Customer Reviews

The Paid Companion

5 star:		(26)
4 star:		(22)
3 star:		(16)
2 star:		(11)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Wow! I just finished "The Paid Companion" and it is great. This book has all the things you look for in an Amanda Quick novel.

Unlike her last three books, we have a wonderful heroine, Elenora Lodge, who has lost everything because of her step-father. Like the best Quick heroines, she doesn't take it lying down. She has a PLAN.

A little (very little) downcast, she is seeking a new job as a paid companion, when our hero, Arthur, the Earl of St Merryn enters.
He is seeking a lady to play his bethrothed.

Through twists and turns, with humor and wit, we follow the adventures of the merry pair. Arthur is hunting the killer of his uncle, and plans to detour the marriage minded ton away, by introducing Elenora to them as his fiancee.

Both soon discover they are well matched in the brains department and Elenora becomes Arthur's partner in the search for a killer. They not only find adventure, they also find each other.

I really enjoyed this book. From the descriptions of a weary, marital-minded aristocracy, to the passionate love scenes, this is pure Quick.
Thanks Amanda!

I adore Jayne Ann no matter if it is Krentz, Castle or Amanda Q. But sigh, her last few half dozen books have been dull, only the Castle "After Glow" showing Jayne Ann can still razzle-dazzle with the best. This book is not JAK at her best - far from it - but it is a big improvement from the last two Quicks and two JAKs, that you tend to want to rate it higher than it deserves.

I liked the characters - and REALLY wanted to love the book - and after the fire works on "After Glow", I really hoped she would keep that power. It starts out well, but sort of loses steam quickly (no pun intended!). This book is JAK formula all the way. I love the formula, so I don't mind that. But I do mind a rather boring mystery slowing the book down. Since JAK moved from "Romance Writer" to "Mainstream Writer", she has lost "THE ROMANCE" and it's killing her books. She almost rises to the level, but not quite. She needs to rediscover the power of emotional bonds. Her toning down the emotional tension between her leads and making it more a comedy of manners with a week mystery tossed in for diversion is watering down the JAK Magic. The mystery is hardly a mystery, and almost falls into the old trite Who Dun It style of introducing the evil villain at nearly at the last minute.

I thought Eleanor and Arthur quite charming, they engaged my attention to the end, but they just did not sizzle with JAK's witchcraft.

It's a good solid read, just not a great one. Nice book for the beach.

Amanda Quick has come into the realm of Historical Mysteries as of late. I didn't like her last set of novels featuring Tobias and Lavinia but was pleased to see that this was out of that series so I gave "The Paid Companion" a shot.

Now, this book was better than "Don't Look Back" or the rest of the aforementioned series, but it didn't have the sparkle of Quick's earier novels (those characterized by one word titles). I always did feel like her books always (as the quintessential idea of romance novels) were where the lovely virgin meets the "rakish roque" and he wants to ravish her so he marries her. Quick's trademark has always been that one of them is flawed in some way (a scar or a limp or glasses, etc). Later some figure from one of their past comes back to haunt them (usually from her past) and someone is obliged to come in and save the day (sometimes she even saved herself). In this book I can tell that Quick stayed with the typical formula but tried to add more mystery. Her female characters are getting more and more assertive which is a plus. I still, somehow, like the old books better. This sems strange because they were somewhat cookie-cutter, but I still really liked them and re-read them occasionally when I am waiting for her to come out with a new novel.

I cannot put my finger on what exactly abotu this book is lesser than some others, but it is better than her more recent efforts and I did read it in one day - and did enjoy it. It just didn't have the sparkle or chemistry of some of my Quick favorites such as Seduction, Reckless, and Rendezvous. If you really like mystery with your romance you will probably like this book. A warning to romance readers - the romance comes late. If you are a Quick fan you will like this book I think!

This book has got the old Krantz/Castle/Quick sprit back but even better if that is possible. I've been a long time fan of her's but have been a bit dissapointed is some of her later books. But this one hits the spot. Compelling, believable characters, good plot line and a bit of fun along with the suspense, romance, and action.

