Tempting Fate

The MacGregors #2

by Nora Roberts

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts, the saga of The MacGregors continues with the story of a man and woman at odds when it comes to practicing law—only to find common desires that put both their hearts on trial.

Attorney Caine MacGregor has never lost a case. His combative persona serves his clients well in the courtroom, and his persuasive arguments have won him many conquests in the bedroom. But in counselor Diana Blade, Caine has met his match. Her legal expertise would make her an excellent partner, and discovering her personal passions would make an enticing challenge. And as Caine deliberates with Diana about business and pleasure interests, he realizes he’s truly mediating for a chance at love.

Genres: Romance, Contemporary Romance, Contemporary, Fiction, Harlequin, Chick Lit, Audiobook

344 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 1985

About the author

Nora Roberts is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of more than 200 novels, including Hideaway, Under Currents, Come Sundown, The Awakening, Legacy, and coming in November 2021 -- The Becoming -- the second book in The Dragon Heart Legacy. She is also the author of the futuristic suspense In Death series written under the pen name J.D. Robb. There are more than 500 million copies of her books in print.

Reviews

[Jonetta · Rating 3 out of 5]

Attorney Caine MacGregor is given the task of picking up Diana Blade from the airport for her first visit with her brother Justin since she was 6-years old. He was unprepared for the cool and sophisticated woman who was the ultimate in control. Diana had the edge as she was well aware of Caine by reputation but was unprepared to find him to be so genuine. Their attraction was immediate and obvious.

I really enjoyed the start of this story when Caine & Diana first meet and she later reunites with Justin. Learning the truth about her years with her aunt revealed exactly how Diana was wired. Caine was also pretty engaging and I liked his relationships with his siblings and parents. It was the second half of the book that fizzled for me when both devolved into less than admirable behavior in their romance. She became maddeningly unreasonable, almost shrewish, and he resorted to physical means to get Diana’s attention that troubled me.

One real bright spot of the story was the inclusion of the details regarding a few of Caine and Diana’s cases. They were side elements that helped magnify both of their outlooks and linked to their own pasts that helped shape them. This story had a strong foundation but the romance eventually cooled for me. Just didn’t love it.

Posted on Blue Mood Café

[Milica's Bookshelf · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 zvezdice jer je solidna ljubavna priča i baš mi je trebalo neko jednostavno lagano štivo da se malo opustim.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love the book, love the series. I'm having such good time rereading these books

[Anita · Rating 2 out of 5]

When Serena MacGregor Blade reaches out to her husband's estranged sister, Diana, she has no idea how a reunion would go. But good or bad, some things needed to be faced and settled. When Caine MacGregor meets Diana, he sees a strong, confident woman, a bit on the cool side, but Caine is confident he can warm her up without to much trouble, if he chose to do so.

Diana's upbringing left her with a cold, impertraniable façade that Caine found irresistible. His challenge was to chip away at the ice to find the warm woman beneath.

Vent time. Bad, just bad. Diana Blade was so wrapped up in her childhood experience she couldn't relate to anyone else. I get it, she lost her whole family at the age of six and lived with a witch of an aunt. Still, she could have grown up in foster care instead of the lap of luxury. She had a myopic focus on herself and didn't even consider how her brother, Justin, survived. Her treatment of Caine was abysmal and cruel at times.

What could have made this book better would have been any discussion between Diana and Justin about why he didn't contact her, even though the aunt forbade it, especially after he became rich and she turned 18. That part as written just didn't satisfy me.

The Caine McGregor character was not well defined, or particularly sympatric. He came off very one dimensional and I really had no clue why he chose to fixate on Diana as she wasn't a very sympatric character to begin with. I get the whole hormones and the heart wants what the heart wants, still, I just didn't see why this experienced and successful man wanted her.

[Jan · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was OK - like the rest of this series that I'm gradually rereading. It felt old-school and, well, it was published in 1985 so I guess that's why LOL. Heavy drinking, heavy smoking, no mention of contraception, the heroine referred to in the book's blurb as a 'half-breed'. Umm....

Ms Roberts' prose didn't seem quite as purple in this one as in some of the earlier ones in the series. It's the love story of a male lawyer from Boston who's a bit of a player. (I would have liked to see a bit more of this side of him actually, rather than just be told he was a player.) He falls for Diana, who is the sister of his sister's husband. Diana is a lawyer too, trying to make her way in the world and to break free of the constrictions and rules of the sour old aunt who raised her. There's a bit of legal case stuff that seems so simplistic after reading the likes of Michael Connelly and other more modern courtroom dramas. The romance bit was okay.

