#35 [2014/CBR6] "The Ideal Man" by Julie Garwood

Julie Garwood was at one time one of my favorite romance authors, but lately I've found her not living up to my expectations. Her latest books have seemed much more formulaic. I don't know if that's because she's not writing them all herself, if she's running out of ideas, or if I've just read too many of her books. Anyway, I was browsing my library's collection when I stumbled on The Ideal Man (2011). It took a while before I figured out I hadn't actually read this one before, and finally decided to give it a try.

Not surprisingly, this book was very similar to many of her other recent romance novels. Dr. Eleanor Sullivan (Ellie) is a young, prodigy of a surgeon (think Doogie Howser), and she is in need of some protection by an FBI agent--Max Daniels. Not only does Ellie have a stalker from her childhood who once tried to kill her, but she also just recently witnessed an attempted murder by some very shady people. Enter: Max Daniels. They are immediately attracted to each other, although work and keeping Ellie alive can get in the way at times. Ellie travels back to her hometown for her sister's marriage. When Max learns that she's still in danger, he follows her on his own to watch over her.

I'm not sure if  this one just hit me when I was in the right mood, but I enjoyed it more than some of Garwood's other novels. Ellie is a fun character, accomplished and successful. Unfortunately, Ellie's sister, Ava, is a pretty ridiculous caricature. And sure, the plot is already fading into the murky darkness of my mind--where all the romances I've read kind of blur together, but on the whole I enjoyed reading it.

I'd recommend this to Garwood fans who like this sort of thing, although I wouldn't call it a must-read.