REVIEW: SAFE IN THE TYCOON'S ARMS by JENNIFER FAYE

Genre: Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Harlequin
Publication Date: 3/4/14
Format: eARC
Pages: 256
Source: Author
Rating: 3.5 stars

The man behind the headlines...

When billionaire Lucas Carrington returns to his New York mansion, he never expects to find beautiful stranger Kate Whitley making herself at home. Invited by his aunt to stay, he soon discovers she's a woman in need. She's raising funds for her sick daughter, so he agrees to let her stay--temporarily!

Kate may not belong in Lucas's high-society world, but she sees there is more to this tycoon than the headlines suggest. Yet with so much at stake, can she trust herself and her heart with New York's most sought-after bachelor?

Safe in the Tycoon's Arms. What a title, huh? I kind of love it, it reminds me of some of my favorite reads when I was younger. Books I borrowed from my aunts. This was a good story, a bit like a made-for-television movie, in fact.

With the caretaker's permission, Kate is shacking up in an all but abandoned mansion in NYC. She's in the city seeking treatment for her daughter's brain tumor. The hospital is requiring payment up-front, and after many unsuccessful tries, Kate is out of money. When the owner shows up unexpectedly, the two have an awkward confrontation, followed by an understanding. The tycoon in question, Lucas Carrington, is understandably upset a stranger is in his home. But when he learns her story, he begins to thaw, and wants to help Kate raise the money for her daughter's treatment. Of course, the two begin to develop feelings over time.

Kate is a character most readers will like and empathize with. Having a gravely ill child is a sure way to earn sympathy, but she was also a smart, resourceful person. She has abandonment issues, stemming from an absentee father and no-good ex. Her abandonment fears come into play with her newly-developing relationship with Lucas. Lucas was an interesting character. He has issues of his own, going back to manipulative parents and an ex who's pushed him to his limits. He was grumpy and broody, seemed a bit repressed, in fact, and reminded me a bit of the morose men in the gothic novels I've always loved.

The relationship between Kate and Lucas has a one step forward-two steps back feel to it, with past and current events coming between them. Of course, we have frustrations and misunderstandings along the way, with Kate dealing with her daughter's illness and Lucas's stubborn ways, and Lucas working to become a better man. A man who deserves Kate's love. The story had a great, heartwarming conclusion. I really enjoyed Safe in the Tycoon's Arms.                                                                                                                                                                            

Safe in the Tycoon's Arms is not my typical read, as of late. That is a good thing. As a teen, I devoured the category romances put out by Harlequin. There's a certain comfort in opening a story and having a fairly sure expectation of what I will get. This was the book I needed, exactly when I needed it.


Favorite Quote:

  With every bit of her willpower, she lifted her chin and looked at him. Wondering. Hoping.
  His Adam's apple bobbed. Their gazes met. And the air around them seemed to crackle with awareness.
  "Kissing you is all I thought about." His voice was deep and thick, sending goose bumps of excitement down her spine. "My only regret is that it ended far too soon."

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About the author

In another life, Jennifer Faye was a statistician. She still has a love for numbers, formulas and spreadsheets, but when she was presented with the opportunity to follow her lifelong passion to spend her days writing and pursuing her dream of becoming a Harlequin author, she couldn't pass it up. These days when she's not writing, Jennifer enjoys reading, fine needlework, quilting, tweeting and cheering on the Pittsburgh Penguins. She lives in Pennsylvania with her amazingly patient husband, two remarkably talented daughters and their two very spoiled furbabies otherwise known as cats, but shh...don't tell them they're not human.

Jennifer loves to hear from readers—you can contact her via her

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