This is one of those books that really mess with me. I want to like the book, because I like that the author wrote a character that makes sense from an emotional standpoint. I want to praise the heck out of that. Instead, I find myself absolutely hating it because that same character, while understandable, makes me completely looney.I'll just come right out and say it. The heroine is a lunatic. She didn't need a boyfriend and hot sex. She needed intensive psycho-therapy and another year to get over an event that clearly traumatized her, in addition to all the other emotional baggage she's been toting around for years and years. Because it's clear that this woman doesn't get over things. She just lugs her hurts around and harps on it all to death.Her husband of less than a year cheated on her. She signed the divorce papers on her one year anniversary. That's legitimately awful. I get that. She has complex Daddy issues because her father basically ignores her and favors her sister. That's rough; I get that too. She had a short but intense (on her end, anyway) love affair as a teenager with the hero and it left her broken hearted. Sad, but haven't we all got similar stories? I should be able to relate to that.The problem is that she NEVER owns up to these emotional problems. Not really. Not fully. She constantly flings the hero's actions in his face throughout present day. But it's not fair to do so. He was 19 and on the rebound. She was 17 and dishonest about EVERYTHING related to that relationship: she kept the relationship a secret from her friends and family and she kept her virginity a secret from him. Sucky, but again, she was a teenager. What did she know?What's REALLY unfair is that even as an adult, 10 years later, she is unable to see her own role in getting her heart broken. Not saying she was asking for it, but even older, she isn't any wiser. She's learned so little about relationships that she never looks at her actions and takes responsibility. It's allllll about how HE acted and how HE was wrong and how HE must not have changed.Hate to break it to do you, darling, but the hero isn't the one who still acts like a teenager.Then there's her reaction to her divorce and having to move back home. What a terrible, demoralizing time for her. That's truly a difficult position to be in. I'd weep every day if I were in her shoes. My problem is that she still breaks down into random tears. (So been there.) Unfortunately, that's a big CLUE about her real emotional state. This is not someone who is ready for a relationship. This is someone who needs a therapist. A real therapist, not a divorce support group. An expert who will call her on her bull when she needs it, just as often as they hand her tissues when she needs them.We won't delve into the Daddy stuff, because nobody reads romance novels to explore the heroine's relationship with her father. Bottom line is that the heroine was a severely damaged person. The hero, on the other hand, never really materialized for me. He never became real. He has a past as burnt out Chicago cop, a couple of pushy broads for his mother and grandmother (slight quibble: Grandma is from Warsaw. He should be calling her Babcia, not Grandma), and a sexy, sexy body. For some reason, I just never saw under the hood, which is funny considering how much I just wrote about the complex and sad mentality of his female counterpart.But isn't that always the way? It's so much easier to be hard on the female, because often, that's the equation side I'd be on. I'm reading the book from my perspective as the female half. Understanding her makes it that much easier to criticize her. Him, I just want him for the romance and sex scenes. This story of a couple who come back together after a teenage affair is filled with a whole lot of laughter. & a some soul searching from the main characters. For they are both coming to realize their true feelings from long ago from a whole lot of help from crazy family members. Not to mention a very busy body town. But they keep getting thrown together so they really have to confront their past relationship as well as their past in general. I highly recommend.
What do You think about Tempted Again (2012)?
Good book & easy read. Wish it had a little more spice! :)
—hulagirltati
