Ain't Too Proud to Beg (Dog Walkers, #1)

Ain't Too Proud to Beg (Dog Walkers #1)

3.74 of 5 stars 3.74  ·  rating details  ·  1,090 ratings  ·  70 reviews
Josie Sheehan collects failed relationships the way some women collect designer handbags. Now, at thirty-five, she has exactly one male in her life: her Labradoodle, Genghis. In fact Josie, along with the three very single women in her dog-walking group, has recently sworn off men, resigning herself to long walks in the park with her devoted, four-legged friend.

All bets ar...more
Paperback, 329 pages
Published November 3rd 2009 by St. Martin's Paperbacks
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Leya
I'm a huge fan of Susan Donovan, I have almost all of her books in my keeper shelf, and I re-read them. I enjoy her stories, they are always interesting and fast paced, but mainly what I love is the humor. I know when I read Susan Donovan that laughter will always be a part of the story. And this one did not disappoint...I read this book in one sitting. I devoured it!

The main characters were interesting enough. The heroine, Josie, was funny and quirky, and she had an interesting job, she writes...more
Jessi
Summary: Josie Sheehan collects failed relationships the way some women collect designer handbags. Now, at 35, she has exactly one male in her life: her Labradoodle, Genghis. Can he help her find Mr. Right? -- JCPL Catalog

First Sentence: The photo album crackled with age as the page was turned.

I am turning more and more to contemporary romance as I discover amazing authors writing in this sub-genre. This is the first book in Donovan's series about four female dog-walking-man-hating friends. The...more
Kath
This book is more of a 3.5 than a 4, but better than your average romantic comedy, though this one has more drama than comedy. I loved Sophie and her story of falling in love with the wrong guys and pretty much not speaking up about anything. I could totally see it. I also loved Rick and his back story. While tragic, it's good to see someone trying to put their life back together in an honest way.

I did have a few issues with the book. First, Sophie's unremarkable group of friends. All their name...more
Laurie
Josie Sheehan collects failed relationships the way some women collect designer handbags. Now, at thirty-five, she has exactly one male in her life: her Labradoodle, Genghis. In fact Josie, along with the three very single women in her dog-walking group, has recently sworn off men, resigning herself to long walks in the park with her devoted, four-legged friend.

All bets are off, however, when she meets Rick Rousseau, a pet-company CEO who is smart, sexy, and, best of all, head-over-heels for Jos...more
Jo (My House of Books)
A cute and surprisingly hot contemporary romance. Just what I wanted!

I picked up Ain't Too Proud to Beg, thanks in part to Ms. Donovan's interview with Sarah at Smart Bitches Trashy Books, and I am so glad I did.

Josie is normal, a little gun-shy when it comes to relationships because she's dated some real "winners" recently. She and the three other ladies in her dog-walking group have sworn off men, though Josie never seemed to vehemently swear this oath. Regardless, she's not looking for love...more
Tara
Sigh. You really can't go wrong with Susan Donovan or Jennifer Crusie when it comes to your basic contemporary love story. The really good stories give you hope. Donovan may have a formula but it works.

The heroine is always smart and awesome but just doesn't see how awesome she is. She has awesome friends and family and isn't waiting to be rescued. The men tend to be flawed eve if they are perfect to the eye. Driving home the fact that nobody is perfect and things are not always what they seem....more
Patti
Book Description:

Josie Sheehan collects failed relationships the way some women collect designer handbags. Now, at thirty-five, she has exactly one male in her life: her Labradoodle, Genghis. In fact Josie, along with the three very single women in her dog-walking group, has recently sworn off men, resigning herself to long walks in the park with her devoted, four-legged friend.

All bets are off, however, when she meets Rick Rousseau, a pet-company CEO who is smart, sexy, and, best of all, head-o...more
Cara Ellison
Susan Donovan has always been a weird hit or miss for me. When she's good, there is nobody better. Public Displays of Affection and Knock Me Off My Feet remain two of my favorite romance novels of all time. And once in a while, she'll just go flat. Kept Woman was like that for me. But I picked up The Night She Got Lucky, the second in the dog walker series, with renewed hope. The Night She Got Lucky blew me away. Donovan was back on! If I'd picked up Ain't Too Proud To Beg first, I'm afraid I'd...more
Colleen
Well it looks like Susan Donovan is getting herself a series. This is the first book in the series featuring a set of girlfriends who love their dogs and work for the same paper - The San Francisco Herald.

