LynneC’s review of Million Dollar Amnesia Scandal by Rachel Bailey
Contemporary Romance published by Silhouette Desire 1 Feb 11
A few years ago, there was a spate of books where one or other of the protagonists had amnesia. Very often, the amnesia was induced by a simple blow on the head, and restored the same way. It was an easy way to introduce a plot complication, and it was sometimes used as a way of skimming plot and reason. The plethora gave the trope a bad name, and they’ve only just begun to creep back.
None of the above is present in Rachel Bailey’s new book. The heroine has been in a serious car accident and loses her memory as a part of that. She knows who she is, because they tell her, but she doesn’t understand her reasoning, or how she got there.
The hero, Seth, arrives at the hospital because his brother, who died in the accident, signed over one of his hotels to the heroine before the car accident that took his life and left her injured. He needs that hotel back. What I found refreshing about Seth was his honesty. Instead of trying to trick April or try to seduce her into giving him his hotel back, he fights their attraction and wants her to make the decision herself. He knows that there is a chance that the gift of the hotel won’t stand in law, and he tells her that, too. Although he initially suspects foul play, he is open minded enough, and trusts his own judgment enough, to take April on the way he finds her, not by reputation or the way things appear.
The main villain is April’s manager mother. April is a famous jazz crossover singer and composer, and her mother is her manager. At the beginning, April uses her instincts and doesn’t return to her home with her mother, but to the hotel with Seth, to convalesce and try to regain her memory.
This book wasn’t without its problems. Five days after the accident, Seth had more or less come to terms with losing his brother. I would have thought that his grief would have been more consuming, but after a brief pang and a bit of remembering here and there, he carried on working and pursuing his passion for April, or fighting it. It didn’t seem to be dealt with enough.
April was more lightly drawn than Seth. She loved her music, and the career trajectory seemed appropriate, and echoed a few female stars I could think of, but although mention is made of the fanbase and adulation, media coverage seemed patchy. How come they never realised the connection between Seth and April, even though his brother was driving the car she was in at the time of the accident?
Seth’s illegitimate brother, Ryder, the subject of a previous book, and his wife appeared for one scene. They are important to drive the plot, but their appearance wasn’t really needed. I have read their book, but it was a while back, and I didn’t remember the details. Few were given, so their characters were only lightly sketched, and they had nothing to do with the affair between April and Seth. The other illegitimate brother, JT, will obviously appear in another book.
Her mother was lightly sketched and never really worked for me. Her complete villainess-ness was mitigated a little, but her motivations (power, money, vicarious living?) were fairly vague. I’d have liked more, or less, of her, or for her to have a more definite goal in the story, other than to get April back to work.
I did like the motif of the piano, a link between Seth and April, and later used for a nice, sensuous scene between them. And I liked the protagonists, April’s strength of character and Seth’s honesty and his determination to protect her. Plenty of “aw” moments between them.
When the truth comes out, I had more or less worked it out, but I had hoped for something a little more scandalous or inflammatory. However, in the context of the story, it worked.
I enjoyed the read. It was well written, and the story flowed with enough fluency to be a good read. B
Grade: B
Summary:
An accident left April Fairchild with no memory, ownership of a multimillion-dollar hotel and the nagging sense something wasn’t quite right in her life. It also brought her intensely sexy businessman Seth Kentrell, whose late brother had left her the property. Seth believed her a gold digger—and how could April deny it, when she couldn’t even remember her name? Now Seth was ready to play hardball to get the hotel back.
But April knew enough to refuse to sign over the property until her memory returned. And if that meant Seth needed to persuade her…well, that was something she could enjoy! At least until the whole truth came out….
Read an excerpt.
Other books in the series:
