katiebabs: I have to say, though, that one of my least favorite things about the HPs is that if the heroine isn’t a virgin, she’s had like one bad sexual partner/experience. *sigh*

Keishon: I tried another one (I reviewed it here, too) and didn’t think a lot of it. So you might want to do some research before you try one.

HDD: oh, yeah, there is such a line. But I’ve learned to ignore that kind of thing, else I’d probably never read a category book.

Ann: I recently ordered The Lonely Season, and it was only available used. As Jane said, the category novels go out of print so soon, usually before I even know about them, lol. And I hate the eHarlequin site because they don’t have ereader.

Sunita: I don’t think the whole book was subversive, but I definitely think there are subversive moments. In fact, there were way more than I could capture in the review. Like how when Drake storms off, and Kate asks him why he left and he gave that speech about how he is a “flawed human being.” That just cracked me up, because it’s the anti-dramatic answer, so logical and reasonable and therefore not the usual melodrama. But ultimately the flouncy heroine and the alpha hero end up together in a relatively conventional way, so I can’t call the book subversive.

Meriam: I liked the movie quote competition, too, in part because it created clever dialogue and often engaged me in the recognition game. And thanks for mentioning Drake’s male friends, who actually provided some substance and support. I liked it that he had real friends who were capable of real relationships. Again, it went against Kate’s expectations of him, too, as the completely socially alienated genius. Although the initial caveman response from Drake was pretty over the top.

I have found that while I don’t grade categories on a different scale than single title books, I experience satisfaction or disappointment to some degree based on my expectations of the line. So I know that I can’t expect certain things in HP and have to judge the book by the limitations of the line. The more familiar I am with the books, the more I “get it,” I think, and the better I can enjoy what there is to enjoy.

I tried to read a few Presents earlier in the year and, for the most part, hated every last one of them (I’ve still got a few on my tbr mountain I can’t even contemplate reading). This one stood out because it was a) quite funny b) neatly subverted a tired trope c) there was more to the relationship between the couple than angst and misunderstanding (see TUTGBBMCSMB) I liked the thing they had going with the movie quotes. That rapport is usually missing from the other Presents I’ve read. d) the novel treatment of The Other Woman and e) the fact that there were actually other male characters in the story who weren’t potential rapists, or elderly fathers, or gay.

The other thing I really hate about Presents is when a character thinks “[the hero] was frighteningly intelligent, with a razor sharp wit‘ and then nothing the hero says and does for the remainder of the book displays either wit, intelligence or any semblance of rational thought. Argh! (Rant over.)

So, yeah, Napier disarmed me just when I was sharpening the proverbial quill for a poison blog entry on the entire line.

ETA: I didn’t find it as subversive and self-aware as you did, but I thought it was an awfully smart exemplar of the type.

EDITED because my grammar sucks today.