COOL. CALM. COLLECTED.

Nothing fazes Taylor Donovan. In the courtroom she never lets the opposition see her sweat. In her personal life, she never lets any man rattle her–not even her cheating ex-fiancé. So when she’s assigned to coach People’s “Sexiest Man Alive” for his role in his next big legal thriller, she refuses to fall for the Hollywood heartthrob’s charms. Even if he is the Jason Andrews.

CONFIDENT. FAMOUS. IRRESISTIBLE.

Jason Andrews is used to having women fall at his feet. When Taylor Donovan gives him the cold shoulder, he’s thrown for a loop. She’s unlike any other woman he’s ever met: uninterested in the limelight, seemingly immune to his advances, and shockingly capable of saying no to him. She’s the perfect challenge. And the more she rejects him, the more he begins to realize that she may just be his perfect match. . .

Just the Sexiest Man Alive is Julie James‘ debut novel. Rowena read it months ago, and then Casee read it, and then they ganged up on me and told me I had to read it. But I hesitated. Mostly because the main characters were in professions I generally don’t care to read about. An attorney and a movie star. First, the pairing seems unlikely. Second, I’ve found in the past that attorneys don’t work for me as main characters. Mostly I find them to be intolerable and overly arrogant. Or TSTL. I’m wondering now if that’s because none of the authors who wrote attorney characters in the past WERE attorneys.

Or, more simply put, I shouldn’t have doubted the girls and waited so long to read this. It was outstanding.

I think one of the best parts about this book is how arrogant and real both main characters were. Jason full expected his “little smile” to get him whatever he wanted, and Taylor had every confidence in herself as an attorney. Neither character apologized for how they were. I loved that. James didn’t take the easy way out with either character. It was very refreshing.

Despite their arrogance both characters were very likable. Jason’s absolute shock at Taylor’s disinterest in his career and what it could do for her was hilarious, as was Taylor’s constant surprise at how sexy Jason was, even though she hated him. There were times I literally laughed out loud at some of their inner thoughts.

Another great thing about this book is the dialogue. It’s very strong and witty, without trying too hard. Some of Taylor’s snappy comebacks had me cracking up. I love that she had a sarcastic sense of humor. There aren’t many authors who can do sarcasm and make it work.

The chemistry between them was fantastic and really leapt off the pages. There was humor, sexual attraction and a surprising amount of tenderness.

I enjoyed the secondary characters, too. Taylor’s girlfriends were a hoot, especially when they realize she’s “seeing” THE Jason Andrews. Jason’s best friend Jeremy was also a strong supporting character and I like that they had a good relationship. We don’t see enough male friendship in romance novels, IMO.

Some things I didn’t like: Jason seemed rather immature in the beginning. He acted more like a man in his younger-to-mid-20’s than someone who was “in his 30’s”. As the novel progressed he seemed to mature some, but I was honestly surprised to learn his actual age.

The lack of backstory for both characters. Although their backgrounds are given a cursory mention I was disappointed in the lack of full backstory for both of them. I suppose I understand why we didn’t hear more about each of their pasts, but I wanted more from them.

And lastly, something personal. This is just a personal pet peeve and actually has nothing to do with the story at all. Just so you know…

Jason winked. A lot. So much so that I was starting to wonder if he had a permanent eye twitch, Tourettes, or a secret desire to become a pirate. He must have winked at least once a page. At first it didn’t bother me, but after awhile it started taking me out of the story.

The issues were minor, however, and didn’t detract from my overall enjoyment. Actually, since I first read this book on February 3rd I’ve re-read it at least 4 times. I highly recommend this light, contemporary read.

4.25 out of 5

This book is available from Berkley. You can buy it here or here in e-format.

Be sure to come back later this morning, because Julie James will be here talking about her writing and celebrating her upcoming release!