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The Upstairs Lover
He made her an offer she couldn't refuse.
When Shane Courtney followed her home from Paddington Bazaar, Christine Delaney knew she'd met a man who didn't take no for an answer. He didn't have to - he came from one of the richest, most powerful families in Australia...and he was drop-dead gorgeous.
Before she could question her sanity, Christine had rented him half of her home.
Living with Shane brought incredible rewards. He was the perfect man, the perfect lover. But appearances could be deceptive. Christine suspected she was being used to spite his family. Why else would he be on bended knee to the illegitimate daughter of a lowly barmaid?
When Shane Courtney followed her home from Paddington Bazaar, Christine Delaney knew she'd met a man who didn't take no for an answer. He didn't have to - he came from one of the richest, most powerful families in Australia...and he was drop-dead gorgeous.
Before she could question her sanity, Christine had rented him half of her home.
Living with Shane brought incredible rewards. He was the perfect man, the perfect lover. But appearances could be deceptive. Christine suspected she was being used to spite his family. Why else would he be on bended knee to the illegitimate daughter of a lowly barmaid?
215 pages, Hardcover
First published May 1, 1993
1 person is currently reading
70 people want to read
About the author
Emma Darcy
643 books332 followersEmma Darcy is the pseudonym created by the married writing team of Wendy (1940-2020) and Frank Brennan (1936-1995). Their life journey has taken as many twists and turns as the characters in their stories, whose international popularity has resulted in over sixty-million book sales. With more than a hundred titles, Emma Darcy appeared regularly on the Waldenbooks bestseller lists in the U.S.A. and in the Nielson BookScan Top 100 chart in the U.K.
Wendy was born 28 November 1940 in Australia. Her sister was the novelist Maureen Mary (Miranda Lee). Her father was a country school teacher and brilliant sportsman. Her mother was a talented dressmaker. She obtained an Honours degree in Latin and initially worked as a high school English/French teacher. She married Frank Brennan, an Australian businessman born in 1936. She changed careers to computer programming before marriage and motherhood settled her into a community life. She was reputedly the first woman computer programmer in the southern hemisphere.
As voracious readers, the step to writing their own books seemed a natural progression and the challenge of creating exciting stories was soon highly addictive. They were published since 1983. In 1993, for the Emma Darcy pseudonym's 10th anniversary, they created the "Emma Darcy Award Contest" to encourage authors to finish their manuscripts. After the death of Frank Brennan in 1995, Wendy wrotes books on her own. She lived in a beachside property on the central coast of New South Wales, and liked to travel extensively to research settings and increase her experience of places and people.
Wendy Brennan passed away on December 21, 2020. She is survived by her children, grandchildren, and sister, writer Miranda Lee.
Wendy was born 28 November 1940 in Australia. Her sister was the novelist Maureen Mary (Miranda Lee). Her father was a country school teacher and brilliant sportsman. Her mother was a talented dressmaker. She obtained an Honours degree in Latin and initially worked as a high school English/French teacher. She married Frank Brennan, an Australian businessman born in 1936. She changed careers to computer programming before marriage and motherhood settled her into a community life. She was reputedly the first woman computer programmer in the southern hemisphere.
As voracious readers, the step to writing their own books seemed a natural progression and the challenge of creating exciting stories was soon highly addictive. They were published since 1983. In 1993, for the Emma Darcy pseudonym's 10th anniversary, they created the "Emma Darcy Award Contest" to encourage authors to finish their manuscripts. After the death of Frank Brennan in 1995, Wendy wrotes books on her own. She lived in a beachside property on the central coast of New South Wales, and liked to travel extensively to research settings and increase her experience of places and people.
Wendy Brennan passed away on December 21, 2020. She is survived by her children, grandchildren, and sister, writer Miranda Lee.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
January 6, 2018
Re The Upstairs Lover - Emma Darcy plotted this one out with her long term writing partner and husband right before he went into hospital for serious illness and the outcome was very much in doubt. That is from the author's note at the very end of the story. So in a very real way, this one is ED's tribute to a lifetime of love and happiness with her husband - who did make it out of the hospital thankfully.
