"Fine opening gamut"
In Manhattan, Aaron Lear, zillionaire CEO of Lear Transport
Industries, is shocked when he learns he is dying of
cancer. Desperate he calls his estranged wife Bonnie Lou,
who immediately drops everything to be with the only man
that she ever loved though they remained apart for fifteen
years. Not long afterward, Aaron with Bonnie Lou at his side,
orders his three daughters to come to his Texas ranch. He
knows that he was a poor lover, a horrendous spouse, and a
pitiful father, but wants to make amends. He threw his
oldest Robin into top management with no experience so she
is a failure. The middle one Rebecca suffers with a lousy
marriage to a SOB. The youngest Rachel is a perennial
student majoring in nothing. Robin hires Jake Manning to renovate her house. While he
dreams of obtaining his college degree, he also wants a
loving wife and children to pamper. He detests that he
finds the ice princess so attractive. Robin faces several
crises and does not need some stud in her life, but she
cannot get Jake out of her mind. The first tale of the three Lear sisters is a fun
contemporary romance. The cast is a delight as the four
females struggle to cope with the pending death of the
patriarch who remains a nasty short-tempered individual.
Jake is a wonderful protagonist who provides balance to
Robin's obstinacy. Though the impact of the cancer on the
quintet could have been more deeply explored (perhaps in
the next two novels), readers will relish MATERIAL GIRL as
a fine opening gamut. Harriet Klausner
Reviewed by Harriet Klausner
Posted July 25, 2003
SummaryIn the first book of her sizzling new trilogy, Julia London
introduces readers to the glamorous Lear family, whose
dying patriarch has vowed to teach his spoiled, pampered
daughters to appreciate the important things in life--like
love...
Rich. Sexy. Beautiful. Robin Lear is all that--and her jet-
set life is golden. Until the day her indestructible father
sends her tumbling off her pedestal with the startling news
that he is dying. Then he further shatters her illusions by
demoting her from her cushy job in the family business to
tech her "about life." In an instant her whole world
unravels, and Robin is suddenly swimming in unchartered
waters, including a bogus night in jail, a new job as the
lackey of her toady ex-boyfriend, and a major distraction
in the form of one very sexy contractor who's renovating
her house.
Jake Manning has had some tough knocks in life. Now all he
wants is to make enough money to finish his degree and,
maybe, get a nice house with a nice wife and a nice kid.
But the Prada-clad ice princess is turning his life upside
down with her sassy--and disastrous--ways. Jake's head
tells him to run, don't walk, from this gorgeous train
wreck of a woman. A man would have to be crazy to pursue
someone like Robin Lear. But Jake is crazy--about her...
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