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3.77 of 5 stars
Grace Hall is a society beauty-but her fortune has made her the target of a madman killing off Manhattan's most influential women. Her new live-in ... read full description

reviews

Jun 02, 2011
Buggy rated it: 4 of 5 stars
Opening line:"John Smith checked his watch and looked around the plaza Hotel's ballroom."

Originally released in 2004, An Unforgettable Lady was just recently re-issued with a fancy new and improved cover. I’ve enjoyed all of Jessica Bird aka JR Ward’s earlier writing and thankfully this was no exception. No matter the stage in her career Bird/Ward can write the desirable and initially unobtainable dark and tortured heroes like no other. As a result I fell hard for John Smit More...
32 comments like (16 people liked it)
May 03, 2008
Ragus rated it: 5 of 5 stars
Lover's of J. R. Ward will want to read this contemporary romance written under her real name, Jessica Bird.

The story will not disappoint. UNFORGETTABLE LADY centers around a heroine who finds herself the target of a serial killer. She needs protection and hires the yummy, alpha male hero. Ms. Ward brings the two together in an unusual manner which creates romantic tension that builds and becomes tangible to the reader. Although this book is not part of a series, you will meet charac More...
12 comments like (12 people liked it)
Jul 08, 2010
Adrienne rated it: 4 of 5 stars
i enjoyed this book alot::the H/H are complete opposites::he is a strong alpha type guy. ex-military::no past::no planned future::and whilst at times i wanted john to open to Grace and tell her more about his past etc i came to the conclusion that this kind of strong alpha guy just wouldn't do that:what you get in the book would be exactly true to character::and probably if he had suddenly become Mr Mushy it'd have killed the story for me as it would then be to predictable::the heroine is kind:: More...
2 comments like (5 people liked it)
Aug 28, 2011
Natasha rated it: 5 of 5 stars
J.R Ward is always a winner. No matter if she writing as herself or under Jessica Bird, her books are killer, 100 percent gold. I have yet to read a book by her that I did not like, which is saying something pretty big, since she has so many novels under her belt.

An Unforgettable Lady is a book that romance lovers cannot miss. Especially is your a suspense and mystery lover also.

Wealthy, gorgeous sophisticated woman meets a hard, wounded and unchangeable male.
At first More...
0 comments like (3 people liked it)
Jul 22, 2011
Rhonda rated it: 3 of 5 stars
I went in to this with REALLY low expectations. I was pleased to find that it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. The plot fell short, but it was fun to read. I did find myself able to pull some of her out of this book, mostly in her character development. Anyway, being a J.R. Ward fan, I enjoyed the opportunity. For a really great review from a friend of mine go to http://fictionvixen.com/.
2 comments like (3 people liked it)
Aug 05, 2010
Photojim rated it: 3 of 5 stars
Grace Hall is a rich blue blood. John Smith is a retired special forces/Army ranger/assassin killer turned bodyguard. She hires him and they fall in love. Think this is original and groundbreaking? You'd be wrong on both counts. However, don't let that stop you. Just because somebody painted a woman before doesn't mean an artist couldn't paint the same woman and make something special. I don't know as though I'd elevate this to such a lofty status, but it was certainly entertaining.
More...
0 comments like (2 people liked it)
Jun 06, 2010
Shawna rated it: 5 of 5 stars
5+ stars – Contemporary Romance/Romantic Suspense

WOW, I really loved this contemporary romance from Jessica Bird, aka J.R. Ward, about tough, cold, cynical, hardened, and emotionally detached ex Special Forces soldier turned private security specialist John Smith, who’s hired as a bodyguard by billionaire New York socialite Grace Woodward Hall, the Countess von Sharone, to protect her from a serial killer targeting her and five other high-profile society women.

Although J More...
28 comments like (23 people liked it)
Aug 09, 2010
Having read the Moorehouse Legacy series, which I ravenously devoured in a matter of days, and the first (and so far only) O’Banyon Brothers book which I loved, I had some pretty high expectations for An Unforgettable Lady which might be part of my problem with the book. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed it, but I didn’t LOVE it as I did the other Jessica Bird books that I’ve read.

Important Message : This book has been re-released and included a nice note from the author explaining the More...
45 comments like (14 people liked it)
Feb 06, 2012
Rachel C. rated it: 1 of 5 stars
The pacing of the story could use some work. The main characters' first love scene is interrupted so many times by him changing his mind, her changing her mind, events, third parties, etc., that by the time they finally get around to doing it, I had stopped caring.

Didn't help that I found the heroine wimpy and off-the-charts stupid on at least two occasions when a serial killer was at large.

I liked the hero, but didn't buy their continuing relationship. At the end, he's l More...
0 comments like (1 person liked it)
Jan 06, 2012
Su rated it: 3 of 5 stars
J.R. Ward - AKA Jessica Bird - Knows how to draw an alpha male; the protectiveness, aggressiveness, and total departure from reality. This isn't a negative point, we all need someone like John Smith every now and then, if for nothing, then to remind us of our femininity.
But the pendulum switch between reaching for each other and then holding back grated on my nerves. The delay in consummating their relationship became obvious as a tool to lengthen the story.
Grace is everything a blue b More...
Dec 02, 2011
Kathy rated it: 4 of 5 stars
First in the An Unforgettable Lady romance series revolving around a group of friends and their families on the East Coast.


<h2>My Take</h2>
This a warm, intelligent romance between powerful people with interesting insights into the professional issues that plague them. It also shows us that the grass is not greener just because you have money as well as a rather graphic exposé of the different views on women's intelligence held from one generation to another.

I More...
Jul 19, 2011
BookFiend rated it: 2 of 5 stars
Grace Hall is an influential figure in Manhattan's society. She comes from a wealthy Manhattan family, is a countess by marriage, and now is the head of the Hall Foundation, an organization founded by her father. Grace was one of six women featured in an article that ended up as a serial killer's hit list. Grace turns to John Smith, a securities expert with a murky past, to protect her.

The book is short, a little over 300 pages. Perhaps partly due to its length, I felt the characte More...
0 comments like (2 people liked it)
Jun 30, 2011
Sheyla rated it: 4 of 5 stars
This is the story of Grace Hall, a rich socialite who is also a recently married Countess. What the public doesn't know is that her marriage is on the rocks already. She has been separated for months and is trying to get a divorce without the newspapers finding about it. Her father had passed away a few months back and she is trying to keep herself as the head of the Foundation that he was part of. On top of all this, someone is killing women who have been featured in a Times article. All of the More...
Apr 19, 2011
Tracy rated it: 5 of 5 stars
~* 4.5 Stars *~
Billionaire heiress Countess von Sherone is the epitome of class and taste, a shining star of the upper echelon of Manhattan's elite. That's Grace's public persona. On a more personal front, she's a bit of a contradiction. Genuine and kind, down to earth and generous, she touches the lives of the people who know her, but she often feels like she lives a life of least resistance, following the groundwork laid by a powerful father and a coldly imperious mother. But more and mor More...
Aug 06, 2010
Kelly rated it: 3 of 5 stars
Picked this one up yesterday at Walmart. I was pleasantly surprised to see it re released. I had previously tried to obtain a copy at my library but they didn't have a copy.

I was excited to see what the Warden was up to before the Brothers!
Well Mr. John Smith is no Wrath that's for sure but he was entertaining enough that I found myself whizzing to the end of this tale.

It could have been a 4 or even 5 star book but she took it just there and then backed off with More...
3 comments like (3 people liked it)
Feb 05, 2012
Stacia ~ platonic rated it: 2 of 5 stars
JR Ward of BDB fame wrote this contemporary under another name. I much prefer her BDB books.

The couple had nice sexual tension and I enjoyed their interactions, but I had little to no interest in the other society happenings or the workplace stuff. The sister story was sort of out of nowhere and didn't really click with me. The killer was obvious from the first moment.

Unless you're really a big fan of contemps and love all things Ward, I'd say stick with her BDB books ins
2 comments like (1 person liked it)
Nov 20, 2010
Jenn rated it: 2 of 5 stars
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0 comments like (2 people liked it)
Jul 28, 2010
Ally rated it: 3 of 5 stars
I quite like J.R Ward's Black Dagger Brotherhood Series and thought I've give this book a go. It's a re-release and was first released in 2004.

There's a lovely introduction by J.R Ward herself about where she started with this book and how she was inspired by this book to write the Black Dagger Brotherhood series.


