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Henrietta's Own Castle
An Unexpected Inheritance!
When Henrietta was left a house in a Dutch village, she decided to make her home there, and settled happily into her new abode. She thought she would like everything about Holland -- except Marnix van Hessel. As "lord of the manor," he behaved as if it were still the Middle Ages! Why couldn't he just marry his fiancée and leave Henrietta in peace?
224 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published March 1, 1975
76 people are currently reading
261 people want to read
About the author
Betty Neels
564 books418 followersEvelyn Jessy "Betty" Neels was born on September 15, 1910 in Devon to a family with firm roots in the civil service. She said she had a blissfully happy childhood and teenage years.(This stood her in good stead later for the tribulations to come with the Second World War). She was sent away to boarding school, and then went on to train as a nurse, gaining her SRN and SCM, that is, State Registered Nurse and State Certificate of Midwifery.
In 1939 she was called up to the Territorial Army Nursing Service, which later became the Queen Alexandra Reserves, and was sent to France with the Casualty Clearing Station. This comprised eight nursing sisters, including Betty, to 100 men! In other circumstances, she thought that might have been quite thrilling! When France was invaded in 1940, all the nursing sisters managed to escape in the charge of an army major, undertaking a lengthy and terrifying journey to Boulogne in an ambulance. They were incredibly fortunate to be put on the last hospital ship to be leaving the port of Boulogne. But Betty's war didn't end there, for she was posted to Scotland, and then on to Northern Ireland, where she met her Dutch husband. He was a seaman aboard a minesweeper, which was bombed. He survived and was sent to the south of Holland to guard the sluices. However, when they had to abandon their post, they were told to escape if they could, and along with a small number of other men, he marched into Belgium. They stole a ship and managed to get it across the Channel to Dover before being transferred to the Atlantic run on the convoys. Sadly he became ill, and that was when he was transferred to hospital in Northern Ireland, where he met Betty. They eventually married, and were blessed with a daughter. They were posted to London, but were bombed out. As with most of the population, they made the best of things.
When the war finally ended, she and her husband were repatriated to Holland. As his family had believed he had died when his ship went down, this was a very emotional homecoming. The small family lived in Holland for 13 years, and Betty resumed her nursing career there. When they decided to return to England, Betty continued her nursing and when she eventually retired she had reached the position of night superintendent.
Betty Neels began writing almost by accident. She had retired from nursing, but her inquiring mind had no intention of vegetating, and her new career was born when she heard a lady in her local library bemoaning the lack of good romance novels. There was little in Betty's background to suggest that she might eventually become a much-loved novelist.
Her first book, Sister Peters in Amsterdam, was published in 1969, and by dint of often writing four books a year, she eventually completed 134 books. She was always quite firm upon the point that the Dutch doctors who frequently appeared in her stories were *not* based upon her husband, but rather upon an amalgam of several of the doctors she met while nursing in Holland.
To her millions of fans around the world, Betty Neels epitomized romance. She was always amazed and touched that her books were so widely appreciated. She never sought plaudits and remained a very private person, but it made her very happy to know that she brought such pleasure to so many readers, while herself gaining a quiet joy from spinning her stories. It is perhaps a reflection of her upbringing in an earlier time that the men and women who peopled her stories have a kindliness and good manners, coupled to honesty and integrity, that is not always present in our modern world. Her myriad of fans found a warmth and a reassurance of a better world in her stories, along with characters who touched the heart, which is all and more than one could ask of a romance writer. She received a great deal of fan mail, and there was always a comment upon the fascinating places she visited in her stories. Quite often those of her fans fortunate enough to visit Ho
In 1939 she was called up to the Territorial Army Nursing Service, which later became the Queen Alexandra Reserves, and was sent to France with the Casualty Clearing Station. This comprised eight nursing sisters, including Betty, to 100 men! In other circumstances, she thought that might have been quite thrilling! When France was invaded in 1940, all the nursing sisters managed to escape in the charge of an army major, undertaking a lengthy and terrifying journey to Boulogne in an ambulance. They were incredibly fortunate to be put on the last hospital ship to be leaving the port of Boulogne. But Betty's war didn't end there, for she was posted to Scotland, and then on to Northern Ireland, where she met her Dutch husband. He was a seaman aboard a minesweeper, which was bombed. He survived and was sent to the south of Holland to guard the sluices. However, when they had to abandon their post, they were told to escape if they could, and along with a small number of other men, he marched into Belgium. They stole a ship and managed to get it across the Channel to Dover before being transferred to the Atlantic run on the convoys. Sadly he became ill, and that was when he was transferred to hospital in Northern Ireland, where he met Betty. They eventually married, and were blessed with a daughter. They were posted to London, but were bombed out. As with most of the population, they made the best of things.
When the war finally ended, she and her husband were repatriated to Holland. As his family had believed he had died when his ship went down, this was a very emotional homecoming. The small family lived in Holland for 13 years, and Betty resumed her nursing career there. When they decided to return to England, Betty continued her nursing and when she eventually retired she had reached the position of night superintendent.
Betty Neels began writing almost by accident. She had retired from nursing, but her inquiring mind had no intention of vegetating, and her new career was born when she heard a lady in her local library bemoaning the lack of good romance novels. There was little in Betty's background to suggest that she might eventually become a much-loved novelist.
Her first book, Sister Peters in Amsterdam, was published in 1969, and by dint of often writing four books a year, she eventually completed 134 books. She was always quite firm upon the point that the Dutch doctors who frequently appeared in her stories were *not* based upon her husband, but rather upon an amalgam of several of the doctors she met while nursing in Holland.
