All a Man Can Be
Grade : B+

To say Mark DeLucca's life wasn't picture perfect would be an understatement. He's the product of alcoholic parents and a broken home. Despite his older sister's love and attempts at parenting he developed a strong dislike for authority that led to a few run-ins with the law. Given the choice of prison or the military, he joined the Marines, which helped shape his character. Continued trouble with authority, however, eventually led him back to Eden, where he was suspected in a string of rapes and murder. After proving his innocence, his life finally seems on track. He's got a part-time job as an emergency worker and a full-time position as a bar manager - that is, until he meets the bar's new owner. He finds himself attracted to Nicole Reed despite all the changes she makes to the bar, but complications ensue when he discovers that a youthful indiscretion left him a father. Is he ready for fatherhood, and how will this new development affect his budding relationship with Nicole?

Nicole Reed's childhood may have been more affluent, but her parents are distant, and her mother criticizes everything she says or does. Then there are the men in her past who've used her and dumped her. So now she's trying something new - her own business. She's also following the advice in the book How to Lose the Losers in Your Life. Unfortunately she's immediately attracted to Mark, who has the potential to be a textbook case of a loser with his background, but he's the first person in her life to value her opinion and treat her like an adult, rather than a petulant child. But after so many mistakes in choosing friends and boyfriends, the last person's judgement Nicole is going to trust is her own. Can she trust Mark with her heart?

This is an uncomplicated romance between two individuals who've been burned one time too many. Not only do they have to learn to trust each other, but they have to learn to trust themselves and discover their own self worth first. Kantra does a wonderful job building their characters and defining their issues and how they grow and get past them.

The reader knows Mark isn't a loser, he's just had a very long string of bad luck and made some poor choices in life. What's interesting is how he can see other people's worthiness as human beings and remain blind to his own. This is most evident when he learns about his son, Daniel. Daniel's mother Betsy has recently died, naming Mark as father and guardian of the child he never knew, but her parents plan to fight him for custody. Throughout the course of the story Mark has to examine his motivations for fighting for the boy and whether or not he'll be a fit father. It's in these moments the reader glimpses at his vulnerability and self-doubt that he covers with a mocking attitude and sharp tongue. He lashes out so he can hurt others before they can hurt him.

This confuses an already hurting and susceptible Nicole even more. One minute Mark is nice and the next he's saying something hurtful. Nicole has to learn to trust her own opinion and see beyond the attitude. She also has to get over her own reticence and talk to him. Her reliance on a growing library of self-help and self-improvement books brings several light-hearted and amusing moments to the story, yet more importantly goes a long way to explaining her actions and occasional mis-steps when dealing with Mark . Nicole is a smart woman with a trusting heart that she wears on her sleeve. She's just the balm for Mark's lonely soul, and she breaks down the walls he's built. Don't worry - she's not the only one giving in this relationship. After he gets over his initial distrust of the changes she's making to the bar, Mark is supportive, encouraging, and protective of Nicole; he helps to rebuild her self-confidence.

For readers turned off by the idea of a secret baby, or more accurately a long lost child, don't be. It is a very small portion of this character-driven story. The reason Mark didn't know of his son's existence is explained in a way that seems plausible. The story isn't so much about the child, but about self-discovery and how finding out he's a father changes Mark and the relationships he has with those around him. My only real quibble with the story does have to do with this plot point, though. I wish the story had been longer so Kantra could have fleshed out the bonding between father and son and the custody battle. It seemed rushed toward the end, which caused believability issues.

Overall I heartily recommend this book to readers who are tired of romantic suspense or seemingly straight romances where some villain pops out at the end for a forced climatic moment. This story stays firmly grounded in its characters and is so well developed the reader will be surprised to realize at the end, that the story took place in only a matter of weeks and not months. Nor is it necessary to have read the previous books in this series, because All a Man can Be stands firmly on its own. Kantra is definitely a writer to watch, and I look forward to her next book.

Reviewed by Jennifer Schendel
Grade : B+
Book Type: Series Romance

Sensuality: Warm

Review Date : March 26, 2003

Publication Date: 2003/04

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Jennifer Schendel

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