Review: Crazy for Love by Victoria Dahl

Chloe Turner thought she was going to marry the perfect man-until her fiancé's plane crashed. And then she got the really bad news: he'd tried to fake his own death to avoid marrying her. Now America's most famous bridezilla (a tag she most definitely does not deserve), Chloe escapes to a remote island to avoid the paparazzi. And right next door is a man who just might be the cure
for Chloe's heartache....
A magnet for wild, complicated women, Max Sullivan is relieved to have finally found someone "normal." Chloe is his girl-next-door fantasy come to life, and best of all, she gets him. With her, he can be himself, a treasure-hunting millionaire who desperately wants out of his sexy but reckless job. But when Chloe's notoriety catches up with them, will their torrid romance make it to the mainland? Adult, Contemporary Romance (July 1, 2010)

Review:
I was dying to read this book since Victoria Dahl’s Tumble Creek series is one of my favorites but this book fell a little short of that.
Chloe meets Max while they are both vacationing on a secluded island. Both have issues of course. Chloe’s fiancé faked his own death to avoid the marriage and the media has been hounding her ever since the discovery that he is really alive. She’s reeling from the realization that her life wasn’t what she thought it was and doesn’t know if she can trust her instincts anymore.
Max has a savior complex. He’s always picking the girl who needs rescuing and is constantly trying to avoid accidents and save those around him. His last girlfriend was full of drama and he wants to avoid it that at all costs and takes a vow of abstinence even though he has a reputation as a sexy globetrotting treasure hunter.
Hmmmm. I just never connected to this couple. They are both nice and they have some very steamy sex scenes and were believable as a couple but the circumstances around them seemed contrived. Every conceivable obstacle that would push their buttons seemed to pop up to keep them apart.
There was another romance developing between Max’s brother Elliot and Chloe’s best friend Jenn that I found much more interesting. No one does sexy geeks better than Dahl! I wish there was more of them or that they had their own story. Again it seemed like a contrived plotline to fit the bigger story.
Once the vacation is over, Max has to decide if he will stand by Chloe under the media scrutiny when they get back home. Her former fiancé and all those associated with him are under investigation for faking the accident and possibly for bigger crimes.
It was an interesting angle and believable that she would become the main focus of the media circus. “Jilted lover – man fakes death to avoid marrying crazy bridezilla!” We live in weird times that we are obsessed with other people’s lives. I just got sick of hearing how hard her life was and Max whining about how hard it was to worry about everyone.
It was a fast read – not too deep and because of the steamy side of things I think it would make a great book to take to the beach.
Loved: This is strange but I loved the scenes of Chloe and Max fighting - they really said what they were feeling and I just liked the raw emotion. Very steamy love scenes. Elliot and Jenn made a cute couple.
Nitpick: I wasn’t crazy about the media circus plotline and I would have liked to have known Max more.

Rating: 2.5 out of 4 Not bad but the story just didn’t grab me.

Authors website: http://www.victoriadahl.com/
Buy the book! Crazy for Love (Hqn)
My early review copy was from: http://www.netgalley.com/