Mackenzie's Pleasure

by Linda Howard

#7 Book with less than 300 pgs

Rated 3.5

Back Cover:

Barrie needed a saviour. The terrorists holding her hostage surely wouldn''t tolerate her silence much longer. Instead they would silence her. Then out of the darkness he arrived. Rugged and dangerous, he led her straight into his sheltering arms.

My Thoughts:

I am willing to suspend reality to a very large degree, however....Barrie Lovejoy is kidnapped, stripped naked, and bound. She is rescued by Zane MacKenzie Navy Seal. Within hours, he rescues her, and they hide out in a falling down shack in libya. After a short time, she decided to lose her virginity to navy seal stranger. It was awesome.....like your first time after a trauma in a dirty hovel would be. (did you catch the sarcasm? I knew you did!)

After this, they escape with the help of his Navy Seal team, at which time Zane is shot. Barrie, wants desperately to see to Zane and his injuries! She is not allowed to and the mystery begins. Why was Barrie kidnapped? Was her father part of some criminal plot? After a few months, Zane is healed from his wounds and Barrie is confirmed pregnant. Her father and his friends try to keep Zane and Barrie apart. He finally comes for her, sweeps her off her feet and they run away to Las Vegas to get married. He gets his brother Chance to help, and they set a trap for the bad guys.

It was pretty good overall, but the beginning was so unrealistic for me. I just couldn't buy it.

Book Reviews

I'm really very far behind in reviewing and posting my books for the Summer Reading Challenge 09. So, I'll be summing them up here.

The Duke and I by Julia Quinn

#10-title with Title (royalty)~~~Rated 4.5 stars

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Daphne was so much fun, and Simon, well I just love an underdog. He started off as a tortured hero, and the interplay between him and Daphne was great fun. I also loved the whole Bridgerton family. Super fun and heartwarming.

The Nerd Who Loved Me by Vicki Lewis Thompson

#7 Unlikely Hero/Heroine ~~~Rated 4 Stars

A Vegas Showgirl and a Nerdy Accountant. Match made in Heaven right? Lainie Terrel finds herself on the run with Harry Ambrewster. I totally loved this couple. The chemistry was Hot, and the entire cast of characters were so much fun. Outside of the villain, there was not a character I didn't love. I will read more about Ms. Thompson's nerds!

MacKenzie's Mission by Linda Howard

#4 Title published before 2000 ~~~Rated 3.75 Stars

I have definately a mixed opinion of this book. I loved Joe MacKenzie sooo much from MacKenzie's Mountain. He was 16, and so interesting. However, fast forward and He wasn't all that intersting to me. I liked him, but didn't see the depth in him that I'd seen from him previously. I liked Caroline so much though. I found her complex and tough, but with that soft vulnerability that was so appealing. I figured out some of the mystery, but that is fine with me. I don't particularly like mystery, so for me it is more about how are they going to resolve it.

Vampire, Interrupted by Lynsay Sands

#8 Title with Author "S" name like me! ~~~Rated 4 Stars

This is the story of Marguerite Argeneau, the Matriarch of the Argeneau clan. We've seen her try to match her sons and daughter and nephews, Brother-in-law......You get the picture. She is on her first assignment as a private investigator with "Tiny" her mortal boss. Christian Notte as hired them to help research and find out who his mother was. She meets Christian's father Julius who refuses to tell anyone who Christian's mother was. As it happens, Julius turns out to be Marguerite's true Lifemate. She has trust issues since her late husband was able to both read her and control her. I liked Julius and Marguerite. I liked Tiny alot, and want him to find an Immortal as a Lifemate. I love those Notte men. So hot and fun. These Argeneau's are such a hit. I love them all.

MacKenzie's Mountain

by Linda Howard

#3 title by Linda Howard

rated-4 stars

Back Cover:

Mary Elizabeth Potter is a spinster with no illusions about love. But she is a good teacher and wants Wolf Mackenzie's son back in school. And after one heated confrontation, she knows father and son have changed her life forever. Still paying for a crime he didn't commit, Wolf Mackenzie has a chip on his shoulder. But Mary Elizabeth Potter doesn't see him as the dangerous half-breed the town has branded him. She sees him as a good, decent, honest man. A man she could love....

My Thoughts:

I really liked this book. I think this is only my second Linda Howard. Her books get such great reviews from friends and this did not disappoint. Wolf was definately the strong type, and Joe was too. I liked that the "mousy" teacher could have been a typical "damsel in distress" but was written with a spine of steel. I love that she stood up for her beliefs and her man. I knew who the "bad guy" was, but that was ok. The solving of the mystery was less about the "whodunit" and more about the conflict resolution.

I liked the chemistry. Even though Mary was a spinster, and "innocent" she wasn't written as tstl! Other authors could take a lesson here. Just because a woman is a virgin doesn't mean she has to be an idiot. Even virgins know the "mechanics" of it all. :::rolls eyes:::

I did really fall for Joe. I'm excited to read his story...may have to substitute it for something else in my Summer Reading Challenge....:::nods head:::