Review - An Unforgettable Lady

Title: An Unforgettable Lady
Author: Jessica Bird/J. R. Ward
Publishing Date: 2004
Genre: Contemporary
Rating: B-
Sensuality: Warm
Book Disclosure: I purchased a new copy.

An Unforgettable Lady was originally published in 2004 under the penname Jessica Bird and was rereleased this year because of JR Ward's popularity. Grace Hall is a woman born of wealth and privilege. A madman had decided to target the richest most influential women of New York. One by one Grace's friends are being brutally murdered in their homes and Grace fears that she will be next. She hires John Smith, a body guard to the rich and famous who is the best in the business. What complicates things even more is that John and Grace shared a passionate moment a few days prior and neither thought they would see the other again.

An Unforgettable Lady was my first Jessica Bird book and a contemporary none the less. I am very familiar with Ward's Black Dagger Brotherhood books which I have enjoyed very much. I was looking forward to this with enthusiasm. I thought it was a solid read with a few minor annoyances.

I liked both Grace and John's personalities. Grace although a high society princess, never acted like one. She was very considerate and polite of others, albeit she was always very contained when it came to her own emotions. Her buttoned up demeanor is what John is drawn to and he can't help but admire her poise. John himself is very contained when it comes to his emotions except when he is around Grace. Then he surprises himself when he is unable to remain in control. I enjoyed his inner monologues when he is trying to rationalize his attraction to Grace and the steps he plans to take to resolve this problem. As logical as he tries to be it doesn't exactly work out like he planned.

John and Grace fight their attraction to each other for most of the book. This is where the book falters for me somewhat. This is not a romantic suspense therefore John and Grace's relationship is front and center. While this may sound like a good thing, I felt that the middle of the book became stagnant with not enough of the plot moving forward. Grace and John fighting their attraction is okay the first couple of times, but after the fifth time, things were getting old. Lather, rinse and repeat. Other than a dull middle, the beginning and end were great. I can see myself reading more of Ward's contemporary books.