The Betting Vow

July 24, 2017
Jackson charms with the third in her Unconventional Brides series (after Insert Groom Here and To Me I Wed), a snappy contemporary that can be read as a standalone. Brazen supermodel and aspiring actress Leila Darling is ready to swear off men thanks to her slimy ex-boyfriend, who made it big at her expense with a humiliating, chart-topping song called “Darling Leila.” Straitlaced TV producer Carter Bain is aiming to land a big ad client by casting Leila in a mindless Three’s Company–style production, but Leila has her eye on a smart legal drama he’s casting. After losing a bet with Leila’s manager during an improbable poker game dare in Las Vegas, Leila and Carter make a cold business decision to marry. If they stay married for six months, Leila will have her choice of TV roles; if they can’t hack it, Leila will star in the sitcom. To their surprise, a satisfying and deep connection develops between Leila and Carter that has nothing to do with business, as is evident in Jackson’s thoughtful characterization. Leila and Carter are surprisingly sweet to each other, despite the marriage’s beginnings, and Jackson even manages to sell the poker game as a perfectly normal motivation for marriage. Agent: Rachel Brooks, L. Perkins Agency.

July 1, 2017
Two entertainment professionals try being married for six months just hours after they meet. Whoever wins the bet gets the deal of a lifetime.Model and aspiring actress Leila Darling couldn't care less about the vodka she's hawking in Las Vegas, but when she finds herself pulled into an unconventional bet with television producer Carter Bain, she surprises herself by accepting the terms--a friend thinks it will help both of their images to settle down and get married, and if one of them leaves before six months are up, the other gets to pick which of Carter's TV shows to cast Leila in. Now, suddenly married though still near-strangers, Carter and Leila have to work their ways through the minefield of public and corporate life in order to successfully arrive at the bet's best conclusion. But what neither expected was that they might develop feelings for each other on top of their obvious physical attraction. The third book in Jackson's (To Me I Wed, 2017, etc.) Unconventional Brides series, this volume pulls out laughs and sighs in the same way the earlier books do. While some of the dialogue is a bit stilted and overly old fashioned, Leila and Carter's communication, whether banter or heart-to-heart, is real and heartwarming. Still, the pacing leaves much to be desired, and the story alternates between lots happening and nothing at all. The ending is somewhere between abrupt and obvious, but strangely, even though there is too much book, there isn't enough story. A sweet romance that can leave a reader both satisfied and wanting.

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September 15, 2017
Supermodel Leila wants to act in a television series. She is trying to live down her three ex-fiances, especially Carter, a television producer who envisions a part for her in a comedy. She wants the challenge of a drama. Her manager suggests a bet over a late-night poker game in Vegas, and as a result, Leila and Carter get married. The deal is, if they stay together, Leila gets a shot at the drama. With her trademark respectful humor, Jackson (To Me I Wed, 2017) tells of a memorable honeymoon followed by the usual marriage issues, while Carter's straightforward style and confession of love make him uniquely appealing. Jackson's outstanding African American romances are wildly imaginative and delightfully funny.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)