Not Another Bad Date (Avon Romance)

OK, for light while away the time reading, its hard to beat Rachel Gibson. Lots more men read her works than you might imagine. In fact at the lumber camp in Montana where I work (I'm a skidder) most of us guys are always talking about her latest book. Its almost a book review club of sorts though testosterone drenched men who love hearing words like "shaft" "mouth" "suptle" 'killer robots" would never admit that.

Having said that, and having praised the book - well I'm hardly a prude but . . . Why can't her characters practice safe sex?

On page 306, there is an unsafe sexual encounter and THEN they use a condom . . . bad timing (unintended I'm sure)

ciao // gurkha
not so much prudish as wise

If Adele Harris has to endure another bad date she will scream. What is wrong with the men she dates? They suddenly go stupid, crazy or just plain crude. That probably explains why the sci-fi fantasy novelist is still single at thirty-five while all of her fellow authors friends have met gorgeous men and gotten married. Her luck might just change when she travels to Texas to look after her very pregnant sister after her husband dumps her for a younger model. Zach Zemaitis, former pro-football hero turned high school football coach, now lives in town, having to raise his teenage daughter after his wife dies. Zach had broken Adele's heart while in college. Sparks fly between them when they meet again. But why can't they get it right? They have no idea that Zach's late wife is doing whatever possible to keep Zach and her childhood nemesis apart. She might also be the one responsible for Adele's lousy dates during the past three years...

Rachel Gibson has delivered yet another cutesy contemporary romance with Not Another Bad Date. Too bad that this novel, like Not in the Mood for Love, is so formulaic and predictable it feels as though the characters and storyline had been sketched out. Romance isn't passionate these days. It appears that most authors, especially bestselling ones, are churning out uninspired stories to meet a deadline. The stories are uninspired, the protagonists lack depth, and the authors don't even put any sort of passion or enthusiasm into their writing. Gibson has fallen into this category. Sex, Lies and Online Dating was the last novel of hers that I enjoyed. If this is the direction her writing has taken, then I won't bother reading her stuff anymore. I recommend this if you're a big fan of Gibson and don't mind stilted, predictable writing. If so, enjoy.

Rachel Gibson was born to entertain. I have read nearly all of her books and with perhaps one exception, I don't think I've ever put any of them aside with disappointment, doomed to collect dust, undisturbed for all literary eternity. Let's not exaggerate here folks...'Not Another Bad Date' like all contemporary romance novels is NOT literary rocket science. It is what is is..a fun, feel good, lol beach, bed or bathtime read. It creates a little tug of nostalgia in wondering what it would be like to revisit our youth and the one we might have loved and lost. To recapture the magic in present day. Unfortunately, for those of us who aren't 'storybook' bombshells like Adele, the outcome might not be so happily ever after, but it's still fun to dream. Especially to delight in imagining our arch nemesis taken out by a garbage truck and doomed to the bargain bins of Walmart for all eternity. LOL Gibson rarely disappoints with her plotlines and characters. There's never a "carbon copy" passed along from book to book. There's never a stale moment. Her characters are always funky and fun. Just what readers expect for their hard earned money.

Have read all of Rachel Gibsons book, and would recommend them all. She makes you care about all of the characters, injects humor and just tells a good story.

I like Rachel Gibson. She's one of the few writers out there who allow their female protagonists to be successful in their chosen field. She's funny. She can write a great love (i.e. sex) scene. Her male protags are appealing. But she can't seem to come up with any diversity in the development of a love story. Girl hasn't had a man in ages (read: desperate). Boy is extremely active in regards to women (read: really just wants in girl's pants). Girl tumbles in lust "But it's only sex". Boy eagerly complies with girl's stated rules. Girl then changes the rules on boy, and gets her feelings hurt when he doesn't ante up. Boy, for no apparant reason, then tells girls he really does love her and will she marry him. To me, this makes for a very unsatisfying and unbelievable love story. Gibson does great with the fun, funny, sexy stuff. She falls down on the job when it comes to the love stuff. I'd also like to see some different personality types. That would be novel, no pun intended.