Customer Reviews

Ms. Match (Harlequin Blaze)

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

 

 

While I love the premise of the book - "boy learns it's what's inside that counts" - I was a little put off that four chapters into the book (after the hero and heroine have made both an intellectual and emotional connection) said "boy" is still getting a hard-on for the heroine's sister (his original intended in the book). In fact, not only does he get a hard-on for the heroine's sister but when the sister blows him off he makes a "booty call" to an unknown third party "Laurie." Am I honestly supposed to want my heroine (who is pretty wicked awesome) to end up with this guy? I mean, there was no balance between the two characters. The heroine was a headhunter for scientists who was witty, intelligient, mature, well-rounded, knew sports, played sports, was kind and funny. She even had the sense to say to herself that while, yes, he was gorgeous... still, he was ignorant enough to be after her sister who was beautiful but dumb as a rock and just insensitive as her other siblings. The hero was a PR guy who graduated from Yale and liked things that looked good - women, cars, clothes, etc.(admitted to that himself). That's it. You found out that he, too, liked the Dodgers just as our heroine did; he, however, isn't off at the sports bar throwing a few back with friends and enjoying the game as she is.

The turnaround for me was when the hero had the epiphany that he was the sizzle, not the steak. He finally realized he was about as deep as a puddle. Then, I turned right back around when Mr. Puddle proceeded to get turned on all over again after the sister stopped at his office for a visit.

Call me a high-maintenance reader, but when I'm seven chapters into a book I'm ready for the main characters to be focusing on one another, even if it's not romantically. After seven chapters of this book, I felt like our heroine was wasting both herself and her time on a walking, brainless, hard-on with a wallet. After reading the line,"If only he could stop wishing she was as pretty as her sister." I literally put down the book with all intentions to not finish this book. The only reason I came back to it was because I had an appointment and found it to be my only reading material during a nearly one hour wait.

All of that being said, I was glad I went back and finished it. While the first half of the book touted what a great heroine we had, the second half was our hero's journey to becoming who he was meant to be. While he did still stumble and make some miscalculations it was only fitting as he couldn't be perfect overnight. The only thing missing by the end of this book (because I believe all issues should be resolved by the end) was the retribution for our heroine in regard to her family. As horrible as they were to her, to not have any resolution there left me wanting.

What a wonderful surprise this book was. No stalkers, homicidal maniacs or serial killers, just a real love story about two real people. The dialogue was witty, the reactions were grounded in genuine emotion, and there was not a cliche in the whole thing. HOT love scenes, paced just right. Emotional growth I could believe in. This book really stands out from the crowd. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!

In "Ms Match" starts with the two main characters,Gwen Christopher and Paul Bennet. Paul agrees to take Gwen the "ugly" sister out on a blind date to gain points with the really "hot" sister. But Paul's shallow viewpoint of life in the fast lane, appearances, and "hot" women starts to change when he realized Gwen is smart, funny, and has a lot more depth than his usual dates. It also turns out they have a lot more in common than he thought.
Starting with their first date at a party where they dance the night away!
A cute romance with a clever twist that takes a look at shallow, beautiful but fake compared to what is real and important.
Thanks for an enjoyable read!
L. Malmquist

This book surprised me. I was expecting a quick romance novel and got a book with real substance. The characters were so well-developed I felt like they were old friends by the time I turned the last page.

Here's the plot: In an attempt to get into the impossibly gorgeous Autumn Christopher's pants, Paul agrees to find a date for her sister, Gwen. When the date he's found bails at the last minute, Paul steps in and finds himself inexplicably fascinated by Gwen who, while pretty, is much plainer than the super-model types he usually dates.

On the surface, this was a pretty straightforward love story. Boy meets girl. Boy falls in love with girl. Boy and girl break up over a simple misunderstanding and get back together in the end. What made it stand out was the depth of the characters. It's obvious from the start why Gwen has inner beauty but the real surprise is Paul. While he seems like a shallow pretty-boy at first, he reveals more of himself as the book progresses and we understand why Gwen would give him a chance. Even Autumn, with her prettiness and pettiness becomes much more than a cardboard stock character.

I'm looking forward to reading more by Jo Leigh.

When I first started the book, I found myself getting annoyed with Paul, the main guy character. Gwen isn't as beautiful as her sisters, but she is much more beautiful than her sisters on the inside where it counts. Paul keeps going back to Gwen's sister, who got Paul to meet up with Gwen in the first place. It took a bit of time for Paul to realize what matters more than looks, but in the end he did. Gwen loses her way for a bit too with always putting herself down, but she also in the end finds her way again. They are the perfect pair. Parts of this book remind me of real life. Once to often the looks are what matters and with this book, it was the same in the beginning, but thankfully it didn't end that way.

I like this book of how it shows that even your own family can cause your insecurities without thinking about it. I like how paul takes things slow with gwen after he sees what happens around her family. I like how he also sees how he wants to be a better person just for being around her. I would recommend this book to anyone who has every felt any insecurities in there life.