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One Reckless Night
Once wasn't enough...
Zanna Westcott was a successful businesswoman with a track record for ruthless takeovers and always putting business before pleasure.
Jake Lantrell was pleasure...sheer unadulterated pleasure. Zanna's attraction to him scared her. Jake represented everything in life she had tried to avoid: love, emotion, sex. And so, after one reckless night of passion, Zanna had determined to forget her momentary indiscretion....
It wasn't so easy. Jake wanted more than a one-night stand. He was determined to show Zanna that there was something missing from her life--him!
Zanna Westcott was a successful businesswoman with a track record for ruthless takeovers and always putting business before pleasure.
Jake Lantrell was pleasure...sheer unadulterated pleasure. Zanna's attraction to him scared her. Jake represented everything in life she had tried to avoid: love, emotion, sex. And so, after one reckless night of passion, Zanna had determined to forget her momentary indiscretion....
It wasn't so easy. Jake wanted more than a one-night stand. He was determined to show Zanna that there was something missing from her life--him!
187 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1997
1 person is currently reading
108 people want to read
About the author
Sara Craven
494 books269 followersAnne Bushell was born on October 1938 in South Devon, England, just before World War II and grew up in a house crammed with books. She was always a voracious reader, some of her all-time favorites books are: "Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen, "Middlemarch" by George Eliot, "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë, "Gone With the Wind" by Margaret Mitchell and "The Code of the Woosters" by P. G. Wodehouse.
She worked as journalist at the Paignton Observer, but after her marriage, she moved to the north of England, where she worked as teacher. After she returned to journalism, she joined the Middlesbrough Writers' Group, where she met other romance writer Mildred Grieveson (Anne Mather). She started to wrote romance, and she had her first novel "Garden of Dreams" accepted by Mills & Boon in 1975, she published her work under the pseudonym of Sara Craven. In 2010 she became chairman of the Southern Writers' Conference, and the next year was elected the twenty-six Chairman (2011–2013) of the Romantic Novelists' Association.
Divorced twice, Annie lives in Somerset, South West England, and shares her home with a West Highland white terrier called Bertie Wooster. In her house, she had several thousand books, and an amazing video collection. When she's not writing, she enjoys watching very old films, listening to music, going to the theatre, and eating in good restaurants. She also likes to travel in Europe, to inspire her romances, especially in France, Greece and Italy where many of her novels are set. Since the birth of her twin grandchildren, she is also a regular visitor to New York City, where the little tots live. In 1997, she was the overall winner of the BBC's Mastermind, winning the last final presented by Magnus Magnusson.
She worked as journalist at the Paignton Observer, but after her marriage, she moved to the north of England, where she worked as teacher. After she returned to journalism, she joined the Middlesbrough Writers' Group, where she met other romance writer Mildred Grieveson (Anne Mather). She started to wrote romance, and she had her first novel "Garden of Dreams" accepted by Mills & Boon in 1975, she published her work under the pseudonym of Sara Craven. In 2010 she became chairman of the Southern Writers' Conference, and the next year was elected the twenty-six Chairman (2011–2013) of the Romantic Novelists' Association.
Divorced twice, Annie lives in Somerset, South West England, and shares her home with a West Highland white terrier called Bertie Wooster. In her house, she had several thousand books, and an amazing video collection. When she's not writing, she enjoys watching very old films, listening to music, going to the theatre, and eating in good restaurants. She also likes to travel in Europe, to inspire her romances, especially in France, Greece and Italy where many of her novels are set. Since the birth of her twin grandchildren, she is also a regular visitor to New York City, where the little tots live. In 1997, she was the overall winner of the BBC's Mastermind, winning the last final presented by Magnus Magnusson.
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
February 4, 2019
Re One Reckless Night - Sara Craven's fiftieth book is a whacktastic dramafest of epic angst proportions.
The h in this is one opens the story while she is in the midst of a hostile takeover deal for her Captain of Industry father. She doesn't particularly enjoy her job as a corporate raider, but her cold, distant icesnot blob of a father won't accept anything less.
The h, whose mum died when she was a baby, desperately wants her father's approval and is slowly coming to realize she is never going to get it. When her father's sewer gulping secretary refuses to put her call through, the h decides to take the weekend off and winds up at a house that her mother used to paint before she died.
Her car breaks down along the way and the mechanic that she finds is pretty rude and snarky. Unfortunately the mechanic also happens to be the caretaker for the h's mother's old house and after some manipulations on his part and more verbal snark between the two of them, the H and h wind up having a purple passion unicorn grooming license banishing event.
The h is mortified and horrfied and does the flee of shame all the way back to London the next day. A month later the h is preggers, cause this is HPlandia and it is a rule, so she has a quandary. Which becomes an even bigger quandary when her tyrannical father calls her a harlot tart and tells her she either terminates the pregnancy or she will be out on her hiney with nothing.
At this point, abandon all hint of reality, cause SC goes all Whacktastic HPlandic after this.
The h decides she wants her baby and she tells her father to go jump. She has to move into a grotty flat, give up her company car and she signs up for an employment agency.
(Never mind that she was her father's top executive and deal maker and all of his competition would be falling over themselves to headhunt her, SC can't have an actual job interfering with what she has planned next and plus SC still disapproves of working mums a bit at this point.)