To her millions of fans around the world, Betty Neels epitomized romance. She was always amazed and touched that her books were so widely appreciated. She never sought plaudits and remained a very private person, but it made her very happy to know that she brought such pleasure to so many readers, while herself gaining a quiet joy from spinning her stories. It is perhaps a reflection of her upbringing in an earlier time that the men and women who peopled her stories have a kindliness and good manners, coupled to honesty and integrity, that is not always present in our modern world. Her myriad of fans found a warmth and a reassurance of a better world in her stories, along with characters who touched the heart, which is all and more than one could ask of a romance writer. She received a great deal of fan mail, and there was always a comment upon the fascinating places she visited in her stories. Quite often those of her fans fortunate enough to visit Ho
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 58 reviews
August 11, 2013
Though not in my personal top 5 favorite books ever written by Betty Neels, this still was a very fun and entertaining read. Henrietta was a great heroine, beautiful, tall, loving and in no way shape or form going to take any "guff" from the RDD (Rich Dutch Doctor)! He on the other hand doesn't know quite what to do with the only person in town who doesn't bow to his every whim. There is the requisite evil OW who seems to have her hooks so deep into the hero that even his mother is fretting. Throw in a horrible plane crash where Henrietta's skills and compassion shine for everyone to see, and you can't help but realize quickly that this doctor is falling hard for her.
There were just two very small, very slight negatives I had:
1) The plane crash. Though, Betty loves those Dr/Nurse romances, she usually steers clear of over emphasizing the medical profession with all its gore and gorp. Instead she usually focuses on the romance and weaves ways of spending time together outside of the profession. This scene felt too contrived and took me somewhere I didn't really want to go.
2) For some reason, I was missing that hidden underlying element of passion and love that Betty is so good at writing. Things felt a little stiff and awkward between Marnix and Henrietta. I can't quite put my finger on it, but somehow that special chemistry was missing.
I give it between 3-3.5 stars. If you read BN a lot and enjoy her books, I would definitely recommend you read this one. If you are just starting to discover Betty, I would recommend starting with some other of her more popular works, such as Winter Wedding, A Happy Meeting, Tabitha in the Moonlight (one of my all time favorites), The Final Touch.
There were just two very small, very slight negatives I had:
1) The plane crash. Though, Betty loves those Dr/Nurse romances, she usually steers clear of over emphasizing the medical profession with all its gore and gorp. Instead she usually focuses on the romance and weaves ways of spending time together outside of the profession. This scene felt too contrived and took me somewhere I didn't really want to go.
2) For some reason, I was missing that hidden underlying element of passion and love that Betty is so good at writing. Things felt a little stiff and awkward between Marnix and Henrietta. I can't quite put my finger on it, but somehow that special chemistry was missing.
I give it between 3-3.5 stars. If you read BN a lot and enjoy her books, I would definitely recommend you read this one. If you are just starting to discover Betty, I would recommend starting with some other of her more popular works, such as Winter Wedding, A Happy Meeting, Tabitha in the Moonlight (one of my all time favorites), The Final Touch.
August 11, 2013
This is the type of Betty Neels that I prefer - the heroine is less downtrodden, she's actually attractive, and she's got a spine. The hero is a little on the snarky snide, but isn't actually cruel (occasionally, the snarky heroes edge over the line). There's even a touch of pining on the hero's part when he thinks he's lost the heroine to another. Le sigh.
I read this back when I was a youngster buying giant boxes of old Harlequins for $3 a pop. I enjoyed it then, and it was just as lovely this time around.
I read this back when I was a youngster buying giant boxes of old Harlequins for $3 a pop. I enjoyed it then, and it was just as lovely this time around.
February 17, 2017
Henrietta Brodie, a tall, beautiful brunette -an Olivia - is a Ward Sister in London when she is notified that an elderly aunt has died and left everything to her. Everything is a small house in a small village in The Netherlands, near Tilburg, and a small amount of cash. She immediately gives her notice and moves to the little house, despite knowing no one there and not speaking a word of Dutch.
She soon gets to know the other villagers, but she is most interested in the local lord of the manor, Marnix van Hessel, also a surgeon, who lives in a beautiful old castle. Unfortunately he seems to be nearly engaged to the daughter of the Protestant minister, a very young girl - spoilt and bad-mannered - that Henrietta feels doesn't suit him at all.
Henrietta also meets Marnix's mother, who is a dear, like all RDD mums.
I feel like The Great Betty was hitting her stride at this point. So many things I enjoy about this one: the independent heroine; the village; the domestic bits where Henrietta sews curtains and bakes bread; the lovely mother-in-law-to-be; and of course, the tragic plane crash. One of TGB's best! 5 stars!
She soon gets to know the other villagers, but she is most interested in the local lord of the manor, Marnix van Hessel, also a surgeon, who lives in a beautiful old castle. Unfortunately he seems to be nearly engaged to the daughter of the Protestant minister, a very young girl - spoilt and bad-mannered - that Henrietta feels doesn't suit him at all.
Henrietta also meets Marnix's mother, who is a dear, like all RDD mums.
I feel like The Great Betty was hitting her stride at this point. So many things I enjoy about this one: the independent heroine; the village; the domestic bits where Henrietta sews curtains and bakes bread; the lovely mother-in-law-to-be; and of course, the tragic plane crash. One of TGB's best! 5 stars!
March 14, 2024
I thought this story started a little slowly. It was nice to read about Henrietta's unexpected inheritance of a small home in Holland, but I didn't feel I was getting to know her as much as I wanted to. I liked her cat, who for some reason sleeps in the tea cozy, but she remained a blank to me. Then she decided to help a young Dutchman's love life out, and things became delightful. An airplane crash, mistaken identities, village gossip and a meddling OW kept me smiling as I read.
NB - If you enjoy Neel's books join the conversation at the GR group Betty Neels Fanatics. See you there!
NB - If you enjoy Neel's books join the conversation at the GR group Betty Neels Fanatics. See you there!
