Temptations

by Jessica March

Stevie Knight--once an international jetsetter--sets up a sanctuary for women recovering from broken hearts and shattered lives, but when the time comes for her to commit herself to the man she loves, she falters

Genres: Romance, Fiction

Paperback

First published April 1, 1989

About the author

Jessica March is the pen name of fiction writer Robert J. Rosenblum.

Reviews

[Circa Girl · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the edgiest of what I've read of March and it was a heck of a page turner. In Obsessions and Sensations, the synopsis's promised more vice and shock value than either delivered, but the restraint worked for them and I enjoyed the character arcs. Temptations held nothing back - almost to the point of cartoonish soapiness. Stevie Knight is a rebellious lolita turned It-girl model turned founder and leader of Oasis, a women only addiction rehabilitation and therapy institution. It's easy to empathize with a lot of her choices and feelings, even the bad ones since she's faced with a patriarchal nightmare, but it was borderline unbelievable at times that one woman could experience so much tragedy and abuse in one lifetime (not to mention the chosen clients the book dips into).

Samson Love's character was another head scratcher. I think he was supposed to be a combination of Michael Jackson and an amalgamation of several eccentric millionaires, but he felt like a parody. One minute he would be described as looking like "little boy blue" and taking his friends on a giant sized toy fire truck and serving up ice cream sundaes and the next he was strapping laughing gas on naked women and manipulating them into a filmed orgy. Every time he had a line of quasi-pretentious dialogue I was rolling my eyes. I couldn't believe anyone would want to be in this man entourage, let alone be in the same room with him.

Another minor complaint is that the main love interest is barely a real presence in the book. Stevie pines for him and can't accept anyone else, but they had like....two weeks together in a cabin and most of that time was spent bickering and racing each other uphill. I think March must have felt a romantic subplot was crucial to chick-lit, but there was plenty of character conflict and growth without needing to throw a forced star-crossed lovers bit. I found Stevie's reunion with her father and friendship with Ben and the girls at Oasis more moving.

Temptations has its problems, but its hard to stop once you've started.

[Darcia Scates · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a long book, but it's worth your time. The author creates believable scenes. I enjoyed this one very much.

[Norma Yazzmin · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.7

[Kathy]

Not great

[Lulua · Rating 3 out of 5]

Awesome!! It punched me in my face.... I could relate to most parts of it!!