Rating: 
Summary: Couldn't put it down!!
Review: A love a good book with romance, twist and adventure. When someone gave me this book to read, I set it aside, not really interested. When I was out of anything else to read, I picked it up and couldn't put it down. She goes into great detail...like you are almost there and can feel what they are feeling. It is not the best book I have ever read, but one I will never forget...
Rating:
Summary: REPRINT
Review: Be warned, this is a reprint of Lowell's Fires of Eden novel. The story is a good one, but don't buy it thinking it's a new one. I only gave 3 stars because it is a reprint, not as a reflection of the story quality.
Rating: 
Summary: Descriptive, and overly dramatic...
Review: Chase Wilcox thinks all women are lying, scheming _________ (fill in preferred noun here), because of an experience with such a woman. He meets Nicole Ballard, who he thinks is trying to ruin his brother's marriage. Though it is clear that she is anything but, he cynically sees her as having a hidden agenda that everyone else is too stupid to pick up on.He takes her to bed, calls her a tramp, and hurts her badly. He later tries to amend this, but can't seem to get her to trust him (or herself). So, he decides to help her learn to trust herself (and gain self-esteem in the process), and leave before he asks her to do something she doesn't want (like get married). Obviously, the story is much more complicated than that. This book is OK, just not my type of plot. I find the hero, portrayed as a very intelligent man, a contradiction in his low opinion of women. I mean, getting burned real bad once does not guarantee that all women are alike. The book was also quite dramatic. I like a bit of emotion in a romance, but the analogies of butterflies throughout the book might have been over the top. I also knew something was very wrong when the characters started speaking in rhyme. On the plus side, I have always loved the descriptive writing of Elizabeth Lowell which is displayed in this book. And yes, I will read more of her books. All in all, this may be someone's idea of a good read, but everyone has something different to say.
Rating:
Summary: That makes two in a row
Review: Fool me once, shame on you..fool me twice, shame on me. This is the second EL book in a row that has been a huge disappointment. I know that it is a reprint of an earlier work, but I had not previously read it. After her last book, Moving Target, which was awful, I was cautious to pay the hardcover price. I decided that since EL has always been my favorite author I would try again. BIG MISTAKE. While this effort is better than Moving Target, it doesn't come anywhere close to the past writings of EL. I'm beginning to wonder if EL, or her publishers, ever bother to read the reviews written by the people who spend their money to buy her books. There was a wonderful cadence and rhythm
that was always present in her writing. EL created characters that we could care about, wove a wonderful story and let us escape for a while into a romance that was powerful. That, apparently, is her past style of writing. If you read the back inside cover she indicates that she no longer writes the kind of novels that we have come to love, which is terribly disappointing. It's time to start searching for a new author...one who writes like Elizabeth Lowell used to.
Rating: 
Summary: Not worth re-publishing
Review: I expected a love story, a romance. If there was any doubt in my mind it was confirmed by the ending which was all about sex. I have only read one other book by Lowell so I am not a particular fan of hers or the genre. This book was not that bad. I was particulary moved by the misunderstanding in the middle of the book. But from that point on the book lost all credibility. Nicole never held Chase accountable for his rudeness. And later she did not challenge him on his assumptions about her motives. No way would I forgive someone without having that conversation!
The only other gap I will point to in the story is the absense of the other characters toward the end of the book. I think Lowell could have done a better job of developing some of the other adult characters and making them a part of the story. What about Jan? She is such a great person but she does not have a line past the first chapter. And Dane. Give us some of the conversation between he and his brother at the end. Okay, one more gap... how does Chase know how to drum for Tahitian dance? I thought he was from Hawaii but later it seems he is not. Oh well. It is not a mystery novel, it is a romance. Boy gets girl - boy loses girl - boy gets girl back. I just wish Lowell had ended the book with Nicole's clothes on. Nicole said she did not want to be a man's "thing" yet in the last scene she is naked in the lap of a fully clothed man. Duh?
Rating:
Summary: Sexual healing
Review: I expected a love story, a romance. If there was any doubt in my mind it was confirmed by the ending which was all about sex. I have only read one other book by Lowell so I am not a particular fan of hers or the genre. This book was not that bad. I was particulary moved by the misunderstanding in the middle of the book. But from that point on the book lost all credibility. Nicole never held Chase accountable for his rudeness. And later she did not challenge him on his assumptions about her motives. No way would I forgive someone without having that conversation!
The only other gap I will point to in the story is the absense of the other characters toward the end of the book. I think Lowell could have done a better job of developing some of the other adult characters and making them a part of the story. What about Jan? She is such a great person but she does not have a line past the first chapter. And Dane. Give us some of the conversation between he and his brother at the end. Okay, one more gap... how does Chase know how to drum for Tahitian dance? I thought he was from Hawaii but later it seems he is not. Oh well. It is not a mystery novel, it is a romance. Boy gets girl - boy loses girl - boy gets girl back. I just wish Lowell had ended the book with Nicole's clothes on. Nicole said she did not want to be a man's "thing" yet in the last scene she is naked in the lap of a fully clothed man. Duh?
Rating:
Summary: Repeat, but good
Review: I have to agree with the other reviewers and say that this book definately isn't as good as her other books. I was glad I'd been warned that this book was a reprint because; if I hadn't been warned, I would have been very disappointed. While it was definately dated-- some late 70's early 80's sexist trends in there-- it had a more original scenario than most romance writers create. One of the things I've always liked about Lowell is her ability to create a romance in a location or situation that hasn't been taken from an outline.
Rating:
Summary: Not up to her usual
Review: I love many of Lowell's books (the Donovan clan series, built around gemstones, for example) but this was so formulaic and ridiculous that I threw it in the trash. Stunningly beautiful-but-wounded innocent (who somehow managed to become the world's best, most erotic dancer in a couple of years), beloved and protected by the entire island of Hawaii, it seems, falls for a brilliant, world-leading scientist who is somehow too stupid to understand that a bad experience with one woman doesn't mean that all women are cheap tramps. This chick's all but got bluebirds twittering around her head (all the little children love her, all the women adore her) but he misses that, too, takes her to bed--where he awakens those ole' hidden fires--but then calls her a tramp. She's immeasurably wounded (and, get this--all those loving, protective islanders apparently figure that because the guy's REALLY in love they don't need to do anything about it). He immediately feels bad about misjudging her, wins her back with a lot of nonsense about butterflies licking from his hand if he'll only hold still long enough, then dumps her. Takes a volcano eruption that the whole world except the heroine knew about to get the guy to rescue her and have a happy ending. Stilted dialogue, one-dimensional characters, improbably talented, gorgeous people. C'mon, Ms. Lowell. You can do MUCH better than this.
Rating:
Summary: Where did she go wrong?!?
Review: I loved the Untamed series and think of Lowell as a pretty good writer in general and a great writer when compared to others in her genre. This book was just plain stupid. Dumb characters, dumb plot, dumb writing! Ok the nookie scenes were up to her usual par, but aside from that it was pretty silly.
Rating:
Summary: A Complete Fizzle
Review: I only wish I would have known that it was an "updated" version of an old book by this author before I purchased it. I would have never spent the money for the hardcover and after reading it if I could get a refund I would. To say it is not the best work of Elizabeth is a vast understatement--the book is trashy, predictable and lacked a storyline. The characters were not very believeable and I didn't even like Chase! I have enjoyed reading her in the past and have enjoyed the plots, characters and subject matters. The information in this book about volcanos were the only parts worth reading. I will check carefully from now on that she and other authors don't try to sell "reworks/updates" of old books. It seems like a quick way to publish a "new" book, but it could make the readers think twice about reading their next novels. I was never attracted to her books in the past and now I know why. This book is definitely a DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME!!
Please note: the only reason I gave this book 1 star is that it was a required field to complete which is fine, but I would have given it a negative number if that was possible, but I did not have that option.
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