boeklogboek: Julie Kenner – Aphrodite’s Passion

donderdag 19 februari 2015

Julie Kenner – Aphrodite’s Passion – Read for #LLC2015

The second book in the Aphrodite series, published April 2002.
Genre: superhero romance
Cover: fun

Aphrodite’s Girdle was missing, and Hale knew the artifact would take all his superpowers to retrieve. The mortal who’d found and donned it – one Tracy Tannin, the descendant of a goddess of the silver screen – hadn’t exactly been as popular as her grandmother, not before the belt. Now everyone wanted her ... including some very nasty bad guys who weren’t interested in her smile.
But the golden girdle could only be recovered through honest (or not entirely dishonest) means, which means there was no chance for Hale to simply become invisible and whisk it away. (Although, watching Tracy, he found himself imagining other garments he’d like to remove). No, there was little chance to evade interaction with the woman. Maybe he should convince her she was as desirable as he saw her (which was too desirable for a mortal ...). Only then would she realize she was worth loving no matter what she was wearing – or what she wasn’t.

Welcome to a world where there are real superheroes. The distant descendants of the old Greek Gods, and they all have different superpowers. They make sure there are no bad guys out for world domination, and that powerful artifacts don’t fall in the wrong hands.
So when Aphrodite’s Girdle shows up, after it has been missing for centuries, Hale is tasked with the retrieval of it. It is just the perfect job for him, seduce the wearer, and romance the girdle into his possession.

Little is known about its powers, only that it can’t be taken by force, it must be given of its owners free will, or else the thief will lose his or her superpowers.
The human wearer of the girdle, or belt, will get what he or she desires most. Be it adoration, a new job, everything.
So now the belt belongs to Tracy Tannin, granddaughter of one of America’s most famous early moviestars. She does not have her grandmothers good looks though, or her ease with people. But she loves to work with animals, and at the moment she is working on a film set, as an animal trainer for her boss and good friend Mel.
While sorting through her grandmothers clothes, figuring out what to keep and what to donate to the museum that asked for some of her things, she finds the belt. It looks real gold, but also kind of garish, but she has seen the movie her grandmother was wearing it in, at the start of her career. And perhaps, if she wears it, some good luck will rub of on her as well.

And so her life starts to change. A policeman who doesn’t give her a ticket for speeding, but asks for her phone number instead, the famous actor Leon who flirts with her, and now another gorgeous man who seems truly interested in her. And what about the director of the movie, why is he suddenly taking notice of her?

To pay her bills, Tracy needs to find a boarder for a part of the mansion she inherited from her grandmother. For Hale that is a perfect opportunity to be close to her. Especially when he discovers his evil uncle has send his minions after her already. And even more perfect is, when she needs a ferret for the movie, as their own trained pet has become pregnant and can’t perform anymore. Hale just happens to have some kind of familiar, and besides his other superpowers he can talk with animals. And Elmer sees it as the perfect opportunity to become a star ...

Tracy is a bit overwhelmed with all the male attention she suddenly receives, and when Leo is hot and cold towards her, depending on whether she wears the belt or not, she starts figuring things out on her own ...

What Hale does not count on, is that he is truly falling for Tracy. Surely is must be the belts’ magic? He does not even like humans! Well, his half sister Zoë is married to one, and he gets along with their friends, but that is it! And Tracy has been dreaming about him for ever, as his day job, is that of cover model for romance books ...
But the belt does not work on superheroes that way, so can he deal with his feelings, or will he deny himself and Tracy a chance at true love?

This was a really fun story, and I really enjoyed reading it. I haven’t read much superheroes books yet, and it was a nice change for me. The scene where Tracy is in bed, fantasizing about Hale, and Hale is in her room being invisible, was very hot.
The bad guy is the usual megalomaniac, “we are better than humans so we should rule them, not Protect them” and Hale’s uncle. His son Mordi is on the fence though, can they trust him, or does he have his own agenda?
Perhaps I should have read the first book first, to get more of a grip on Zoë and her friends, and Mordi, and what happened before, but I couldn’t fit it on my shelves so I just started with this one.

If you are in the mood for something easy and fun to read, give this series a try. If you don’t like the whimsical cover, don’t worry, there are new covers made. I will certainly read the next book soon.

8 stars.