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About Last Night
Sure, opposites attract, but in this sexy, smart, eBook original romance from RITA finalist and bestselling author Ruthie Knox, they positively combust! When a buttoned-up banker falls for a bad girl, “about last night” is just the beginning.
Cath Talarico knows a mistake when she makes it, and God knows she’s made her share. So many, in fact, that this Chicago girl knows London is her last, best shot at starting over. But bad habits are hard to break, and soon Cath finds herself back where she has vowed never to go . . . in the bed of a man who is all kinds of wrong: too rich, too classy, too uptight for a free-spirited troublemaker like her.
Nev Chamberlain feels trapped and miserable in his family’s banking empire. But beneath his pinstripes is an artist and bohemian struggling to break free and lose control. Mary Catherine—even her name turns him on—with her tattoos, her secrets, and her gamine, sex-starved body, unleashes all kinds of fantasies.
When blue blood mixes with bad blood, can a couple that is definitely wrong for each other ever be perfectly right? And with a little luck and a lot of love, can they make last night last a lifetime?
Includes a special message from the editor, as well as excerpts from these Loveswept titles: Because of You, Ride with Me, and Midnight Hour.
Cath Talarico knows a mistake when she makes it, and God knows she’s made her share. So many, in fact, that this Chicago girl knows London is her last, best shot at starting over. But bad habits are hard to break, and soon Cath finds herself back where she has vowed never to go . . . in the bed of a man who is all kinds of wrong: too rich, too classy, too uptight for a free-spirited troublemaker like her.
Nev Chamberlain feels trapped and miserable in his family’s banking empire. But beneath his pinstripes is an artist and bohemian struggling to break free and lose control. Mary Catherine—even her name turns him on—with her tattoos, her secrets, and her gamine, sex-starved body, unleashes all kinds of fantasies.
When blue blood mixes with bad blood, can a couple that is definitely wrong for each other ever be perfectly right? And with a little luck and a lot of love, can they make last night last a lifetime?
Includes a special message from the editor, as well as excerpts from these Loveswept titles: Because of You, Ride with Me, and Midnight Hour.
216 pages, ebook
First published June 11, 2012
About the author
Ruthie Knox
32 books1,331 followersUSA Today bestselling author Ruthie Knox writes contemporary romance that’s sexy, witty, and angsty—sometimes all three at once. Her debut novel, Ride with Me, is probably the only existing cross-country bicycling love story. She followed it up with About Last Night, a London-set romance whose hero has the unlikely name of Neville, and then Room at the Inn, a Christmas novella—both of which were finalists for the Romance Writers of America’s RITA Award. Her four-book series about the Clark family of Camelot, Ohio, has won accolades for its fresh, funny portrayal of small-town Midwestern life. Ruthie also writes New Adult romance as RobinYork. She moonlights as a mother, Tweets incessantly, and bakes a mean focaccia. She’d love to hear from you, so feel free to drop her a line.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 867 reviews
March 5, 2013
Review posted at: Swept Away By Romance
4 1/2 Wonderful Stars!
I just fell in love with Ruthie Knox! I can't believe it's taken me so long to read one of her full-length books. Shame on me!
About Last Night is contemporary romance at its best! It's a character driven story that features an opposites-attract plot-line with a perfect balance of wit, angst, depth, and steamy romance.
I had a lot of fun getting to know the two main leads, Nev and Cath. They had incredible chemistry and very endearing, lovable, and slightly quirky personalities. I was easily drawn into their world and, frankly, I didn't want to leave it.
I'll admit to wanting a bit more BANG from the ending, but I was still more than satisfied with the resolution. On top of that, I was thrilled I could finish a current contemporary romance that had a conclusive ending. I KNOW! SHOCKING!
About Last Night is one of those books that's easy to love. Ruthie Knox know how to write engaging and unique contemporary romance with unforgettable characters. I highly recommend this story. Enjoy.
4 1/2 Wonderful Stars!
I just fell in love with Ruthie Knox! I can't believe it's taken me so long to read one of her full-length books. Shame on me!
About Last Night is contemporary romance at its best! It's a character driven story that features an opposites-attract plot-line with a perfect balance of wit, angst, depth, and steamy romance.
I had a lot of fun getting to know the two main leads, Nev and Cath. They had incredible chemistry and very endearing, lovable, and slightly quirky personalities. I was easily drawn into their world and, frankly, I didn't want to leave it.
I'll admit to wanting a bit more BANG from the ending, but I was still more than satisfied with the resolution. On top of that, I was thrilled I could finish a current contemporary romance that had a conclusive ending. I KNOW! SHOCKING!
About Last Night is one of those books that's easy to love. Ruthie Knox know how to write engaging and unique contemporary romance with unforgettable characters. I highly recommend this story. Enjoy.
April 29, 2012
Mary Catherine Talarico, former Goth girl has turned over a new leaf. Cath is done with her bad ways, her dyed black hair, and men. Now she's got a great job she loves at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, working on the history of hand-knitting exhibit. Nev Chamberlain is tall, blonde, conservative and all British. Since first seeing Nev at the train station, Cath has nicknamed him 'City'. With his expensive suits she knows straight away that Nev is a straight-laced city businessman.
After a two-year hiatus from men, Cath is talked into a blind date. But with a combination of anti-histamines and too much alcohol, she is nearly ready to pass out. Seeing Cath in trouble at the train station and leaving her there alone isn’t an option for Nev, so he brings her back to his place for the night to sleep it off. With a background she wants to hide and a past she wants to run from, Cath is not into love or relationships.
About Last Night is a fabulous romance of opposites. An English hero and an American heroine. A banker and a bad girl. She's originally from Chicago’s south side with no formal credentials or higher education. He has the posh accent and private education of the British upper classes.
What I've loved about both Ruthie Knox's contemporary romances is that she writes settings and characters outside the box. In her first book Ride with Me her characters were cycling on a road trip across the States. Now in About Last Night she sets her romance entirely in England, with a tattooed, reformed heroine who's only five feet tall and into knitting. Nev is a passionate artist underneath the buttoned-up banker.
If I had a quibble about this story, it is the ending. For me it was a little flat, especially compared to the rest of the story which positively vibrated with its upbeat tone and pacing. However, About Last Night is another great contemporary romance from new author Ruthie Knox. She combines a sweet romance, and really funny dialogue with some of the sexiest, most playful love scenes ever.
"I didn't know you owned clothes with colors."
"I have a few things that aren't black."
"Of course you do, darling. Only all the ones I've seen are very small, and I get to take them off with my teeth. You've trained me to salivate at the sight of color, like one of Pavlov's dogs. Your top is making me very hungry."
Steam: 3.5
ARC courtesy of Random House (Loveswept) via NetGalley
May 13, 2012
Well, all of my bookmarks just vanished. Poof! For that reason I'm gonna make this short.
The premise of About Last Night was very promising. Former US Goth girl who's into knitting meets posh and buttoned-up English banker. Yay! Unfortunately the execution fell flat. In all honesty I can say that I am not disappointed because I never had high expectations in the first place.
I think my main problem was the fact that I finished reading an outstanding book and came down to average level. About Last Night is one book among many, many others--nothing exceptional at all. It is what it is. Average. Yes, of course it was a light, nice and fluffy read, maybe a bit too fluffy for my liking. But. I never felt their chemistry. In fact, was there any chemistry to be found at all? Further, I think 80 % of the story lacked emotional depth. The last 20 % were a bit better. I didn't feel invested in their "romance" and could not connect to Cath and Nev. Sadly, the story and the characters never clicked for me. The ending was too sappy and rushed.
The sex. As far as I can judge, a sex scene is another subjective matter. I'm all for steamy and hot sex scenes, however, About Last Night is another book that provides most of the time shallow sex without any intimacy or sensuality. It came across like "Oh, yes, let's hit the sheets and have a quick f*ck". I never felt hot and bothered while reading About Last Night. As a matter of fact, I felt too detached and these characters never touched me in a special way. Somehow I think the love part came too quickly and did not convince me. On top of that, Cath was talking about the tender love and Baba did not feel it, either. *shrugs*
THE.NICKNAME.CITY.
I came to a point of the story where I had to say…if you call the hero City once again, then I'm gonna scream! I hit that particular point and I did scream. No worries, nobody heard it, though. That said, I don't want to bother my neighbors with my minor issues. Needless to say the nickname was annoying.
My verdict: It's not a bad book by any means, and I'm sure most of the readers will love and enjoy About Last Night. Don't mind me and give it a try.
About Last Night was kindly provided by Ruthie Knox (author), her publisher, and NetGalley. Thank you--I appreciate it.
The premise of About Last Night was very promising. Former US Goth girl who's into knitting meets posh and buttoned-up English banker. Yay! Unfortunately the execution fell flat. In all honesty I can say that I am not disappointed because I never had high expectations in the first place.
I think my main problem was the fact that I finished reading an outstanding book and came down to average level. About Last Night is one book among many, many others--nothing exceptional at all. It is what it is. Average. Yes, of course it was a light, nice and fluffy read, maybe a bit too fluffy for my liking. But. I never felt their chemistry. In fact, was there any chemistry to be found at all? Further, I think 80 % of the story lacked emotional depth. The last 20 % were a bit better. I didn't feel invested in their "romance" and could not connect to Cath and Nev. Sadly, the story and the characters never clicked for me. The ending was too sappy and rushed.
The sex. As far as I can judge, a sex scene is another subjective matter. I'm all for steamy and hot sex scenes, however, About Last Night is another book that provides most of the time shallow sex without any intimacy or sensuality. It came across like "Oh, yes, let's hit the sheets and have a quick f*ck". I never felt hot and bothered while reading About Last Night. As a matter of fact, I felt too detached and these characters never touched me in a special way. Somehow I think the love part came too quickly and did not convince me. On top of that, Cath was talking about the tender love and Baba did not feel it, either. *shrugs*
THE.NICKNAME.CITY.
I came to a point of the story where I had to say…if you call the hero City once again, then I'm gonna scream! I hit that particular point and I did scream. No worries, nobody heard it, though. That said, I don't want to bother my neighbors with my minor issues. Needless to say the nickname was annoying.
My verdict: It's not a bad book by any means, and I'm sure most of the readers will love and enjoy About Last Night. Don't mind me and give it a try.
About Last Night was kindly provided by Ruthie Knox (author), her publisher, and NetGalley. Thank you--I appreciate it.
March 6, 2014
3.5 - 4 stars.
Talk about opposites! Wealthy British banker Neville Chamberlain (named after a past Prime Minister), comes from a family steeped in money and is related to royalty. He has a solid career working in the family’s bank, which is currently ran by his dear old mum and his oldest brother, and now he has a chance for a huge promotion – if only he would marry and take the role of ‘family man’ more seriously.
In contrast, there is Mary Catherine, aka Cath. She is an American working odd jobs at a museum, broke, no family, and completely unsure of her life’s plan. She created a lot of trouble for herself as a youth during a long rebellious phase, and suffered some hard tragedies as well. She now sports six very unique tattoos to remind her of her past follies, and is determined not to make emotional and rash decisions again which would certainly lead to more awful and irrefutable mistakes.
After two years of no mistakes, Cath’s life has taken on a new level of mundaneness and boredom. If not for her job at the museum and her passion for knitting, she would have no life at all. When Cath’s boss manipulates her into a blind date situation, she warily agrees. What follows is a disastrous evening out – and thus makes up the title to the book “About Last Night”.
When Cath wakes up the next morning in a strange room – and a strange bed! – she finds herself in the home of the hot guy she sees regularly at the train station. But how did she get there? As the night before finally starts to come into focus, Neville lays down the charm. Since she has already broken her two year streak, what would one more day hurt?
