TEST
Sandra Hill gives time travel and Vikings a rest and turns her hand to a contemporary romantic comedy with a touch of fantasy. The result, The Love Potion is her best since The Last Viking. The Love Potion is funny and fast-paced with one of her always-sexy heroes and a heroine who is sweet, smart and shy.
Sylvie Fontaine is a research chemist. Poor Sylvie is a member of a family whose women are all over-achievers to the max. She, on the other hand, has always been a quiet woman who suffers from an almost pathological shyness. Sylvie is successful and enjoys her career, and though she has consulted a therapist for her shyness, she remains introverted. She also lets her overbearing family walk all over her.
Sylvie is on the verge of a major break-through at work. She has developed a love potion which she calls JBX (jelly bean fix) – since that is what you eat to get its’ effects. One day, Lucien (Luc) LeDeax comes into her lab. Sylvie and Luc went to school together and he, the baddest boy in the parish, and she the quiet, shy girl did not get along at all. Luc is now a flamboyant lawyer (The Swamp Solicitor), and he needs Sylvie’s help. Luc is representing a group of Cajun fishermen who are wanting to sue an oil company that is dumping toxic waste into their shrimping grounds. Luc wants Sylvie to analyze a sample of water. As they talk, he casually eats a handful of jellybeans and the fun begins.
The Love Potion suffers from almost an embarrassment of good characters. Luc is fantastic. He’s a sexy bad-boy with a kind heart and a wonderful sense of humor – I adored him from the beginning. I’ve always thought that Sandra Hill did better with her heroes that her heroines, but I could not complain about Sylvie. I’ve suffered from shyness myself and empathized with her. The supporting characters were almost too much of a good thing. Luc’s brothers, Remy and Rene and his half brother Tee-John almost stole the show – they each deserve a book of their own. Luc’s eccentric aunt kept me in stitches. She is dying to see him married and has even started a hope chest for him. She also keeps praying to St. Jude (the patron of hopeless causes) so Luc will find the right woman.
The action is fast, and the love scenes are wonderful. Sandra Hill knows when to describe and when to to allow the reader to use her imagination. Descriptions of Cajun culture are deftly woven into the story. Luc is a Cajun, Sylvie is a Creole, and the clash of cultures and personalities between his family and hers adds cayenne pepper to an already spicy story.
So what if the scientific basis of Sylvie’s love potion is impossible? I was laughing too hard to analyize it. Do yourself a favor and pick up this very funny book. Then write to Sandra Hill and demand sequels.
Grade: A-
Book Type: Fantasy Romance
Sensuality: Hot
Review Date: 13/12/99
Publication Date: 1999
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Recent Comments …
Yep
This sounds delightful! I’m grabbing it, thanks
excellent book: interesting, funny dialogs, deep understanding of each character, interesting secondary characters, and also sexy.
I don’t think anyone expects you to post UK prices – it’s just a shame that such a great sale…
I’m sorry about that. We don’t have any way to post British prices as an American based site.
I have several of her books on my TBR and after reading this am moving them up the pile.