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Very paternalistic

Revisado: 11-05-18

I just could not bring myself to like the hero of this story. Lucius repeatedly makes decisions for Frances over and over against her explicitly expressed wishes. They have some really serious arguments when he puts her in situations against her desires, and she makes some really great arguments that she knows her own mind better than he does. I was in complete agreement with her that he should let her live her life the way she wants. But he never changes his ways. He wins her over eventually and she decides that he was right all along and really did know what was best for her. Really unsatisfactory ending.

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Gorgeous, rich people having boring sex

Revisado: 04-23-18

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If you like stories about gorgeous, rich people having boring sex, then this is definitely the story for you. It will not be sidetracked by pesky plot lines or extraneous character development. Almost everything you need to know about this book, you learn from the audible description. Natalie is taking pictures on the beach, Luke gets mad at her for taking pictures on the beach. But they are both hot, so they have sex. Then two days later, she discovers that he is the famous actor, Robert Pattinson, I mean, Luke Williams, who starred in some vampire movies a few years ago. She gets mad for lying about his famousness, but then talks to her friend and decides she overreacted and forgives him. So they go back to having more sex. This happens and is resolved in the first 2 hours of this 11 hour book.

Their relationship is occasionally marred by stuff like Natalie is self-consciousness about her body, which she describes as “curvy” and “Kardashian,” despite teaching yoga three days a week. But Luke reassures her that she is actually sexy and likes women who display secondary sexual characteristics, so that didn’t even slow down their sex. Also, money becomes an issue for Natalie for about 10 minutes, when she realizes that Luke has significantly more money than the 20 million she inherited when her parents died. There were also times when they each got mad at each other for doing their jobs because it involved working with sexy people of the opposite gender. They realized, of course, that it was completely reasonable for their loved one to get weirdly possessive if they worked with other sexy people in a professional way, so they both agreed to only work with non-sexy people or to be supervised if they absolutely had to work with sexy people. It makes total sense, no one should trust their partner to just act professional and not have sex when working with other sexy people.

Listener, if you were interested in this book because Audible rated it as “Simmering” and you are worried that it will be too risque, don’t worry. Even though this couple has a lot of sex, it is totally boring and not worth a “Sizzling” rating or higher. They classify their sexual activities as either “love-making” or “f---ing,” depending on how raunchy they get. Apparently, when Luke spanks Natalie, it pushes it into the second category. Also mild swearing and describing body parts using their anatomically correct names may push it into that category. So even though the majority of this book is about them having sex, it will remain so vanilla you can top pie with it, except for the time that he spanks both her left and her right cheek. That was pretty racy.

When they aren’t having sex, Luke acts the part of a perfect boyfriend as imagined by a dimwitted 14 year old girl and Natalie lives the imaginary life of said girl. He is rich, has a hot body, and the hair worthy of the lead singer of a boy band. He gives extravagant gifts (all jewelry comes in the required Tiffany blue box) and takes Natalie on romantic vacations. He cooks for her and works from home, so he is always around being attentive. Natalie works as a photographer when she wants, but otherwise goes shopping, buying only Louboutin shoes, and hangs out with her best friend whose brother is a professional athlete. So, you know - quiet, meaningful, purpose-driven lives.

If all that sounds awesome, it is totally worth the 11 hours you will never get back.

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1.5 stars: Expected more, got overused tropes

Revisado: 03-03-18

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I really enjoy Lisa Kleypas’s writing because most of her heroines are strong women and even when her stories use conventional tropes, they are written with wit and are thoroughly entertaining. So I really was looking forward to Garrett’s story. She is the only female physician, has proven herself capable in previous novels, and is not yet another story about the aristocracy/ridiculously wealthy. Unfortunately, right from the beginning, this book was a disappointment and did not live up to my expectations.

The good:

Garrett knows her own mind and isn’t afraid to pursue her love interest. She won’t be told what is best for her. Also, I know it isn’t for everyone, but I really like the attention paid to the historical medical stuff. I am in health care and I hate it when the medical stuff makes no sense. I appreciate the time she spent researching.

