Author: Clare London
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press/Dreamspun Desires
Length: 199 Pages
Category: Contemporary
At a Glance: I was looking for a great feel-good romance, and I got it in spades with this engaging story.
Reviewed By: Lindsey
Blurb: How tangled can a romantic web get?
When gruff mountaineer Dominic Hartington-George seeks sponsorship for his latest expedition, his London PA insists on a more media-friendly profile—like dating celebrity supermodel Zeb Z.
Zeb can’t make the date, so he asks his identical twin, Aidan, to stand in for just one evening. Aidan, a struggling playwright, shuns the limelight to the extent people don’t even know Zeb has a sibling, but he reluctantly agrees.
When the deception has to continue beyond the first date, Aidan fights to keep up the pretense. Dominic likes his sassy, intelligent companion, and Aidan starts falling for the forthright explorer. But how long can Aidan’s conscience cope as confusion abounds? Will coming clean as “the other twin” destroy the trust they’ve built?
Review: The end of October and early November are a difficult time for me in my personal life—and this year there was added stressors. I generally like to escape into stories that make me feel good and come away with a smile on my face around this time of year, and Romancing the Wrong Twin hit the mark. If you have read anything in the Dreamspun Desires line, you know its themes are pretty common, but with a nice little twist and HEAs, and I adored this new installment.
Grumpy mountaineer, Dom, is in a bind. He needs good PR to get enough money to fund his next expedition, and Zeb just happens to be willing to go on “dates” for a fee to gather attention—seems like the perfect option. Only on hiccup; Zeb can’t do it and he can’t really tell anyone why. So, he does some pleading and cajoling and convinces his introverted twin, Aidan, to take his place. What happens next? Makeovers that involve glitter gel, awkward conversations between a grumpy gus and a feisty playwright, a couple of embarrassing situations, some very cute and sweet moments, two different—yet not—men who find attraction and more in the midst of what was a ruse.
Look, I won’t lie, some of it was farfetched. I mean, Zeb Z. is a superfamous model whose face is splashed everywhere because he can be so diverse and change his looks easily. Yet he has a twin brother that looks enough like him to pull off being him, and fools a ton of people in the process, and no one seemed to see the differences. They are supposedly close and spend time together when Zeb shows up in town, but they both manage to keep each other secret from everyone else in their lives? Yeah… not exactly a believable starting point. I would think Aidan at some point would have at least been confused with Zeb. But…I. Don’t. Care. I still enjoyed the story for what it was, a lovely tangled romance.
Aidan and Dom made for very dynamic characters. Though Aidan is more introverted than his brother, it is clear he respects himself and has no problem putting Dom in place when need be. In the beginning, he attributed his feisty nature as an act and channeling Zeb, but as the story progressed it was clear that part of him that had been dormant was simply being brought out by the blunt Dom, who seemed to be able to make the most absurd comments at the absolute worst moments, riling Aidan up, and the “act” gave Aidan the opportunity to speak his thoughts aloud. Their interaction was sometimes awkward (which had me giggling), sometimes sweet, sometimes hot and sometimes tender. Ms. London did a wonderful job creating engaging characters who I was cheering for all the way to their HEA.
This is relatively low on the angst rating, with a little thrown in but not too overwhelming. Which was perfect for my mood. As the story progresses, poor Aidan finds himself in quite the conundrum. He has feelings for Dom. But the thing is, Dom thinks he is dating and falling for Zeb. And really, the dating is only supposed to be temporary. How could it possibly work once Dom gets his next climb sponsored? What would happen if the truth of Aidan’s real identity is revealed? Well… I guess you will have to read it to find out.
All-in-all, I was looking for a great feel-good romance, and I got it in spades with this engaging story.
You can buy Romancing the Wrong Twin here:
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