Review - TEMPTED INTO THE TYCOON'S TRAP by Emily McKay

I was lucky enough to get a pre-release copy of Emily McKay's new Silhouette Desire novel. Tempted into the Tycoon's Trap is a Romantic Times Top Pick and my personal favorite of her books so far. Here's my review:



Cece Cassidy writes action-adventure movies – ticking time bombs, natural disasters, lots of thrills. She doesn’t do love stories. But when Lillian Hudson, her beloved Godmother, asks her to write the story of how she met her own husband during World War II, she can’t turn her down. Even if it means working for Hudson Pictures, which she had sworn she would never do. Even if it means seeing Jack Hudson, the unsuspecting father of her young son. Jack made it very clear three years ago that he wasn’t interested in a family and Cece has no intention of forcing one on him. Unfortunately, there are no secrets in Hollywood. . . .


There are certain things I expect when I pick up a Desire novel – sizzling chemistry, powerful alpha males, glamorous settings, and story lines that rollercoaster the characters from the dizzying heights of passion to the depths of the despair. Tempted into the Tycoons Trap hits on all cylinders - from Cece’s deception about the identity of her ‘adopted’ son to the real reason Jack ended their affair. Jack and Cece are both products of their own parents’ spectacularly failed marriages, providing plenty of baggage to go around. The Hudson Dynasty and Hollywood setting oozes glamour and intrigue. The chemistry between Jack and Cece is scorching hot.

To my delight, there were several elements of this book that made it stand out from the crowd for me. McKay has endowed Cece with a smart mouth and brash attitude that keep her more than a match for Jack right up to the last page. She’s a great ‘alpha female’ who knows what she wants and is successful and powerful in her own right. Jack is perfect. McKay effortlessly transforms him from Heartless Jerk (but secret Tortured Romantic), to Bewildered Male, to Our Hero. The entire book is permeated with a deft sense of humor which kept me turning page after page and utterly destroyed the overwrought ‘soap-opera’ feel I get from too many novels in the Desire line.


I have read two of Emily McKay’s previous books and enjoyed both of them. In my opinion, this book represents a huge leap forward in her writing. This has all the passion and drama I expect from Desire in a great contemporary voice. Desire fans, move Emily McKay into your must-buy author list!



That's all for today, folks!

Irene