So the h, now that she is in her grotty flat, decides to accept an art gallery invitation cause that is what every one does in a time of emotional tribulation and guess who the owner is? Yep, our mechanic, caretaking, and now seekrit international gallery owner H.
The h isn't too happy to see him and he is very insistent that they talk. The h isn't interested in another one night mistake and so she blows him off. The H stalks her to her new grotty flat and the h still rebuffs him.
Then she gets a phone call from the employment agency for a job on the coast of France. The h accepts and gets a plane and guess who is waiting at the other end. The H of, course, and it seems there is one more tiny lie he needs to confess, he is her step brother.
The h is in shock because her mother is NOT dead, as her father said. Instead the mother left the h's father and divorced him, also leaving the h behind in a clearly abusive situation. The h isn't exactly delighted with the mother and when she learns the H had a good idear of who she was and slept with her anyway, the h becomes decidedly less so.
(I must confess I found the mother to be as disgustingly manipulative as the h's father was. The whole story took on a subtle gothic undertone as the h's artist mother wailed and moaned about how she was manipulated into marriage by her mother and the h's father when her true love died, then the mother was threatened into not fighting for custody of the h and how the h's father stiffled her as an artist.
Considering the woman did get a divorce and that English law was heavily biased in favor the mothers having infant custody at the time, it is a fairly safe bet that the h's mother hated having a child to hold her down and left to do her own thing.
Then the woman latched on to the H's very wealthy father, all the while playing on people's sympathies by painting these mystical, yearning paintings of the child she was supposedly forced to leave behind-never mind that the h was well into her twenties and the mother knew where she was the whole time. Now it seems the narcissist mother wants another ego panderer to manipulate in her life and the h seems to be the perfect accessory.)
So essentially the h got it right the first time, when she complained that her mother's art was more important to her than the h 's well being. This makes the H unreasonably furious and he berates the h pretty badly, but the H doesn't have a lot of credibility left at this point, cause he has lied about everything.
Of course the h is so desperate for any kind of paternal bond that she eventually swallows the mother's BS story and we can get on with bringing on the H's OW. There is one more almost lurve club event which the h halts cause of her pregnancy.
The h then decides that her mother is nice and all, but she has a child to protect and she needs to get out on her own. The H bullies her into staying and he decides he will leave. Then we learn about his girlfriend when the h's mother admits that she believes the H and his girlfriend will be marrying.
The h is horribly jealous and it doesn't get any better when the H and the OW show up for the h's welcome to the family party. The OW hangs all over the H and he gets mad when the h pretty much ignores him and avoids him.
Then the h's father dies, and the H decides she has to go back to London to see him. By the time the h gets there, the father is already dead - having been asking for the h's mother in the hour before his death and the h can only wonder what that was all about.
The h is now wealthy and gets all of her father's legacy, but his sewer swilling deranged secretary shows up at the house after the father's funeral and the woman goes off about the h being a pregger trampy tart.
The H was conveniently hiding in the kitchen during this rant. So he throws the deranged secretary out, swears the OW was just a ruse to make the h jealous, (and he insists the OW be her bridesmaid,) then he declares his love and declares they will marry and the h is too stunned to object for the HEA.
This book started out well, but the end just went off the rails. The whole mother situation was too creepy for words, mainly because the mother never coming to find the h once she was of age doesn't make sense. The woman had a rich and powerful husband to protect her and the H was just a little TOO keen to jump to the mother's defense.
Then there the was the whole seduction of the h situation- when the H almost certainly KNEW who the h really was and also lied about who HE was. It was just weird. But the drama and the angst were pretty entertaining and I liked the h.
I wasn't a fan of the rest of the cast, but I hold out hope that a few good nights of rest and a large inheritance will have the h renouncing her newly discovered creepy 'family' and send her off to Australia or New Zealand for a real HPlandia HEA - Robyn Donald could have a field day with this.
The h in this is one opens the story while she is in the midst of a hostile takeover deal for her Captain of Industry father. She doesn't particularly enjoy her job as a corporate raider, but her cold, distant icesnot blob of a father won't accept anything less.
The h, whose mum died when she was a baby, desperately wants her father's approval and is slowly coming to realize she is never going to get it. When her father's sewer gulping secretary refuses to put her call through, the h decides to take the weekend off and winds up at a house that her mother used to paint before she died.
Her car breaks down along the way and the mechanic that she finds is pretty rude and snarky. Unfortunately the mechanic also happens to be the caretaker for the h's mother's old house and after some manipulations on his part and more verbal snark between the two of them, the H and h wind up having a purple passion unicorn grooming license banishing event.
The h is mortified and horrfied and does the flee of shame all the way back to London the next day. A month later the h is preggers, cause this is HPlandia and it is a rule, so she has a quandary. Which becomes an even bigger quandary when her tyrannical father calls her a harlot tart and tells her she either terminates the pregnancy or she will be out on her hiney with nothing.
At this point, abandon all hint of reality, cause SC goes all Whacktastic HPlandic after this.
The h decides she wants her baby and she tells her father to go jump. She has to move into a grotty flat, give up her company car and she signs up for an employment agency.
(Never mind that she was her father's top executive and deal maker and all of his competition would be falling over themselves to headhunt her, SC can't have an actual job interfering with what she has planned next and plus SC still disapproves of working mums a bit at this point.)
