Most Helpful Customer Reviews
51 of 56 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Enjoyable contemporary romance, February 7, 2007
I liked smart mouthed heroines and I understood Blue's motivations. She understood herself well enough to know that falling for Dean Roubillard would be disastrous. She uses everything that she can think of to ward him off, to turn away his natural born charm. Her best weapon is her brain and her mouth.
Yet, for all her knowing, like many romance heroines, she fails to see that her being a challenge is the best way to attract him. Dean knows women and he is pretty sure that Blue is attracted to him, after all he's rich, famous and gorgeous. That's enough to make any girl's heart rate rise. On the other hand, he's a little disconcerted that she doesn't fall easily into his hands. As a super competitive person, Dean becomes challenged. Soon everything between Dean and Blue becomes a contest. Who can give the most witty retort. Who can confuse the other the most. Who can be the most frustrating.
The story would have been good just watching Blue and Dean spar, but this more than a love story, its a story about families and their capacity to love, betray, hurt and forgive. It's about second chances and who deserves them. What you have to do in order to deserve them? Does a mother who spent her time high and floating from one man to another in search of a better hit deserve forgiveness and a chance at a relationship with her son. Does a father who wanted nothing to do with his son except when the son becomes famous deserve the same? The problem that this book has is that because of the mostly lighthearted overtones, the chance to explore the deeper themes of love and betrayal is missed. Those parts are glossed over. They maybe be glossed over because neither Dean nor Blue really want to explore their past, but their methods of coping can't continue to work if they are to grow as characters.
Where I felt really cheated was that the patterned behavior of abandonment learned by Dean is re-enacted against Blue, Dean doesn't really come to see the truth of his own actions. In fact, I thought there was a point of great betrayal by Dean to Blue that is simply explained away with a sentence or two. There needed to be groveling. Lots of it and publicly done. The lack of the good grovel after the humiliating event coupled with the superficiality of some themes cast a minor pall over the end pushing the grade of this book down to a B.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
One True Note, February 9, 2007
SEP has done it again. In Blue Bailey, she's created another terrific female character you'll never forget and hate to let go, like Phoebe and Sugar Beth and Isobel. Someone touched on the darker themes in this book and SEP doesn't shy away from these: abandonment, drug abuse, etc. But as an author, SEP always writes with a non-judgmental approach to her characters and through her talent, she peels away layers until she finds that one true note that explains her characters' motivation. And suddenly you understand. SEP writes comedy with human drama mixed in and although she touches on these darker themes, she doesn't allow them to steal the story. It takes a deft touch to handle these themes the way she does because the stories could so easily become humorless. As usual, there's the great dialogue, the funny one-liners, the peerless descriptions that make SEP one of a kind, and the love for her flawed characters that sparkles on every page. I wish we could clone Susan, or just compel her to write faster.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
19 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Wait for the paperback., March 15, 2007
I'd like to preface this review by saying that SEP used to be one of my favorite authors. I loved Kiss an Angel, IHTBY, Heaven, Texas, Dream a Little Dream, Nobody's Baby But Mine, and Lady Be Good, but it seems that ever since she went mainstream with hardcovers, that her books have become predictable and formulaic and NBC is no exception. Beautiful and brilliant but troubled jock with too much money falls in love with a quirky, poor woman who also has family issues. For some reason, her earlier Chicago Stars books had some elements of realism, but I feel like she's lost her touch in writing relatable characters and plausible story lines. The plot was too far fetched and didn't focus enough on the two main characters. The book lacks the steam that once made SEP famous. I think the book is less of a romance and more of a mainstream family story since the subplots really took over the book.
While it had some great lines and some great scenes, it's not worth the money.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
|
![[Start the discussion]](http://g-ecx.images-amazon.com/images/G/01/x-locale/communities/discussion_boards/start-new-discussion-sec._V192250339_.gif){kind=small}
