Customer Reviews

Ladies' Man

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Ellen Layne is a mother with teenagers, she is in New York to visit her Uncle and take her children to auditions. As a Dr of English at Yale she is tired of teaching and thinks she might like to do a little acting. She surely is not looking for a summer fling. When she meets Sam Schaefer, a detective, at the airport she neglects to tell him she is a mother. Leaving the airport togather they have an encounter in the limo.

Sam is a player, and Ellen looks like someone he would like to play with. After their time in the limo he wants to see her again. But Ellen is a little embarrassed and refuses to see him again ever. While the encounter was not something she can brag about she is unable to forget the younger man.

Suddenly Ellen begins to recieve notes and finds she is being stalked. Sam is called in on the case, and as with all Suzanne Brockmann's books we have a great romance and a good story. I liked it.

I am glad I didn't buy this book, but got it from the library. It definitely is not a good representation of Brockmann's excellent writing. Maybe it is partly because I read this immediately after reading Lorraine Heath's "Parting Gifts" which is a true romance story and a 5++ star book. I was just turned off by the sudden sex in the limo with the stranger when it seemed so out of character for Ellen who has teenage children and has never had even close to a one night stand before. Then the sex in the limo leads directly to "I can't live without her", "I'm in love", without any relationship build up. Guess I am just getting tired of these trite storylines. I got tired of Ellen's constantly putting Sam off and telling him she's too old. After awhile I agreed with her and wanted him to find someone else. Her fear of being burned again just wasn't convincing enough for me. This really is the first Suzanne Brockmann book I haven't liked. She has a talent for writing romance with humor and good character development. It just wasn't evidenced here. For a really great Brockmann, try Heartthrob.

It started with a case of mistaken identity; reclusive novelist TS Harrison sends childhood pal Sam to the JFK airport to meet talk show host Bob. Sam meets Bob's niece Ellen, a professor and aspiring actress who has brought her kids down to the city for the summer to try their luck at auditions. Sam doesn't have a chance to correct the mistake before Bob high tails it on his flight. When Sam and Ellen share a limo ride back to the city, she does something out of character, and gets hot and heavy in the back of the limo with the sexy stranger. When he calls and tries to see her again, she rebuffs him. She figures Sam is another heart breaker like her ex and is not prepared to lose her heart to him.

When Ellen reports threatening mail and phone calls to the police, Sam steps in to investigate (and is surprised to discover that she has children). While Bob may be the intended victim, Sam isn't ruling anyone out, as he protects Ellen's family from a stalker while also trying to prove that he's not such a ladies man after all.

Originally printed in limited as a bonus book in a publisher's special, Brockmann's once shelved story gets full print honors ten years later. Brockmann manages to maintain the secret of both the stalker and his intended victim until the end. It's an average stand alone novel, with some steamy passages, but is lacking in character and plot development like her later work. In fact, the back story of characters Sam and TS sound extremely familiar to Sam Starrett (from her SEAL/Team 16 series) and his childhood pal Noah, who plays a significant role in Brockmann's later novel "Gone Too Far." Maybe she got a chance to flesh "Sam" out after all.

Ellen Layne accompanies her uncle Bob (a famous talk-show host) to the airport to meet an elderly relative whose flight is delayed. To pass the time, she checks out the bookstore--and finds herself checking out a hot younger man there, as well. She's embarrassed when he catches her at it, but he's checking her out, too, and tries to get her telephone number. Ellen is tempted, but she's just in New York with her kids for the summer while she's still recovering from a painful divorce. She doesn't need the complication of a younger man, no matter how charming and alluring. She demurs, but fate throws them together again almost immediately.

Sam Schaefer is at the airport on one of his rare days off doing a favor for an old friend, the famous writer T.S. Harrison. Harrison was in discussions with Bob about writing his biography and had agreed to meet him at the airport without checking his calendar first. Realizing he had a family conflict, he enlisted Sam to fill in for him, resulting in a comical case of mistaken identity that Sam has a difficult time clearing up with Bob and his entourage, including Ellen. Ultimately, Sam ends up sharing a very long, steamy limo ride alone with Ellen. By the time they both reach their respective homes, Sam is determined to see more of Ellen, but Ellen decides she's far too vulnerable to the charms of an experienced ladies' man like Sam to risk losing her heart to him.

Once again, fate intervenes despite Ellen's intentions. When threatening letters and phone calls are sent to Bob's home where Ellen and her kids are staying, the real T.S. Harrison recommends his best friend, NYPD detective Sam Shaefer, to provide protection and identify the increasingly violent stalker. Sam's up for the job, and he's also determined to succeed in convincing Ellen that she's the woman for this ladies' man.

This is a solid 3-1/2 star read (3 stars is a good rating for me) with likeable leads and supporting characters, as well as a believable mystery for added tension. As another reviewer has noted, the book was initially published in 1997, but it stands up well and could easily be mistaken for a 2007 release (except for some issues with current airport security). At just over 200 pages, it's a short book, so there are some missed opportunities for character development and does conclude quickly with a few loose ends. But it is certainly recommended as a quick, enjoyable read--possibly while waiting in the airport.