Their romance begins as a short fling, but there is a strong connection between them. Neville desperately wants to see more of her, but there is the nagging situation where his mother and brother are pushing him to get married. Simply put, Cath would never fit in. What unfolds is a cat-and-mouse chase kind of romance, with Cath agreeing to a physical relationship on her terms only, and Neville doing whatever he can to convince her that they are more than just hot sex.
my thoughts:
This was a frothy and sexy romance, perfect for a light and naughty beach read. I especially loved the England setting and a British banker as a hero. Great chemistry between them. I'm not the biggest fan of beta-heroes and heroines who seem to create problems that might not really be there, but I can go with it when its written as well as this one.
Overall, I really enjoyed the romance and had fun reading about these two, including the fairly hot sex scenes. (Side note: OH BOY did she turn up the heat in this book! Her debut Ride With Me was a steamy read, but this had a lot more sizzle!)
The emotional aspect of this book never gets too deep, which works well. As I said, it is a frothy romance. It is based around some fun moments but also some obviously contrived moments as well.
The ending will require a fairly BIG stretch of your beliefs, but I find that to be true in most contemporary romances and I still enjoy them anyway. There were a few parts of the ending that I did struggle with, and therefore I could only give this gem of a book 4-stars. WARNING - MAJOR SPOILER ABOUT THE ENDING!!
This was a fun read, and I love Ruthie Knox's writing voice quite a bit. If your in the mood for a light humorous romance and can suspend some disbelief, this is a great book to try.
Note: I won this arc in a contest, so thank you very much Ruthie for making it available early to some of your many fans!
Talk about opposites! Wealthy British banker Neville Chamberlain (named after a past Prime Minister), comes from a family steeped in money and is related to royalty. He has a solid career working in the family’s bank, which is currently ran by his dear old mum and his oldest brother, and now he has a chance for a huge promotion – if only he would marry and take the role of ‘family man’ more seriously.
In contrast, there is Mary Catherine, aka Cath. She is an American working odd jobs at a museum, broke, no family, and completely unsure of her life’s plan. She created a lot of trouble for herself as a youth during a long rebellious phase, and suffered some hard tragedies as well. She now sports six very unique tattoos to remind her of her past follies, and is determined not to make emotional and rash decisions again which would certainly lead to more awful and irrefutable mistakes.
After two years of no mistakes, Cath’s life has taken on a new level of mundaneness and boredom. If not for her job at the museum and her passion for knitting, she would have no life at all. When Cath’s boss manipulates her into a blind date situation, she warily agrees. What follows is a disastrous evening out – and thus makes up the title to the book “About Last Night”.
When Cath wakes up the next morning in a strange room – and a strange bed! – she finds herself in the home of the hot guy she sees regularly at the train station. But how did she get there? As the night before finally starts to come into focus, Neville lays down the charm. Since she has already broken her two year streak, what would one more day hurt?
Their romance begins as a short fling, but there is a strong connection between them. Neville desperately wants to see more of her, but there is the nagging situation where his mother and brother are pushing him to get married. Simply put, Cath would never fit in. What unfolds is a cat-and-mouse chase kind of romance, with Cath agreeing to a physical relationship on her terms only, and Neville doing whatever he can to convince her that they are more than just hot sex.
my thoughts:
This was a frothy and sexy romance, perfect for a light and naughty beach read. I especially loved the England setting and a British banker as a hero. Great chemistry between them. I'm not the biggest fan of beta-heroes and heroines who seem to create problems that might not really be there, but I can go with it when its written as well as this one.
Overall, I really enjoyed the romance and had fun reading about these two, including the fairly hot sex scenes. (Side note: OH BOY did she turn up the heat in this book! Her debut Ride With Me was a steamy read, but this had a lot more sizzle!)
The emotional aspect of this book never gets too deep, which works well. As I said, it is a frothy romance. It is based around some fun moments but also some obviously contrived moments as well.
The ending will require a fairly BIG stretch of your beliefs, but I find that to be true in most contemporary romances and I still enjoy them anyway. There were a few parts of the ending that I did struggle with, and therefore I could only give this gem of a book 4-stars. WARNING - MAJOR SPOILER ABOUT THE ENDING!!
This was a fun read, and I love Ruthie Knox's writing voice quite a bit. If your in the mood for a light humorous romance and can suspend some disbelief, this is a great book to try.
Note: I won this arc in a contest, so thank you very much Ruthie for making it available early to some of your many fans!
August 15, 2017
★★★★! About last night is a sexy, sweet, witty & feel good story about self exploration & growth, forgiveness & letting go, taking risks & daring to love.
“You brought me here with impure motives?” The idea gave her a stupid thrill.
He shook his head. “No. I developed them after you arrived.”
My sincerest thanks to my dear GR friend Ingela for reading this book with me! What made our buddy-read extra special was that we synced our reading and chatted every few chapters. Thanks girlie for waking up at 6 AM to start reading!
About Last Night is the story about a proper and successful aristocratic British banker, Nev Chamberlain, aka City and a spirited American wild child, Cath Talarico on the run from her shady past. After taking the same train and exercising in the same park for months a too inebriated Cath finds herself rescued by Nev and waking up in his guestroom, but soon ends up in his bed. What follows is Cath leading Nev on a merry chase with Nev relentless in his pursuit. Everything speaks against them yet they can’t seem to keep away from each other.
This is their story about new beginnings, learning to let go, taking risks and daring it all for love.
REVIEW Q&A WITH INGELA AND SUEBEE
Describe the hero/heroine in three words?
SueBee: Nev/City is considerate, witty and loyal. Cath is complicated, determined and observant.
Ingela: Nev/City is caring, warm-hearted and cheerful. Cath is suspicious, humorous and emotional.
What did you like best about the story?
SueBee: Hands-down their dialogue and bantering, inner and with each other. It was both witty and very sweet.
Ingela: That we had to face a tough, tattooed heroine with scars from a pretty hard life. She was experienced and knew what she wanted in the bedroom. It's always a bit fresh.
Favorite quote?
SueBee:
“He traced the shape of the bird, wondering what she could have done to merit writing herself a memo on her body.
“It’s a very permanent sort of reminder.”
She raised herself up slightly, catching his gaze and holding it. “They were really bad mistakes.”
Ingela:
“I have a few things that aren't black."
"Of course you do darling. Only the ones I've seen are very small, and I get to take them off with my teeth. You've trained me to salivate at the sight of color, like one of Pavlov's dogs. Your top is making me very hungry”
Did the story have a special meaning, message or point for you?
SueBee: This story for me is about new beginnings and learning to let go. Nev and Cath are so different and from opposite worlds yet both are held prisoners by their pasts. Cath has been totally paralyzed by guilt and secrets, while Nev is caged in my his status and family expectations.
Ingela: For me this story was about daring to forgive yourself, move on and take a shot at happiness when it comes. Dare to be loved and to love.
“Nev was the man in the parlor and the painter in his studio, the banker and the rugby player. The boyfriend who bought her prawn crisps and rubbed her back when she cried. The tender lover. The caged beast who came out to play when they got naked together. He could be any of them.”
“Cath called all the shots. She seemed more comfortable that way, so Nev had decided not to press. Much. Instead, he looked for the loopholes and exploited them.”
About Last Night is Nev’s journey of sticking up for himself, following his passion and thinking outside the box. Cath on the other hand is already impulsive and not afraid to be different. She instead needs to work on her guilt and fears. So many people have let her down in her life she doesn’t want to depend on anyone. Cath needs to open up and be willing to take a chance on love.
Witty bantering, excellent character development, a bit of a mystery and life lessons to be learned. Romantic, sexy and emotional! For me a sweet, feel good read. Thanks Ms. Knox!
“Cath didn’t feel like a mistake to him. She felt like a beginning. A clean canvas, ready to be painted. A gorgeous new idea.”
***
Hero rating: 4 stars
Heroine rating: 3.5 stars
Sex scenes rating: 4.5 stars
Sex scenes frequency: 4 stars
Storyline concept rating: 4 stars
Storytelling skills rating: 4.5 stars
Story ending rating: 3 stars
Book editing rating (5 = no edits spotted): 4.5 stars
************************************************
Overall rating: 4 stars
Would I recommend this book: Yes.
Would I re-read this book: Maybe later.
Would I read future books by this author: Yes.
My fellow buddy-reader Ingela’s review
April 10, 2012
This was just one of those books. The one that saddened you with each flick of a page. Because with each flick you knew that you were getting closer and closer to the end page. And I simply didn't want the book to end.
I had so much fun with Mary Catherine and Nev. They were explosive, witty, crazy and very sexy together. I especially loved the dialogues because the posh English accent that Nev had was totally swoon worthy. And Cath was an absolute gem. Her inner thoughts were hilarious and very flaky at times.
"What's your name?" she asked.
He laughed. "Nev."
She sat up suddenly, bracing her elbows on the bed. "Short for Neville?"
It was the world's dorkiest name. Nearly as bad as Rupert. "I never thought I'd be penetrated by a Neville." she said wonderingly. "Maybe a Colin, or a Simon but -"
"Shut up."
"It wounds my pride you won't go out with me, but I can console myself with the knowledge that when you do see me, you can't keep your knickers on for ten minutes running."
She threw her cookie at him. "You bastard! Are you calling me easy?"
"I like you easy. Besides, you're not to blame. Who'd want to wear wet knickers?"
And Neville Chamberlaine was simply delicious and down right dirty. Love him and his runner-rugby player-rower hot body.
Thank you RK for an enjoyable read, I had an absolutely wonderful time with this. And please write a book about Winston the wanker because I know for sure that he had a very posh English accent also.
I had so much fun with Mary Catherine and Nev. They were explosive, witty, crazy and very sexy together. I especially loved the dialogues because the posh English accent that Nev had was totally swoon worthy. And Cath was an absolute gem. Her inner thoughts were hilarious and very flaky at times.
"What's your name?" she asked.
He laughed. "Nev."
She sat up suddenly, bracing her elbows on the bed. "Short for Neville?"
It was the world's dorkiest name. Nearly as bad as Rupert. "I never thought I'd be penetrated by a Neville." she said wonderingly. "Maybe a Colin, or a Simon but -"
"Shut up."
"It wounds my pride you won't go out with me, but I can console myself with the knowledge that when you do see me, you can't keep your knickers on for ten minutes running."
She threw her cookie at him. "You bastard! Are you calling me easy?"
"I like you easy. Besides, you're not to blame. Who'd want to wear wet knickers?"
And Neville Chamberlaine was simply delicious and down right dirty. Love him and his runner-rugby player-rower hot body.
Thank you RK for an enjoyable read, I had an absolutely wonderful time with this. And please write a book about Winston the wanker because I know for sure that he had a very posh English accent also.
June 14, 2013
4 Cozy Stars - Nice, romantic and very hot - a good and entertaining CR novel
Last weekend (7-9 June), me and my lovely, and so well organized, friend SueBee, had a really nice buddy read together. We are both Swedes but SueBee live in U.S. and I am home here in Sweden. It distinguishes 10 hours, but with a neat and tidy, we got a great chapter for chapter reading experience together.
Thanks SueBee! - I really like to do it again some day. It was so much fun. And many thanks for the fine art pictures too - I love our "Swedish" blue-yellow mini fatties.
Mary Catherine (Cath) Talarico, with her tattoos and dark secrets, is a Chicago girl living in London. Cath is living her new life with strict rules and is willing to do everything possible to not fall back into old bad habits. Every morning, she sees a tall, blonde and well-dressed young man on his way to work in city. She has named him "City".
Nevil (Nev aka City) Chamberlain want to be an painting artist but is trapped in a family’s banking business. One night he sees the neat woman, always different with black clothes and a tough style, which he usually face in his home underground station. She's drunk and feel bad but don't want to give either her name or address. Nev feels responsible, and he takes the chance, he takes her home overnight.
Blue blood meet Bad blood - is it possible to find happiness and eternal love?
Review Q&A with me and SueBee:
Describe the hero/heroine in 3 words?
Me/Ingela: Nev/City is caring, warm-hearted and cheerful. Cath is suspicious, humorous and emotional.
SueBee: Nev/City is considerate, witty and loyal. Cath is complicated, determined and stubborn.
What did you like best about the story?
Me/Ingela: That we had to face a tough, tattooed heroine with scars from a pretty hard life. She was experienced and knew what she wanted in the bedroom. It's always a bit fresh.
SueBee: Hands-down their dialogue and bantering inner and with each other. It was both witty and very sweet.
Favorite quote?
My/Ingela's:
SueBee's:
Did the story have a special meaning,
message or point for you?
Me/Ingela: For me this story was about daring to forgive yourself, move on and take a shot at happiness when it comes. Dare to be loved and to love.
SueBee: This story for me is about new beginnings and learning to let go. Nev and Cath are so different and from opposite worlds yet both are held prisoners by their pasts. Cath has been totally paralyzed by guilt and secrets, while Nev is caged in my his status and family expectations.
The bottom line: A quite simple, nice and cute romance. I never got tired of the lovely characters and the whole thing seemed pretty believable. And not to forget; This novel is very steamy (a lot of fun and sexy heat..) and I got True.Big.Love.
I really like this nice end, a good HEA, but it always great with a epilog and I think this novel kind of needed one. But as the romantic girl I am, I know they will have it all. Nev will give Cath the sun, right? All in all; completely in my taste for a sweet contemporary romance.
I LIKE - a good enjoyable novel for a fun buddyread.
~~~~~~~~~~~
My dear BR-friend SueBee's review, please read it - it's great!
~ I LIKE.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Hurray, now is the time! ~ Buddy-read with my friend
★SueBee★Bring me an alpha★ this weekend 7-9 June 2013.
We will buddyread-chatting about this book here.
Last weekend (7-9 June), me and my lovely, and so well organized, friend SueBee, had a really nice buddy read together. We are both Swedes but SueBee live in U.S. and I am home here in Sweden. It distinguishes 10 hours, but with a neat and tidy, we got a great chapter for chapter reading experience together.
Thanks SueBee! - I really like to do it again some day. It was so much fun. And many thanks for the fine art pictures too - I love our "Swedish" blue-yellow mini fatties.
Mary Catherine (Cath) Talarico, with her tattoos and dark secrets, is a Chicago girl living in London. Cath is living her new life with strict rules and is willing to do everything possible to not fall back into old bad habits. Every morning, she sees a tall, blonde and well-dressed young man on his way to work in city. She has named him "City".
‘She had no judgment when it came to men. Mom had concidered her a bit of a hoochie, but the truth was that Cath always opened her heart when she opened her legs.’
Nevil (Nev aka City) Chamberlain want to be an painting artist but is trapped in a family’s banking business. One night he sees the neat woman, always different with black clothes and a tough style, which he usually face in his home underground station. She's drunk and feel bad but don't want to give either her name or address. Nev feels responsible, and he takes the chance, he takes her home overnight.
Blue blood meet Bad blood - is it possible to find happiness and eternal love?
Review Q&A with me and SueBee:
Describe the hero/heroine in 3 words?
Me/Ingela: Nev/City is caring, warm-hearted and cheerful. Cath is suspicious, humorous and emotional.
SueBee: Nev/City is considerate, witty and loyal. Cath is complicated, determined and stubborn.
What did you like best about the story?
Me/Ingela: That we had to face a tough, tattooed heroine with scars from a pretty hard life. She was experienced and knew what she wanted in the bedroom. It's always a bit fresh.
SueBee: Hands-down their dialogue and bantering inner and with each other. It was both witty and very sweet.
Favorite quote?
My/Ingela's:
“I have a few things that aren't black."
"Of course you do darling. Only the ones I've seen are very small, and I get to take them off with my teeth. You've trained me to salivate at the sight of color, like one of Pavlov's dogs. Your top is making me very hungry”
SueBee's:
‘He traced the shape of the bird, wondering what she could have done to merit writing herself a memo on her body.
“It’s a very permanent sort of reminder.”
She raised herself up slightly, catching his gaze and holding it. “They were really bad mistakes.”
Did the story have a special meaning,
message or point for you?
Me/Ingela: For me this story was about daring to forgive yourself, move on and take a shot at happiness when it comes. Dare to be loved and to love.
SueBee: This story for me is about new beginnings and learning to let go. Nev and Cath are so different and from opposite worlds yet both are held prisoners by their pasts. Cath has been totally paralyzed by guilt and secrets, while Nev is caged in my his status and family expectations.
The bottom line: A quite simple, nice and cute romance. I never got tired of the lovely characters and the whole thing seemed pretty believable. And not to forget; This novel is very steamy (a lot of fun and sexy heat..) and I got True.Big.Love.
I really like this nice end, a good HEA, but it always great with a epilog and I think this novel kind of needed one. But as the romantic girl I am, I know they will have it all. Nev will give Cath the sun, right? All in all; completely in my taste for a sweet contemporary romance.
I LIKE - a good enjoyable novel for a fun buddyread.
~~~~~~~~~~~
My dear BR-friend SueBee's review, please read it - it's great!
~ I LIKE.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Hurray, now is the time! ~ Buddy-read with my friend
★SueBee★Bring me an alpha★ this weekend 7-9 June 2013.
We will buddyread-chatting about this book here.
May 18, 2012
I thoroughly enjoyed RK's debut book Ride with Me and was looking forward to getting my sticky little fingers on this book too.
For various reasons I have been struggling to find the time to read but I did manage to finish this last night (or should I say the early hours of this morning!), and it was just what I needed....It was light and easy to read and didn't have a complex story line. For a light and easy read it had all the hallmarks I look for - a hot man, a strong woman and a good amount of angst and a few steamy sex scenes......I really wasn't in the mood for much more complex than that and on that score this book delivered!
Whilst reading this I could easily imagine Nev with his very English upper class accent (I am English after all and was born and raised in London!). I did initially have a problem with reconciling his character with his accent, history and family background but everything seemed to quickly gel into place as I flew through the chapters. Initially it was just about immediate sexual attraction, but it soon became apparent that Nev (or 'City' as she called him) had feelings for Cath and she was just the lady to pull him out of the rut and become a full time painter instead of being miserable and going through the motions of working for the family business to keep his parents/brother happy.
Having been born and raised in London it was a really nice change to read a book that was set there and featured many reconisable places including the V&A Museum, a place I have visited many times, and the Northern Line tube station in which I had spent many years travelling on.
When I am in the mood/need a light read then I know that one of Ruthie's books will tick all the boxes for me and for that reason she has been added to my automatic buy list!
I was fortunate to be one of the first 100 applicants to view an advance copy, so I must thank Ruthie, her publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity.
For various reasons I have been struggling to find the time to read but I did manage to finish this last night (or should I say the early hours of this morning!), and it was just what I needed....It was light and easy to read and didn't have a complex story line. For a light and easy read it had all the hallmarks I look for - a hot man, a strong woman and a good amount of angst and a few steamy sex scenes......I really wasn't in the mood for much more complex than that and on that score this book delivered!
Whilst reading this I could easily imagine Nev with his very English upper class accent (I am English after all and was born and raised in London!). I did initially have a problem with reconciling his character with his accent, history and family background but everything seemed to quickly gel into place as I flew through the chapters. Initially it was just about immediate sexual attraction, but it soon became apparent that Nev (or 'City' as she called him) had feelings for Cath and she was just the lady to pull him out of the rut and become a full time painter instead of being miserable and going through the motions of working for the family business to keep his parents/brother happy.
Having been born and raised in London it was a really nice change to read a book that was set there and featured many reconisable places including the V&A Museum, a place I have visited many times, and the Northern Line tube station in which I had spent many years travelling on.
When I am in the mood/need a light read then I know that one of Ruthie's books will tick all the boxes for me and for that reason she has been added to my automatic buy list!
I was fortunate to be one of the first 100 applicants to view an advance copy, so I must thank Ruthie, her publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity.
January 19, 2014
4 Stars!! Neville Chamberlain...you sexy Englishman...RAWRRRR!!
Such a fun book, with 2 awesome lead characters and a story to sink your teeth into. Witty banter, steamy sex, some anxious moments, all which flowed and blended nicely from page to page...right up until the end...where it sort of fizzled out. It wasn't a bad ending, actually it was very emotional, and quite lovely, but somehow it didn't feel complete and there were some unresolved issues, at least in my eyes. Maybe I just expect too much. None the less, a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon, enjoying another wonderful read by this talented author.
*Thank you Kellie for reminding me about this book*
September 1, 2016
Don't you hate it when you let a book linger without reviewing right away then you forget all of the brilliant things you were sure to say?
Well, this book was really, REALLY good M/F contemporary romance, made even better by a killer narration. Audiobook fans, give this one a go. It was an inexpensive audiobook (bought the ebook then the audiobook through Amazon for cheap) and it was SO worth it. The story was light, sexy, and funny and just overall easy listening.
June 6, 2012
Rating 4.25
Mary "Cath" Catherine is a reformed bad girl and for the past two years her life has been all about no alcohol, no men and no self-destruction, just trying to make something of herself and her current low paying job is a step to what she hopes is a curator position at the museum and in pursuit of her job she finds herself agreeing to a blind date in exchange for getting something for the exhibit. Things don't go as planned and memories of her mother engulf her so she drinks and when she wakes up in the morning it is in a strange bed and it is deja vu to her past all over again.
Her memories slowly start trickling and so does the fact that she had taken anti-histamines earlier in the day before the drinks that may have added to her situation. She is gratified to remember that she didn't go home with her boring date last night and instead she was brought home by "City", one of the people she often sees at the train station and who she reckons correctly belongs to the wealthy and is in banking.
Nev, short for Neville is our sexy Brit hero and ooh he is sexy. What can I say I am sucker for Brit accents, for me Colin Firth is to die for so I kind of imagined him here. He rescues Cath at the station since she refuses to tell him, her address and he takes her to his place and puts her to bed. He is truly one of those good guy heroes with a bad side.
The scene that takes place after Cath wakes up was steamy, Cath sees Nev painting, so the stuffy banker has a creative side that kind of makes her tingle and some flirting turns into a steamy kiss and almost more before they break a jar and the moment.
Nev is a good guy and in Cath's life she hasn't met those instead from the start we are introduced to the new Cath, who replaced the old one. Her mistakes we aren't made aware of, what turned her into a person who doesn't want to open up, the person who got tattooed to remind herself what all her mistakes led to and served as a reminder to not repeat them.
They end up in bed and Cath cuts and runs after she sees Nev's City side return when Nev's brother comes by his apartment. Nev isn't happy to see her go, his brother as usual came to manipulate him courtesy of his mother, a promotion for him at the bank in exchange for his finding a "suitable" woman. He of course isn't focussed on that right now, his mind is on Cath.
From the very start we are aware that Nev's passion lies towards art but he still continues to toe his family line, breaking free in small ways like leaving his family home to live on his own but for some reason still not breaking free.
For Nev, Cath is not a fling instead something serious even if she persists in keeping him at arm's length, refusing his offers of a date, not giving him her number and address and calling him City, but he is patient and willing to wait for her to let him in and despite all the internal fight in Cath she slowly finds herself doing just that and can't stay away from him no matter how much she tells herself it will be only sex and that he is too good for her and that she would hurt him. It all starts by her dropping in at his office.
I loved so many little romantic things in the book, the way Nev calls her Mary Catherine, finds Oreos for her when she finds herself missing things from Chicago, brings food for her on the train and never once gets irritated by her and her boundaries.
I will say one word this book it is ooh so steamy and sexy and the conflict moves the book forward brilliantly. We see Cath and Nev falling in deeper with each other and Nev knows it is love even if Cath seems to almost run from him sometimes, she does start revealing small snippets of her life gradually, the fact that she can't be a mother and lost a baby, that her father died at 14 and her life changed after that, her English mother and how Cath always disappointed her, her job at V & A and hopes for the future and he cherishes every piece.
Then things change when Nev comes up with an idea, Cath pretend to be his wife for the weekend he needs to go home that would get his brother and mother of his back and Cath agrees however this changes things, makes Cath realize that she is in too deep and in love that means she has to end it plus the fact that Nev's two persona's seem to clash there and she doesn't like seeing the return of "City".
I found myself actually liking Nev's parents when our ever gutsy Cath kind of challenges Nev's mother but things blow up when Nev's brother brings in a report about Cath and her checkered past and a shocked Nev does nothing, causing Cath to walk out since she heard about the promotion bit and doesn't want to come between his family.
After this a really powerful scene takes place where Cath lays herself bare, all her mistakes, all her past starting from the time her father died until her mother's death from cancer that made her change paths.
Generally I am let down by the build-up to the reveal of someone's past but here I wasn't, Cath had led a sad life filled with mistakes after her baby died but she had found her own way and emerged a stronger woman with so many walls built around herself.
I absolutely loved how Nev broke through to her, the gesture was so romantic and showed that Nev saw her and accepted her as she was, her past and all. I also liked seeing Nev come to terms with who he is, an artist and taking a chance and stop being a coward. For me nothing is more romantic than a hero who gives chase and isn't a forceful brute instead is more subtle. I mean really paintings, that scene really made me swoon.
I would recommend this book with no hesitancy, it features brilliantly layered characters, a romance you would root for, filled with obstacles because of the heroine's walls, a sexy Brit hero and some really steamy scenes.
*ARC provided by the author and her wonderful editor through Netgalley
Mary "Cath" Catherine is a reformed bad girl and for the past two years her life has been all about no alcohol, no men and no self-destruction, just trying to make something of herself and her current low paying job is a step to what she hopes is a curator position at the museum and in pursuit of her job she finds herself agreeing to a blind date in exchange for getting something for the exhibit. Things don't go as planned and memories of her mother engulf her so she drinks and when she wakes up in the morning it is in a strange bed and it is deja vu to her past all over again.
Her memories slowly start trickling and so does the fact that she had taken anti-histamines earlier in the day before the drinks that may have added to her situation. She is gratified to remember that she didn't go home with her boring date last night and instead she was brought home by "City", one of the people she often sees at the train station and who she reckons correctly belongs to the wealthy and is in banking.
Nev, short for Neville is our sexy Brit hero and ooh he is sexy. What can I say I am sucker for Brit accents, for me Colin Firth is to die for so I kind of imagined him here. He rescues Cath at the station since she refuses to tell him, her address and he takes her to his place and puts her to bed. He is truly one of those good guy heroes with a bad side.
The scene that takes place after Cath wakes up was steamy, Cath sees Nev painting, so the stuffy banker has a creative side that kind of makes her tingle and some flirting turns into a steamy kiss and almost more before they break a jar and the moment.
Nev is a good guy and in Cath's life she hasn't met those instead from the start we are introduced to the new Cath, who replaced the old one. Her mistakes we aren't made aware of, what turned her into a person who doesn't want to open up, the person who got tattooed to remind herself what all her mistakes led to and served as a reminder to not repeat them.
They end up in bed and Cath cuts and runs after she sees Nev's City side return when Nev's brother comes by his apartment. Nev isn't happy to see her go, his brother as usual came to manipulate him courtesy of his mother, a promotion for him at the bank in exchange for his finding a "suitable" woman. He of course isn't focussed on that right now, his mind is on Cath.
From the very start we are aware that Nev's passion lies towards art but he still continues to toe his family line, breaking free in small ways like leaving his family home to live on his own but for some reason still not breaking free.
For Nev, Cath is not a fling instead something serious even if she persists in keeping him at arm's length, refusing his offers of a date, not giving him her number and address and calling him City, but he is patient and willing to wait for her to let him in and despite all the internal fight in Cath she slowly finds herself doing just that and can't stay away from him no matter how much she tells herself it will be only sex and that he is too good for her and that she would hurt him. It all starts by her dropping in at his office.
I loved so many little romantic things in the book, the way Nev calls her Mary Catherine, finds Oreos for her when she finds herself missing things from Chicago, brings food for her on the train and never once gets irritated by her and her boundaries.
I will say one word this book it is ooh so steamy and sexy and the conflict moves the book forward brilliantly. We see Cath and Nev falling in deeper with each other and Nev knows it is love even if Cath seems to almost run from him sometimes, she does start revealing small snippets of her life gradually, the fact that she can't be a mother and lost a baby, that her father died at 14 and her life changed after that, her English mother and how Cath always disappointed her, her job at V & A and hopes for the future and he cherishes every piece.
Then things change when Nev comes up with an idea, Cath pretend to be his wife for the weekend he needs to go home that would get his brother and mother of his back and Cath agrees however this changes things, makes Cath realize that she is in too deep and in love that means she has to end it plus the fact that Nev's two persona's seem to clash there and she doesn't like seeing the return of "City".
I found myself actually liking Nev's parents when our ever gutsy Cath kind of challenges Nev's mother but things blow up when Nev's brother brings in a report about Cath and her checkered past and a shocked Nev does nothing, causing Cath to walk out since she heard about the promotion bit and doesn't want to come between his family.
After this a really powerful scene takes place where Cath lays herself bare, all her mistakes, all her past starting from the time her father died until her mother's death from cancer that made her change paths.
Generally I am let down by the build-up to the reveal of someone's past but here I wasn't, Cath had led a sad life filled with mistakes after her baby died but she had found her own way and emerged a stronger woman with so many walls built around herself.
I absolutely loved how Nev broke through to her, the gesture was so romantic and showed that Nev saw her and accepted her as she was, her past and all. I also liked seeing Nev come to terms with who he is, an artist and taking a chance and stop being a coward. For me nothing is more romantic than a hero who gives chase and isn't a forceful brute instead is more subtle. I mean really paintings, that scene really made me swoon.
I would recommend this book with no hesitancy, it features brilliantly layered characters, a romance you would root for, filled with obstacles because of the heroine's walls, a sexy Brit hero and some really steamy scenes.
*ARC provided by the author and her wonderful editor through Netgalley
March 4, 2013
****4 1/2 stars****
After the fun-filled, light, and humor-laced debut Ride with Me, About Last Night takes on a completely different vibe. Darker, more sensual, with a heavier subject matter, About Last Night is a story about one woman's redemption and her tumble into love.
How refreshing it was to read a romance where the heroine had the emotional baggage! Mary Catherine has had a rough life. She is currently trying to "turn over a new leaf" by leaving her old self-destructive behavior behind. This character broke my heart. The pain she has experienced in her past with the loss of several loved ones has left her broken, weary, and terrified of commitment.
Nev enters her life and threatens all the walls that she has carefully constructed around her heart. Nev is an English hero, and I swear I could hear his English accent while I was reading this book! I am a sucker for English heroes, and this one was almost too good to be true. A true beta-type hero, he was very loving, concerned, and considerate towards Cath and her needs. However, in the bedroom, he shed his "beta" and became very much the one in control. These scenes are some of my favorites in the book, and the writing is so excellent that I found myself re-reading entire sections over and over!
This is, at it's core, a story about redemption. Mary Catherine looks at her past with nothing but regret and pain, and yet Nev shows her the beauty in what she has overcome. I loved the character of Mary Catherine, and watching her step out of the darkness of her past into the light of her future was a beautiful thing to behold.
The ending was so sweet that I ended this book with a silly grin on my face. For some it was unbelievable and sappy, but for me, it was exactly what I was looking for! Kuddos to Ruthie Knox:)
This copy was provided to me through Netgalley, Ruthie Knox, and Random House. Thank you!
After the fun-filled, light, and humor-laced debut Ride with Me, About Last Night takes on a completely different vibe. Darker, more sensual, with a heavier subject matter, About Last Night is a story about one woman's redemption and her tumble into love.
How refreshing it was to read a romance where the heroine had the emotional baggage! Mary Catherine has had a rough life. She is currently trying to "turn over a new leaf" by leaving her old self-destructive behavior behind. This character broke my heart. The pain she has experienced in her past with the loss of several loved ones has left her broken, weary, and terrified of commitment.
Nev enters her life and threatens all the walls that she has carefully constructed around her heart. Nev is an English hero, and I swear I could hear his English accent while I was reading this book! I am a sucker for English heroes, and this one was almost too good to be true. A true beta-type hero, he was very loving, concerned, and considerate towards Cath and her needs. However, in the bedroom, he shed his "beta" and became very much the one in control. These scenes are some of my favorites in the book, and the writing is so excellent that I found myself re-reading entire sections over and over!
This is, at it's core, a story about redemption. Mary Catherine looks at her past with nothing but regret and pain, and yet Nev shows her the beauty in what she has overcome. I loved the character of Mary Catherine, and watching her step out of the darkness of her past into the light of her future was a beautiful thing to behold.
The ending was so sweet that I ended this book with a silly grin on my face. For some it was unbelievable and sappy, but for me, it was exactly what I was looking for! Kuddos to Ruthie Knox:)
This copy was provided to me through Netgalley, Ruthie Knox, and Random House. Thank you!
July 24, 2013
2 ½ stars – Contemporary Romance
This is one of those reads that most of my GR friends loved but was a big disappointment for me. The heroine was seriously annoying, the hero didn't really do much for me, and I didn't feel much of a connection between them other than opposites attract sexual chemistry, which even that wasn't very convincing.
Maybe my expectations were too high, but sadly, this didn't work for me. I loved the premise, but it just didn't develop or deliver the way I'd hoped.
This is one of those reads that most of my GR friends loved but was a big disappointment for me. The heroine was seriously annoying, the hero didn't really do much for me, and I didn't feel much of a connection between them other than opposites attract sexual chemistry, which even that wasn't very convincing.
Maybe my expectations were too high, but sadly, this didn't work for me. I loved the premise, but it just didn't develop or deliver the way I'd hoped.
May 19, 2012
4.5 stars. I wanted to read this because I've loved Ruthie Knox's posts at "Wonk-O-Mance," a blog about addictively offbeat romance novels. I wouldn't call About Last Night wonky, though it does break a number of unwritten romance rules; I actually felt a tad... disappointed isn't exactly the right word, but just a touch let down at first because the story seemed fairly conventional. But I was sucked in by the terrific characterizations and by the end, my mind was fairly well blown.
Cath, a people-watcher, has admired the man she thinks of as "City" from afar for months:
"She'd given him the nickname as a nod to his profession, because everything about him announced he worked in the City of London, the square-mile financial district at the center of the metropolis: the dignified wool overcoat and scarf he'd worn all winter, the shined shoes, the ever-present newspaper. Aristocratically remote, he was Prince Charming in a suit."
She also often sees City running in the park: "she loved that flash of pink on his face -- such an endearing crack in his cool perfection. It made her want to muss his hair and tie his shoelaces together when he wasn't looking, just to see what would happen."
An American struggling to remake herself in England -- "No concerts, no bars, no men. These were the rules that set New Cath apart from her irresponsible predecessor" -- Cath never expects to actually meet City. But relaxing her rules for one blind date snowballs, and she finds herself waking up the next day in his flat. And though he was far too much of a gentleman to take advantage of her while she wasn't sober, the next morning is a different story. Bow chicka wow wow.
Thus begins a difficult, complicated courtship. City, whose real name is Nev, is in some ways exactly the man Cath thought: a banker from a very upper crust and respectable family. And this is probably partially why he falls for Cath: "She was so responsive, so alive. So there."
But despite his background and his appearance, Nev is by no means a stereotype or the one-note character Cath sums him up as:
"'You're kinkier than I expected,' she said. 'I figured you'd be strictly a missionary position kind of guy.'
He'd very much like her to list all the things she thought about him so he could prove her wrong, one item at a time. Strictly missionary position. What a bloody depressing thing to say."
Nev is none too fond of his family and hates his job; his real passion is painting. And he has no uptight qualms about the fact that Cath was drunk when they met, or that she slept with him the next day: he likes her and wants to be with her. But Cath, who has tattoos all over her body to remind her of past mistakes, is deathly afraid of making another one. And though she can't stop herself from dropping by Nev's place for sex, she refuses to do anything that might lead to an actual relationship.
Foolish, foolish Cath. How do I describe the awesomeness of Nev? Of course Knox had me at Cath wanting to muss his hair, but that was just the start. In his utterly sexy and completely convincing Britishness, he brought to mind Max, from Meg Maguire's The Reluctant Nude, a character who single-handedly turned me into a Francophile. (I admit I haven't been to England since I was six and am not qualified to judge authenticity, but I was never once jarred out of the story by an Americanism or other wrong note.) And I loved the complexity of his character, which although heavily influenced by his upbringing, is not shackled to it. Nev accepts Cath and is very patient with her, as well as very passionate. When he makes some bad mistakes, he redeems himself with a "grand gesture" that, more importantly, is sensitive and loving.
Cath is a more challenging character and it does require some patience to deal with her constant withdrawal and rejection. I don't want to give away spoilers, so I'll just say that by the end, it's more understandable and it's worth it. I finished About Last Night in one of those perfectly satisfied glows of contentment that are all too rare.
(reviewed from e-arc provided by netGalley)
Cath, a people-watcher, has admired the man she thinks of as "City" from afar for months:
"She'd given him the nickname as a nod to his profession, because everything about him announced he worked in the City of London, the square-mile financial district at the center of the metropolis: the dignified wool overcoat and scarf he'd worn all winter, the shined shoes, the ever-present newspaper. Aristocratically remote, he was Prince Charming in a suit."
She also often sees City running in the park: "she loved that flash of pink on his face -- such an endearing crack in his cool perfection. It made her want to muss his hair and tie his shoelaces together when he wasn't looking, just to see what would happen."
An American struggling to remake herself in England -- "No concerts, no bars, no men. These were the rules that set New Cath apart from her irresponsible predecessor" -- Cath never expects to actually meet City. But relaxing her rules for one blind date snowballs, and she finds herself waking up the next day in his flat. And though he was far too much of a gentleman to take advantage of her while she wasn't sober, the next morning is a different story. Bow chicka wow wow.
Thus begins a difficult, complicated courtship. City, whose real name is Nev, is in some ways exactly the man Cath thought: a banker from a very upper crust and respectable family. And this is probably partially why he falls for Cath: "She was so responsive, so alive. So there."
But despite his background and his appearance, Nev is by no means a stereotype or the one-note character Cath sums him up as:
"'You're kinkier than I expected,' she said. 'I figured you'd be strictly a missionary position kind of guy.'
He'd very much like her to list all the things she thought about him so he could prove her wrong, one item at a time. Strictly missionary position. What a bloody depressing thing to say."
Nev is none too fond of his family and hates his job; his real passion is painting. And he has no uptight qualms about the fact that Cath was drunk when they met, or that she slept with him the next day: he likes her and wants to be with her. But Cath, who has tattoos all over her body to remind her of past mistakes, is deathly afraid of making another one. And though she can't stop herself from dropping by Nev's place for sex, she refuses to do anything that might lead to an actual relationship.
Foolish, foolish Cath. How do I describe the awesomeness of Nev? Of course Knox had me at Cath wanting to muss his hair, but that was just the start. In his utterly sexy and completely convincing Britishness, he brought to mind Max, from Meg Maguire's The Reluctant Nude, a character who single-handedly turned me into a Francophile. (I admit I haven't been to England since I was six and am not qualified to judge authenticity, but I was never once jarred out of the story by an Americanism or other wrong note.) And I loved the complexity of his character, which although heavily influenced by his upbringing, is not shackled to it. Nev accepts Cath and is very patient with her, as well as very passionate. When he makes some bad mistakes, he redeems himself with a "grand gesture" that, more importantly, is sensitive and loving.
Cath is a more challenging character and it does require some patience to deal with her constant withdrawal and rejection. I don't want to give away spoilers, so I'll just say that by the end, it's more understandable and it's worth it. I finished About Last Night in one of those perfectly satisfied glows of contentment that are all too rare.
(reviewed from e-arc provided by netGalley)
June 16, 2012
Grade: B - or weak 4 stars
A reformed bad girl meets a supposedly uptight, repressed, and privileged man. They have instant chemistry, sparks fly, and bodies ignite. The heroine has a rucksack filled with issues while the hero carries his little hobo bag.
Mary Catherine Talarico doesn't want to fall back to her old destructive ways (sleeping around, partying, drinking). Then, she doesn't feel good enough. Neville Chamberlain is less conflicted and didn't feel entirely revealed. His characterization was simplistic. I would have liked to have a deeper look in his head.
There's some detachment with Neville character. Nev is revealed mostly through his attraction to Cath and their hot smexy times. At the story's beginning, his easy understanding and patience with her issues was nice. Nev's passive behavior with his family didn't quite gel with his persona with Cath.
I felt some detachment while reading this story, but Mary Catherine engaged my emotions. Overall, this wasn't everything I'd hoped it would be, but Cath won me over. I cheered for the heroine and cried for her heartache near the end.
Buddy read with Mimi and Erika
A reformed bad girl meets a supposedly uptight, repressed, and privileged man. They have instant chemistry, sparks fly, and bodies ignite. The heroine has a rucksack filled with issues while the hero carries his little hobo bag.
Mary Catherine Talarico doesn't want to fall back to her old destructive ways (sleeping around, partying, drinking). Then, she doesn't feel good enough. Neville Chamberlain is less conflicted and didn't feel entirely revealed. His characterization was simplistic. I would have liked to have a deeper look in his head.
There's some detachment with Neville character. Nev is revealed mostly through his attraction to Cath and their hot smexy times. At the story's beginning, his easy understanding and patience with her issues was nice. Nev's passive behavior with his family didn't quite gel with his persona with Cath.
I felt some detachment while reading this story, but Mary Catherine engaged my emotions. Overall, this wasn't everything I'd hoped it would be, but Cath won me over. I cheered for the heroine and cried for her heartache near the end.
Buddy read with Mimi and Erika
May 13, 2012
3.5 stars
Witty, charming, sexy. This story was all of these things, and yet it somehow took me a very long time to become invested in About Last Night. Admittedly, I appear to be in the minority on this one. So, likely, this is just my opinion and an anomaly.
If you enjoyed the author's debut, Ride With Me, give this one a try! Ruthie Knox is a top-notch writer!!
***With much appreciation, I thank Ruthie Knox, her publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an early copy of this book!
Witty, charming, sexy. This story was all of these things, and yet it somehow took me a very long time to become invested in About Last Night. Admittedly, I appear to be in the minority on this one. So, likely, this is just my opinion and an anomaly.
If you enjoyed the author's debut, Ride With Me, give this one a try! Ruthie Knox is a top-notch writer!!
***With much appreciation, I thank Ruthie Knox, her publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an early copy of this book!
June 15, 2012
“It had been a million years since she belonged anywhere, or to anyone.”
American born Mary Catherine (Cath) Talarico currently lives in London as an assistant curator at a local museum. Independent and self-sufficient, Cath has set her life in a new direction but she still bears the emotional and physical scars of bad decisions from her past. Experiencing a long-term hiatus from men, Cath reluctantly agrees to a blind date arranged by her boss. After the extremely boring blind date and too much alcohol, Cath wakes up and finds herself just where she promised herself not to be; in a strangers bed with a hangover. What surprises her is she is not at her blind dates home, but at the home of Englishman Nev Chamberlain, better known to her as “City”; the good-looking businessman that rides the same train into work. Already forming her own opinion of City as “a good man” while in the midst of her humiliation, she is relieved that he turns out to be her savior in another one of her embarrassing moments of shame. When Cath pulls herself out of bed and into the kitchen to offer her apologies and thanks, her body betrays her “Boy Scout” image of the Brit and she feels an immediate attraction to the dimpled, blonde and somewhat dangerous aura of City. What’s even scarier is she sees the same eat-you-up attraction in the eyes looking back at her.
“I play rugby, too.” He gave her half a smile and she made an effort to suppress the image of City in a rugby jersey with pink cheeks and dirty knees, tussling over a ball. A human orgasm.
Tired of living someone else’s life and working at a job he hates in the family business, City longs to be free from the expectations and responsibilities pushed on him by his manipulative mother and brother. With a passion for painting and rugby, City enjoys the space he has created away from his family and desires to lead and ordinary life. When City’s mother gives him an ultimatum that he must marry a suitable woman in order to excel in the family business or be disinherited, City decides to turn the tables on his mother’s blackmail and forms a plan of his own.
“She’d thought of how he’d seemed to her before she knew him, cold and polished as a marble statue at the train station. How he really was when they were alone. Hot and messy. Intense and conflicted. Vulnerable and real.”
I’m always a bit giddy when after the first chapter of a book I know I have locked into an author that has truly grasped the gift of writing great romance. Ruthie Knox’s voice is honest, captivating and her words flow off the pages, magically, as a seasoned author would pen. My immediate reaction to this story was “Fifty who?” (Fifty Shades of Grey readers will understand the question.) because let me tell you that Nev aka City is absolutely divine! His warm compassionate nature paired with his passionate and seductive qualities equals a swoon worthy adorably sexy hero. Whether voicing the simple endearment “love” or witnessing his slightly disheveled, flirty look, City is every bit the sex grenade that will blow your knickers off! City/Nev truly is an enticingly sexy character and all I wanted to do was soak in his essence:
“He was claiming her, marking her with his touch, but she didn’t feel possessed so much as she felt protected. Cherished. Wanted. The unaccustomed intimacy of it rendered her fragile, vulnerable as a robin’s egg. Somehow with him it was all right. He wouldn’t take advantage. City was one of the good guys.”
What is so gratifying with Nev’s personality is he is so patient and in tune with Cath. He reads her like a book and knows how much of his feelings he can reveal to her and how far he can push her. She is completely terrified of intimacy and that is what he most desires from her so it’s a very push/pull relationship because he recognizes her fear yet doesn’t shy away from it. There was a constant assurance that he could and would break through Cath’s emotional baggage and prove to her that they worked, they clicked and mostly flaws and all, their connection was authentic.
“She’d arrived locked down, but when he kissed her she swung open, so smoothly and easily he could almost forget she’d been otherwise. She was an enigma, this woman. Bold and reticent, passionate and distant. Open and shut. Completely fascinating.”
Within the first few pages, I formed an instant emotional connection with Cath. After years of poor life choices and self disappointment leading up to her mother’s death, Cath made a vow to herself to be a better person and put the old irresponsible Cath in the past. While she is trying to turn over a new leaf, she is still hesitant to allow herself happiness or the thought of a loving relationship. Although her life is ridden with past regrets, she also projects a very flirty and funny sense of humor which brings a nice balance to the flow of the story. She is a people watcher. Experiencing her watching her fellow commuters and how she observes everyone on the train into work had me laughing and adoring her idiosyncrasies. As a result of Cath’s emotional baggage, she has self-inflicted reminders resulting in the tattoos on her body. What is so poignant is she views the tattoos as ugly reminders of her past mistakes and uses them as a barrier in obtaining the companionship and intimacy that she craves. What is beautiful is how Nev takes what she sees as ugly and transforms her body art into something beautiful. This revelation and climactic moment in the story brought all the emotion to a head for not only the characters but for the reader. Ms. Knox truly delivers a story of renewal and trust with this couple so much so that I found myself desperately wanting a sequel. The ending proved to be a commitment that both Cath and Nev were finally able to completely give each other and naturally I wanted more of their contagious happiness. Contemporary romance readers will not want to miss the romantic, heart-felt emotion along with all the sexy, steamy goodness Ruthie Knox creates within the pages of About Last Night.
