Review: Captivated

Captivated by Megan Hart

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Megan Hart and Tiffany Reisz is a two punch combo. Both authors are accomplished writers with specific style of writing. Their stories don't soften the blows by much. And by blows, it's not about BDSM, it's regarding the emotional baggage or trauma dealt to their protagonist.

In Letting Go, Colleen is a woman who still hasn't let her ex-husband go. She is his unwilling hostage even after the divorce. Not really my kind of gal and I didn't like her much. Even though the story is written well, its a 2.5 star for me because I had a difficult time reading through it. Many a times I wanted to slap Colleen upside the head. She's a headcase and needs to heal herself before she starts dating. Well, not that dating is in her goals.

Jesse is the bartender who falls for the quiet woman ordering a drink once a week yet never drinks it. (The frugal person in me just doesn't get this even after it's been explained. It's a waste of good money.) Jesse does nice things for Colleen only to be kicked in the teeth several times. Give it up! Colleen is no good for you!

Jesse is the proverbial white knight and he just gets screwed because he picks the lost cause. There are distractions in this frustrating tale because Jesse's baby mama rears her ugly head and yet it goes nowhere. Ms. Hart does better with full length stories because this one felt abrupt.

In Seize the Night by Tiffany Reisz, it's a hilarious reinterpretation of Romeo and Juliet. I never liked the original so this tale makes it much better. This is a 3.5 star one. Ms. Reisz writes some of the best dialog. This is in the same world has her Original Sinners series. The characters do not exactly crossover. There is a nod to an incident which occurs in the Original Sinners series.

Remi is supposed to be a variation on Romeo and he's a she in this tale. Remi is a basically the one running the whole horse racing business for her family. She may be young but she knows what she's doing. Plus she hired a guy who knows absolutely nothing about horses and his skills are exactly what Remi needs. Merrick doesn't actually understand the boss-employee relationship and his lover-boy ways could seem distracting. Instead it injects humour in at the most random places, catching a reader off guard in a good way. One of my favourite arguments between Remi and Merrick is as follows:
"This is not a 'man of the people' routine," Remi said. "Fir of all, I am the people, not of the people. Second, I am not a man."

"Prove it," Merrick said.

"Do I look like a man to you?"

"No. You look like a hot blonde with spectacular tits, which are probably fake, since for all I know, you might be a man."
"I'm not sleeping with you. I'm your employer You are my assistant."

"Until I see you naked I won't knoow if you're actually a man or a woman. It's like Schrodinger's Pussy." (location 1212)

Honestly, Merrick stole the show because Juliet aka Julian is young and rather bland. He's a rich boy who is used as a pawn by his parents. He does take on similiar traits as the original Juliet - young and stupid.

My other favourite line from Merrick as he whines at Remi - "You never tell me anything abou your personal life. You don't hit on me. You ignore me when I hit on you. You keep our work relationship professional no matter how hard I try to make it unprofessional. It's like you have integrity or something, and quite frankly, I'm sick of it." (location 1235)

This set is recommended for those who wish for a quick and easy read on a beach vacation.*provided by NetGalley



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