You’ve got to love a fake marriage that turns into more, right? I know, a lot depends on the reasons behind it, and they are more fun in fiction than they are in reality. But personally, I could understand Crawford’s decision to tell the border agents he was engaged to Mateus, to save Mateus from being arrested and sent to an immigrant detention center, and instead enable him to get back into the US. Only – it isn’t as easy as it looks. First, the border agents insist on the two men getting married before allowing them back into the US. Second, the last thing Crawford wants is to get married again; he’s been there, has done it, and has the emotional scars to show for it. Quite a pickle these two have gotten themselves into, and that’s after only about a quarter into the novel. I couldn’t wait to see what the author would come up with for the remainder of the story and how Mateus and Crawford were going to deal with married life!

Crawford is a man with a past, and he is in trouble from the moment his boss decides to send him to Canada to solve the problems one of their resorts is having – forcing Crawford to work with his ex-husband who was promoted into the European division, a promotion that broke up their marriage. Crawford has no way of avoiding the assignment without endangering his career, so he reluctantly makes the trip. But nothing goes as he expects, from the canceled flight to meeting a gorgeous stranger, and, instead of a boring business trip, Crawford is in for the adventure of his life.

Mateus is in the Pacific Northwest to help out in his brother’s orchard since his sister-in-law is pregnant. All he has is a tourist visa, he doesn’t want to leave his brother in the lurch, and he thinks he can re-up his tourist visa by traveling to Canada, then return to the US with another three months to stay. He leaves it to the last moment, and with only two days to spare by the time he travels and a lack of understanding about Canadian visa requirements, I guess he is pretty much asking for trouble.

The two men meet before boarding the flight that ends up canceled, and they are interested in each other. I think that without the incident at the border that follows their renting a car so Mateus can make it on time, and Crawford’s protectiveness taking over, their relationship might have developed along a more standard path. The fact that they have to get married in a rush interferes with all of that and creates sort of a pressure-cooker relationship-wise that I found fascinating to watch. Between that and the many interesting secondary characters with their subplots, ‘Tall, Dark, and Deported’ is a great adventure as well as an unusual romance.

If you like men who fall in love despite the stressful circumstances they find themselves in, if you want to see a businessman who thinks his career is the most important thing in his life come to his senses, and if you’re looking for an entertaining, sometimes suspenseful, and emotionally intense read, I can definitely recommend this novel.


NOTE: This book was provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews. ( )

I'm kind of a sucker for fake relationships turning real, so let us just say that this book was right up my alley. ;)

Crawford is a stressed out, overworked internal auditor who is being sent to Vancouver to work with his slimy ex, Davis, who basically married him to get ahead in the company and left him after admitting that he'd cheated on Crawford pretty much every time he left town for a business trip. Hurt even three (I think?) years later, Crawford doesn't believe in love anymore. Mateus is a botanist who is originally from Portugal, but he came to the United States to help his brother, Duarte, and his pregnant sister-in-law, Bree, with their orchard. His passport is about to expire, so he plans on hopping over to Canada to trigger an automatic renewal and spend the next three months in the United States until his brother can officially afford to hire him, which will secure Mateus a work visa. Crawford and Mateus meet at the airport, and when their flight is canceled, they decide to drive to Vancouver instead. But things don't go as Mateus planned them at the border; stuck in legal limbo, he can't enter Canada or the United States without being deported - until Crawford lies and says that Mateus is his fiance, which sets up their fake marriage.

Okay, yes, it does take a bit of a leap of faith to buy into this story line - but to be honest, I am not reading these types of books for strict realism. ;) I am reading them because I find them enjoyable, and as I already said, I LOVE this trope, so I really liked the set up. Both Crawford and Mateus were great characters; I enjoyed them both equally. I could really relate to Crawford, the bitter and jaded one, who had been used and therefore had turned his back on allowing anyone else into his life. And Mateus was the perfect person for Crawford - kind and honest (except about the fake marriage thing when it came to the border agents, I guess, haha).

The ending did feel a bit rushed, and I felt like this was probably due to the word count limits for this line. Honestly, my biggest complaint about this book is that I want MOAR. More Mateus, more Crawford, and definitely more Mateus-and-Crawford. I want a sequel that shows them being all adorable and in love and happy. I want to see Mateus meet his niece and Crawford open up his long-dreamed-of bed and breakfast right next door to Duarte's orchard and see the orchard really take off and be successful.

Damn it, Bru Baker; you made me feel. And that is not an easy undertaking. ;)

I loved this book, loved this story, loved this romance, and just felt super squishily happy while reading it. It's a great feel-good romance, and that was exactly what I was after when I picked it up. I believe that this is the first book I've read by this author, but it definitely won't be the last! ( )