Colters’ Woman

So it has taken me years but I finally got around to grabbing a copy of this earlier title of Ms Banks’ (the version in my hands is the extended version, published in 2010—the original publication date is October 2006).

Before the review—or indeed, the blurb—a warning: this is an erotic novel, with very graphic sex scenes. Not only that, but it involves a ménage à quatre. If you are a minor or have problems with sex and unconventional relationships, do everyone a favor and read no further.

So, on to the review.

This is one of those novels that baffle me—or rather, it’s my reaction to them that baffles me. I enjoy reading them and fairly inhale them, yet simultaneously I latch onto things that, were it a different book, could conceivably be deal breakers. I tend to think that it is a matter of author voice *waving to SLWendy* because I can’t find any other explanation.

Let’s start with the back cover blurb:

Holly Bardwell is running from her past mistakes. Straight into the arms of the Colter brothers.

Adam, Ethan and Ryan aren’t looking for women. They’re looking for a woman. One woman they know will share their lives and their beds. They’re losing hope they’ll find her, that is until Adam discovers Holly lying in the snow just yards from their cabin.

Adam knows she’s the one the minute he holds her in his arms, and as soon as his brothers see her, they know it too.  The only problem is convincing Holly of that fact—and protecting her from the danger of her past.

So it’s a ménage à quatre that involves three brothers. Can we say incest? Yes, yes, we can—and we hate it with the hatred of a thousand suns.

And yet, in this particular book, as the relationship is written by Ms Banks, I don’t feel squicked.

Skeptical at times—and I don’t mean the obvious suspension of disbelief: three men absolutely in love and focused on one single woman at the same time (though I was a bit skeptical that there is absolutely sexual contact between the brothers while all three are having sex with Holly, at the same time.¹) But more on that later on.

On the three men/one woman aspect of the story, I started the book having already suspended my disbelief. First, because I had already read and enjoyed Be With Me, another ménage à quatre by Ms Banks (having trust in the author helps a lot with any fantasy), and second because, as I’ve said before, it’s an enjoyable fantasy for me.

While I think that Colters’ Woman very much deserves its status as a favorite for many of Ms Banks’ readers, I confess that, as much as I read it in one sitting and with enjoyment, it doesn’t hold up for me—particularly when compared to Be With Me.

First, the length. At 229 in its extended form, Colters’ Woman is fully half as long as Be With Me—there isn’t enough space to delve into proper characterizations. The internal conflict that I so enjoyed in the latter is barely hinted at in the former. Yes, Holly does agonize some (and there is some repetition in her internal dialogue, which annoys me some) over whether or not she should take more time before even considering give a relationship with the Colter brothers a try, but even her conflict feels…superficial. At no time I really felt that she was thinking, “Well, I should live on my own for a while, see who I am, by myself, before venturing again into relationship-land.” So much for all the hand-wringing.

Of the three Colters, Adam is the one whose point of view we see most of, and his characterization is more show than tell. Adam is the one who finds Holly, he is the eldest and, as far as we can see, the one whose vote/opinion hold most weight for the brothers. So while we get to know Adam some, both Ryan and Ethan are more two dimensional. In fact, Ryan totally got the shaft, because while he has plenty of screen time, we have next to no internal dialogue from him. What we think we know about him comes from conversations between Ethan and Adam, and their internal dialogue about him.

The suspense thread is very, very thin: Holly is running from her new husband, who is not only abusive but criminal—and everyone knows this. His presence—or rather the threat to Holly he embodies—come across quite a lot as ‘necessary plot device’ and not so much as natural flow of the story.

The sexual content, on the other hand, is quite well written—and I think anyone who has tried his/her hand at writing sex knows it’s not easy, just as anyone who has read less than successful efforts knows how wince-worthy they can be. Even with this, I have quibbles with this aspect of the novel.

For example, the skepticism I mentioned earlier stems from the fact that Holly was a virgin. And not just any old young 20s virgin, but we are told that she had lived a fairly sheltered life—orphaned in her teens, under the supervision of close relatives until turning 21, whereupon she entered a chaste but monogamous relationship with the bastard new husband.

And yet in a matter of two days, give or take a few hours, she’s having sex with three men at the same time.

Huhuh.

Oh and the anal sex (because you can’t have three men and three orifices and not have anal sex, can you? it’s wasteful, I tell you *cough* where was I? ah, yes…) It takes only three sexual encounters to go from virgin to enjoying anal sex—and no more than a few minutes of preparation/stretching to boot.

….yeah, my disbelief didn’t stretch that far (really, didn’t intend the pun there).

All this leaves me conflicted. I enjoyed Colters’ Woman, quite a bit, yet I see its flaws quite clearly—how do I rate this book?