May 15, 2014
4 Stars ~ Henrietta is now 29 and has been Ward Sister for the past 5 years at a very busy London hospital. And though she's had a second proposal for marriage from the hospital pharmacist, she's not willing to just settle. When the post brings a letter from a London attorney's office, she's happily surprised that her Aunt Henrietta has left her a small cottage in a quiet village in Holland. Eager to finally shed her life as Ward Sister, she packs up all her belongings in her beat up Mini (Charlie) and sets out on her carefully plotted journey. Though it's dark when she arrives, Henrietta is pleased to find the cottage to be delightful. She's barely inside a few minutes when she's shocked to discover a very tall and very handsome man has walked in, and when she demands that he leave her home, he tells her not to be so "hoity-toity". Marnix holds the leasehold on her cottage, and she learns that while she's entitled to stay for her entire life, the cottage actual belongs to the van Hessel estate. Marnix finds this tall, rather beautiful, woman disturbing, and sets out to annoy her. Henrietta, though grateful for his little kindnesses; introducing her to the villagers, seeing to her water, electricity and heat, and garaging her car (which seems to improve the longer it's under his chauffeur's care), finds herself constantly on Marnix's wrong side. And when she meets the beautiful Loes, the young woman determined to be his bride, Henrietta wonders how she'll be able to watch him make a horrible mistake as she's fallen so deeply in love with him.
This is one of the more wittier stories written by Betty Neels. Henrietta is a confident woman, no longer naive, and though never out right rude, she has a sarcastic tongue with Marnix often at the receiving end. He's abrupt and often ill-tempered, and Henrietta is constantly reminding him of his manners, which only makes him more ill-tempered. It's obvious to Henrietta that he must have been hurt as a younger man, and her tender heart wants to wash away his bitterness. Though all had been more peaceful before Henrietta had arrived to stir up his life, Marnix can't stop himself from finding ways to keep her in Holland. Of course, there's an evil other woman that Henrietta is amazed Marnix even looks twice at. I love the sparks these two created with their heated banter, and smiled from ear to ear at Marnix's last effort to win her.
This is one of the more wittier stories written by Betty Neels. Henrietta is a confident woman, no longer naive, and though never out right rude, she has a sarcastic tongue with Marnix often at the receiving end. He's abrupt and often ill-tempered, and Henrietta is constantly reminding him of his manners, which only makes him more ill-tempered. It's obvious to Henrietta that he must have been hurt as a younger man, and her tender heart wants to wash away his bitterness. Though all had been more peaceful before Henrietta had arrived to stir up his life, Marnix can't stop himself from finding ways to keep her in Holland. Of course, there's an evil other woman that Henrietta is amazed Marnix even looks twice at. I love the sparks these two created with their heated banter, and smiled from ear to ear at Marnix's last effort to win her.
November 17, 2019
This book is very different from usual Betty Neels - almost the entirety of the book was based in a small village in the mountains of Holland, and it was sort of very old fashioned and backward - but as always, an absolute delight to read - even more so than her other novels! This is one of my all time favourites
November 27, 2017
This has got to be one of my favourite Betty Neels stories! I would rate this as a close second to Cassandra by Chance. I liked that for a change our English Nurse was older, beautiful & possessed with a strong personality. She's kind & loving but in no way a doormat & gives as good as she gets, especially when conversing with the hero. I really liked Betty's Rich Dutch Dr too, since you get to see a more rounded personality. You get to see him in all his moods. Amongst these, he has a sense of humour & he has to actually work for the affections of our English Nurse... despite the fact that she already loves him. For those who love Betty's stories, this is a must read. I loved every minute of it!
March 19, 2024
3,5 stars rounded up.
Not the most likeable of male MCs here, but my negative benchmark is still the jerk mc in "Roses for Christmas", so it's still OK.
But Henrietta has some spunk and feistyness and did call out the guy on his behaviour.
Not the most likeable of male MCs here, but my negative benchmark is still the jerk mc in "Roses for Christmas", so it's still OK.
But Henrietta has some spunk and feistyness and did call out the guy on his behaviour.
May 20, 2013
There was no doubt about it. Henrietta Brodie was an old maid. Her career as a nurse helped to occupy her days, but she was shocked when her distant aunt left her a house in Holland. Here, at last, was surely adventure!
Henrietta journeys to the small town of Gijzelmortel in her old car, which she has affectionately named Charlie. There, she meets the lord of the manor, Marnix von Hessel. She is stunned by his handsome appearance. Nevertheless, there is no time for romantic fantasies. The man already seems to have found himself a bride in young Loes, a spoiled young woman who Henrietta believes would make a terrible noblewoman.
Time and again, Henrietta and Marnix are thrown together and they get to know each other better. They share a love of medicine and their desire to help people. Henrietta’s cool head in the aftermath of a plane crash really impresses the townspeople and Marnix warms to her.
Although Henrietta fears she may be falling in love with Marnix, she cannot get him to see the truth about Loes. Henrietta is charmed by her little house, her sweet cat, Henry, and she doesn’t want to leave her new home. Still, how can she bear to see Marnix married to Loes?
Suddenly, a strange man is seen coming and going from Henrietta’s house at odd hours of the day. Has Miss Brodie found a lover? It would be difficult to believe that. She seems like such an upright person. Still, the evidence looks pretty bad and even Marnix is beginning to doubt his true feelings.
I fell in love with these characters, the descriptions of the small little houses and the castle itself. I saw many such structures in Holland and this entire story had the ring of truth about it. Now, who wouldn’t believe in a real life fairy tale?
Henrietta journeys to the small town of Gijzelmortel in her old car, which she has affectionately named Charlie. There, she meets the lord of the manor, Marnix von Hessel. She is stunned by his handsome appearance. Nevertheless, there is no time for romantic fantasies. The man already seems to have found himself a bride in young Loes, a spoiled young woman who Henrietta believes would make a terrible noblewoman.
Time and again, Henrietta and Marnix are thrown together and they get to know each other better. They share a love of medicine and their desire to help people. Henrietta’s cool head in the aftermath of a plane crash really impresses the townspeople and Marnix warms to her.
Although Henrietta fears she may be falling in love with Marnix, she cannot get him to see the truth about Loes. Henrietta is charmed by her little house, her sweet cat, Henry, and she doesn’t want to leave her new home. Still, how can she bear to see Marnix married to Loes?
