Anne

Love Overdue by Pamela Morsi

Posted on by Dirty Girl Anne

Love Overdue

Grade: C-
Hotness Level: Blaze
Kink Level: No Kink
Genre: Contemporary
Published 8/27/13
Reviewed by Anne
427 pages
DJ is a librarian, recently hired to take over a library in a small town in rural Kansas.  Scott is the pharmacist, long time resident.  DJ  is shocked to recognize Scott as her one youthful indiscretion – a spring break fling back in college.  She’s even more shocked when Scott doesn’t recognize her back.  
OK, so let me start by mentioning that this is a 427 page book.  So, it’s longer than I normally read.  But, hey, it’s about a librarian, and it’s about small town Kansas, so these factors work in it’s favor and I decided to read it.
 
And it’s pretty good.  Not fabulous, but it gets better as the story goes on.  Watching Scott work hard to pursue DJ is pretty fun.  He has no idea why she has such a negative opinion of him.  DJ is so conflicted.  She hopes he’ll never remember it was her (I guess because she’s worried about the repercussions in this small town?) but at the same time she’s offended that he can’t remember her!
 
There’s also a secondary storyline involving Scott’s mother. His father passed away about a year ago and she’s acting ok to the outside world, but inside she’s really suffering.  Her story, along with all the other small town residents is really well written.  The book as a whole is really well written excepting some really detailed pages on wheat farming and pharmacy that weren’t necessary to the story.
 
So, it’s a pretty good book.  And then it ends. And the ending is horrible!  It’s the emotional equivalent of shutting the bedroom door after a whole book’s worth of foreplay.  And it made me want to howl!  Why in the world would we bow out of this story just as the main characters we finally making an emotional connection???  And mom’s storyline is at a pretty critical juncture, too.  Wham.  Book is over. 
 
If you’re interested, I’ll explain below, but beware as it is spoilerific!
 
I just can’t believe the book ended this way.  I invested over 400 pages and never got the emotional payoff.  I feel robbed.
 
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DJ kept a momento from her fling. A belly chain Scott bought for her.  Throughout this story, DJ never tells Scott that she was his fling.  He thinks she reminds him of the girl from the fling, but never figures out it’s really her.  Then she decides to tell him, and in that same moment he finds the belly chain in her jewelry box.  Wham.  Book is over. (Well, there’s an epilogue that lets us know they’re happily married and having great sex 8 years later.  With children.)  And it’s the same thing with Scott’s mom.  She’s been considering SUICIDE throughout the book.  In the final chapters she cooks herself a botchilism pie (no, really) but when the dog eats it instead, she induces vomitting in the dog and decides she wants to live.  Wham. Book is over.  (Well, she also appears in the epilogue.  So we know she never killed herself.)
 

Run to You by Charlotte Stein

Posted on by Dirty Girl Anne

Run To You
Grade: B
Hotness Level: Inferno
Kink Level: Mild Kink
Genre: Contemporary
Published: 7/25/13
Reviewed by Anne
186 pages
 
Alissa is has a lot of self esteem issues. A lot. And she leads a pretty boring life, just plodding along. So she surprises herself even when she finds out about an appointment for an “Assignation” that her roommate is out of town for, and she decides to go check it out herself. It turns out to be a club of sorts that meets at a hotel where the rich and lusty hook up with each other. Alissa is WAY out of her league.

Janos is a god. Rich and good looking, Alissa knows he’d never give her a second glance, even though just one look and the sound of his voice has her lusting for him. Except he does give her a second glance. In fact, he seeks her out. Now what?

Oh, my, this was a good and steamy read. Good, because you can depend on Charlotte Stein’s writing to grab you, and it does in this story. Told in first person from Alissa’s POV, I just didn’t want to put it down. She can’t even believe Janos is interested, and because I’m in her POV, I couldn’t either.

But when Janos turns out to have his own flaws? That’s when this story really shines. When Alissa grabs her own power and believes in herself, the story is a delight!

However, I wasn’t totally satisfied with the ending. I just wasn’t convinced that the same issues wouldn’t continue to crop up over and over and over. That takes some of the glow off of this story for me. Still, overall it was a good read.

Her Favorite Rival by Sarah Mayberry

Posted on by Dirty Girl Anne

Her Favorite Rival
Grade: A
Hotness Level: Blaze
Kink Level: No Kink
Genre: Contemporary
Reviewed by Anne
298 pages

Audrey and Zach are co-workers. They are both candidates for a promotion, and after a take over of their company, they’re also both at risk of being laid off. Both are driven and hard workers, and both of them are attracted to each other. They’re also way too smart to risk their jobs by indulging in an office romance. They’ve got a lot in common, though, and working together on an important project cracks the ice and starts a real friendship between the two.

Besides a great story between Audrey and Zach, there are wonderful secondary story lines. Audrey’s got a tense relationship with her family, who sees her as an under achiever. Zach is dealing with a troubled mother. Audrey’s got a best friend, Megan, and she’s not just for sequel bait!

Here’s Megan and Audrey in a bar after work discussing who might get laid off:

“I tell you who won’t be going, though – Zach. Fifty bucks he gets a promotion out of all of this.”
Audrey reached for the fries. “He’s not that good.”
“Sorry, sweetie, but he is. He’s smart, he’s good at what he does and he could charm a snake out of its skin.”
Audrey rolled her eyes. “Your’re only saying that because you have a soft spot for him.”
“Yeah, it’s called a vagina.”

There’s some great sexual tension between Audrey and Zach, and some great sex once they make the leap.

I highly recommend this book.  It’s a wonderful example of how good a contemporary romance can be!  Sarah Mayberry is an incredible writer and I love her books!
I also love that this book is set in Australia. There’s nothing special in the relationship that makes it Australian verses American, but I enjoy reading the different setting and slang. Do you have a favorite setting?