Customer Reviews

Lead Me On (Hqn)

5 star:		(29)
4 star:		(21)
3 star:		(14)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Disclosure: I'd like to mention that I won a paperback copy of this book, but have pre-ordered a copy for Kindle as well, in order to get it in my preferred format.

Jane is the very model of a cool, calm professional. Even a bit of an ice queen. She meets Chase, a large tattooed man, and he asks her out, even though they seem an unlikely match. The truth is that Jane comes from a dysfunctional background, and she spent her teen years acting out based on this - being the life of the party. After having turned her life around and distancing herself from the person she used to be, Chase appears to be the last sort of man she would want to date, or at least the last person she would want people to know she's dating. At first glance, he might be what she wants, but he's not what she needs. However, romance novels are about what happens after the first glance.

The secondary plot is about her brother getting into trouble with the law and her efforts to help him.

I'm on record as being a fan of the author and the other books in the Tumble Creek series. Jane also appears in Start Me Up. Lead Me On, in my opinion, is by far the best one in the series for readers who don't find sexually experienced heroines a deal breaker. Ms. Dahl, and I admire this greatly, seems to make it a priority to allow all of her heroines to have healthy libidos and varying degrees of interest in sex in things likes having fun in public places or the occasional spanking, restraints, etc. These things are not usually the main point of her books, and I don't want to give that impression, but I want to say I find it refreshing whenever a heroine is allowed to be something other than virginal, repressed, or shy to the point of it being a disability.

While Jane projects a more sedate persona, underneath and in the right circumstances her libido is healthy and she knows what arouses her. Jane has a "past." The reasons for Jane's actions in her youth were not usually healthy ones, even her thoughts at the beginning of her relationship with Chase show that she still has some of the negative thoughts about herself on display. However, and this is what I love, the author allows her to remain lusty, even a bit wild while in a relationship that's actually good for her. Perhaps because of her teen rebellion, she knows what she wants and isn't afraid to ask for it, and she finds a genuinely good man who doesn't judge her for the bad choices she made in the past. To paraphrase Bo in Bus Stop: if you love someone as they are today, what do you care how they got that way?

The scene where she makes Chase her birthday present is legitimately sexy, as is a scene in the parking lot of a local bar. Also, not for nothing, but I like a hero who is successful, but also down to earth, and - yes - I like tattoos. And I like that Jane found a way to embrace what was good about her past, while still celebrating the person she is today.

When I look at the three Tumble Creek books, I notice that her characters are not duplicates. The women all seem to like to get soused, and all show naughty streaks, but we have an erotica writer, a mechanic, and a personal assistant, and they're each unique. Of the heroes, we have an alpha male chief of police, a slightly geeky architect, and a guy who picked his line of work so he could blow up things. Also, diverse.

My secondary plot with her brother was needed to make the rest of the book work, but this was also the weak point for me. Even though he was acting out in his own way, and the main story deals with repercussions of the heroine's own past rebelliousness, I can't honestly say I sympathized with him much at all.

However, this is the pick of the Tumble Creek litter!

5 stars

Jane has tried to leave her upbringing and white trash roots behind. She has changed her name and strived very hard to be a productive citizen. She works at a sedate job and does nothing that would bring any attention to her or her name. The men she dates are men that have no hidden secrets or skeletons. And then she meets a motorcyle riding tatooed hottie named Chase. Chase asks Jane out but of COURSE she turns him down -- he is too bad boy for her. But that doesn't stop her from going to Chase and using him for her own satisfaction. Not only that, but Jane continues to use him over and over. Did Chase have a choice. He did. See, Chase found Jane to be one of the most beautiful and enchanting women he had ever met. He wanted her -- warts and all but Jane just couldn't let go.

Because of her position on being with Chase and the fact that she used him blatantly throughout the book, I hated her character. More than once I prayed that Chase would tire of Jane and her "issues" and tell her to take a leap. There was nothing that could redeem this high maintenance woman and sad to say, she ruined the entire book and I can't see myself ever reading it again.

Natalie S. for Amazon Vine

I enjoyed Lead Me On thoroughly as I read it, and I felt satisfied and happy as I turned the last page, but shortly thereafter I realized there were lots of things wrong with it. So it was really fun to read, but no "keeper".

The plot's been summarized plenty of times, so I'll keep it brief here. We know Jane Morgan is a former wild girl who's been walking the straight and narrow for a while, and she wants so badly to keep her former self at a distance that she's alienated herself from her family. And we know Chase is a bad-boy-made-good; where Jane opted for a personality transplant, Chase found a way to make his wild side responsible and profitable. He owns a demolition company, he has a college degree...he's not ashamed of his very visible tattoo because he's a complete, balanced individual who owns every part of himself.

My problem with Lead Me On is that Jane makes one off-putting mistake after another, while uber-eligible Chase just keeps...chasing after her. While I was reading, it felt really good to see warm, generous, understanding, devoted Chase ooze masculinity and never give up on his girl. In hindsight, however, his behavior makes no sense at all. Jane puts a lot of effort into driving Chase away, and the way he's described...well, he could have his pick. At the beginning, while Chase is still on the fence about Jane and hasn't really fallen for her, he keeps coming back for more abuse. And later, as their relationship develops, her offenses scale right along with the depth of their attraction. Fun at the time, but in retrospect even a die-hard romance reader like myself has a hard time finding his behavior realistic.

Then there's Jane's lame lawyer boyfriend, Greg. He's an example of the type of "appropriate" man that Jane tries to date - he's a lawyer. And that really didn't work for me, even as I was reading. The guy is so off-putting and mean, right from the beginning, that I thought less of Jane for going out with him. Jane thinks she's comparing a white collar guy (Greg) to a blue collar guy (Chase), but really, she's just comparing a worthless jerk to a good man. Does Jane really think that every man with a graduate degree is a good potential mate? Because that's pretty pathetic. Every time Jane wondered why she couldn't settle down with a man like Greg, a part of me just wanted to slap her.

Meanwhile, Jane wanders about totally mystified about why she likes these "bad boys" and she thinks it's because her trailer-trash true self just won't reform, but meanwhile we keep meeting her step-dad...a motorcycle repairman covered in tattoos who's as nice and solid and protective as a man can be. I really did not understand why Jane couldn't see the obvious; it's not like she hasn't had a decade to figure it out.

These quibbles seem really important to me in retrospect but I barely noticed them while I was reading. It's sprightly, quick, sexy, a pretty easy read. I'd pick up a Victoria Dahl again, although I'd rather get it from the library than the bookstore.

If you've read the previous book "Start Me Up" you'll recognize Jane as Quinn's ultra professional secretary. She's just as organized and cool as she seemed in the last book, but now we get a little insight into what makes her tick.

Chase is working with Quinn on a residential project and meets Jane when he goes to the office. He hits on her as a whim but Jane turns him down. He ends up giving her his business card in the hope she might change her mind and give him a call. When Jane gets a little tipsy out with a friend she ends up giving herself an early birthday present and gives him a call.

Jane was an interesting character. Her snobbery and prejudices made her a little hard to like, but the way that she owns up to her views and admits they're not valid made it easy for me to sympathize with her. She had a really hard time growing up and started acting out as soon as she hit puberty. At the time she didn't care what she was doing or what people thought, but after she changed her life she hid who she used to be and didn't want to be involved with anyone or anything that might associate her with the kind of girl she used to be.

The author definitely didn't spare Jane from her mistakes growing up. Her actions were described but they were never excused. It was up to the reader to decide their own opinion of it. I cannot think of a single other heroine I've read with a past quite like this. I loved that the author a chance and didn't sugarcoat Jane. I really liked her character and appreciated what she was able to build after having sunk so low.

Chase was a less in depth (though no less endearing) character. Even though he had a past of his own and issues with his dad he was a much more stable adult. He moved past the problems that he had in life and became comfortable in his own skin. I was pretty surprised about Chase and Jane's past association. How hard to be around someone who hasn't just heard about your worst but has seen it in person. I was glad they were able to move past it.

