Rich Man's Revenge (Harlequin Desire)

Courtesy of CK2S Kwips and Kritiques Several years ago, the Sinclair family ruined Rico D'Alessio's reputation and his marriage with scandal. Rico has since recovered his good name, if not his marriage, and has a successful career in kidnapping recovery. He has never forgotten what the Sinclairs did to him however and his only quest now is one for revenge. What better way than to seduce Danielle Sinclair? Horribly suffering over the death of her mother when Danielle was a teen, she had turned to Rico for support and that turned into infatuation. Humiliated beyond words at the time as a result of her puppy love, Danielle still has not forgotten Rico. So when he shows up again several years later, and is once again working for her father, Danielle tries very hard to forget the past. However, Rico and Danielle find themselves forced into close proximity when in order to thwart a stalker after Danielle, she and Rico stage a phony marriage to throw off her pursuer. Danielle has her own plans for this pretend marriage and will do anything to protect her secret. Rico soon comes to realize as well, that revenge is no longer his number one priority. Can these two adults find a real lasting love together? With her sophomore release, Rich Man's Revenge, Tessa Radley shows her successful first book was no fluke... she has what it takes to make a strong name for herself in the category romance genre. Once again the twists, turns, and red herrings are in abundance as we follow along with Rico and Danielle as they fall in love. Again, the big secret is no huge surprise, but the real adventure is in the journey to the conclusion. Tessa has a talent for taking the ordinary and making it extraordinary just with the way she tells the story. This is a rare talent and I for one have moved her to the top of my "must buy immediately" author list. Danielle and Rico are two damaged individuals, neither one able to forget their shared past which helped mold them into the people they are now. This makes them all the more sympathetic to readers. Danielle's wounds are soul deep due to the tragedy that put them there and I couldn't help but be moved by her experiences when she shares them with Rico, her family, and us. Rico feels immense guilt over certain aspects of their shared past and that serves to make him even more driven in his plans for revenge. As these two come together, (And do they ever! Their passion runs very hot.) they finally learn that they can only move on by letting go of their pasts and turning to each other. The mystery surrounding who is stalking Danielle takes a back seat to the love story between our hero and his chosen lady, but don't let that fool you. Its part in the story was more of a catalyst to throw Danielle and Rico together, but even so, Tessa brings it around to a satisfactory conclusion that is a little unexpected. Rich Man's Revenge is a beautiful love story between two wounded hearts who need each other to heal and survive. © Ke

Danielle Sinclair has finally gotten her wild sister Kim settled into a nice marriage. Perhaps now she can relax. Don't count on it! Rico D'Alessio has come back, bent on revenge against the Sinclair family. It is not enough to take control over the Sinclair business. Instead Rico wants to make it personal and if it means taking Danielle Sinclair as his wife and making her pregnant, so be it. There's just one problem with his revenge plan ---when he chooses Danielle as his instrument of revenge, he never realized how his plans might just lead to a revenge sweeter than he ever imagined! Rich Man's Revenge is Tessa Radley's second romance but already but there is something about this author that readers will just love. I normally do not get thrills reading about rich men (even less so today than in the past due to the current corporate culture). I don't like reading about Alpha men either ---- but I love reading Tessa Radley's romances and even the way she writes her corporate men. Readers will love the way Tessa Radley writes her heroines --- they are not submissive spineless women but bright and intelligent. When they find love it is about finding their heart and not compromising their inner strength. The characters in Rich Man's Revenge are multi-dimensional characters, written with a depth and darkness. Here the hero and heroine have undiscovered dreams and strengths. The darkness of Rich Man's Revenge is one of emotionally wounded people whose wounds become the very foundation of their ability to love. Tessa Radley fans will recognize her distinctive stlye in this second book. Rich Man's Revenge is overflowing with crazy situations and and all sorts of events and moments crafted together with such skill. When I read the back cover blurb, I just wondered how in the world she would be able to put all this together and not make it feel it was contrived --- but she does! I love it! Every added detail reveals the characters, every complication comes from the heart and history of her characters.