About That Night (FBI/U.S. Attorney) [Mass Market Paperback]

Julie James (Author)

Book Description

Release date: April 3, 2012 | Series: FBI/U.S. Attorney

HE’S PLAYING GAMES

Though Rylann Pierce tried to fight the sparks she felt for billionaire heir Kyle Rhodes the night they met, their sizzling chemistry was undeniable. But after being stood up on their first date, Rylann never expected to see him again. So when she finds herself face to face with Kyle in a courthouse nine years later, she’s stunned. More troubling to the beautiful Assistant U.S. Attorney is that she’s still wildly attracted to him.

 

BUT SHE’S MAKING THE RULES

Just released from prison, Kyle Rhodes isn’t thrilled to be the star witness in a high-profile criminal case—but when Rylann comes knocking at his door, he finds she may be the one lawyer he can’t say no to. Still as gorgeous and sharp-tongued as ever, she lays down the law: she doesn’t mix business with pleasure. But Kyle won’t give up on something he wants—and what he wants is the one woman he’s never forgotten. . .

Editorial Reviews

Review

"James' latest novel is ... filled with fast quips and chemistry that heats up the pages. Readers will love the back-and-forth between the main characters, but throughout the book the rest of the cast of characters and the story is a fantastic romantic comedy. This one would be great on the big screen."-RT BookReviews Magazine (Top Pick)

“ABOUT THAT NIGHT is Julie James’s best book to date! . . . It is utterly enchanting, sensual and fabulous. Julie James gives a robust voice to contemporary courtships! Amusing and sexy, Julie James's books are flirtatious temptations for every reader.”--Romance Junkies

About the Author

After graduating from the University of Illinois College of Law, Julie James clerked for the United States Court of Appeals in Jacksonville, Florida. She then practiced law with one of the nation's largest law firms for several years until she began writing screenplays. She now writes full time and lives in Chicago with her family.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Berkley; Original edition (April 3, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0425246957
• ISBN-13: 978-0425246955
• Product Dimensions: 4.1 x 0.9 x 6.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (86 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #40,332 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

After graduating from law school, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Julie James clerked for the United States Court of Appeals. She then practiced law with one of the nation's largest firms for several years until she began writing screenplays. After Hollywood producers optioned two of her scripts, she decided to leave the practice of law to write full-time.

Julie's books have been listed on the American Library Association's Reading List for Top Genre Novels, Booklist's Top 10 Romances of the Year, and have been featured as one of Cosmopolitan magazine's Red Hot Reads. Julie's novels also were chosen as the Best Contemporary Romances of 2010, 2011, and 2012 in the All About Romance Readers' Polls. Her books have been translated into thirteen languages and Julie's sixth novel, LOVE IRRESISTIBLY, is now available.

Julie James lives with her husband and two children in Chicago, where she is currently working on her next book.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Another win for Julie James! April 14, 2012

By Loves FAB Romance

Format:Mass Market Paperback

About That Night is humorous, sexy, and engaging; a perfect example of why I love Contemporary Romance!

Nine years ago, while in law school, Rylann Pierce met a potentially amazing guy at a bar. She let him walk her home and he gave her the kiss of a lifetime. She agreed to a date the next night, but he never showed up. She did eventually learn why, but he never called to apologize.

Now Rylann is an assistant U.S. Attorney; she's just broken up with her boyfriend and as part of her six-month plan to get over him she moves back to Chicago from California, where she'd been living with her ex. She likes her job and her co-workers, and quickly settles in to her new life.

Kyle Rhodes is the son of a billionaire and a computer genius who, up until five months ago, had been living a playboy lifestyle. When his supermodel girlfriend broke up with him over twitter, he was humiliated. After a few drinks, he drunkenly decided he could save himself the public embarrassment of being dumped via social media by releasing a virus that shuts Twitter down, earning the nickname "The Twitter Terrorist". Perhaps if he hadn't been drinking, he might have remembered that the feds have computer geeks working for them too; they arrest him and he's sent to federal prison. Now, after serving four months, he's being released early as part of an agreement with the U.S. Attorney's office. He can't believe it when the beautiful law student he was never able to forget walks into the courtroom, representing the U.S. Attorney's office.

He'd like to go out with Rylann, see how things go between them, but she rejects him - she's an assistant U.S. Attorney and he's an ex-con. Then, a case comes to her office and he's the only person who can help her. The time he spends with her assisting with the case makes him more determined than ever to pursue a relationship with her. She doesn't see how it could work given their current circumstances.

My thoughts:
Julie James is an auto-buy author for me and About That Night does not disappoint. I love both Rylann and Kyle - they're each driven, straightforward, likable characters. Although you would think this would be a typical "uptight heroine and slacker hero" trope, this was not the case at all. Rylann's job is important to her, she's intense but she does have a personal life. Kyle likes to have a good time in his persoal life, but professionally he's serious and wants to atone for his mistakes. These two really make a great pair and the dialogue between them is sexy and smart. The secondary characters, both personal and professional, are entertaining and I'm hoping we'll see more of them in future books.

One of the things I love is the fact that the conflict of the story is (what I consider to be) internal; they're not fighting assassins or racing to save the world - it's just them and their relationship with each other.

