Strategic Seduction

March 15, 2018
A new hotel chain brings two African-American professionals together in Atlanta.When Alicia Michaels and Richmond Crawford run into each other at a college reunion, their reintroduction is filled with heat. The changes in Richmond immediately intrigue Alicia: "This was not the man she'd met...in New York with the glasses and pudgy belly. And was he smiling? She'd never seen this man smile before." Neither of them is particularly interested in a relationship, however, as they've both only recently moved to Atlanta to begin new business endeavors, Alicia starting a marketing firm and Richmond "laying the ground work for some new hotels." But they can't help being attracted to each other, and small overtures become more as they begin working together. When they both realize they will never be able to separate business from pleasure, they agree to expand their professional relationship to a personal one. Unfortunately, trouble comes from all sides. When Richmond's money-hungry ex-wife meets a former flame of Alicia's--someone who had a negative effect on Alicia's feelings of self-esteem and personal safety--she sets in motion a chain of events that could lead to disaster for everyone. Calling back characters from other novels, Hodges (Deadly Rumors, 2017, etc.) builds a community of friends and lovers and uses Atlanta itself as another character. She also seamlessly addresses issues of colorism and rape culture. Unfortunately, the story's flow is uneven, as essential developments are skipped over for brief periods of heavy exposition.An enjoyable romance.

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May 7, 2018
In this sexy, impassioned Southern romance, entrepreneur Richmond Crawford returns to Atlanta after a bitter divorce to open a luxury hotel and falls hard for beautiful, audacious Alicia Michaels, his new head of marketing and promotions. Each carrying emotional baggage, they attempt to keep their attraction in check but instead end up blazing a steamy trail from Piedmont Park to the Eiffel Tower, where readers are reunited with characters from previous books as they enjoy delectable meals and expensive bubbly. Past events spur Richmond to avoid publicity, but with Alicia’s PR skills and encouragement, he’s able to put his past behind him. Alicia is keeping a painful secret of her own, and when a dangerous man from her past joins forces with Richmond’s scheming, greedy ex-wife, the lovers find themselves in an unusual situation. The dialogue is witty, and Hodges (Deadly Rumors) does a good job of bringing Atlanta and Paris to life. The resolution is anticlimactic, but the genuine friendships and suspenseful blackmail plot carry the story to a satisfying ending. Agent: Sha-Shana Crichton, Crichton and Associates.