Customer Reviews

Betting Hearts

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Cassandra Bishop (known by all as just CB) is one of the guys. She plays poker with the guys and works for her family's landscaping business. She's been comfortable with her life until she runs into her ex-fiancé Luke with his new fiancée Sally. But wait a sec - Luke left town and left her a letter telling her he was leaving her because he was gay - what's he doing with Sally? CB's run-in with Luke turns nasty - especially when he tells her that she's too much like a guy and not feminine enough for a man.

That run-in with Luke gets CB thinking about her life and what she wants out of it. She decides that she wants is to be treated like a woman. She also wants to be known as Cassie and wants a guy to treat her as if she was special. And she needs all this to happen in a couple of weeks so she can wow Luke at his wedding. CB decides that she needs someone to help her in her transformation - who better than her best friend - Burke Hallifax?

Burke Hallifax loves his friend CB just as she is and really doesn't want her to change at all. The last thing he wants to do is make her "womanly" - he really doesn't like change at all. But he's finding that he's very attracted to Cassie.

This is a cute story, though I thought Cassie was a little extreme - at 28, she's never worn makeup, read any 'girlie' magazines, needs to watch old movies to figure out what's feminine and so on. Burke was very cute as the guy who suddenly has his eyes opened to his old 'friend'. Secondary characters, like Hayne, Cassie's brother add a lot to the story.

If you expect this to be a "hot" novel (as this is published by Samhain), you'll be disappointed. The steaminess factor is really no hotter than a Harlequin novel - and maybe even less than that.

The synopsis:
CB doesn't know if she's heart broken or just plain pissed off when her former fiancé, Luke, shows up a year after dumping her via a note and sneaking out of town just weeks before they were supposed to get married. Now Luke is back in town and with a blond Betty Boop he's now marrying, and in the church they were going to be married in too, just so Luke can rub CB's nose in it. Burke, CB's best friend since their ages were still single digits, gets furious at Luke coming back to stir up trouble and managing to make himself look like the injured party when Luke was caught cheating on CB. So in the middle of an argument during happy hour at the town's hot spot Berke bets CB's car that CB will show up at Luke's wedding and be the sexist most feminine woman there. The only problem is raised by her single dad CB is about as feminine as a butt crack showing teamster.

What I liked:
I loved that there was no secret love or secret longing. They were both just friends, best buds to the point that Burke thinks nothing of walking in on her in the bath and forcing her to walk around him naked because she is just one of the guys. CB, Burke and the supporting cast a great and fun to read about and the light fun feel of this book is a blast to read.

What I didn't like:
There could have been a lot better character development and in the end no matter how much I liked CB and Burke I didn't feel like I knew them. There was no reason given for why CB put up with Luke treating her so badly for YEARS, literally breaking up with her to sleep around then coming back when he and the other girl broke up, all the while telling the other girl CB broke his heart. She is such a strong woman and if we are supposed to believe that she never really truly loved Luke then why put up with it for so long?

The same problem is there with Burke's character. He is no where near as likable as CB but we never get a sense of who he is. Burke says he can't love and he is a serious commitment phobe and his sudden change to devoted lover came far to quickly and with no explanation as to why he was the way he was or why he changed. I love how Burke was an OCD neat freak but other than that his character was really blah. I personally am so tired of these stereotypical guys who just want women for sex and nothing more. Guys like that are jerks and in that way Luke (the villain) is practically a twin of Burke.

These guys are both jerks in my mind because Burke thinks he has a right to bet CB's car. I can get Luke thinking it's ok, but Burke thinks he has a right to bet items he doesn't own? WTF? And CB never even elbows him in the ribs, or even mentions the fact that Burke is REALLY over stepping. I know she is supposed to be a pushover when it comes to Burke but that is being pushed too far.

The Sum Up:
A pretty light story, a few laughs and a fun tone, but bogged down in poor characters who needed more development. I also found myself getting bored towards the middle where one "Train CB to be a girl" scene seemed to blend into the other. But if you don't expect too much from this it's a nice book to spend a few hours reading even if it could have used some judicious editing to pick up the pace in the middle.

3 stars.

Cassandra Bishop, otherwise known as CB doesn't have the faintest idea how to be feminine. She's a rough and tumble sort of girl who's not afraid to get her hands dirty, inhale her food in public, or even throw a punch if it's warranted. Her ex-fiancé's, Luke, reappearance in town has her doubting her own appeal and feminism. After all, he supposedly left her because he was gay, now here he is with a woman who reminds CB of a Pomeranian and insisting that CB is just too masculine acting to be considered womanly. CB is determined to prove him wrong. She's enlisting her best friend Burke to help with the transformation.

Burke Hallifax has been a friend of Cassandra's for a very long time. Hayne (CB's brother), CB and Burke often hung out together. She's always been his buddy. So why would she think that he can help her find her femininity? To make matters worse, he's suddenly seeing her as more than just a buddy, there are curves he never noticed before. But there is no way that he is going to have any part of changing her into a "woman."

Breaking Luke's nose should have given CB a small amount of satisfaction. After the way he'd deserted her a year ago he did deserve some retaliation. His derogatory comments about her lack of feminine behavior really hurt. CB does what any self respecting woman in her position would do - gets drunk. Then she proceeds to visit her friend Burke to ask him if he'd have sex with her if she asked. At three-thirty in the morning, the last thing Burke feels like doing is arguing with a very drunk soaking wet woman who resembles a drowned rat. While he did tell her that no, he would not have sex with her, he still forces her in out of the rain and has her sleep it off in his guest bedroom. After sobering up a bit, CB explains about Luke being back in town and breaking his nose. When Luke drops off an invitation to his wedding to the Pomeranian, CB makes the big decision that she is going to prove that she can be feminine and do so with more style than his little blonde with the double-D's. Burke claims he can see her femininity so he should be able to help her bring it out, right? He's refusing to help but Cassandra has a plan. The weekly poker game is tonight and CBandra's determined to win. Since she's the dealer, she gets to pick the game. Tonight's game is five card stud, aces high, favor game. Showdown rules. Cassandra needs a date to Luke's wedding, and she needs someone to show her how to be a woman and she's dead set on Burke fulfilling both roles.

Let's hear it for the tomboys! Cassandra is such a fun character. She's bold and brash yet still girly, but not in a makeup and high-heels sort of way. She wants to be loved and get married, even have kids but Luke's cruel comments push her into a deep-seated need to prove to everyone including herself that she is a woman. Burke loves Cassandra just the way she is, her changing forces him to realize that she is desirable and he's always been attracted to her, that's why he hates Luke so much. Matters of the heart are always a gamble, but it's so worth it when you bluff and win.

Chrissy Dionne (courtesy of Romance Junkies)

Downloaded this on my Kindle this past weekend based on a friend's recommendation --- and loved it! Cassandra is a great lead character, desperate to prove her ex boyfriend wrong. This is a solid friends to lovers story that will leave you itching to pick up another book by this author.