Dare to Love [Paperback]

Jaci Burton (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 2009

A romantic game of chicken-and they're both too stubborn to flinch. Lucy Fairchild, lawyer and heiress to the Fairchild fortune, has just had the worst day of her life. Her father has found the perfect man for her to marry. Yes, she's thirty and single, but that doesn't give her father the right to run her life. She'll choose her own husband-someday. Jake Dalton is struggling to make his fledgling construction company a success. Ever mindful of his father's derogatory comments that he'd never amount to anything, he's spent his entire life trying to prove he's not a failure. From their first meeting on a construction site, verbal sparks fly. Their argument escalates into a dare for a date-and the game is on. Lucy thinks Jake is the perfect fake boyfriend to parade around in the hopes of getting her father off her back. Jake is amused by the chance to annoy both Lucy and her dad-he doesn't intend to take the dating thing seriously. But the heart is a fickle thing, and not above playing dirty. In their quest to prove something-to each other, or maybe to themselves-they find themselves building a case.for love. And suddenly all the rules have changed. Warning: This book does NOT contain hot monkey lovin', threesome action or anyone swinging from the chandeliers (sorry 'bout that). It does contain sexy romancin' on a trampoline under the stars, fun one liners, a dog named Rascal and a smokin' hot construction worker named Jake that the author is convinced you're going to fall madly in love with. She dares you to read it.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Jaci Burton is addicted to paranormal stories and has been writing for Ellora's Cave since 2003. She is married to a man who keeps her fantasy life enriched.

Product Details

• Paperback: 216 pages
• Publisher: Samhain Publishing (May 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 160504279X
• ISBN-13: 978-1605042794
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #245,670 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Jaci Burton is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling, award winning author of over 50 books. She lives in Oklahoma and spends a fair amount of time on the back of her husband's Harley, where she often gets lost plotting her next story as the warm (and sometimes cold) breeze whips her face. She loves gardening, reality television, is a sucker for romantic comedies, and completely loses track of time when reading a great book. She's a total romantic and longs for the happily ever after in every story, which you'll find in all her books.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great "Against All Odds" Love Story, May 1, 2009

By 

LeaF (Toronto, Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dare to Love (Paperback)

`Dare to Love' is the story of Lucille `Lucy' Fairchild and Jake Dalton two of the most unlikely lovers I think a reader could envision. Lucy comes from the social `elite' and is a successful lawyer and partner in her father's law firm. Jake is a new owner of a construction company, comes from the `wrong side of the tracks' and has worked extremely hard to achieve business success.

Ever walk along a sidewalk where there is a construction project underway and admire some of the handsome man flesh in the vicinity? Well, one of those hotties could be Jake Dalton, tall, rugged, handsome, intelligent and determined to be successful. Lucy walks by Jake's construction site and through a series of rather comical incidents ends up agreeing to go out on a date with him.

Raymond Fairchild, Lucy's father is a controlling, snobbish, manipulative man with Machiavellian tendencies, who has intensions of marrying his daughter off in a `business arrangement', to this slimy repulsive millionaire named Alex. Jaci wrote Raymond Fairchild to be extremely repulsive and I have to say, "I hated that guy"!!!

Needless to say, when Jake turns up at the door of the Fairchild mansion to take Lucy out, old Raymond very nearly busts an artery. Jake and Lucy have `nothing in common', don't you know, because of her `social status'.

Lucy, against her better judgment, opens up to Jake about her father's attempts to control her life and arrange a marriage for her. Jake takes pity on Lucy and presents her with a plan to foil old Raymond by `pretending' to be her boyfriend.

The romantic plot written for these two lovers can only be described as a roller coaster ride as they try and maneuver through barriers of social class, their own preconceptions about each other, and Raymond and Alex's interference.

The love scenes once again are tasteful and written into the plot with perfection. As Jaci likes to say there is no "swinging from the chandeliers", sex in this novel but it is rife with sexual tension and sweet moments. I have to say though, "the trampoline scene" is great fun! Jake and Lucy's story is endearing as it tells a tale of a love strong enough to survive social, personal, business and family conflict.

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Dare to Love, December 9, 2008

By 

Kelly "Reviewer for The Sinfully Sensuous" (Littleton, Colorado) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Dare to Love (Kindle Edition)

Lucy Fairchild was frustrated beyond belief. Her father had just dropped a bomb on her. Lucky her - he found her a husband! He was trying to dictate her life, and she was not going to stand for it. The man he wanted her to marry was the most vile man she had ever set eyes on. When she met a workman at a local construction site, she accepted a date with him all the time knowing how much her father would hate it. Keeping that information at the forefront, she wrote her address on the back of her business card, so he could pick her up.

Jake Dalton knew the second he extended the offer of a date to Lucy; it had been a colossal mistake. He had no business taking the attractive attorney out anywhere. They were different people from different backgrounds, and nothing could ever be between them. He just wished his head could relay that message to his heart because after only spending a short time with her, messages like forever kept running through him.

When Lucy introduced Jake to her father, he was horrified at the choice she had made, but she had no idea of the lengths he would go to for that control. The all-powerful Raymond Fairchild wanted to be in charge of every facet of her life. Jake just hoped they could survive the interference because they learned the hard way that he played for keeps.

This is a more traditional style romance that is very sweet. There are a few sensual moments, but this book is more about the story than the heat. Lucy and Jake are challenged at every turn, and will have to fight to be together.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Nice Opposites Attract Romance (B Grade), July 28, 2009

By 

K. Garrabrant "Katiebabs" (Bloomfield, NJ USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Dare to Love (Paperback)

When Lucy Fairchild first meets Jake Dalton her nose is all bent out of joint. Jake is an owner of an up and running construction company and his men can't help but yell out some sexy compliments whenever she walks past the work site. Another woman may find it flattering, but to Lucy who is a lawyer, she thinks it is insulting. She tells Jake how she feels but he shrugs it off thinking that Lucy is just a rich snob who can't have any fun. These two are as different as night and day but both cannot deny their attraction for each other. Jake wants to take Lucy out on a date even though he knows she will refuse. Lucy shocks him and takes Jake up on his offer.

Lucy's father wants her settled, which means being married to the man he has picked for her. Lucy enjoys being single even though the men she has dated in the past are nothing compared to the blue collar Jake. Knowing nothing can come out of it, she goes on her date with Jake thinking it will be a one time only deal. But then he kisses her and sets Lucy's heart aflutter.

Jake would love nothing more than to get Lucy into his bed and even comes up with a plan to keep her old man off her back. She will pretend to date him so Lucy's father can back down. Lucy finds merit in the idea and as these two act like a couple, things change from pretend to reality.

Jaci Burton is one author you can always count on to write wonderful, sexy romances. Dare To Love is a great story where opposites attract. The rough and hardworking Jake finds love and happiness with Lucy, the proper and rich socialite who is not what she originally seems to be. These two may not get along in the beginning, but by the time they are locking lips, both these two get along perfectly in many other ways. Also, Lucy's relationship is a very interesting one with her father who is not above using guilt and some shady undertakings to get what he wants. You may be surprised by what he does, but Lucy's reaction and final decision between her father and Jake is one you won't want to miss!

Dare To Love has some nice love scenes and Jake is one man you wouldn't mind taking home to meet your parents. If you haven't had the chance to pick up a Jaci Burton novel, I recommend you start here with Dare To Love.

Katiebabs