Customer Reviews

Nights In Black Lace

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Plot Summary: An American man in Paris, and a former runway model turned fashion designer meet during the Oh! Oh! Odette underwear show. Bryan Bachman is an adventurous marine biology grad student whose short stop in Paris is flipped up-side-down by his encounter with Odette. She's a sophisticated, beautiful, savvy businesswoman, and Bryan is acutely aware that Odette is way out of his league. Their sex life sparkles, but industrial espionage at Odette's atelier has everyone suspecting that Bryan is stealing her designs. Meanwhile, Odette wants Bryan to stay in Paris, but he's running out of money, and he has too much pride to let her pay his way.

I was pleasantly surprised by this erotic romance, which featured strong plotting and character development along with red-hot sex scenes. I think Noelle Mack has the mixture just right, and it reads like a contemporary romance except with more detailed bedroom adventures. Odette had enough diva moments to keep her character convincing without turning her into a witch, and I was thoroughly impressed at how well Mack portrayed the all-American Bryan.

The highlight of the story was getting to spend time in a fashion designer's atelier, and I enjoyed all the details about Odette's daily activities. I think the author has done her research, and it injects the story with a nice dose of realism. Normally I don't give a hoot about high fashion, but viewing it from a business angle makes it seem like a legitimate enterprise, instead of a foolish way for rich women to entertain themselves.

I was fully prepared to choke on an over-abundance of sex scenes (the back cover features a warning label about the sexually explicit content), but I needn't have worried, because the frequency was just about perfect. I will say that some of the `back door action' was on the kinky side for my taste, and when characters do things that I have no interest in myself, it turns the sex into a sideshow event rather than a turn-on. Still, even though some of the sex scenes didn't adhere to my personal preferences, it did reinforce Odette's character as a wildly uninhibited Frenchwoman. Bryan and I were in the same boat, as the shocked, provincial Americans.

Unfortunately, I had a few problems with the story that are holding me back in regards to the rating. The industrial espionage that threatens Odette's business started out as a terrific subplot that was completely abandoned at the end. We never find out for certain who is responsible for leaking her designs, or how Odette managed to solve that crisis. It's maddening how the reader is left dangling.

The ending abruptly fast-forwards to a predictable `happily ever after' between Odette and Bryan, but there's no explanation on how they managed to bridge their considerable socio-economic divide (she's a millionaire and he has two bucks in his account), much less resolve how Bryan can afford to live in Paris. This book needed another chapter to tie up the loose ends, for both their relationship and the crisis at Odette's company. Sadly, a lot of the credibility that sustained the story through the beginning and middle was lost by the ending.

The only problem I had with this book was believing the two would have a happy-ever-after once the passion fades. Odette and Bryan are very likeable characters, but complete opposites. And I had a very difficult time liking Bryan, who basically puts his life on hold to cater to Odette's lifestyle.

And trying to read through the fashion world of Paris was slightly boring, even though the story is peppered with nicely written erotica. This story didn't 'wow' me, but it was worth reading for entertainment. I would suggest buying this book used.

At the end of a hiking trip in Europe, Bryan Bachman takes a detour through Paris. On a whim, he buys a fashion show raffle ticket, winning a prized seat by the catwalk. Waiting for the show to start, he spots the most stunning woman peeking out from behind the curtains. Odette, former model and founder of Oh! Oh! Odette clothing and lingerie spies the sexy American in the audience and decides it's time for a fling. Days later, however, the two are still together, exploring their every fantasy, but can this savvy Parisian and beach-comber American find more than a temporary affair?

Culture, couture and sizzling sex are to be found in abundance in this sensual, entertaining read by Noelle Mack. Bryan and Odette are a prime example of how opposites attract, and keep on attracting. The insight into the fashion world kept this reader interested. The explosive sex scenes kept me panting for more.

Hiking across Europe, Bryan Bachman stops in Paris before returning to his side of the big pond. With his last Euro he buys a fashion show raffle ticket and wins a catwalk seat at Oh! Oh! Odette.

Former model turned fashion designer Odette notices the Yank hunk, who makes a fashion statement while just sitting. She decides to take the seat next to him so she can meet the American and much more if she has her way. She does; over the next few days they share quite a tryst but she is a Europe sophisticate while he is American beach bum so their affair must soon end even though both say oui oui to more Oh! Oh!

The fun in this erotic romance is the vast class differences between Bryan and Odette as both seem like polar opposites yet are attracted to each other from the moment they first see one another. The story line is ultra heated with vivid sex, but it is the fully developed lead couple who make Noelle Mack's tale interesting as readers wonder whether this diverse pair can have a morning after let alone a long time relationship.

Harriet Klausner