Chase and Jane were pretty perfect together. They really seemed like they fit together. I liked that Chase finally drew the line and wouldn't let himself be used anymore. I liked that he was able to indulge her wild behavior but also able to help her finally move past her low opinion of herself. This book really did a good job illustrating that you can't judge a person by how they look on the outside. I loved every time Chase popped up with another fact about himself that made Jane feel foolish for her assumptions.

I do have to mention one thing that bothered me though. What was the deal with everyone thinking that someone with a tattoo had to be low class? I totally understand Jane's view on it, and she admits that she has issues that make her classify people like that, but what about everyone else? When Jane starts having issues Quinn immediately jumps to some pretty harsh conclusions about Chase that seem to be based on how he looks. Also when Ben (hero of "Talk Me Down") meets him at the end it makes mention of him reacting to the tattoos. Where exactly are they living that tattoos are only on criminals and poor/low class people? I just find it odd that everyone in the book seems like they would be shocked if a rich person in a suit flashed a tattoo.

Great book and I can't wait to read another by this author!

Jane (our "heroine") had an unusual upbringing - her mother collected husbands in jail the way women collect shoes or purses. Jane grew up visiting various step-fathers in prison and moving from prison town to prison town. Now, as an adult, she is extremely... well just dull. She does her best to fade into the background most of the time, and she is incredibly judgmental of anyone she considers beneath her. When she meets Chase, the very definition of a bad boy, she is immediately attracted to him but turns him down when he asks her out because he doesn't fit in with her adopted lifestyle. Of course, Chase doesn't give up, and eventually they end up going out. Jane is just using him for sex, but Chase wants more...

To be honest, this book wasn't very good. I felt it was unimaginative, and not as well written as it could be. I had a very hard time with the characters, especially Jane. I very strongly disliked her, pretty much from the beginning of the book. And as the book went on, I disliked her more and more. She is a self-admitted hypocrite, judgmental, selfish, and in my opinion just cruel. She treats her family and Chase awfully, basically because she sees them as beneath her new status. To be honest, I wish Chase had left her and let her end up the miserable person she deserved to be. I know that sounds harsh, but she is constantly treating Chase like he is garbage, and treating her family the same way. She doesn't even go to her father's garage any more, even though she once loved being there, because someone might figure out she is related to him.

If Jane had been a more likable character, maybe I would have liked this book. But to be honest, I found it somewhat annoying because she was so hypocritical. And the whole thing with her ex-boyfriend - saw that one coming... My suggestion is to find another book and skip reading this book.

I think that the question of whether or not someone will like this book depends on how they read romance.

If you read a romance for the hero and like to place yourself in the heroine's shoes, or if you like to imagine the heroine could be your best girlfriend, then this book would be a stinker for you. If you read romance with an equal eye towards the hero and heroine for the story rather than the escape, then the heroine becomes a complex character rather than an exasperating head case you want to cut out of the loop.

Jane Morgan is a secretary. She is currently the fierce gatekeeper for and partner in Quinn Jennings' architectural firm in Aspen. Armed with a conservative hairstyle and a no-nonsense sweater twinset, she is the very embodiment of respectability and upward mobility.

Which is why the blue-collar excavator Billy Chase is intrigued by Jane at first. Why is Miss Prim and Proper staring at his tattoo and checking out his chest? When he asks her out to dinner and she eventually accepts he figures she's slumming it and he'll get to show her how to let loose.

As it turns out, however, Jane is not at all what she seems, or what she wants people to see. Her brother's been arrested on a DUI, is caught with the contents of a few women's purses and subsequently ends up a murder suspect. Supporting her mom and ex-felon stepfather through this ordeal is the first chip in her middle-class facade. She can't support them and pretend she's not descended from what she considers trailer trash.

So, the focus of the novel is not the mystery plot (and thank god) or even the romance, really, it's about Jane learning to love herself. Because she truly does hate herself and you can't love someone else when your head's in a bad place like that. She starts off blaming her mother for being a prison groupie, moving town to town marrying men in prison for life and conceiving Jane in a conjugal visit trailer. Then she blames her convict father for promising the world in his letters to her, then never making contact with her after he was released when she was 12. And, finally, she blames herself for being a trashy pre-teen and teen attention-starved slut who drank, drugged and indiscriminately screwed her way through her teen angst.

While watching her treat Chase like meat was exasperating at times, it was still understandable. She hadn't forgiven herself for her young mistakes. Jane Morgan wasn't comfortable being Dynasty MacKenzie and accepting that who she was then was part of who she is now. Pushing Chase away as marriage material because he's blue collar is wicked snobby, but if she still blames her working class life for all her problems, how could she react any other way?

As a result, Chase ends up playing the role traditionally occupied by the romance novel heroine. He's the patient lover willing to wait her out while helping her conquer her demons with the Power of Love®. We see through his relationship with his alcoholic father that Chase is no stranger to complicated people and dependent behavior. He's not Jane's doormat, but he's laid back enough to give her the space she needs while she figures her own head out, and that means letting her use him sometimes.

This was definitely the strongest book in the trilogy. There's no real suspense sub-plot to detract from the deeply emotional plot. The focus is squarely on Jane and her romance with Chase. I didn't like Jane, she was definitely too tough and broken for me to want to befriend her, but she was a fully-formed character and I enjoyed reading about her redemption all the same.

Nope. This one didn't do it for me....at all.

I'm all about opposites attracting...... it's what attracted me to this book. Straight-laced girl and "bad boy" find love sounds like my cup of tea. Unfortunately then I read the book. Jane all of a sudden wasn't so straight-laced. It was all a cover to hide her past and family disfunctions from others. Bad boy Chase wasn't "really" a bad boy...he just looked like one! I felt like saying....who are you people?

Jane is pretty messed up. She's selfish and really only thinks of herself. Chase is an AWESOME hero. Sexy, sweet, the total package!!! I felt like he should DEFINITELY move on past Jane and find someone else who could provide him with "something". Jane seemed incapable of a true relationship with anyone else but herself.

For me....disliking the leading lady pretty much sinks the ship, and I really disliked Jane.

STORY BRIEF:
Jane's mother had relationships with men in prison. Due to father problems, Jane bleached her hair, wore lots of black eyeliner and slept around. At age 18 she transformed herself. She changed her name to Jane and became an office manager for an architect. She now acts prim and proper and only wants to date guys in business suits. Chase shows up at the office with tattoo-covered biceps and steel-toed boots. He blows things up for a living - construction site excavations. Jane is attracted to him only as a fling. He wants more. She is having a hard time resisting him. Her problem is that he reminds her of her past which she wants to forget. When Jane's brother becomes a murder suspect, Chase helps Jane.

REVIEWER'S OPINION:
Above average for romance. I loved the character Chase. Jane used him for sex, insulted him and kept pushing him away. He kept asking her out and was there for her when she needed him, but he stood up for himself. In his words, she only saw him as "a slab of meat." Much of the story was Jane hiding from herself and her past. She didn't recognize what a great guy he was and what a great relationship they could have. Her recent boyfriends were a dentist and a district attorney. Those relationships didn't work, but that's the kind of guy she thought she wanted, not a tattooed construction guy. I didn't enjoy reading about some of Jane's actions. Much of the book was a 3-star story, but the last 30 or so pages were 5 stars.

The following were in the last part of the book which I loved. I loved the insight about the mother and what she did. I loved the conversations and interactions between Jane and Chase. I liked seeing Jane's actions and acceptance of her past. These subjects were thought provoking. I felt great at the end.

DATA:
Story length: 336 pages. Swearing language: strong including religious swear words. Sexual language: strong. Number of sex scenes: 5. Total number of sex scene pages: 24. Setting: current day Aspen and Carbondale, Colorado. Copyright: 2010. Genre: contemporary romance.

OTHER BOOKS:
I've reviewed the following Victoria Dahl books.

4 stars. Lead Me On. Copyrt 2010. Review Date 3-23-10.
3 stars. A Rake's Guide to Pleasure. Copyrt 2008. Review Date 12-4-08.
2 ˝ stars. Start Me Up. Copyrt 2009. Review Date 3-29-10.
2 stars. To Tempt a Scotsman. Copyrt 2007. Review Date 5-10-10.

Never judge a book by its cover. And that's exactly what Jane Morgan did when William Chase walked into her office looking like a sexy construction worker. He had bad boy written all over him. He was the type of man that Jane could not resist. But she had to because she was a responsible, mature woman who turned her life around. She's good at her job and respected by her boss. She won't let her love of the wild side ruin it for her.

This is the 3rd book in the Tumbler Creek series. I liked the book but Jane got on my nerves. Her issues were tiresome and I wanted to smack her. We're in the 21st century. I don't think people really care that much about your past unless you're planning on running for office. And who isn't embarrassed by at least one member of their family? Sheesh! She had more issues than Lori Love! I loved Chase and thought he was too good for her. Haha! I loved the fact that he asked Jane out because he thought she was "cute". I found that very endearing.

My thoughts:
Hot leading man, has hot sex with hot girl (who doesn't want to be seen as hot) equals a good book that can sometimes be frustrating because of hot, don't want to be hot, girl's issues.

Rating: 4.5 stars

Jane has reinvented herself and turned her back on her past. No longer is she the promiscuous young woman headed for trouble at every turn. Now, she has a good job, dresses conservatively and only dates "appropriate" men hoping to one day get married, and have children. She does her best to distance herself from her family, who are a constant reminder of the life she left behind and she lives in fear of being found out.

Chase is a blue collared, steel-toe boot, jean wearing rough guy with muscles and tattoos (skull tat, yum). He's everything that turns Jane on and everything she has turned her back on. He owns an excavation company and shows up one day at the architecture firm Jane works for.

When they meet, Chase feels a spark of attraction but isn't really sure why. Jane is plain, dressed conservatively and is throwing off vibes that clearly say she does not approve of him. He's confused by his
attraction--

Her skin looked soft as all hell, and he couldn't help but wonder how a lady like this would respond to being nibbled. But why the hell was he thinking about nibbling a complete stranger?

--but then decides it's because he's "pumped and horny as hell" a result of a recent blast his excavation company executed. A good explosion always gets him going.

After getting some mixed vibes from Jane, Chase decides to ask her out and is promptly turned down. However he is excited by Jane's prim and proper persona--he wants to "mess her up"--so he leaves her a business card hoping she'll change her mind.

Later, after a few drinks with a friend, Jane gives in and decides just one night with the sexy Chase can't hurt. Chase jumps at the chance for a date with her and they share a very, very steamy night together and then begin a complicated affair thereafter.

Jane's life is further complicated by her brother who has been arrested and may be charged with murder. On top of all the other things she is juggling and despite her efforts to distant herself from her past, she must find out the truth about the crime and prove her brother is innocent.

I always say I like my heroes and heroines imperfect and Chase and Jane fit nicely into that category. Jane is fearful both of her past and being exposed as a fraud. She also fears falling for a man that she thinks is not good enough for her. Her actions are at times cruel, and selfish but she always seems to come around and realize these faults and tries to make amends. She's got issues to say the least but it was easy to sympathize with her and I found her character extremely likeable.

Chase has the rough and tough exterior but when it comes to Jane he's all soft on the inside. He's very loveable and patient with Jane but maybe just a bit too much at times. While his kindness toward Jane is admirable, she really makes him work for their relationship and I constantly wondered where his limit would finally be.

Victoria Dahl's secondary characters are both interesting and engaging. Two stood out for me above the rest though. First there was Mac, Jane's ex-con step father. He's a prime example of why not to judge a book by it's cover. Jane considers him a loving father and credits him for saving her from her path of destruction.

The other secondary character that stood out for me was Greg, Jane's jack rabbit lover/ex-boyfriend. (Read the book if you want to know what the jack rabbit reference means.) He truly was a character to hate. His character was written so effectively, that when reading about him I had a scowl on my face. He was a great villain, easy to despise and I looked forward to someone kicking his ass.

Lead Me On is a wickedly sexy read and packed plenty of humor and romance. I didn't want to put it down once I started reading and the only true disappointment I felt was in finishing it. I wanted more!