Favorite Quote:
“They were loud and messy together. Sweaty and transcendent. Alarmingly, wonderfully out of control. They were the closest thing to perfect she’d ever known.”
Originally posted at http://www.fictionvixen.com/review-ab...
July 19, 2018
4.5/5
Loved loved loved! This book was funny and sexy and so romantic. I loved every moment I spent with Nev and Cath.
Loved loved loved! This book was funny and sexy and so romantic. I loved every moment I spent with Nev and Cath.
December 5, 2017
For the month leading up to the release of this book, every time I looked through my 'to be read' list my eyes zeroed in on this book so when it was finally released I rushed out and bought it and I wasn't disappointed.
Cath Talarico & Nev Chamberlain are complete opposites. He's a banker in stiff suits with a family legacy and she's... not. Art, tattoos and a history that she doesn't share with anyone are her thing. He's English and she's American. He's private schools and money and she's again... not.
Cath passes the time waiting for her train by people watching... giving nicknames to the people who wait with her. One of them she has nicknamed "City" - a well-dressed, gorgeous guy in a suit. Someone who's she's sure has never once noticed her.
Cath has taken a two year hiatus from men in an attempt to straighten out her life, and she's now got a job she loves and is no longer the person she once was. And then a horror of a blind date happens where she inadvertently takes an antihistamine and drinks some alcohol and she finds herself on the train platform in a bit of trouble. Enter Nev, who brings her back to his place to sleep it off. She wakes up wondering just what the hell she did last night.
I love the way Knox wrote these characters... I genuinely liked both Nev and Cath. Nev really wasn't what Cath predicted ... or who she assumed he was. At least not with her.
“She’d thought of how he’d seemed to her before she knew him, cold and polished as a marble statue at the train station. How he really was when they were alone. Hot and messy. Intense and conflicted. Vulnerable and real.”
He was this warm, passionate, seductive and sweet guy that with just a sentence or a look could have you swooning. He was patient and sweet with her and knowing there was a history she wasn't ready to share he never pushed. (well... until you know...lol)
Cath is carrying a lot of baggage. She has a history of poor choices and disappointment and with her mother's death has promised to make something of herself... someone who her mother could be proud of. All the history still has a lot of influence on her current life even though she has tried to put it in the past and move forward. Even with her history, you're immediately drawn to her as she's funny, and witty and the two together have an incredible chemistry.
The characters aren't perfect, they both have their flaws, and I found myself especially angry with Cath because for all the "new start" thoughts and ideas she kept her past right at the front of her mind constantly using it as a reminder of why she shouldn't be all in with Nev and she never really had confidence in him, constantly thinking her past would be a dealbreaker for him. In dramatic fashion the climax occurs and then I truly loved the end. It totally worked for me. But that's all I'm saying about that! You will have to read it to experience it!
I didn't highlight much in this book... I tend not to with romance books, but the following line was one of the couple that stuck out to me as being a favorite...
“They were loud and messy together. Sweaty and transcendent. Alarmingly, wonderfully out of control. They were the closest thing to perfect she’d ever known.”
Knox gives readers a wonderful, sweet romance with witty dialogue and some hot love scenes! Definitely give it a read!
Cath Talarico & Nev Chamberlain are complete opposites. He's a banker in stiff suits with a family legacy and she's... not. Art, tattoos and a history that she doesn't share with anyone are her thing. He's English and she's American. He's private schools and money and she's again... not.
Cath passes the time waiting for her train by people watching... giving nicknames to the people who wait with her. One of them she has nicknamed "City" - a well-dressed, gorgeous guy in a suit. Someone who's she's sure has never once noticed her.
Cath has taken a two year hiatus from men in an attempt to straighten out her life, and she's now got a job she loves and is no longer the person she once was. And then a horror of a blind date happens where she inadvertently takes an antihistamine and drinks some alcohol and she finds herself on the train platform in a bit of trouble. Enter Nev, who brings her back to his place to sleep it off. She wakes up wondering just what the hell she did last night.
I love the way Knox wrote these characters... I genuinely liked both Nev and Cath. Nev really wasn't what Cath predicted ... or who she assumed he was. At least not with her.
“She’d thought of how he’d seemed to her before she knew him, cold and polished as a marble statue at the train station. How he really was when they were alone. Hot and messy. Intense and conflicted. Vulnerable and real.”
He was this warm, passionate, seductive and sweet guy that with just a sentence or a look could have you swooning. He was patient and sweet with her and knowing there was a history she wasn't ready to share he never pushed. (well... until you know...lol)
Cath is carrying a lot of baggage. She has a history of poor choices and disappointment and with her mother's death has promised to make something of herself... someone who her mother could be proud of. All the history still has a lot of influence on her current life even though she has tried to put it in the past and move forward. Even with her history, you're immediately drawn to her as she's funny, and witty and the two together have an incredible chemistry.
The characters aren't perfect, they both have their flaws, and I found myself especially angry with Cath because for all the "new start" thoughts and ideas she kept her past right at the front of her mind constantly using it as a reminder of why she shouldn't be all in with Nev and she never really had confidence in him, constantly thinking her past would be a dealbreaker for him. In dramatic fashion the climax occurs and then I truly loved the end. It totally worked for me. But that's all I'm saying about that! You will have to read it to experience it!
I didn't highlight much in this book... I tend not to with romance books, but the following line was one of the couple that stuck out to me as being a favorite...
“They were loud and messy together. Sweaty and transcendent. Alarmingly, wonderfully out of control. They were the closest thing to perfect she’d ever known.”
Knox gives readers a wonderful, sweet romance with witty dialogue and some hot love scenes! Definitely give it a read!
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June 18, 2012
3 Stars
I liked this book, but had a few issues. Cath had multiple issues for somewhat valid reasons, but was trying to remake herself. Nev is trying to become his own person. So, you'd think this would work well and it does until about 50% through the book then it takes a turn that puzzled me. Up to this point, the romance dance Nev and Cath are on is a good one. They are beginning to know and trust each other. Then, Cath needs a donation for her exhibit and Nev needs a wife to secure his position at the bank. He talks Cath into posing as his wife. At this point, the book becomes very Monty Python-ish, and not in a good way. A curve ball out of nowhere. Just strange. But then, the derailed train gets back on track and all is well.
Frankly too much "stuff" for this story. I think this book suffers some from editing down to a shorter Loveswept format. My first by this author, and will read another before determining the issue I have with the writer and/or style.
What did I like/not like about this book?
1 -- I liked the way Nev and Cath meet. They live near each other in London. They jog the same park and path. They ride the same train. They nod to each other occasionally. Then, one night, Cath has a few too many drinks and Nev takes care of her. He eventually tells her he has been attracted to her for some time. I loved the concept for this story. But, when the story took its weird turn, it then became just another story not really well told.
2 -- I really liked Nev, until I didn't. I liked his honesty. I like his aggressiveness coupled with his polish. He was a gentleman and a gentle man, but he had no issue communicating his need or want of Cath. Very attractive. But then, the dishonesty. He needed to present a wife to his family in order to save his job. Cath needed a donation to save her exhibit and thus her job. He loved her and wanted to marry her at some point, so thought nothing of presenting her to his family as his "new" wife to secure both. WTF? Just out of nowhere and totally out of character for the Nev we were given.
3 -- Cath was a strange one. She obviously had issues, but she was quirky enough we liked her. I think she was the honest one through the book. She kept herself very closeted from Nev, but we knew this from the beginning. We weren't presented with an inconsistent personality [unlike Nev]. She was the same throughout.
4 -- I did enjoy the ending. The author brought all the pieces together in the end and we almost want to forgive her for taking us down the strange path, but I just can't do it. I'm not sure why the story unfolded the way it did, but I didn't like it. Almost like dishonesty in a relationship. You have us believe one thing, but then you show us another and want us to believe this now, just because you say so and I for one don't like thinking one thing and then finding out it was untrue. So, the ending was nice, but doesn't make up for the 25% of strange.
You may not think or feel the same as I do. Therefore, you may like this a great deal more. If so, good for you.
Happy Reading!
pre-ordered for Nook - due out 06/12/2012
I liked this book, but had a few issues. Cath had multiple issues for somewhat valid reasons, but was trying to remake herself. Nev is trying to become his own person. So, you'd think this would work well and it does until about 50% through the book then it takes a turn that puzzled me. Up to this point, the romance dance Nev and Cath are on is a good one. They are beginning to know and trust each other. Then, Cath needs a donation for her exhibit and Nev needs a wife to secure his position at the bank. He talks Cath into posing as his wife. At this point, the book becomes very Monty Python-ish, and not in a good way. A curve ball out of nowhere. Just strange. But then, the derailed train gets back on track and all is well.
Frankly too much "stuff" for this story. I think this book suffers some from editing down to a shorter Loveswept format. My first by this author, and will read another before determining the issue I have with the writer and/or style.
What did I like/not like about this book?
1 -- I liked the way Nev and Cath meet. They live near each other in London. They jog the same park and path. They ride the same train. They nod to each other occasionally. Then, one night, Cath has a few too many drinks and Nev takes care of her. He eventually tells her he has been attracted to her for some time. I loved the concept for this story. But, when the story took its weird turn, it then became just another story not really well told.
2 -- I really liked Nev, until I didn't. I liked his honesty. I like his aggressiveness coupled with his polish. He was a gentleman and a gentle man, but he had no issue communicating his need or want of Cath. Very attractive. But then, the dishonesty. He needed to present a wife to his family in order to save his job. Cath needed a donation to save her exhibit and thus her job. He loved her and wanted to marry her at some point, so thought nothing of presenting her to his family as his "new" wife to secure both. WTF? Just out of nowhere and totally out of character for the Nev we were given.
3 -- Cath was a strange one. She obviously had issues, but she was quirky enough we liked her. I think she was the honest one through the book. She kept herself very closeted from Nev, but we knew this from the beginning. We weren't presented with an inconsistent personality [unlike Nev]. She was the same throughout.
4 -- I did enjoy the ending. The author brought all the pieces together in the end and we almost want to forgive her for taking us down the strange path, but I just can't do it. I'm not sure why the story unfolded the way it did, but I didn't like it. Almost like dishonesty in a relationship. You have us believe one thing, but then you show us another and want us to believe this now, just because you say so and I for one don't like thinking one thing and then finding out it was untrue. So, the ending was nice, but doesn't make up for the 25% of strange.
You may not think or feel the same as I do. Therefore, you may like this a great deal more. If so, good for you.
Happy Reading!
pre-ordered for Nook - due out 06/12/2012
June 1, 2012
I loooved Ruthie Knox’s debut novel Ride with Me, I seriously fell in love with her characters, her writing style and most of all her humour. So when after much stalking err.. I mean research I saw that her second novel About Last Night will be released just a couple of months later I was ecstatic! I’m telling you this because maybe due to my boundless enthusiasm for Ride with Me my expectations of About Last Night might have been a teeny tiny bit high.
After I was able to tear my eyes away from the gorgeous cover and read the blurb I was hooked: a sexy English gentleman paired with a bad girl? I wanted to read that! And both characters lived up to their descriptions.
Cath alias Mary Catherine is a reformed bad girl from Chicago living her days in London and trying to forget her past and her mistakes.
"Mary Catherine Talarico 2.0 paid her bills reliably, drank rarely, worked her fingers to the bone, and, most important, avoided men like the plague."
That’s how she meets Nev, every single day while waiting for the subway. She gives her the nickname of City, because he looks very posh and refined in his expensive suit that screams businessman. They don’t know each other’s names, they haven’t even talked to each other, so Cath is shocked when one morning she wakes up in a strange bed in City’s apartment!
