Contemporary Romance

Mia Zachary

Harlequin/Blaze

0-37379-087-2

April 2003

(2+) Katika Floyd

PLOT SYNOPSIS: 

REVIEW: 

Have you dreamed of acting out your fantasies? What about taking a walk on the wild side and showing the world or that special someone the sexy adventuress hidden inside? These are the goals of Megan “Elise” Foster in RED SHOES AND A DIARY the new Harlequin Blaze novel by Mia Zachary.

Meghan Foster is taking a well deserved vacation at a Florida resort. On this vacation she hopes to find a man to help her bring the fantasies she’s written about her self and a handsome man in her diary to life. In her diary she is “Elise” a charming sexy outgoing woman. In real life she’s hardworking Meghan. But Meghan may have met her match when she is introduced to Nick Alexander. Will Nick live up to the man she’s dreamed and written about in her diary?

The plot of this novel turns on the many secrets held by the main characters. Meghan’s secret longings and Nick’s secret of his true identity. Ms Zachary has skillfully tried to blend a sultry tale with a hint of intrigue by adding the plot twist of a DEA investigation. Unfortunately this plot twist while neatly inserted feels a bit forced.

Fans of Harlequin’s Blaze line will note that Ms. Zachary does fulfill the line’s promise of a short and sultry romance. From Nick and Meghan’s first meeting you can feel the current of attraction spark and sizzle. Just a pinch of humor lightens the heat a bit. This is craftily done with the use of double entendre and steamy dialogue. The beautiful setting of a resort in the Florida Keys helps here as well. For this I give, the author high marks.

Unfortunately, I must also give her low marks in the handling of the journal as a plot device. The idea of wanting to bring your diary to life seems like a good one and is central to the development of the physical side of Meghan and Nick relationship. However, as that part of the story plays out it is a bit unbelievable. Nick finds the diary by accident after Meghan has lost it. But Meghan never brings up to him or anyone else that its missing. If the diary is so important to her that she wants to bring it to life one would think its loss would be import in the story as well.

Another low point of the story is character development, there really wasn’t enough description of either character to let the reader have much of a sense of like or dislike for either characters. As a reader I didn’t love them and I didn’t hate them. Readers should note that although Ms. Zachary is an African American writer, the characters in this novel are not.

If steamy dialogue and double entendre are enough for you, you’d probable enjoy RED SHORES AND A DIARY, but for me, the diary thing just didn’t work.  I’m not a diary/journal person so maybe I just don’t get it.

kakita@romanceincolor.net (30th March 2003)