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LOVE'S MIRACLE Jacquelin Thomas BET/Arabesque October 2000 (4) Melanie Schuster |
Contemporary Romance |
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PLOT SYNOPSIS: |
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REVIEW: |
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Regis Melbourne is the owner of a successful beauty business in Los Angeles. She got there by being practical, pragmatic and down-to-earth, which is why the predictions of her ‘psychic’ sister don’t cut too much ice with her. Especially when her sister insists that Regis simply must go on a singles cruise because she is destined to meet the man of her dreams on board. After being dumped by her boyfriend who was having an affair with her best friend, Regis has decided that love and romance are simply not in her future, no matter what vibes her loving sister picks up. Laine Ransom is in the same boat as Regis, literally and figuratively. His marriage ended in divorce due to his infertility, and he is resigned to a life without love. His loving family has decided that gifting him with a cruise is the way for him to gain some perspective on his situation, and he reluctantly agrees. As fate and a clever author would have it, he and Regis end up on the same ship. Unexpected love is all the sweeter for those who find it, and Regis and Laine are no exception to that time-honored rule. They are strongly smitten at first sight and in the next few days they confess to a passionate mutual love that culminates in an elopement. A tragic misunderstanding causes Regis to leave their cabin on their wedding night and the newlyweds are separated in a haze of pain and unhappiness until they are brought together at a Ransom family gathering. It would have been simple enough for Laine and Regis to talk out their misunderstanding and pick up their passion where they left off, if it were not for the fact that Regis is pregnant. Since Laine can’t be the father, who could it possibly be? And can the love they both feel be enough to get them back together where they belong? Jacquelin Thomas has a gift for writing compelling characters that are fully dimensional and compelling. Laine Ransom’s character of part of the wonderful, loving Ransom family whom we have grown to adore in FOREVER ALWAYS and HEART TO HEART. The sense of continuity that follows the family is wonderfully written and makes the reader want to know more of the clan. In fact, the misunderstanding that causes Regis to take off on their wedding night springs from a continuing arc that was established in FOREVER ALWAYS. That is a book I can’t wait to read, although the anticipation did not diminish my enjoyment of this one. I liked Regis; she is sweet, honest and brave enough to follow her heart, as well as being an independent, strong woman. I liked Laine—I felt his pain and could fully understand his conflict. He was presented with what he thought was irrefutable evidence that his wife had betrayed him. As hurt and confused as he was, his love for Regis and the woman he thought her to be kept him open to the possibility of reconciliation. I also liked the story—it was both touching and informative to see how a man reacts to his infertility. And on a side note, I loved Ms Thomas’ new picture on the cover—very sexy! Ms. Thomas has the ability to get inside a character’s head and let the story unfold in a way that engages her reader. LOVE'S MIRACLE was sweet, touching and tender with a hero and heroine who truly deserved a miracle. And you all deserve a wonderful story so go right out and get this one! |
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1st October 2000 |
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