Rating: 
Summary: A mechanical repeat of JAK's usual plot
Review: I've been reading JAK since I first found her as Jayne Castle and have spent many enjoyable hours hunting down her work under all her pen names. She has been one of a very select number of authors I buy in hardback, but no longer. I agree with a previous reviewer, you always know the issues and basic characters in a JAK book, but they used to have more life and spontaneity. For me, her last 3, 4 or even 5 novels have been stilted, blurred copies of her earlier body of work. Although I will continue to buy her books, hoping for her old style, I won't buy them in hardback. I recommend first time readers try some of her earlier books, in paperback.
Rating: 
Summary: Slick but disappointing
Review: I've loved JAK's books for years for their vibrancy and sparkle. I'd hoped she'd break the trend of smooth reworking of familiar forumulas and return to her former emotional intensity. But, sad to say, this doesn't do it. Oh, it isn't *bad*, it's just blah. She skips the New Age element this time, but everything else is the same. I don't mind authors having distinctive styles and outlooks, but JAK's recent books read like manufactured units dropping off the assembly line. I don't think it's a case of JAK going more mainstream like Iris Johansen or even Linda Howard. This is obviously targeted as a romance, but while the plot premise is clever enough, the characters never come to life at all. The plot can't carry the book over the too-familiar terrain when the love and romance stays so flat and uninvolving. If you're a die-hard JAK fan, this will stave off the worst of your cravings, but it won't feed your hunger the way even rereading some of her older books would. It's okay--but only okay. It certainly is not a keeper, and not a likely hardback investment. I'm about given up hope that JAK will be one of those authors whose books I eagerly await. And that's a pity.
Rating:
Summary: Just not up to JAK's standard
Review: I, too, have read most of JAK's books and especially appreciate her Amanda Quick historical genre. But, Soft Focus was a disappointment partly because I paid full hardback price for a "too pat" story that would be acceptable only if I had found it in the used paperback or reduced price tables. I am tired of the lack of commitment before sex---stupid, dangerous examples for us validate by buying Krentz novels. Also, the dialogue was "not fun" or witty. I kept falling asleep but usually I read romances all through the day and night. My advice is to wait for a paperback, as I will on the next Krentz. Where oh where has one of my favorite writers gone? ( Guess I'll revert back to Garwood, Devereaux, and McNaught for the new hardbacks! )
Rating:
Summary: Sleepytime
Review: It took effort to finish this boring, drawn out story. When the end came I had forgotten the purpose of the beginning. Jack is a macho businessman, Elizabeth is a power business women. The main subject is a crystal, named Soft Focus that is stolen, and throws them together in a search they don't seem to take very serious. Noir film festival comes into play, not exciting or mysterious. This book almost made my Waste of Time rating.
Rating: 
Summary: Not the best Jayne Ann Krentz
Review: It was hard to believe that this novel was written by JAK. The prologue was the best part of the book. It started out with an explosion of character involvement and then the fire went out. She failed to give the reader a true insight into the main characters. I was hard pressed to understand why the two main characters were attracted to each other. I could only assume it was because they were trying to save a small company. There was no "electricity" between them. She had numerous secondary characters that never stood on their own. I read the entire book in one weekend, only because if I put the book down, I could not remember who was who. I hope the real JAK comes back to us soon.
Rating:
Summary: Where Is the Real Jayne Ann Krentz?
Review: It was hard to believe that this novel was written by JAK. The prologue was the best part of the book. It started out with an explosion of character involvement and then the fire went out. She failed to give the reader a true insight into the main characters. I was hard pressed to understand why the two main characters were attracted to each other. I could only assume it was because they were trying to save a small company. There was no "electricity" between them. She had numerous secondary characters that never stood on their own. I read the entire book in one weekend, only because if I put the book down, I could not remember who was who. I hope the real JAK comes back to us soon.
Rating:
Summary: enjoyable, low-key banter
Review: Jack and Elizabeth, the hero and heroine, are more like a fun married couple than people in the throes of falling in love. Although I agree with most reviewers' comments about the plot, I still liked the book. It's like a buddy movie in the guise of film noir. The plot was just the background for some polished and enjoyable dialog. There wasn't a lot of drama in Jack and Elizabeth's relationship. Although Jayne Ann Krentz set up a fairly dramatic conflict, the characters seemed like people who knew they were right for each other but were just giving each other a hard time. Listening to these two strong, confident, fairly normal characters banter was fun. They're a great match.
Rating:
Summary: SILLY AND CONFUSING
Review: Jack Fairfax, the CEO of Excalibur, and Elizabeth Cabot, the head of an investment fund financing Excalibur, are one-time lovers that are thrown back together to find a missing scientist. Jack and Elizabeth had a rocky (romantic) relationship together, so it comes as no surprise the pair are not happy about working together, but due to a contract between their two companies, they have no choice but to look into the disappearance of a scientist who invented (soft focus) a computer crystal. The investigation will lead the two into the dark world of film making, a world where no one can be trusted. As the two get closer to solving this puzzle involving the disappearance and the making of "noir" films, they will find they can not hide their attraction for each other. "Soft Focus" is confusing and silly, it is extremely predictable in the romance of the two main characters, and the plot gets way out of control...combining the computer crystal, big business, a missing scientist, shady characters, and the film industry all into one novel where nothing seems to fit. Jayne Ann Krentz has tried to put a new spin on her latest thriller, unfortunately it does not work, and the reader suffers from confusion and boredom. Better luck next time! Thriller readers and readers of Ms. Krentz's previous novels can pass on this one. Nick Gonnella
Rating:
Summary: I expect better out of JAK...
Review: JAK is an intelligent writer and capable of writing intelligent prose, evocative romance and page-turner plots (eg. Family Man, Gift of Gold/Fire, Grand Passion, Trust Me, Perfect Partners, etc.). I've read 39 JAK books and really enjoyed most of them. And, I re-read my favorites with regularity. However, her last four books (Sharp Edges, Flash, Eye of the Beholder and Soft Focus) are so formulaic that they are almost boring in their precidictability. It's irksome to shell out the money for an anxiously awaited hardback only to find that the characters are prosaic, the romance is tepid and the plot is so fomulaic that the characters' first sexual encounter occurs on the same page as each of the previous books (page 158, check it out)! Such is the case with Soft Focus. It is an OK read, but has characters and a storyline that are completely forgetable. I love JAK's early work so much that I will probably continue to buy and read her new publications as soon as they reach the bookstore, but I'm disappointed that her previously creative mind is cranking out such pedestrian work! For the price of a hardcover, I expect better from JAK!
Rating:
Summary: Krentz hits all time low with Soft Focus
Review: Jayne Ann Krentz does not write page-turners. Her books are light entertainment. As Krentz has moved her emphasis away from the romantic, towards suspense, her breezy style has turned against her, but never more so than in her most recent offering, Soft Focus. The relationship between the hero and heroine can't save you from a mystery that is as fatuous as it is boring and predictable. This book is not mysterious, suspenseful, or romantic. What's left? Recommendation: send a message to the publisher with your credit card; do not buy this one!
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