Josie is the obituary writer for the Herald and during an interview with widower, Glorida Needleham, she realizes her life is missing substance (more specifically a good man). Gloria tells her to make a list of the what she wants in a man, but she must do it before dawn the next day. So Josie,...more
Clare
Books like this are why my husband keeps saying, "Just write a bestselling novel and then I will stay home with the kids." I can't believe this got published.

"Dogwalker finds romance" is the basic plot, and it started out well. Josie makes a list of the ideal attributes for a future partner/husband/boyfriend and emboldened by the list, meets and asks out a man who seems to fit her requirements. Lots of hot sex is thrown in, and that was fine too. But when her good friends actively start to sabot...more
Katie(babs)
Susan Donovan’s latest, Ain’t Too Proud to Beg is about a Josie Sheehan who is a major fail whale when it comes to the relationship department with men. Josie has a great group of female friends but the thirty-five year old San Francisco Herald obituary feature writer really dreads her single status. She doesn’t want to die a spinster with the only male in her life; her labradoodle, Genghis. She begins to lament the lack of human male companionship after she interviews an eighty-four year old wi...more
Beth Yarnall
I wanted to like this book more than I actually did. Josie started out great in the beginning, embracing her new outlook on life. By the end of the book she was less of a heroine and more of a character things happen to. Her reaction to Rick's supposed fathering of a child was childish. He had been honest with her all along, admitting to just as bad or worse things. Why would Josie think he'd lie about this?
Although I liked Rick I didn't really get why he liked Josie. She wasn't enough of a sta...more
Katrina
The female relationships in this book are the best part of the novel; not the romance itself. Four dysfunctional friends whose dogs mimic their neuroses. They have witty banter and the heroine of the book has a great personality. The thoughts inside her head kept me laughing. However, I didn't feel the connection between the male and female protagonists. Of course the author wrote about there being one... but I didn't buy it. I found myself skipping the parts about the relationship to find out...more
Isis FG
Dec 12, 2009 Isis FG rated it 3 of 5 stars
Recommended to Isis FG by: continuation of a series
I had planned to give this book 3.5 stars, but I didn't like the way things went at the end (made no sense to me) so it gets dropped down to 3 stars. I thought I would like this book more but there was something about it that I just did not really connect with.

Summary:
Josie Sheehan is an obituary writer for a newspaper with no luck in the relationship department. After she interviews a recent widow, she is compelled to make a list of what would be her perfect man. While waiting in line to try t...more
Ann Marie
I loved this book as I usually do love anything written by Susan Donovan. It isn't often I read about a guy who really turned his life around and it seemed believable. The characters were fantastic. The dogs were awesome. The suspense entertaining instead of intense. This was a great story about Josie who is looking to the universe for the perfect guy. She is a skeptic at best but the universe delivered. Could she handle what she asked for? This is what Donovan does best. She helps her character...more
Bet Lantaff
This was another good book by Ms Donovan which seems to be the beginning of a "magical romance" series about 4 women who meet for dog walking several days a week. I'll admit that some of the book was predictable, but that didn't deter from the story. Some of the story, especially the first date for the hero/heroine, gave me a couple of laugh out loud moments. I've loved Donovan's writing from her first novel "Knock Me Off My Feet" and this book was no different. If you want a light romantic read...more
Roberta
La storia è sufficientemente carina, adatta da leggersi in un grigio weekend autunnale; ci sono passaggi estremamente esilaranti (ad esempio l'episodio con il cane e il vibratore), un accenno di giallo/storia di vendetta legata al passato (con il personaggio "cattivo" che gradualmente viene mostrato - anche lui - sotto una luce più sofferente e umana), e un lieto fine d'obbligo.
Krissie
So, I'd say this book was a nice escape, but it was a typical icky romance: handsome rich man falls for attractive female (though she's physically imperfect, for once); hot sex (that I didn't really need to read); problem almost causes a break-up; couple resolves issue; wedding follows. Though, I did like Mrs. Neeldleman. She seemed feisty. I like feisty ol' ladies.
Sarah Eiseman
This was a very light and fun story. I tend to gravitate toward romantic comedies and this book gave me some good laughs. I haven’t read a ton of Donovan’s books, but I’m finding them very enjoyable. Along the same lines as Susan Mallery’s books, with a little more humor. This book had a lot to do with dogs, which I’m finding I enjoy more and more.
Zoe
While this lacks some of the emotional punch of Donovan's earlier novels, it is still near the top of it's contemporary romance genre. It starts a little slow, but picks up intensity halfway through the book. The heroine's friends are a bit annoying, but by the end you can see they have redeeming qualities. This is a relief, as Donovan plans 2 more books about this group of reporters and their dogs.

