Review: Baby Bonanza by Maureen Child.

Posted March 30, 2009 by Holly in News, Reviews | 8 Comments

Twins? The startling revelation that his affair with Jenna Baker had produced two little boys was almost impossible to grasp. Tycoon Nick Falco had never considered himself the settling-down type, yet now that fatherhood had been thrust upon him, he was determined to give his sons his name. But their mother wasn’t about to let him back into her life…at least not without those three little words Nick had never, ever said.

This is another free read available from Harlequin to celebrate their 60th anniversary. I don’t know that I’ve ever read anything from the Desire line prior to this and I have to tell you, I wasn’t super impressed.

This wasn’t a secret baby story in the traditional sense. Nick and Jenna had an affair until he realized she was actually one of his employees, and not a guest on his cruise ship. He broke things off immediately, fired her and refused to have anything to do with her after that. For almost a year she tried to contact him to let him know about his sons, but he refused to open her emails or take her calls. Out of desperation, she finally books a cruise on one of his ships so she can corner him face-to-face.

Not only does she think he has a right to know about his children, she also needs financial support for them. She has no illusions about the kind of man Nick is, so she figures he’ll be happy to send her a check every month and leave her alone otherwise. But she’s in for a surprise, because Nick does want to be part of his son’s lives. Well, if they’re really his, that is. He demands a DNA test and insists Jenna stick around until the results come back, so they can make plans.

I think my problem with this story was Nick. I actually liked Jenna, though I do think she showed doormat tendencies at times. The issue here is that Nick was an ass at the beginning of the story and he just continued right on being an ass all the way through until the end. I understood his reasons for being angry with Jenna, I even sympathized with him. That wasn’t my problem. My problem was that his inner dialogue didn’t mesh with his actions. I guess things were just resolved in the end too quickly. Nick spent the entire book thinking of Jenna as a good lay and liar. He didn’t really have “caring” thoughts about her, or really even show her common courtesy or decency. He treated her like he would a good lay and a liar.

I could have forgiven that if there’d been some growth toward the end, but unfortunately that never happened. In the end I was left wondering why Jenna wanted to be with him in the first place and doubting that he was ready to be a family man. Although it had some good parts, overall I was disappointed.

2.5 out of 5

This book is available from Silhouette Desire. You can download it here for free.


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8 responses to “Review: Baby Bonanza by Maureen Child.

  1. Oh gosh – this sounds very like an old HQ I picked up recently and – weirdly – enjoyed. I think I have a sort of liking for certain categories in which the heroes are so unredeemably awful. It’s like they’re the heroes I love to hate.

    That guy has a BIG face.

  2. Dear sweet Mama that has to one of the worst covers I’ve ever seen!! From the weird looking/wierd sized babies to the stunned look on the not very attractive ‘hero’ one can only hope that both babies let loose at the same time and really give him shit.
    And the actual story sounds horrendous. There is no way I would touch this one!!

  3. I also used to love the Silhouette Desire line way back in the (pre-Harlequin) days. Somehow, despite the hero’s scary chin, I was intrigued, but hadn’t gotten around to downloading this one. Maybe I’ll just stick to the one’s I’ve already gotten. 🙂

  4. Wendy

    I downloaded this one because it was free, but I’m not sure I’ll ever read it. LOL It just sounds like the kind of book that would drive me bat-shit crazy.

    Side note: I used to love the SD line until they morphed into HP Jr. Now they’re all billionaires, tycoons, sheiks, and virgin secretaries. Sigh. Elizabeth Beverly wrote some wonderful SDs…..

  5. Definitely a scary cover!

    Nick spent the entire book thinking of Jenna as a good lay and liar. He didn’t really have “caring” thoughts about her, or really even show her common courtesy or decency.

    And as you said, why would you want to be with someone like that?

  6. Seneca

    I’ve been meaning to read this but the cover snob in me can’t get to it. If that dude is the hero then I sure as shit don’t want to read about him. He is uuuugly.

  7. Anonymous

    “Oh gosh – this sounds very like an old HQ I picked up recently and – weirdly – enjoyed. I think I have a sort of liking for certain categories in which the heroes are so unredeemably awful. It’s like they’re the heroes I love to hate.”

    Oh, thank God it’s not just me! I was just feeling So. Weird. because this review made me totally want to read the book. 😉 Honestly, I wouldn’t want a sole diet of them, but awful heroes like that can be really fun at time. And I’m reading Catherine Anderson right now, which always makes me want a horrible hero, just to compensate for all the sweet. 😉 — willaful

  8. The cover is awful..but then again, I rarely find HQ covers I do like. 🙁 I read this one as part of the freebies…. he was a turn off, and the story ended too easily for my liking.

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