“I passed out,” she replied, attempting to steer the conversation back toward the safer ground of her humiliation so that she could get the details she needed and scurry home.
“I suppose you did. You were terribly tired. I made a pot of tea, and by the time I’d finished you were asleep at my kitchen table. I tried to rouse you, but you said, ‘Leave me alone,’ and then something that sounded very much like, ‘Don’t murder me.’”
Of course from this very moment the reader falls irrevocably in love with Nev (aka City) who is all that is gentlemanly and polite. As a modern knight without his shining armour he rescued a very drunk Cath from the subway station and when she wouldn’t let him take her to her apartment he gave her his bed. He is all that is thoughtful, polite and above all these very redeeming qualities he is handsome and sexy and an artist!
She tried again. “What was that, City?”
“You tell me, Yank.” His lips curved into that sexy smirk again.
“I’m pretty sure you just kissed me.”
“Yes, I did. Shall I apologize?”
“What for?”
“It was terribly impolite. I didn’t ask your permission.”
So yes, from this first scene where Cath and City talk on the morning after I fell for Nev hook, line and sinker. His determination when it came to wooing and getting to know Cath was the stuff of fairy tales and every girl’s dream *sigh* He is the ideal hero.
“You love her, don’t you?”
“Of course I love her. I worship her. I wanted to marry her. I’d marry her today if she’d have me. That’s not the issue. The issue is she won’t bloody have me.”
Cath is a troubled, confused and emotionally scarred young woman. The reader only learns the extent of her past and everything she went through at the end but through bits and pieces we can pout together that what she went through left her with a lot of baggage, some of it being distrust, cynism and self-doubt. My relationship with Cath was quite bipolar: on the one hand I felt terribly sad and sorry for her, but on the other her stubbornness to refuse Nev's healing love frustrated me.
The development of their relationship isn’t easy and most definitely doesn’t run a smooth course with Cath throwing all her objections and putting every possible obstacles in Nev’s way, but he just won’t give up, he won’t give up on Cath and what they could have.
Of course their love story was very sexy and flirty, but I mostly found it moving and emotional due to Cath’s scarred heart. Despite her though exterior she had a fragile vulnerability to herself that squeezed my heart and made me tear at times.
The ending was both an absolution and catharsis, an emotional climax purging the sad and depressive events of Cath’s life and giving her and us some hope and light.
“He’d painted her. Everything she’d told him, he’d painted. In ocher and vermillion, rendered by Nev’s hands, her life looked different. She looked different. She looked like a victim and a survivor, the final painting a redemption. He promised a happy ending. Her happy ending.”
I enjoyed About Last Night a lot (mostly due to Nev!) but due to its emotionally taxing nature and all the suffering Cath went through I couldn't connect with it or its heroine as much as I did with Ride with Me.
Verdict: About Last Night is an extraordinary story. Beautifully written it will squeeze your heartstrings and make you feel things. Ruthie Knox has proven once again that she has oustanding talent. If you haven’t read her books yet, it’s time you discovered her writing and if you are already a fan I’m sure you’ll join me when I clamour: “When will we get to read the next Ruthie Knox book?”
Plot: 8/10
Characters: 8/10 - Cath was too dark a character for me personally
Writing: 9/10
Ending: 9/10
Cover: 9/10
I give About Last Night 4.5 stars!
After I was able to tear my eyes away from the gorgeous cover and read the blurb I was hooked: a sexy English gentleman paired with a bad girl? I wanted to read that! And both characters lived up to their descriptions.
Cath alias Mary Catherine is a reformed bad girl from Chicago living her days in London and trying to forget her past and her mistakes.
"Mary Catherine Talarico 2.0 paid her bills reliably, drank rarely, worked her fingers to the bone, and, most important, avoided men like the plague."
That’s how she meets Nev, every single day while waiting for the subway. She gives her the nickname of City, because he looks very posh and refined in his expensive suit that screams businessman. They don’t know each other’s names, they haven’t even talked to each other, so Cath is shocked when one morning she wakes up in a strange bed in City’s apartment!
“I passed out,” she replied, attempting to steer the conversation back toward the safer ground of her humiliation so that she could get the details she needed and scurry home.
“I suppose you did. You were terribly tired. I made a pot of tea, and by the time I’d finished you were asleep at my kitchen table. I tried to rouse you, but you said, ‘Leave me alone,’ and then something that sounded very much like, ‘Don’t murder me.’”
Of course from this very moment the reader falls irrevocably in love with Nev (aka City) who is all that is gentlemanly and polite. As a modern knight without his shining armour he rescued a very drunk Cath from the subway station and when she wouldn’t let him take her to her apartment he gave her his bed. He is all that is thoughtful, polite and above all these very redeeming qualities he is handsome and sexy and an artist!
She tried again. “What was that, City?”
“You tell me, Yank.” His lips curved into that sexy smirk again.
“I’m pretty sure you just kissed me.”
“Yes, I did. Shall I apologize?”
“What for?”
“It was terribly impolite. I didn’t ask your permission.”
So yes, from this first scene where Cath and City talk on the morning after I fell for Nev hook, line and sinker. His determination when it came to wooing and getting to know Cath was the stuff of fairy tales and every girl’s dream *sigh* He is the ideal hero.
“You love her, don’t you?”
“Of course I love her. I worship her. I wanted to marry her. I’d marry her today if she’d have me. That’s not the issue. The issue is she won’t bloody have me.”
Cath is a troubled, confused and emotionally scarred young woman. The reader only learns the extent of her past and everything she went through at the end but through bits and pieces we can pout together that what she went through left her with a lot of baggage, some of it being distrust, cynism and self-doubt. My relationship with Cath was quite bipolar: on the one hand I felt terribly sad and sorry for her, but on the other her stubbornness to refuse Nev's healing love frustrated me.
The development of their relationship isn’t easy and most definitely doesn’t run a smooth course with Cath throwing all her objections and putting every possible obstacles in Nev’s way, but he just won’t give up, he won’t give up on Cath and what they could have.
Of course their love story was very sexy and flirty, but I mostly found it moving and emotional due to Cath’s scarred heart. Despite her though exterior she had a fragile vulnerability to herself that squeezed my heart and made me tear at times.
The ending was both an absolution and catharsis, an emotional climax purging the sad and depressive events of Cath’s life and giving her and us some hope and light.
“He’d painted her. Everything she’d told him, he’d painted. In ocher and vermillion, rendered by Nev’s hands, her life looked different. She looked different. She looked like a victim and a survivor, the final painting a redemption. He promised a happy ending. Her happy ending.”
I enjoyed About Last Night a lot (mostly due to Nev!) but due to its emotionally taxing nature and all the suffering Cath went through I couldn't connect with it or its heroine as much as I did with Ride with Me.
Verdict: About Last Night is an extraordinary story. Beautifully written it will squeeze your heartstrings and make you feel things. Ruthie Knox has proven once again that she has oustanding talent. If you haven’t read her books yet, it’s time you discovered her writing and if you are already a fan I’m sure you’ll join me when I clamour: “When will we get to read the next Ruthie Knox book?”
Plot: 8/10
Characters: 8/10 - Cath was too dark a character for me personally
Writing: 9/10
Ending: 9/10
Cover: 9/10
I give About Last Night 4.5 stars!
July 9, 2012
I don't even know where to begin with this book!! My heart is still racing and my iPad is still steaming, this story was smoking HOT!!! And it's not just that, I actually really loved the characters, the way the story flowed, and pretty much everything about this book! I can honestly say that I've read enough romance novels to know when I've found one that really stands out above the rest, and About Last Night does just that!!!
When we first meet Cath, she's shut-off from her emotions and makes a habit of living her life on the fringe. She sits every morning observing those around her as she waits at the station, to the point she has their habits and schedules memorized. Each of them, including the man she calls City; the tall, blonde, punctual, too-hot-to-be-human Prince Charming in a suit that she was particularly fond of running into every morning. When a bad blind date leads to her being sloshed and in tears waiting at the train station, her night in shining armor sweeps her off her feet and takes her to his flat to sleep off her forgettable evening. Never in a million years did Cath ever expect to have more than a passing acknowledgement with the man she calls City, but when she wakes up in his bed wearing only her underwear and his shirt, she knows things are about to change. Her mystery man, Nev, turns out to be much more than she expected, and the moment he's in her presence there's a fire burning that neither of them wants to deny. But Cath and Nev come from two very different worlds, and her past may be more than what they have growing between them can bear.
I have to say, any future romance novel I read is going to be compared to this book, whether I mean for it to or not. It just goes to show that you really don't need a lot of bells and whistles and overly dramatic characters to make a steamy romance story interesting. To be honest, the plot with this story was perfect because it lacked all of those things; instead, it concentrated on the characters and their lives, the emotions they go through, and the struggles involved with two so very different people trying to just make it work. Not every story could accomplish keeping a reader's interest with just these basic concepts to work with, but About Last Night does because of Ruthie Knox's exceptional writing. I was so impressed with how much she drew me into Cath's thoughts and feelings, and how completely and immediately mesmerized I was by Nev despite knowing so little about him in the beginning. This was just an honest, heart-racing, delectable, romantic, and unnnnnnnbelievably sexy story that Knox made perfect with her smart, witty writing style, and I just adored it!!
Cath was the perfect heroine, she has personality to spare and had me laughing one minute and wanting to high-five her the next! You can't help but feel for her, it's clear from the beginning of the book that she's broken in her own way. The tattoos that she has to represent her mistakes in life are a constant reminder of how she's messed up in the past. But what I loved about her was that they didn't crush her and make her lifeless; instead, she's strong, rising from her mistakes to create 'New Cath', the woman who learns from her past. She's sassy, intelligent, determined, and quite the vixen behind closed doors!!! I was her cheerleader at every turn, hoping she would get the happy ending she so deserved after such a messed up and tragic life. Her story really is a sad one, even if a lot of it happened because of her own irresponsibility. She was definitely overdue being romanced and swept away by her Prince Charming!! Enter Nev, the incredibly sexy and mysterious Englishman who quite simply knows what he wants and it's Cath. *sigh* And HOLY crap, picturing this man with a british accent saying the things he does just had my knees buckling left and right!! This man just does things to me, I was fanning myself and licking my lips picturing the moments he has his way with his beautiful darling Cath!! The scene in his office when Cath surprises him with his dinner?? *bites knuckles* Yeah, WOW! But he's not just sex on a stick, because I loved Nev for his sweet and tender side, too. He was so caring with her, dead set on not being one of Cath's mistakes, and I loved seeing his POV and knowing how much she affected him along the way.
This was a quick read, but I could have read more of Cath and Nev's story easily. I adored these characters, I loved going through their journey with them, and I was so anxious to see their happily ever after!! The ending for this story isn't your typical cheesy, quick wrap-up; part of me did want the fantasy story finale, but I think this one was more fitting of these characters. I was happy overall with the way things came to a close because it was very unique and still left me feeling like things would work out beautifully for them!
When we first meet Cath, she's shut-off from her emotions and makes a habit of living her life on the fringe. She sits every morning observing those around her as she waits at the station, to the point she has their habits and schedules memorized. Each of them, including the man she calls City; the tall, blonde, punctual, too-hot-to-be-human Prince Charming in a suit that she was particularly fond of running into every morning. When a bad blind date leads to her being sloshed and in tears waiting at the train station, her night in shining armor sweeps her off her feet and takes her to his flat to sleep off her forgettable evening. Never in a million years did Cath ever expect to have more than a passing acknowledgement with the man she calls City, but when she wakes up in his bed wearing only her underwear and his shirt, she knows things are about to change. Her mystery man, Nev, turns out to be much more than she expected, and the moment he's in her presence there's a fire burning that neither of them wants to deny. But Cath and Nev come from two very different worlds, and her past may be more than what they have growing between them can bear.
