Double Dealing

by Jayne Castle, Jayne Ann Krentz

She dangled the bait -- and he bit. Suddenly Samantha Maitland had the funds to finance the deal of her lifetime -- loaned by an angel with tarnished wings. From the moment they'd met at the posh California spa to his brash arrival at her island home on Puget Sound, venture capitalist Gabriel Sinclair had made it clear he wanted Samantha at any price. What would happen if he discovered the true motive behind her scheme to block Drew Buchanan's Arizona real estate deal? Had Samantha traded her edge in this dangerous game for a reckless passion with Gabriel, a man she barely knew? Or for the ultimate revenge on Drew Buchanan, the lover she couldn't forgive... or forget.

Genres: Romance

384 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published July 1, 1984

About the author

The author of over 40 consecutive New York Times bestsellers, JAYNE ANN KRENTZ writes romantic-suspense, often with a psychic and paranormal twist, in three different worlds: Contemporary (as Jayne Ann Krentz), historical (as Amanda Quick) and futuristic (as Jayne Castle). There are over 30 million copies of her books in print.

She earned a B.A. in History from the University of California at Santa Cruz and went on to obtain a Masters degree in Library Science from San Jose State University in California. Before she began writing full time she worked as a librarian in both academic and corporate libraries.

Ms. Krentz is married and lives with her husband, Frank, in Seattle, Washington.

Pseudonyms:
Jayne Ann Krentz
Amanda Quick
Stephanie James
Jayne Bentley
Jayne Taylor
Amanda Glass

Reviews

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was surprisingly good, considering its age. Even though it was published in the 80's it didn't have the typical "borderline physically and mentally abusive" male lead that most of JAK's books from that period feature. Gabriel was down-to-Earth, emotionally balanced and even cooked like a professional chef. The heroine, Samantha was a bit too stupid and irrational for my tastes but generally acceptable.

I also liked that the happy couple slept together the first time they got hot and heavy. That might sound strange, but anyone who's read JAK's books knows that they tend to be very formulaic. And one of her set-in-stone plot rules is that the first time the two unattached consenting adult main characters who desperately desire each other start making out, some random "thing" has to be contrived to break up the action just so that they aren't having sex too early in the story. The contrived reasons are usually silly and forced, and I find it irritating that we have to go through that song and dance in every one of her books. So I thought it was refreshing that Gabriel and Samantha actually threw caution to the wind and took the plunge right from the start.

As for the plot, it wasn't a great epic or anything but it was fine for moving the book along. The basic premise is that Samantha is out for revenge against an ex-fiance who jilted her as soon as he found out she wouldn't inherit any money from her rich sire. She's spent the last three years following his company's movements and finally spotted a way to throw a wrench in his plans, but she needs financial backing to pull it off and that's where Gabriel comes in. He's a venture capitalist and she pitches her plan to him as a way for them both to make some quick money, but deliberately leaves out the revenge angle because she realizes that calm, methodical Gabriel will never agree to the deal if she seems too emotional and unstable.

From that point on things move along at a reasonable pace. There's a lot of verbal battling that goes on when Sam and Gabriel first meet as they both try to prove that they're the one in charge of the business partnership. I found a lot of Sam's reactions to be ridiculously emotional. Even some of the things she thinks in her inner monologue are like, "whoa, drama queen much?" Subsequently Gabriel comes across as more likable simply because he behaves rationally.

But the thing that really made me roll my eyes at Sam's stupidity is the way she deals with her ex-fiance during the last part of the book. The ex calls Sam when she's alone and makes a threat against Gabriel's reputation; claiming that he can resurrect a 10-year-old scandal involving Gabriel's father to ruin Gabe financially. Sam is outraged and hangs up on the ex, but then, instead of just picking up the phone and calling her partner and lover to discuss this new development, she calls the ex back and agrees to his blackmail deal. That just idiotic. There was literally NOTHING stopping her from calling Gabriel first. And, in point of fact, he'd instructed her to do exactly that whenever she heard from the ex about their business deal and to do it BEFORE she agreed to anything. I find it very irritating when book characters do stupid things for absolutely no reason.

Overall the book was decent and better than I expected for a 1980's JAK story. I got a kick out of reading all the references to the strange and mysterious new invention that was computers. And also Samantha's insistence that they'd "make a pile" of money on this business deal such that they'd both be well-off for life....when they were only talking about $500,000.

[Maria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Published in 1984, this book shows considerable growth from the earlier books (1980, 1981) Jayne Ann Krentz wrote under the Jayne Castle name. Samantha Maitland and Gabriel Sinclair are good characters and the plot is more involved. There are too few subsidiary characters. I would have liked to see some interaction between Samantha and the rest of her family. All we get to see is her brother Eric, which adds depth but merely tantalizes as to the remainder of the family. As I re-read this book from time to time, Gabriel has taken on form and substance. I found it hard to visualize him the first time I read the book. Let's face it, by the very nature of the beast, few of us have contact with true loners who isolate themselves from society. By the fourth re-read, Gabriel grew into someone I could get my teeth into and with whom I could sympathize. For the first time, I understood why Emil hoped that Samantha would shake up Gabriel's life.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed going back to an author that I know is very good and reading with ease and enjoyment.
This author under any name is fantastic: Amanda Quick, Jayne Castle or Jayne Ann Krentz, Stephanie James and probably some others back in the beginning I don't know.
Second read - This is very slow moving. As it was my second read I skipped over a great deal. Will still keep and reread again in 2-3 years
Third read - Totally enjoyed this book again. So much fun the way they get to know each other and at the same time express their own individuality.

[Barbara Edwards · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this several years ago and remeber how much I enjoyed the confllict between the hero and heroine. I love dark, strong heros and independent smart heroines and this book had both. It kept me interested until the end.