So the h, now that she is in her grotty flat, decides to accept an art gallery invitation cause that is what every one does in a time of emotional tribulation and guess who the owner is? Yep, our mechanic, caretaking, and now seekrit international gallery owner H.
The h isn't too happy to see him and he is very insistent that they talk. The h isn't interested in another one night mistake and so she blows him off. The H stalks her to her new grotty flat and the h still rebuffs him.
Then she gets a phone call from the employment agency for a job on the coast of France. The h accepts and gets a plane and guess who is waiting at the other end. The H of, course, and it seems there is one more tiny lie he needs to confess, he is her step brother.
The h is in shock because her mother is NOT dead, as her father said. Instead the mother left the h's father and divorced him, also leaving the h behind in a clearly abusive situation. The h isn't exactly delighted with the mother and when she learns the H had a good idear of who she was and slept with her anyway, the h becomes decidedly less so.
(I must confess I found the mother to be as disgustingly manipulative as the h's father was. The whole story took on a subtle gothic undertone as the h's artist mother wailed and moaned about how she was manipulated into marriage by her mother and the h's father when her true love died, then the mother was threatened into not fighting for custody of the h and how the h's father stiffled her as an artist.
Considering the woman did get a divorce and that English law was heavily biased in favor the mothers having infant custody at the time, it is a fairly safe bet that the h's mother hated having a child to hold her down and left to do her own thing.
Then the woman latched on to the H's very wealthy father, all the while playing on people's sympathies by painting these mystical, yearning paintings of the child she was supposedly forced to leave behind-never mind that the h was well into her twenties and the mother knew where she was the whole time. Now it seems the narcissist mother wants another ego panderer to manipulate in her life and the h seems to be the perfect accessory.)
So essentially the h got it right the first time, when she complained that her mother's art was more important to her than the h 's well being. This makes the H unreasonably furious and he berates the h pretty badly, but the H doesn't have a lot of credibility left at this point, cause he has lied about everything.
Of course the h is so desperate for any kind of paternal bond that she eventually swallows the mother's BS story and we can get on with bringing on the H's OW. There is one more almost lurve club event which the h halts cause of her pregnancy.
The h then decides that her mother is nice and all, but she has a child to protect and she needs to get out on her own. The H bullies her into staying and he decides he will leave. Then we learn about his girlfriend when the h's mother admits that she believes the H and his girlfriend will be marrying.
The h is horribly jealous and it doesn't get any better when the H and the OW show up for the h's welcome to the family party. The OW hangs all over the H and he gets mad when the h pretty much ignores him and avoids him.
Then the h's father dies, and the H decides she has to go back to London to see him. By the time the h gets there, the father is already dead - having been asking for the h's mother in the hour before his death and the h can only wonder what that was all about.
The h is now wealthy and gets all of her father's legacy, but his sewer swilling deranged secretary shows up at the house after the father's funeral and the woman goes off about the h being a pregger trampy tart.
The H was conveniently hiding in the kitchen during this rant. So he throws the deranged secretary out, swears the OW was just a ruse to make the h jealous, (and he insists the OW be her bridesmaid,) then he declares his love and declares they will marry and the h is too stunned to object for the HEA.
This book started out well, but the end just went off the rails. The whole mother situation was too creepy for words, mainly because the mother never coming to find the h once she was of age doesn't make sense. The woman had a rich and powerful husband to protect her and the H was just a little TOO keen to jump to the mother's defense.
Then there the was the whole seduction of the h situation- when the H almost certainly KNEW who the h really was and also lied about who HE was. It was just weird. But the drama and the angst were pretty entertaining and I liked the h.
I wasn't a fan of the rest of the cast, but I hold out hope that a few good nights of rest and a large inheritance will have the h renouncing her newly discovered creepy 'family' and send her off to Australia or New Zealand for a real HPlandia HEA - Robyn Donald could have a field day with this.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 26, 2021
Heroine's quest to find out more about her deceased mother leads her to a charming English village. Stranded by car repairs, she has a one-night stand with the mysterious mechanic hero. She falls pregnant, of course. Her evil father fires her from the family firm, kicks her out of her flat and blackballs her with other employers.
Heroine attends an art exhibition and meets hero again, but doesn't *tell* him anything. A trip to France for temporary employment finally sheds some light on the heroine's mother. Hero follows her there with an OW in tow, which adds to the angst.
Silly heroine still can't come clean until the very last pages. Hero is a sweetie, but causes his own problems. Lol
Boogenhagen has all the details.
Heroine attends an art exhibition and meets hero again, but doesn't *tell* him anything. A trip to France for temporary employment finally sheds some light on the heroine's mother. Hero follows her there with an OW in tow, which adds to the angst.
Silly heroine still can't come clean until the very last pages. Hero is a sweetie, but causes his own problems. Lol
Boogenhagen has all the details.
March 13, 2019
He was quite sweet but because he was soo besotted, I forgived him. Lol
August 30, 2012
Gahhhhhhhhhhh! This book started off decently strong, then by the middle I was almost snoring because it bored the ever living snot out of me and by the end I was pretty close to regretting reading it. Not something I'd EVER read again.
August 1, 2020
The plot had potential. Nice element of surprise in the storyline.
Heroine was a bit too self-sacrificing I thought.
That 2 line review was written in 2015.
