Customer Reviews

Smooth Talking Stranger

5 star:		(94)
4 star:		(22)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

Ella Varner is a columnist living and working in Austin, Texas. She loves her life with her boyfriend Dane and is content in their relationship. Everything changes dramatically however when Ella's younger sister, Tara, has a baby, Luke, and Ella is forced to take care of him. Suddenly, Ella's neat and orderly life is interrupted with bottles, nightly feedings, little sleep, and a small but growing baby.

Ella is determined to do her best by Luke and Tara and she decides the best choice is to find the father. When Tara names wealthy playboy Jack Travis as the father, Ella marches down to his Houston office to get answers. Jack denies that he is Luke's father straight away, but Ella wants a paternity test. Jack agrees knowing he is not the father. But he sure would not mind spending more time with the feisty Ella. Jack is used to arm candy in the women he dates. Ella is anything but that. She is intelligent, strong-minded, and determined to never truly lose herself to a man. Let the battle of wills commence!

Smooth Talking Stranger is not as intense as the previous Travis story, Blue-Eyed Devil. There is more laughter and a lightness that Haven's story lacked, which makes sense given the very different plots of the story. While I definitely enjoyed Smooth Talking Stranger, it did not pull me in quite as much as Haven and Hardy's story. This is a romance that skims along the surface rather than delves deep into the characters' hearts and souls. This is not a bad thing but it is just a major difference. Jack and Ella's story is very enjoyable, and perhaps the most romantic out of all of Lisa Kleypas's contemporary romances but it just did not totally grab me.

That being said, it is still a Kleypas story and considering some of the romance drivel that is published, this book stands heads and tails above others. Ella is an interesting woman to get to know. She feels the pull of love, not only for Jack, but for Luke, but she wants to heartily deny it. She plays her emotions close to the vest while Jack is very free with his feelings, letting her know just how much he has started to love her. Jack is definitely the charmer and rascal he was in previous books as a secondary character, but there is a more serious side that is a welcome addition to his character. He is not perfect and as some of his previous relationships come back to haunt him, he gets a better understanding for just why Ella is so much more right for him.

Smooth Talking Stranger has its swoon-worthy moments and it showcases Lisa Kleypas's fun and unique writing style. I liked the characters and particularly the ending which just seemed very appropriate and wonderful for the overall tone of the book. Love comes in many forms as Ella is about to discover.

This was by far my favorite of Lisa Kleypas' contemporary novels, which is saying a lot, because I've really enjoyed the others. I did not expect to love this book as much as I did, but Ella and Jack are such well-drawn characters - the reader gets a very real sense of who they are as people, and what has led to them being who they are. Both are flawed, but in a way that makes them all the more real, and they don't judge each other, but demonstrate a very real, very deep, mutual sense of understanding and acceptance.

Plus, their banter is fantastic! They're both incredibly bright and funny, and a lot of their conversations and back-and-forth snark are a lot of fun to read. That said, Kleypas doesn't skimp on meaningful conversations, either; Ella and Jack have many serious, meaningful talks that give us real insight into their ever-growing and intensifying feelings for one another.

The actual progression of their relationship is very well done. It does not move at a snail's pace, but it doesn't happen overnight, either. The reader is treated to seeing how their initial attraction to, and wariness of, one other develops into real friendship and trust, heat and passion, a breaking down of old walls and defenses, and a truly beautiful, strong love. Kleypas does all of this while managing to avoid a cliche or two that are repeated ad nauseum in books that feature alpha male playboys, and does so in such a way as to turn those cliches to her advantage, and strengthen the bond between the characters.

Then, too, there is involvement by other members of the Travis family (particularly Haven), and their significant others/spouses. It was a great to read about how their lives have grown and changed, and Kleypas integrated them very well into Jack and Ella's story.

This book was very good - in fact, it's one of the best romances that I've ever read. I *highly* recommend this book to all of those who are looking for a novel featuring real, deep love and romance; fun and playfulness; intense passion and need; some heart-string tugging events; and even some suspense. Kleypas truly outdid herself with this book!

Up front, the problems. It's a first person romance, if you can't figure out who fathered Luke in about three minutes you haven't read many romances, and the only thing a Vegan needs is a good steak to see the error of their crazy Vegan ways. She may or may not be unfaithful. Also, it's more conventional than Sugar Daddy.

Back to the book. It's a bit brilliant, really. Ella has been so determined to be her own woman and not live her life according to the dictates of society or men that she fails to see her life is utterly bound by dogma and most of that is her boyfriend's dogma. When her toxic mother calls to disrupt her carefully planned existence, Ella has the first of many ultimatums placed before her - come get her unexpected newborn nephew or he goes to foster care. Within moments, she's handed the second - don't come home with a baby. Does Ella want the baby? Does she want to keep her relationship of four years? Where is her sister and what was the girl thinking? All of it falls to Ella, because the only answer she has is that she does not want baby Luke abandoned.

Ella's mother is a wonderful train wreck of a woman, recognizable and real. Anyone would remove a child from her care, so Ella does. Her cousin leads her to believe the baby's father is Jack Travis, wealthy and known to womanize. Ella decides it's time for daddy to step up to the plate. Jack what Ella needs is a healthy dose of himself. And it's on. Jack walks the line between dominating Ella and allowing her to discover that the things she believes and the woman she's made herself into are not choices but reactions. In reacting against her upbringing, Ella has signed on to some beliefs that are more about what she doesn't want than what she does. Entering a world of wealth ($17,000 a month in child support? Really?) and alpha males forces her to rethink her stand on total freedom. Does she want to stand alone, or would it be ok to have people to lean on?

Jack and Ella are interesting, but sometimes obscured by the oversize personalities around them. Drawn as a competition between Austin and Houston it's mostly Austin that bends as Houston shows that conservatives are compassionate too. Well worth reading, no matter which city you prefer.

i won't go into the story like everyone else. all i will say is if you're a lisa kleypas fan this book is a must read! you won't be disappointed! i am so impressed with all three of her contemporary books--i can't wait for the next one!

I've read all three of Lisa Kleypas' contemporaries and I want more! Each one of these books were page turners. In fact, I left "Blue Eyed Devil" at a house I was visiting in another state. I was about half way through and had to go out and purchase a new one because I couldn't wait to finish the book. "Smooth Talking Stranger" was even better than the first two. I love the premise where the rich guy doesn't buy into the beautiful women who want nothing more from a man than sex and a thick wallet. Jack is probably too macho, but he makes up for it with his sincerity, his deep love and his ability to express that love in the most romantic ways. What a great proposal! I loved it and I didn't want to finish the book because I didn't want it to end. I've read the last three chapters five times since I finished the book a few days ago.

I hope Lisa Kleypas continues to write about the Travises. Is Joe next?

I really enjoyed this book, I could not put it down I stayed up until 1:30 in the morning to finish it. I enjoyed how the characters were developed I liked the fact that things were not rushed and we got to know them both even though it was from Ella's point of view. I liked that all the previous character's from her other books were involved it added a little more depth to the book. I loved Jack, he was funny and smart, and sometimes a bit of a alpha male to the extreme. Ella was not so bad, there were times when she irked the crap out of me like her defense of her sister which was not warranted since they did not have any contact with each other in over 2 years other than an occasional card...her sister was loose and she knew it! I also did not like the way she jumped to conclusions with Jack in the beginning without knowing all of the facts about his and Tara's relationship; she went in there with all her righteous indignation when she didn't know JACK!!! lol. Other than those few times Ella got on my nerves...it was a good read, I enjoyed their interaction and at times found myself lauging out loud at their banter. The sex scenes were very well written and my gosh HOOOOOTT....whew! :)

i love her historical books but she blew me away with this series. Heart warming yet sexy as all get out. Can't wait for the 4th book.

Lisa has done it again, she brings our heroine Ella and the Smooth Talking Stranger Jack together in this sizzling romance that has to glued to each and every page. Her best contemporary to date.

Ella and Jack are the perfect couple but are not the typical romance ideal. Ella knew something was missing in her world and Jack knew it was him. Jack took over and forced his hand. Ella finally realized she was where she needed to be. This is a great story of not just romantic love but also that deep, soulful love that the adage, "Love conquers all", applies to. The sudden responsibility of a new life that wasn't her own added great depth to her life. There's humor, romance, and thrill, not to be disappointed.

I stumbled onto Ms. Kleypas a few years ago and have read most of her many books (on my Kindle), and at least one or more from each series. However, I can not get enough of STS. I've read it twice and have to stop myself now from reading it again! Whenever I get bored with other authors this book begins to haunt me. Jack is my IDEAL MAN!!! And I'm African American!! He's smoothe, charming and a "man's man". One question...Where can I get a Jack? I consider myself a romance history buff, but Lisa Kleypas proves she's got more depth than the average writer, period! I loved that Ella is sensitive, sensible and not an easy catch, but Jack never falters in wooing her. Her sister, on the other hand...well,let's just say there are far too many young women beguilded by the bling of men in the ministry. She's also a possesses characteristics of women who have been exposed to molestation as children. I feel myself falling fast and feel certain that before February is over, I'll be reading STS for my 3rd time (and 2nd in less than a year).