Irish Winters

The first part of the book was not up to the author’s usual standards. Some of the things that happened in the Amazon just seemed so unrealistic. For example, Two people fleeing armed assassins in the jungle stop and have a loud argument. Really? Add to that, they are each dragging a large heavy object … but apparently they are not leaving a trail so obvious that their pursuers can easily catch up with them. Those quibbles aside, I found myself getting absorbed in the characters and rooting for them to win against the odds.

In the end I did enjoy this and was glad that I had pushed past my initial doubts.… (mere)

Interesting, well-drawn characters, with a couple of exceptions. ‘Mother’s’ role in the company is very vague, though ‘essential’ and she primarily seems to be there to irritate people with her nosiness. The character of Alex, Mark’s boss, and the subject of the first book in the series, I found puzzling, especially in the light of his own story. I couldn’t really believe in the extreme contrast between his work persona and his home persona. There were strong hints of Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs [NCIS] at one point!

The other aspect that puzzled me, was trying to make out the age differentials between the male characters and the time lapse between the first and second books in this series. I felt that Mark was portrayed as a younger generation to Alex and some of the other members of the team, which didn’t quite fit with impression the first book gave of Alex, though some of the anecdotes of past events related in this book did suggest several years had passed since the first. I suppose, basically, it was a distraction from the storyline.

Minor quibbles apart, Mark’s story was engaging and emotionally satisfying. And thankfully free of the pornographic episodes that seem almost de rigueur in modern romantic fiction.… (mere)