Suddenly, a strange man is seen coming and going from Henrietta’s house at odd hours of the day. Has Miss Brodie found a lover? It would be difficult to believe that. She seems like such an upright person. Still, the evidence looks pretty bad and even Marnix is beginning to doubt his true feelings.
I fell in love with these characters, the descriptions of the small little houses and the castle itself. I saw many such structures in Holland and this entire story had the ring of truth about it. Now, who wouldn’t believe in a real life fairy tale?
March 7, 2014
The intriguing thing I found gave added depth to this story was the story of Henrietta's great aunt and the heroes Uncle. They fell in love many years ago but he was already unhappily married. He gave her a Dame house on his estate and they lived as friends and neighbours until he died without them ever consummating their love as his wife outlived him. The uncle had no children and it passed to Marnix who had a bad experience as a young man and decided to make a marriage of convenience with a malleable and docile young woman for the sake of an heir.
When Henrietta arrives, she is snappy and not at all like her aunt. Marnix says so several times and this brings to mind the tragic love of the older couple. In the back of your mind there is the question of whether if Marnix goes ahead and married the selfish two faced Loes history will repeat itself. Will Henrietta content herself with friendship with Marnix, or return to England.
Between the interference of Loes, and Henrietta's involvement with the secret love affair of Marnix's agent, there are plenty of misunderstandings. There is humour too. I love his solution to Henrietta's threat not to open the door to him. A nice ending.
When Henrietta arrives, she is snappy and not at all like her aunt. Marnix says so several times and this brings to mind the tragic love of the older couple. In the back of your mind there is the question of whether if Marnix goes ahead and married the selfish two faced Loes history will repeat itself. Will Henrietta content herself with friendship with Marnix, or return to England.
Between the interference of Loes, and Henrietta's involvement with the secret love affair of Marnix's agent, there are plenty of misunderstandings. There is humour too. I love his solution to Henrietta's threat not to open the door to him. A nice ending.
March 14, 2021
I read this on the kindle
While this follows same sort of format it was different & i got so wrapped up in it i was reading to nearly 2 in the morning to finish this one
It wasn't all about it being set in a hospital or going off out in pretty clothes which in other books are more like yes you still have a nurse who goes off to Holland & you have the rich titled Surgeon but that is Betty's style but it really was a good book
While this follows same sort of format it was different & i got so wrapped up in it i was reading to nearly 2 in the morning to finish this one
It wasn't all about it being set in a hospital or going off out in pretty clothes which in other books are more like yes you still have a nurse who goes off to Holland & you have the rich titled Surgeon but that is Betty's style but it really was a good book
February 27, 2023
The best part about this was that the hero gives the heroine a kitten. She names the kitten Henry and he sleeps in a tea cosy by the fireplace. The rest was lots of avoidable misunderstandings with not particularly likable characters.
August 12, 2019
“Hello, Betty, my old friend … ” It’s been a while, folks, since I did an update on my Great Betty Read. Not that I wasn’t enjoying Henrietta and Marnix, but with a hot summer, I tend to cool showers rather than hot baths (which is where I like to do my Betty reading). With the weather cooling off (thanks be to the weather gods), back to Bets I went and a quick conclusion to the lingering Henrietta, her castle, and her cat in a tea cosy (truly delightful!).
Sister Henrietta Brodie, after ten years as a nurse, inherits a small home in Holland, leaves her job, and moves in. I loved that work, for Henrietta, for Betty really, is a financial necessity, duty, and responsibility, but not a virtue. The important thing to Bets is to be of service to others: how you do that, as a wife, mother, neighbour, friend, nurse, volunteer, doesn’t matter as long as its the ethos you live by. Because work isn’t a virtue, Henrietta gives notice, takes her rumbly old Renault, Charlie, and herself to her neat little Dutch cottage …
You're welcome to read the rest on my blog:
https://missbatesreadsromance.com/201...
Sister Henrietta Brodie, after ten years as a nurse, inherits a small home in Holland, leaves her job, and moves in. I loved that work, for Henrietta, for Betty really, is a financial necessity, duty, and responsibility, but not a virtue. The important thing to Bets is to be of service to others: how you do that, as a wife, mother, neighbour, friend, nurse, volunteer, doesn’t matter as long as its the ethos you live by. Because work isn’t a virtue, Henrietta gives notice, takes her rumbly old Renault, Charlie, and herself to her neat little Dutch cottage …
You're welcome to read the rest on my blog:
https://missbatesreadsromance.com/201...
November 22, 2022
Another enjoyable session skimming through the Wonderful Way-Back World of Neels and keeping an eye out for recipe ideas. Henrietta inherits a tiny home in Holland, so she gives up her nursing career and drives her mini, Charlie the aged, into parts unknown, arriving in the evening amidst wintry sleet and snow. She’s 29 years old, good-looking, capable, adventurous, and kind, so her small home is a castle in her eyes, despite the kitchen, lacking an oven or fridge. But it’s winter, so nothing will spoil, and the tiny village has a market, and the green-grocer and butcher come by regularly, so no big deal. “Hey, I can bake bread handily with a tin oven, a sort of suzy-bake set on top of my small stove.”
Upon arrival she meets Jonkheer van Hessel, feudal Lord of the Manor — actually a castle complete with moat. (Henrietta’s small house actually began life as an almshouse for the poor, situated at the gates of his kingdom.)
He is almost 40, and a surgeon, burned badly by love years ago and sometimes quite the curmudgeon. But not always… Adventures ensue. A plane crashes in the field. A mare goes into difficult labor. The roof springs a leak. Kittens, flowers, etc.
Then there is the sly-eyed Loes, an 18-year-old beauty with dreams of being queen of the castle.
Upon arrival she meets Jonkheer van Hessel, feudal Lord of the Manor — actually a castle complete with moat. (Henrietta’s small house actually began life as an almshouse for the poor, situated at the gates of his kingdom.)
He is almost 40, and a surgeon, burned badly by love years ago and sometimes quite the curmudgeon. But not always… Adventures ensue. A plane crashes in the field. A mare goes into difficult labor. The roof springs a leak. Kittens, flowers, etc.
