when you get arrested for embezzlement you can just tell the nice police officers that yes, those are my signatures on legal documents, but I was only helping a down-on-his-luck gentleman that I had just met because he gave me $500 a month. So ridiculous. And it just got worse from there. I really began to question her sanity. She keeps going on and on about her morals and that she's a preacher's daughter, but sleeps with Zach after knowing him less than a week, and the night she is attacked for her bookbag. I read one person's review how they couldn't believe she could loose her virginity in one night, and it be good, and want to have hot wild sex almost immediately after. Well, speaking from experience, it doesn't always have to hurt the first time, it makes me wonder how the rest of you lost yours, because mine was fantastic! And round two was not out of the question! But the way it's described in this book, no freaking way. First, Hope is shy and downright prude about Zach even seeing her body to jumping him and wanting it soo rough to make her forget her problems? Shy and sweet virginal Hope who doesn't know how to kiss very well and in the same night is biting and pulling at Zach for it to be harder? Some preacher's daughter.

As for Zach. I really did like him a lot in this book, at least until the end, with the stupid 'Given's Gang with instruments' who walk into a well-known mobster's den to get Hope out (yeah, she's that stupid to get kidnapped by the local kingpin), but this I blame on the author, because no self-respecting, high-powered, eat-your-company-for-breakfast mogul is going to do something so completely idiotic. No, in truth, he'd call a guy. Or a tactical force, or something. He wouldn't meet well-known mobsters with a band of misfits carrying instrument cases with actual instruments in them. This is when I lost all respect for him. I did like him when he went to see Hope in jail, and basically told her to go to hell, that was awesome! She totally deserved it! Even if he had been lying to her about his identity, she deserved a set down of epic proportions for being TSTL. Another reviewer compared him to Richard Gere's character in Pretty Woman, and I'm gonna have to agree, it was eerily similar in some parts, but I dug Edward, so I didn't mind too much. Only difference is Zach's Vivian had no brains.

The secondary characters are great though. I especially loved Nancy, I seem to be developing a crush on all things Russian, and she's no exception, she was a hoot! Also love Zach's Aunt Cecily, Ma Monahan and Zach's secretaries. By the end of the book, Hope's foster brother from her childhood is found, but not a lot is said about him, and I don't know if he has a happy ending, or will get his own book, but I am curious to see what happens to him.

As for the rating, I gave this author 3 stars instead of just 2 for several reasons. First, I really did enjoy the first half of the book, I just feel the plot fell apart and Dodd had to do some zany stuff to make it to the end, and it didn't work. It wasn't funny or interesting or fitting, just plain dumb. I did enjoy the intimiate scenes, right up until the 'do me hard baby' one, but the first time they really make out was just as hot as when they have sex for the first time. The style is good, I really liked it, just the storyline was crap, so she can do it, but as for whether she can keep it together through a whole book, well, I'll have to read some more of her stuff to see. If you've read her historicals and loved them I can't offer any advice as to whether to try these or not, but I'd say find another one to try. If you've never read Dodd period, definitely try another one, as this one will not win you over.

[Kay · Rating 1 out of 5]

I can't believe I finished this book. To be honest, I scanned most of it. It never really hooked me in the beginning. I really didn't care about the whole lost family thing, and didn't really buy that it should have been Hope's one huge obsession. Sure, it was dramatic, but get over it. Live your life for yourself. Make finding your family a secondary goal.

At the beginning of the book, I felt like I was reading some odd mix of the Great Gatsby and Pretty Woman. Givens basically has Richard Gere's job, but Givens is a heck of a lot less charming, and I honestly thought he was pretty dumb in the beginning of the book. I think the author wanted me to think he was just an arrogant bastard, but no, dumb.

So, no, I didn't like this book from the start, but I decided to skim it b/c I always love the big reveal when the duped girl learns who her lover *really* is. That came so far into the book, though, that I had to finish it. That brings me to the whole "gang" abduction thing, which made me go WTF?! When Givens formed his own gang, it became even more ridiculous, but I was almost at the end of the book, so I finished it.