I have to say, any future romance novel I read is going to be compared to this book, whether I mean for it to or not. It just goes to show that you really don't need a lot of bells and whistles and overly dramatic characters to make a steamy romance story interesting. To be honest, the plot with this story was perfect because it lacked all of those things; instead, it concentrated on the characters and their lives, the emotions they go through, and the struggles involved with two so very different people trying to just make it work. Not every story could accomplish keeping a reader's interest with just these basic concepts to work with, but About Last Night does because of Ruthie Knox's exceptional writing. I was so impressed with how much she drew me into Cath's thoughts and feelings, and how completely and immediately mesmerized I was by Nev despite knowing so little about him in the beginning. This was just an honest, heart-racing, delectable, romantic, and unnnnnnnbelievably sexy story that Knox made perfect with her smart, witty writing style, and I just adored it!!
Cath was the perfect heroine, she has personality to spare and had me laughing one minute and wanting to high-five her the next! You can't help but feel for her, it's clear from the beginning of the book that she's broken in her own way. The tattoos that she has to represent her mistakes in life are a constant reminder of how she's messed up in the past. But what I loved about her was that they didn't crush her and make her lifeless; instead, she's strong, rising from her mistakes to create 'New Cath', the woman who learns from her past. She's sassy, intelligent, determined, and quite the vixen behind closed doors!!! I was her cheerleader at every turn, hoping she would get the happy ending she so deserved after such a messed up and tragic life. Her story really is a sad one, even if a lot of it happened because of her own irresponsibility. She was definitely overdue being romanced and swept away by her Prince Charming!! Enter Nev, the incredibly sexy and mysterious Englishman who quite simply knows what he wants and it's Cath. *sigh* And HOLY crap, picturing this man with a british accent saying the things he does just had my knees buckling left and right!! This man just does things to me, I was fanning myself and licking my lips picturing the moments he has his way with his beautiful darling Cath!! The scene in his office when Cath surprises him with his dinner?? *bites knuckles* Yeah, WOW! But he's not just sex on a stick, because I loved Nev for his sweet and tender side, too. He was so caring with her, dead set on not being one of Cath's mistakes, and I loved seeing his POV and knowing how much she affected him along the way.
This was a quick read, but I could have read more of Cath and Nev's story easily. I adored these characters, I loved going through their journey with them, and I was so anxious to see their happily ever after!! The ending for this story isn't your typical cheesy, quick wrap-up; part of me did want the fantasy story finale, but I think this one was more fitting of these characters. I was happy overall with the way things came to a close because it was very unique and still left me feeling like things would work out beautifully for them!
December 14, 2012
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Content: Explicit sex, various cuss words and profanity
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Just barely 3 stars. Sorry to say, I liked Ruthie Knox's first book MUCH better. See Ride with Me. About Last Night started off really great and I thought I was in for a similar superb ride, but in the end I found it melodramatic, with shifting character portrayals, concluding with improbable plot contortions.
But it's still okay. Knox writes well, with sexy love scenes, tender moments and flowing dialogue. I really liked the beginning of this book. It was the best part, up through the first third of the book. I loved how sexy and tender Nev was with his Mary Catherine.
The 3rd person POV shifted around from Nev to Cath, which I appreciate.
Character flaws: In a romance novel, I need to sympathize with and/or admire the hero and heroine. At first I liked Mary Catherine a lot -- someone I would want to hang with. But by the end, she sympathized too much with herself, holding her old wounds close, and glorifying her tragic past with tattoos. She blamed Nev (aka City) for not believing in her, when SHE had been the one to replace real intimacy with sex. For 75% of the book, she kept secrets from her lover, never revealing her horribly sad past, even though he asked. Instead, she replaced emotional bonding with sex. Lots and lots of sex.
Meanwhile, I liked Nev, but halfway through, he slipped out of character. At first, he seemed strong yet tender, and totally devoted to Cath. Then, he became a momma's boy and a wuss. The worst was when he...
MANY BIG SPOILERS AHEAD!!
Bottom line, a disappointment. Hardly any humor in this book, and my favorite character is Nev's insightful dad -- or was it the grandfather?) For a fun and sexy read, I HIGHLY recommend Knox's first book, Ride with Me: A Loveswept Contemporary Romance
*****
September 25, 2013
Apparently, I had been living under a rock and totally failed to know of the existence of this book. But yesterday all that changed and I met the amazingness that is Nev.
My. God. He may be the one guy giving Barrons a run for his money as my top book boyfriend. And that's saying a lot.
I loved this book. It hit my romance trifecta of hot, swoony, and funny. Both Cath and Nev were fabulous and fabulous together. Happy bliss and a read that I know I will come back to again.
My. God. He may be the one guy giving Barrons a run for his money as my top book boyfriend. And that's saying a lot.
I loved this book. It hit my romance trifecta of hot, swoony, and funny. Both Cath and Nev were fabulous and fabulous together. Happy bliss and a read that I know I will come back to again.
July 14, 2012
So I finally got a Ruthie Knox after hearing so much about her everywhere.
I was not disappointed, it was funny, sexy and very well written! Oh and how gorgeous is this cover!!
I salute Ruthie for making a 'Neville' SEXY and I love that this time, for once, the girl is the one with the tattoos and the majority of emotional hang ups!! A refreshing change.
I loved both Cath and City. Their romance was HOT'n sexy, different, surprising but felt very real.
Cath has been dealt a pretty tough hand in life. However, rather than letting it break her, she has almost turned a corner, making sure she will never forget. Saying that though, it's as if she is trying to mask who she is as a punishment for past sins. She is intensely focused on making up for all of her mistakes. I felt quite sorry for her at times but mostly I have to say I admired her.
Now Nev, *sigh*, he was LUSH!! A man trapped by family and expectations unable to live his life as he wants out in the open. Instead he lives it in the confines of his own home with his true dream in life.
As opposed to Cath who is running from her past, City is running from his life in general.
Together they work. They shouldn't because of expectations but they do. Nev typically dates women his Mum would approve of, these are not women like Cath. Cath on the other hand normally dates bad boys, men that won't hurt her heart by falling in love with them. Men that are not at all like Nev.
So yes I really enjoyed this story...my only negative is that it was over too quickly. The ending felt slightly rushed. I wanted more!!!
I was not disappointed, it was funny, sexy and very well written! Oh and how gorgeous is this cover!!
I salute Ruthie for making a 'Neville' SEXY and I love that this time, for once, the girl is the one with the tattoos and the majority of emotional hang ups!! A refreshing change.
I loved both Cath and City. Their romance was HOT'n sexy, different, surprising but felt very real.
Cath has been dealt a pretty tough hand in life. However, rather than letting it break her, she has almost turned a corner, making sure she will never forget. Saying that though, it's as if she is trying to mask who she is as a punishment for past sins. She is intensely focused on making up for all of her mistakes. I felt quite sorry for her at times but mostly I have to say I admired her.
Now Nev, *sigh*, he was LUSH!! A man trapped by family and expectations unable to live his life as he wants out in the open. Instead he lives it in the confines of his own home with his true dream in life.
As opposed to Cath who is running from her past, City is running from his life in general.
Together they work. They shouldn't because of expectations but they do. Nev typically dates women his Mum would approve of, these are not women like Cath. Cath on the other hand normally dates bad boys, men that won't hurt her heart by falling in love with them. Men that are not at all like Nev.
So yes I really enjoyed this story...my only negative is that it was over too quickly. The ending felt slightly rushed. I wanted more!!!
June 13, 2012
'About Last Night' was a sweet story about a woman who's lived a difficult life and is now desperately trying to live "right" and a buttoned-up banker who's not as stuffy as he first appears. While I did enjoy this story for the most part, it didn't resonate with me as much as Knox's debut story 'Ride With Me'.
This isn't an overly long story by any stretch, but it dragged in places and I found myself repeatedly checking to see what percentage of the story was left and skimming through passages, especially those where Cath was trying to work through issues on her own and, in turn, making a muck of things. Nev was the real highlight of the story IMO, and I enjoyed his relentless pursuit of his Mary Catherine, even if at times he was a bit slow on the uptake.
I was a tad disappointed in the ending. It was a bit too tidy, and while I understand a lot of unbelievable stuff can happen in Romancelandia, I found it wholly unrealistic. Not the fact that he finally took charge of his life and decided to make a go at painting, but what he was able to accomplish in such a short time period and the manner in which he demonstrated his love and understanding to Cath was way too public.
So in the end, 'About Last Night' was a decently good 3-star book - entertaining when I was reading it but a tad forgettable and not one I'd be tempted to read again.
This isn't an overly long story by any stretch, but it dragged in places and I found myself repeatedly checking to see what percentage of the story was left and skimming through passages, especially those where Cath was trying to work through issues on her own and, in turn, making a muck of things. Nev was the real highlight of the story IMO, and I enjoyed his relentless pursuit of his Mary Catherine, even if at times he was a bit slow on the uptake.
I was a tad disappointed in the ending. It was a bit too tidy, and while I understand a lot of unbelievable stuff can happen in Romancelandia, I found it wholly unrealistic. Not the fact that he finally took charge of his life and decided to make a go at painting, but what he was able to accomplish in such a short time period and the manner in which he demonstrated his love and understanding to Cath was way too public.
So in the end, 'About Last Night' was a decently good 3-star book - entertaining when I was reading it but a tad forgettable and not one I'd be tempted to read again.
June 22, 2016
This is the second book that I read and liked, was written by Ruthie Knox.
I think, this book is not just a CR, it is also a kind of erotic romance. I don't know much author who can blend a good plot with full of sexy times.
I liked plot very much, a guy who from old money, works in a bank, loves painting very much, confident and respectful.
A woman who is full of unsecurites, yet sweet and determined to build a new life. It's an opposite attraction story with all aspects.
I liked how story starts about public transportation and then progress on a relationship. Hero, Nev is a quite charming and impressive man with his patience and determination about heroine's affection and building a real realtionship.
Heroine's past is a sad, hearbreaking story. I like that she tries to make a new life for herself and although she keeps some information about her past, she actually communicate with hero.
Imo, this is one of the rare, good books in CR with a good characterization, a sloid plot about tyring to undertand and internalization what protagonists want from life and their journey to achieve it. Also, I should add again, all these things includes a lot of hot scenes.
I think, this book is not just a CR, it is also a kind of erotic romance. I don't know much author who can blend a good plot with full of sexy times.
I liked plot very much, a guy who from old money, works in a bank, loves painting very much, confident and respectful.
A woman who is full of unsecurites, yet sweet and determined to build a new life. It's an opposite attraction story with all aspects.
I liked how story starts about public transportation and then progress on a relationship. Hero, Nev is a quite charming and impressive man with his patience and determination about heroine's affection and building a real realtionship.
Heroine's past is a sad, hearbreaking story. I like that she tries to make a new life for herself and although she keeps some information about her past, she actually communicate with hero.
Imo, this is one of the rare, good books in CR with a good characterization, a sloid plot about tyring to undertand and internalization what protagonists want from life and their journey to achieve it. Also, I should add again, all these things includes a lot of hot scenes.
Read
February 13, 2020Although the blurb looked appealing, in the eleven chapters I read, both storyline and characters lacked in dynamism and emotions. It was flat.
While I wanted to know and learn about the characters, I was mostly informed of their sexual interactions.
I wasn’t captivated nor thrilled.
Dnf @ 38%
While I wanted to know and learn about the characters, I was mostly informed of their sexual interactions.
I wasn’t captivated nor thrilled.
Dnf @ 38%
January 5, 2020
I liked the writing. I very much adored the characters. I didn’t like the story. Too messy. Too fast. These are personal criticisms rather than objective ones.
How wonderful for me to not like a story and still like the book.
Now do I hop into the Madly or read another author for a breather?
How wonderful for me to not like a story and still like the book.
Now do I hop into the Madly or read another author for a breather?
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