Then there is the sly-eyed Loes, an 18-year-old beauty with dreams of being queen of the castle.
March 4, 2021
Sweet Read
A quick and romantic read, Betty Neels is a must read for those looking for a simple, heartfelt story.
No heat but satisfying all the same.
It’s a yes from me.
A quick and romantic read, Betty Neels is a must read for those looking for a simple, heartfelt story.
No heat but satisfying all the same.
It’s a yes from me.
January 21, 2025
A typical dislike-to-happy-ever-after love story but a nice break from the harsher novels and mysteries that I often read.
January 12, 2016
I read this on the kindle
While this follows same sort of format it was different & i got so wrapped up in it i was reading to nearly 2 in the morning to finish this one It wasn't all about it being set in a hospital or going off out in pretty clothes which in other books are more like yes you still have a nurse who goes off to Holland & you have the rich titled Surgeon but that is Betty's style but it really was a good book
While this follows same sort of format it was different & i got so wrapped up in it i was reading to nearly 2 in the morning to finish this one It wasn't all about it being set in a hospital or going off out in pretty clothes which in other books are more like yes you still have a nurse who goes off to Holland & you have the rich titled Surgeon but that is Betty's style but it really was a good book
September 28, 2022
I'm an avid reader of anything Betty Neels, the warmth, the old fashioned ideals, and yes sometimes corny story line, but this is absolutely one of my fave. I like when Betty's heroine are a bit feisty. And they are so few and far in between. One of the few that I'd read over again.
January 21, 2013
I adore Betty Neels and this was a lovely piece of escapism.
July 23, 2013
LOVE this book!!!! Have read it before and will read it again!!!!
December 11, 2025
4.4 stars. this was a nice read featuring a snarky 'icehole' of a hero and a smart, beautiful nurse heroine who was able to give as good as she got, but fell for him quite early in the book so was pining a bit for him all the while.
it took me a while to read this one because I misread the blurb and thought Henrietta inherited a castle, and was a bit put off at the idea of such a fortunate heroine. we betty readers like our betty heroines to be struggling a bit in life to build character and prove their mettle! they may be down, but they're never out! anyway, I am glad to say that henrietta inherits only a small house in the middle of rural Holland where the neighbours cant even speak her language, but she gets almost no money and she very much does prove her mettle.
h Henrietta (29) is a tall beautiful nurse, a ward sister, and poor. unwed because she's had offers but she will only marry for love. but in the cusp of 30, she wonders if she has just turned down the last proposal she will ever get and if her dream man even exists. she has no family left and just as she sadly anticipates a lonely future, she is shocked to inherit a house in Holland from an estranged aunt. eager for a change after 10 years of endless working, and with no family to keep her in England, she packs up her trusty old car, Charlie, and heads off for deepest darkest rural Holland.
she arrives on a freezing night to a tiny house in a small village to find no heating or electricity or water. as she is fumbling in the dark trying to locate how to turn them on, a big handsome stranger walks into her cottage. outraged, she bravely orders him to leave. he silkily calls her a hoity toity madam, and insists he is her landlord. she insists he is not. sparks fly. they clearly dislike each other. and yet this supremely annoying handsome man persists in turning on her utilities and fetching firewood and getting her stove all heated up before departing. (ahem, not a euphemism.)
his parting shots are that he wouldn't let even a dog freeze on a night like this, and also that he won't bother to offer her dinner since she is so keen to get rid of him. lol
even so, the next day, he turns up to show her around the village and take her groceries shopping, which ain't such a simple task in ye olde rural backwards Holland, esp as nobody at all speaks a word of English but him. she is miffed at his lordly manner with the locals and miffed again to find he indeed is the 'lord' and lives in the local castle. with a moat.
shortly afterwards, she finds out he is seeing a young local beauty who plays the role of innocent sweetie pie for him but is really a sly and catty little thing.
FULL SPOILERS AHEAD.
so anyway, H Marnix is 40 and a jonkheer and a surgeon and had a relationship go sour many years ago, after which he has never wanted to marry, but now has reached the age when he thinks he should, so he's taken up with the local blond, blue eyed 'sweetie pie'.
despite always snarking at h, he looks out for her and makes sure she is finding her feet in village life. it turns out that her estranged aunt was a good friend to his mother and family. she is saddened to realise that he must only be helping her for her aunt's sake... it doesn't take long for her to realise she has fallen whole heartedly in love, despite their fraught relationship and despite all the time he spends with the young village beauty.
shortly afterwards, a plane crashes nearby and she harnesses her nursing skills to organise his household and an entire village of helpers to work on the injured survivors, a gruelling experience due to the horrific injuries.
meanwhile, little miss sweetie pie OW does nothing to help, claiming she is too fragile even to comfort sobbing babies. but after the hard work is over and ambulances have arrived to take away the patients, henrietta finds Marnix cuddling miss sweetie pie and comforting her for her "ordeal". henrietta is disgusted by how taken in he is with the girl's act and hides her own distress.
but when she runs back home and sobs her heart out, overwhelmed by the horrors she saw, it is him who turns up to hold and comfort her. she pushes him away, telling him that his sweetheart must be waiting for him.
wee see H do things like subtly enquire about h's financials and try to figure out how long she will be staying in Holland, and when going out of his way to find her a suitable job in such a rural location. and we see OW get annoyed about this and snidely belittle the h and do her beat to drive a wedge...
through the story, we see the H's mom hating the sly little sweetie pie and doing what she can to get the h and her son together. we get a side plot with an other man and the whole village gossiping about the h sneaking around with the OM under cover of darkness, thus enraging the extremely jealous H. In reality, the h was secretly helping OM muster up the courage to tell his mom he wants to marry a girl the mom dislikes, and the girl had been secretly staying at h's little house while the couple planned for their future. and little miss sweetie pie fanned the flames of gossip against our h until everyone was talking about it...
ENDING SPOILERS
so... the perfect ending for me would have been if the OW storyline was really pushed to the limits and the H pushed the h too far into heartache and she fled from him and he had to chase her down with all his regrets.
instead we get to see the H react in fury when he thinks h is having an affair with OM and he accuses her of doing the nasty under cover of darkness in an old fashioned village where people like to keep their courting above board. she is outraged at his accusation and yells at him that she never wants to see him again. then he finds out the truth from the OM, but when he apologises, h refuses to forgive him.
they don't speak... until she finds a poor horsie exhausted by a difficult Labour in a farflung field with help nowhere in sight and she has no clue what to do and cant bear to abandon the ailing creature. and she is so immensely releived when Marnix turns up to help. they work together to deliver the foal.She hurries off home afterwards, but Marnix chases her down and declares his love. it was a nice amount of ending for a betty book, not too abrupt. Good to hear him admit he was completely bowled over by her at first sight and since then didn't know whether to love or hate her, whether tondrive her off or beg her to stay, nor what to do with himself. lol.
CONCLUSION
I liked this one a lot because we got the icehole H, who did his best to drive away the woman he was scared to fall for because the last time he fell in love with a strong minded woman, their eventual fights turned the relationship horribly sour in the end. plus we got a h who fell for him anyway and got to see her pining a bit. however, the angst level was fairly low in this one. he never did anything too cruel and was always watching out for her. he did not put her through the mill like Betty's "worst" (best) icehole heroes, and there was never that sense of hopelessness for the h. she always knew the OW was too young and too scheming and sly and coldhearted for the hero and so did the hero's mom. we knew sooner or later he must figure it out, and even before that, his interest was never truly fixed on the OW. I would have loved to see a lot more angst and would have loved if the OW had been older and wiser and truly had her claws hooked well and firmly into the H. I would have liked the angst pushed up a few notches. even so, i enjoyed this book and will probably reread it. also, as a bonus, this book had plenty of humor and banter and funny times seeing the h being amusingly catty in kind to the nasty little OW. Good stuff.
it took me a while to read this one because I misread the blurb and thought Henrietta inherited a castle, and was a bit put off at the idea of such a fortunate heroine. we betty readers like our betty heroines to be struggling a bit in life to build character and prove their mettle! they may be down, but they're never out! anyway, I am glad to say that henrietta inherits only a small house in the middle of rural Holland where the neighbours cant even speak her language, but she gets almost no money and she very much does prove her mettle.
h Henrietta (29) is a tall beautiful nurse, a ward sister, and poor. unwed because she's had offers but she will only marry for love. but in the cusp of 30, she wonders if she has just turned down the last proposal she will ever get and if her dream man even exists. she has no family left and just as she sadly anticipates a lonely future, she is shocked to inherit a house in Holland from an estranged aunt. eager for a change after 10 years of endless working, and with no family to keep her in England, she packs up her trusty old car, Charlie, and heads off for deepest darkest rural Holland.
she arrives on a freezing night to a tiny house in a small village to find no heating or electricity or water. as she is fumbling in the dark trying to locate how to turn them on, a big handsome stranger walks into her cottage. outraged, she bravely orders him to leave. he silkily calls her a hoity toity madam, and insists he is her landlord. she insists he is not. sparks fly. they clearly dislike each other. and yet this supremely annoying handsome man persists in turning on her utilities and fetching firewood and getting her stove all heated up before departing. (ahem, not a euphemism.)
his parting shots are that he wouldn't let even a dog freeze on a night like this, and also that he won't bother to offer her dinner since she is so keen to get rid of him. lol
even so, the next day, he turns up to show her around the village and take her groceries shopping, which ain't such a simple task in ye olde rural backwards Holland, esp as nobody at all speaks a word of English but him. she is miffed at his lordly manner with the locals and miffed again to find he indeed is the 'lord' and lives in the local castle. with a moat.
shortly afterwards, she finds out he is seeing a young local beauty who plays the role of innocent sweetie pie for him but is really a sly and catty little thing.
FULL SPOILERS AHEAD.
so anyway, H Marnix is 40 and a jonkheer and a surgeon and had a relationship go sour many years ago, after which he has never wanted to marry, but now has reached the age when he thinks he should, so he's taken up with the local blond, blue eyed 'sweetie pie'.
despite always snarking at h, he looks out for her and makes sure she is finding her feet in village life. it turns out that her estranged aunt was a good friend to his mother and family. she is saddened to realise that he must only be helping her for her aunt's sake... it doesn't take long for her to realise she has fallen whole heartedly in love, despite their fraught relationship and despite all the time he spends with the young village beauty.
shortly afterwards, a plane crashes nearby and she harnesses her nursing skills to organise his household and an entire village of helpers to work on the injured survivors, a gruelling experience due to the horrific injuries.
meanwhile, little miss sweetie pie OW does nothing to help, claiming she is too fragile even to comfort sobbing babies. but after the hard work is over and ambulances have arrived to take away the patients, henrietta finds Marnix cuddling miss sweetie pie and comforting her for her "ordeal". henrietta is disgusted by how taken in he is with the girl's act and hides her own distress.
but when she runs back home and sobs her heart out, overwhelmed by the horrors she saw, it is him who turns up to hold and comfort her. she pushes him away, telling him that his sweetheart must be waiting for him.
wee see H do things like subtly enquire about h's financials and try to figure out how long she will be staying in Holland, and when going out of his way to find her a suitable job in such a rural location. and we see OW get annoyed about this and snidely belittle the h and do her beat to drive a wedge...
through the story, we see the H's mom hating the sly little sweetie pie and doing what she can to get the h and her son together. we get a side plot with an other man and the whole village gossiping about the h sneaking around with the OM under cover of darkness, thus enraging the extremely jealous H. In reality, the h was secretly helping OM muster up the courage to tell his mom he wants to marry a girl the mom dislikes, and the girl had been secretly staying at h's little house while the couple planned for their future. and little miss sweetie pie fanned the flames of gossip against our h until everyone was talking about it...
