Pride & a Pregnancy Secret by Tessa Radley ~ Silhouette Desire ~ February 2008 ~ #1849
Ratings:
Excellence: Very Good
Steaminess Factor: Sensual
Description & Critique:
No cats. No kids. No Press. No diamond rings. That was Ryan Blackstone’s motto. So his lover of two years, Jessica knew she couldn’t tell him about the baby. She had to keep it to herself until it was too late for him to demand she get an abortion. She also knew it meant she had to break up with him. She postponed her breakup due to the disappearance of his father but she couldn’t put it off for too long. Soon enough, she would have to leave before he figured out for himself that she was pregnant. His accusation that she had been having an affair with his father was the final push she needed to leave Ryan once and for all. Once she left, Ryan realized the hole it made in his life and suddenly the most important thing was to get Jessica back in his life. Could Ryan make the changes to his life that Jessica needed for him to make? Could he love anyone?
This is book 2 of the Diamonds Down Under mini-series. I have two different feelings about this book. I will first describe how I felt about the main storyline in this book and then deal with how well it followed Book 1.
Jessica was likeable and the kind of leading lady I like in books. She’s strong and capable and has her own life and goals yet her baby is very important to her. Ryan, on the other hand, was everything I don’t like in a man in the beginning of the story. He went through quite the metamorphosis during the story. His rules made him quite unlikeable and made me wonder how a woman like Jessica could ever fall for such a man. The man Ryan became near the end of the book? Maybe, but certainly not the man he was in the beginning. He may have been really good in the bedroom but with that, his good manners and his charm, it certainly would never have been enough for her to tolerate living with such a man for a whole year.
I did like watching Ryan go through the changes. They were very slow as realizations hit him about the way he had been treating Jessica. At least, he didn’t wake up one morning completely changed. That would have disappointed me. We saw him go through realizations as the story progressed.
I liked the way he went about making sure to win her back. He gave her time and brought their romance to a conclusion at the perfect time. Overall, aside from how unlikeable this man was in the beginning, I liked their romance.
I love the way the author brought in a discussion between Jessica and her mother near the end not only to clear the air between them but also to clear up a lot of the storyline at least from Jessica’s perspective. I really enjoyed this and thought it enriched Jessica’s character.
Where I find this story had more trouble is in the overall consistency from the first book. In my opinion, Kimberley’s character was at times a little less likeable in this story. She wasn’t painted with the same brush but I guess that’s understandable since two different authors wrote about her. And I found the timelines regarding when Kimberley got her engagement ring and what state her relationship was with Ric at which time was confusing compared to what I read in book 1. In my mind, and keep in mind this is just my opinion and sometimes I read fast, the timelines for Ric and Kim from Book 1 were not well kept in Book 2.
I still recommend this book and the mini-series. I am looking forward to seeing what will happen to other characters in this mini-series.
Personal Totals:
Harlequin / Silhouette / Etc: 28
Others: 5
Total Books Read: 33
Kel (scoobie)
Quiet Canadians ~ 2008 Challenge Blog
