Now I understand all the Richard VanRyan hype. Now I understand why readers kept on insisting they wanted more and why this fictional world has grown so big. With this new release of The Contract from Waterhouse Press, a whole new group of readers gets to fall in love with Richard and Katy.

To put it bluntly, Richard VanRyan is an unrepentant jerk. He’s selfish, egotistical, and rude, and he doesn’t have a compassionate bone in his playboy body. He's the kind of boss everyone hopes will ex...

Now I understand all the Richard VanRyan hype. Now I understand why readers kept on insisting they wanted more and why this fictional world has grown so big. With this new release of The Contract from Waterhouse Press, a whole new group of readers gets to fall in love with Richard and Katy.

To put it bluntly, Richard VanRyan is an unrepentant jerk. He’s selfish, egotistical, and rude, and he doesn’t have a compassionate bone in his playboy body. He's the kind of boss everyone hopes will experience a slow painful death by a thousand paper cuts. Pity the poor soul who has to work for him.

That poor soul is Katherine Elliott. She puts up with his haughty condescension and impossibly unrealistic standards because she desperately needs her job. But then Richard's circumstances change, and he needs something from Katy. He needs an image makeover in the form of a fiancée. He needs the drab, mousey woman he constantly berates to pretend she’s madly in love with him when she'd rather choke the life out of him with his own tie.

When a hero starts out this awful, there's a snowball’s chance in Hades for him to be redeemed in my eyes, much less make me fall for him. However, Moreland has some special wordsmith alchemy, and the Richard we end up with is vastly different from the Richard we first meet. But then love from the right woman and the power of found family are a unique kind of magic.

This story, at its heart, is about the change and growth love can bring if we let it. Have no doubt, Richard fights it, but Katy gives as good as she gets and is his equal in every way. Forget sparks. These two are a blazing Inferno roaring out of control, and their story is magnificent to behold!

By turns humorous then tender, steamy then deeply emotional, this story has absconded with my heart, and I’m not sure I’ll ever be the same. Charming, timeless, and unforgettable, you won’t be able to get enough of this exquisite, breathtaking love story!

My Impressions: 1st person narrative (ugh). However, my spirits lifted when I realized that it does shift between the hero and heroine occasionally. Thus, its not as restrictive as absolute 1st person. And the writer is quite direct and to the point…no rambling thoughts or boring tangents to muddle through (which is one of the reasons I normally avoid 1st person books). (Bravo!) A realistically nasty hero in Richard…but not so much that he can’t reform.

The Romance: The banter between thes...

My Impressions: 1st person narrative (ugh). However, my spirits lifted when I realized that it does shift between the hero and heroine occasionally. Thus, its not as restrictive as absolute 1st person. And the writer is quite direct and to the point…no rambling thoughts or boring tangents to muddle through (which is one of the reasons I normally avoid 1st person books). (Bravo!) A realistically nasty hero in Richard…but not so much that he can’t reform.

The Romance: The banter between these two was quite amusing and at times poignant…I cannot recall enjoying a bickering couple as much as Katherine and Richard. Since they were a hate turns to love pairing, there’s not a whole lot of immediately chemistry…their connection is built up, sort of ‘layered on’ as the storyline unfolded. The attraction grew, the tension spiked..until I just couldn’t wait for them to get together. No insta-love here. A nice, nuanced development of the romance.

Minor Beefs: Things got a bit sugary towards the end…and the wrap-up was a tad too neat. The entire book had a slightly pat feel to it. The romance part was excellent though, very well-developed, heartfelt, and completely convincing (Kudos). However, Richard’s workplace philosophy seemed to change too quickly…He went from being a soulless loner and corporate shark to a sharing, let’s-play-nice, teamwork guru overnight. His cut-throat attitude and competitive spirit vanished without a trace…at the very least, I expected him to have a few run-ins with his co-workers, some friction or something. Not sure I buy that part of his transformation.

Random Thoughts: I love a good opposites attract romance…which this is. Reformed villains make the best hero (in my opinion)….they fall hard!

Cliffhanger: None. A Stand alone.

The Verdict: Good read! I recommend it to all romance fans and contemporary romance readers. I will definitely give the next one in the series a glance when it comes out.

I LOVE this series. Every book is better than the last. Great descriptive writing -really paints a picture in my mind. Wonderful character development and story line. This is an amazing series and I will read again and again.

I LOVE this series. Every book is better than the last. Great descriptive writing -really paints a picture in my mind. Wonderful character development and story line. This is an amazing series and I will read again and again.

I have read and loved so many of Melanie Moreland's books, and have been meaning for so long to read The Contract. After picking it up I am kicking myself for waiting so long to read it!

Richard and Katy's relationship is contentious at best. She is his assistant and he is rude and difficult at every turn. She puts up with him to keep her much needed job, but everything changes when he needs a fake fiance and she needs the help he offers.

Their story hooked me from the very beginning an...

I have read and loved so many of Melanie Moreland's books, and have been meaning for so long to read The Contract. After picking it up I am kicking myself for waiting so long to read it!

Richard and Katy's relationship is contentious at best. She is his assistant and he is rude and difficult at every turn. She puts up with him to keep her much needed job, but everything changes when he needs a fake fiance and she needs the help he offers.

Their story hooked me from the very beginning and I was curious how they would go from a fake relationship to something real. They had so much chemistry and an undeniable spark that made it obvious they wouldn't be able to fight their feelings for long.

This is a new favorite from Melanie and I can't wait to read the rest of this series!

I loved the slow build. His hatred for her in the beginning was a little thick (pretty mean) but I liked the idea of how we got to the romantic part! Loved that he was completely providing for her. Wasn’t too spicy which I liked. The only reason I don’t give five stars was because it felt like the last three or four chapters went on a long time. Nice read!

I loved the slow build. His hatred for her in the beginning was a little thick (pretty mean) but I liked the idea of how we got to the romantic part! Loved that he was completely providing for her. Wasn’t too spicy which I liked. The only reason I don’t give five stars was because it felt like the last three or four chapters went on a long time. Nice read!