Rating: 
Summary: Lisa Kleypas is the best!!!
Review: Suddenly You was such a wonderful story! I just loved Jack! I am all about the Alpha male and he totally fit the bill!!! I dont even read the backs of Lisa Kleypas books anymore, I just grab them and throw them into the shopping cart! This is a book not to be missed!!!!
Rating: 
Summary: And it started out so well...
Review: I bought this book with moderate expectations, and to be fair, it exceeded almost all of them. This was my first Lisa Kleypas novel, and it probably really deserves 3 1/2 stars. But...The novel began brilliantly. When I put it down halfway through, I thought: "How original! How sensual!"--as has been remarked by several other readers. Jack and Amanda were entirely likeable characters and, in the beginning, made a fascinating pair. Unfortunately, therein lies the rub. I grew to like the two characters so much that I had high hopes for the rest of the story. Kleypas began with an original plot, steering clear of the over-trod path of the nobility. The careers of both Jack and Amanda gave them depth (if not accuracy) beyond that of the usual typecast lords and ladies. The novel skips any potential forays into anything resmebling mystery or external conflict and chooses instead to focus on Jack and Amanda. Which would have been fine, had Ms. Kleypas not already divulged pretty much everything we wanted to know about the two. (...) Ans what began as sensual and compelling degenerates into what seems to be Ms. Kleypas' attempts to outdue herself. Don't get me wrong--I have nothing against the content of the last few love scenes, just the random placement within the text. I felt that the love scenes lost some steam along with the story, or perhaps because the love scenes BECAME the story. Poor Amanda and Jack. The novel is kind of like watching your best friends star in a Lifetime film. Here are two people you really like, with so much potential-- the conflict over Amanda's manuscript could have been exxaggerated, there could have been rival from another publisher, maybe a little family mayhem concerning Jack's background. Every chapter I would read something interesting and think, "Oh, Kelypas is going to take off with THIS!" But, *sigh*, no. The plot was pretty basic Romance Writer 101 stuff. And the way in which "fate conspired for them to marry" (as the back cover alludes to) was the oldest trick in the book... sigh, so many potential plotlines left unexplored there. All in all though I should be congratulating Ms. Kleypas for creating two characters and a premise with so much promise. Since the first half of the book was refreshing, I will definitely be looking into some other books by the author. The novel is still worth the read, however, if you're looking for a little fun. As many other reviewers pointed out, Lisa Kleypas is pretty deft with her love scenes. :-)
Rating: 
Summary: Rather disappointing...
Review: Successful writer, Amanda Briars is preparing to celebrate her thirtieth birthday in a most interesting way. She's unmarried, believes she will remain alone, and she's a virgin. So she visits a local madam to hire a man as her special birthday present. But the madam decides to do a little matchmaking. By the time Amanda opens the door for her visitor, she's having second thoughts. What she doesn't know is the devastatingly handsome man at her door is Jack Devlin, London's most notorious publisher. Once he realizes he's not who she's expecting, he comes close to fulfilling her birthday wish, but he has other plans for her. Once she realizes her mistake, she's embarrassed and upset with him for not revealing his identity. He wants to publish one of her books, and uses the events of his visit to gain her agreement. Working closely together, it's not long before they succumb to the growing attraction between them. But they will have some obstacles to overcome before they can remain together. First of all, this was the first novel I've read by Ms. Kleypas. When reading the back cover of this book, I was intrigued because it sounded different and original. The first half of the book was interesting, and I enjoyed the fact it was about the publishing world, and not the nobility. That seemed refreshing. Jack was certainly a sexy hero, so that was another good point. However, halfway through the book, I lost interest and just quickly skimmed through the rest. What should have been a character driven sensual romance, turned into a mundane, lackluster story. Except of course for the love scenes. And I use the term "love" loosely here, because I don't find it sensual to read about every which way you can sex. And the crowning glory was one of the last scenes, which gives new meaning to the term "fruit filling".
I gave this story two stars for the first half which I enjoyed, and I will probably try another book by Ms. Kleypas, because I do think she has writing talent. I just can't recommend this particular book.
Rating: 
Summary: This was very nearly 5 stars...I really liked it!
Review: It was sexy, romantic, and original. I could have done without the anal play and raspberry scene towards the end of the book, but maybe that's just me.:) I would highly recommend this book to any romance reader.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful Romance
Review: Okay thank you Lisa Kleypas for an unusual heroine and a wonderful love story. Meet Amanda Briars, upcoming writer, and overweight spinster. She decides for her thirtieth birthday she is going to give herself the ultimate birthday present, a man. She goes to a "madam who deals with ladies of the evening" and asks her to send a "man" to her home. Jack Devlin is a very rich businessman who has a huge publishing empire. He goes to Amanda's house to attempt to convince her to help him rewrite an old story of hers that he bought from another publisher. Amanda mistakes Jack for her "man of the evening," and Jack is quite surprised and instantly interested in Amanda. This is an excellent story and you will not be disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: Sensual. A Big 4 Stars.
Review: An easy read = a perfect plot. A light read = a perfect plot. A vacation read = a perfect plot. This is a perfect plot. He is sexy, tender, respectful, rich. She is intelligent, self-supporting, realistic about life, and an adult woman. And they happen to meet. This is a perfect plot. To boot, Lisa Kleypas can write a sex scene, grown up material, exciting without being offensive. But a perfect book? No. Jack Devlin is a big time publisher. He oozes sex appeal, he attracts people like bees to honey, and he earns money hand over fist. He may not be a Lord of the English realm, but he is a "lord". Amanda Briars is a plump, passable, 30 year old spinster, who happens to write successful novels. For their first encounter, the author uses the clever idea of mistaken identity. Amanda confuses Jack for a gigolo she hired for a night of personal pleasure. A birthday gift, for herself, commemorating her big 30. And oh what fun! Jack soon realizes the error. Amanda is left in the dark. Trust me; the reader will so enjoy this passage, it will be read again. Lisa Kleypas does wonderful things with Jack's character, I loved her idea of the sexy, soft Irish accent, the silky Gaelic words he tenderly whispers. Sigh. Yet, the sketch of Amanda remains cool, she didn't bewitch this reader. I felt no intense feeling for this lady; Amanda walked through the part. And the obvious "Take advantage of the kind, sympathetic Charles Hartley" was a horrible writing strategy. This reader's wrap up:
* the beginning of the book was innovative.
* the affair was fun -- steamy and sizzling.
* the idea of Amanda's life style and her editorial run -- far too progressive for the era.
* the book's atmosphere felt contemporary.
* the last fifty pages were anticlimactic. Grace Atkinson, Ontario - Canada.
Rating:
Summary: This is a perfect representation of great, sensual romance
Review: I first read Suddenly You about two years ago, when I first began reading romance. I did not write reviews at the time but would make a few notes to myself concerning how much I enjoyed the book - if it were keeper status - and then assigned a grade to it. Of course I gave Suddenly You the highest rating two years ago but my only notes were "Read again and again and again!" Although I have a fairly large keeper shelf, I seldom read books that second time. I think I'll change my mind about that because I enjoyed Suddenly You as much or more the second reading and it still goes back on my keeper shelf. It is a great romance with a bit of naughtiness and great leads. I remember that I had relished Kleypas' unusual characters in that they were - refreshingly - not members of the aristocracy. And even though I have literally read hundreds of romance books since Suddenly You, I still remembered the opening scene. It really sticks in your mind. Where else in romance have I read of a nineteenth century spinster hiring a man to take her virginity for her thirtieth birthday present to herself? Amanda Briars is a strong mature heroine who also is a well-known author. She lives a contented life in London in her small home with three servants. She is not rich but she has a comfortable income and decides that before she is too old, she wants to experience a physical relationship with a man just once. She never plans to marry and believes it would be foolish to hope for marriage at her age. Although she is very attractive, she does not see herself as much beyond plain. The night of her thirtieth birthday, a man shows up at her door to talk with her about publishing one of her books and Amanda mistakes him as her "gift". Jack Devlin is a man who knows what he wants in life and accomplishes almost anything he sets out to do. He has risen from a penniless youth to own the largest publishing house in London and has diversified this publishing business into many additional sources of income. He is our classic hero with an extreme amount of arrogance, alpha deluxe, handsome, and rich. He is a workaholic basically and doesn't care much for society unless it is to advance his business interests. He visits Amanda Briars one evening to discuss publishing with her and is greatly surprised to find that she believes him to be her hired "gift" for the evening. The resulting scenario is quite entertaining but Jack ends up being a good guy in the end (he thinks) by not completely fulfilling the "gift" role. He leaves without making Amanda aware of his true identity. Within days of this encounter, Amanda formally meets Jack for the first time at a party and is greatly mortified and incensed that Jack played along - even a little - as her birthday "gift". The delicious repartee between the two fill pages as they get to know each other and as Jack pursues Amanda concerning publishing one of her novels. But Jack doesn't just pursue Amanda for business purposes. They both are highly attracted to the other and although each is determined not to indulge in an affair - it seems it is beyond their control. The book is highly entertaining and quite sensual. The sensual rating is a strong 4.50 out of 5.0 (see More About Me for rating guidelines). Amanda keeps a pretty sound head throughout it all. I thought most of her actions seemed realistic and well warranted considering the social expectations of the day. Jack is not as protective of Amanda's reputation as he should be and thus the story spins. Suddenly You is probably my favorite Kleypas book to date. I have read nine of her books and I can't remember being disappointed in any if them. Once I began reading her books, she quickly became one of my favorite authors. She also holds the status of a "must read" author when she releases a new book. She consistently writes highly entertaining historical romance.
