Customer Reviews

Fiancé at Her Fingertips

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

 

 

Debra Daniels works for the state's Crime Victims Assistance Bureau. She is beyond tired of everyone, including her parents, fixing her up with blind dates. When she is in a novelty shop and spies a do-it-yourself kit titled "Fiancé at Your Fingertips", Debra believes she has found the answer to her matchmaking problems. The kit is a boyfriend-in-a-box. It comes with everything Debra needs to convince family, friends, and coworkers that she has already found Mr. Right. Debra's boyfriend-in-a-box is "Lawyer Logan". He is the perfect fictitious beau. The kit gives his name as Logan Alexander and all of his stats. Debra hopes that when she finally tells everyone that it was all a joke to keep them from fixing her up with men, perhaps they would STOP! Let the game begin!

Turns out that the joke is on her. After a couple of weeks of fake phone messages at work, a personal make-over, and pretend happiness and bliss, Debra has absolutely everyone convinced that Logan is, in fact, her Mr. Right. But when Debra goes to her parents' house for dinner, "Lawyer Logan" shows up in-the-flesh. And he is in the perfect flesh! He convinces everyone that he actually HAS been dating Debra. He even has past dates with her written on his calendar and all her phone numbers on his cell's speed dial. Of course Debra immediately tells everyone he is lying and it had all been a joke, but no one is believing her. Logan seems to actually believe his own lies too. Strange thing is that after while Debra wonders if how Logan came into her life really matters.

**** Engaging characters and witty dialogue blend together to create such a fun read that it will cheer up anyone (even after going through their own rough day.) The main couple's best friends, Suzi and Clay, steal the spot light once or twice as they clash head-to-head. Looks like they will be getting their own story told in the near future. I enjoyed every minute of this wild ride. ****

Reviewed by Detra Fitch of Huntress Reviews.

State's Crime Victims Assistance Bureau Counselor Debra Daniels is starting to believe she needs to move to another continent if she is to have any respite from her matchmaking mom, who has set her up with blind dates from hell; her friends and her co-workers who are not much better. They think being married is nirvana and staying single is a curse. Bone marrow wary she wants everyone to stop setting her up.

At a gift shop seeking a birthday present for her best friend Suzi, Debra finds an interestingly titled do-it-yourself kit titled: "Fiancé at Your Fingertips" that contains everything she needs to get the well meaning horde off her butt by persuading one and all that she has met Mr. Right, "Lawyer Logan" Alexander, a make believe boyfriend. Over the next couple of weeks, Debra receives sham phone calls at work and deserves an Oscar pretending she is in love. However while at her parents' house, "Lawyer Logan" arrives for dinner. He insists they have been seeing one another while she swears he came in a box like a Crackerjack's prize. However, as he continues his campaign to win the heart of his beloved, she begins to wonder does it matter since she loves her novelty lawyer.

Even sans Calamity Jane, this is an amusing whimsical contemporary romance starring a beleaguered heroine still reeling from a decade of bozos and losers culminating with her trooper recently announcing he is going to be a father of someone else's child. Under siege especially from mom, Debra makes up a fiancé only to have him show up for dinner. Fans will appreciate this humorous engaging tale while waiting for the sequel between Debra's two best friends, enemy combatants.

Harriet Klausner

I'm very ambivalent on this book. There were elements which were unusual and showed that the author has an interesting turn of mind that may promise well for the future. On the other hand, there were parts that were predictable and even somewhat tedious. A good bit of the book left the reader wondering what had happened... and not in a good whodunit kind of way.

Exploring both sides of the relationship was interesting - what was unnerving was how quickly this happened and without explanation. Throwing the "angelic" scene at the end of the book to give some guidance doesn't make up for the reader feeling lost while reading the book.

There was a little too much time spent with him stalking her and her stalking him - way too much golf time spent on the golf course. This was time and pages in the book the author could have used to give a better feel for what she was trying to get across.

I also have a bit of a problem with the amount of time spent pushing the next book in the series - between Suzie and CEO Clay. This is an issue with many authors - not just this one. Focus on the book at hand; if it is good, we'll buy the next one. I can't say I will purchase the next book based on the first one. It wasn't good; it wasn't bad. It was merely okay with some high points and a good number of low points.

I will check back with this author in the future to see if the promise shown in her creativity bears fruit.

My book club read this book and all 10 of us did not like it. The female character is whiny. Just about the time start getting invested in the book it changes to his side. One person said it was like starting a whiole new book. While it is an interesting twist, she didn't really develop either side well and the explanation of the whole finance come to life thing is a cop-out. It's like the author hit her deadline and ended the book without much thought.

She also abuses the use of alliteration. I put the book down twice because of it and that was only the first NINE pages! If it weren't for the book club I would not have finished this book.

Wow! it was really outside the box! (sorry :-)) This was the first paranormal romance novel I have ever read. Kathleen did it again. Very different than the Calamity Jayne series but the new novel retains her usual humor. It has many twists and turns, keeps you guessing but you don't have to overthink it.This is a great summer read. Like her other books it is just plain fun. Bravo Kathy!

