The Perfect Stranger: A Seascape Romance

Seascape #2

by Rosalyn Alsobrook

Feisty executive Nicolle Stone retreats to Seascape to relax, but her would-be fiance+a7 tracks her down, and in a desperate attempt to get rid of him, Nicolle asks Joel Brannon, a burned-out best-selling author, to pose as her lover, but soon their charade becomes a reality. Original.

324 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 1996

About the author

Rosalyn Alsobrook, who lives in Gilmer, Texas, attended Kilgore College where she was features editor for the college newspaper. She enjoys doing intricate research for the authentic details she includes in her historical romances, and is the author of twelve books, including the bestselling Mail-Order Mistress, Wild Western Bride, Desire’s Gamble and Brazen Heart. Rosalyn, who married her high school sweetheart Bobby, has two sons and recently became a grandmother—but a very young one, she adds. Rosalyn would like to hear from her readers. Write to her c/o Zebra Books, 475 Park Ave. So., New York, N.Y. 10016. Please include a stamped self-addressed envelope if you’d like a reply from the author.
Pen names: Gina Delaney
Jalynn Friends
Jean Haught

Reviews

[Paranormal Romance · Rating 3 out of 5]

Feeling bombarded by her father and her once friend turned stalker to marry, the heroine flies off to Maine to enjoy 2 weeks of freedom and contemplation. But the second she steps onto the beautiful bed and breakfast and experiences her first sense of peace it is immediately followed up by anger and disbelief. Her would be fiancé has flown from Texas to Maine just to harass her! The absolute nerve of the man! Fast thinking has the heroine coming up with the perfect plan. If he believes she's seeing another man that he'll have to give up and leave empty handed. So, she takes one look at the hero unpacking his things in the room down the hall and offers the stranger $100 to pretend to be her lover for 10 minutes. The hero is stunned by first the nerve of such a woman barging into his room and then by the crazy desperation she has for a man. But, she is beautiful and he is a helpful sort of guy so he accepts her pleas for aid and puts on his acting face. Together the 'stumble' upon the heroine stalker and pretend to be caught in the act of a lovers get away.

The heroine admits that the guy is a fabulous actor as he immediately puts his arm around her and kisses her tenderly and she feels happy that the plan is all coming together. Only....not so much. The bane of her existence is stubborn in his absolute belief that they are meant for each other, so he plans to stick around and win her back......The heroine and hero and stumped and scramble to think of what to do now. The heroine offers to pay the hero $400 a day if he agrees to be her lover and he initially wavers on accepting. He's supposed to be getting research for his book and pretending to be a man in love is not what he planned to do on his work vacation. Alas, he is rather weak for a lady in need and accepts. There in starts the game of pretending to be lovers while at the same time fighting the real desire that is growing between them. They are forced to move into the same room and the hero is as attracted to the heroine as she is to him the problem is neither realize the other isn't pretending. The heroine believes his niece is actually his girlfriend and the hero think that heroine is a free spirit who will never settle down. Still, despite a few hick ups here and there thanks to personality differences, they settle into a working relationship quite well. Then the heroine starts catching feelings and the hero does the same. No longer is he content with this game they are playing and he tells her to admit the truth, only then can whatever lays between them be real and honest.

I found this book frustrating because things were handled completely different then how I would or wanted to handle them. First of all, the heroine was a weak woman to allow her father and this 'friend' of hers push her so far into the corner that she needed a fake boyfriend to scare them off. I wanted her to be a bit more accretive rather than creating lies to get what she wanted. Also, the stalker was super creepy and completely over the top in the stalking department. I didn't understand why is was so rational and okay for a grown man to follow a woman around everywhere she went. First of all, I would have demanded he leave or I'd call the cops, if that failed I'd leave the freaking hotel. I also found the heroine to be selfish and childish at times. She thought of the hero's inconvenience but did nothing to really help him out. She also flipped out if the hero made any motives towards her that put her in a place of intimacy. Kind of hard for a man to keep his cool when his vacation is ruined, he's forced to sleep with a woman who shows no desire towards him and he's pressured to finish his book. He had moments of anger towards her actions but he stewed in this anger and did not bring it to her attention. I can't say I didn't like this book because I did. It was just frustrating is all.

[Eva · Rating 3 out of 5]

One sitting read. I enjoyed the Inn keeper and the locals(as well as the ghosts). The main characters were predictable and the story line was predictable. But an easy and enjoyable read.