An Offer He Can't Refuse

As a fellow Southern Californian, I always enjoy Christie Ridgway's Golden State stories. This one is unlike any of her others -- blending darker issues like the Mafia, murder and family secrets and shame. Ridgway draws the reader in with a Rat Pack style that provides a perfect backdrop to the story of two lovers, apparently doomed by the secrets each is keeping. Tea and Johnny find each other irresistible, but are unable to reconcile their families and mob history. Tea is a tortured woman, feeling destined to end up alone, believing no man could ever want her because of her past. Equally tortured by his father's murder, Johnny at first seeks revenge, but realizes that there is much more to his relationship with Tea than getting even with her Mafia family. Compelling and dramatic, An Offer He Can't Refuse is one of Ridgway's best. From beginning to end, you will not be disappointed.

Tea Caruso has tried to live down her connection to her grandpa, the Palm Springs-based Don of a California "family," going so far as to distance herself from everyone but her sisters and mother. She still feels guilt over Sal Caruso, the father who disappeared and is presumed dead, and still holds the key to a long-held secret from his past. Johnny Magee has ties to Palm Springs as well. He spent two weeks a year with his father, up until his father was rubbed out in a mob hit, rumored to be in retaliation for the death of Sal. Wanting answers (and an end to his nightmares), Johnny purchases his fathers home and hires Tea as his decorator, hoping to get the answers he is searching even if he has to seduce her. He does not count on actually falling for her. When his duplicity is discovered, Tea is heartbroken and Johnny is drawn into the Caruso family machinations and finally finds the answers to his questions, but at what price? "An Offer He Can't Refuse" is a humorous romantic comedy with the added hook of a protagonist that wants to break the mob ties that bind her to a life she never asked to be a part of.

What a great book. The plot is a serious one, but it is not the tone of the whole book. It is a very entertaining book, with plenty of opportunity to laugh. The mob, mysterous deaths, revenge, retaliation. The end was not as bad as you would think from the story as you read it. It had its own happy ending. I liked how Tea came out of her shell at the party. You could see Johnny's eyes pop out. Tea was a great character. I liked watching her come into her own. I also liked watching Johnny loose the battle with himself. In the end they both won. I liked the supporting characters, Cal and Rachele too. They had a nice side story. I liked Tea's sisters to, Eve and Joey. Wonder which will get their own story next?? So ya, good book. Recommend to all for a lazy day.

Christie Ridgway is a shining star in contemporary romance, and this story is a perfect example of why. The characters are fascinating--a California mafia daughter and the son of a man who may (or may not) have killed her father and who may (or may not) have been the victim of an avenging hit by her family. The story has a strong thread of intrigue as the events from 16 years before are deciphered. But what makes it sing are the humor, the wonderful characters you want to spend time with, the peppy dialogue, and the incredible chemistry between these two complex, interesting people. I can already see a couple of other stories deriving from this one, as the heroine's two sisters are crying out for heroes of their own. Meanwhile, sit back in the hot summer nights with an icy cold martini (or even an iced tea--you can always imagine it's a martini!), and revel in a terrific story. I promise, you won't be disappointed!

Palm Springs, California resident Tea Caruso is a highly regarded interior designer, who has spent a lifetime or at least since she was twelve and her father vanished, probably killed, loving and hating her family. She loves every member especially her mother and sisters Joey and Eve, even her grandfather Cosimo, but detests what he does for a living as the mob chief. Tea avoids him as if he she might catch the gangster disease. Johnny Magee hires Tea to redo his home, but actually has a hidden agenda. He blames the Caruso family for devastating his father. He has dreamed for years of avenging his sire and now has the economic means to do so but needs someone to get him inside the family. He seduces Tea so that he can accompany her as her boyfriend to Cosimo's eightieth birthday bash. To his chagrin, Johnny believes he betrays his late father by falling in love with the enemy, but fears how she will react when she learns he deceived her. This is an intriguing second generation romance in which the protagonists are tied together by a tragedy that cost the lives of both their fathers. Johnny is a fascinating hunk who knows what he wants until he meets Tea as she is nothing like he expected from the granddaughter of the mob chief. Tea is ashamed of her background until Johnny hires her and soon she sees the other part of her family. Though the mob activity is somewhat underplayed and mostly kept off screen, Christie Ridgeway offers contemporary readers a book they can't refuse to read. Harriet Klausner