ENDING SPOILERS
so... the perfect ending for me would have been if the OW storyline was really pushed to the limits and the H pushed the h too far into heartache and she fled from him and he had to chase her down with all his regrets.
instead we get to see the H react in fury when he thinks h is having an affair with OM and he accuses her of doing the nasty under cover of darkness in an old fashioned village where people like to keep their courting above board. she is outraged at his accusation and yells at him that she never wants to see him again. then he finds out the truth from the OM, but when he apologises, h refuses to forgive him.
they don't speak... until she finds a poor horsie exhausted by a difficult Labour in a farflung field with help nowhere in sight and she has no clue what to do and cant bear to abandon the ailing creature. and she is so immensely releived when Marnix turns up to help. they work together to deliver the foal.She hurries off home afterwards, but Marnix chases her down and declares his love. it was a nice amount of ending for a betty book, not too abrupt. Good to hear him admit he was completely bowled over by her at first sight and since then didn't know whether to love or hate her, whether tondrive her off or beg her to stay, nor what to do with himself. lol.
CONCLUSION
I liked this one a lot because we got the icehole H, who did his best to drive away the woman he was scared to fall for because the last time he fell in love with a strong minded woman, their eventual fights turned the relationship horribly sour in the end. plus we got a h who fell for him anyway and got to see her pining a bit. however, the angst level was fairly low in this one. he never did anything too cruel and was always watching out for her. he did not put her through the mill like Betty's "worst" (best) icehole heroes, and there was never that sense of hopelessness for the h. she always knew the OW was too young and too scheming and sly and coldhearted for the hero and so did the hero's mom. we knew sooner or later he must figure it out, and even before that, his interest was never truly fixed on the OW. I would have loved to see a lot more angst and would have loved if the OW had been older and wiser and truly had her claws hooked well and firmly into the H. I would have liked the angst pushed up a few notches. even so, i enjoyed this book and will probably reread it. also, as a bonus, this book had plenty of humor and banter and funny times seeing the h being amusingly catty in kind to the nasty little OW. Good stuff.
February 17, 2019
I like this book, but I would not call it one of my favorite Betty Neels book. Maybe it's a little beyond believability for me. Henrietta has been a nursing sister for five years and drops everything to move to Holland when she inherits a small cottage from a long-lost aunt. She no longer has a job, can't speak the language, and doesn't know what she'll do when her small savings runs out in about six months' time. In Holland she meets Marnix van Hessel, the owner of the land where her cottage sits. He is arrogant, bossy, and has no patience with her. But, on the bright side, he helps her get acclimated to his country and gives her a little black kitten (sigh). Betty often has a crisis in her books that lets the two main characters get a bit closer. This book has an airplane crash that occurs just outside the village. The injured are brought to Marnix's castle until ambulances can come for them. These scenes are a bit darker and more graphic than the usual Betty Neels plots. I think she used them to show how shallow and unfeeling Loes is, the supposed young lady that Marnix is meant to be marrying. The ending is sweet, if a little contrived, but I enjoyed my reread very much.
October 11, 2011
Another book downloaded on my Kindle for my trip through The Netherlands this summer--just finally got to it. Didn't realize it was a Harlequin Romance. Thoroughly enjoyed it. English nurse inherits a house in the Netherlands, goes there to live, meets rich guy, can’t stand the sight of him, falls in love---typical formula. What I got a kick out of was the descriptions of the towns we visited and stayed in. Not many people have heard of Eindhoven but we stayed there for five nights (on train line and less expensive than Leiden). Book took place near there and the heroine explored the entire area. Fun for me envisioning the countryside and towns (albeit the book was written in 1976).
July 8, 2010
Lucu, hero nya menyebalkan, arogan, sombong, tapi asyik.
Mobilnya bagus-bagus
Mobilnya bagus-bagus
March 9, 2012
Yet another classic. I really liked how she kept poking his inflated sense of self :).
June 2, 2014
Quite enjoyed the read. Nice to have a heroine who can stand on her own two feet and stand up for herself.
December 3, 2024
I'm a little surprised I hadn't read this one before. It's very much a classic Neels, but I could see people enjoying this one when they maybe would find others too old fashioned and weird. The hero is (clearly to us romance readers) fighting against his feelings for Henrietta and his backstory is that he likes a high spirited girl her can squabble with, so his random antagonism doesn't feel as crazy as it does in some of them. I like that she was willing to talk back and to call him out. Not as much as a modern book would, sure, but for Betty? I can just see Henrietta feeling like a fish out of water in a new country with her new independence, and with someone coming in and taking charge and taking care of her, she would shut down enough to let him. So again, a weird Betty Neels thing that everyone is cool with that worked okay here. Loes is a suitably horrible rival and Henrietta is civil to her but doesn't really try to be her friend or win her over. I hate when the heroine does that.
There is a plane crash, and some description of injury, so be prepared for that, but I will say that I appreciated a more serious emergency. Neels will often have some kind of emergency like this, often in the third act and the heroine is involved so the hero can whisk her away and care for her, and his actions betray his true feelings, but this is the second type where it happens to other people and the hero shows how he actually trusts her and thinks highly of her because he automatically relies on her to take charge and have a cool head under pressure and sees her at her compassionate and professional best. The rival is a spoiled baby and refuses to help, of course. When this emergency is a bus skidding on ice and there's only bumped heads, this feels like melodrama, but an actual plane crash did work here. The hero's mom and the heroine both react to the trauma for some time afterward in realistic ways, and the heroine visits the people she helped so she can get some closure.
So this is still a Betty Neels and it's a bit of either you like this or you don't, but there's some very interesting outliers here.
There is a plane crash, and some description of injury, so be prepared for that, but I will say that I appreciated a more serious emergency. Neels will often have some kind of emergency like this, often in the third act and the heroine is involved so the hero can whisk her away and care for her, and his actions betray his true feelings, but this is the second type where it happens to other people and the hero shows how he actually trusts her and thinks highly of her because he automatically relies on her to take charge and have a cool head under pressure and sees her at her compassionate and professional best. The rival is a spoiled baby and refuses to help, of course. When this emergency is a bus skidding on ice and there's only bumped heads, this feels like melodrama, but an actual plane crash did work here. The hero's mom and the heroine both react to the trauma for some time afterward in realistic ways, and the heroine visits the people she helped so she can get some closure.
