Rating: 
Summary: Sounded a Little Too Familiar
Review: This book started off really really good. The character Samantha was strong & feisty & fun. And her blooming relationship with the children was very enjoyable to read. And Colonel William Gregory promised to be a very sexy commander.However, as the story progressed, the Colonel proved to be just a stodgy, judgmental jerk who believes in guilty until proven innocent. There were things that Mr. Gregory was doing to catch the spy that were so tranparent it made the fact that he was an experienced commander of men in war, in a spy-ridden land completely unbelievable. To have a believable spy story, the spy catchers have to be smarter than the spies. Some of the activity was so dumb and lacking subtlety, it ruined what could have been a good spy plot. The ending was so cliche and predictable and the scene with all the children screamed "Sound of Music" ripoff. Some stories that are obviously based on other popular and classic fiction, for example, Julia Quinn's "Offer from a Gentleman" which was obviously a variation of "Cinderella", was so well written, and the story so tight & intelligent that you LIKED the story because it was a Cinderella story. Not so with this book. If you have half a brain, don't bother reading this book. But if you are in the mood to read a mindless novel about a reformed thief who has strong values and loves children who falls in love with an unbending, military jerk, who didn't seem smart enough to catch a thief (or a spy), then this is the book for you. Of course, their sexual interludes were well written and exciting. So for the good sex and Samantha's excellent character, I give this novel 1 star. Without the sex & Samantha, this book wouldn't even rate.
Rating: 
Summary: Sweet romance that heats up in a hurry!
Review: This was my first Christina Dodd book, and I thought the romance was sooo romantic and sweet - until I got to that one scene on the porch. Wow! And that last scene where Samantha has her way with William - really wow! I can see how Dodd got her reputation as a hot writer. I enjoyed the whole thing, and I'm searching for the rest of her books. Brava, Ms. Dodd!
Rating: 
Summary: Not Up To Snuff
Review: While I usually love Christina Dodd's books, this one left me rather empty. I didn't know going into it that it was an homage to "The Sound of Music" and felt that the parallels were hamfisted at best. I plan to read the others in this series, just to get a comparison - and I remain hopeful that they will prove better than this one. If you want to read a story for an afternoon's diversion that you do not have to think about, this is the one.
Rating:
Summary: Not Up To Snuff
Review: While I usually love Christina Dodd's books, this one left me rather empty. I didn't know going into it that it was an homage to "The Sound of Music" and felt that the parallels were hamfisted at best. I plan to read the others in this series, just to get a comparison - and I remain hopeful that they will prove better than this one. If you want to read a story for an afternoon's diversion that you do not have to think about, this is the one.
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