Review: Wonderful Hero, Complicated Heroine In a Steamy Story
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 06 16, 2014
The marriage of convenience theme is normally seen in historicals where it was a common circumstance.  In Seeing Red this theme is brought into modern times where it feels less believable, particularly the reasons behind it.  The relationship that develops from it therefore creates inequality as the heroine gains much from the marriage while the hero ends up being used as I see it.  It's clear that the heroine has all the control while the hero acts completely chivalrous which made him my favorite part of the story.Meg is reeling from a disastrous end to an even more disastrous marriage to a rock star where she was constantly cheated on and portrayed as weak and pitiful by the media because of it.  She wants to shed that label, and courtesy of a friend's unconventional plan, she finds herself married to the kindhearted Seth and on her way to a rocky road to HEA.  Meg is a hard person to like at times.  Even her friends and Seth call her a shrew.  She's domineering and likes to be in control which leads to her steamrolling over others throughout the story.  Past hurts have hardened her heart and she's become cynical of love.  She sees this marriage as a means to an end but is more than happy to reap the benefits of the steamy connection she has with Seth which leads to numerous sexual interludes.  Being with Seth though slowly brought out a softer side but doubts kept her from fully committing until it's almost too late which left me frustrated.  Ultimately, while I applaud Meg taking control of her life and standing up for herself and her son, I never completely warmed up to her and felt that Seth deserved much better.Seth was the perfect hero.  He was subtly charming and oozed sex appeal though he never saw himself that way.  He's a bit of a geek, very smart and awkward around women but is very kindhearted.  He was willing to do whatever Meg wanted of him though as he's had a crush on her for a long time.  For him, this marriage gives him the chance to win her over, but it's a very difficult journey as he doesn't know how to do so without changing parts of his personality which left me sad for him.  He desperately wants to be part of a family as he was left abandoned long ago but knows Meg could take his newfound family away at any time as this marriage is just for show.  Even though he knows she's difficult he relishes and wants to foster those rare moments that she lets her guard down and enjoys life.  He also takes to her son quickly and is a better father than her ex-husband ever was which endeared him to me even more.  Add in a sturdy body and a Russian accent and I was left drooling.Along with a unique main couple was a large cast of secondary characters that left me further conflicted as even though they called each other friends they often acted to the contrary.  This left a feeling of tension hanging over the story and left the HEA in doubt until the hastily crafted ending.  Though I had issues with the heroine the highlight of this story was Seth, who I'm still dreaming about!  He would do anything to make the woman he loved happy, even sacrificing his future happiness to give her what she at first thought she wanted.  The sexual interludes were also a highlight as they were steamy and varied in their intensity.  Because of this, and Seth, fans of erotic reads will find this a satisfying tale and I look forward to Ms. Trent's next book.3.5 STARS!