Thursday, September 01, 2011

Cinderella Deal by Jennifer Crusie

Eccentric Daisy Flattery collects thrift-store furniture, stray cats, and wishes her life were as interesting as the stories she tells.


When her upstairs, uptight, but incredibly gorgeous neighbor Linc Blaise needs a fiancee to clench a position as a history professor in a small-town college, he, against his better judgment, can't think of anyone who could lie better than Daisy Flattery, professional storyteller (and starving artist).

Linc, a workaholic, with his chrome-and-glass furniture and black Porshe has his life just the way he wants it. He finds himself maddened but attracted-against-his-will to Daisy, with her stray cats, cracked Tiffany lamps, and compulsion to embellish her life at faculty gatherings.

When Linc and Daisy conveniently break up after Linc is hired for the position at the college, the chair of Linc's department makes it clear that a fiancee/wife was part of the bargain. Linc is sufficiently compelled to make a temporary "Cinderella Deal" with Daisy that will change them both.

I listened to this on CD and it was highly entertaining.  I've enjoyed other books by Jennifer Crusie but found this more like her older books so wasn't surprised to find it was a Loveswept book.  She makes a nice change of pace from the seriously intense mysteries I sometimes read.  I find her right up there with Janet Evanovich.