REVIEW: The Best Laid Plans by Sarah Mayberry

Title: The Best Laid Plans
Author: Sarah Mayberry
Format: paperback, 275 pages
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Source: Harlequin Ambassadors
Published: November 2010 by Harlequin

Boundaries. The key to how corporate lawyer Alexandra Knight manages her busy life. However, lately all her precisely drawn lines are getting blurred. Blame it on her out-of-control biological clock that is ignoring her single status…and on Ethan Stone.

Because her sexy, no-strings colleague has posed an outrageous solution to her dilemma—he'll be her baby daddy. This from the guy who avoids all commitment? Okay, so they're attracted to each other. Really, really attracted. But crossing the line from coworker to co-parent with Ethan could ruin Alex for all other men. After all, when you've had the best…

Why I Read this Book: I usually don’t read romances where there are pregnancies and babies involved  because why would I want to read about that stuff when I’m living it? We read for an escape, right? And that wouldn’t be much of an escape for a mom of two, with one on the way, like me. But for some reason, and probably because I am pregnant at the moment, this book held an interest for me.

What I Liked: I read Her Best Friend (my review) and fairly enjoyed it. I like this author’s writing style and I like the Australian setting. I’ve been wanting to read more by this author and when this book came in the mail, I couldn’t wait to start reading it. (Confession: as soon as I got this book in the mail, I bumped it to the top of my TBR pile.) As much as I love reading paranormal romance and romantic suspense, sometimes a vixen needs to add some realistic romance to her reading mix. After reading the blurb on the back of the book, I really wanted to know how things were going to turn out for the hero and heroine.

The Best Laid Plans had somewhat of a friends to lovers feel to it. I say somewhat because Alex and Ethan are exactly ‘friends’. While they are colleagues who work at the same law firm and they play racquetball once a week, they don’t share personal details from their lives with one another. Still Ethan offered to help Alex with her baby situation which is a big thing to do.

I loved the chemistry between Alex and Ethan. Sure, they find each other physically attractive but I enjoyed watching their relationship go beyond that.

Poor guy, that Ethan. I just wanted to give the guy a hug. He’d been through hell and back. That ex-wife of his did a number on him; ripped him to shreds emotionally and pretty much damaged his chances of trusting another woman or falling in love again. Ethan’s ex-wife did the worst thing imaginable, something worse than having an extramarital affair. And Alex has her own past that she’s trying to overcome as well. Seems like the odds are stacked against these two with their troubled pasts but I was rooting for them.

What I Didn’t Like: I enjoyed this book for what it was. Nothing Earth moving; just a light contemporary romance read.

Overall Impression: If you’re looking for a realistic romance novel that sucks you right in with its storyline and characters, one that you won’t want to put down until you find out how things turn out, then I’d recommend reading The Best Laid Plans. That’s what it did for me. Well, that and the ending gave me the warm and fuzzies.

 

The Book Vixen’s Rating: