Mr and Mischief - Kate Hewitt
Mills and Boon Modern
Harlequin UK, 2011
ISBN: 9780263886634
My rating
From the back cover:
"Will love conquer... her boss?
Beautiful, clever, rich – and determinedly single – Emily Wood is the youngest ever head of HR at her company. Whether dousing corporate fires or matchmaking lonely colleagues, Emily’s at the top of her game. Only her handsome, sardonic boss Jason Kingsley appears to remain immune to her charm...
Jason is used to women falling at his feet, but relationships, with all their illogical demands, are not for him. So why does he find Emily so attractive? She’s a highly unsuitable target for his seduction and merger skills – what with her misguided belief in the power of love..."
Not having read many of her books previous to this challenge, I have now become somewhat of a Kate Hewitt fan! So, I was really looking forward to reading this book.
The heroine Emily and the hero Jason grew up together, Jason was always the sensible and almost authoritative one whereas Emily, 12 years younger, was scatty and a bit of a dreamer. Emily has grown into quite a competent and successful career woman, something that surprised both of them, but still has an edge of spontaneity about her. She likes to matchmake and generally be involved in the lives of the people around her. Jason sees this as meddling and tries to warn her off doing it, of course Emily ignores him. They both find each other frustrating; Emily thinks Jason is boring and Jason thinks Emily is silly. They also have two very different opinions on love, where Jason thinks love is destructive and a marriage should be based on mutual convenience Emily believes in true love and being swept of your feet. They have the whole love/hate thing going on and they want each other, badly. But even the thought of giving in to their desire for a short term affair is terrifying for the both of them, for fear that it simply wouldn't be enough.
It took me a little while to get into this book, through a combination of distractions and confusion, but once I did I couldn't put it down. This book is a modern retelling of Jane Austen's Emma, and while I personally do not like this story I think Kate Hewitt has done a fantastic job in taking all the good elements of Emma and using them (but not copying them) in a way that fits a book in the Modern/Presents line perfectly. I'm so glad that the author didn't make Emily a watered down version of the character of Emma, let's face it one of the best things about Emma is that she is a bit abrasive and a little meddlesome, and sometimes frustrating. These traits are captured in Emily perfectly, she's a great heroine but she's also a little annoying!
I really liked reading the love between Jason and Emily develop even if they didn't realise it. It flowed beautifully throughout. There is plenty of sass and emotion in the book, which makes fantastic reading.
I love how Kate Hewitt's books have a real 21st century feel to them, and this book is another brilliant example.
Recommended.
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