5 years later, I didn't remember the title of this book and its thanks to RomLibrary help that I got the book's name. This is what I had written while requesting for help. (And in brackets is the update after re-reading the book)
Help: I’m looking for help in locating a book.......
The book is set in England for most part. There is some portion set in France <{Its South of France in the hills behind Cannes}> or some other European country.
The heroine is working for her father. He’s a taskmaster and very hard to please. <{Captain of Industry Father - according to boogenhagen... HeHe}> She has been told that her mother is dead and believes it. There is a painting. Whether of a house or of the heroine’s mother I’m not sure. <{There are actually two paintings. One is a meloncholic self portrait of the Heroine's mother and the second is the painting of a house, (which the heroine sees in an art display), in a set of photographs which the heroine has, which she finds out is called "Church House"}>
For some reason, <{She's upset because Daddy's Sludge Swilling Secretary (Title courtesy Boogenhagen.....Hehe), didn't let her speak with Daddy dearest}> the Heroine sets out on a journey to the countryside. And there’s either an auction or something draws her to a place / house and there’s the connection to the painting. She meets the hero there. Not clear on how it happens <{Her car breaks down and the hero Jake is moonlighting as a car mechanic}> but they have an “overtaken by passion” moment. And I think that in the clear light of the day, the heroine regrets the night before and goes back home.
A few weeks later, she finds that she’s left with a souvenir, “of the nine months variety”. Her father’s secretary with an eye for the main chance deduces that the heroine is pregnant, she tattles the secret out. Her father is livid and gives her an ultimatum- get rid of it or get out. When the heroine rebels, the father cuts off her credit cards and repossesses her car. Maybe she’s asked to vacate the company owned flat I’m not sure.<{ Yes, She's thrown out}>
At a low ebb she comes into an art gallery. Unbeknownst to her, the gallery which is part of a chain <{ Lantrell Galleries}> belongs to the Hero’s family. After that I don’t remember the book very well. The big surprise is that the heroine’s mother is alive and is married to the Hero’s father.
The heroine goes to meet her mother. Then the heroine’s father dies and the heroine comes back to England and finds that the father has not disinherited her.
Continuing the review afresh after rereading the book.......
The hero accompanies her and its thanks to the sludge Swilling secretary's vitriolic attack on the heroine that the Hero comes to know about the pregnancy.
AND ALL IS EXPLAINED AND THEY ADMIT THEIR LOVE FOR EACH OTHER.....
Heroine was a bit too self-sacrificing I thought.
That 2 line review was written in 2015.
5 years later, I didn't remember the title of this book and its thanks to RomLibrary help that I got the book's name. This is what I had written while requesting for help. (And in brackets is the update after re-reading the book)
Help: I’m looking for help in locating a book.......
The book is set in England for most part. There is some portion set in France <{Its South of France in the hills behind Cannes}> or some other European country.
The heroine is working for her father. He’s a taskmaster and very hard to please. <{Captain of Industry Father - according to boogenhagen... HeHe}> She has been told that her mother is dead and believes it. There is a painting. Whether of a house or of the heroine’s mother I’m not sure. <{There are actually two paintings. One is a meloncholic self portrait of the Heroine's mother and the second is the painting of a house, (which the heroine sees in an art display), in a set of photographs which the heroine has, which she finds out is called "Church House"}>
For some reason, <{She's upset because Daddy's Sludge Swilling Secretary (Title courtesy Boogenhagen.....Hehe), didn't let her speak with Daddy dearest}> the Heroine sets out on a journey to the countryside. And there’s either an auction or something draws her to a place / house and there’s the connection to the painting. She meets the hero there. Not clear on how it happens <{Her car breaks down and the hero Jake is moonlighting as a car mechanic}> but they have an “overtaken by passion” moment. And I think that in the clear light of the day, the heroine regrets the night before and goes back home.
A few weeks later, she finds that she’s left with a souvenir, “of the nine months variety”. Her father’s secretary with an eye for the main chance deduces that the heroine is pregnant, she tattles the secret out. Her father is livid and gives her an ultimatum- get rid of it or get out. When the heroine rebels, the father cuts off her credit cards and repossesses her car. Maybe she’s asked to vacate the company owned flat I’m not sure.<{ Yes, She's thrown out}>
At a low ebb she comes into an art gallery. Unbeknownst to her, the gallery which is part of a chain <{ Lantrell Galleries}> belongs to the Hero’s family. After that I don’t remember the book very well. The big surprise is that the heroine’s mother is alive and is married to the Hero’s father.
The heroine goes to meet her mother. Then the heroine’s father dies and the heroine comes back to England and finds that the father has not disinherited her.
Continuing the review afresh after rereading the book.......
The hero accompanies her and its thanks to the sludge Swilling secretary's vitriolic attack on the heroine that the Hero comes to know about the pregnancy.
AND ALL IS EXPLAINED AND THEY ADMIT THEIR LOVE FOR EACH OTHER.....
March 31, 2019
Once wasn't enough...
Zanna Westcott was a successful businesswoman with a track record for ruthless takeovers and always putting business before pleasure.
Jake Lantrell was pleasure...sheer unadulterated pleasure. Zanna's attraction to him scared her. Jake represented everything in life she had tried to avoid: love, emotion, sex. And so, after one reckless night of passion, Zanna had determined to forget her momentary indiscretion....
It wasn't so easy. Jake wanted more than a one-night stand. He was determined to show Zanna that there was something missing from her life--him! (less)
Zanna Westcott was a successful businesswoman with a track record for ruthless takeovers and always putting business before pleasure.
Jake Lantrell was pleasure...sheer unadulterated pleasure. Zanna's attraction to him scared her. Jake represented everything in life she had tried to avoid: love, emotion, sex. And so, after one reckless night of passion, Zanna had determined to forget her momentary indiscretion....
It wasn't so easy. Jake wanted more than a one-night stand. He was determined to show Zanna that there was something missing from her life--him! (less)
October 14, 2016
Well , This book gives me mixed feelings .
Fiction , too much of it . Things that were probably never ever expected .( H is a mechanic in a garage , then he turns out to be millionaire , then he also turns out to be h's step brother , Heck ) I did enjoy the initial part of the story , it was exciting , mysterious but then I thnk after that one reckless night , things change , I didn't particularly like those changes . Definitely not what I expected from Sara Crazen :/
Fiction , too much of it . Things that were probably never ever expected .( H is a mechanic in a garage , then he turns out to be millionaire , then he also turns out to be h's step brother , Heck ) I did enjoy the initial part of the story , it was exciting , mysterious but then I thnk after that one reckless night , things change , I didn't particularly like those changes . Definitely not what I expected from Sara Crazen :/
July 19, 2014
very different from what i usually read form sara craven! the basic plot is good but the story lacked intensity and poignant emotions. zanna came off as a cold socialite while jake tried to give an impression of besotted fool which failed miserably. he seemed more like a caring sibling!
June 19, 2018
The h is 25 year old Zanna Westcott. When the book starts she has just entered her hotel room after a meeting where she’s taken over a company. She works for her father and tries to contact him to tell him the good news. But she gets his snooty secretary instead since her father’s in a meeting. Because she’s pissed off by the secretary she decides to stay at the hotel for the weekend.
She realizes that she is near her mothers place of birth. Her mother died when Zanna was just a baby and her father never talks about her. When Zanna was eleven, and at boarding school, she gets a photo album from her mothers nanny, (I think) and now she always carries the album with her. Zanna always wanted to go and see Church house, where her mother grew up, so she decides to go there.
Just as she enters the village the car stops. Luckily she is near a garage. There she encounters a rude, scruffy looking, mechanic (she is rude first tho) he’s our Hero. After some bickering he goes to look at the car. The h walks in to the village to look around. She goes in to an art exhibition and there she finds a painting of Church house, it looks just like in the photo album. She wants to buy the painting but it’s privately owned. And the owner (of both the house and the painting) is out of town.
She then goes to see the house and peaks in trough the kitchen window. She sees that there are breakfast dishes left on the table, so somebody obviously has been there recently. As she realizes this someone speaks behind her. It’s the mechanic. He tells her that the house has a caretaker but that he isn't home right now. But she can meet him at the dance that’s being held that evening. Zanna says that she won’t be staying that long to witch the H replies that she will since her car won’t be fixed until tomorrow. He leaves her to book a room at the local pub.
That evening she goes down to dinner only to discover that the H organized for them to eat together, as an apology for being so rude to her he says. She introduces herself as Susan, er, Smith. With a sardonic smile he says his name is Jake,er, Brown.
They end up going to the dance together and Jake says that he'll introduce her to the caretaker.
After the dance he takes her to the house and it turns out that he is the caretaker. One thing lead to another and they end up making love. She has never had a boyfriend since her father disproved of all the boys she brought home and when she got older all her time was spent studying and then working, all to pleas her father. She panics and runs away the next morning
A month later she discovers she is pregnant. At the same time she gets an invite to a gallery opening from a company called Lantrell. When her father finds out about the pregnancy he calls her a slut and says that she either gets an abortion or she will lose her job, car and flat. She choses the baby.
After visiting an employment agency she spots the Lantrell gallery and realizes she forgot about it in all the baby drama and goes in. As she is looking at a painting she hears a familiar voice addressing her. It’s Jake. He’s name is Jake Lantrell and he’s the owner of the Lantrell chain of galleries. Turns out he has been looking for her. He says he wants to be her friend and that they have things to discuss. But she thinks that he just wants to continue their affair and rejects his advances. He comes to her flat after that but after more arguments he leaves.
Zanna gets a phone cal from the employment agency about a job I France, working for a woman as a secretary.
When she arrives in France it is Jake who meets her at the airport. he’s the one who organized the job. Zanna is furious and wants to take the next plan home. But Jake convinces her to stay at least to the next day. The job is for his stepmother. Another shock is waiting for her at the house.
Jakes stepmother turns out to be Zannas own mother. She didn't die, she just left her cold husband. At first Zanna is angry that her mother left her without looking back. But after her and her mother talk for a long time she gets to understand her mothers reasons and finds out just how cruel her father is. But since she is pregnant she feels she can’t stay and risk Jake finding out. So she invents a job in Australia. Jake is resentful of her hurting her mother by rejecting the mothers offer of a home and a job.
After they nearly make love, to witch Zanna puts a stop to since her doctor told her it could be dangerous to the baby, Jake tells her he will keep away as long as she is there if it means that she stays to work for her mother. So he goes away. He comes back for Zannas and her mothers reunion party. But he isn't alone. A girl named Cindy is with him and is very clingy. This is torturer for Zanna.
