My Nerdy Valentine

Aspiring psychologist Amanda Rykowsky's schedule is certifiable. Between study, bartending, and an internship with a sex therapist whose techniques would make a Playboy bunny blush, there's zero time for romance. Still, Amanda is flattered to receive an anonymous Valentine…until the messages take a sinister turn.Stockbroker William Sloan swears he's not the one sending Amanda cards, but he suspects the culprit's intentions are more dubious than sharing a box of Godiva. Something about gorgeous, determined Amanda brings out the usually reserved William's inner he-man, and he insists on acting as a decoy boyfriend.With a fake relationship masking some very real lust, it's only a matter of time before William and Amanda give in to the sweetest of temptation­s. And once he's dealt with her secret stalker, William's next mission is to strike Amanda with Cupid's arrow….From Publishers WeeklyWhat do you get when you throw together a sexually repressed college student, a narcissistic sex therapist, a handsome stockbroker and a bevy of sex-crazed therapy patients? Answer: This absurd romantic comedy, which substitutes puerile sex puns for emotional heft. Thompson stretches her "nerd" premise thin, forcing the label on stockbroker William Sloan simply because he wears a winter hat with earflaps. However, William's nerd status doesn't keep him from being pursued by therapist Gloria, who besieges him with double entendres ("I'm glad to have a young and virile man handling my... assets"), glow-in-the-dark condoms and a flash of her breasts. Meanwhile, the object of William's affection, Gloria's studious intern, Amanda, refuses to work him into her busy schedule and accuses him of sending her crude, anonymous Valentines. Thompson throws in a hokey plot involving the true Valentine sender and his plan to kidnap Amanda, but this merely serves as a flimsy tool to push William and Amanda together. All in all, Thompson's newest romance (following Nerds Like It Hot) possesses as much substance as cotton candy with less satisfaction. (Jan.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From BooklistAmanda Rykowsky, psychology student, bartender, and intern to a sex therapist, meets nerdy stockbroker William Sloan when the bag of sex toys she has picked up for the therapist breaks and scatters embarrassing items all over the stairs. With no time for dating, Amanda has sworn off relationships. When she starts receiving progressively more alarming valentines from an unknown admirer, Will worries that a dangerous stalker is the culprit. He offers to pretend to be Amanda's boyfriend, but they can't keep their hands off each other and experience blazing sex. Delightfully busybody neighbors and kinky patients with hilarious peccadilloes add to the entertainment. The seventh entry in Thompson's best-selling Nerds series may be the best one yet, with endearingly quirky characters, hot sex, and a suspenseful plot. Diana Tixier HeraldCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved