Skintight

by Susan Andersen

Book Overview

Skintight by Susan Andersen released on Jun 28, 2005 is available now for purchase. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0778322009
• ISBN13: 9780778322009
• Release Date: June 2005
• Publisher: Mira Books
• Length: 384 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 4.2" x 6.6"

Customer Reviews

Disappointing

Both books in this series were rather dull, with poor characterization, no plot and no humor.

Great new author

Treena McCall seems to be your typical Las Vegas Showgirl, what I liked is that this books takes you into a look behind the curtain (so to speak) and gives you a glimpse of how life can be for a showgirl. Jax seems to be your typical bad boy who was estranged from his father, even after his father's death. A professional gambler, he ends up betting an item that isn't his and has to secure a way to get this item from his father's widow, who just happens to be Treena. The character's are well written so that I couldn't wait to find out what happens next. There are a few other characters to add to the mix, Carly, Treena's neighbor and best friend since starting in the business, Ellen, an ex-librarian neighbor, and Mack the handyman. Good laughs, great story. I can't wait to read more of her work!!

Great Characters & Fun Reading

Likeable characters, a breezy style and steamy sex... this book has it all! Jax, a professional poker player, tracks down the gold digger, a Las Vegas dancer, that is his father's young widow. He hopes to retrieve a family heirloom that will bail him out of a jam. That sets the scene for some heavy romancing that seduces both Jax and the dancer, Treena. There's a secondary romance that's charming as well (between Treena's older friends - a retired librarian and an inarticulate handyman). The author is even able to make a sexy moment out of dusting the furniture. Switching between the hero and heroine, one gets insight into their thinking and really empathizes with each. Jax is sophisticated, yet vulnerable and Treena is quite genuine and caring. Great characters that you would like to really meet and a fun read. This was my first Susan Andersen and I've already bought another of hers and can't wait to start reading it. This one is hard to categorize. It's not exactly a romance, not chick lit, not exactly a mystery but still it has a blend of each and moves to a new level. Enjoy!

a lot of fun with a likably sweet protagonist

maybe i have grown bored with books about female protagonists with an edgy chip on their shoulders because i've found myself gravitating toward sweet, kind heroines more and more these days. Skintight delivered just that with Treena, a Las Vegas showgirl with a heart of gold and Susan Andersen completely makes the cliched notion work. Treena is very real and kind and amazingly down-to-earth and I was rooting for her the whole way. normally a son-father thing would be creepy but again the way it's done in this book works. i'm giving it 4 instead of 5 stars because Jax, while sexy in the bedroom, was a bit annoying everywhere else. the constant whining about how "nothing was ever good enough for his old man" got kind of wimpy and tedious. it wasn't enough to take away from my thorough enjoyment of the book, but enough to make me roll my eyes on several occasions. also Treena's friend, Carly, was often an irritating obstruction to the Treena and Jax's romance and quality time together. other than that, i highly recommend this fun, lighthearted book.

Solid Good Read

Characters are what Susan Andersen does best. Her latest offering is no exception, delivering Las Vegas showgirl Treena McCall and world-class poker player Jax Gallagher, along with Treena's best friend, fellow showgirl Carly, ex-librarian Ellen, and handyman Mack. We meet all of them as we step into rooms with them and watch them interact. Then, once we're on friendly terms, we're let into their heads, experiencing their thoughts and feelings through casual, yet touching prose. They are all wonderful people, sensitive, strong, and flawed. The men, in particular, are well-drawn, their natural masculinity preserved even as we see the chinks in their armor. The story begins as Jax listens in on Treena's 35th birthday celebration in a bar at the fictitious Aventurrato Casino on the Las Vegas strip. Treena, recently widowed, had been married to Jax's father, Big Jim McCall, and is now in possession of a valuable World Series baseball handed down by Jax's grandfather. Jax knows exactly who Treena is, but she has no idea of his real identity. Jax's image of Treena as a gold-digging trophy bride is wildly inaccurate, though, as he starts to discover during his staged pursuit of her, the ultimate goal being to abscond with the baseball. Jax finds himself throwing away opportunities to find the ball, however, as he falls in love with Treena, even though his health is dependent on his plan's success, since the man he lost it to on a bet is threatening to break his hands. As things between Jax and Treena deepen, Jax realizes he needs to come clean with her about who he is and why he sought her out. Naturally, he does it too late. At this point, unlike an unfortunate number of her contemporaries, Susan Andersen does not fabricate a contrived emergency that throws our hero and heroine back together, nor does she stumble through a sloppy resolution that drags on. Instead, she comes through with flying colors, taking the opportunity to really show us what these characters are made of, from the wrenchingly painful depths of their emotions to how they behave under pressure. Though I didn't get as excited about this book as some of Andersen's others, I liked it a lot. I appreciate her female characters in particular; strong, self-sufficient women with both feet on the ground, working hard and fulfilling their own lives without giving up an ounce of vulnerability or femininity. This book has the added bonus of a deftly-handled senior romance as a side story that fits neatly, as well as a tease into what will next surely be Carly's story. This was a very nice, very satisfying modern romance with surprising depth.

People, too

Anderson rarely disappoints. The plot is complex but understandable. Las Vegas showgirls are always popular heroines and poker is also in fashion now. When Jax (a child prodigy estranged from a father he felt expected not too much but all the wrong things from him) first meets his former stepmother, he has all the usual stereotypes but Treena surprises him constantly. She is not a plastic person and eventually Jax realizes that. Slowly the romance develops, on the back of quick attraction. The secondary plots involving Treena's best friends and chosen family are believable. I did feel sex romps were overemphasized but then I've never personally known any Las Vegas natives. I mean, 24/7? May not be one of her best but very worth the read and not real easy to put down.