Customer Reviews

Secret of the Stone (harlequin Temptation, no 65)

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

 

 

SECRET OF THE STONE by Barbara Delinsky

SECRET OF THE STONE is an older title written by Barbara Delinsky, whose current novel is FLIRTING WITH PETE. Sculptress Paige Mattheson is known to be as cold as ice, and during an art show two men place bets on whether the one can thaw her out. Thus, Paige finds herself meeting Jesse Dallas, who in the guise of a chauffeur worms his way into her life.

What ensues is a hot love affair that Paige never in a million years would have thought could happen to her, and Jesse finds he's won his bet but also discovers he's falling for the ice queen, something that should never have happened. No promises were made between the two at the onset of this affair, and as Jesse starts to get the itch to leave, Paige convinces herself into letting him go. Unfortunately, although she thought she could go on with life without him, she finds that she's fallen in love. Jesse decides that he can't deal with commitments and attachments, and he attempts to continue with his life without her. The two lovers part company, but only time will tell how long they can resist the urge to see each other again.

SECRET OF THE STONE was at one time part of the Harlequin line of romance books called TEMPTATION. I wasn't in the mood for a romance so I was a little disappointed at first when I started reading this book. I was hoping for a Barbara Delinsky novel akin to what she is churning out today. However, as I am a big fan of hers, I continued with the book and found that the flavor of the story was a lot like the books she currently writes, but with a slant towards pure romance. I am giving this a 3 star rating; unless you are looking for a straight romance or are a big fan of Barbara Delinsky, however, this book is probably not for you.

Another great book by Delinsky. It almost felt like you were going through the same thing as the character. This book was filled with emotions and struggles to find love till the end.

This is the only Barbara Delinsky book I have read and if all of her her books are as good as Secret of the Stone I look forward to reading them too. I totally couldn't believe it when I saw the review with the title Read like the plot of a porno, I mean you have got to be kidding, there is absolutely nothing pornographic about this book, yes Jesse and Paige slept together right away and I usually don't care for that in romance books but this time I think it fit the story because they were both lonely unhappy, insecure people who reached out for each other but that hardly makes the book pornographic. This is one of the only romance books that made me cry reading about the sad times the characters had and I am not usually someone who gets all easily emotional from sad books and movies.

Big fan of Barbara Delinsky, especially with her older romance books. I enjoy her style with character development and their interaction.
The hero and heroine came from different backgrounds and reflected in their adult lives. Paige was beautiful and independent which originally attracted Jesse. I didn't like that later into the story, due to Jesse's cynicism, Paige became unsure and insecure. Jesse was cold and emotionally blind, not a very endearing character- regardless if it was due to the influence of his childhood years. Towards the of the story, he felt remorse for his behavior, but it ended too quickly, Ms. Delinsky didn't develop any romantic feelings between the two, which like her other books would leave me smiling at the end.

I love B. Delinsky. that being said this book had the makings of a 3 or 4 rating but in the end when the hero tried to make a marriage out of a cold emotionless existence wth his wife I was totally appalled. She had the makings of living through emotional abuse from a husband whose behavior was disgusting. Pegnancy should be a happy time and that which was portrayed in the book was awful. It was a turnoff. You can read the book to judge for yourself but men dont change that easily so that 'happy ending' seemed like a total farce.

I thought the book was very interesting and is a book I would recommend

I typically love Barbara Delinsky novels, and I actually prefer some of her older work, (T.L.C., 12-Across) but was thoroughly (and surprisingly) disappointed with this one. An unromantic sexcapade.