This book was written in 1997, before Brockman honed her storytelling skills to the high level they are today. The characters are one-dimensional, the plot simplistic, and the book is just plain boring. There are a few hints of the excellent writer that Brockman will become, but there are not enough of them to make reading this book worthwhile.

Ladies Man by Suzanne Brockmann is finally back in print. It's a wonderfully told tale of love and trusting oneself.

College Professor Ellen Layne is spending the summer in NY with her two children. They are all pursuing acting careers this summer. As a favor to her talk show host uncle Bob Osbourne, she agrees to pick up her Aunt at the airport. While waiting she starts a harmless flirtation with a younger man.

Detective Sam Schaefer, as a kindness to his author friend T.S. Harrison agrees to meet Bob Osbourne's Aunt Alma. Sam is drawn to Ellen but she is still gun shy from her painful divorce.

When Sam is made aware of threats to Ellen, the cop in him takes over. Can he convince her to trust him with her life as well as her heart?

Though Ladies Man was originally written in 1997, I didn't find it dated at all. It was a romance for any time. Its exceptionally written and a delight for any romance fan.

I've read most of Brockmann's books and this simple, little romance is one of her better ones. The romance that springs up between Yale Professor Ellen Layne and NYPD detective Sam Schaeffer works. The characters are believable, the writing appropriate for a romance novel and the mystery had just enough twists to make the book better than average. Personally, I feel in Ms. Brockmann's later books, she tries too hard sometimes with the adjectives, descriptions and current jargon--the stories don't flow as well as some of her earlier writings like Ladies' Man. This story was reissued from I believe the mid-90's and is better than her current hardcover in terms of the writing. It is a great introduction to the talents of Ms. Brockmann if you haven't read her and if you have, it is a great return to her romantic story telling!

I'm usually a fan, but this book seemed to be rushed, not nearly as well developed as her usual products. I found it disappointing.

Originally published in 1997 and at just 215 pages LADIES MAN is your average stand alone romance. Not my favourite of Brockman's however it's a quick read and stands up fine today. I enjoyed all the characters and while the plots quite basic it is helped along by a plausible enough stalker mystery and some hot older woman-younger man lovin. Of course I should mention that the first 5 chapters (1/4 of the book) is taken up exclusively by `the limo ride' and that's reason in itself to read this book. Yum.

Ellen Layne is in the airport newsstand glancing over the bestsellers when she see's him; "From the back he was a living breathing advertisement for Buns of steel"

All faded jeans, blond hair and impossibly handsome. According to Ellen he looks even better from the front too. Unfortunately for Ellen he's also at least 10 years younger then she is. But what, oh he's seen her looking, checking him out. He's coming over now, flirting with her with those blue eyes, dimples and perfect teeth. Damn even his voice is sexy. I wonder how old he really is?

So I absolutely loved the beginning of this book. It is just the perfect fantasy, older woman meets younger gorgeous man and through mistaken identity and happenstance they wind up sharing a limo together. Sam the `ladies man' puts the moves on Ellen as they tour around New York drinking champagne and taking in the sights. Ellen in a moment of recklessness allows herself to give in to the fantasy and experience a night of unbridled passion. A little something to remember because surely this player won't want anything more then that? Sam however in an uncharacteristic move phones her the very next day hoping to see her again and in a `this is how the other side must feel' move Ellen turns him down cold.

Unfortunately after chapter five the whole feel of the book changes and it's no longer great --it's okay. As it turns out Ellen is recovering from a divorce, has 2 precocious (see annoying) children and although a professor wants to try her luck at acting over the summer. She's staying with her Uncle Bob, a famous talk show host when the phone calls start. They are soon accompanied by hate mail and then of course the police get involved. Fate intervenes here because who do you think is a member of the NYPD? Well it's Sam the ladies man of course and he's got some unfinished business with Ellen but first he's got to figure out who the increasingly violent stalker is and possibly step in front of a bullet in the name of love.

So the ending is pretty exciting, oooh who's the stalker? Who's the stalkers intended victim? And the beginning...sigh. But the middle part as well as being so different from the beginning floundered to me. And as much as I liked Sam, he was supposed to be a `ladies man' (hell that's what the books called) yet as much as I was told this I never saw it from him. He was just a nice guy who seemed to be searching for someone to settle down with. Maybe if his character had been flushed out a bit more. Cheers!

Ellen Layne and Sam Schaefer have an immediate attraction when their chance meeting occurs at an airport bookstore. She's nearly 10 years older than Sam and so she fights the urge to give into his advances. Fate, however, plays a role in that the airplane passengers they wait for are mutual acquaintances. Sam's a cop, and a good thing, it appears someone is out to kill one of them.

I found this to be a fun, easy, and light-hearted audiobook. A little something for those that seek a break from a heavy dose of intensity in their stories and are still satisfied by simple pleasures and sweet romance. Oh, yeah there is a mystery here too, but it's truly secondary. If you are looking for suspense try Tami Hoag's books,