Twist of Fate

An old story that still rings true...predictable JAK plot and characterization which means a good read for JAK fans.

Rich corporate raider Gideon gets no joy from his work. Guidance counselor Hannah surprises him by sensing this and gives him unsolicited advice. Hannah first meets Gideon when she visits him to ask him to stop his takeover attempts of her brother's technology firm. I enjoyed seeing the development of their relationship. He follows her to a vacation island. He visits her in Seattle. A fellow corporate raider who hates Gideon learns of this relationship and he too visits Hannah in Seattle. Her interaction with the two of them was odd, different and fun to watch. She wanted no part of the war between them. A second story is about Hannah's ancestors. There were several independent, successful and never married women in her past, a mathematician, an artist and more recently her aunt Elizabeth who was a famous anthropologist. Elizabeth dies and leaves her research papers and journals to Hannah. Hannah is considering writing a book from these sources. She is tempted to live a life devoted to career success, which would exclude marriage for her. Gideon wants her in his life, but she feels she cannot have career success if she is with him. Her evaluation and ultimate decisions are thoughtful and interesting. Sexual language: mild. Number of sex scenes: three. Setting: current day Las Vegas, Santa Inez Island, Seattle and Tucson. Copyright: 1986. Genre: contemporary romance. For a list of my reviews of other books by this author, see my 4 star review of "Sizzle and Burn" posted 2-09-08.

Though she needs a cane to walk since the recent car accident and will require surgery, Seattle guidance counselor Hannah Jessett comes to Vegas to try to persuade ruthless business shark Gideon Cage from taking over her brother's firm Accelerated Design. She offers the predator a game of chance, high card; if he wins she hands over her shares of stock while if she wins he backs off. He agrees and she draws the higher card. Gideon cannot get Hannah out of his mind as she brought to him is first refreshing event since he was betrayed by his mentor years ago. Though he must contend with his late teacher's offspring Hugh Ballantine, Gideon decides to go after Hannah. She, in turn, is looking at the journals her late Aunt Elizabeth Nord; a renowned but controversial anthropologist took when she visited Revelation Island. The shy counselor steps out of character for the second time in a short period to follow up on her aunt's revolutionary work. Gideon joins her. TWIST OF FATE is a delightful lighthearted contemporary romance with some suspense elements mostly late. The tale stars a likable seemingly naive heroine and an apparent business predator; readers will quickly decide that perceptions and images can be deceiving. The support cast enhances the fun story line starting when Hannah pulls out her deck of cards and Gideon keeps them as a souvenir and never slows down until the final confrontation with Aunt Elizabeth's legacy. Harriet Klausner

I don't know how she does it, but Jayne Ann never manages to get out of the same old rhythm: girl meets boy (usually in business). Girl likes boy, finds out about ulterior motive, tries to change boy. Fight, make up, and are threatened by someone out of one of their pasts. Usually the recent past. I find Jayne Ann getting flatter and flatter as she writes, get the older books, because their stories are better and more realistic. Reissues are the way to go, ignore the new ones.