The hero in this was wonderful.
Westerville
"It's actually only slightly a fantasy. It was cute and a little more light-hearted than her other books." - Jess, Adult Services Librarian

Reserve a library copy!
R*beth*h Hart
Loved the character in this book! Getting the hardest to obtain man to notice her gotta give her credit. Definitely a fairytale with a little twist to keep it more interesting. I liked her book "Knock me off my feet" more but still gonna head out and find her other books!
Sobia
Not a bad read, but not really keeper shelf worthy.
It was cute, and fast....and I really liked the main characters...The Hero in particular was a nice change from the run of the mill romance novel Heroes.

The only downside was too much from too many secondary characters.
Brenda  Britton
Loved the story, Josie found her man who loves dogs and is very handsome. He is also considerate despite his not too great past. Unfortunately his past comes back to haunt him and threatens to take the life of his new found love but of course, after some stressful hours, everything works out as always does in a good novel.
Photojim
A definite 2.5 stars. Decent premise. Characters are a bit too perfect. Rather funny situations. But the whole thing left me feeling blah. I guess I just didn't like the writing. It's as though the ideas were good but the execution left something to be desired.
Jodi
I loved that Rick was actually a guy with a past, not just your normal perfect romance hero that hadn't ever done anything wrong. While it is a lighter read there is also a lot about forgiveness and making big changes in your life for the better throughout the book
Jennifer
Humor is hit or miss and this was a miss for me. The plot and all the interactions between the characters were too over the top for me and I didn't get have an emotional connection to any of the characters.

Also--and this is a personal pet peeve of mine--I never like interfering friends.
Eve
Cute! Better than the other one I read first in the series (the one with the man hating website) A definite 3 and a half stars, didn't want to put it down once I got into it. Did have some flaws, but overall a fun summer read.
Sheri
My grade: C+. Rick and Josie were likable, and did have some issues to work through and some conflict to resolve by growing as people. The big bust-up at the end was caused by Josie's failure to simply ask Rick if he'd lied to her. She chose to believe something Rick's enemy told her (and that after he'd drugged her, kidnapped her, held her prisoner and threatened to kill her). Sure, it makes perfect sense to believe him instead of the man who is the love of your life--NOT! This secondary charac...more
Jess
It's actually only slightly a fantasy. It was cute and a little more light-hearted than her other books. This sounds like it's ging to be a quartet, so I can't wait for the other books.
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Ain't Too Proud to Beg (ebook)
Ain't Too Proud to Beg (Dog Walkers, #1)
Orgoglio e perdono (Paperback)
17293
The Author is Born
I grew up in the Cincinnati suburb of Milford, Ohio and spent my formative years in the cineplex, the mall, the drive-in, and the convertible MG of some guy named Gary. My mother claims I was destined to be a writer. As a kindergartner, I reported that I’d just seen a giraffe, elephant and rhinoceros at the bus stop. When Mom told me I was a good storyteller, I assured her that...more
More about Susan Donovan...
He Loves Lucy Knock Me Off My Feet The Kept Woman Take a Chance on Me Public Displays of Affection

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