~Dear Cupid~

by Julie Ortolon

      Heroine: solid, generously endowed young mother

      Take Kate Bradshaw, one spunky, fiery-haired, cat-eyed Romance columnist.  (Think Renee Russo meets Marilyn Monroe.) Give her a messy divorce from an apathetic husband, and threaten to take away her job--the only way for her to provide for her sickly young son.  When her confidence is sufficiently shaken, put her in airport full of men she'll never see again and watch this normally self-assured and self-possessed woman test herself to see if she's still got "IT" by using one of the oldest tricks in the book: a very hot variation on the old bump-into-a-gorgeous-guy-and-dump-your-purse-at-his-feet stunt.

       Now take one haplessly unaware handsome man and put him in Kate's cross-hairs.  Special effects wizard Mike Cameron (a Kevin Costner/Judge Reinhold amalgam) is simply minding his own business while waiting for his flight, reflecting upon the state of his long-term bachelorhood and finding it somewhat lacking.  For the first time in his life he's giving serious thought to settling down.  But how does he go about finding the right woman for himself?  It's not as though she'll just fall into his lap, right?

      What worked for me:

       This was a fun couple; I really liked the interaction between Kate and Mike.  Kate had no qualms about possessing such a classically feminine shape, and seemed very comfortable with herself.  Mike certainly loved the way she looked, but was also intrigued by the way she got him so wound him up at the airport only to just drop out of sight. Watching Mike pursue Kate was very enjoyable.  I know I certainly wouldn't mind having a man like that chase after me!

       There was also a very sweet secondary romance which I think might be interesting to explore as a prequel to this book, as well as potential for turning Kate into Cupid a few more times for Mike's three sisters.

What didn't work for me:

       Understandably Kate was skittish about getting into a relationship again, especially since doing so put her young son's heart at risk as much as it did hers.  But there were times when I just felt so frustrated that Kate couldn't see what others did: that Mike is the "Real Deal".  Also, the sickly son/deadbeat dad storyline was a bit predictable, but I didn't feel it hurt the story in any way except that it slowed the pace a bit.  Of course, removing these situations from the story would have meant that Mike and Kate would have gotten together faster and that the book would have been over that much sooner, which I wouldn't have cared for at all. :^)

Overall:

      I really loved this book!  It was fresh and funny with a unique approach.  The little "Dear Cupid" letters at the opening of each chapter were wonderful, and the one at the end of the book was the best of all. :^)  A great bubble bath book, but be forewarned that you'll spend a lot of time laughing so beware the danger of drowning yourself during a giggle fit.

If you liked "Dear Cupid" you might also enjoy "Love at Large", "Midsummer Lightning", "The Independent Bride", "The Librarian's Passionate Knight", "The Bridesmaid's Reward", "Born to be Wild", "Runaway Bay",  "Carried Away", "His Seductive Revenge", "Looking for Laura", "It Had to be You", "This Heart of Mine", "Welcome to Temptation", "Faking It", or "Sweet Memories".

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