Well, not quite. I read the first few lines of the epilogue and when I reached the inevitable "bulging belly" line, I rolled my eyes and closed the book.

Dear Romance Writers: Please stop adding on epilogues just so you can write about babies. It has nothing to do with the story as a whole. Cut it out.

Now, I MUST talk about some of the writing. This isn't a frilly, purple prose kind of book, and that's okay. I don't like frilly, but some of the descriptions really made me stop and go 'huh'. I'll include a couple of samples:

Pg. 216-217 "His erection grew to mammoth proportions, so large and insistent he could almost hear it demanding release."

hehehe Okay, even when I go back and reread that sentence, I hear a little-bitty, high-piched voice squeaking "Reeelease me! Reeelease ne, plaese!" I stopped and laughed for about ten minutes. Needless to say, that totally pulled me out of the story.

Also, every time Givens imagined himself beating on his chest. I mean, seriously dude, how neanderthal are you?

Oh, and here's a confusing bit:
Pg. 360-361 "Her bottom fit into his lap. Bending her over his arm, he rested her head on his shoulder. He wrapped her tightly in his arms and kissed her..."
Uh, what? How the hell does that work? At first, I thought her back was to his chest, but that's impossible unless she's in a exorcist movie and has swiveled her head around to face him. So, 'kay, I guess she's straddling him (that should be mentioned!), but then she's bending over his arm??? I've read these sentences half a dozen times and I still can't picture it at all.

So, yeah, I really don't know how I finished this book, and this is a NY Times bestselling author! I'm tempted to look up how she got her career started.

[bedlambelle · Rating 1 out of 5]

I did not like this novel and yet I am still listening to it. I keep planning to quit listening and switch to something else but it is so annoying and strange that I keep listening for a just a little longer. It is like the author is writing about a world that is just slightly different from ours and in really banal and strange ways. I seriously thought this was written in the 80's. The mention of a switchboard at the answering service is bizarre to me. That's all computerized now isn't it? No mention of caller id or anything.

As you can probably tell, I really dislike books that make me strain for belief about mundane things. For example, why would an answering service, which to me is a luxury, provide pro-rated rates to low income people who would be better off spending that money on necessities, especially when we have a thing called voicemail nowadays?

I mean it is one thing to believe in people that change into animals and vampires and stuff but why should I have to work so hard to believe a business could possibly be run in such a way? It is too close to real life to just accept as a different world yet strange enough that it chafes at my belief.

And then there are the gender politics. The male character is such a caveman that he is a caricature more than a fleshed out character. His opinions are all so extreme. For example he is strangely blunt about the possibility of his female employees "gestating, and lactating" where most normal sexist bosses would say. "I don't want to train her just to have her leave when she gets pregnant," or "it would be too much of a hassle to make a day care center and we don't have enough employees with children to justify it." Does this guy have Aspergers syndrome that he doesn't understand political correctness?

But besides that, this book has more cliches than there are stars in the sky. Then there is the lack of believably about Hope's placement (in an orphanage several states away??), and so many other things that I just don't get. BTW, the term orphanage is antiquated, they are called group homes now.

Hope has a lack of professionalism in sharing personal info of other clients. Also, Zach had a right to be annoyed that his secretary put him on a phone call with a person that he specifically told her to screen for him. HELLO, screening calls is a part of her job, and the whining or arguing about it with him after she screwed up. What the hell? She needs to grow a pair (of ovaries of course) and keep telling the persistent caller that her boss is not available to take his call and that she will give him a message. How hard is that?

And I can't believe this author described the main character as having "too big" lips. Can't she just say full lips? I don't think there is such a thing as having too big lips except in cases of plastic surgery. If you want to describe a typical sexpot there are other ways of giving her humility such as complaining that her gigantic boobs are not perky and get in the way of doing stuff sometimes or that she has cellulite. No one will buy it that she is really bummed that she has big lips unless you mean she has a wide fish mouth. I could buy someone complaining about that.

