Lorraine Heath's Once More, My Darling Rogue
Guys. GUYS. This is the historical romance version of OVERBOARD. (Shut up, I like that movie. I saw it ten million times on cable as a child and it has imprinted on me. "Tofutti, where are you when I need you?") I am not even exaggerating, if the guy had a bunch of rowdy sons it would be EXACTLY THE SAME. I mean, he totally tells an amnesiac snobby rich pretty lady that she's his housekeeper!!!!! She's even rescued from the water, and her relatives are plotting against her! And he's just like Kurt Russell's character, he manages a gambling hall but dreams of something bigger!!! (OK, Kurt Russell's character is a carpenter/handyman who wants to own a mini-golf course, but, same difference.) Plus, they are both jerks who lie to and manipulate vulnerable women!
As things moved toward the end, I was really annoyed that there was a whole victim/savior thing layered over what otherwise was a very enjoyable and silly story. The whole a-man's-love-equals-self-worth kind of thing--I'm not into it. Trauma is dealt with in a very perfunctory way. I also found the diary framing devices in this series to be a clumsy and corny way of wrapping things up. SIGH. I really wanted to like this one more than I did. Starts strong, ends badly, I guess that nets a B.
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