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Max Tomlin thrives on the high-stress
work of advertising. He’s opened his own firm after a
divorce in which he lost the firm he built with his wife,
and he’s determined to make his new firm the best. To that
end, he needs to win a new account, for a business called
Avionics. Unfortunately, he starts off on the wrong foot
with the CEO, Joe Bennett, when he implies that the man is a
dumb hick due to the fact that he’s former Air Force and his
headquarters are in Montana.
After he manages to fix that major faux
pas, Max finds himself making another when he falls into bed
with the man! Sleeping with a potential client is a big
no-no, but much to his horror, Max wants to do it again.
Can Max land the account, save Joe’s business, and capture
Joe’s heart?
It’s hard to write a hero who’s abrasive, neurotic,
insecure, sometimes self-absorbed, and yet likeable, but
Lenore Black manages it admirably in All’s Fair in
Love and Advertising. Max is an advertising
genius—and he knows it. He’s also handsome, another fact
he’s well aware of. He tends to stomp over people to get
his way, and he can be a colossal jerk. Deep down, though,
he’s insecure after the breakup of his marriage, and he
really wants to find someone to care for. Sometimes his
neurotic behavior made me laugh, other times I wanted to
slap him, but I couldn’t help liking him. Sincere,
dedicated Joe Bennett seems like the worst possible match
for him on the surface, but when they’re together it just
works. The scenes between them are hot and surprisingly
sweet. The conflict regarding Joe’s business started out
fairly low-key, but near the end became a lot more
exciting. I really enjoyed All’s Fair in Love and
Advertising, and I think anyone else who likes
unusual heroes will too. If All’s Fair in Love and
Advertising is any indication of Ms. Black’s work,
I’m going to have to check out what else she’s written ASAP. |
