Pamela Clare 'Unlawful Contact'

This author writes highland romances as well? I'm not usually much for contemporaries, but I do have a soft spot for ex-military protector type hero's (are there any other contemp hero types? No, don't answer that, my TBR pile is daunting enough as it is).

Sophie is a journalist following the story of a convict who had a baby while in the big house. She's cleaned up, gotten paroled to a half-way house and is finally getting visitation rights when she breaks parole and takes off with the baby. Sophie has gotten to know this girl and smells something fishy, so when the girl's also imprisoned older brother contacts her for an interview, she agrees.

Marc Hunter actually knows Sophie, they had an encounter in high school (the one sex scene in the book I totally snorted at) that was good for both of them, and now that's he's desperate about his younger sister, he needs to use Sophie to break out of jail and find her.

The break-out scene/scenes are really amazingly believable, unlike the high school sex scene. The plot bogs down a bit in the second half but it's hard to argue too much, as it gives our couple a bit of time to get to know each other. I especially enjoyed these characters internal voices, which took Marc out of the ridiculously gorgeous, studly, wonderfully caring, self sacrificing, skilled at protection perfect man realm and put him in the ridiculously gorgeous, studly, wonderfully caring, self sacrificing, skilled at protection, perfect man who thinks badly of himself realm. Just enough of a shift for me to keep my romance novel fantasy bubble pretty much intact, thank you very much. And even if I did think, "Are you guys just going to uk like bunnies, or are you ever going to find his sister already?" the ukking was hawt. Okay, except for him bringing her vibrator into hiding with them. Whatever.

With the small exceptions of the aforementioned high school sex and the vibrator, this book was good. Really good. I liked it a lot. I'd say this was a step above most of the 'on the run, have to prove our innocence and solve the crime' contemps that I've read. I'm no expert in the field but there you have it.

Oh, and special bonus points for the bitchin' title and awesome cover.

Contemporary Intrigue Romance 2008: 4.5 of 5 soggy plan b pills.