REVIEW: CB-Let’s Pretend by Raine Weaver

JaneB Reviews Category / Book Reviews / Ebooks19 Comments

Dear Ms. Weaver,

I wasn’t really expecting to find a new auto buy author from this contest. I haven’t had an autobuy ebook author since Lynne Connolly’s Rose and Richard series but you are on the list. I’ve read all of your publications since reading Let’s Pretend and have found them to be pretty good across the board. My least favorite was Rhenn and my most favorite was Incubus. Incubus is an atmospheric modern day gothic written in short story format. It worked very well for me. This letter, though, is about Let’s Pretend.

Let’s Pretend opens with repressed Veronica Peale being taken advantage of, once again, by her friend, Kayla. Ordinarily, I hate these repressed heroines. The reason that this storyline works for me is because the heroine recognizes that she needs a change and is proactive about asserting herself. Ronnie longs for her boss, Paul Lang, to recognize her as a sexual being. Kayla gives her Brant Coleman as an escort who will change her life.

Brant is an amoral hero along the lines of an Anne Stuart hero. He is bad, in almost every sense of the word: both the positive and the negative connotation. He is a user and a master manipulator and he uses all of his skills on Ronnie. Why this works is because everything that he does actually helps the Ronnie break out of her mold. Further, Brant is not using his skills to make Ronnie fall for him. He is making Ronnie into a desirable, exciting, and adventurous woman. Brant knows how a man’s mind works and is manipulating both Ronnie and through her, Paul Lang.

Of course, because this is a romance, Brant falls for Ronnie and realizes that his life isn’t worth much without Ronnie. Where the book failed for me was the ending. It involved an over the top villianous action that was not in keeping with the story and unnecessary for plot development. Had that portion not been in the book, I would have given this story an A. It is a B+ and it was good enough to entice me to buy the rest of your back list. Because your sensuality level is about on par with a Bravo or even a very hot Blaze, I would feel comfortable in recomending your books to other romance lovers. I look forward to your future offerings.

Best Regards,

Jane

Jane

Jane Litte is the founder of Dear Author, a lawyer, and a lover of pencil skirts. She self publishes NA and contemporaries (and publishes with Berkley and Montlake) and spends her downtime reading romances and writing about them. Her TBR pile is much larger than the one shown in the picture and not as pretty. You can reach Jane by email at jane @ dearauthor dot com

→ Jane