Manhunting by Jennifer Crusie

Hero: Jake Templeton
Heroine: Kate Svenson
Category: Contempoary Romance
Page Count: 250 pages
Grade: B+
Buy It: Here, Here or once again, at an independant bookstore near you by clicking, Here.

Objective: Find Man. Must Be Rich, Handsome, and Successful.
Kate Svenson is attractive, successful, a brilliant businesswoman — and miserable. After three failed engagements, she realizes it's time for a PLAN...an organized, detailed agenda with a clear goal: finding Mr. Right.

The Cabins resort is ripe with eligible bachelors, all rich, distinguished, and ambitious — just her type. And they're dropping like flies around her...at least, that's how Jake Templeton views the situation. After he's stuck pulling her latest reject out of the swimming pool, Jake's convinced this femme fatale is trouble. Especially for him.

But can a man who's sworn off ambition for good and a woman hanging from the top of the corporate ladder find common ground in the unpredictable territory called the heart, where the word proposal takes on a very different meaning...?

Another winner for Jennifer Crusie.

I enjoyed this book so much that I browsed right over the fact that Jake Templeton had a mustache. Because usually, I don't take well to heroes who have a mustache but because I enjoyed the hell out of Jake Templeton's character, his mustache was not a problem for me. Gosh, this book was funny. Kate Svenson was a great heroine too, she proved to be my favorite heroine of all of the JC heroines that I've read lately, she holds the top spot right now, she's even better than Min Dobbs in my opinion, which is saying something since I hecka liked Minn Dobbs.

Kate Svenson set out for Toby's Corner because her best friend, Jessie pretty much forced her to go. Kate is tired of being alone, she wants to find a husband who's successful and handsome and he's got to want to have kids and start a family but he's also got to want a partner and not a slave for a wife. So, off Kate goes to The Cabins in Kentucky with a plan to meet and fall in love with the many men that will be swarming the Cabins Resort. She's going to go and have herself a good time, meet gorgeous men, go on plenty of dates and she's going to find herself a fiance' dammit.

The Hotel's Events Coordinator is Valerie and she's likened to a barracuda. She's forever trying to lure all of the hotel guests to partake in the many festivities that she has planned for the day and the only way to escape being gunned down by Valerie the Barracuda, Kate rushes off with Jake Templeton, the lazy grounds keeper who is in charge of making sure the lawns get mowed. Jake Templeton is actually a partner in the entire Resort and everyday that Kate runs away to the lake with Jake is a day that they get closer and closer....as friends.

Jake lets Kate come along on his boat, everyday because she doesn't talk much and she lets him be, she's good company and when she does talk, he actually listens. They talk about anything and everything and Jake is content with his new friendship. But as each of her dates go down for the count, Jake gets happier and happier because it gives him more and more to razz her about.

As their story progresses you see the light finally alert them that they're actually perfect for each other, they're both what the other has been waiting for and what I liked about Kate is that when she came to the conclusion that she was indeed in love with Jake, she didn't shy away from him, she didn't pretend she wasn't feeling what she was feeling, she was upfront with Jake about it and she let him do what he would with her news....she had balls for standing up to Jake and laying her heart on the line, for him to either take or leave. I loved the fact that she called him out for the things he held against women because of the women of his past, I loved the way that she threw the truth at him and beat those facts into his brain until he realized that she's the best thing that will ever happen to him and if he won't appreciate her and give her what she wanted then she was gone, it'll hurt like all get out but she knew that it would doubly if she stayed, so she did what she thought was best for herself and I really admired that in her.

Jake on the other hand was such a funny cat that he made the story run by. My favorite scene in this book was the scene toward the end when they're fighting and then she's manipulating him in the boat.

"I was wrong," He lay back against the cushions, exhausted and happy. "You're not goign to kill me with sex. You're going to drown me."

"Jake, the boat is going down."

"So did you." He smiled at her in the moonlight. "Have I mentioned that was great?"

She grabbed the front of his shirt and shook him. "Jake!"

He sat up slowly. "What do you want me to do? Sing 'Nearer, My God, to Thee?"

"You, fool," she said and started to laugh. "Where's my underwear? it cost a fortune."

There was a good two inches of water in the boat now and it was sinking fasater. Jake fished around and handed her underpants and bra to her.

...He reached for his pants. "It was a good boat. I'm going to miss it."

....You killed my boat.

LMAO, this scene had me laughing my butt off. Especially since in Church yesterday, we sang that very same song! LOL. My friends sang that song and when Jake said that I couldn't stop laughing.

The book was a great book and it was good fun to read and I enjoyed the heck out of it and I know you will too. I didn't hate much of anything in this book, not even Jake's mustache, I loved the guy!

Read it, you'll like it!