Designed for Love (Matinee Romances)

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Author: Erin Dutton
Publisher: Bold Strokes Books
Category: Book

List Price: ~~$14.95~~
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Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

3 reviews
Sales Rank: 72781

Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 177
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 8.4 x 5.4 x 0.5

ISBN: 1602820384
Dewey Decimal Number: 813
EAN: 9781602820388
ASIN: 1602820384

Publication Date: November 18, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: New 5 1/2 x 8 1/2. This book is new. REVIEW COPY stamped in red along out edges. Forced to cooperate for the sake of the project, Jillian and Wil find that what they desire most is not what either of them had planned.

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Editorial Reviews:

Product Description
Jillian Sealy and Wil Johnson don't much like each other but they do have to work together, at least long enough to rehab an historic house.

Jillian Sealy is not running away from her life, she's seizing a business opportunity. That's what she tells herself when she moves to a rural Tennessee town to flip a nearly century-old house. But the project gets a bit more interesting when she meets her devastatingly attractive contractor, Wil Johnson. When Jillian seems to think she has Wil all figured out from nearly their first meeting, Wil wants nothing to do with her. Wil has spent most of her life being underestimated by her neighbors because of where she came from, and she's not about to get involved with a big-city snob who does the same.

Forced to cooperate for the sake of the project, Jillian and Wil find that what they desire most is not what either of them had planned.

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars

Enjoyable Romance December 26, 2008
This book is a "Matinee" selection from Bold Stroke Books. This means that it's a quick read, one for a long rainy afternoon. At 177 pages it moves fairly quickly.

I enjoyed this book a lot. It was definitely sizzling, as was mentioned earlier. One thing that Erin Dutton does is have the 2 main characters hook up very early in the book. The interesting part is when the 2 characters really try to make sure that they don't do THAT again, all kinds of misunderstandings and drama begins. The 2 characters are opposites, and it appears, on the face of it, as if they don't want the same things out of their lives. Big city girl meets country girl.

What I enjoyed about this book was how Wil, the small town contractor, and Jillian, the big city realtor, must find out who they are as individuals. Taking risks is also something that they both need to learn to do if they want a life worth more than just going through the motions.

This book was fun. I recommend it. Buy it and tuck it away for some cold, rainy afternoon.

4 out of 5 stars

A Little Backstep for Dutton December 26, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful

I have read and thoroughly enjoyed Erin Dutton's first three books and was hoping for more of the same with `Designed for Love.' It seems she has taken a slight step backward, either that or she was on a deadline and pushed this one out the proverbial door too quickly. Unfortunately, it lacks the depth and dimensionality of her earlier stories. However, it is still a very good read and is worth the time to enjoy.

I agree with reviewer Rabkeb that the story just didn't stick with me. Many books I read are fresh on my mind for at least several days (the really good ones for several weeks) after I close the back cover. To write this review, I had to grab the book and flip through the pages again just to remember what it was about (I read it last week).

Bottom Line - Fortunately, Dutton has proven herself as an able author so I'll buy her future books. However, this one was a little disappointing because it lacked depth and dimensionality.

3 out of 5 stars

A mild little romance, steamy and fun December 14, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful

Nothing really stands out vividly in my mind about this book a few days later. No real annoyances, but nothing beyond a couple of moments that really sets it above the solid base in this genre, though it's probably slightly above average. I expect that most who read it will be entertained. It's light escapism. The characters are fairly well-constructed, their chemistry is believable and palpable, and they're involved in some interesting things.

Real estate agent Jillian Sealy unexpectedly inherits an old house in rural Tennessee from a great aunt she hardly knew. Basically walking away from her job after being passed over by a less-qualified man, she decides to take the time to fix up the house and sell it. She hires Johnson and Son contractors to accomplish the remodel, bringing Wil Johnson and her crew on board. They come from different worlds, which creates fears about compatability that cause them to push one another away, but this being a happy romance, they eventually resolve these issues.

I enjoy this author's way with characters. Their immediate connection in this book was believable, and hot, and they both had enough internal dialogue and back story to support and motivate their actions. In addition, the character motivations gave a believable basis for the drama. They did leap to incorrect conclusions a bit too often for my taste, communicating poorly and thus causing their own drama, which is a pet peeve of mine, and frustrated me for much of the 2nd half of the book. But I liked how things were ultimately resolved.

On the strength of this book I'll anticipate whatever comes next from this author, and would recommend this book to anyone looking for a quick, light read that flows smoothly.

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