The bad (includes some spoilers that don’t really give much away):

In the opening of the book, Garrett finds herself accosted by three men. While she initially starts to take care of the situation herself, Ethan steps in and “saves” her. Then to make matters worse, he then agrees to train her to fight for herself. She has already been training with a fencing master, why can’t she take care of herself, as she has been doing for years. Instead, LK resorts to the old damsel-in-distress stereotype who needs a man to save her, then teach her how to defend herself. Yawn.

Ethan’s character is full of contradictions and doesn’t make a lot of sense. We have known from earlier books that he is some kind of detective and works in law enforcement. We come to find out that he is Irish which presents a few problems. He expresses his sympathy for the Irish and their mistreatment. I am no historian, but I do know that the British treatment of the Irish resulted in years of political strife, famine, and in Irish plots targeting both government officials and civilians. Yet, Ethan is a British spy, even though he feels strongly enough about his identity to deliberately retain his Irish accent (when it suits him) despite being raised in England.

Oh, and by the way, Ethan is filthy rich. So much for my excitement about reading a romance novel about the middle class. (And yes, neither are born to the upper class, but it always comes back to either aristocracy or the very wealthy.) Same old story… double yawn.

The ugly (and it is ugly):
What really detracted from this story were the references to Ethan’s training in India. He is trained in fighting by some nameless guru and then while he is seducing Garrett (which is hardly the appropriate time), he tells her about a nameless woman who taught him the art of sex. LK’s use of the exotic other in this story is frankly racist. She has acknowledged this and issued an apology for it, so I applaud her and give the book 1.5 stars instead of 1. But this use of these nameless Indian people to teach Ethan fighting and sex makes them “other,” exoticizes them, and uses played out, racist stereotypes. LK has promised to update the book for future editions which I hope applies to the audiobook as well. Until then, I think I am going to have to exercise my right to return with this one.

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Ok but, formulaic and overused tropes

Revisado: 02-16-18

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

This book is kind of blah. It's fine if you have it on in the background and have nothing better to do, but don't take time away from other things. It's like food that will satisfy your basic needs but is not incredibly delicious or nutritious. In general, the writer overuses the former military guy trope. I don't know why so many romance heros have to be former military, but they use it as a kind of cheat so they don't have to develop the character. Military mission gone bad = deep and complicated character.

As I said about the previous book, I would not have made the main character half Native American. The only purpose his ancestry seems to serve is to make him hot/exotic. It does nothing to really further the story line and it's not like the author shows any understanding of the culture in the writing. Again, lazy writing.

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3.5 stars: Everything is just ok

Revisado: 02-16-18

Would you try another book from Jill Shalvis and/or Karen White?

I am listening to all the books in the series because they are fine, but I don't love them. They are very formulaic which is ok, but don't expect anything special.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

I would not have made the main character half Native American. The only purpose his ancestry seems to serve is to make him hot/exotic. It does nothing to really further the story line and it's not like the author shows any understanding of the culture in the writing.

Was Animal Magnetism Series # 2, Animal Attraction worth the listening time?

I would not carve time out of my day, but I don't mind putting it on when I am traveling or doing other things. Because the story is not especially compelling, I find myself loosing track of the plot and finding that I am not really missing out on much.

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3.5 stars - standard romance

Revisado: 02-16-18

Any additional comments?

This was a pretty cookie cutter type of romance story. It checks of all the boxes, but does not really go above and beyond. It is entirely satisfactory as far as story - the characters are likeable enough and you get your standard HEA, but while it may elicit a chuckle or two, you won't find yourself laughing out loud or gettting swept away by the characters or story.

Karen White does a good job. But as someone who hates to speed up the narration, I followed the advice based on other reviews and I sped it up to 1.25. It is better that way.

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So offensive and juvenille, I couldn't finish it

Revisado: 02-02-18

What could Robyn Peterman have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Given her characters real and complex personalities instead of relying on played out tropes.

Any additional comments?

The narration was pretty good, but I just couldn't get past how offensive the book is. I listened to the first book in this series and was annoyed by how stereotypical the gay best friend was written. This only gets worse in this book and then there are cow shifters.