Then she finds out that her father has had a heart attack. And she goes to England and Jake goes with her. Her father has already past away when they get there. Jake stays wit her through the ordeal. But just before the funeral Zanna asks him to leave since she now feels she can coup (plus it’s torturer having him so close all the time)
After the funeral the snooty secretary (remember her?) sneaks in to the house and starts hurling abuse at the h, about how she’s a slut and a whore for carrying a bastard child. Enter the H, who hasn't left after all. He has herd what the cray cray woman has said and says that he’s Zannas fiancée and the baby daddy. And then promptly trows the abusive woman out.
Jake explains that he loves her and has loved her from the start. Cindy was a friend that helped him make the h jealous. He isn’t angry about the baby. They declare their love and HEA
I would call this book is an insta love light. The H is clearly besotted by the rude h right from the start. I also would have liked to see her father get some sort of punishment (well he did die, but still…)
If you are wondering about why he worked as a mechanic, it was because he loaned the garage from a friend to work on his classic cars. Oh, and Church house belonged to the H’s father, that’s why he was living there.
She realizes that she is near her mothers place of birth. Her mother died when Zanna was just a baby and her father never talks about her. When Zanna was eleven, and at boarding school, she gets a photo album from her mothers nanny, (I think) and now she always carries the album with her. Zanna always wanted to go and see Church house, where her mother grew up, so she decides to go there.
Just as she enters the village the car stops. Luckily she is near a garage. There she encounters a rude, scruffy looking, mechanic (she is rude first tho) he’s our Hero. After some bickering he goes to look at the car. The h walks in to the village to look around. She goes in to an art exhibition and there she finds a painting of Church house, it looks just like in the photo album. She wants to buy the painting but it’s privately owned. And the owner (of both the house and the painting) is out of town.
She then goes to see the house and peaks in trough the kitchen window. She sees that there are breakfast dishes left on the table, so somebody obviously has been there recently. As she realizes this someone speaks behind her. It’s the mechanic. He tells her that the house has a caretaker but that he isn't home right now. But she can meet him at the dance that’s being held that evening. Zanna says that she won’t be staying that long to witch the H replies that she will since her car won’t be fixed until tomorrow. He leaves her to book a room at the local pub.
That evening she goes down to dinner only to discover that the H organized for them to eat together, as an apology for being so rude to her he says. She introduces herself as Susan, er, Smith. With a sardonic smile he says his name is Jake,er, Brown.
They end up going to the dance together and Jake says that he'll introduce her to the caretaker.
After the dance he takes her to the house and it turns out that he is the caretaker. One thing lead to another and they end up making love. She has never had a boyfriend since her father disproved of all the boys she brought home and when she got older all her time was spent studying and then working, all to pleas her father. She panics and runs away the next morning
A month later she discovers she is pregnant. At the same time she gets an invite to a gallery opening from a company called Lantrell. When her father finds out about the pregnancy he calls her a slut and says that she either gets an abortion or she will lose her job, car and flat. She choses the baby.
After visiting an employment agency she spots the Lantrell gallery and realizes she forgot about it in all the baby drama and goes in. As she is looking at a painting she hears a familiar voice addressing her. It’s Jake. He’s name is Jake Lantrell and he’s the owner of the Lantrell chain of galleries. Turns out he has been looking for her. He says he wants to be her friend and that they have things to discuss. But she thinks that he just wants to continue their affair and rejects his advances. He comes to her flat after that but after more arguments he leaves.
Zanna gets a phone cal from the employment agency about a job I France, working for a woman as a secretary.
When she arrives in France it is Jake who meets her at the airport. he’s the one who organized the job. Zanna is furious and wants to take the next plan home. But Jake convinces her to stay at least to the next day. The job is for his stepmother. Another shock is waiting for her at the house.
Jakes stepmother turns out to be Zannas own mother. She didn't die, she just left her cold husband. At first Zanna is angry that her mother left her without looking back. But after her and her mother talk for a long time she gets to understand her mothers reasons and finds out just how cruel her father is. But since she is pregnant she feels she can’t stay and risk Jake finding out. So she invents a job in Australia. Jake is resentful of her hurting her mother by rejecting the mothers offer of a home and a job.
After they nearly make love, to witch Zanna puts a stop to since her doctor told her it could be dangerous to the baby, Jake tells her he will keep away as long as she is there if it means that she stays to work for her mother. So he goes away. He comes back for Zannas and her mothers reunion party. But he isn't alone. A girl named Cindy is with him and is very clingy. This is torturer for Zanna.
Then she finds out that her father has had a heart attack. And she goes to England and Jake goes with her. Her father has already past away when they get there. Jake stays wit her through the ordeal. But just before the funeral Zanna asks him to leave since she now feels she can coup (plus it’s torturer having him so close all the time)
After the funeral the snooty secretary (remember her?) sneaks in to the house and starts hurling abuse at the h, about how she’s a slut and a whore for carrying a bastard child. Enter the H, who hasn't left after all. He has herd what the cray cray woman has said and says that he’s Zannas fiancée and the baby daddy. And then promptly trows the abusive woman out.
