9780312641375
Welcome to Temptation share button
Jennifer Crusie
Format Paperback
Dimensions 8.54 (w) x 11.08 (h) x 1.16 (d)
Pages 448
Publisher St. Martin's Press
Publication Date September 2010
ISBN 9780312641375
Book ISBN 10 0312641370
About Book

Sophie Dempsey is content living a quiet life filming wedding videos until an assignment brings her to Temptation, Ohio. From the moment she drives into town, she gets a bad feeling; Sophie is from the wrong side of the tracks and everything in Temptation is a little too right. And when she has a run-in with the town's unnervingly sexy mayor, Phineas Tucker, making a little movie turns out to be more than a little dangerous.

All Sophie wants to do is film the video and head home. All Phin wants to do is play pool with the police chief and keep things peaceful. They both get more than they bargained for when Sophie's video causes an uproar and the proper citizens of Temptation set out to shut them down.

As events spiral out of control, Sophie and Phin find themselves caught in a web of gossip, blackmail, adultery, murder, and really excellent sex. All hell breaks loose in Temptation as Sophie and Phin fall deeper and deeper in trouble . . . and in love.

Author Biography: JENNIFER CRUSIE is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Tell Me Lies and Crazy for You. She lives in Columbus, Ohio, and teaches writing at Ohio State University.

Reviews

From Barnes & Noble

Crusie's Irresistible Temptation

A town with a name like Temptation is bound to be a hotbed of trouble, and Jennifer Crusie knows the perfect way to expose it.

Welcome to Temptation is a deliciously titillating and outlandish mix of scandal, gossip, and small-town politics. Crusie throws in some really hot sex and a dead body or two just for fun, then pits a family of Temptation bluebloods against a family of outsiders whose heritage includes generations of con artists.

When Sophie Dempsey and her sister Amy head to the small town of Temptation, Ohio, to shoot a video with their friend and onetime porn star, the still gorgeous but aging Clea Whipple, Sophie has a premonition of disaster. It's a premonition that grows when Sophie and Amy literally collide with the town's most righteous and outspoken politician before they even get into town. But this car accident, which occurs just below a sign advertising Temptation's commitment to family values, is just the beginning of Sophie's troubles.

When a rumor circulates through Temptation that the women are shooting a porn video, it prompts visits from several townsfolk, including Temptation's very sexy mayor, Phineas Tucker. Sophie finds the mayor's charms irresistible and succumbs to a bit of indulgent sex she figures will be a one-night stand. But that one night leads to another...and another...and another...with some mornings and afternoons thrown in for good measure. And despite their best intentions, neither Sophie nor Phin seems able to give up their sessions of mind-blowing, "headbanging" sex.

With an election right around the corner and a Tucker family legacy that includes many generations of mayors, the pressure is on Phin to keep Temptation on an even keel and his own reputation unsullied. But his biggest opponent, Stephen Garvey, is determined to bring Phin down, by hook or crook. And Phin's mother, who will stop at nothing to see the family legacy carried on, inadvertently aids Garvey through her attempts to keep Sophie and Phin apart.

Meanwhile, a Hollywood porn king comes to town and woos Garvey's young daughter. Clea's sleazy ex-husband, a nosy, blackmailing onetime newscaster, shows up armed with some very interesting facts about several people in town. And Sophie's brother, whose talents as a scam artist are unparalleled, shows up to defend his sister's honor. As if things aren't crazy enough, when a dead body turns up on a riverside dock, the finger of suspicion points in several directions at once. And suddenly Sophie realizes her premonition is about to come true in a very deadly way.

What with the gossip, the politics, and the healthy sexual appetites, Temptation is one busy little town. Crusie populates it with some of the most intriguingly quirky characters ever to walk the pages of a book. The repartee between Sophie and Phin is quick-witted and bawdy, the sex deliciously kinky. Crusie keeps the action zipping, the sex sizzling, and the laughs plentiful. She has all the eccentricities of a small town down pat, right down to the stunningly brilliant punishment delivered to the town's killer.

Temptation, whether it be the town or the sin, is perverse, pernicious, and one heck of a lot of fun.

—Beth Amos

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Crusie's saucy feminist romp stars a heroine who captures her man's heart, and then goes after his job, meanwhile enjoying "headbanging sex," filming soft porn and acquiring both a house and a dog named Lassie. A car crash welcomes Sophia Dempsey to Temptation, Ohio, as she arrives from Cincinnati to help her hot-tempered, smart-mouthed sister, Amy, film a video with a washed-up local actress. Sophie's misgivings about small-town Temptation increase when she sees the town's rusted welcome sign: "We Believe in Family Values." Yet unconventional Sophie soon ditches her boyfriend (who is also her ex-therapist) and falls for Phineas Tucker, Temptation's macho mayor, scion of the town's premier political family and single father. News of the Dempsey sisters' film prompts the prudish town council to institute an antiporn ordinance, which Phin is obligated to uphold while he inspires Sophie's experiments with sexy camerawork. Crusie adroitly mixes the outrageous and the practical, modern feminism and old-fashioned romance, and adds a liberal dose of razor-sharp humor. Sophie's effort to enact the mayor's favorite sexual fantasy is thwarted by interruptions by various townspeople confessing to murder, while, in one hilarious highlight, Sophie's costume for the evening falls victim to the laws of gravity. Minor characters offer more humor and romance: the police chief and the ex-juvenile delinquent, Sophie's scheming brother and his ex-wife, the porn king and the town debutante, Phin's daughter and his mother. Like a stand-up comic, Crusie (Crazy for You) charms with her brisk, edgy style, and the repartee between Sophie and Phin keeps energy and sexual tension high. A romantic comedy that adds luster to the genre, this effervescent tale will please readers who can relate to Sophie's undaunted exploration of all her desires. Agent, Meg Ruley. Author tour. (Mar.) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.

Library Journal

Sophie and Amy Dempsey arrive in the small Ohio town of Temptation to film a movie. The star is an actress who is trying to revive her failing career by coming back to her hometown. The two sisters become involved in social and political affairs, including romantic entanglements. Matters become more complicated when a murder occurs. One of the high points of this novel is the relationship between the two sisters. Even though they have very different personalities, they are always open and honest with one another, help and support each other, and share their innermost thoughts. Crusie's constant touch of humor and wit come through in Aasne Vigesaa's reading, with his distinct and lively characterizations. Recommended for public library collections. Catherine Swenson, Norwich Univ., Northfield, VT Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

From the Publisher


"Bright, funny, sexy, and wise."--Kirkus Reviews

"Cruise charms with her brisk, edgy style...a romantic comedy that adds luster to the genre, this effervescent tale will please readers."--Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"Cruise blends a combination of likeable characters, gossipy small-town life, and a plot spiced with some steamy sexual situations into a highly entertaining read."--Library Journal