So this is still a Betty Neels and it's a bit of either you like this or you don't, but there's some very interesting outliers here.
April 14, 2021
This story was very well narrated and I really the frankness in Henrietta and for a change a heroine who can speak her mind. Henrietta inherits a house from an aunt whom she hardly met in her life and deciding she needs a change in her life moves to this small village in holland1. She is met there by the lord of the manor Marnix a 40 year old hero who also happens to be a doctor.
Henrietta and Marnix keep quarreling all the time though he is the first to help her settle down in the village and always available for her if she needs any advice. Henrietta eventually falls in love with him but Marnix always stays aloof making her believe he hates her . Then there is the reverend’s young daughter who is cunning and trying her best too impress Marnix and wants to marry him for his money.
Henrietta gets in to trouble helping one of Marnie’s clerk in his love life and becomes gossip of the village where everything’s she is interested in the clerk but finally Marnix learns the truth both about clerk and reverend’s daughter and finally proposes to Henrietta who eagerly accepts him though he is always bursting with temper.
What I liked about this story was the hero was not shown as young handsome perfect gentlemen but here he was a middle aged bachelor who has short temper ,orders people around him and expects them to follow it but at the same time a very kind generous and excellent person at heart always going out of the way to help his fellow villagers.
All in all a very good book and one of Betty neels best according to me.
Henrietta and Marnix keep quarreling all the time though he is the first to help her settle down in the village and always available for her if she needs any advice. Henrietta eventually falls in love with him but Marnix always stays aloof making her believe he hates her . Then there is the reverend’s young daughter who is cunning and trying her best too impress Marnix and wants to marry him for his money.
Henrietta gets in to trouble helping one of Marnie’s clerk in his love life and becomes gossip of the village where everything’s she is interested in the clerk but finally Marnix learns the truth both about clerk and reverend’s daughter and finally proposes to Henrietta who eagerly accepts him though he is always bursting with temper.
What I liked about this story was the hero was not shown as young handsome perfect gentlemen but here he was a middle aged bachelor who has short temper ,orders people around him and expects them to follow it but at the same time a very kind generous and excellent person at heart always going out of the way to help his fellow villagers.
All in all a very good book and one of Betty neels best according to me.
December 8, 2017
3.5*
I absolutely love the tiny Dutch village, which the author had brought so vividly to life!
I am beginning to see the pattern in Betty Neels' beloved romances. So comforting! The hero was usually a big guy, a doctor, lived in a big and beautiful house/manor/castle! He usually drove a Bentley or Rolls Royce, had lovely staff and a big lovable dog!
The heroine was usually no great beauty, but had inner beauty and gumption. She would be practical, brave and independent.
They would start out almost like enemies, he'd be curt and she'd be cool right back...then somehow she'd really like and love him. By the end the hero would suddenly reveal his love which he was fighting, and thus made him brusque with her.
HEA usually denoted by a kiss...no sexy times!
I really enjoy the life in the quaint village, how our heroine with broken Dutch managed to be integrated into the community and thrived. Her nursing skills came in very handy and we had some drama, like the plane crash, and intrigue/comical misunderstanding with our secondary love story.
Of course there's usually the bitchy Other Woman or love rival to add angst and tension.
A very pleasant read!
I absolutely love the tiny Dutch village, which the author had brought so vividly to life!
I am beginning to see the pattern in Betty Neels' beloved romances. So comforting! The hero was usually a big guy, a doctor, lived in a big and beautiful house/manor/castle! He usually drove a Bentley or Rolls Royce, had lovely staff and a big lovable dog!
The heroine was usually no great beauty, but had inner beauty and gumption. She would be practical, brave and independent.
They would start out almost like enemies, he'd be curt and she'd be cool right back...then somehow she'd really like and love him. By the end the hero would suddenly reveal his love which he was fighting, and thus made him brusque with her.
HEA usually denoted by a kiss...no sexy times!
I really enjoy the life in the quaint village, how our heroine with broken Dutch managed to be integrated into the community and thrived. Her nursing skills came in very handy and we had some drama, like the plane crash, and intrigue/comical misunderstanding with our secondary love story.
Of course there's usually the bitchy Other Woman or love rival to add angst and tension.
A very pleasant read!
September 27, 2022
⭐️ 5 Betty Stars ⭐️
This is one of those that I was certain I’ve read before but perhaps haven’t re-read that often so it was vaguely familiar but not one where I was anticipating fixed story beats. And I’m not sure why I haven’t re-read this much because I really liked it. The premise is that beautiful, English nurse, Henrietta unexpectedly inherits a house in rural Netherlands from a long-lost aunt and having no real ties to England left, decides to move to the village sight unseen. There, she meets Marnix, a bad-tempered doctor who’s more or less the feudal lord of the manor and the village and their strong personalities clash, hiding underneath a strong attraction to one another.
I thought this was really nice. Yes, it was simplistic and Marnix could be a little rude, but Henrietta gave as good as she got and this is one of those Betty books where the heroine was sharp-mouthed and no pushover. Liked this a lot.
This is one of those that I was certain I’ve read before but perhaps haven’t re-read that often so it was vaguely familiar but not one where I was anticipating fixed story beats. And I’m not sure why I haven’t re-read this much because I really liked it. The premise is that beautiful, English nurse, Henrietta unexpectedly inherits a house in rural Netherlands from a long-lost aunt and having no real ties to England left, decides to move to the village sight unseen. There, she meets Marnix, a bad-tempered doctor who’s more or less the feudal lord of the manor and the village and their strong personalities clash, hiding underneath a strong attraction to one another.
I thought this was really nice. Yes, it was simplistic and Marnix could be a little rude, but Henrietta gave as good as she got and this is one of those Betty books where the heroine was sharp-mouthed and no pushover. Liked this a lot.
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