Jamie Sobrato

Famous writer Marcus Kastanos gets shot while promoting his bestselling book. When the news of the shooting makes it to TV, he gets contacted by his thirteen-year-old daughter that he never knew he had. Isabel's mother (Marcus's college girlfriend) recently died from cancer, and now Isabel (Izzy) wants to meet her father. Marcus is also contacted by his college friend, Ginger Townsend, who he hasn't seen since college. Ginger's always been in love with Marcus, and she needs to know that he is doing okay. Marcus decides he needs to take the time to get to know his daughter, so Ginger generously offers to have Marcus and Izzy come and stay with her at her cottage by the lake for the summer.

This was a very enjoyable friends-to-lovers story. Marcus was the type of guy who never wanted to be tied down and always off to the next new adventure, so finding out he was a father really threw him for a loop. He was determined to do his best for Izzy, but at times he was very thickheaded when it came to being a parent. Ginger's help was a real blessing for him. Ginger was able to connect with Izzy, since Ginger had lost her own parents at an early age. Ginger was hoping she'd be over her feelings for Marcus after all these years, but found them resurfacing even as she was trying hard to fight those feelings. It was fun to see Marcus falling helplessly in love with Ginger, and him wondering how he had failed to notice how lovely and beautiful she was back in college. I liked Ginger's cozy cottage (even if it was a bit run-down) on Promise Lake. The setting was peaceful and tranquil by the woods and the lake. I adored Izzy's sweet little dog, Lulu. The only thing disappointing was the story's rushed ending. Still it was a very enjoyable and emotional read.… (meer)

Competent romance about a former teenage computer hacker and an ex-FBI agent who's been shadowing her for ten years, looking for evidence to justify sending her into juvenile detention.

Although the story unfolds smoothly with good dialogue, the characters are on the two-dimensional side and the attempt to weave in a second, parallel romance between the heroine's BFF and a workmate, though interesting at first, results in a disastrous narrative stumble when the heroine's desperate escape from a gun-wielding rogue FBI agent segues into another petal-pretty episode of the secondary romance.

My copy of the book was published under the Harlequin Blaze imprint, but the sex scenes, though plentiful and varied, were hot rather than blazing.… (meer)

Max Morgan is a baseball player, Angela Weatherby is a blog writer who collects stories of broken hearts, she remembers when Max broke her heart and she loves getting stories of his breaking women's hearts. Now she's meeting up with him and he's not what she expects., there's an attraction there that she didn't expect and how will she admit that he was research?

I liked the story, the romance worked well.

Seducing a Seal is a story of two navy personnel who have to work out if a relationship is worth the aftermath to their careers. I was a bit disappointed in the end of this, the buildup didn't seem to be there. Interesting but fell a bit flat for me.

Not a bad pair of stories but the first was better for me.… (meer)

So, before the review, a little personal blurb: I must admit, I had some snobbery going on. A year ago, I would not have touched a romance for anything. Obviously, I discovered I was wrong and really do like romances - but I still had a bit of snob left for Harlequins. I decided to do something about that, and it helped that
Smart Bitches, Trashy Books endorsed them - some, at least. Yes, my friends, I like them. Below I shall share with you why.

Following a workplace tragedy, Lieutenant Commander Kylie Thomas finds her rigid world collapsing. Suddenly she is incapable of controlling her thoughts, her emotions - both at and outside of work - and, most worryingly, her impulses and fantasies regarding her subordinate, Ensign Drew MacLeod. They find themselves in bed and then in Hawaii (and in bed) together, forcing Kylie to re-think her position in life - and the Navy.

Alright. So, I went and bought not only a Harlequin, but a Harlequin Blaze. Hey, I like to read steamy romance! I was not disappointed. I used to think Harlequins (especially the intentionally sexy ones) were all about the sex. Yeah, I was wrong. Contained in Seducing a S.E.A.L.'s 215 pages are a story, two fully developed characters, a romance, a tragedy, healing from said tragedy, and a decent amount of hot sex. I really really enjoyed it.

Even though Harlequin's short format leaves me wanting more story, more background, that's okay. I can get that with longer romances - the ones which are 400+ pages long. These are quickies - no pun intended. They're short, quick, fun books to which I can see myself quickly becoming addicted. Heck, I already have a second Blaze waiting for my reading *ahem* pleasure, and have a quickly growing wishlist of soon-to-be-released Harlequins (not to mention the backlist!). Thank God I have a local used bookstore which pretty much specializes in romance!… (meer)