When it comes to getting involved with men, independent Quinn, a gorgeous, green-eyed, 6-foot-tall redhead, has one unshakeable rule: They have to be unhappily married, with no kids. (After all, she\u2019s no homewrecker.) Having sworn off marriage after two failures, only hot sex and romance with no expectations on either side does it for Quinn. (The fact that she\u2019ll eventually have to pay for her cavalier disregard for the wives of her short-term lovers hardly comes as a surprise, but the author\u2019s audacious twist on the inevitable comeuppance does, thankfully leaving her hero\u2019s spiky, bright spirit undimmed.) Quinn\u2019s eventual realization that her determined, no-strings approach to relationships has consequences begins when Marcus, \u201cthe one whose mere presence zaps my appetite, flushes my cheeks and makes me want to giggle like a schoolgirl mooning over her first crush,\u201d walks into the upscale restaurant where Quinn is the wine- and food-savvy sommelier. \u201cI love the magic that happens when a great glass of wine pairs perfectly with a dish,\u201d she says. \u201cIt\u2019s lusty and romantic\u2026. It\u2019s akin to the ideal relationship, fleeting but swoon-worthy.\u201d Perfect though he seems, if Marcus isn\u2019t married, Quinn will have to go with her second choice, a handsome, married, infidelity newbie. The author\u2019s lavish descriptions of clothes, gourmet meals, and wine\u2014some chapters open with a description of enticing menu offerings\u2014and the characters\u2019 nearly exclusive focus on hormone-charged relationships make for an engaging rom-com Sex and the City\u00a0vibe. When she can no longer ignore the messy realities of her affairs, it takes time for Quinn to get past her defensive reaction and face a difficult decision: \u201cI don\u2019t feel guilty. I didn\u2019t make any vows,\u201d she says. The author doesn\u2019t let her off the hook, but the off-the-wall result satisfies, and humor and a light touch are ever-present (Quinn\u2019s blind date with a picky vegetarian at her Italian mother\u2019s bountiful, nonvegetarian dinner table is a kick).<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
When it comes to getting involved with men, independent Quinn, a gorgeous, green-eyed, 6-foot-tall redhead, has one unshakeable rule: They have to be unhappily married, with no kids. (After all, she\u2019s no homewrecker.) Having sworn off marriage after two failures, only hot sex and romance with no expectations on either side does it for Quinn. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":3654,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3653","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interesting"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3653"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3653"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3653\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3654"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3653"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3653"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3653"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}