Jake explains that he loves her and has loved her from the start. Cindy was a friend that helped him make the h jealous. He isn’t angry about the baby. They declare their love and HEA
I would call this book is an insta love light. The H is clearly besotted by the rude h right from the start. I also would have liked to see her father get some sort of punishment (well he did die, but still…)
If you are wondering about why he worked as a mechanic, it was because he loaned the garage from a friend to work on his classic cars. Oh, and Church house belonged to the H’s father, that’s why he was living there.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 13, 2017
Leído el 14/05/2010
August 10, 2010
Rating: 4.5/5
October 10, 2011
Good emotion. I liked the hero, but I wish the hero & heroine had a little more interaction before the end, it was a little dull in the middle. I still found it a satisfying read.
February 19, 2014
no se demasiado culebrón en este libro hubo drama, que en una novela mexicana
November 29, 2025
I thought the whole subplot of the h searching to learn about her late mother, only to find she's very much alive, would be intriguing, but it was so full of coincidences it just fell flat. She turns out to be the H's stepmother, happily married to the H's father, making the H and h stepbrother and stepsister, giving their already tenuous relationship a touch of incest to add to their troubles. COME ON!!!
Are we really supposed to believe that, after marrying a wealthy man with connections, the h's mother didn't make any attempt to try and get to her daughter, whom she supposedly still loved and missed so much? That instead, she contented herself with putting images of her, at different ages, in her paintings throughout the years? If that was supposed to tug at the heartstrings, mine didn't feel a thing!
Even more ridiculous is her horrible (and I mean HORRIBLE) father supposedly saying her mother's name right before he croaked. This poor excuse for a human being manipulated her into marrying him, destroyed the man she loved, treated her like crap, tried to get her to abort the h, ran her off the road when she tried to leave him, took the baby from her while she was unconscious in the car, waited for her to wake up before informing her that if she ever tried to get near the h he'd have her killed (no idle threat, coming from him), left her in the car not caring what became of her then never spoke of her again (except to lie to the h when she was older, saying she was dead) and after all that, we're supposed to believe he was calling form her as if she were his beloved that he needed by his side???
(Once again) OH, COME ON!!!
A lot of stuff was wrong with this book, including an h who turned herself into a cold boss bitch (or at least the facade of one) to please her horrible father, who she should have walked out on and worked against, instead of trying to be like him to impress this piece of crap! He got his kicks from corporate raiding, destroying other companies and the people that went with them (callously doing the same to the h's pet horse who he decided was old and useless), called her all kinds of names when he found out she was pregnant with the H's baby, demanded she have an abortion and when she refused he fired her and told her to get lost, he wanted nothing more to do with her or her kid!
The man was GARBAGE, and I would have liked a story where the h used her business skills against Daddy Dearest and fought for the companies he wanted to take over. And once her dad was feeding the worms, the h should have gone back to the company and tried to undo all the damage he did and make amends, instead of chucking it all to start a new life right away. Preggers or not, she could have worked a while more and given the company a good name, shown people she was NOT her father's daughter after all, and then turned the reins over to someone else.
The story with the H and h is another of those "overwhelmed by passion" tales, where the H and h get naked almost immediately, the h pulls a disappearing act, finds out she's pregnant and after meeting the H again, believing he regrets their night of passion and just wanted to be friends, decides not to tell him she's pregnant and go off somewhere and makes a new life for herself as a single mom.
What's silly is that at first, she was going to tell him but when she went back to where they first met (part of her quest to learn more about her mother) and he wasn't there, she thought she'd never see him again, and then when she does, and finds out he's not the humble mechanic she thought he was but a wealthy art gallery owner, she changes her mind and decides to disappear ASAP. Talk about stupid!!! For the sake of her pride (because she thinks he was just a wealthy playboy adding another notch to his belt) she plans to deprive her baby of not only its daddy but it's $$$ inheritance! (If she were farther along in her pregnancy, I'd be hoping the kid kicked her HARD!)
After this, there's a whole lot of silliness, with the H (who had been searching for her, not only for himself but for his stepmom who suddenly decided she wanted her daughter after 25 years, figure that one out) determined to get her and her mom together, tricking her into taking a job in France (where her employer turns out to be her mom), then using a friend of his (with her permission) to try and make the h jealous. Instead of telling her how he feels, he resorts to playing games. Very mature of him! (He doesn't tell her the truth until he overhears a reference to her pregnancy when she's talking to a psycho employee who was apparently fixated on her dead dad. How romantic!)
How SILLY!!!
In fact, that should have been the title of the book!
I'd say more about the story, but I think you get the idea. It's really not worth your time.
Are we really supposed to believe that, after marrying a wealthy man with connections, the h's mother didn't make any attempt to try and get to her daughter, whom she supposedly still loved and missed so much? That instead, she contented herself with putting images of her, at different ages, in her paintings throughout the years? If that was supposed to tug at the heartstrings, mine didn't feel a thing!
Even more ridiculous is her horrible (and I mean HORRIBLE) father supposedly saying her mother's name right before he croaked. This poor excuse for a human being manipulated her into marrying him, destroyed the man she loved, treated her like crap, tried to get her to abort the h, ran her off the road when she tried to leave him, took the baby from her while she was unconscious in the car, waited for her to wake up before informing her that if she ever tried to get near the h he'd have her killed (no idle threat, coming from him), left her in the car not caring what became of her then never spoke of her again (except to lie to the h when she was older, saying she was dead) and after all that, we're supposed to believe he was calling form her as if she were his beloved that he needed by his side???
(Once again) OH, COME ON!!!
A lot of stuff was wrong with this book, including an h who turned herself into a cold boss bitch (or at least the facade of one) to please her horrible father, who she should have walked out on and worked against, instead of trying to be like him to impress this piece of crap! He got his kicks from corporate raiding, destroying other companies and the people that went with them (callously doing the same to the h's pet horse who he decided was old and useless), called her all kinds of names when he found out she was pregnant with the H's baby, demanded she have an abortion and when she refused he fired her and told her to get lost, he wanted nothing more to do with her or her kid!
The man was GARBAGE, and I would have liked a story where the h used her business skills against Daddy Dearest and fought for the companies he wanted to take over. And once her dad was feeding the worms, the h should have gone back to the company and tried to undo all the damage he did and make amends, instead of chucking it all to start a new life right away. Preggers or not, she could have worked a while more and given the company a good name, shown people she was NOT her father's daughter after all, and then turned the reins over to someone else.
The story with the H and h is another of those "overwhelmed by passion" tales, where the H and h get naked almost immediately, the h pulls a disappearing act, finds out she's pregnant and after meeting the H again, believing he regrets their night of passion and just wanted to be friends, decides not to tell him she's pregnant and go off somewhere and makes a new life for herself as a single mom.
What's silly is that at first, she was going to tell him but when she went back to where they first met (part of her quest to learn more about her mother) and he wasn't there, she thought she'd never see him again, and then when she does, and finds out he's not the humble mechanic she thought he was but a wealthy art gallery owner, she changes her mind and decides to disappear ASAP. Talk about stupid!!! For the sake of her pride (because she thinks he was just a wealthy playboy adding another notch to his belt) she plans to deprive her baby of not only its daddy but it's $$$ inheritance! (If she were farther along in her pregnancy, I'd be hoping the kid kicked her HARD!)
After this, there's a whole lot of silliness, with the H (who had been searching for her, not only for himself but for his stepmom who suddenly decided she wanted her daughter after 25 years, figure that one out) determined to get her and her mom together, tricking her into taking a job in France (where her employer turns out to be her mom), then using a friend of his (with her permission) to try and make the h jealous. Instead of telling her how he feels, he resorts to playing games. Very mature of him! (He doesn't tell her the truth until he overhears a reference to her pregnancy when she's talking to a psycho employee who was apparently fixated on her dead dad. How romantic!)
How SILLY!!!
In fact, that should have been the title of the book!
I'd say more about the story, but I think you get the idea. It's really not worth your time.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 26, 2021
I'm tired of reading plots where kids desperately want to impress their parents even after grown up whereas their parents don't give two shits!
It's not even a real scenario. In real if you don't love someone you don't get it back. Maybe they'll try at first but they won't wait forever.
Oh and guess what?this 25 yr old rich daddy's girl was a virgin until she met a mechanic (who is rich in disguise) and she never cried until (guess what again) that night when that mechanic hold her in his arms. Who would say she was a businesswoman? In front of H it seemed she didn't even learn to walk straight 🥱🥱🥱
Ok this was just the beginning and the other dramas in this story 😤let not mention those things. God..so this is what they say Harlequin!!! Ok. I get it😷
Now let me say what my problem is! I read this kind of blurb and review and think omg h had to have a strong woman and i have to read this. I do this to me all the F time😒
It's not even a real scenario. In real if you don't love someone you don't get it back. Maybe they'll try at first but they won't wait forever.
Oh and guess what?this 25 yr old rich daddy's girl was a virgin until she met a mechanic (who is rich in disguise) and she never cried until (guess what again) that night when that mechanic hold her in his arms. Who would say she was a businesswoman? In front of H it seemed she didn't even learn to walk straight 🥱🥱🥱
Ok this was just the beginning and the other dramas in this story 😤let not mention those things. God..so this is what they say Harlequin!!! Ok. I get it😷
Now let me say what my problem is! I read this kind of blurb and review and think omg h had to have a strong woman and i have to read this. I do this to me all the F time😒
July 5, 2021
Story is good but the characters were mostly icky. The newly-discovered mom, who is not dead but who abandoned her baby to her husband, is the worst. Mom is manipulative, whiny, passive-aggressive and oh, so very very sad she left her darling baby to grow up all by herself with the man she fled because he was emotionally abusive and controlling. But our heroine is supposed to rejoice that she found her mom! that her mom loves her! that her newly-discovered step brother (who knew about the relationship) seduced her!
Other than that an enjoyable read.
Other than that an enjoyable read.
May 4, 2021
Haha, he is so persistent. He doesn’t take no for an answer, he keeps trying to be with her and he doesn’t waste time. I love a besotted hero!
April 4, 2024
? Da heck? That was not even a full book! Skip.
January 2, 2025
I cannot stand how cruel her mother and her mothers new family, including the H are to this poor woman. You leave your infant child with a psychopath and then are angry with her that as an adult she doesn't leap with joy to have a relationship with you? And the H is an unqualified asshat. She should have taken the money and gone off to live her life with decent humans.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 31, 2015
I'm not really sure what I think of this one. I guess I'm neutral. Had some unique elements to the plot as well as some reasonably standard older hq tropes.
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