Customer Reviews

Too Hot to Handle

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I really ejoyed "Too Hot To Handle". It is a good old fashion love story, Tori is a good woman with a heart to match and Ethan is just as strong, so the war is on as soon as they meet.

The storyline is emotional yet has just enough fun thrown in so you don't cry the whole time. The interaction between the main and minor characters is constant and flows well. Once I picked it up I couldn't put it down until I finished it.

I would recomend it to anyonewho loves a love story with a twist, so be prepared to laugh, cry and fall a little in love with all the characters. Have fun and enjoy...

The re-issue of Elizabeth Lowell's classic Harlequin Too Hot To Handle is a delightful rehash of her earthy style in the earlier efforts. Afflicted by a debilitating injury, Victoria Wells has been cruelly deprived of her aspirations as a champion diver. With a dysfunctional family and lost hopes and job, she leaves home for the Arizona Sundance Ranch where she was promised a job. The honcho of the ranch Ethan Reever turns out to be condescending to city women but reluctantly gives her a job after witnessing her sympathetic plight. The tension of the opposite couple surrenders to a passion that neither can deny - even with their considerable age gap. Tory finds herself falling in love with him as the chemistry between the two smolders but Ethan promises he will give no women his heart. Elizabeth Lowell's classic romance remains timeless and sizzles with deep-sated passion and ravaging emotions. Despite the formulaic plot, the fiery interludes especially the riding lessons rages with a sensual inferno that makes it scandalously hot even after a decade since its release.

It was hard to see why Tory fell for Reever; in order to deny his attraction to her he treats her like dirt for most of the book. Then they become lovers, and that's all that happens: touching, caressing, making love, etc., while her heart is breaking because he's told her she's not good enough to be a permanent fixture in his life. What's to love in a guy like this? And one might think a lot of sex in a romance novel is a pretty good thing, but there wasn't enough else to carry the story along and give it some varied rhythm and really engage the reader's interest. I raced though it to get to the inevitable place where they discover that each is mistaken in the other and true love can prevail, as usual about three pages before the end of the book (I'd like them to wallow in their new communion a little more, I guess; I find some of these endings quite abrupt). Don't these people ever have a conversation with each other? Noble or heart-broken sacrifice without finding out if this is what the other really wants just makes me want to slap them upside the head.

Elizabeth Lowell, when she's really on, writes the most emotionally intense romances I know; they're truly gripping. This one had some of the intensity, yet managed to be boring at the same time. I suggest you read some of the others and give this a miss. Or read it out of the library.

When I read the reviews for this book, I couldn't wait to read it. But after reading it, I was terribly disapointed. The heroine (Tory) seemed to be too naive and the hero (Reever) was absolutely horrible. There was not much basis for Tory to fall in love with Reever. How can you fall in love with someone who puts you down and treats you like dirt? The love scenes were too drawn out,and some of the things they said to each other during sex were completely corny. For example, "It's all right," Reever said gently, biting Tory with exquisite delicacy. "You're almost ready now." "For what?" she whispered, and her voice, like her body, trembled." "To die with me inside you, and then to be born again the same way. With me. We're going to be together all the way to our souls." I almost didn't finish the book due to some of the ridiculous conversation. Overall, I would honestly have to say that I would not recommend this book to anyone. It was a waste of time to read.

The main reason I chose to read this book is the review that only gave it a one star. I knew it would be a hot one, just like the title. I enjoyed every minute of it. Lowell is superb!

Elizabeth Lowell has written some wonderful romance novels, but this isn't one of them. Oh, she's got the love scenes, the cruel hero, the spunky heroine, but not much story. It's like she only wrote part of a book. She forgot to tell the reader why Tory would fall in love with such a meanie - lust doesn't always equal love.

I am glad I decided to ignore the first review I read and got it anyway. One of the best I have read! I loved it! I could easily understand the attraction between Tory and Reever and feel the sizzle. I have seen this same story by another author and it too was good but this touched me in a way the other did not and I couldn't put it down. I just wish it hadn't ended!

Please be forewarned that this is NOT one of Ms. Lowell's best efforts! Do NOT purchase it unless you must have a copy for your collection. In that case, I would suggest a good used copy. It is a reprint of an earlier Harlequin edition. Need I say more? Yes, I believe I will. There is very little plot and not enough depth to the characters to explain why they are as they are, especially Reever's character.

This is one of my favorite books, one of the many books that made Elizabeth Lowell one of my favorite authors. It's GREAT!! Once you pick it up you'll never want to put it down until the very last page, and even then, you'll still want more. I've read it a trillion times and every single time I still cry . . . If you're one of those hopeless romantics who loves a good heart-wrenching story, this is IT!!

Excellent book. If I could write, this is what I would write. This books gives you characters with strength, joy and need. It leaves you longing for the passionate embrace of your true love. Elizabeth Lowell is the best!