Rating:
Summary: Could have been better
Review: This book started out with a lot of promise. I liked both hero and heroine immediately, and I was intrigued by the relatively original premise. Unfortunately, about halfway through, it started to go downhill. All character development went out the window, and minor plot details were tossed about willy-nilly. E.g., In the beginning of the book, much is made of the fact that Amanda is always cold; suddenly we hear no more about it. (there's another thing I could cite but won't because it gives away a key plot point!) Also, although I liked Jack and enjoyed the fact that he wasn't just another nobleman-with-a-heart-of-gold, sex seemed to be his answer to everything. Fight with Amanda? Make-up sex! Problems with the publishing house? Sex! Amanda's feeling sad/ugly/ill? Sex! Sure, this is a romance novel, but what about a little intellectual romance, too? I enjoy Lisa Kleypas' work and her unique take on the romance novel, but I thought she could have made this one so much better.
Rating:
Summary: Very good, but not her best.
Review: What I loved about the book: the hero. Jack is fantastic. Lisa Kleypas has an extraordinary talent to create delicious male characters. He is intelligent, succesful, compassionate, kind, handsome, and very, very sexy. What more can a girl want? What I had problems with: Amanda. She was an original heroine, well portrayed and real. I really, really wanted to like her, specially since I rather simpathyze with her insecurities about her body. Having that kind of figure myself, I can totally relate with her efforts to stay trim. At least nowdays we have gyms and lots of information about nutrition to help us stay in shape, in her time, however, it must have been extremely difficult for a woman who tends toward plumpness to keep her figure. I liked the fact that she was not one of those "perfect" heroines, who are slim and petite, and have a waist that the hero can encompass with his hands, but was still sensual, femenine and desirable. However, in spite of this, I could not like her very much. It was her attitude. She acted too much like a spinster old aunt, always speaking "tartly" and protesting overall too much. And at the beginning her insecurities were kind of cute, but after a while her whining got a little annoying. The woman was incapable of receiving a compliment graciously! Every time Jack told her she was beautiful, she argued "tartly" she was not, and instantly assumed he was just being kind. For heavens sake woman, if he finds you beautiful, just shut up and enjoy! Also, I did not like the way she handled their affair, ending it for no good reason, when it was obvious that they craved each other. To me, to end the affair, causing them both pain, just because it might eventually have ended and caused them pain, doesn't make much sense. Does it? The book was very sensual. I think Lisa Kleypas writes some of the steamiest love scenes in the romance genre, only equaled in this by Stephanie Laurens. However, in this book she kind of pushed the limits of what is tasteful. It was towards the end of the book, right after Jack secret is revealed. I'm not a prude, I enjoy hot sex scenes as much as the next person, but I don't consider what is described in this scene sexy or even pleasurable. I have to say however, that in spite of this I enjoyed the book. I know that judging by my review it doesn't look like it, but I really did. Lisa Kleypas is still one of my favorite authors. Her characters are real and human, and I like the fact that she doesn't always write about the aristocracy. Most of her characters are succesful business people and professionals, which shows us other sides of the 19th century england society. If you want to read what I consider is her best books yet, try her Bow Street Runners series ("Someone to Watch Over Me";"Lady Sophia's Lover" and "Worth Any Price") You won't be dissapointed.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: Suddenly You is another Lisa Kleypa's book that you can't go wrong taking the time out of your busy schedule to read. The characters are very well developed, and the book is extremely fast paced. You will not find this one lagging at times like many other romance novels are. Lisa Kleypa's has rapidly become one of my favorite romance novelists that ranks alongside Judith McNaught and Kat Martin.
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