Well I Never....AND A BOOK REVIEW!!!!

The funny and talented Vicki Rocho over at Rambles and Randomness has a bloghop going on today, with prizes! All we have to do is finish this sentence.

thought I'd be reading romances on a Kindle. But I am, so there.



Which leads right into...
Talli Roland's new book BUILD A MAN.

About the book:

How far would you go to create the perfect partner? 

Slave to the rich, rude and deluded, cosmetic surgery receptionist Serenity Holland longs for the day she's a high-flying tabloid reporter. Unfortunately, every pitch she sends out disappears like her clients' liposuctioned fat, never to be seen again. Then she meets Jeremy Ritchie -- the hang-dog man determined to be Britain's Most Eligible Bachelor by making himself over from head to toe and everything in between -- giving Serenity a story no editor could resist. 

With London's biggest tabloid on board and her very own column tracking Jeremy's progress from dud to dude, Serenity is determined to be a success, even going undercover to gain intimate access to Jeremy's life. But when Jeremy's surgery goes drastically wrong and Serenity is ordered to cover all the car-crash goriness, she must decide how far she really will go for her dream job.

In a way this book is timely, what with Rupert Murdock and the British tabloid being under fire for the extreme tactics they have used to get a juicy story. After all, this is about a young woman who so wants to be a tabloid writer she makes some extreme decisions that prick at her conscious and make her moral compass spin. But that's were the similarity ends.

With the first sentence, If I see another set of boobs I'm going to lose it. I knew I was in for ride. I do enjoy Talli's humor. If fact I asked her if she was as funny in real life as she is on the written page. She said she isn't, but somehow I have a hard time believing that. (Perhaps a little wine therapy would help?) Just take a look at some of these descriptions: 

Prancing over to the leather chairs, she crosses her PVC-covered legs and grabs a magazine... 

Or, My hair is plastered to my head, mascara and kohl have seeped down my eye sockets like Alice Cooper gone wrong. 

Or, I'm more Darth Vader than the female equivalent of Dr. Phil. 

Or, Thoughts swim around my head like caffeinated goldfish. (What an image! I can so see/feel this.)

Yet within the humor is a sweet story. At first Serenity bothered me. I wasn't sure I liked her. How could someone apparently so smart be so ignorant and make sure terrible choices? But as she got more and more tangled up in the threads of her bad decisions I began to feel a bit sorry for her and to wonder, "How is she going to get out this mess?" That, and liking Jeremy (I definitely wanted to know what happened to him!) kept pulling me along. 

What I also very much enjoy about Talli's stories is that it's not all about sex. There is the occasional well placed adult expletive, there is sexual tension (or lack there-of) but there is no nudity and kissing is left for the appropriate moment. In this day and age when I often feel bombarded, it's a relief to read a light-hearted, humorous love story.

Nice job Talli! 

And, to let you know just how much I enjoy your books, I've gone and bought Watching Willow Watts!