Lucky Charm

Lucky Charm, written in true Carly Phillips style. Fun, fast moving and easy to read for a "take me away" time. Thanks, and keep it up.

Derek moves back to his childhood home, with his Dad and his sad basset hound named Fred. Unexpectedly, Derek's ex-wife Marlene, grants him limited custody of his eleven-year-old daughter Holly, for the summer. He looks forward to bonding with his daughter but he is anxious about how he is going to handle a pre-teen, especially one as precocious as his daughter is. Finally, without any pressures from his job, he is able to set time aside and really get to know his daughter. He is unaware that someone from his past, a LUCKY CHARM, is going to turn his life around in ways he never expects. What lies ahead for Derek's future? I fell in love with Carly Phillips new novel, LUCKY CHARM. It sizzles with sparks of lust and laughter as it tells the story of a family curse. High school sweethearts, Derek Corwin and Gabrielle Donovan are a match made in heaven but as luck would have it, they break up. Actually, Derek, madly in love with Gabby, quickly calls it quits, to try to dispel the family curse before it dooms their romance. Derek weds Marlene who he is fond of but doesn't love and their marriage inevitably fails. As Derek connects with his daughter Holly, their time spent together provides insightful reflection on his part as he re-evaluates his priorities in life, while he negotiates teen emotions. Complex relationships, gossipy small-town life, steamy sexy situations, and a plot that is wickedly delicious will have fans eagerly clamoring for Carly's next novel. Carly's humor laced tale contains more laugh-out-loud lusty romance than an afternoon soap opera!

After seeing the book cover with the gorgeous guy on it, I couldn't wait to read Lucky Charm. What I found was a lackluster storyline and the chemistry between hero and heroine needed a boost. I didn't take to the two characters that well. The premise of the story kinda turned me off as well. The hero dumped the heroine years ago because of his belief in a family curse. That would have turned off anybody else from reuniting with him, but the heroine wants him back. Also, the fact that neither one of them, when they were younger, professed to the other that they loved the other. The story just didn't feel believable enough for me. I give it 3 1/2 stars.

Lucky Charm by Carly Phillips Contemporary Romance Mass Market Paperback October 1, 2008 4 Stars Lucky Charm is book one of the new Corwin Cousins trilogy. In this first book, we meet Derek, a man in pursuit of his long lost love Gabrielle. Derek turned Gabrielle away years ago because he was in love with her. If this seems odd, it's really not. Derek and the men in his family have been cursed to lose their wives should they marry for love. It is for this reason that he turned Gabrielle away years ago, but now that he's divorced, Danielle returns determined to challenge the curse. Carly Philips writes a charming book with a little bit of magic infused with witchcraft and ancient sorcery. The magical elements in this book keep the romance quite breezy with a whimsical edge. The father daughter relationship is quite endearing too. I found this book to be fun and enjoyable. Reviewed by Monica from Bookaholics Romance Book Review

"Lucky Charm" by Carly Phillips is the first book in a series of three about the Corwin cousins (all male) and their trouble with the famous Corwin curse. Book 1 is all about Derek Corwin and him meeting his first and true love Gabrielle again after he broke up with her at their prom 14 years ago and she left town heartbroken. Then he broke up with her because he really believed (and still does) in the Corwin curse that says that "any Corwin male who falls in love will be destined to lose his love and fortune". But now Gabrielle is back to prove Derek that there is nothing true about the curse and that they can have a future together. Derek is not the only one sceptical about Gabrielle, soon after she arrives in her old hometown she starts getting serious threats by someone who wants her gone. The situation gets even more complicated because of Derek's daughter, who adores Gabrielle but Derek's ex-wife still has some issues with him and threatens Derek for sole-custody. In the end it comes down to what Derek has more trust in, an old family curse that dictated his love life forever or himself and Gabrielle and their love to each other. The main relationship between Gabrielle and Derek is great, ok sometimes I would have liked to shake Derek and tell him to go get his girl but because his main interest was always to make sure Gabrielle is safe I still like him. Gabby is a strong woman who goes after what she wants and is also a great friend to Sharon, her best friend since they were children. Sharon and her fiance Richard, who's trying to become the new mayor in town, have their own problems to solve because of something that happened in Sharons past and took away all her self-confidence. They are a lovely couple too and made my heart warm whenever I read about them. There are two great love stories in the book, some really hot scenes and a lot of feeling and funny moments - just perfect. So all in all I really liked "Lucky Charm", recommend it to everyone who likes romances and can't wait until next year to read how Derek's cousins handle the "curse". S.M.