Title: Trusting a Stranger
Author: Kerry Connor
Read copy: eBook
Published: November 1, 2009
Publisher: Harlequin
ISBN: 1426843194
ISBN-13: 9781426843198
Luke Hubbard never claimed to have a soft spot for damsels in distress. But the moment he set eyes on Karina Fedorova, a mysterious beauty with assassins on her trail, turning her away was impossible. And a marriage of convenience the only way he could guarantee her safety.
Keeping one step ahead of the men who thought Karina's secrets were worth dying for, Luke found himself forgetting their nuptials were just an act. Because the way his blood stirred around this stranger couldn't be faked, and her vulnerability simply made him want to carry her to their marital bed and claim her as his own. However, keeping his libido in check was crucial to Karina's survival...and the only way to prevent Luke from repeating the tragic mistakes of his past.
My rating:
Karina Fedrova needs a husband. Widowed for only a few months, courtesy of a Russian millionaire with strong connections to the mafia, she's escaped to the US, but her savior, her godfather, is now dead as well, and she is being deported.
Her godfather's son, Viktor, thinks of a cunning plan. She would marry his friend, Luke Hubbard, for the Green Card. The only problem might be to convince Luke to go through with the plan, but thanks to his past, he agrees, though with some reservations, and Karina finds herself married again. To a stranger she has to trust with her life.
It was strange seeing a lawyer as the hero of a story that involves (though remotely) the Russian mafia. A lawyer just doesn't seem "equipped" to deal with such unscrupulous people. He's a lawyer for Pete's sake. Karina would need someone with training and some serious firepower. But she had to do with a lawyer. And he actually did a pretty good job in protecting her. He even had a gun. And he taught her to use it without shooting her own foot. Admirable.
He wasn't so admirable in other aspects. The reason for his coldness, for his hiding his feelings was explained and I have to agree the guy was totally jinxed, but no matter what, he was too much a cold jackass for me to really like him.
While Karina was his total opposite. She's been through a lot, I could say as much as him, she was in fatal danger, and it did leave her dejected and resigned, but she didn't lose her will of life like Luke did. And she told him that, made him see what a mistake he was making...And he still continued being a cold jackass.
The suspense saved this story. The buildup was wonderfully done, with the criminals lurking in the shadows and the danger getting closer and closer. The finale was gripping, heart-pounding, and a total surprise coming from the left field.
Overall, this was a solid story, with a major suspense plot (that was incredibly well done), a little less major romance (I just didn't see the chemistry), but the lack of it didn't bother me, with a well-drawn heroine and a surprising jackass hero (usually it's the hero that keeps the thing afloat, but unfortunately this one almost bombed the entire story).
3 stars, bitchslappable heroine/hero, contemporary, contemporary romance, harlequin/silhouette, Kerry Connor, suspense/mystery/adventure/thriller
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