As objectively as I can, that’s how. Colters’ Woman gets a 6.75 out of 10. Buy the print  or digital versions via amazon here or via Barnes and Noble here.

¹ I think this is one of those rare occasions in which watching pr0n helps—there’s plenty of multiple male w/one female ², wherein the males are obviously and absolutely focused on the female.

² Yes, I’ve watched this, but only in the interest of research *adjusts halo*

The first in Ms Banks’ The Anetakis Tycoons trilogy, this is also her debut title with Silhouette Desire. Having read some erotic romance by Ms Banks before, I was very keen in reading her category work and seeing how her voice adapted—or transformed, if you will—to the constraints of category lines. I am very happy I had the opportunity to read this novel, as I enjoyed Ms Banks’ writing even though some of my less favorite plot devices made an appearance.

Here’s the much hated back cover blurb:

He had an heir!

Greek hotel magnate Chrysander Anetakis’ former mistress was pregnant? And had amnesia? That meant Marley Jameson didn’t remember betraying him by selling company secrets. Or that he’d thrown her out of his life. So he told her a little white lie: they were engaged. Then he swept her away to his Greek island to await the birth of his baby and enjoy her sudden devotion… before tossing her out.

But he didn’t count on Marley regaining her memory so soon.

The Anetakis Tycoon’s: Three Greek tycoon brothers bound for love… only as a last resort!

Did I mention that I hate the blurb? I do. The novel is soooo much better than that! Seriously, I wish someone would make the marketing people read the novels they are writing blurbs for! /rant

But, where was I? Ah, discussing the novel itself, yes.

The novel starts with Marley learning that she’s pregnant and wondering how to break the news to her lover. Even though she shares an apartment with him, she doesn’t know quite where she stands with him or what place she occupies in his life, and plans to find out before springing the baby news on him. At about the same time, she is set up (rather obviously by an also rather obvious villain) as the person who has sold two of Chrysander’s hotel designs and plans to the competition.

After a rather ugly scene—which left me wondering what on earth Marley could have been thinking when she quit her job to get involved with that jerk—she leaves the building… only to be abducted immediately after.

A few months later, both reader and Chrysander learn about Marley’s abduction, and about the fact that the trauma seems to have caused her amnesia, erasing from her consciousness everything but her name. Everything up to and including the fact that she’s pregnant with Chrysander’s child.

He, however, connects the dots at once, deciding on the spot to take charge of both Marley and his baby. The most expedient means is to lie, and so he does. (And I’m back to, what on earth did she see in him?)

From beginning to end, Marley was a curious yet believable mix of too trusting and worldly, helplessness and determination. She realizes that she’s dependent on Chrysander not only in the material sense, but also for information on herself. This, coupled with the fact that Marley now believes in their engagement—built upon a supposedly loving relationship—make her decide to reconnect with him.

Theoretically, doing so would hasten her recovery of her memory and reassure Chrysander about the future of their family.

For his part, Chrysander spent a good chunk of the novel feeling thoroughly ambivalent about his own feelings; torn between resentment for the supposed theft and betrayal it implies, and a deep concern for Marley’s wellbeing that is out of proportion with a healthy, simple pregnancy—even if her mental health is a concern.

His own ambivalence and her trust combine to force Chrysander to re-examine his feelings for her and to question whether he can forgive her previous actions and grow to trust her again.

Hopefully without spoiling anything, I can say that the final confrontation with the villain of the piece was more than a bit disappointing; mostly because there was a tad too much telling vs showing, but also because that person’s behaviour during that scene doesn’t jibe with previous characterization. Smart, sorta smart, really smart… dumb? Eh, not really believable.

So, between the amnesia plot device, the meh villain, the arrogant jerk as a hero, and the what-on-earth-was-she-thinking? heroine, one would think this novel tanked for me, right?

Wrong.

Here is the power of Ms Banks’ writing: even though I couldn’t understand Marley giving up her independence to move in with—and live off of—Chrysander without actually knowing what, if anything, he felt for her; and even though the reason for her amnesia left me scratching my head once it was revealed; despite all that, I rooted for her. I cared for her. I wanted her to find happiness.

And by novel’s end, I wanted her to find that happiness with Chrysander.

The Tycoon’s Pregnant Mistress gets 7 out of 10 and I am waiting to read the next two installments.

You can find this book through Amazon.com here, and Amazon UK here.

Karen here, I just wanted to say, for a category, this book rocked all kinds of fabulous.