It's hard to pin point why the way the cow shifters are portrayed in this book is so offensive. It just doesn't feel right. She writes them in a way that treats them as less than human. Yes, I know they are supernaturals, but all the other supernaturals are treated as a species that are basically the equivelent as humans - morally and intellectually. It's almost as if she stereotyped them as people from rural America and portrayed them as mentally deficient, embracing all the worst "red-neck" and "hillybilly" tropes. Then the vampire comes and literally "saves" them in a weird white savior way.

I could not finish this book. Listening to it felt like I was listening to the original Percy Jackson Series, but with inappropriate and dumb adult themes. The humor seems on par for 5th-6th grade boys, including extensive poop jokes (I am in healthcare and am not offended by bodily fluids by themselves, but this was so prepubescent and just not funny to anyone older than 11). This author seems to rely on offensive and boring stereotypes disguised by supernatural themes. I do not recommend it and will not be listening to any other books by this author.

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Good start, especially for a short story

Revisado: 01-29-18

Any additional comments?

Often, I find short stories to be lacking - missing character and plot development. While Ready to Were was not rich in either, I felt like it was a pretty solid foundation and I am interested enough to want to read more. I am a little wary, or perhaps were-y, of the ending because I feel like the rest of the series might go off the rails given how the story ends, but I am definitely going to give it a try.

I chose this based off the recommendation of Molly Harper whose early work I found to be hilarious. While I am not yet entirely convinced that Peterman is as funny, I found this story to be pretty entertaining.

I really liked Hollie Jackson's performance. I have been listening to a lot of audiobooks from the romance package and there are few narrators who live up to the standards set by some of my favorites, but I was impressed by Hollie Jackson. She manages to breathe life into the characters and really manages to bring out the humor in the writing.

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Not great

Revisado: 01-27-18

Any additional comments?

Sweet Spot is somewhat better than Sweet Talk, the first book in this series. The main character, Nicole, is more likeable in this book and much more relatable. But the characters in this series seem dysfunctional. They don’t communicate well and lack understanding of human nature. They get irrationally angry with each other.

And I still have a problem with the narration. While Plummer does a better job narrating Nicole than Claire, she still uses a baby voice for Hawk’s teenage daughter which is extremely grating. Teenagers do not sound like babies. Their voices are not much different in pitch than adults. She ends up sounding even more obnoxious than she is written – which was pretty standard teenage brat.

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Bad narration, oblivious main character

Revisado: 01-27-18

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It's hard to separate the narration from the story with this book. The way that Plummer read Claire was to imbue her with a Pollyanna-ishness that made her annoying. She does the same thing with Wyatt, the romantic interest. At any point, I expected them to start saying things like, "Golly Gee!" or "Aww, shucks!" When she reads the characters who are more sarcastic or when they are angry, she does a better job. But just because a character is sheltered or has a more optimistic approach does not mean that she needs to be read as a naive idiot.

That said, it can be hard to buy into the sisters motivations and/or behavior which can make them unlikeable. For example:

Spoilers ahead:


Claire’s twin, Nicole, hates her for leaving the family when she was young to go play piano professionally. They keep fighting and making up over stupid things and Nicole exhibits so little empathy or compassion that you wonder why Claire bothers with her.
The youngest sister, Jesse, does something that is basically unforgiveable. Mallery/Jesse implies basically the situation was misinterpreted. So either Jesse was sexually assaulted which makes both Claire and Nicole horrible for not taking time to listen to her side of the story or Jesse was sexually involved with her sister’s husband and takes no responsibility for the situation, making her a horrible sister.

Claire is sheltered, but I find it nearly impossible to believe that a 28 year old woman living in NYC would not know that you can get pregnant the first time you have sex if you don’t use birth control. Did she not have access to the internet. Then she breaks the news to Wyatt in a really unbelievable way. She tells him she has really great news. I can’t believe anyone would be so obtuse to think that a man would immediately be ecstatic that he has knocked up a woman who lives across the country from him who he barely knows.

I have listened to the next book in the series and have decided not to listen to the third book. I may read it and see if not having Plummer narrate makes a difference. So far, there is not a lot to recommend this series,.

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