For me the book's just too dated now to fully work. You have to ignore the dated references and kind of just go with it.

[Renegade ♥ · Rating 4 out of 5]

3 1/2 to 4 stars

[Gina *loves sunshine* · Rating 3 out of 5]

Back to my reread of a series I loved 20 years ago! The MacGregor clan and specifically the Patriarch is back at it again in his matchmaking meddling. This love story wasn't nearly as good as the first, but still satisfying. As I plan to make my way through the series again - not sure at what pace. I will do a recap for my own memory below...may be a spoiler or 2.

Sarena's brother Caine has found his match with Justin's sister, Diane. Both lawyers. Not much spark or tension - but good enough, This was a really short read, so not much time for depth. We do find out that Sarena and Justin are expecting. Next book we get to the oldest brother Alan.

[Eve]

Series: The MacGregors, #2



I've read lots of stories by Nora Roberts but something really bothered me about this book. It never grabbed me. It sounded outdated. I didn't like the writing style nor cared for one-dimensional characters.

Diana was supposed to be a strong and confident woman but I didn't see it. Caine with his smoking and grabbing sounded offputting. Diana went to visit her estranged brother but instead of talking things over with him, she's kissing his brother-in-law. Perhaps I should have read first book in The MacGregors series to understand Diana's and Caine's backround better? But I think you should write series so that every book can be read as a stand alone and you won't feel lost or confused. Why should I read other books to get the main characters backstories?

This is fiction but I prefer books that are written so that the characters sound real and situations are something that would happen in real life. I want to see more chemistry and tension. I want a book that has a story to tell and a solid plot. The story full of great dialogue, courage, wit, and redemption.

[Saly · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this oldie, the relationship between the two and how it developed and for a change even the heroine's doubts didn't annoy me because they made sense because of her past.

[Jovana · Rating 1 out of 5]

Previše njanjavo. Ali šta ću, moram da pročitam sve što mi padne pod ruku...

[#kkristina. · Rating 4 out of 5]

lagano štivo za opustiti se ;-)

[Zubee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Macgregors again!!

[Candice · Rating 2 out of 5]

Edited to add: you can definitely tell this is early on in Nora's career. The romance "formula" that most romances are written with was totally blatant and the flow was hard to follow. Both are things Nora is a master at not doing. So ... yeah.

I just couldn't do it. Maybe its because originally this was a "pocket romance" (a silhouette or harlequin type of thing). I've never had a Nora book I could not read. But I tried and failed with this one (though I have read it before).

Diana was just ... annoying on a multitude of levels. You can only say "yes I want this" and then immediately "no, I don't, this is all your fault go away" once or maybe twice in a book. Not every time you kiss a guy.

I dunno, it was just ... I couldn't stand her and when one thing happened you share a bed with a man, roll into him and cuddle him, turn him on, have sex with him "in your sleep" then basically say its all his fault and make him feel like an ass? Yeah, bitch, I'm done with you. I just put the book down and didn't pick it up again.

I'll try, one day. But right now I'm in a book funk and had to move one.

[Geo Just Reading My Books · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cu mult mai buna decat prima carte a seriei! Poate si unde Diana a crescut neavând parte de iubire, crezand ca fratele ei a uitat-o.
Recenzia mea completa o găsiți aici: https://justreadingmybooks.wordpress....

[Jess · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one didn't work as well for me this time--I think it's just too much man knows best, even if all the internal stuff supports him. And that's something I give NR enormous credit for, she's very good at laying down that work to support character action even when they're saying other things.

[Cindi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another MacGregor clan story, another thumbs up!!

[Toby · Rating 3 out of 5]

Unread shelf project 2020: book 6.

I enjoyed this second novel in the MacGregors series a little more than I did the first. There were still overtones of forcing sexual action because Caine thought that Diana wanted it... which, in this case, was true, but I’m not a fan of the message that sends to the general population. Which is why my 4 star rating was rounded down to a 3.

I’ll be curious how the rest of this series lives up to the first two books. I’m also curious how her later books compare and if there are fewer overtones of the fucking patriarchy/related male privilege and power.

[Barbara "Cookie" Serfaty Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tempting Fate (The MacGregors)

The love story of Caine and Diana. Diana is the sister of Justin Blade. She has live with their aunt still she was 6 and thought her aunt give her everything. Caine is the son of Daniel MacGregors and a renown lawyer. He met Diana in AC, NJ. Both have a Harvard law degree. He offer to rent her part of his offices and clients he cannot handle. Will they also find love? Great story.

[Kaitlin CU]

Got this one from the “skip the line” list on Libby. This book was published in 1985, which explains the light racism.

Tons of sex (tbh i was surprised at the amount lol), lines like “she was wild because of her Comanche blood”, smoking in the airport, loose plot lines around lawyers… It was fine to read, definitely felt like a step back in time.

[Evelyn alfonzo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Una historia de abogados. Me encanta el estilo de Nora toda la redacción es 😍
Me estoy enganchando con esta serie

[Ioana Crîngea · Rating 5 out of 5]

Volumul 2 al seriei ”Familia MacGregor” ne aduce în prim-plan povestea celui de-al doilea fiu al familiei, Caine - un avocat chipeș, dar dur în sala de judecată și a Dianei Blade- avocată, sora lui Jastin, cu care nu care o relație apropiată, dar pe care soarta îi va aduce din nou împreună.
Deși Caine și Diana practică aceeași profesie și atarcția dintre ei e incontestabilă , între ei apar diferențe, prin mediul în care au fost crescuți.
Caine, care provine dintr-o familie iubitoare, este sincer și dornic de dezvoltarea relației ce se formează între ei.
Dianei i-a lipsit dragostea unei familii adevărate, astfel că este rezervată în a-și risca inima și siguranța în schimbul iubirii unui MacGregor.
O poveste frumoasă, din care conversațiile năucitoare, discuțiile în contradictoriu și replicile amuzante nu lipsesc.

[Cindy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I vaguely remember reading this series in the early 90s, passed to me by my mom as she finished them. Still excellent stories.

[Dana Burda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Romanul a aparut in limba romana cu titlul " Provocarea sortii" in colectia " Carti romantice" scoasa de editura Litera. Cartea face parte din seria "Familia MacGregor" ceea ce inseamna o placuta asteptare a altor romane scrise de Nora Roberts in care sa intalnim o parte din personajele deja cunoscute acum si aici. Recunosc ca lectura acestui roman a fost o deosebita placere. Imi doream de mult sa citesc o poveste de dragoste fara alte complicatii de tip politist sau thriller. Doream doi oameni obisniti care nu au de infruntat decat propriile sentimente, propriile temeri si propriile indoieli in timp ce incearca sa-si vada de viata obisnuita, sa se impace cu trecutul sau chiar sa se desprinda total de el si sa-si construiasca cat mai bine si mai temeinic eul social si profesional. Exact asta ofera romanul " Provocarea sortii". Avem doua perosnaje principale, ea tanara, inteligenta, bine educata Diana Blade de o frumusete deosebita si putin exotica gratie aportului de sange comans si el, avocatul de succes Caine Macgregor, cu o cariera deja bine pusa la punct, cu o frumusete barbateasca impresionanta si cu un palmares de cuceriri feminine deja renumit. Se intalnesc in momentul in care Diana se decide sa dea curs invitatiei cumnatei ei, Serena Blade nascuta MacGregor, de a veni sa o cunoasca si de a se reintalni cu fratele de care se despartise pe cand ea avea sase ani si el 16. Despartirea se prodesese intr-un moment tragic cand parintii lor murisera intr-un accident iar Diana fusese luata in grija de matusa Adeliade, in timp ce fratele ei a plecat sa se descurce pe cont propriu. Justin Blade chiar s-a descurcat foarte bine pe cont propriu asa ca acum cand Diana se duce sa-l vada pe el si pe sotia lui, cei doi avea in proprietate un hotel impresionant "Comanche". Diana nu dorea sa faca vizita pentru ca are resentimente fata de fratele ei considerand ca o parasise si o uitase lasand-o in grija matusii care nu o iubea si care ii acordase o educatie stricta incercand sa-i inabuse orice tip de spontanietate si curaj de a actiona din impuls. La aeroport este asteptata de fratele Serenei,Cain MacGregor, si asa fac cunostinta cei doi. Inca de la prima intalnire intre ei se naste un soi de relatie speciala bazata pe o puternica atractie reciproca. Restul aventurii merita sa-l aflati citind cartea. Dar nu va asteptati la aventuri pline de suspans si violenta. Cei doi vor avea cel mai mult de luptat fiecare cu el insusi pentru ca dragostea nu este ceva ce poate fi tratat cu usurinta. Diana va invata sa se elibereze din chingile educatiei severe ale matusii, sa-si lase libera dorinta de a experimenta si de a se darui iar Cain va invata sa se daruiasca dar sa si accepte darul facut de persoana iubita. O poveste frumoasa, atractiva, deconectanta si pe undeva chiar capabila sa ne faca sa ne punem intrebari...

[HÜLYA · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kader Bağlayınca - Nora Roberts

Mayıs ayı Stars Of Romance serinde Nora Roberts'in The MacGregors serisinin ikinci kitabı Kader Bağlayınca romanını severek büyük beğeni ile okudum..Goodreads'te 5/4,02 Puanı bu romanın..Bu seri tam tamına 12 kitaplık bir seri..Maşallah bayağı da büyük bir aile..
İlk Kitapta Justin Blade ile Serena MacGregors'un hikayesini anlatan Kumarbazın Aşkı isimli romanı okumuştuk..İkinci Romanda ise İki avukatın aşk ve korkularını,aile bağlarını anlatan Kader bağladı Bizi..Bu ikinci hikayeyi daha çok sevdim..daha duygusal idi..
Ağabeyinde küçük yaşta ayrılmak zorunda kalan Diana Blade çok incinmiş idi..Teyzesi onu pekde sevgi olmadan büyütmüştü..O yüzden bir daha incinmememk için kimseye bağlanmayı düşünmüyordu..
Fakat yengesi Serena Blade onunla tanışmak istiyordu ve iki kardeşin de kaynaşmasını hemen bir plan uygulayığ Diana'yı çağırdı..Diana sadece meraktan gittiği bu ziyarette aile bağlarının sıcaklığının ne olduğunu görecek ve ailede avukat oğul Caine MacGregor ile hiç ummadığı bir aşkın içinde kendini bulacaktır..Çok güzel duygusal bir romandı tavsiye ederim:))

[anna · Rating 1 out of 5]

ooh how i hated it. again it wasn’t a long book but it felt never ending.

i wanted to shake fmc so bad so many times. i don’t remember the last time i despised the female main character that much.

the way i liked previous fmc from the start, i disliked this one. she judged and jumped to conclusion too quickly. she was way too uptight and close minded. we didn’t meet her infamous aunt but from descriptions fmc was a carbon copy of her - judging and snobby.

she was referring to his “reputation” but all she knew - his history from several years ago from university days. wtf girl?? check your sources.

i wanted to see fmc finally changing. i wanted her to confront her aunt about her restrictive and unhappy childhood but nope. we only got the unhealed after mass of her childhood that hurt everyone around her.

i liked mmc. he was playful and funny and generous. it’s a pity he got such an awful fmc. i wanted someone better for him. he deserved better.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Esta segunda parte me ha gustado algo menos, ya que no he llegado a conectar con los protagonistas. A pesar de este detalle, me ha gustado mucho que la autora nos plantee un tema tan interesante como saber que te tienes a ti mismo cuando todos los demás te han abandonado o fallado. Es una enseñanza elemental que todo el mundo debería tener interiorizada: tus seres queridos pueden complementarte y está muy bien, pero, al fin y al cabo, la única persona a la que realmente necesitas en la vida es a ti mismo. Vuelve a parecerme demasiado corta como para que podamos conocer a los nuevos personajes que se incorporan en este libro pero me ha gustado conocer un poco más de los personajes del primer libro, de su infancia y su forma de enfrentarse a las dificultades.

[Juliana Philippa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the second story in The MacGregors Serena & Caine and I liked it better than Playing the Odds, Serena and Justin's story. Caine and Diana are great characteres and their love story doesn't suffer too much for being a novella - and thus short.

[Eti · Rating 4 out of 5]

The second book in the MacGregor series.
Tempting Fate is an outstanding book of two people who are very different and very similar.

Diana Blade is a woman who's never known what a family feels like. She keeps her life separate and made and oath not to complicate her life.And then caine came along...

Caine is as always a fun guy and being a lawyer makes him a strong opponent in battle so when he decided to destroy Diana’s wall for feelings things go beyond than just friendship.

[Sarah · Rating 1 out of 5]

This really didn’t age well- Caine is a forceful jerk who doesn’t listen, and Diana is of course a powerhouse at work (naturally) but way too weak in her personal life. She allows everyone to treat her terribly. Ugh, it was bad.

[Esra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Daniem MacGregor sen ne müthiş adamsın yaaa :D Şu seride hiçbir şey olmasa sırf senin için okurum :D