This book is also a great lesson in how a specific setting can inspire an author's imagination. The h in this is the child of an unwed bar maid who lives in the Paddington Market area of Sydney, in fact her mum bought a house in a fictitous cul de sac right at the end of the street next to it. So the Market and the Kitty O'Shea hotel that stands across from it, are huge icons of the community that the h grew up in.
Her mum worked at the Kitty O'Shea, (which is still there today, but now called the Paddington Arms,) and the h knows everyone who comes to the Paddington Market, (it is still open too.) They and the Kitty O'Shea regulars looked out for the h while her mum worked the bar and ED worked all this backstory out while she was lunching at the Kitty with her husband before his hospital stay.
When the story opens, the h is a nurse and still mourning the loss of her well liked and very beloved mother eight months earlier. She is walking through the Market, heading for her home and all the locals are pleased to see her and as one of the Market produce seller's offers her some cherries, she spies a very handsome man whose tight white jeans are not hiding his light under a bushel.
The handsome man and the tall blonde h have a few verbal flirting moments, the man obviously wants to get to know the h better, but the h smartly tells him if he wants to get to know her, he will have to find her and he isn't allowed to follow her. Then she saunters off to her home.
The flirting was nice, but the h has more immediate problems. Before her mother died, she and the h took out a home equity mortgage to do some house refurbishments. The h likes her job as a nurse, but it doesn't pay that well and so after her mother's death, she got a housemate in. To help offset the loan repayments and for the company, as the h felt very alone without her beloved mum around.
But her lady housemate is an artist and she got a big offer in Brisbane, so the h is now looking for another housemate. When the front doorbell rings, the h thinks it is someone in response to her housemate ad and goes to answer it. To her shock, it is the H, he bribed the congenial Italian fruit seller who gave the h her cherries to reveal the location of the h - after the H swore to all and sundry that he had only good, honorable intentions towards the h and got the approval of the regular Market attendees to go see her.
There is some more very funny flirting and the H decides he wants to rent the upstairs rooms from the h, he will pay her $1000.00 a week and the h does some rapid calculations and realizes that with that kind of money, (she was renting the upstairs for $75.00) she can pay off her loan in no time.
We find out that the H is the grandson of one of the h's very wealthy patients who is currently in her hospital. The h doesn't let on that she knows the H's grandfather - the H had explained that he needed a place to close to the hospital to visit his estranged granddad while he was ill . So she tentatively agrees to let the H rent from her. But she refuses to follow him up the stairs, cause going upstairs is the ED equivalent of the h agreeing to become his lover.
The h IS attracted to the H, but she had a relationship with a doctor before that went bad after the doctor's wealthy family did not approve of the h and her background. When it became clear that the doctor wasn't going to stick up for the h against his family, the h told him to push off. Since the H is another wealthy man with maybe dubious intentions, the h decides to show him who she really is.
The H offers lunch and the h takes him to Kitty O'Shea's, she has him walk through the pub downstairs and the H soon realizes that the h has a whole host of bar patrons who are good at two things, drinking beer and throwing people out, so he had better mind his manners around the h or her extended Market and O'Shea family will give him the treatment. It was pretty funny.
The H is relieved to realize that there is a restaurant upstairs and he and the h talk about their backgrounds over the very good lunch, after the h talks to everyone who works there. We find out that the H's parents are dead too. His grandfather is a big business mogul who turned the H over to one of the H's aunts as a child, but the woman was envious that her dead brother was her father's favorite, so she was very unkind to the H until he went off to boarding school and stayed there.
Then the H tried working for his grandfather, but between his aunt's and uncle's disdain and his grandfather's bullying over the H's refusal to kowtow, the H took off on his own and is a successful business person by his own self. Now that his grandfather is ill with heart problems, he is there to see if they can repair their relationship, but he still won't become a sycophant or his grandfather's yes-man.
The h likes that the H refused to bend to unreasonable dictates and decided to do things on his own, she wants to see how the H and his grandfather interact tho - because she has a decidedly low opinion of the H's aunts and uncle. They are truly greedy, mean people and the h doesn't want to get involved in that kind of conflict. Compassion and caring are hallmarks her mother taught her to live by and the h puts a big stock in valuing people over money, she wants to assure herself that the H thinks that way too.
When she sees the grandfather and the H together and the H shares that he is living with the h, he grandfather gets quite belligerent and accuses the H of trying to get even with him. The h is concerned for the grandfather because his health is really fragile, but she doesn't understand what he is going on about. She and the H only just met and the H swears he has no ulterior motives but attraction to the h. Then she wonders if maybe the H is using her lower social status as a weapon against his obviously high status family.
The H and his grandfather have words, and the H is told by the grandfather not to come back. The rest of the H's family is not too happy to see him either and when the H leaves, the grandfather offers the h $5000.00 a week to be his private nurse. The h refuses, she will not be bought and she tells the grandfather that the best thing for him would be to just give away all his money, then he could see people as they really are, as his great wealth has ruined him.
When her shift is over, she goes home to find the H redoing the upstairs. The h is a bit angry, cause she told him he do whatever he wanted as long as no walls were knocked down. But there is a huge amount of rubble being hauled away and the h is in a panic. After some more funny banter, the h goes upstairs to find that the H has had a huge window installed and things are looking really great.
The h finally gives into her attraction for the H and they become lovers. Tho she still refuses to move upstairs with him, this is a not a complete capitulation on her part as she is still unsure about his motives. That refusal goes by the wayside too, when her old housemate who went to Brisbane returns. The big offer was a scam for art forgers and now the lady is in dire straights, she lost all of her possessions in the police raid and is now cleared of any charges, but she needs a place to stay.
The H does some very fast talking and convinces the h that she can live upstairs with him and her friend can have her rooms. Since the h is more and more reassured that the H has the correct set of values, she agrees to the plan. Things are going great and the H is all that is adoring and even helps the h's friend get her belongings back.
Then the H's grandfather checks himself out of the hospital against medical advice and shows up at the h's house. His children are trying to get him to sign over his power of attorney to them and he decided he needs to take action.
(In a running gag throughout the book, the H, his grandfather and the H's other relatives all bribe various people to tell them where the h lives. The H is the clear winner in that situation, because he only paid thirty bucks and bought some cherries. The grandfather paid the Ward Sister a hundred dollars and the H's uncles had to pay her five hundred, so they are clearly hopeless negotiators. Tho the h is pretty pleased that the ward sister is making out so well.)
Now that the grandfather has shown up, he reiterates his offer to pay the h a ton of money to be his nurse, he gets the roommate to leave by paying her $1000.00 to vacate her rooms to him. The h's friend and former housemate takes the money, but she is really concerned because she has noticed a suspicious car in front of the h's house for several days now and she is suspicious of all these wealthy men's dubious motives and she goes off to round up the troops.
The H, in the meantime, has more words with his grandfather and he declares he is marrying the h. She doesn't accept the proposal, because she is unsure of the H's motivations for it. But she does wish that things weren't so fraught between the H and his grandfather - they really are very alike and she wants them to reconcile, but she has no way to make that happen as the words between them are getting pretty heated.
Then the H's aunts and uncles and team of psychiatrists invade the h's house. The H leaps to his grandfather's defense and the sewer slurping relatives are really snide and mean and are trying to declare the grandfather mentally incompetent. The h's friend also comes back and she has brought all the men from the Kitty O'Shea and half of Paddington Market to rescue the h from the maybe villainous clutches of the H or his grandfather.
The grandfather has obtained signed current depositions from various high profile individuals that prove he is mentally sound and the h firmly shows her approval of the H. The H makes a really great big declaration of love and devotion for the h in a really good speech to the entire crowd. The grandfather is reassured about the H's intentions, the h is in love and the Kitty and Market crowd turn on the sewer slurper relatives to give them the 'treatment' and throw them out. I laughed myself silly as the H's evil aunt was tossed screaming into the street.
Grandfather takes the rest of the crowd back to Kitty's, drinks all around are on him and the H and h are left alone to declare their love and plan the wedding. We get a nice little scene where the H and h go to the grandfather's for Christmas. The grandfather has given away most of his wealth, made the H and h in charge of his business and the head of the family and the grandfather also gives the h his pocket watch.
When the h opens it, she finds a picture of her mother - it seems the grandfather fell in love with the h's mum many years ago when they first came to the Paddington area, but the h's mum felt that the grandfather's wealth made him too callous to be concerned about others and rejected his proposal as the grandfather refused to mend his wicked ways. The grandfather knew that the H had seen the picture in his watch, so he was initially concerned that the h was being used as a stick to beat him with.
Now he knows that the H made a better choice for the woman he loves, which the grandfather failed to do, so grandfather is happy to leave control of the family firm to the H, as he has the h to keep him on the straight and narrow. The grandfather announces that he is taking the h's friend and housemate to Tahiti with him and since the Ward Sister at the h's job is such a great negotiator, he is taking her too as his private nurse.
We get a lovely epilogue where the H and h get married in the local Paddington church with all the H's family and all the h's friends attending. They have a great reception at the Kitty O'Shea and the lesson is that even among very disparate groups of people, the big principle to keep in mind is not to judge others on what they show, but to look into their hearts and seek understanding for what they did. The H's entire family is now happily reunited and kind to each other and the h's extended family is over joyed that the h finally got all the happiness that her beloved mother wanted for her.
We leave the H and h married and in love and going off into the sunset as the band from the Kitty O'Shea serenade them into a lifetime of love and devotion to the tune of 'My wild Irish Rose' sung in remembrance of the h's mother.
This one is a wildly exuberantly joyous and fast paced book. Pick this one up when you need a big dose of true romantic happiness for your HPlandia outing, you will come back with a smile on your face and a heart made lighter by whimsy and the satisfaction of a really believable HP HEA.
This book is also a great lesson in how a specific setting can inspire an author's imagination. The h in this is the child of an unwed bar maid who lives in the Paddington Market area of Sydney, in fact her mum bought a house in a fictitous cul de sac right at the end of the street next to it. So the Market and the Kitty O'Shea hotel that stands across from it, are huge icons of the community that the h grew up in.
Her mum worked at the Kitty O'Shea, (which is still there today, but now called the Paddington Arms,) and the h knows everyone who comes to the Paddington Market, (it is still open too.) They and the Kitty O'Shea regulars looked out for the h while her mum worked the bar and ED worked all this backstory out while she was lunching at the Kitty with her husband before his hospital stay.
When the story opens, the h is a nurse and still mourning the loss of her well liked and very beloved mother eight months earlier. She is walking through the Market, heading for her home and all the locals are pleased to see her and as one of the Market produce seller's offers her some cherries, she spies a very handsome man whose tight white jeans are not hiding his light under a bushel.
The handsome man and the tall blonde h have a few verbal flirting moments, the man obviously wants to get to know the h better, but the h smartly tells him if he wants to get to know her, he will have to find her and he isn't allowed to follow her. Then she saunters off to her home.
The flirting was nice, but the h has more immediate problems. Before her mother died, she and the h took out a home equity mortgage to do some house refurbishments. The h likes her job as a nurse, but it doesn't pay that well and so after her mother's death, she got a housemate in. To help offset the loan repayments and for the company, as the h felt very alone without her beloved mum around.
But her lady housemate is an artist and she got a big offer in Brisbane, so the h is now looking for another housemate. When the front doorbell rings, the h thinks it is someone in response to her housemate ad and goes to answer it. To her shock, it is the H, he bribed the congenial Italian fruit seller who gave the h her cherries to reveal the location of the h - after the H swore to all and sundry that he had only good, honorable intentions towards the h and got the approval of the regular Market attendees to go see her.
There is some more very funny flirting and the H decides he wants to rent the upstairs rooms from the h, he will pay her $1000.00 a week and the h does some rapid calculations and realizes that with that kind of money, (she was renting the upstairs for $75.00) she can pay off her loan in no time.
We find out that the H is the grandson of one of the h's very wealthy patients who is currently in her hospital. The h doesn't let on that she knows the H's grandfather - the H had explained that he needed a place to close to the hospital to visit his estranged granddad while he was ill . So she tentatively agrees to let the H rent from her. But she refuses to follow him up the stairs, cause going upstairs is the ED equivalent of the h agreeing to become his lover.
The h IS attracted to the H, but she had a relationship with a doctor before that went bad after the doctor's wealthy family did not approve of the h and her background. When it became clear that the doctor wasn't going to stick up for the h against his family, the h told him to push off. Since the H is another wealthy man with maybe dubious intentions, the h decides to show him who she really is.
The H offers lunch and the h takes him to Kitty O'Shea's, she has him walk through the pub downstairs and the H soon realizes that the h has a whole host of bar patrons who are good at two things, drinking beer and throwing people out, so he had better mind his manners around the h or her extended Market and O'Shea family will give him the treatment. It was pretty funny.
The H is relieved to realize that there is a restaurant upstairs and he and the h talk about their backgrounds over the very good lunch, after the h talks to everyone who works there. We find out that the H's parents are dead too. His grandfather is a big business mogul who turned the H over to one of the H's aunts as a child, but the woman was envious that her dead brother was her father's favorite, so she was very unkind to the H until he went off to boarding school and stayed there.
Then the H tried working for his grandfather, but between his aunt's and uncle's disdain and his grandfather's bullying over the H's refusal to kowtow, the H took off on his own and is a successful business person by his own self. Now that his grandfather is ill with heart problems, he is there to see if they can repair their relationship, but he still won't become a sycophant or his grandfather's yes-man.
The h likes that the H refused to bend to unreasonable dictates and decided to do things on his own, she wants to see how the H and his grandfather interact tho - because she has a decidedly low opinion of the H's aunts and uncle. They are truly greedy, mean people and the h doesn't want to get involved in that kind of conflict. Compassion and caring are hallmarks her mother taught her to live by and the h puts a big stock in valuing people over money, she wants to assure herself that the H thinks that way too.
When she sees the grandfather and the H together and the H shares that he is living with the h, he grandfather gets quite belligerent and accuses the H of trying to get even with him. The h is concerned for the grandfather because his health is really fragile, but she doesn't understand what he is going on about. She and the H only just met and the H swears he has no ulterior motives but attraction to the h. Then she wonders if maybe the H is using her lower social status as a weapon against his obviously high status family.
The H and his grandfather have words, and the H is told by the grandfather not to come back. The rest of the H's family is not too happy to see him either and when the H leaves, the grandfather offers the h $5000.00 a week to be his private nurse. The h refuses, she will not be bought and she tells the grandfather that the best thing for him would be to just give away all his money, then he could see people as they really are, as his great wealth has ruined him.
When her shift is over, she goes home to find the H redoing the upstairs. The h is a bit angry, cause she told him he do whatever he wanted as long as no walls were knocked down. But there is a huge amount of rubble being hauled away and the h is in a panic. After some more funny banter, the h goes upstairs to find that the H has had a huge window installed and things are looking really great.
The h finally gives into her attraction for the H and they become lovers. Tho she still refuses to move upstairs with him, this is a not a complete capitulation on her part as she is still unsure about his motives. That refusal goes by the wayside too, when her old housemate who went to Brisbane returns. The big offer was a scam for art forgers and now the lady is in dire straights, she lost all of her possessions in the police raid and is now cleared of any charges, but she needs a place to stay.
The H does some very fast talking and convinces the h that she can live upstairs with him and her friend can have her rooms. Since the h is more and more reassured that the H has the correct set of values, she agrees to the plan. Things are going great and the H is all that is adoring and even helps the h's friend get her belongings back.
Then the H's grandfather checks himself out of the hospital against medical advice and shows up at the h's house. His children are trying to get him to sign over his power of attorney to them and he decided he needs to take action.
(In a running gag throughout the book, the H, his grandfather and the H's other relatives all bribe various people to tell them where the h lives. The H is the clear winner in that situation, because he only paid thirty bucks and bought some cherries. The grandfather paid the Ward Sister a hundred dollars and the H's uncles had to pay her five hundred, so they are clearly hopeless negotiators. Tho the h is pretty pleased that the ward sister is making out so well.)
Now that the grandfather has shown up, he reiterates his offer to pay the h a ton of money to be his nurse, he gets the roommate to leave by paying her $1000.00 to vacate her rooms to him. The h's friend and former housemate takes the money, but she is really concerned because she has noticed a suspicious car in front of the h's house for several days now and she is suspicious of all these wealthy men's dubious motives and she goes off to round up the troops.
The H, in the meantime, has more words with his grandfather and he declares he is marrying the h. She doesn't accept the proposal, because she is unsure of the H's motivations for it. But she does wish that things weren't so fraught between the H and his grandfather - they really are very alike and she wants them to reconcile, but she has no way to make that happen as the words between them are getting pretty heated.
Then the H's aunts and uncles and team of psychiatrists invade the h's house. The H leaps to his grandfather's defense and the sewer slurping relatives are really snide and mean and are trying to declare the grandfather mentally incompetent. The h's friend also comes back and she has brought all the men from the Kitty O'Shea and half of Paddington Market to rescue the h from the maybe villainous clutches of the H or his grandfather.
The grandfather has obtained signed current depositions from various high profile individuals that prove he is mentally sound and the h firmly shows her approval of the H. The H makes a really great big declaration of love and devotion for the h in a really good speech to the entire crowd. The grandfather is reassured about the H's intentions, the h is in love and the Kitty and Market crowd turn on the sewer slurper relatives to give them the 'treatment' and throw them out. I laughed myself silly as the H's evil aunt was tossed screaming into the street.
Grandfather takes the rest of the crowd back to Kitty's, drinks all around are on him and the H and h are left alone to declare their love and plan the wedding. We get a nice little scene where the H and h go to the grandfather's for Christmas. The grandfather has given away most of his wealth, made the H and h in charge of his business and the head of the family and the grandfather also gives the h his pocket watch.
When the h opens it, she finds a picture of her mother - it seems the grandfather fell in love with the h's mum many years ago when they first came to the Paddington area, but the h's mum felt that the grandfather's wealth made him too callous to be concerned about others and rejected his proposal as the grandfather refused to mend his wicked ways. The grandfather knew that the H had seen the picture in his watch, so he was initially concerned that the h was being used as a stick to beat him with.
Now he knows that the H made a better choice for the woman he loves, which the grandfather failed to do, so grandfather is happy to leave control of the family firm to the H, as he has the h to keep him on the straight and narrow. The grandfather announces that he is taking the h's friend and housemate to Tahiti with him and since the Ward Sister at the h's job is such a great negotiator, he is taking her too as his private nurse.
We get a lovely epilogue where the H and h get married in the local Paddington church with all the H's family and all the h's friends attending. They have a great reception at the Kitty O'Shea and the lesson is that even among very disparate groups of people, the big principle to keep in mind is not to judge others on what they show, but to look into their hearts and seek understanding for what they did. The H's entire family is now happily reunited and kind to each other and the h's extended family is over joyed that the h finally got all the happiness that her beloved mother wanted for her.
We leave the H and h married and in love and going off into the sunset as the band from the Kitty O'Shea serenade them into a lifetime of love and devotion to the tune of 'My wild Irish Rose' sung in remembrance of the h's mother.
This one is a wildly exuberantly joyous and fast paced book. Pick this one up when you need a big dose of true romantic happiness for your HPlandia outing, you will come back with a smile on your face and a heart made lighter by whimsy and the satisfaction of a really believable HP HEA.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 14, 2018
4 Stars ~ Christine's been struggling to cover the mortgage since her mother passed away unexpectedly six months ago. As a nurse, she earns a decent wage but without her mother's wages too, it's just not enough. She's lived all her life in the community around Paddington's Bazaar, and the thought of losing her home has her anxious to rent out the upstairs for the income. It's at the Bazaar that Christine spies her "perfect man"; he's absolutely gorgeous and has an air of assurance that set him above and apart from others. Deciding he's way out of her league, Christine continues on with her shopping, only to come face to face with her perfect man and this time he's showing interest in her. When she tries to move on, he says "Don't go", to which Christine responds "I don't play with strangers." Determined, he tells her his name is Shane, and that "I saw you and an impulsive madness came over me. The urge to pluck you away from this crowd and take you somewhere quiet with me where we could talk..." Equally determined, Christine says no, and tells him "If you're so madly interested in me, you'll have to find me." Later that afternoon, when the doorbell rings, Christine thinks it's prospective tenants in answer to her ad about the upstairs, but when she opens the door, there standing on her porch is her "perfect man". When Shane learns that she has rooms to let, he grabs at them, offering her $1000 a week; an amount Christine can't afford to turn down.
This is a flirty light hearted romance with some laugh out loud moments. On their first date, Christine takes him to the local hotel restaurant, and it's here that Shane learns about her mother's struggle to keep her fatherless child. The hotel staff had embraced the single mother and provided them with the security that family had refused to give. Shane in turn shares about his more privileged childhood spent at boarding schools, sent there by a family who never wanted him. Shane's been staying in a hotel, having flown in to Sydney at the news that his grandfather has had a heartattack. He decides to stay near, in the hopes that the old man will reach out to mend the rift between them. Old Max turns out to be one of Christine's patients, and she finds herself placed in the middle of these two stubborn hard headed men. This makes for an exhilarating roller coaster ride to HEA for these two soulmates.
In Ms. Darcy's author's note for this story, they reveal that the wife and husband writing team had dined in that very restaurant where their characters had their first date. In just a few hours the husband was to be admitted to the hospital, and they feared he may never come out. Loving the charming atmosphere of the hotel, they plotted this light hearted story about a single mother raising her little girl, and then the beautiful woman the girl became. The husband did come home, and they plotted several other stories together before he died four years later.
This is a flirty light hearted romance with some laugh out loud moments. On their first date, Christine takes him to the local hotel restaurant, and it's here that Shane learns about her mother's struggle to keep her fatherless child. The hotel staff had embraced the single mother and provided them with the security that family had refused to give. Shane in turn shares about his more privileged childhood spent at boarding schools, sent there by a family who never wanted him. Shane's been staying in a hotel, having flown in to Sydney at the news that his grandfather has had a heartattack. He decides to stay near, in the hopes that the old man will reach out to mend the rift between them. Old Max turns out to be one of Christine's patients, and she finds herself placed in the middle of these two stubborn hard headed men. This makes for an exhilarating roller coaster ride to HEA for these two soulmates.
In Ms. Darcy's author's note for this story, they reveal that the wife and husband writing team had dined in that very restaurant where their characters had their first date. In just a few hours the husband was to be admitted to the hospital, and they feared he may never come out. Loving the charming atmosphere of the hotel, they plotted this light hearted story about a single mother raising her little girl, and then the beautiful woman the girl became. The husband did come home, and they plotted several other stories together before he died four years later.
July 31, 2016
Such an unbelievable book. I mean it in a bad way. This book is awful and it was better if I had not wasted my time with it.
July 11, 2011
Is this book for real? Feels more like a book written by a collaboration between Stephanie Myers and Roald Dahl.
Note:
Seton pointed out the author's note in the end and it seems as though this might be the first ED book without her husband's input as he was very sick and admitted in the same hospital depicted in the story. I hope he survived (although we all know that he isn't alive now) - I feel terrible for ED during this period
I'm so sad!
Note:
Seton pointed out the author's note in the end and it seems as though this might be the first ED book without her husband's input as he was very sick and admitted in the same hospital depicted in the story. I hope he survived (although we all know that he isn't alive now) - I feel terrible for ED during this period
I'm so sad!
January 6, 2018
The idiot heroine ruined the story for me
November 11, 2019
Loved the story line. Max is a favourite........the sneaky man. :) The revelation towards the end of the book was "Lovely". As for Shane...........well GORGEOUS is the only word for him. Not a bit of nastiness or saying nasty things. No hidden agenda.
April 18, 2020
3 stelle scarse per via della storia troppo affrettata.
February 22, 2021
špatné dělení slov - s. 101, 131, 146
March 24, 2017
Utterly predictable!
October 29, 2021
Tohle nebylo špatný. Nejlepší na tom byla ta její potrhlá spolubydlící.
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