I was expecting so much more from this book than what I actually got. Maybe my expectations were too high and maybe I was expecting a hero closer to one of More...
0 comments like (1 person liked it)
Aug 24, 2011
Michelle rated it: 5 of 5 stars
During a special event, Grace (Countess von Sharone) catches the eye of an intense and brooding stranger. Fascinated, she goes after him and corners him. She pushes his buttons until the stranger startles her with a fiery kiss full of passion, then he leaves. The next day she finds out that one of her close friends has been brutally murdered and the only thing the killer left behind was a newspaper article with a lineup of high society women. Grace is among those women mentioned. On edge an More...
Dec 13, 2010
Karla rated it: 4 of 5 stars
After reading and loving the BDB books but not finding myself crazy about the Jessica Bird series books, I wasn't sure if I would like this. Well I really liked it! John Smith is a tough guy -- ex- special ops and now running a personal security company. Grace is a wealthy countess and head of a charitable organization whose life is threatened. Although she's not crazy about the need for a bodyguard, she hires John Smith to keep her safe.

This novel was intense and about emotions. More...
Nov 23, 2010
Jessprice rated it: 4 of 5 stars
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Jul 02, 2010
Susan rated it: 4 of 5 stars
I really enjoyed this romance from Jessica Bird (aka JR Ward)! I liked the development of the characters through a delicious tension that was created throughout the book! I could also see some signs of the BDB in the book, which was fun.

John Smith is a tough, cold-hearted bodyguard who loves to do the whole 'I-am-an-island thing' (Hello? Wrath, Z, V!!!) but ultimately is shown how to bring out his loving, softer side through the very improbable romance and feelings he has for Grace. I More...
Jan 17, 2012
Another fine gem from J.R. Ward, from her earlier days writing under the name Jessica Bird. Its a bit more stereotypical than her later Brotherhood books, which I think is perfectly understandable as she was still fairly new to writing with this book.

I don't mind the stereotype in this one. Two battered souls in love, fighting against one another, denying that they could ever be together. Normally this would turn me off but here the fighting actually makes sense. She's a debutant from More...
Aug 27, 2010
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here
0 comments like (5 people liked it)
Jul 08, 2010
Heather rated it: 2 of 5 stars
If you have picked this book up because you have read J. R. Ward's BDB series you will be disappointed. This book is nothing like them, it IS good though. It is about a regular person, no vampires or lessers in this one, or angels.
I liked this book because of the romance, but that is all. There was absolutely no action. None. It's about a killer who they think has targeted these women and the Countess has to hire a body gaurd. You would think that the bodygaurd would have to protect her f More...
0 comments like (1 person liked it)
Oct 25, 2010
Cheryl rated it: 2 of 5 stars
Would have given it three stars if it weren't for the ending.

I picked up this novel strictly because I really enjoy The Black Dagger Brotherhood novels, and J.R. Ward did some earlier novels under the name Jessica Bird.

The set up was good, the love story mostly believable, the tension between Grace and John Smith was nicely written. But all the work through the first 100 pages is ruined by the last 4 page ending. Nothing happened!! The whole reason John Smith was in her l More...
Dec 06, 2010
Kimberly rated it: 3 of 5 stars
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here
Sep 20, 2010
Once Upon rated it: 3 of 5 stars

The Story is about a socialite with a bad marriage to a count, who is abusive and uses her and her inheritance. A murder takes place of one of her society friends , a list was found with the names of other women that relate to her. So she is advised to take on a bodyguard. John is a expert security specialist that her friend ask him to watch over her. Neither were expecting sparks to grow with the closeness of the assignment.


For a suspense/romance novel, it lacked on th More...
Oct 07, 2011
Wendy F rated it: 2 of 5 stars
Hmmm, well there were aspects I liked about this book. I mean, there's nothing like a good ole dose of a fluffy shallow romance novel. They sure do make you feel good.

I chuckled a few times, enjoyed myself when I was reading it. The thing is, it won't stick with me. The characters didn't resonate, and the story wasn't all that original. In fact, even though it was stated in the authors note, I couldn't get past the similarities to Butch and Marissa. And unfortunately, when comp More...
4 comments like (2 people liked it)
Jun 15, 2010
Marisa rated it: 2 of 5 stars
This one is SO very different from the BDB and Fallen Angels series. I found the forward she wrote in the beginning of the book very interesting. She talks about the writing process of An Unforgettable Lady and how during that time in her career she was more of a 'pantser' than a 'plotter'- which is not the case now. In fact it has changed a great deal during the writing of her two current series; and that's quite evident in this book.

There was a great deal of 'will they or won't they' More...
0 comments like (1 person liked it)