I know this is a big disorganized ramble of a review but there is just so much! I can't... And I'm only about a third of the way in. You should read this book but only because it is so bad it is kind of fascinating.

Okay I had to add to the review because it just gets worse. I think these are such unlikable characters. Zach is so rapey I can't stand it. She says no so he pressures her and then if that doesn't get her consent he just goes ahead anyway. Plus he treats her like a child by picking her up and carrying her everywhere and feeding her with his hands and not in a romantic way. He even strips her naked when she says no because she is in shock and is cold. He could have put her in the hot tub fully dressed and got her something to wear after she had perked up enough to get undressed herself but he doesn't because he is a letch. He even insists on washing her against her protests and giving her an orgasm. Creep factor-100

But of course she is very unlikable as well. She teaches him not to listen to her because she sets boundaries and then THANKS HIM, I repeat THANKS him, for ignoring her and giving her an orgasm. Way to be strong and independent there Bella! How about sticking to a boundary sometime? It is not her fault that he is rapey but she doesn't have to be so victimey and it is annoying.

[sandra · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF.

No tenía muchas expectativas con este libro, la verdad, pero aún así no deja de molestarme. Zack, el protagonista, es frío, calculador y siempre, siempre, siempre, tiene que conseguir lo que quiere. Como con Hope. Por cojones tiene que "tenerla". Incluso llega a pensar "cómo aprovecharse de ella". Mmm ¿¿hola??



Luego está el hecho de que se cree que es lo mejor que hay en el mundo mundial: dice que es generoso y otras mil cosas que en realidad no es. Nada más hay que ver cómo trata a la gente. Cuando en realidad todas las "cosas buenas" que hace es por Hope. Para impresionarla, para llevarla a la cama o lo que sea. Y Hope... creo que es demasiado inocente para su bien. Básicamente Zack se va a apoderar de todo lo que ella tenga (la confianza, la seguridad, su bondad) para luego romperle el corazón. Él mismo lo piensa, con otras palabras, pero lo hace.



No he llegado a la parte en la que ella se entera de la verdad, pero es demasiado ingenua. Todas las pistas la tiene en su cara para saber que Zack no es el mayordomo. Incluso su tía (la de Zack) le dice algunas cosas que debería haberselo dejado bien claro. Sin embargo, nuestro protagonista pretende decírselo justo después de acostarse con ella: "así estaría relajada cuando se lo diría y ni se inmutaría. Después, me perdonaría"



Luego está la jefa de Hope... Todo lo que sale de su boca es "si no te arreglas no atraerás la atención de un hombre", "siempre sin maquillar, ¿qué hombre va a acercarse a ti?" o "Necesitas un hombre en la vida". De verdad que me ha llegado a exasperar. Luego la única meta de Hope es hacer dinero. Siempre pensando "el dinero lo es todo" ¡Chica! Tengo noticias para ti: eso no es verdad. Vale que el dinero puede ayudarte, pero hay cosas más importantes!!!!

Lo único que puedo rescatar es que el "mejor amigo" de Zack se apellida como yo. Por lo que yo sé, no es muy común... Así que cuando lo he visto me he quedado en plan "¡¿Quéééééé?! ¡MENTIRA! JAJAJA"

Debo decir que estaba intrigada por lo que le había pasado a los hermanos de Hope. En fin, supongo que nunca sabré lo que pasará porque si los siguientes son como este...

[Brenda H · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hope Prescott is 16 years old when she loses everything – her parents dead in a car crash, her siblings taken from her and her comfortable life gone in an instant. The story takes place 7 years later as we find Hope working at an answering service while taking classes with the intent of earning a degree in computer science (because “that’s where the money is”) so she can continue the search for her lost siblings.