Like her last few books, this book started out interesting and seemed like the author hurried up to finish the book at the end. First of all, this books' story line was somewhat similar to her last few books. Second, there was no depth story telling on how and when they started to love each other. Arthur just tells her that he was in love with her from the beginnig. But if you think about it, the book really did not describe it. Only thing we can do is accept his word for it. If this book is suppose to be a romance suspense, there should have been some romance side described in it as well. Mystery suspense side was interesting though. However, romance side was not. I didn't get the feeling that they were "in love" as their conversation played out at the end. Above all, it was OK reading but not her best.

In "THE PAID COMPANION," Amanda Quick displays her ability to plan and execute a successful romance/mystery. Here the reader will NOT find the usual insecure misunderstandings. Instead the author presents mature thinking and witty exchanges. How refreshingly resourceful!

Elenora Lodge is a delightful heroine. She is caring, headstrong, opinionated, and Elenora Lodge never backs down from an altercation. Avoiding poverty, Elenora deals with her life as a paid companion - normally a position designed to give comfort and companionship to an elderly person - normally.

However, every career has its bends and turns, and Arthur Lancaster, the Earl of St. Merryn, now wants to pay Elenora's salary. Lancaster needs someone to play the role of his betrothed.

Amanda Quick writes Arthur Lancaster as a terrific hero. A dark, no-nonsense man - a man gifted with razor perception.

Yes, "THE PAID COMPANION" is a page turner and Amanda Quick delivers immense reading satisfaction. The author manages to fascinate her reader using witty dialogue yet holds her reader intrigued with a murder mystery vibrating in the background.

Grace Atkinson, Ontario - Canada.

Elenora is past her prime by society's standards, but is fine with it as she has a modest inheritance and a fiance who loves her. Or such is the case before her stepfather gambles away everything she earns and her fiance jilts her because of it. In dire straits, she does the only thing she can and turns to a career as a paid companion as a means to a desired end--she wishes to go into trade and open a bookstore.

Arthur, the Earl of St. Merryn, has no use for some young girl straight from the schoolroom after his previous fiance ran away with her lover to avoid a life with him. Accordingly, this time around, he seeks a paid companion who will pose as his wife so that he can go about society without a bunch of husband-hunters at his heels.

It seems an ideal situation that they should join forces, but Arthur neglects to tell Elenora that he is really researching his uncle's murder. Eventually she joins him in this quest, and somewhere along the way they find love.

Half the reason I read Amanda Quick novels is that there is no real sense of urgency involved and I know that it's doubtful that the heroine will be some teenage chit without a lick of common sense. That being said, I wish that the heroine of this novel had just a hint of the annoying factors that make those young girls in Regency romances so endearing in the long run. This book was beautifully written and had the signature Quick mystery at the forefront, but for some reason I couldn't really enjoy it. Arthur and Elenora are as compatible as any of Quick's other couples, but I really wasn't dying to find out what happened to them in the end.

It was especially disappointing that even when they finally get together, Elenora appears to have lost any sense of the person she wanted to be when she entered into the bargain. There is no further mention of going into trade or opening her own store, but instead she appears content breeding Arthur's heirs. For me, the loss of her sense of self made the overall effort a disappointment.

This novel was the typical female meets male and they join forces to solve a crime mystery. Amanda Quick did put some steamy sex scenes and told a pretty good plot of a story. However it was too much a formula for five stars. Still recommended.

This was a good read but it started off kinda slow... I felt something was missing in the plot. This would have been a great short story.

Elenora has lost her home and her inheritance due to her stepfather and his bad investment. She also looses her fortune hunting fiance. Instead of depressing her too greatly, she sees this as a sort of freedom. She has no one to take care of but herself. So she sets out to make some money as a paid companion.
Arthur Lancaster, Earl of St. Merryn has several problems. One is that he needs to go about society without the hassel of mothers trying to push their daughters into marriage with him. With this in mind he hires a companion to pose as his fiance.
She needs the money and in the end genuinely wants to help him as he has a mystery to solve. And though he comes off somewhat cool to begin with - I really loved the lead character's sense of humor.
The secondary characters were good - though this author has written better - Bad guys were all bad, friends were all good - no real suspense to it. A simple romance story with strong leads.
A good summer read.