I'm a big believer that there are exceptions to every rule, so even though I dislike books about celebrities, and I don't care for books about people being stalked (women or men: I have never watched more than ten minutes of Cape Fear 1962 despite Gregory Peck), I thought I would give it a try.
Lo and behold, the celebrity part and even the stalking part didn't bother me too much. I thought Roberts captured the day-to-day grind and professional attitude of actors on set. The stalking was less than satisfactory but frankly, it paled next to what did bug me.
The hero behaves like a stalker.
He wanders through the film star's home. He enters her bedroom. He demands that she do what he wants and go where he wants. And because he is so virile and handsome and angsty or whatever, she doesn't get creeped out. She argues, but oh my, even as she is arguing, she is swooning.
The problem here is not (necessarily) the bold, demanding, slightly demented hero. At one point, he acknowledges that he is behaving rather like the stalker. And I've read books, including manga, where the bold, demanding, slightly demented hero was matched by the bold, demanding, wholly demented love interest. Hey, if it works for them...
The problem here is that I was supposed to ignore the female character's OWN ARGUMENTS.
"Oh, how dare he! I can't stand that kind of pressure. I am so tired of feeling unnerved in my own home! But..."
The mistake here is a mistake that I think only Joss Whedon and Dorothy Sayers have ever directly acknowledged: a person can be overwhelmed physically and sensually. That doesn't mean they won't hate themselves when their brain catches up to the rest of them.
Yes, even with sex (which is supposedly untouchable).
So Angel sleeps with Darla and then goes, "Wow, that was SOOOO dumb."
And in Dorothy Sayers, Wimsey, who has a reputation for being good in bed, refuses to use that particular tactic with Harriet. He tries everything else. He takes her on dates. He argues with her. He gets involved with the murder case she comes across. But he never uses physical pleasure to bind her.
At one point, she acknowledges that if he had, she--weary from her trial; weary with herself--would have "gone up like straw."
Wimsey would have got her in the short run. He would have lost her forever in the long-run.
In truth, in fact, in reality, the film celebrity in Nora Roberts' novella should have fired the hero the moment he stepped into her bedroom without her permission. There was absolutely no reason for him to be there. It's unprofessional behavior. And having non-professionals guard one is the epitome of dumbness. And rather terrifying.
Intent does not excuse stalking--not once the brain catches up to a person's integrity.
