Wednesday, August 20, 2003

Just Watch Me, by Julie Elizabeth Leto

Finally, after 2 Harlequin Blaze duds, one that was at least ok: Just Watch Me, by Julie Elizabeth Leto.

Jillian Hennessy is supposed to be watching a man suspected of insurance fraud. But when wires get crossed and she ends up watching Cade Lawrence, a sexy undercover cop on a similar assignment, the watching soon turns to wanting...and more!
I wasn't too crazy about this book, but there was nothing too wrong about it. A B-.

I liked this better than the last Leto I read, Double The Pleasure, just as I did in that case, I liked it less than I should given that many of the elements present are some I usually enjoy.

Both characters were likeable, and the setup was interesting. It only provided a backdrop to what was really mostly an erotic adventure. Still, I was pretty intrigued by Stanley and wanted to know what was up with him.

About the erotic adventure thing, it was very well done. The "voyeurism" element was fresh and interesting, and the love scenes were inventive and well written. I especially liked that sex was treated as something natural and fun. Only, why had Jillian been with only one guy in her entire life? This didn't really fit in with the rest of the story, and felt like a concession to those readers who can't handle a heroine with a normal sexual history.

I liked the way Jullian and Cade reacted when learning the truth about what each of them was doing. Their answer was basically to work together as a team, which was something I enjoyed. No outraged "You lied to me!!" idiocy, since they both recognized they each had lied to the other, and for good reasons.

The only thing that made me a little uncomfortable was Jillian's self-serving justification for using illegal wiretaps. Yes, she ultimately decided not to do it any more, and Cade really told her what he thought of it, but it made me uncomfortable that she was prepared to blithely invade people's privacy... simply because she had little doubt they were guilty. Grr!!!

Still, after all that, I wasn't all that involved in these two's love story. I actually remember thinking that it would be ok with me if they didn't stay together in the end... if the story were erotica without HEA.