Κρυφός Πόθος

by Juliet Landon, Αντώνης Γιαννούλης (Translator)

Αγγλία, 1802

Η Έλεν Φόλετ δεν είχε καμιά επαφή με το λόρδο Μπερλ Γουίντερσον από τότε που επέλεξε ν’ αφιερώσει τη ζωή της στη φροντίδα του αδελφού του. Όμως τώρα που εκείνος δεν ήταν πια στη ζωή, βρέθηκε να ζει αναγκαστικά υπό την προστασία του Μπερλ, αφού είχε πλέον οριστεί κηδεμόνας του μικρού γιου της.

Ο Μπερλ με τα χρόνια είχε γίνει σκληρός και κυνικός. Η στάση του αυτή πλήγωνε την Έλεν, αλλά προσπαθούσε να κρύβει τον πόνο της κάτω από ένα ψυχρό προσωπείο. Δεν έπρεπε ποτέ να τον αφήσει να καταλάβει πόσο αποζητούσε την αγάπη του και πόσο λαχταρούσε να βρει επιτέλους καταφύγιο στη δυνατή αγκαλιά του. Γιατί δεν είχε μπορέσει ποτέ να σβήσει από το μυαλό της την ανάμνηση εκείνης της μαγικής, μοιραίας βραδιάς που είχαν μοιραστεί οι δυο τους…

Genres: Historical Romance, Audiobook

256 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2008

About the author

As the author of books on embroidery design, the progression in 1994 from fact to fiction was perhaps less daunting for Juliet than it might have been for a complete beginner. But in many ways, the requirements are similar: a strong imagination and sense of design; an eye for detail; a love of color, scenery, and research; and a willingness to share inner thoughts and feelings with readers. Dedication is also useful to Juliet, living in the country, as the temptation to spend time picnicking and sightseeing instead of writing is sometimes very strong.

Reviews

[Emma · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 wtf kind of messed up alternate reality did this come from stars.

Actually writing a review to remind myself why exactly this left me so confused and why I think it best to avoid anything else by this author. As the book is 13 years old I don’t feel even a twinge of guilt about the spoilers.

The one good thing was the narrator. But she was almost too good. Her calm style and lovely voice made things seem so sensible when in fact they were totally bat shit crazy. I think if I had tried to read this I would have stopped before the third chapter. Instead I listened to it in much the same way people stare at accidents.

The h Helene is a very poor but beautiful and stylish seamstress. Her family has fallen on hard times and she is supporting them all as they live in hiding. She attends an assembly and two twin brothers instantly fall for her. The elder one, Burl, is the family heir, is a handsome playboy. The two dance and she is smitten. She next dances with the younger twin, Linus. He looks completely different and is very sickly. He has just been told he will die within three years. He goes to his brother the next day and tells him the diagnosis and says all he wants for his final years is Helene and a child. Burl agrees to be cold to her, to supply a house and servants for her on the condition that any child be left to him as guardian. She agrees to become Linus’ mistress despite her feelings for Burl. She had her basic needs taken care of but no monetary payment or even so much as a birthday gift. She goes about in society with him, even meeting his family and going to slightly debauched house parties at Burl’s estate. Which is somehow the family home but not where their parents live. 🤷‍♀️

After 2 years of this there is still no child and Linus barely comes to her bed. So he asks his brother to get her pregnant but does not tell her. Burl is against this idea but on her forgotten birthday he sees how upset she is and slips into her bed while she is sleeping. She is happy Linus has come to her but tries to fight Burl off when she fully realises it is him. He overpowers her and they make sweet glorious wordless love all night. He is so potent she is instantly pregnant ofc. He returns to his cold ways and they never speak of the night. She tells Linus fully expecting him to be mad but he is delighted. He loves the baby boy and manages to cling to life for another 4 years. She figures out the brothers plotted it and she is furious. But she still dreams of the good sex while nursing and loving thoughtless Linus. He refuses to marry her or even tell her what provisions he has made for her. But that is ok because she figures she will get the house. Plus she has become a partner in the dressmaking shop and does a brisk business in French fabrics her family smuggles.

The book actually starts after Linus has died and just before she finds out that he has not only left her almost no money but that the house did not even belong to him. The boy child is left in her care with Burl as his guardian. She can stay in the house and keep her son only as long as she does not marry. She is angry and hurt. Burl then spends the rest of the book saying objectionable things and telling her they will be married. He never explains that he has lived her for 6 years. He never explains why he and Linus agreed to him getting her pregnant. He takes her to the same annual assembly and seduces her again. Meanwhile everyone suddenly notices that the boy child looks just like him. So naturally everyone thinks they should get married. Even his parents!!! Because I don’t know about you, but if I discovered that my dead sons partner had cheated on him with his own brother and gotten pregnant I would be insisting they got married, and I’m certain regency parents would agree with me!

[Lucimar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peguei-o para ler com certa dúvida. A princípio achei o herói frio e indiferente. Ela, um quase uma menina, por conta dos reveses da vida, é obrigada a se tornar uma cortesã.
Disputada pelos gêmeos se verá envolvida numa comovente trama de armadilha e amor. Um linda história bem contada, que me fez chorar em alguns momentos. A autora mostra o valor da amizade, a honradez dos personagens.
Uma mistura de pessoas boas e más, que se mesclam tornando uma ótima história sobre verdades, mentiras e perdão.
Não me defraudou a segunda leitura, emoções à parte, em muitas idas e vindas, personagens forte e ricos. Muito amor envolvido, perdão e mágoas esquecidas.

[Becky · Rating 2 out of 5]

I usually love anything that Juliet Landon writes but the fact that partway through the book it changed from 3rd person to 1st just ruined it for me. I'm not a fan of 1st person anyway and to have it go from one to the another was annoying to me. The overall story was okay but I would have liked it so much better if had stayed in 3rd person. If you don't mind that then you will probably like this book better than I did.

[Tuesday's Child · Rating 3 out of 5]

Listened to this one in car on the way to a weekend break. Falls in a predictable genre, but that doesn't matter... Books shouldn't always have a deeper meaning, straightforward can be good too!

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the select few Regency stories, other than Jane Austen, that make me reread it several times since it was first published. So much so, I can remember the storyline backwards. I love how prologue was different than the rest of the chapters, switching from third person to the first person. I love the details of the fabric the author painlessly put in words. And the fact the whole story was set outside London make me love it even more.

[Auntmolly · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was surprised that i enjoyed this story as much as i did. I like the plot and the characters development. There were some small revelations and plot revealed at the end, which was executed well. I may revisit in alater date:

[Di Schlenk · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

8

[Alexandra St'Siege · Rating 1 out of 5]

Me irritam livros com imprecisões históricas. Claro, não sou especialista em regência inglesa, mas segundo a maioria das outras autoras, enquanto as mulheres casadas não tinham direito a nada, nem aos proprios filhos, isso não acontecia com as solteiras, que mantinham seus direitos legais, até mesmo a guarda dos filhos bastardos. Porque esse era o incentivo ao casamento. Então sem casamento, sem direito ao filho. Bastardos não podiam ser reconhecidos posteriormente. Não existia adoção. Nasceu fora do casamento seria um bastardo para sempre. E um homem não podia dispor da tutela de um bastardo. Esse direito era da mãe. O livro pode ser ótimo (também não leio nada em primeira pessoa, detesto) mas a premissa me impediu de continuar. A autora atribui à amante, como se o fato de ser amante não fosse suficiente, as desvantagens de uma mulher casada.
Ela podia ter conseguido o mesmo efeito utilizando o poder econômico, mas usou uma imprecisão histórica

[Cristina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Una historia sin muchos atractivos y al fin no he logrado decidir quien sería el vilano de la historia, porque el bueno nadie podría serlo. Es cierto que la historia lleva a eso, la protagonista es amante del hermano del prota masculino; pero hay unas cosas que ocurren que me hacen no gustar de nadie... la narrativa lo ha salvado.

[Deborah Roussety · Rating 3 out of 5]

good

[Debbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is your standard Mills and Boon historical romance, a quick read with a spicy romance.