Honest Illusions, Nora Roberts

Ugh, I hated this book, and that's even more disappointing because I've read others by her that were tolerable and even pretty okay. It's the kind of romantic plot where if only ANYONE involved would tell ANYONE ELSE THE TRUTH, then there would be, essentially, no problems and no plot anymore. Therefore, everyone has to lie all the way through. For example, the good guy gets blackmailed into fleeing the country, leaving behind his girlfriend, for 5 years. When he gets back, she won't tell him he has a kid, and she REFUSES to let him tell her where he's been and why. Oh, she'll sleep with him, but every time he starts to explain, she freaks out. WHAT? 

Even more indicative of my problems with this story, we get a nice scene of him losing his virginity at 15. It's a little creepy. But our heroine decides not to have sex until she's won the hero's heart over, at like, 23. Which doesn't even make sense, in retrospect, because it's a whole big thing in the book that someone has to point out to her that their arguing is "sparks flying" everywhere, at which point she seduces him. 

The worst part is, I kind of liked them both as kids. But then everything gets ruined. Characters are treated poorly, and act totally out of character to further the plot. No one will tell anyone the truth. A bad guy is introduced who could have perfectly logical reasons for disliking the main characters, but instead is a psychopath. Oh, and we're supposed to buy that some people who steal are bad, but our heroes are moral thieves. (I could write SO MUCH about how that would have worked in another story, but didn't here.)

Grade: F

Originally posted 2006