I usually hate, HATE, with a passion, any categories that have Greek billionaires and secret babies in them, but AL’s totally right, Banks made me care about the heroine, and although I didn’t see what Marley saw in the asshole, I still wanted her to have her happy ending with him. All that, and I actually cried too. Over a damn category book. Good work Maya.

A novella-length paranormal published in December 2007 by Samhain in the Perfect Gift anthology, Love Me Still is my first exposure to Ms Banks’ writing (even though I do have one of her novels published as Sharon Long in the TBR mountain range—must find and read asap).

This story could be considered inappropriate for minors because the premise involves a formal marriage/mating/relationship between two brothers and their wife, but there is neither language nor graphic sex in it. It is a brief and moving look at the complexities and resilience of relationships.

Here’s the blurb:

Forgiveness is the most difficult thing to give but the most cherished thing to receive.

Beloved mate to two wolves, Heather lived an idyllic life until hunters destroyed the pack’s peaceful existence.

Believing their mate betrayed them and was responsible for their father’s death, Cael and Riyu cut Heather from their lives. But when they realize their terrible mistake, can they ever gain her forgiveness and win back her love?

Because of the length—barely 60 pages—there is a lot of background that is sketched rather than explained. Heather is a human who has been mated into a pack of wolf shifters. For the most part, these beings remain hidden in the mountains, limiting their interaction with humans as much as possible.

We are left to guess at how Heather came to meet and be adopted by the wolves, even though there is a bit of a hint about her losing her mother as a young child. Anyway, her mates and the pack are her family, all she wants and all she needs.

Until, that is, a vicious attack that costs the pack their alpha’s life and leaves them believing that Heather betrayed them to the hunters. The only person, other than Heather, who could explain the situation, is gone hunting for revenge, and in the face of their father’s words, her mates shun her.

Once the truth comes out, guilt eats at both Cael and Riyu, but the bigger issue is finding Heather—left wounded and betrayed, vulnerable to the elements—and getting her forgiveness.

I loved the characterizations even as I had some serious issues with the story.

We see events unfold from Heather’s and Cael’s perspectives, which felt just a bit lopsided considering that it’s a three people relationship, but it still worked in telling the story. I loved that the narrative wasn’t cluttered with extraneous stuff—everything that is there is necessary, period. Nico, John Quincy, even Lorna (Heather’s mother in law). Each of them is necessary both to move the plot forward and to provide the backdrop for the relationship between Heather and her mates.

The time elapsed from beginning to end is not clear; there is about a month between the attack and when Cael, Riyu and Nico find Heather again, but she is so sick and feverish when they take her back to the pack that anywhere between another week or even more could have passed. This works well because Heather was not only beaten but raped by the hunters who wounded, and eventually killed, the previous alpha, and it would not have been convincing in any way that she could have worked through her emotions and the first wave of pain and horror of the attack any sooner than that.

But even with the passage of time providing a buffer, I would have liked it if Ms Banks had made it clear that Heather is still healing and that both she and her mates have rough times ahead.

I enjoyed—mean person that I am—how vivid Cael’s and Riyu’s guilt and horror at themselves over having betrayed Heather’s trust is portrayed. Simultaneously, their reactions when they believed, based on what proof they had, that she had betrayed them and cost their father his life, rang true. Between grief at losing their parent and shock and horror at her perceived betrayal, killing her wouldn’t have been too harsh (of course, there would’ve been no story then, but you know what I mean, it felt deserved).

Heather’s feelings of loss, bewilderment, betrayal, grief, are so vividly written that my stomach clenched in sympathy and my eyes teared as I read the scene where she walks to the edge of the ridge, wondering if dying wouldn’t be better…

Sometimes, all the love in the world is not enough. And sometimes, it’s the only thing that helps.

Huge quibble, though: Heather is very obviously hurt—from a wound to her forehead to a broken leg, it’s beyond evident that she was attacked as well, so while her mates reaction while in the grip of grief and shock was understandable, I wonder what the rest of the pack was thinking, feeling, doing.

My last serious issue with the story is that it would seem, based on one of the last paragraphs, that Heather feels that the pack has a right to forgive her… for what, exactly? For being raped? Or for having her mates doubt her so badly? That line, perhaps a bit throwaway, irked me tremendously.

Love Me Still gets 6.75 out of 10, and I’m definitely looking forward to reading more of Ms Banks’ work.

Update: I’m an idiot. I misread this line: “Heather stood back, humbled by the reception, her pack’s willingness to admit wrong and embrace her once again.” *head desk* Humblest apologies, Ms Banks.

(Mind, it doesn’t change the overall rating of the story, because the other issues remain, but it does make my heart good to know it’s the pack eating crow for having jumped to conclusions.)

Heh, sorta like I’m eating crow for the same reason