The Book Gourmet

Oh, God...Yet another "Team Sixteen" member that I didn't particularly care for (Mike Muldoon came across as not overly bright in Over the Edge, and obnoxious at the same time with his bragging how easy is for him to get laid). In his book he was coupled with an annoying (older) heroine with issues about "dating" younger guys, but actually had no idea what she wanted, except when it was time to throw the young "gigolo" under the bus for her career.

The "romance" was dull and bland, the suspense so diluted it made my teeth hurt, the pacing could've (yet again) been better by throwing out the unnecessary fillers...The only reason I actually read this one through was (I can't believe I'm saying this!) the Sam/Alyssa soap-opera. This so-called saga of their on/off-again romance has been a pain in my butt since the beginning, since it kept intruding on other characters' stories, and whatever happened was entirely their fault (she acting like a bitch that brought out his inner asshole, and once they finally saw reason, he decides to be noble and marries the chick he got pregnant getting trapped in a loveless marriage while still pining away for the icy bitch), but those few words WildCard said to Mike in the beginning of this book clicked a switch or something, and I wanted to see how that side-plot ended.
And because their story is next, and I'm actually (once again, I can't believe I'm saying this!) looking forward to it and hope they work it out without descending into their default personalities (bitch/asshole) when dealing with each other. I'm also looking forward to getting the answer to the question that's been bugging me—are Alyssa and Max actually together (while being in love with other people), or are they just friends-with-benefits, or just friends-without-benefits to keep the people they love at arms' length.

So yes, if it weren't for the whole Sam/Alyssa thing, this one would've been DNFd as well.