Tuesday, January 15, 2013

REVIEW: You Don't Know Jack by Erin McCarthy

Title: You Don't Know Jack (NY Girlfriends #2)
Author: Erin McCarthy
Publisher: Brava
Publication Date: October, 2006
Genre: Chick-Lit
Rating: 9/10

Description: Love. Sex. Destiny. And A Six-Foot-Four Psychic In A Bridesmaid’s Dress? Honey, You Don’t Know Jack

Jamie Peters no longer believes in true love. True idiots, true scumbags, true moochers—these she believes in wholeheartedly, and she’s got the checkered dating history to prove it. So she’s more than a little skeptical when her cross-dressing psychic tells her she’s about to meet her soul mate—during an accident. Yeah, sounds about right. And then it happens. A knight in shining armor steps between her and a mugger on a subway platform. Just a regular, honest, upright Jack. The kind they don’t make anymore…

Jonathon Davidson doesn't believe in destiny—or lying to beautiful women as a rule. But now that Jamie thinks he’s just an ordinary guy, how can he possibly tell her that he’s really, (A) her roommate’s brother, (B) a millionaire to boot, and (C) the jerk who’s investigating her application to his grandfather’s charitable trust because she may be involved in something illegal? Yeah, rhetorical question. He can’t. Not until he knows what’s going on. Besides, it would require being able to resist Jamie’s luscious curves long enough to say, “Hi, my name is Big Liar. Let’s get naked.” Sometimes, destiny sucks…

Somewhere between truth and flat-out-let’s-talk-about-this-waaay-later fiction, between fate and delicious accidental insanity, lies a whole lot of mind-blowing sex, delirious passion, unfortunate sundresses, fighting, deception, big mistakes and small hopes, and two people are about to discover that everything happens for a reason…

My Thoughts: You Don't Know Jack is the second book in the NY Girlfriends series by Erin McCarthy. I read the first book, The Pregnancy Test, almost five years ago and just found it to be OK. Not terrible, but definitely not great. Fortunately, this second book more than makes up for where the first book lacked. It had humor and was filled with some of the most hot and spicy sex scenes I have read in a long time. Some readers may even categorize this as erotica.

I loved these characters. Jamie and Jack make the perfect couple even though they are complete polar opposites. Jamie is a working class girl living in New York City with three roommates to make ends meet. She's a social worker who is helping paroled convicts re-enter the world as free men. She doesn't believe in the happily ever after fairy tale or in love. I thought Jamie's cynical nature would annoy me after a while, but it never did. Jamie lives by an unusual code of ethics and, up until she meets Jack, it has worked for her.

Normally, a man who lies to a woman from the start can't ever be trusted and I applaud the woman who tells these types of men where to go. Unfortunately, Jack isn't truthful with Jamie when they meet. He lies about the circumstances that have placed him on the subway she is on. He keeps his true identity to himself as he knows that Jamie would probably avoid him if she knew because a): he's her roommate, Caroline's brother, and b): he has a lot of money. We're talking about an obscene amount. He comes from money anyway, but we're talking about the kind of money that enables someone to officially retire from the corporate Wall Street career before turning thirty. This is definitely not the kind of lifestyle Jamie lives in or feels comfortable in. Last, but not least, Jack knows that Jamie would have a problem knowing who he really is because he just turned down her employer's request for funding and if she knew he suspected her of embezzling money, she might not react with sunshine and daisies. I totally understand why Jack keeps the truth from Jamie, but it still doesn't make it right and, of course, Jamie finds out and it doesn't look good for them to make a go of it.

The great thing about Jack is that even though he is mega rich, he's very likable, down to earth and very persistent. Jamie finds it extremely difficult to stay angry at him and not like him. In addition, he makes her feel things she has never felt before with any other man. Several times while reading this book, I wished I were Jamie.

My only very small problem with this book was the story left a lot of loose ends that leaves the reader hanging. I had a lot of "what about" questions at the end about Austin, Jack's grandfather, Jamie's father, Jamie's roommates, Caroline, Allison and Mandy. If you are like me when reading a book, specifically a book that is part of a series, you want those loose ends tied up, especially if those loose ends will have no relevance to the rest of the series. Unfortunately, I am unable to determine if there are anymore books in this series.

Even still, I thoroughly enjoyed meeting Jamie and Jack and highly recommend this book if you like smexy (smutty and sexy) hot love scenes and some hilarity to go with it.

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I am not a professional reviewer, but I love to read and share my opinions on my reading with others who are interested. I work full time but my ideal perfect day would be to curl up with a good book. The majority of the books I review here are from my private collection and my reviews are provided purely for entertainment purposes. I receive no compensation whatsoever for sharing my thoughts and review on any book. If you would like me to review your book, please email me at sharalsbooks@yahoo.com Happy Reading! :o)