Enter Zachariah Givens, a corporate raider, who keeps all but his family and one best friend at a distance. Zack’s longtime assistant is going on vacation and has set up an account at an answering service for the time she is gone since her boss is a technophobe (fax machines eat the papers, phone buttons flash confusingly…). The first time Givens calls the service and speaks to Hope, he is hooked – drawn in by her sultry voice, her friendly manner and her obvious caring for all of her clients. Only one thing – Hope thinks she’s speaking with Givens’ butler – Griswald. Oops. When Hope makes her thoughts clear regarding wealthy, uncaring employers – and Givens in particular – Givens decides to let the deception continue.

The story was entertaining, if a bit improbable. Hope’s a smart woman and yet she falls for Zack’s deception without hesitation. Moreover, she is more than a little gullible in other instances making for a frustrating read. Additionally, there’s a crisis that is completely unbelievable, unrealistic and unreasonable – also adding to the frustration.

The best part of the story is Aunt Cecily, Zack’s outspoken and outrageous aunt, as well as a scene in which Cecily and Zack’s parents discuss his problems as if he’s not even in the room (definitely a good chuckle). This is the first in the Lost Hearts trilogy. I may read the next in the series as I generally like books by Christina Dodd, but I’m not going to rush as there are more – and better – books on Mt. TBR waiting for me.

Rating: 3 stars

[Jane Stewart · Rating 3 out of 5]

5 stars for the beginning. 1 star for the crisis. 2 and 3 stars for other parts.

I really enjoyed the beginning. Hope works for a phone answering service. When rich guy Zach calls for his messages, she thinks he is the butler. They develop a neat relationship over the phone. When she meets him he continues to pretend he’s the butler. They fall in love. It was a fun story.

Then in the middle it dragged. It was repetitive thinking about each other and dragging out some pre-sex scenes. The con man part of the book was incomplete and not finished. See Spoiler below. I think the author should have spent time on that instead of doing the romantic filler in the middle.

Then the crisis: I hated it! I was furious. It ruined the book. Zach jumps to a wrong conclusion without even asking what was happening. And then he was mean. It was STUPID on his part. The author should have thought of something better.

The end was ok. I liked all the groveling Zach did. But I did not like the slapstick scene with a crime lord. It did not fit the tone of the book.

This felt like a regency/historical romance. Zach the rich aristocrat. Hope the feisty beautiful virgin orphan. It is set in contemporary Boston with limos. But change the limo to a carriage and you’ve got a regency.


A con man hired Hope to do some secretarial things for him. He embezzled money and the police arrested Hope. She got out on bail. That story was not finished. Did the con man admit she was innocent? What kind of evidence was brought up and used? How did she get proven innocent?


AUDIOBOOK NARRATOR:
Natalie Ross is one of the best I have ever heard. I couldn’t believe how good her voice was for Zach - a man. She also did great for the rest of the story and characters. I’m trying to find other books that she narrates, but too many are by authors I don’t care for or books that I’ve already read. Darn, I want more of her.

DATA:
Narrative mode: 3rd person. Unabridged audiobook length: 10 hrs and 14 mins. Swearing language: none that I recall. Sexual language: moderate to strong. Number of sex scenes: about 4. Setting: current day mostly Boston, Massachusetts with a little back story in Hobart, Texas. Book copyright: 2003. Genre: contemporary romance.

[CJ - It's only a Paper Moon · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to give this a three but I just couldn't.

Hope wavered at times between being Too Stupid To Live and wacky Southern Temper. A good girl, a minister's daughter, a virgin and a sweetheart - Hope Prescott is everything that Zach Given's isn't. While you'd eat lunch with Hope, Zach would end up with his lunch on him.

Hope has scars and from her past in which her parents were accused of a crime and her family (two sisters and a foster brother) who were ripped away from her due to some crazy and overzealous townsfolk in Hobart, Texas (highly illegal and I wonder if it's very probable). Anyhoo, Hope is now about 23, going to college while working as an answering service tech (what? who has one of those??? Is this 1976??). Zack's a technophobe and therefore when his trusty secretary goes on vacation, he is left at the mercy of Madame Nainci's answering service. Enter Hope and her sultry Texan accented voice.

