Craving Beauty : Nalini Singh

He.....

Marc Bordeaux. A man carrying scars from his childhood. Not one to trust easily and definitely not a man to give his heart to any woman easily. Fighting a street life where thievery, drugs etc. were the norms of the day, he used his business acumen to rise up in life. While finishing his studies he did odd jobs to earn money to invest in the future. So it is of no wonder that he is introduced to the readers as an eligible bachelor who is considered appropriate to marry the desert beauty, Hira.

She...

Is Hira Dazirah. All her life she wanted to prove herself. She had a business sense but just because she was a girl she was not encouraged to study further.She had accepted that way of life. Rejected by what she thought to be her true love, she decides to marry according to her tyrant father's wishes.  She had seen him before the marriage, and had felt the full force of his ‘ghost gray eyes’.

The love affair......

From their first encounter attraction flared between them, but it was soon clouded with suspicion and misunderstanding when Marc agreed to marry Hira without meeting her at all. Hira did not want to end up like a trophy bride just like her mother. She did her best to appear cold and icy towards her husband when they went to his house 'far from the bustle of New Orleans, Southeast of Lafayette'. But soon she realized that they shared a very strong mutual attraction for each other. Would that be enough to seal their marriage for eternity?

Would Marc see her as an intelligent woman, who had an intelligent mind behind that beauty of hers, or would he possess her as a beautiful trophy to show the society that even with all his scars he could still have a beautiful woman?

Would Hira be able to make her husband understand that she needed not only his love but also his trust? Would she ever be able to put her husband’s insecurity to rest?

What I liked......

The characters were very distinct. Each had their own fears and insecurities. Both the characters were equal in terms of their insecurities and passion. I could relate to Hira very well, especially, when she was fighting for her rights as a woman. When she thought Marc was being patronizing, she stood up to him. When she thought that he was having a secret, she fought to know it and when she felt that Mac was being aloof she fought for her love. All in all, she was a complete woman who could overcome her insecurities, adjust to a new land and fight for her love.

Marc, with all his scars and insecurities, was a lovable character when he was not being a pain in the neck. (Ahem!!) But what I loved about him was when he opened an account for his mother in law, understanding that she had to beg her husband for money. (That made me fall in love with Marc!!)

What I didn't like......

Marc to some extend seemed pig headed and he seemed to solve all his anger, disagreement and sorrow by ‘romping’ on the bed. That characteristic of Marc makes him a bit shallow for me. The second thing which I found a bit off putting was Hira always acting without any flaws and being too good to be true. She went on calling March ‘Husband’ and the way she spoke English, though suited with her character, was a bit off-putting.

Rating: ****

On the whole I loved the story. The love and passion between them was palpable. I would give this story 4 out of 5 stars. The one star I am taking away for Marc’s pigheadedness.(Hmm. I can be stubborn too.....)

More Than He Expected - Andrea Laurence

She ......

She is Gwen Wright. A nurse by profession, who generally falls in love with men who would eventually leave her. She preferred it that way. She had a troubled past with her mother always falling in love with the wrong guy and always blaming her after the break up.

Gwen did not want to end up like that. So, she had vowed never to be the one who would ruin her life for a man or spend her life pining for one. She worked the nights in a hospital and mostly slept it off in the daytime. This would leave her with friends, who could not get too nosy about her life.

This was till she decided to become a surrogate for Susan and Robert, who could not have kids of their own. Her this one unselfish act made her a very special person. Even when she faced with financial difficulties, she did not think about herself but only about ' Peanut'. ( As she lovingly called the baby)

But Adrienne, her best friend, was very worried about her and forced her to visit them at their home in San Harbor. Well in her 2nd trimester and tired if climbing the stairs of her flat, she decided to take up her offer all the while knowing that she would risk running into Alex.

He......

He is the playboy Alex Stanton., who did not believe in having term relationships. His excuse being he did not want to have a marriage like his parents. His father had done the honorable thing of marrying his mom after she became pregnant with him. Both were miserable. He never wanted to be caught like that in a relationship. So, whenever things got serious he would end it.

This was till he did not meet Gwen. She was the only reason he had come to Sag Harbor- to have another go at ' no commitment ' fling with Gwen. And then he saw the baby bump.

The Love Affair.....

Gwen and Alex had met at Adrienne and Will's wedding. Mutual attraction had flared and they ended up making love followed by two weeks of a torrid affair. It ended amicably with both of them not wanting to make a commitment or so they both thought. Eight months later they met again. But this time Alex found that  Gwen was pregnant. Not with his  child but she was a surrogate mom. The pregnancy - instead of making him want to run away made him want her more.

Gwen on the other hand found that her new found resolution of celibacy going awry the moment Alex made his intentions clear. But this time things had changed for her. She had fallen in love with him.

But could she expect Alex to ever fall in love too or would she like her mother end up alone- without her baby and without her love.

My Views...

The concept of surrogacy has been treated very gently. The pain of the mother who gives up the child vs the joy of the mother who receives the child has been brought out beautifully.

Gwen's character has been defined by this generosity of hers. Alecx depicted as a hardcore playboy shows in many instances as a caring and a loving person. In fact throughout the novel his actions are in total contrast to his persona which makes him a very lovable character.

A very good read on the whole and I would give 4/5 stars. The one star I am holding back because of the prude in me (snicker!!!) found the love scenes a bit too Ahem...... ( so ignore me and add your own fifth star )

Rating:

A Conflict Of Interest - Barbara Dunlop

Cara Cranshaw was a White House PR. Her job had become the sole obstruction in her love life. She had fallen in love with reporter Max Gray and was dating him before the elections.

But now after the elections, they decided to stay away from each other due to work ethics.Then she found out that she was pregnant! She also knew how Max felt about fatherhood, so she decided not to tell him at all.

While they were trying to keep their emotions at bay, a scandal broke out which was connected  to The President. He had a love child! Moreover, the love child was one of Cara's best friend. Both Cara and Max wanted to find out the truth but sadly they were in the opposite sides of the fence.

Max wanted to know the truth in terms of news, scandal and as an investigative reporter, but Cara wanted to stop any scandalous truth from harming the popularity of The President. Things were not going anywhere between them until Gillian ( Cara's sis) decided to intervene.

She created such situations which made Max realize that losing Cara was way beyond pain. He did not know if it was love but he sure felt a primitive possessiveness regarding her.But one day while following her, he finds out the truth regarding her pregnancy.

How in the midst of the Presidency scandal do they find love for each other and does Max overcome his fear of fatherhood kept me turning the pages of this novella.

Throughout the story, the conflict has been maintained but above the conflict is the passion that exists between the MC's.

To be honest, when I started with this novel I kinda did not like it.  The story started with Cara being pregnant and both trying to keep away from each other. Maybe that is the reason they were hardly in the same page. Their interaction with the other characters in the novel was more strong and the two seemed to fit here and there in the story.

I even sympathized with Max more since he seemed to find even flimsy excuses to meet her but always leaving when asked to, understanding her need to put her career first. He is a character you could relate to. Tough yet humane.

But after a few pages, the story focused more on Cara's emotions. Her fear regarding their relationship was well founded. Max did not want to become a father. The story also gained momentum after the avalanche in which they were both caught and I found it hard to keep down the book from this point.

There are other characters also who add different layers to the story. Specially Jake and Gillian ( Cara's sister). I found Gillian very endearing and her support in Cara's life is what kept the MC's from reaching their goal.

The other aspect was the political aspect, in which The President had fathered a love child. The scandal has been delicately woven in the story without turning it into a political battle.

My only regret would be that I would never know what happened after the DNA results came out and were the hackers of the White House computer system caught? :(

 I almost gave a sigh of regret after I closed on the last page.

Rating: