Island is still pining for March since he abruptly left 6 months prior. Newly dating Alex, who seems to be the perfect boyfriend, she tries to get her mind off of March & into her new relationship while juggling a huge project at work. When her boss and friend Thom is killed, she is dragged into an investigation with the CIA, NSA, & March! Surprising & dangerous truths come to light about Alex and their relationship while Island is retaining her virginity and is having second thoughts about him. Having to travel overseas with March and Alex, she is caught between her conflicting thoughts about Alex and her connection and feelings for March. Violence, lies, & surprising revelations has Island at her wit's end. Going undercover to find out who killed Thom, Island is put in some precarious positions between Alex & March while the sparks fly. March's motives with Island may be cloudy but Island knows he will always protect her while Alex's motives are murky and conflicting. Getting closer to March and getting answers may either kill her or break her. A wild ride with surprising revelations to keep you on the edge of your seat. Also each chapter has the hilarious quotes from "fictional" romance books that Island reads. ( )

I want to thank the author for providing an ARC of this book. I enjoyed it, perhaps not as much as the first book, but it was certainly a fun read. The story shines where Island and March are interacting. Every scene with the two of them is a winner.. And that brings me to the major disappointment I felt with the book. There weren't nearly enough scenes with Island and March together. A lot of the story was taken up with Alex who showed oddly creepy feet of clay halfway through the book. So kudos to the author for making him an interesting character but I think he had more page time than March which is really unacceptable in a book where March is the main hero. Island remained funny and I enjoyed her voice. Although maybe there were a few too many references to current trends/happenings which might date the book further down the road.

The mystery plot was a little light. There wasn't actually as much going on as in book one. Still sign me up for the next one. And please let there be more interaction between Island and March and a bit more in depth mystery plot. ( )

Months after the devastation of her split from March and the toll of learning about her mother, Island has started dating a nice man named Alex who is in insurance. Also, Island has taken a job that uses her computer skills on a new program called Ruby that will revolutionize the banking industry, but right before the program is to launch, her boss who wrote the program, is murdered, and Island discovers that Alex isn't who she thought he was. At the same time March makes another appearance in Island's life and she must decide if she wants what Alex has to offer or to take another chance on March. Either way, Island must figure out what her boss had been doing that got him killed.

Beating Ruby is the second in the Spotless series and offers another action filled adventure in the style of a James Bond movie. Some of the clues and the mystery get bogged down in Island's personal problems that dominate the plot of this book, which is more romance than suspense. While the main characters are well developed, the villains - both friendly and not - are not given the same treatment as the heroes. Overall, however, Beating Ruby is a highly entertaining romantic suspense book, keeping me interested in continuing the series. 3 1/2 stars ( )

This is as good as book one - perhaps even a little better. Lots of tense (believable) romantic/sexual angst and a decent mystery to be solved. Mature angst, but not graphic and no sexual resolution - remember those TV shows where the best eps were the ones before the main characters hooked up (Moonlighting, Scarecrow and Mrs. King, Bones, Castle, etc)... we like the angst way more than the copulation... so, thanks Ms. Monk!

If there was another in this series, I would buy it right now. I finished this book in one sitting - that is how entertaining it is. The plot is relatively straight forward, but decently built, but the key to this story is how terrifically the characters are developed. We care about them, we believe in their behaviours, and we want stuff to be okay. ( )