Though this book takes place in Boston in the 21st century (laptops, cell phones) it feels like it was supposed to take place in 1970. Also, this whole thing with Hope being on her own and tough didn't jive with me because she spent most of the book vulnerable, pliable and dominated. I get that she was beta but Zack was sooooo Alpha that it was hard to not roll my eyes every time she tried to assert herself. The author didn't make me believe in that relationship too well. Did they have chemistry? Yes. The sex scenes were boring and I'm sorry, it's very very very very very very rare for a virgin (complete with hymen!) to enjoy her first time enough to go at it again, aggressively and 'without abandon'.

As you can tell even I, much like the author, am unsure about how I'm supposed to feel about these characters and this book.

Will I read the next one? Probably, I want to know about Pepper.

Hope would have been a good side character and while I would be her friend, I would also give her a strong shot of bourbon every now and again and a vibrator.

Zack? Well he's a jerk. He knows it so I suppose that is supposed to be more appealing but he just annoyed me. It's very rare for a male lead to annoy me.

If you get this book from the library and you want to read it, do it. Don't buy it. It's not worth it.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This a feel good story about an orphaned girl that lost her parents tragically, and was separated from her siblings. She settles in Boston and starts college, determined to get the best job, that pays the most money, so she will be able to find her family.
While taking classes, Hope works for an answering service. She gets to know all her "clients" and they are all fond of her.
Then she starts taking messages for Zach Givens. A driven, arrogant, spoiled, very rich man. Hope believes the butler, Griswold is the person retrieving the messages because he is so nice. But, Zach is the one she is really talking to. The two of them start having little chats over the phone. Then when "Griswold" comes down with a cold, Hope stops by mansion to deliver some homemade soup. The two of them start to fall in love with each other. But, Zach still holds off telling Hope who he really is, believing that once she falls in love with him, she will forgive him. ?????
I originally thought this book was a romantic suspense novel, since it wasn't one Christina Dodd's historical romances, or paranormal romances. But, this is really a contemporary romance, almost chick lit. I think it would be fair to say it was like a Cinderella story.
Hope barely gets enough to eat, her clothes are worn thin, she lives in a bad neighborhood. But, she has grit and determination and values.
Zach, having power and privilege is used to getting anything and everything he wants. But, he never bargained for Hope.
This is pure entertainment. A sweet, funny, feel good romance with an uplifting Happy Ever After!

[Thenia · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story of Hope, a young woman with a goal that keeps her going, and Zack, a ruthless, wealthy businessman whom she mistakenly believes to be a butler.

Zack doesn't disabuse her of that notion, finding the way she talks to him refreshing, and the more the two spend time together, the more involved they become. Zack is interested in her but doesn't think she's the right kind of woman to be his wife, while Hope has her mind on her work and studies that she hopes will help her in the search for her siblings.

Enjoyable, if dated story, with a case of mistaken identity and a heroine who has her share of moments of intense stupidity, especially when she agrees to become a shady accountant's partner and sign her name to documents she barely understands.

The series continues with Almost Like Being in Love and Pepper's story, where we'll hopefully get some answers regarding the mystery of their parents' death and the reasons behind the separation of the siblings.

[♡Karlyn P♡ · Rating 2 out of 5]

The audio narration is really good. It's read by Natalie Ross, who I really enjoy. I've listened to many books read by her. The story, however, is another matter. It started off pretty good and kept me engaged. I was really enjoying it but then suddenly towards the end the story takes a giant nose-dive into eye-rolling ridiculousness with plot twists that are just too nuts to believe. It was holding a 4-star rating from me until the hero got to be, well, the hero. So I guess its only a 3 1/2 star for me. I doubt I'll listen to the others in the series. Ah well.

[Jacqueline J · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book. I had read it before from the library and when it was reissued I bought myself a copy. A nice story of involving a masquerade and a rich unfeeling man falling in love and becoming more human. The heroine was super sweet and everyone loved her. This is part of a series and I have read all the books. Just be aware that the situation with begins the book is not resolved in this one. Really the only thing that I find real fault with is the rather ludicrous ending. The rest of the book was good enough to overlook that part though.

[Coco.V]

🎁 FREE on Amazon today (6/8/2019)! 🎁

[Maria · Rating 4 out of 5]

OK, I read the first book last because I had trouble finding it and didn't want to wait, but this is definitely my favorite of the three in this series. Somehow I thought it would be - from the references to these characters in the later books. Of the three sisters, Hope is definitely my favorite. I love people who care and who help. I liked Zack less in this book than in the following books, however. He was just so wrong! And it took forever for him to be right! But I guess that's what makes it such a good book. I was certainly involved to the point of wanting to sock him at various points in the book - not to hurt him, but to get him to wake up and smell the coffee. The one thing I didn't like was the scene with King Janek, which was too ridiculous to even be funny. It could have been dropped with no loss to the story line and a great improvement in the book, which is why it lost a star.

[Denise · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is about two people, Hope Prescott and Zach Given, who lived completely different lives, yet both were alone and lonely. Hope lived through great trauma of her parents being killed in a car crash while supposedly running from town after embezzling from the church her father worked as a minister and abandoning their 4 children. The children were separated by the town leaders and Hope, 8 years later is barley surviving, living only to find her siblings and getting to the truth about her parents death.
Zach is the poor little rich boy, incredibly handsome but ruthless in business. He trusts no one and avoids intimacy at all costs. He hears Hope's voice through the answering service that his secretary has hired, and wants this woman more than anything. She thinks Zach is Mr Given's butler and also falls for the voice. The rest of the story falls into play very nicely, an enjoyable read that left me with a few tears. I am looking forward to reading the rest of the series.

[Melanie♥ · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book had a promising start, but lost me towards the end with the contrived rescue with the grandma mobster and answering service friends. It was just too strange to be even slightly plausible. That downgraded this one to a three. Lots of set up for the sibling stories to follow. Very good narrator, though.

[Maggie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got involved in this story quickly and enjoyed it. I didn't like Zach for much of the book and the identity of "Ma" surprised me. Looks like book 2 is Pepper's story and I look forward to reading it.

[Ladyt · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Christina

I love all her books I read this story before a love it and this time around it was even better.

[Kristina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating: 3.5-4
I liked the story but not sure how much I liked Hope. I wanted to like her, and most of the time I did, there were just times that I was rolling my eyes at her.

[Cruth · Rating 2 out of 5]

Author: Christina Dodd
First published: 2003
Length: 374 pages, 4731 kindle locations
Setting: Contemporary, Boston.
Sex: Explicit. Infrequent.
Hero: Independently wealthy entrepreneur masquerading as his butler to woo the heroine.
Heroine: Works in a telephone call centre, studying CS.
Trigger: Attempted mugging of heroine.
Includes: Plotting synopsis and first draft of chapter 1 of Just the Way You Are, excerpts from Almost Like Being in Love, Close to You, Lady in Black, Virtue Falls.

An iffy book.

Good premise that will carry over multiple books.

Fun characters, particularly the heroine.

But a trope I find irritating: he makes a deliberate decision to seduce a virgin with no intention of taking it further, and while keeping his identity hidden.

“He would stick with his first plan. He would seduce her, keep her until they were tired of each other, and when they parted, she would have every advantage that he could give her.” p.223, loc.2585

Overall, the heroine is naive and TSTL, the hero is stoically abrupt and hard, and the plot bizarre.

The multi-book mystery is hardly touched (disappointing), and the intriguing secondary characters are left to flounder.

But it was fun enough and I am (mostly) interested in the next book.

Lost Hearts:
Book 1 Just the Way You Are - Hope Prescott and
Book 2 Almost Like Being in Love - Pepper Prescott and Dan Graham
Book 3 Close to You - Kate Montgomery and Teague Ramos
Book 3.5 Gabriel's Gift (short story)

Note: Gabriel gets his HEA with Hannah Grey in Danger in a Red Dress from Dodd’s Fortune Hunter series

References:
Author: http://www.christinadodd.com/book/exc...

(ISBN …)

-CR-

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just the Way You Are was a fast, fun read that kept you turning the pages to see what would happen next. Zach is a rich bachelor who is used to people liking him as a result of his money. Hope is a poor young woman struggling to make ends meet as she chases her dream of tracking down her family. A phone conversation between Zach and his answering service operator leads to Hope mistaking Zach for his butler. After that, things go really crazy. Dodd does a great job at creating such likeable yet relatable characters who both are looking for love while trying very hard not to look for it. The plot is well setup with the mystery of Hope's past, but that plot is not completed in this book so I am assuming there will be another book with these characters. I had been hoping to find out what really happened, but I don't mind reading another book with these great characters. The secondary characters from Hope's answering service really added to the storyline as well. Overall this was a great read that I would definitely recommend.

[Hayley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just the Way You Are was a great story about a young woman who has a horrible past due to separation from her siblings and the death of her parents and Zach Givens, a powerful, wealthy man who is lonely and has a grudge pretty much against everyone. The story is about two people falling in love nontraditional and about secrets that are going to come out... I put this book in the contemporary stack although it's some what a mystery/suspense story as well.

[AtlantaTwin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun read. Good closure at the end, yet still left a cliff hanger ending.

[Cyndi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book by one of my favorite authors! I'm interested to see what the Big Secret is at the end of the series. Dodd is brilliant at keeping the suspense mounting.

[~Mindy Lynn~]

KINDLE FREEBIE 6/17/17

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just the Way You Are is book 1 in the Lost Hearts series by Christina Dodd. Hope Prescott was on a mission to find her lost siblings. While investigating to find her family, Hope works at an answering service and studies in her spare time. To Hope, the people on the other end of the phone became her family, especially Griswald, a gruff old butler for wealthy Zack Givens. However, when Hope heard Griswald was sick, she dropped in and got shocked because Griswald looked different from what she expected. The readers of Just the Way You Are will continue to follow Griswald and Hope to discover what happens.

Just The Way You Are is the first book I read by Christina Dodd. Just The Way You Are is an enjoyable book to read, and at times, I had to laugh at the way the characters interact with each other throughout this book. I love how Chistina Dodd portrays her characters and how they interact with each other throughout this book. Just The Way You Are is well-written and researched by Christina Dodd. I like Christina Dodd's description of the settings of Just the Way You Are, which complements the book's plot.

The readers of Just the Way You Are will learn about the role of an answering service operator. Also, the readers of Just the Way will understand loneliness and how it can affect communities.

I recommend this book.

[Teresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Looks like I am hooked on another series by Christina Dodd. Hope and Zack both have closed their hearts off due to being burned. Hope by a town that separated her from her brother and sisters. Zack from women just wanting his money. It is kismet when his secretary goes on vacation and Zack needs to call his answering service for messages. The voice on the other end of the phone just reels him in. The innocent deception in the beginning turned on him in the end. Hope did what no one else has been able to do which was peel the layers away that covered his heart. The road to get there, you have to read the story. Really good story and will be reading "Almost Like Being in Love" and "Close to You" as I need to know what happened to the sisters.

[Tina Wright · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an odd book. At times, it seems set in a bizarro world that is a mix of bygone days and the present. But you know what? I enjoyed it.

[Jeannine Backus · Rating 4 out of 5]

Intriguing. Had a hard time putting the book down . I would highly recommend this book!!!!!

[Alycia · Rating 1 out of 5]

This sounded like fun, but halfway thru the book I'm finding the male lead just too manipulative and creepy.