Power Play by Deirdre Martin

I'm always looking for a good contemporary, but I think I'm even pickier about my contemps as I am about my historicals. I think it's also harder to find emotional reads in a contemporary setting - modern characters seem less likely to bare their souls, oddly enough.

Power Play by Deirdre Martin
(2008, Contemporary) 10/19/08
Grade: 3.5

Monica Geary is a soap opera actress, nervous about being replaced by a younger co-star. Eric Mitchell is a professional hockey player, trying to impress his new team mates. They can’t stand each other, but a public romance could help both their careers. But what happens when the fake romance becomes all too real?

Even though I liked the backdrop of soap operas (and, surprisingly, pro hockey), I didn’t find the characters all that convincing. Neither one was particularly sympathetic at the beginning, but even though I grew to like the two characters separately as the book went on, I didn’t find them convincing as a couple. Although the words said that they were falling for each other, it just didn’t ring true. The book was certainly readable, and I especially enjoyed the behind the scenes soap opera plot, but overall, I found it rather blah.

I was in Borders the other day and saw a soap opera tie-in written by Julia London. (Based on Guiding Light, my old favorite!) Maybe that means soaps are getting more acceptable? I'd love to see more romances with a soap opera setting - Kathleen Gilles Seidel did it so well in Again, and it would be fun to see more of it.