30yo caterer tries to resist getting back with demolitions-expert Hero, who she just broke up with because he didn't want to  ever get married.

Hero still wants to be with her but he has an irrational fear of marriage. However, seeing heroine actively dating with the purpose of marriage causes him to rethink things drastically. But, no matter how much he lays things out on the table for her emotionally, he still can't muster thinking about marriage to heroine without majorly panicking.  How long will she wait for him to ask?

Average. Good pace as Banks' usual. But plot was predictable & conflict wasn't angsty.  Maybe because Hero and heroine were in love and knew they wanted to be together for the long haul. Although Hero's commitment fears got in the way, he still worked at trying to get her back as soon as she broke up with him.**  So, most of the book is heroine trying to resist Hero while trying to date other men for marriage & family. The resolution was as expected. No surprises really. Sex scenes were somewhat descriptive and sexy  per other Banks' books.

Moderately recommended.

**Click here for SPOILERS re: how Hero tried to get heroine back.

23yo interior decorator from New York City eagerly takes a temporary job as housekeeper & office assistant for 35yo an almost-broke

cattleman Hero in his Texas ranch. Their work relationship later changes when Hero begins seeing as a woman. But virgin heroine's unwillingness to sleep with him as well as his knowledge of her past create an impasse for them. Who will relent first?

This was a decent Palmer book. Hero wasn't as cruel as other Palmer Heroes. He wasn't as arrogant either. In fact, he was the one with the insecurity complex. Heroine started out quite meek but she became bolder, especially after she left him. She didn't make it so easy for him to get her back. I would go as far as to say that she made him grovel to get her back. But not the greatest of grovels.** She succumbed to his seductive maneuvers a little too easily. But at least she stopped him before they got too serious. They got hot & heavy but there's no full-on sex scene. Emotional tone was good & there were some poignant moments. Hero did show how much heroine meant to him in the end. Possible HEA(happy ever after).

Moderately recommended.

**Specifics on how Hero groveled & why I didn't think his grovel was the best is on my blog. Click here.
 

25y.o heroine becomes the new housekeeper of the house of 35y.o master statesman Hero.

Hero hasn't left his bedroom since after his wife died about 10 months ago. The rest of the household staff are astonished at heroine's boldness in challenging him to step out of his room. She is secretly motivated to do so due to her desire to search for papers in his possession that would give her the freedom she's been seeking for the past 8 years. Their consequent affair ends as soon as he discovers her deceit. How does he learn to trust her again? What can their romance mean to his future political career?

I don't give many 5-star ratings and I haven't liked all of Duran's books. But this book deserves a 5-star. The writing is smooth and crisp, making tangible what's being described. It's emotionally engaging, bringing humor, angst, sadness, suspense, and hope. Sexual chemistry developed more as the story unfolded. The romance unfolded gradually and greatly intensified from 50% of the book.** The greatest strength of the book, though, is Hero and heroine's characterization. We experienced their character growth throughout their secret romance. They (especially Hero) became stronger and more mature people at the end, guaranteeing an HEA(happy ever after) future for these 2.

Highly recommended.

**A more detailed review with SPOILERS is on my blog. Click here.
*ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

22y.o. paralegal gets another unexpected kiss from 26y.o. firefighter Hero 4 years later.

She's working to do an inventory at his family orchard but he's tempting her to break through her set life with him. But he makes it clear that anything between them is only temporary. Their affair though produces more than just fun and pleasure. The both sense it but Hero still won't let her in. What will it take to do so? And is it enough to make him make a commitment to her?

My 1st Leighton book and I liked it. It was emotionally evoking and had good characterization. It had its funny, sexy, and poignant moments. I felt like I got to know Hero and heroine pretty well from their alternating POV(point of view). They're both strong and caring people who were fine with who they were yet were realizing that some things were missing in their life. Especially when their affair ended. Hero was good at hiding his brokenness but it became clear that knowing about his past wasn't enough.** They both had to take risks to go after what they wanted from each other. And they were rewarded for them. I liked that it took some time for them to assess things, making their decisions seem more sound. I have a good feeling about their HEA(happy ever after).

Recommended.

*ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

**A more detailed review with SPOILERS is on my other blog ... http://movesme.blogspot.com/2014/03/some-like-it-wild-m-leighton.html

24y.o. model invites her ex-boyfriend Hero over to finally tell him that they have a 5-month-old son together.

But she lets their strong passion sweep them away since she believes that he’ll want nothing to do with her romantically once he knows the truth. Famous scriptwriter Hero is livid over what she did and confronts her about it. It opens up their unresolved past problems. How can they work on their irreconcilable past problems now? Are their betrayals too much to be able to have a future together?

I had mixed feelings about this Kendrick book. On one hand, I like the realistic portrayal of the couple’s issues and their reactions to them. On the other hand, it was a little too real. Hero and heroine had a lot of irreconcilable differences in the past due to heroine’s immaturity and Hero’s seeming indifference to their dying romance. Adding a secret baby to the mix seemed like a recipe for an explosive present reunion. But, due to Hero and heroine doing some maturing in the past few years, they were able to discuss some things reasonably well. They both confronted his betrayal and her subsequent betrayal.** The ending didn’t make me sigh though. Instead it made me wonder about their future. The way things ended seemed a lot like how they came together in the first place, driven by strong passion. An epilogue detailing Hero and heroine happy a few years later would’ve reassured me.

Sufficiently recommended.

**A more detailed review with SPOILERS is on my blog. Click here.