In Bed with the Opposition

Stephanie Draven

Publisher: Entangled Indulgence
Publication Date: Aug 15, 2012
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Source: Publisher

Armed with a sassy haircut, a sharp wit, and a personal list of rules for all life’s exigencies, Grace Santiago is a fiercely loyal Senate staffer who has everything under control. At least until famous political pundit Ethan Castle walks back into her life. Grace hasn’t forgotten their disastrous affair in law school, but she can’t resist his bad boy charm.

When Grace learns that Ethan has been hired as a political gunslinger for the other side, her loyalties—and her heart—are torn in two. Though their sexual chemistry can’t be denied, they find themselves locked in political combat. Ethan believes that all is fair in love and war, but he won’t throw the election—not even to win Grace’s heart. So what can a good girl like Grace do, but learn to play dirty?

Two candidates. One election. May the best man—or woman—win!

I can confidently say that this might be the worst review I’ve ever written. Not because the book was horrible, but because I’m hopped up on all sorts of cold medicine right now and I’m unable to string together two coherent thoughts. Seriously, this cold/flu thing I’ve been rockin’ for the last two weeks will. not. die. I also drove to Jackson, MS over the weekend (yes, while high on cold medicine) for my dad’s birthday and it was pretty much the worst trip in the history of trips. Look up dysfunctional in the dictionary and my family’s picture will be right there. So, because I can’t just write “It was cute, I liked it” without Barbara firing me on the spot, you get a review in list form.

Continue past the page break at your own risk. O_o

What I liked:

1. The sexual chemistry between Grace and Ethan is extremely well done. Ethan is quite dreamy, and I loved how he never gave up. Grace put him through the ringer, but he wanted her enough to stick around and work through it. Gotta love a loyal hero!

2. The humor. There were several passages that had me laughing out loud, and it made my time reading the book that much more enjoyable. For the most part, the writing was witty and clever. There were a few times Draven did too much telling, and not enough showing, but when I found myself getting bored I just skipped ahead until it got interesting again.

3. I loved, loved, loved Senator Kip Halloway. He was the most obnoxious old man ever to be written, but there was something endearing about him and I loved how out of touch he was with the public, despite his many years holding a senate seat. Seriously, read the book just for him. He was awesome.

4. I also appreciated that Draven didn’t delve too deeply into the political aspects of the story. While the book did center around an election, the book didn’t turn into a diatribe on the election process. There was just enough detail to make it interesting, but not enough to put me to sleep.

What I didn’t like:

1. I really wish there would have been more tension between Ethan and Grace. I felt like they gave in a little too easily. Both of them made mistakes and said stupid things, and I wanted to the injured party to be a little more.. injured. Basically, I thought there needed to be more angst. First time I’ve ever wished for that, believe me.

2. I didn’t always love Grace. She was spineless for about the first half of the book and I had a hard time believing she deserved Ethan. She left law school early because something that actually involved Ethan, but never told him what was going on. She let that one event shape the rest of her life, and even when Ethan comes looking for her again because he can’t stop thinking about her, she runs scared again. Thankfully, she finally got her act together and became a heroine I could get behind.

In Bed with the Opposition was kind of a middle of the road read for me. I enjoyed myself while reading it, but once it was over the story line and characters were easily forgettable. It was a perfect fluff read, if you need something light and fun to read in between heavier books. Mostly the book was just… cute. But I liked it, I’d recommend it and if I wasn’t so drugged up and exhausted from driving, I’m sure I could say it more eloquently.

My Rating: B

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