Reviews for Face Value

The average rating for Face Value based on 1 review is 2 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2017-03-18 00:00:00 Marc Meertens Face Value by Rosemary Hammond is a 1990 Harlequin publication. This book wound up in my vintage Mills & Boon/ Harlequin paperback collection a while back. I love taking one of these old books off the shelf at random to read from time to time. This one centers around model Christine Conners, who is ready to give up her career for a loftier cause, but is pressured to take one last job. John Falconer, a powerful stockbroker, insists Christine is the actress he wants for his commercial, but it�s not until she agrees to take the job that she realizes Falconer is the same man who has been stalking her. He adds insult to injury by propositioning her. A common practice in romantic suspense novels of old, was to create an air of sinister mystery around the leading man. That worked in that particular genre, but for contemporary romance- not so much. In this case, John is the type of man your mother warned you about. He�s stalkerish, possessive, and controlling, and is guilty of �violating� Christine a time or two with his aggressiveness. (Kissing only) If this book was published today, Christine would have filed a restraining order, and John�s behavior would be considered criminal and not romantic, and no enlightened modern woman would have put up with him for a second. So, for me, the romance didn�t work. I did catch the underlying moral of the story though. Christine was often dismissed as �just a pretty face� and her inner beauty and intellect went unnoticed. I�m afraid those old standards are still alive and well today. Just look at the media�s obsession with the incredibly smart and successful Amal Clooney. Her baby bump and pretty yellow dress drew more coverage that the issues she was addressing and the amazing work she was doing. So, while I did not like the hero, or sexist attitudes that were prevalent in this era, I did appreciate other areas of the story. Rosemary Hammond has a nice library of work with Harlequin. I don�t know if I�ve ever read any of her other books, but I would certainly be willing to add her books to my collection. 2 stars