After devouring the Calamity Jayne series, which made me a Kathleen Bacus fan for life, I had to read this.
What a fun read!
Tired of horrible blind dates, Debra buys a "Fiance at Your Fingertips" kit at a novelty store in order to scam her friends and family into thinking she's involved with someone. A few weeks in she actually starts getting message slips with the fake-fiance's name on them, and starts hearing about him at her gym.
Then her dad comes home and announces he's met her fiance at the golf course and has invited him to dinner! Debra is sure this is a mistake, but her dad mentions how he recognized Logan from the picture she'd shown him, the picture that came in her kit.
Logan Alexander appears at her parents' home and the fun begins!
It becomes clear early on that there is some sort of magic going on, and as long as you aren't looking for a stuffy, dramatic novel, you will love this. Kathleen Bacus has such a wonderful voice for comedy, and her books always make me laugh. This was no exception. Suspend reality for a little while and give it a try. It's a great "escape book" to get you through the work week.

This story had a good start and some laughs, but the author left her main character (MC) with nowhere to go, except to play the part of dingbat going into b*tch and winding up TSTL (too stupid to live). I gave this story the second star for the promising start. SPOILERS AHEAD: The MC buys a kit that instructs her in ways to make all her matchmaking friends and relatives believe she has found Mr. Perfect. Then, to her shock, Mr. Perfect actually shows up. This is where things get rocky, storywise. Where do you go from here? Someone who doesn't exist shows up for real, seems to know you, knows all about the dates you've made up, etc. People he knows seem to know you, altho you don't know them. Have you gone crazy, or what? To begin with, Mr. Perfect is less than perfect. He shows up in the flesh after (supposedly) blowing off a date with the MC to go out of state to help his ex-girlfriend with a messy divorce. Apparently the state that lady lives in has no competent lawyers. Mr. Perfect allows his mother to unfavorably compare his current love with his ex and needle the MC he claims to want to marry while they're at a family picnic. This is needling to the point that the MC's grandmother gets into it with the possible future mother-in-law. Mr. Perfect leaves their first bedroom opportunity to take a phone call from his ex. Mr. Perfect invites our MC to an award ceremony where he is the man of honor (hah!), gets surprised by the ex showing up to present his award, the ex gushes about how she loves Mr. Perfect and wants to have another chance, Mr. Perfect gets into an on-stage, way-too-long, flying liplock with his ex while his invited lady love (and the audience of his peers) stands by, at least until she gets sufficient backbone to just-as-publicly ditch him (yay!). Then she immediately thinks she's in the wrong (say what?!) and tries to make up with him, except now nobody recalls her ever being with him, he doesn't remember her, and she falls into that romance story pitfall of becoming TSTL. This was the point at which I stopped reading. If you like hung-up, impossible premises and unlikeable characters, this is the book for you. If you prefer your plots better planned and characters who are fun and witty, reach for something else.

Sick of enduring the constant fix-up attempts of her mother and other well-meaning people, Debra Daniels is desperate for a solution. When she stumbles across a novelty gift entitled "Fiancé at Your Fingertips" that's guaranteed to fool family and friends into thinking you have a steady boyfriend, she thinks it'll be a great joke. Unfortunately, the only kit the store has is "Lawyer Logan." Despite her dislike of lawyers, Debra buys the kit and puts the plan into action. Everyone seems to be fooled and she's having a great time. Until Lawyer Logan actually shows up...

Fiancé at Her Fingertips was an incredibly frustrating book because it had so much potential. The idea of the relationship kit was really cute. Despite Debra's (and Kathleen Bacus') overuse of alliteration, I liked her--at least at first. Her job as a crime victims' advocate was admirable, and she was funny. Her shock and horror at the appearance of a real Logan Alexander was amusing for a while. As for Logan, he was sweet, kind, funny, generous, and all in all a wonderful guy. I wanted to smack Debra when she continued to treat Logan horribly for most of the story. Then, just when I thought there was a perfect place to end the story, it took an unpleasant twist. The happy ending rang false for me because of it. Still, Fiancé at Her Fingertips had a lot of good points. The idea was good, I loved the hero, and the supporting characters were hilarious. I am hoping Ms. Bacus's next book in what promises to be a series will capitalize on all those positives.

Cassie
reviewed for Joyfully Reviewed

Debra Daniels just wants to get her mom and everyone else off her back, so she buys a date in a box kit containing everything she would need to create the illusion of having a steady boyfriend. She was completely unprepared for "Lawyer Logan" to come to life and begin integrating himself into her life, charming her family and friends, and apparently knowing everything about her. She just doesn't know what she'll do when she tells him to get out of her life, and he does it, but does not cease to exist. Her wonderful life goes into being something more like Wonderland, where nothing makes sense anymore.

Having read a few thousand books, I believe I am safe in saying I have not read many if any like this. The reader is left as perplexed as Debra as she tries to sort out how Logan got there and why he suddenly does not know her and no one knows him either. Though I do not like being confused, it worked well to make the audience as puzzled as the heroine, and the hero when he had no idea why this crazy lady was insisting they knew each other. If you want to read something different and fun, this will be the right prescription.

Reviewed by Amanda Killgore for Huntress Reviews.

Quite possibly the worst book I have ever read. And, unfortunately, I read the entire thing. I kept hoping it would improve, but it never did. The plot seemed good (and familiar) - a girl with no romantic life needs to find a man so her family will stop asking questions. So, when Debra finds a box in a novelty store named Lawyer Logan, she's super excited. The box is ready-made and includes everything a single girl needs to make her friends and family believe she has a real boyfriend. The thing is, her fake boyfriend in a box comes to life. And the reader must go along with this really far-fetched plot, with no understanding as to how or why the box/man came to life. There is also a very bizarre twist at the end, which makes the entire book seem even more ridiculous and phony. The book just wasn't cohesive and there was no chemistry between the characters, because they had no back-story, no relationship with one another and no shared experiences. It was just a terrible book. Not recommended at all.