The Dark Side of Desire (Paperback) by Michelle Reid

Synopsis:
She could run . . . but she couldn't hide.

No longer the shattered teenager who had left Thornley vowing never to return, Rebecca Shaw had come to terms with the legacy of Jay Lorence's betrayal and had built a new life on HER terms. But her mother needed her now--and nothing could keep Rebecca from going home.

Ten years melted in Jay's embrace; his kiss reopened old wounds and ignited forgotten temptations. Every instinct warned her to run before her hard-worked-for peace and stability came crashing down.

Rebecca had a new life--one she had no intention of letting Jay invade. But keeping a man like Jay at arm's length was next to impossible--especially when it wasn't what she really wanted to do.


Review: 
Rating: 5 stars
I usually hate abandoned-baby-shocked-father stories but this one works on so many different levels - First of all, its an honest book - The real issue b/w the H/H is the social classification of the society and then the story is very mature ( but not boring) - You can pretty much tell how the hero is feeling right from the start (and no he's not giving mixed signals and he doesn't rip the heroine apart like nobody's business) - not that he's not angry at her but its an anger that I can understand (as does the heroine, I might add) - the dialog from their child is well placed and very apt

The last recommendation I can give it is this: I read this book 10 years ago and reading it now, I still feel the gut-wrenching ache that I did initially....


Hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did.
Goodreads link if you want to add it to your shelf: Dark Side of Desire

Sweet Vixen by Susan Napier

Synopsis:

Life without him had been dull--but safe. Max Wilde had taken over as executive editor of New Zealand's leading fashion magazine just to create havoc, Sarah thought bitterly.

He wasn't content with changing the magazine's format, however. Now he was focusing his attention on Sarah herself, taunting and challenging, forcing her to admit that her desires as a woman hadn't died with her husband. She hadn't felt so alive in years--and she resented it!

Review:

Rating: Initially 4 stars, 3.5 stars on reread

I don't know why I liked this book so much a long time ago. Is it glamorous? Yes. Does it have awakening-of-heroine's-senses? Yes. Is the hero equal-opportunity employer? Yes. The problem, I think, is the fact that I saw him forcing the heroine needlessly and yes, I know most hqns have that but in most of them you expect the hero to be macho and an ass-hat. In this one, the hero was comfortable with women and judged them on their own merit and so it's a surprise that he let himself fall so low. Some might say it's a sign of his passion that he was able to forget himself when he dealt with the heroine but I think it's a sign that the author wanted the passion but couldn't connect his two side properly. Another thing which I found during the reread is that the H/h didn't spend too much time together getting to know each other. The H's mommy issues were never fully discussed and the way he called the h 'a dumb cow' felt like a personal attack on me.

Overall, it's a good book; you might want to read it and compare notes with me :)

If you want to add this book to your goodreads feed, here's the link: SWEET VIXEN