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A review by lisajo85
Sweet Deception by Heather Snow
2.0
So this book made me very angry. Partly because the first one was so perfect and this was a far cry from the first novel for me. So I wrote some thoughts down and was going to post it immediately, but decided to sleep on it and see how I felt in the morning. I’m still upset...not so much with the story, but with the characters. Some of the things I pick on are petty and I admit that...so reader beware. Basically, the rest of this review is my specific, personal opinion. It seemed like every personal trigger I had was set off with this novel.
Historical romance featuring one or both protagonists as a spy is usually a hit or miss for me based on my personal preferences. Sometimes you just have these characters that are so emotionally disconnected because of their work, I feel like the growth to a full blown romantic interest is too much of a jump. That's how I felt with Derick in this novel. He just ruined it for me...like the worst kind of narcissist that was just all over the place. Derick seemed like an interesting character when he was introduced in Sweet Enemy, but what a waste he turned out to be. Snow really didn’t know who he was...and I know he says at one point even he doesn’t know who he is anymore, so maybe this whole experience was intentional, but that just doesn’t work for me. I didn’t feel anything for him and I certainly didn’t believe his transition.
I have to say this biggest disappointment was his egotism towards Emma's feelings. It was like nails on a chalkboard. For the first half of the book he was picking apart how much Emma desired him and loved him...constantly saying he could see it in her eyes...or the way she held her hands. He could tell how deep her feelings were. This was so early in the book, and Derick made it clear he in no way reciprocated these feelings. He lusted after her, sure...but he wasn't emotionally involved like she was.
Derick decides at one point (this is still very early in the book) to prove to Emma how "visible" her feelings are...so he whispers a few proactive clues, places his hands on certain points of her body...all to basically say "Hey! You have the hots for me....you lust after me." Whatever...but they're AT A FUNERAL when he does this. A. FUNERAL. I personally felt that was just so insulting to Emma. Not only that Derick was being crude, but that Emma's feelings were so powerful, so overwhelming (i.e. she’s predictable, inferior, just another pawn) that Derick had to prove to her she couldn't even control herself during a time of mourning. Like he was pulling apart her weakness...her "tells."
I get that this is what he’s done for the last 10 plus years as I spy. I get that he used his sexual prowess in the bedroom to win the war so this is probably a gut reaction for him...but is he not smart enough to realize Emma is NOT a spy and he doesn’t have to fuck the answer out of her? What a lucky guy he is to be the one spy dedicated to using his penis to get all the secrets. I guess I should have felt sorry that he had to whore himself out for England, but I didn’t. But what guy...seriously...what guy tells the girl he just slept with (her first time of course with the guy she has spent half her life in love with)...that he spent the last 10 years sleeping with a different woman each night. WHAT???????? Her mathematician brain thought he was serious! He knew how she LOVED HIM, PINED FOR HIM...for literally her entire life. Gahhh. I hate it. Fucking hate it. And why did we just gloss over the fact that he killed people??? Why does he have so much guilt that he slept with half of France, but not that he killed people????
In case you haven’t caught on at this point, this book made me very angry.
He was not like this with Liliana...not at all. He didn’t make advances on her or suggestive comments...he was sweet, kind considerate. The role he was supposed to play...I get it...but why in the world was this acceptable behavior with Emma? How was this romantic? For someone that was supposed to be a fabulous actor as a spy he sure did everything wrong with Emma.
And Emma is just treated as some discarded animal, living in Derbyshire...licking her wounds...pining (and I stress pining) after the man that left her alone over a decade ago. It's too much. She figures out his story fairly quickly, and that's great and all...good for her. But Derick just wasn't worth her time...yet despite that she can't help herself. She keeps trying to manipulate Derick into this relationship...into something he clearly is not...and I just couldn't stand it. It wasn't romantic...it was desperate and I hated seeing a heroine in that position.
Not a fan...not a fan at all of this couple.
Historical romance featuring one or both protagonists as a spy is usually a hit or miss for me based on my personal preferences. Sometimes you just have these characters that are so emotionally disconnected because of their work, I feel like the growth to a full blown romantic interest is too much of a jump. That's how I felt with Derick in this novel. He just ruined it for me...like the worst kind of narcissist that was just all over the place. Derick seemed like an interesting character when he was introduced in Sweet Enemy, but what a waste he turned out to be. Snow really didn’t know who he was...and I know he says at one point even he doesn’t know who he is anymore, so maybe this whole experience was intentional, but that just doesn’t work for me. I didn’t feel anything for him and I certainly didn’t believe his transition.
I have to say this biggest disappointment was his egotism towards Emma's feelings. It was like nails on a chalkboard. For the first half of the book he was picking apart how much Emma desired him and loved him...constantly saying he could see it in her eyes...or the way she held her hands. He could tell how deep her feelings were. This was so early in the book, and Derick made it clear he in no way reciprocated these feelings. He lusted after her, sure...but he wasn't emotionally involved like she was.
Derick decides at one point (this is still very early in the book) to prove to Emma how "visible" her feelings are...so he whispers a few proactive clues, places his hands on certain points of her body...all to basically say "Hey! You have the hots for me....you lust after me." Whatever...but they're AT A FUNERAL when he does this. A. FUNERAL. I personally felt that was just so insulting to Emma. Not only that Derick was being crude, but that Emma's feelings were so powerful, so overwhelming (i.e. she’s predictable, inferior, just another pawn) that Derick had to prove to her she couldn't even control herself during a time of mourning. Like he was pulling apart her weakness...her "tells."
I get that this is what he’s done for the last 10 plus years as I spy. I get that he used his sexual prowess in the bedroom to win the war so this is probably a gut reaction for him...but is he not smart enough to realize Emma is NOT a spy and he doesn’t have to fuck the answer out of her? What a lucky guy he is to be the one spy dedicated to using his penis to get all the secrets. I guess I should have felt sorry that he had to whore himself out for England, but I didn’t. But what guy...seriously...what guy tells the girl he just slept with (her first time of course with the guy she has spent half her life in love with)...that he spent the last 10 years sleeping with a different woman each night. WHAT???????? Her mathematician brain thought he was serious! He knew how she LOVED HIM, PINED FOR HIM...for literally her entire life. Gahhh. I hate it. Fucking hate it. And why did we just gloss over the fact that he killed people??? Why does he have so much guilt that he slept with half of France, but not that he killed people????
In case you haven’t caught on at this point, this book made me very angry.
He was not like this with Liliana...not at all. He didn’t make advances on her or suggestive comments...he was sweet, kind considerate. The role he was supposed to play...I get it...but why in the world was this acceptable behavior with Emma? How was this romantic? For someone that was supposed to be a fabulous actor as a spy he sure did everything wrong with Emma.
And Emma is just treated as some discarded animal, living in Derbyshire...licking her wounds...pining (and I stress pining) after the man that left her alone over a decade ago. It's too much. She figures out his story fairly quickly, and that's great and all...good for her. But Derick just wasn't worth her time...yet despite that she can't help herself. She keeps trying to manipulate Derick into this relationship...into something he clearly is not...and I just couldn't stand it. It wasn't romantic...it was desperate and I hated seeing a heroine in that position.
Not a fan...not a fan at all of this couple.