Review: Flawed, flawed hero
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 11 2, 2012
*May contain spoilers in discussing the hero*After reading this, I had to look at all of the other reviews of the book to see if anyone else felt the way I did. I especially agree with the earlier three-star reviews and comments by Citron and Kooks.I think that the author should do some more research on building a likable hero. When I read romance, it's as an escape. Rafe's flaws seemed petty, and I just didn't enjoy reading about them. For example, stealing an obviously expensive earring just to get the girl to come back and find it. I thought to myself, What a *bleep*. Most romance heroes, if they have something the heroine wants, will let her know they have it and tease her with it, to gauge her reaction and bring some playfulness into the relationship. For example, he had the perfect excuse to get her there with the fact that she wants to do the interior design of his house. He could have just said that he expected her there every day at a certain time to go over design, fabrics, etc, and then tried to woo her from there.In addition, his attitudes toward having children, whining about his ex, and anger at his childhood made me want to help him seek therapy. He seemed obsessed with having children, and while it's a nice sentiment, not too many romance heroes obsess over that from the time they meet a woman. It's usually after a few bouts in the sack that they (briefly) consider how nice it would be. It was kind of creepy for him to be thinking about that all the time. It made you wonder if he wanted her, or if he just wanted anyone who could have children and she just happened along at the right time. Also, it sucked that his wife didn't want kids. But she didn't steal from him, abort his unborn child, or do anything severe enough to warrant the strength of his anger. When he found out she had been on birth control, he divorced her and was free to find someone else. For him to still be going on about it brings an aura of pettiness. Last, it sucked that his parents didn't want him. But he was raised by two people who did love him, and through their encouragement he's now successful and wealthy. What is he still whining about? I've read some really good romances where the heroes were raised by people other than the mother that give them issues, and often they can resolve them by finding a good relationship with others and breaking the chain by having their own children.One thing I like about romance novels is the tendency to put people in dire and extreme situations to determine the strength of their characters. For example, the heroine's relationship with her mother and daughter and their actions noble and praiseworthy. They bear the burden together and are strong and stoic about the sacrifices they both have to make for Camilla. Her drive to achieve success and create a positive future is also admirable. The hero's less-than-idyllic childhood and subsequent success could also have created a strong and commendable character. But the problem is that he isn't strong and stoic - he keeps whining about it and even wants to get even with the ex by showing off that he chose the younger girl for his interior design. Ugh. Plus, he breaks the rule about talking about exes with the new girlfriend, telling the heroine about his relationship with his ex and the ex-wife's business problems when they haven't even slept together yet. No girl is attracted to a guy who does that, especially not one who is a strong as the heroine. If he hadn't strong-armed her into bed with physical attraction and been obscenely rich, I'm not sure she would have given him the time of day.Overall, the plot was good and the characters well-detailed - I really liked the heroine and hated the hero. I think the author has a good writing style, and if she works on the characterization of romance heroes she will be a winner.