My only grumble is that the 'assistance with a separate case' scenario seemed a bit weak, even though it was a good set-up for them to meet again. About That Night grabbed my attention from the very beginning and I was reading, reading, reading because I couldn't put it down, and at the same time trying desperately to make it last longer :)

Any fan of Contemporary Romance will enjoy this book. While About That Night can be read as a stand-alone, I highly recommend reading the whole series - it's that good.

18 of 22 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars About That Night - Sexy hero and wonderful story April 3, 2012

By Jess

Format:Mass Market Paperback

"There are probably a lot of things bad-boy ex-cons don't know about good-girl prosecutors."
**********

Smug Dimples, Prosecutrix Pierce, Meth Lab Rylann and the Twitter Terrorist (or my favorite version of this that comes up El Twitter Terrorista) are all nicknames that our hero and heroine are called during ABOUT THAT NIGHT and it's the way these nicknames are used during the quick, witty banter that Kyle and Rylann have that drew me right in. What stood out the most as I was reading was that there's no huge angst our couple needs to overcome. This is about two people dealing with their pasts, finding a balance in the present with their careers and figuring out a way to be together for the long haul. It's incredibly enjoyable, and Julie James keeps hitting it just right on all levels - humor, story, sexiness - with her FBI series.

Kyle was first introduced in A LOT LIKE LOVE when we find out that not only is he Jordan's twin, but most recently, he became the Twitter Terrorist, labeled as such by the Assistant U.S. Attorney (AUSA) handling his case at the time. There's a chapter early on when Kyle recounts the time leading up to and right after his drunken, broken heart takes down Twitter for 48 hours. When he finds himself in Tijuana trying to drown his sorrows, he also finds himself on the news as a wanted man. He boards a plane back to the U.S to face the music and is immediately taken into custody on the plane:

**********
...Kyle watched as two men wearing standard-issue government suits - clearly FBI agents - boarded the plane and handed over a document to the pilot.

"Yep, that would be me," Kyle said, grabbing his backpack from underneath the seat in front of him.

The elderly Hispanic man sitting next to him lowered his voice to a whisper. "Drugs?"

"Twitter," Kyle whispered back.
**********

Kyle ends up in prison for a few months before the events in A LOT LIKE LOVE spring him out and now he's a free man, needing to find a new purpose in life. He resigned from his father's software company, but Kyle's too intelligent and too driven to sit around wallowing in what's happened. He takes responsibility for everything he did, he learns from it and he writes up a killer business plan for his next venture.

Rylann just moved back to Chicago after living in San Francisco with her boyfriend of three years. He up and decides that moving to Rome sounds like the direction he wants his life to go. Rylann...does not. She never felt the butterflies with Jon, but she was happy with him and a change of scenery and moving closer to her best friend Rae is the fresh start she needs. She's the new AUSA working for Cameron Lynde (SOMETHING ABOUT YOU) and her first case involves handling the motion that frees Kyle; the same Kyle that she kissed nine years ago at college and actually felt the butterflies with. But circumstances outside their control kept them from going on their first planned date and nine years later they're finally reunited.

After they see each other again in the court room, Rylann needs Kyle's help, being her witness with another, unrelated case and he agrees. Their relationship doesn't get going, and can't, while Kyle is her witness in the case she needs his help with, but that doesn't keep the sparks from flying. The minute the coast is clear and there are no work conflicts, they stop denying the attraction. Their scenes together are just - HOT. Kyle is one sexy man and Rylann has no trouble keeping up with him, even tormenting him as much as he does her.

Both the leads have issues in their past and present they're trying to work through. This is more so the case with Kyle. He'll forever be known as the Twitter Terrorist, but he's trying to build up a new company and move on with his life, past the one big mistake he admits to and doesn't try to make excuses for. We get to see him hire new people and grab his first, and surprisingly perfect, new client for his new company. He's a completely lovable hero who still has a few insecurities when it comes to relationships, considering the public and humiliating way he was dumped the last time he was with someone. But he's willing to give it a chance again with Rylann and he puts himself out there on the line for her. He's sexy, funny and he starts to think about what life would be like with Rylann in it permanently and he likes what he sees.

They keep their relationship secret for much of the book, Rylann is concerned about her position as AUSA and how dating the Twitter Terrorist would reflect on her office. If there's any little bit of angst, it comes from this. She struggles with taking a chance, having always been that person with a 6-month plan, or 3 -year plan. Taking a leap into something new with Kyle takes her some time, and with one of the sweetest gestures in the whole book surrounding a flannel shirt, she makes sure Kyle knows exactly how she feels about him.

Julie James' FBI series is one of my favorite contemporary series on the shelves. She delivers every, single, time with characters that are so easy to fall in love with and stories that are fun and fast paced. She easily brings past characters into the current book so we get little updates on them as well as having them contribute to the overall story. ABOUT THAT NIGHT is a book that all fans of contemporary romance must check out. Kyle and Rylann's story is one I'll be rereading again and without a doubt enjoying it just as much as I did the first time.

Blog Rating: 5/5

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Fresh, contemporary romance at its best! April 5, 2012

By HarperHamilton

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Julie James is like a breath of fresh air. This is the second book that I have read and I'm downloading the rest of her books. The story lines are well thought out, the writing is crisp and clear, and the romance leaves you with a smile on your face. I thoroughly enjoyed this!

She reminds me of Rachel Gibson's style of contemporary writing but with a legal slant.

It's a modern romance for modern adults with intelligent, educated characters and storylines that keep you turning the page.