BOOK REVIEW:
The Tuscan Tycoon's Pregnant Housekeeper
I haven’t read much in the way of powerful and wealthy Alpha
males in a while, which is not to say that I haven’t read any good books
lately, but I sorta missed my He-man heroes.
But I think my itch has been scratched again with Christina
Hollis’ The Tuscan Tycoon’s Pregnant
Housekeeper. The title tells you a lot: you got the Tuscan tycoon hero,
Alessandro Castiglione—whose name I had fun saying—and the housekeeper heroine,
Michelle Spicer. And somewhere along the way Alessandro + Michelle makes three.
Of course the title doesn’t give it all away. It doesn’t
show you the change in Alessandro’s personality… I loved the way the author
really spun a 170 on Alessandro: you see, pre-Alessandro is super kind. In fact
when Alessandro and Michelle first meet it threw me for a loop. He was too
sweet… He didn’t order her around, at least not as much as Harlequin Presents’
heroes can be, and he didn’t seem to have an ulterior motive where Michele was
concerned.
Of course that changes when pre-villa Alessandro, that is the
Alessandro that is first introduced in the South of France versus the
post-villa Alessandro whisking his pregnant soon-to-be-bride, Michelle, to his Tuscan
hideaway.
Michelle is…well, she fits the Presents heroine bill a bit
more. She’s really meek and throughout the story, especially when she was attempting
to go toe-to-toe with Alessandro I wanted to just grab and protect her. Did I
like that she provoked that feeling? Not always. I mean it would have been
funnier/more amusing had she had a little spunk to fight back with Alessandro,
but I also believe that there are people out there who have trouble voicing
their feelings. And the author does really well capturing the “plain, shy {…] mousy”
Michelle.
And I know I said I wanted my Alpha, but I don't always mean that because I have a hate-love relationship with the whole Alpha thing. Alessandro was likable before the pregnancy, when he was staying in a villa in the South of France. But then he became this big jerk who ordered Michelle around and yet wanted her at the same time. Thankfully he stopped short of accusing her of carrying another man's baby and trying to gold-dig him out of his billions. He doesn't and that's what saved his character for me. Still being in his thoughts was a little annoying, particularly when he wanted Michelle physically, but he still saw her as "cheating him by getting pregnant on purpose".
And I know I said I wanted my Alpha, but I don't always mean that because I have a hate-love relationship with the whole Alpha thing. Alessandro was likable before the pregnancy, when he was staying in a villa in the South of France. But then he became this big jerk who ordered Michelle around and yet wanted her at the same time. Thankfully he stopped short of accusing her of carrying another man's baby and trying to gold-dig him out of his billions. He doesn't and that's what saved his character for me. Still being in his thoughts was a little annoying, particularly when he wanted Michelle physically, but he still saw her as "cheating him by getting pregnant on purpose".
The plot was also short and sweet. The focus here was
internal conflict: Alessandro has trust issues and he unfairly places an image
on Michelle from what he’s seen of other people in his past, and Michelle—who honestly
had less baggage and was totally committed to the relationship unlike
Alessandro—could relate to his disappointment in his family, but she needs for
him to open up to her.
A quick read starring characters with purposeful motivations
in an otherwise classic plot scenario. I liked it, and I’m sure you’ll enjoy it
too. Although if you want, you could prove me wrong by reading The Tuscan Tycoon’s Pregnant Housekeeper
yourself…
My verdict:
✮✮✮✮.5
(4.5 stars)
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