LynneC’s review of Too Wild To Hold (Legendary Lovers, Book 2) by Julie Leto
Contemporary Romance published by Harlequin Blaze 23 Aug 11
This is the first book I’ve read by Julie Leto, I think, and I had a good time with it. It isn’t without its faults, but I would recommend it.
Michael is an FBI agent, and also the descendant of the inspiration for Zorro. Recently a Zorro wannabe has been kidnapping and raping women, and once his crimes cross state boundaries, the FBI is called in.
Claire is a private eye who was asked to leave the police force for not adhering to procedure. She is looking for a woman who has abandoned her husband and children to pursue a life of pure hedonism. But while she and her ex are divorced, she hasn’t yet signed over the children, so her ex’s new wife can’t adopt them. So Claire is after the signature.
She follows her quarry to a house where people pose as masters and mulattoes, in, of course, New Orleans. I did enjoy the evocation of the city and the old plantation house in this book. It’s a city I’ve always wanted to visit. It’s a house of kink, and when Michael makes himself known to Claire, they are immediately attracted. When they find the woman she’s there to confront, she’s involved in a threesome. It’s nice to read a hot scene in a Blaze, and the subsequent scene in an upstairs bedroom is just as hot.
There are shades of voyeurism in this book, something both participants admit frankly to, but not enough to be skeevy. It works well with the mad stalker rapist plot, as they are aware they are being watched at certain times.
Michael’s brother makes an appearance in this book, and while he’s certainly sequel bait, he also has a part to play. The other brother, whose story has already been told, is referred to but doesn’t play a part. I like that, and I have to admit, Michael is an interesting prospect. I’ll be reading the other two books in the series.
Back to this one. There are some interesting secondary characters, including Michael’s FBI partner Ruby. The serial rapist is a distant figure, more a McGuffin than a character.
I did have one or two problems with the book. Although the plot takes place over a few days, by the end of it Michael and Claire are in love and Michael has made an important life change. This didn’t ring true to me, and there are no foreshadowings to speak of. They also have unprotected sex and because she’s on birth control pills, that’s okay. Pardon me, but it most definitely isn’t. Pregnancy could be the least of her troubles.
Michael has a ring passed on to him by his brother, a ring that belonged to their “Zorro.” It is supposed to change your life. While it’s cute, it doesn’t really fit well into the story, and it is a touch “deus ex machina” for me, but it didn’t intrude too much.
Towards the end of the book Claire does the TSTL thing. Coming off the back of writing two romantic suspense novels for Carina, I can sympathise with the dilemma. In order to move the story on, someone has to do something out of character, or foolhardy, or something, especially with the short length of these books. It’s hard to cram a suspense plot and a believable romance into the book. But in this one, the heroine does something that isn’t only foolhardy, it’s against the law. She twists the law to get a result. That’s something I really don’t like. It’s why she had to leave the police force. Of course, you might feel completely different, but up until that point I really enjoyed Claire. Is there such a thing as over-feisty? But she’s fun, she’s frank about her sexual preferences, and she does a good job.
Still, there’s enough here to make me hunt up more books by Ms. Leto, and I do hope she sets more stories in New Orleans.
Grade: C+
Summary:
In the sultry heat of New Orleans, a masked man stalks his next prey…private investigator Claire Lécuyer. In order to protect her, FBI agent Michael Murrieta—the descendant of a real masked legend—must go undercover at her hiding place…a sensual retreat, where decadence and sin beckon from every room.
Once immersed in this world of pleasure, Claire and Michael find themselves teased by the languidly sexual environment—and their blazing attraction to each other. But even as they “mask” their true identities, it’s too late.
Now Claire and Michael are caught up in the danger…and their desire. And the longer they stay in the sensuous world, the more dangerous it is!
Read an excerpt.
Other books in this series:
