Georgie-who-is-Sarah-Drew's Reviews > Maybe This Time

I think there is a rule - let's call it Georgie's rule - that states that if you come across a brilliant DIK of a book, the second book you read by the same author will be a let-down. Think of The Proposition (brilliant) and Black Silk (ho-hum), The Rules Of Seduction (sexy as hell) and Lessons of Desire (let me out), Neanderthal Seeks Human (stop strangers in the street and quote bits) and Neanderthal Marries Human (you see what I mean). So - I am sorry to say - it is with Maybe This Time in the wake of Welcome to Temptation.

Don't think this is a bad book - it isn't. Crusie has a witty, tough writing style that is engaging, but still leaves space for some real emotions. The plot is straightforward (Andie's divorced husband persuades her to look after two children he has "inherited", along with their haunted house) - and you just bet Andie will rout the ghosts, win over the children and end up with her ex. She does.

The ghost story is handled well, and there's a cast of well-fleshed out secondary characters, particularly Andie's mother Flo. Andie's relationship with one of the children, Alice, was very deftly drawn.

It's just that the H/h relationship is very much down-played. There's a few pages together in Chapter 1, then no real interaction till half-way through the book. Both H & h are pleasant enough, but given their back-story (which, incidentally, isn't fleshed out nearly enough) I need something more to persuade me that the TEN YEAR separation can be overcome so quickly.

The balance between plot and relationship was skewed a bit too much for me - I either wanted much more of Andie & North, or to go back and reread Welcome to Temptation.