Artful Lies by Jodi Ellen Malpas

I was really looking forward to reading Artful Lies. It had promise and I was intrigued by how the characters dealt with historical artifacts and art in a romance novel. However, the main crux of this story was the romance and it unfortunately fell flat for me. I really wanted to like Becker and Eleanor but all I felt for these two was annoyance because of their stupid and petty arguments, jealousy, immature personalities, inability to think beyond their lust for one another. It made me want to go back and read This Man or Promised again because Eleanor and Becker felt like "copies" of Ava/Jesse and Livy/Miller. Now the one thing I can say about this book was that the ending surprised and confused me. I'm not sure what's in store for these two or if their "relationship" can move beyond this but I am curious to say the least. Why did Becker do that? What prompted him to make that decision? What will Eleanor do next?

I felt like the plot structure of this book was flat until the end. Nothing and everything happened. Since the book was told in Eleanor's POV, much of the dramatic tension and narrative of the story was created through her inner monologue. Eleanor dreams of working in a museum that deals with precious artifacts because she loved and studied history. She has personal problems back home like her ex-boyfriend and best friend hooked up with each other and decides to move to London where she meets Becker in a rather cliched situation. They meet again and she ends up working for him. As for their relationship, Eleanor and Becker bicker constantly, which further reinforces the fact that these two are really childish.

In the end, this was an okay read for me. Will I read the conclusion of Becker and Eleanor's story? Maybe. It really depends on if I remember what the story is about by the time Wicked Truths rolls around. In my opinion, the romance wasn't developed very well and I am unsure when Eleanor fell for Becker. She hated his guts and wanted nothing to do with him then suddenly loves him and he is breaking her heart. I had whiplash with these two. I frankly don't see the appeal in Becker either. He tells her to "shut up" during their love scenes and doesn't really treat her that well. Is this supposed to be romantic? I don't find that romantic or sexy at all. I am starting to feel like these types of books might not be for me.

Rating: ★★★☆☆