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Spellbinding
She woke to a strange world. After a month in a coma, Belinda Hunt woke to find she'd lost her job, her apartment and even her fiance, Ricky. He had left her for another woman. She resolved to get on with things and make a new life for herself. But she hadn't reckoned on the meddling of Ricky's brother, powerful merchant broker Vincent Garrett. Gradually, despite all her attempts to evade him, Belinda was forced to acknowledge the attractions of a very unconventional Prince Charming....
192 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 1990
3 people are currently reading
208 people want to read
About the author
Charlotte Lamb
259 books313 followersSheila Ann Mary Coates Holland
aka Sheila Holland, Sheila Coates, Charlotte Lamb, Sheila Lancaster, Victoria Woolf, Laura Hardy
Sheila Ann Mary Coates was born on 1937 in Essex, England, just before the Second World War in the East End of London. As a child, she was moved from relative to relative to escape the bombings of World War II. Sheila attended the Ursuline Convent for Girls. On leaving school at 16, the convent-educated author worked for the Bank of England as a clerk. Sheila continued her education by taking advantage of the B of E's enormous library during her lunch breaks and after work. She later worked as a secretary for the BBC. While there, she met and married Richard Holland, a political reporter. A voracious reader of romance novels, she began writing at her husband's suggestion. She wrote her first book in three days with three children underfoot! In between raising her five children (including a set of twins), Charlotte wrote several more novels. She used both her married and maiden names, Sheila Holland and Sheila Coates, before her first novel as Charlotte Lamb, Follow a Stranger, was published by Mills & Boon in 1973. She also used the pennames: Sheila Lancaster, Victoria Wolf and Laura Hardy. Sheila was a true revolutionary in the field of romance writing. One of the first writers to explore the boundaries of sexual desire, her novels often reflected the forefront of the "sexual revolution" of the 1970s. Her books touched on then-taboo subjects such as child abuse and rape, and she created sexually confident - even dominant - heroines. She was also one of the first to create a modern romantic heroine: independent, imperfect, and perfectly capable of initiating a sexual or romantic relationship. A prolific author, Sheila penned more than 160 novels, most of them for Mills & Boon. Known for her swiftness as well as for her skill in writing, Sheila typically wrote a minimum of two thousand words per day, working from 9:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. While she once finished a full-length novel in four days, she herself pegged her average speed at two weeks to complete a full novel. Since 1977, Sheila had been living on the Isle of Man as a tax exile with her husband and four of their five children: Michael Holland, Sarah Holland, Jane Holland, Charlotte Holland and David Holland. Sheila passed away on October 8, 2000 in her baronial-style home 'Crogga' on the Island. She is greatly missed by her many fans, and by the romance writing community.
aka Sheila Holland, Sheila Coates, Charlotte Lamb, Sheila Lancaster, Victoria Woolf, Laura Hardy
Sheila Ann Mary Coates was born on 1937 in Essex, England, just before the Second World War in the East End of London. As a child, she was moved from relative to relative to escape the bombings of World War II. Sheila attended the Ursuline Convent for Girls. On leaving school at 16, the convent-educated author worked for the Bank of England as a clerk. Sheila continued her education by taking advantage of the B of E's enormous library during her lunch breaks and after work. She later worked as a secretary for the BBC. While there, she met and married Richard Holland, a political reporter. A voracious reader of romance novels, she began writing at her husband's suggestion. She wrote her first book in three days with three children underfoot! In between raising her five children (including a set of twins), Charlotte wrote several more novels. She used both her married and maiden names, Sheila Holland and Sheila Coates, before her first novel as Charlotte Lamb, Follow a Stranger, was published by Mills & Boon in 1973. She also used the pennames: Sheila Lancaster, Victoria Wolf and Laura Hardy. Sheila was a true revolutionary in the field of romance writing. One of the first writers to explore the boundaries of sexual desire, her novels often reflected the forefront of the "sexual revolution" of the 1970s. Her books touched on then-taboo subjects such as child abuse and rape, and she created sexually confident - even dominant - heroines. She was also one of the first to create a modern romantic heroine: independent, imperfect, and perfectly capable of initiating a sexual or romantic relationship. A prolific author, Sheila penned more than 160 novels, most of them for Mills & Boon. Known for her swiftness as well as for her skill in writing, Sheila typically wrote a minimum of two thousand words per day, working from 9:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. While she once finished a full-length novel in four days, she herself pegged her average speed at two weeks to complete a full novel. Since 1977, Sheila had been living on the Isle of Man as a tax exile with her husband and four of their five children: Michael Holland, Sarah Holland, Jane Holland, Charlotte Holland and David Holland. Sheila passed away on October 8, 2000 in her baronial-style home 'Crogga' on the Island. She is greatly missed by her many fans, and by the romance writing community.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 49 reviews
November 6, 2017
This one was fun. The heroine has been in a coma for 8 months and the hero visited her everyday because he fell for her at first sight when he warned her off his brother. Now that she is recovering he's brought her back to his home and tries to woo her.
The heroine is having none of it. There's a trip to an exclusive restaurant with a lazy afternoon in a rowboat that leads to a dunking. A croquet game at the family estate where the heroine again sees the brother who was driving at the time of the accident that landed her in the hospital. He had claimed his love for the heroine when he was really two-timing his fiance.
Heroine finally realizes she doesn't love him anymore and she's willing to go along with the hero's fake engagement of convenience for a few minutes. Then she tries to blurt out the truth to the hero's brother once his wife is out of earshot, but hero calmly explains that she is still a little confused after being a coma for so long. It's all pretty amusing.
Even the hero's mother can't stop the smitten hero. He's going to marry the "gold digger" and that's it. Heroine finally gives in. HEA
This is a cute story. The author could have gone all philosophical about life and death and miracles, but opted for a more light-hearted approach. Heroine needed to gain back weight, so lots of good food porn!
The heroine is having none of it. There's a trip to an exclusive restaurant with a lazy afternoon in a rowboat that leads to a dunking. A croquet game at the family estate where the heroine again sees the brother who was driving at the time of the accident that landed her in the hospital. He had claimed his love for the heroine when he was really two-timing his fiance.
Heroine finally realizes she doesn't love him anymore and she's willing to go along with the hero's fake engagement of convenience for a few minutes. Then she tries to blurt out the truth to the hero's brother once his wife is out of earshot, but hero calmly explains that she is still a little confused after being a coma for so long. It's all pretty amusing.
Even the hero's mother can't stop the smitten hero. He's going to marry the "gold digger" and that's it. Heroine finally gives in. HEA
This is a cute story. The author could have gone all philosophical about life and death and miracles, but opted for a more light-hearted approach. Heroine needed to gain back weight, so lots of good food porn!
April 7, 2024
Silly story of a man who falls in love with a comatose woman, who just happens to be his brother's ex-fiancee. *face palm*. Lots of melon appetizers but no Dover Sole in sight. Instead we get atrocities like roast poussin and something called mayonnaise salmon. E to the ewwwwwwww :(
July 30, 2017
Re Spellbinding - Charlotte Lamb dusts off her massively domineering H type for this one, he basically kidnaps the h as she is recovering from an eight month long coma and refuses to let her go.
This one starts with the h waking up in hospital and having no idear what is wrong, but everyone seems really excited to see her open her eyes. As memory returns to the befuddled h, we get the events leading up to the dramatic reawakening.
The h is a regular girl who works in an office, one day she met a nice blonde young man and they fell in love. They decided to marry and the h was happy and floating along on the fluffy pink cloud of infatuation until she meet her beloved's very wealthy family and realized they despise her, mainly cause she is outside of their social circle.
The h's love also has a tall, dark and very brooding older brother. The h doesn't like him at all, he is domineering and bullying, but the h doesn't think too much of him as she isn't marry him after all. (Well we all know where this is going, don't we?)
The Broody Man shows up at the h's doorstep and demands that she leave his brother alone. He tells the h that his brother is actually engaged to a family friend's long time daughter and the h will never take her place. The h is furious, as she knows her young man loves her and believes his family is just pushing the marriage on an unwilling candidate. When the h asks her love about it, he tells her that he and his old fiance are broken up, but she is out of the country and he was waiting until she returned to break the sad news that he loves the h. Then he decides that they should go visit his family again and re-enforce his decision to marry the h.
But they never make it, there is a car crash on the way and the h ends up in a coma. When she wakes up, eight months are gone and the h is feeling the pain of being kept in stasis while the world has moved on. This includes her beloved blonde marrying the woman he was originally engaged to. In fact he married her on the day the h woke up.
The h is in shock and trauma and the only person who comes to see her is the Broody Man brother. He got in the habit of showing up every day as his younger brother can't handle any type of serious situation and it is obvious to the reader, but not the h, that this is a seriously in love man who won't hesitate to get what he wants. The h is naturally angry over everything that has occurred and she thinks she might have grounds for a lawsuit against the younger brother, as she has no job and no home anymore, she is going to need to some kind of compensation.
The H arranged for her to have private care and he also arranges to bring the h to his home to recuperate. The h goes ballistic one she realizes she is effectively hi-jacked, she believes the H has done it to prevent her from taking the brother to court. Her mum lives in New Zealand with a second family and the h can't travel, so after her mum leaves she is pretty much on her own.
Well except for the Broody H, that is. They have more than a few skirmishes that always seem to end up in big time roofie kisses. The h is beginning to think she really is brain-damaged because she hates the Broody H, but she just melts when he kisses her.
After meeting some of the H's friends who run a restaurant and we get a little fresh trout with melon and homemade scones food porn, the H and h venture out onto the local river for a lovely little boat ride. This ends in another big roofie kiss moment and the h getting soaked from the wake of a speedboat.
The h had overheard from two women in the ladies room that the Broody H's brother was back in England and she demands to see him. She accuses the H of deliberately keeping her separated so that his family doesn't get discomfited about the girl whose life they wrecked. This sets the Broody H off on a really broody moment and he takes the h to the family estate, which is in the middle of a big croquet party.
The h meets the ex and his wife and is shocked beyond all measure when the H announces they are engaged. Tensions seethe between the H, OM and h and the H's family, who have another daughter of old family friend's in mind for the H, are most unwelcoming in that very well mannered upper-class kind of way, tho they never actually talk to the h.
The h realizes that her feelings were not as deep as she thought and that the OM really was turning to her in a fit of pique because he didn't get his own way with his fiancee, who wanted a year to do some further schooling. Still, the H has irked her beyond belief, especially as the family's choice for him looks like a predatory jaguar on the prowl.
So the h does what any spirited h in a CL book would do, she stirs the pot to see what explodes. The h taunts the H that he is going to have sort out his girlfriend at the party after she hears the news of his engagement to the h and she hopes the lady tears him apart, they both seemed equally matched in the tearing into other people stakes. Then the h goes off to play croquet.
In a hysterically funny scene, the h tells the H's wanna be OW they are engaged and the OW storms off. The brother's wife chases after her and the brother tells the h that the H made him stay away from the h.
The H is so blandly assertive that the h loses her temper and calls him a kidnapper and a liar and a ruthless bully, she is getting rather loud in her accusations and the H explains that the h is still volatile and emotionally unstable from the accident. The H takes it all in stride and his brother is full of horror that the h might be mentally unstable.
The brother, whom the h realizes is the weak, non confrontational type and will always take the easy path, runs off back to his wife and the H is very smug, because the h just told everyone they are getting married and now she has to follow through on it.
They go back to the H's home and the lady who cares for the house and has been helping the h explains that she was mistaken in her opinion of the h. The woman is a good friend of the H's mother and thought the h was a gold-digger, but now realizes that it was the brother who was behaving badly and she gives her unqualified endorsement to the h.
The H then tells the h that he has invited his parent's over for dinner. The h isn't enthused, cause it is clear his mother in particular despises her. The H's father is fairly neutral and we don't hear much from him, so in classic CL fashion, it is the potential mother in law that proceeds to rock the boat.
The woman makes every attempt at the dinner to undermine the h and goes into great detail about how the h has caused nothing but trouble for her family. She makes it plain that the H is earmarked for the OW and the h tells her not to worry, she isn't marrying the H. The H, on the other hand, has no intention of being denied what he wants and certainly his mother isn't going to interfere. She can like it or she can lump it, the H is very sure that she will come around eventually.
The h doesn't care tho, she is plotting her escape and plans to go to her mother in New Zealand, even tho the H explains that her mother is unreachable because she is on holiday. So when the h has her final check up to be medically cleared, she escapes from the H's watch and books herself a flight and ends up in a hotel room by the airport.
The H tracks her down and tells her he loves her and he isn't letting her go, he will hunt her down to the ends of the earth if necessary and more than that, she loves him too. He explains that his mother may have tried to marry him off to the OW, but he isn't interested in her and really she only wants him because he has the appropriate social accouterments, money and a old family and social status, there is no love between them at all.
He also tells her that he fell in love at first sight and when she was in a coma, he would go talk to her every day and when he told her about his brother getting married, that was the day she woke up and he hoped that would happen so he could take his chance. The h finally accepts that for all his broody, manipulative and bullying faults, she loves the H back and they happily share a meal and proceed to the ecstatic lurve clubbing for the big HP HEA.
This one is actually CL light, but it is very entertaining. CL updates her domineering H to show that the man is head over heels and that really, really lightens up the tone of the book. He does kidnap the h, he is borderline stalkerific and those kisses are definitely punishing, but this H is also pretty funny and the h is not a weak doormat or a throw rug, she is just a nice girl that has been through a very rough time.
I like how CL solved the mother in law issue too, normally she has the man with the interfering mother take a hike in the mists of HPlandia, but in this instance she has the H make it very clear that the mother has no say in anything and she gives him the character to enforce that. If you like CL and her uber Alpha males or if your HP dial is set to obsessive stalkerific, this one is a must read and great outing to the CL province of HPlandia.
This one starts with the h waking up in hospital and having no idear what is wrong, but everyone seems really excited to see her open her eyes. As memory returns to the befuddled h, we get the events leading up to the dramatic reawakening.
The h is a regular girl who works in an office, one day she met a nice blonde young man and they fell in love. They decided to marry and the h was happy and floating along on the fluffy pink cloud of infatuation until she meet her beloved's very wealthy family and realized they despise her, mainly cause she is outside of their social circle.
The h's love also has a tall, dark and very brooding older brother. The h doesn't like him at all, he is domineering and bullying, but the h doesn't think too much of him as she isn't marry him after all. (Well we all know where this is going, don't we?)
The Broody Man shows up at the h's doorstep and demands that she leave his brother alone. He tells the h that his brother is actually engaged to a family friend's long time daughter and the h will never take her place. The h is furious, as she knows her young man loves her and believes his family is just pushing the marriage on an unwilling candidate. When the h asks her love about it, he tells her that he and his old fiance are broken up, but she is out of the country and he was waiting until she returned to break the sad news that he loves the h. Then he decides that they should go visit his family again and re-enforce his decision to marry the h.
But they never make it, there is a car crash on the way and the h ends up in a coma. When she wakes up, eight months are gone and the h is feeling the pain of being kept in stasis while the world has moved on. This includes her beloved blonde marrying the woman he was originally engaged to. In fact he married her on the day the h woke up.
The h is in shock and trauma and the only person who comes to see her is the Broody Man brother. He got in the habit of showing up every day as his younger brother can't handle any type of serious situation and it is obvious to the reader, but not the h, that this is a seriously in love man who won't hesitate to get what he wants. The h is naturally angry over everything that has occurred and she thinks she might have grounds for a lawsuit against the younger brother, as she has no job and no home anymore, she is going to need to some kind of compensation.
The H arranged for her to have private care and he also arranges to bring the h to his home to recuperate. The h goes ballistic one she realizes she is effectively hi-jacked, she believes the H has done it to prevent her from taking the brother to court. Her mum lives in New Zealand with a second family and the h can't travel, so after her mum leaves she is pretty much on her own.
Well except for the Broody H, that is. They have more than a few skirmishes that always seem to end up in big time roofie kisses. The h is beginning to think she really is brain-damaged because she hates the Broody H, but she just melts when he kisses her.
After meeting some of the H's friends who run a restaurant and we get a little fresh trout with melon and homemade scones food porn, the H and h venture out onto the local river for a lovely little boat ride. This ends in another big roofie kiss moment and the h getting soaked from the wake of a speedboat.
The h had overheard from two women in the ladies room that the Broody H's brother was back in England and she demands to see him. She accuses the H of deliberately keeping her separated so that his family doesn't get discomfited about the girl whose life they wrecked. This sets the Broody H off on a really broody moment and he takes the h to the family estate, which is in the middle of a big croquet party.
The h meets the ex and his wife and is shocked beyond all measure when the H announces they are engaged. Tensions seethe between the H, OM and h and the H's family, who have another daughter of old family friend's in mind for the H, are most unwelcoming in that very well mannered upper-class kind of way, tho they never actually talk to the h.
The h realizes that her feelings were not as deep as she thought and that the OM really was turning to her in a fit of pique because he didn't get his own way with his fiancee, who wanted a year to do some further schooling. Still, the H has irked her beyond belief, especially as the family's choice for him looks like a predatory jaguar on the prowl.
So the h does what any spirited h in a CL book would do, she stirs the pot to see what explodes. The h taunts the H that he is going to have sort out his girlfriend at the party after she hears the news of his engagement to the h and she hopes the lady tears him apart, they both seemed equally matched in the tearing into other people stakes. Then the h goes off to play croquet.
In a hysterically funny scene, the h tells the H's wanna be OW they are engaged and the OW storms off. The brother's wife chases after her and the brother tells the h that the H made him stay away from the h.
The H is so blandly assertive that the h loses her temper and calls him a kidnapper and a liar and a ruthless bully, she is getting rather loud in her accusations and the H explains that the h is still volatile and emotionally unstable from the accident. The H takes it all in stride and his brother is full of horror that the h might be mentally unstable.
The brother, whom the h realizes is the weak, non confrontational type and will always take the easy path, runs off back to his wife and the H is very smug, because the h just told everyone they are getting married and now she has to follow through on it.
They go back to the H's home and the lady who cares for the house and has been helping the h explains that she was mistaken in her opinion of the h. The woman is a good friend of the H's mother and thought the h was a gold-digger, but now realizes that it was the brother who was behaving badly and she gives her unqualified endorsement to the h.
The H then tells the h that he has invited his parent's over for dinner. The h isn't enthused, cause it is clear his mother in particular despises her. The H's father is fairly neutral and we don't hear much from him, so in classic CL fashion, it is the potential mother in law that proceeds to rock the boat.
The woman makes every attempt at the dinner to undermine the h and goes into great detail about how the h has caused nothing but trouble for her family. She makes it plain that the H is earmarked for the OW and the h tells her not to worry, she isn't marrying the H. The H, on the other hand, has no intention of being denied what he wants and certainly his mother isn't going to interfere. She can like it or she can lump it, the H is very sure that she will come around eventually.
The h doesn't care tho, she is plotting her escape and plans to go to her mother in New Zealand, even tho the H explains that her mother is unreachable because she is on holiday. So when the h has her final check up to be medically cleared, she escapes from the H's watch and books herself a flight and ends up in a hotel room by the airport.
The H tracks her down and tells her he loves her and he isn't letting her go, he will hunt her down to the ends of the earth if necessary and more than that, she loves him too. He explains that his mother may have tried to marry him off to the OW, but he isn't interested in her and really she only wants him because he has the appropriate social accouterments, money and a old family and social status, there is no love between them at all.
He also tells her that he fell in love at first sight and when she was in a coma, he would go talk to her every day and when he told her about his brother getting married, that was the day she woke up and he hoped that would happen so he could take his chance. The h finally accepts that for all his broody, manipulative and bullying faults, she loves the H back and they happily share a meal and proceed to the ecstatic lurve clubbing for the big HP HEA.
This one is actually CL light, but it is very entertaining. CL updates her domineering H to show that the man is head over heels and that really, really lightens up the tone of the book. He does kidnap the h, he is borderline stalkerific and those kisses are definitely punishing, but this H is also pretty funny and the h is not a weak doormat or a throw rug, she is just a nice girl that has been through a very rough time.
I like how CL solved the mother in law issue too, normally she has the man with the interfering mother take a hike in the mists of HPlandia, but in this instance she has the H make it very clear that the mother has no say in anything and she gives him the character to enforce that. If you like CL and her uber Alpha males or if your HP dial is set to obsessive stalkerific, this one is a must read and great outing to the CL province of HPlandia.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 22, 2017
One has to give it to CL, she knows how to make her characters seem real and believable, even if the story has nothing new to offer other than the coma angle.
The h and the om are in love and are planning to get married. Then the om’s big brother, the H lands up at her place with the usual heavy handed threats and tells her to keep her greedy hands off his brother as he is engaged to a nice sweet girl. The h is understandably shocked but gives him back some.
The next day, the om reassures her that it’s all untrue and takes her to meet his (disapproving) parents (again). They meet with an accident on the way and she lands up in a coma from where this story actually unfolds.
She wakes up after 8 months to realize that life and people (read the om) have moved on while she lay there on her bed. On the day she wakes the H makes a visit informing her that his brother has married and moved on and so should she. She is filled with anger and hatred for the H, knowing he played a role in things. Her anger is focused on the H while she is able exonerate the om somewhat (as is usual with the HPland hs). But the H forces his way in to her life and whisks her off to his home in the country to help her fully recuperate.
I really enjoyed their skirmishes and the h’s anger and itch for some retaliation/revenge was understandable. The boat trip and the later gate crashing of the croquet match were beautifully done. I liked the way the author made them come alive with real emotions and reactions, and they were not just the usual H/h caricatures (that I’ve been reading for past dozens of books). The H’s super arrogance mixed with his obvious infatuation made him irresistible.
And you can tell a smitten H when you see one! I suppose he fell for her badly the day he landed at her place to issue his threats, and it only got 'worse' from there as he dropped in (apparently) daily to see the comatose h and talk to her.
August 29, 2016
**********Spoilers********* Warning*********
I have to give this 5 stars simply because I was glued the whole way through. This was much lighter than most CL's I have read. It was much more tongue and cheek. Something I would expect more from Napier than Lamb, but it really worked.
Story opens when our heroine comes out of an 8 month coma caused from a car accident while the heroes brother was driving her home to "have it out" with his parents. Heroes brother was already engaged to another woman (whom parents absolutely adored) when he confessed undying love for our heroine and asked her to marry him. Mom and Pop are pissed and treat her as the evil OW or the devil incarnate (take your pick).
Poor heroine doesn't know what hit her (literally) and she ends up in a coma for 8 months. Most everyone thinks she won't ever recover. While she's in the coma, heroes brother (now graduated to jerk wad) marries his fiancé and the whole family sighs with relief. Except for the hero who was actually a decent guy, had a conscious, and came to visit the heroine every day.
Hero makes himself responsible for her, even taking her to his home to convalesce once she is released from the hospital. At that point, the sparks did fly. Especially, when she comes into contact with heroes brother (jerk wad) and his new wife at a family garden party. Hero is so concerned she will spill the beans to the new wife, that he announces that they are engaged. It seems the new wife never even knew about the heroine.
Of course, Mom and Pops are pissed (again). Now the gold digger really has her hooks into an even bigger, better, wealthier fish....our hero. The difference is, our hero does have a backbone, does love the heroine, and to he#$ with anyone who gets in his way. (I do so love a guy with a take no prisoners attitude) However, he does realize that his parents don't have the full scoop, are slighting the heroine, and he needs to do what he can to set the record straight. Right...so what does he do? He actually invites parents to dinner. Things start off kind of tense and frosty, but MIL does try to break the ice.
"Nothing personal dear, we really don't know you, do we?...But well you have caused a great deal of trouble in our lives you know. First Ricky's wanting to break with Meg to marry you, which made us very unhappy because we love Meg. And then of course the accident. Such an anxious time. Ricky was beside himself. We thought he was just going to spend the rest of his life waiting for you to come out of that coma and throw his life away....
Things just seem to happen around you. You've brought our family nothing but trouble and it's happening all over again with Vincent. We were thunderstruck when we heard that he was marrying you. It's history repeating itself all over again. I don't suppose you know Magdalen. We're very fond of her and we had all planned that one day...well we hoped that Vince would marry her."
Geez, what a peach. Talk about the MIL from he#$. Someone needs to tell our poor heroine to run, because "honey, you really do marry the family".
Any way, it was a very fun ride in a cheeky way. I bet CL had a good time writing this one. I highly recommend.
I have to give this 5 stars simply because I was glued the whole way through. This was much lighter than most CL's I have read. It was much more tongue and cheek. Something I would expect more from Napier than Lamb, but it really worked.
Story opens when our heroine comes out of an 8 month coma caused from a car accident while the heroes brother was driving her home to "have it out" with his parents. Heroes brother was already engaged to another woman (whom parents absolutely adored) when he confessed undying love for our heroine and asked her to marry him. Mom and Pop are pissed and treat her as the evil OW or the devil incarnate (take your pick).
Poor heroine doesn't know what hit her (literally) and she ends up in a coma for 8 months. Most everyone thinks she won't ever recover. While she's in the coma, heroes brother (now graduated to jerk wad) marries his fiancé and the whole family sighs with relief. Except for the hero who was actually a decent guy, had a conscious, and came to visit the heroine every day.
Hero makes himself responsible for her, even taking her to his home to convalesce once she is released from the hospital. At that point, the sparks did fly. Especially, when she comes into contact with heroes brother (jerk wad) and his new wife at a family garden party. Hero is so concerned she will spill the beans to the new wife, that he announces that they are engaged. It seems the new wife never even knew about the heroine.
Of course, Mom and Pops are pissed (again). Now the gold digger really has her hooks into an even bigger, better, wealthier fish....our hero. The difference is, our hero does have a backbone, does love the heroine, and to he#$ with anyone who gets in his way. (I do so love a guy with a take no prisoners attitude) However, he does realize that his parents don't have the full scoop, are slighting the heroine, and he needs to do what he can to set the record straight. Right...so what does he do? He actually invites parents to dinner. Things start off kind of tense and frosty, but MIL does try to break the ice.
"Nothing personal dear, we really don't know you, do we?...But well you have caused a great deal of trouble in our lives you know. First Ricky's wanting to break with Meg to marry you, which made us very unhappy because we love Meg. And then of course the accident. Such an anxious time. Ricky was beside himself. We thought he was just going to spend the rest of his life waiting for you to come out of that coma and throw his life away....
Things just seem to happen around you. You've brought our family nothing but trouble and it's happening all over again with Vincent. We were thunderstruck when we heard that he was marrying you. It's history repeating itself all over again. I don't suppose you know Magdalen. We're very fond of her and we had all planned that one day...well we hoped that Vince would marry her."
Geez, what a peach. Talk about the MIL from he#$. Someone needs to tell our poor heroine to run, because "honey, you really do marry the family".
Any way, it was a very fun ride in a cheeky way. I bet CL had a good time writing this one. I highly recommend.
October 27, 2021
Really enjoyed this classic CL. She was the unwitting other woman before the car accident that put her into a coma. (The heroine has supernatural hair....she was in an accident and then a coma for 8 months. Her head was shaved, but after 8 months she has long hair. Wow! Wonder what products that hospital used on her hair??)
September 13, 2018
The H was a captain-of-industry Superbaby -- a man who was admired for his maturity and no-nonsense business acumen, but when he meets the h, he decides he is going to have her NO MATTER WHAT and proceeds to use the same methods a two-year-old might use if he had a Platinum Amex card. He lies, lies, lies, stubbornly refuses to answer questions he doesn't like, and gets mad or pouty when the h objects.
June 27, 2016
Good read with a very smitten hero!
March 22, 2012
This was good -- a classic, older HP. The hero wasn't tremendously awful, showing some concern for the heroine and letting you suspect that he might have been in love with her the whole time. Enough romantic interaction to keep my interest (lately I've been finding that it's harder to stay engaged with older HPs where the characters pretty much don't even kiss until the end). Nothing ground-breaking, but a light, decent read.
One small nitpick that the heroine apparently had her head shaved after her accident, yet 8 months later had long, flowing hair down her back. Anyone whose hair grew that long in 8 months would be a seriously hairy person all over, I think. :-)
One small nitpick that the heroine apparently had her head shaved after her accident, yet 8 months later had long, flowing hair down her back. Anyone whose hair grew that long in 8 months would be a seriously hairy person all over, I think. :-)
March 28, 2013
Solid vintage HP read. Interesting premise with the heroine having just awakened from a coma. She was in a relationship with the hero's brother. But while she was asleep he married someone else and the hero has sat by her side for 8 months. I liked the whole set up but I found the heroine a bit childish. Her dislike for the hero lasted a little too long based on how basically nice to her he was. It was nice to see him so in love with her. The reader of course could see it even if the heroine could not.
Read
December 22, 2016DNF for some reason.
It's me, not you.
It's me, not you.
June 3, 2022
A 3.5. Not usually a fan of coma or amnesia stories but this was very readable. The older brother Vincent steps in when the younger goes back to his longstanding fiancee during heroine's months in hospital. Out of the goodness of his heart of course. Which appears to be located about 18 inches lower down his body. Heroine rages then succumbs. And who can blame her.
November 14, 2017
“Spellbinding” is the story of Belinda and Vincent.
The tale of how a man falls in love with a woman..in coma.. who also happens to be his brother’s ex!
When Belinda wakes up from an 8 month coma, her life has drastically altered! She’s lost her house, job and fiancé- and her nemesis stares at her, kidnaps her and then kisses her!
It was a fun read. Vincent was obviously obsessed with Bel, and went through all the OTT methods to make her his.
Belinda initially views herself in love with Ricky, but soon the bruising kisses and passionate confessions make her fall for Vincent.
Really good read but wished we got to see more interactions between the couple after the issues were resolved. An epilogue would have helped!
Safe with minor exceptions
3.5/5
The tale of how a man falls in love with a woman..in coma.. who also happens to be his brother’s ex!
When Belinda wakes up from an 8 month coma, her life has drastically altered! She’s lost her house, job and fiancé- and her nemesis stares at her, kidnaps her and then kisses her!
It was a fun read. Vincent was obviously obsessed with Bel, and went through all the OTT methods to make her his.
Belinda initially views herself in love with Ricky, but soon the bruising kisses and passionate confessions make her fall for Vincent.
Really good read but wished we got to see more interactions between the couple after the issues were resolved. An epilogue would have helped!
Safe with minor exceptions
3.5/5
June 15, 2012
It was a frustrating read that made me want to strangle the hero a couple of times, but i decided to let him live since he is supposed to be a typical old school harlequin hero. Domineering, arrogantly sure of his masculine proves and passionate, but he occasionally also shoved a softer side. The heroine resisted (at least tried pretty hard)his domineering and arrogant ways which naturally caused sparks to fly all over the place. Well at least i saw them.
There was almost no character development and not a lot of story but i was nonetheless glued to the screen the entire time i was reading it. I think i was the the fact that i found the characters emotions very convincing that made it such an interesting read. It's nothing deep but it did make me burn with different kinds of emotions.
There was almost no character development and not a lot of story but i was nonetheless glued to the screen the entire time i was reading it. I think i was the the fact that i found the characters emotions very convincing that made it such an interesting read. It's nothing deep but it did make me burn with different kinds of emotions.
January 21, 2016
What an awesome story! She was in a coma for 18 months while the world changed around her. I thought more could have been done for the story from that angle however the love story components were great. The guy faithfully coming to see her every day cause he can't stay away!!! Wow that's devotion!
November 6, 2019
Mengingat novel Harlequin ini terbit pertama kali thn 1990, saya hrs sedikit toleran terhdp masa itu yg demen banget hal-hal yg berbau dramatis. Dan novel ini tak terelakkan lagi banyak dramanya yg ngeselin.
Belinda sudah koma 8 bulan dan mendadak suatu hari dia "bangun" dari tidur panjangnya, dan mendapati Vincent, musuh bebuyutannya hadir dlm momen tsb.
Belinda ini tadinya adalah kekasih dan calon tunangan Ricky, tetapi insiden kecelakaan tabrakan membuat Belinda terkapar spt Putri Salju di RS, sedangkan Ricky menikah dgn gadis yg dijodohkan padanya.
Kalau dibilang novel ini retelling Snow White, tampaknya gak tepat jg. Vincent ini tipe manipulator dan controller akut yg hobi banget ngatur-ngatur hidup Belinda. Dan begonya Belinda selalu melawan dgn bodoh, yg dungunya setiap kali dicium Vincent, Belinda langsung meleleh. Tetapi setelah magic spell-nya Vincent pupus, Belinda back to basic, bilang benci mulu kpd Vincent.
Hubungan triangle love Ricky - Belinda - Vincent ini rada nyebelin bagi saya. Ricky tipe cowok manja, Belinda tipe judgmental, Vincent tipe manipulator yg entah kenapa bisa kepincut dgn Belinda ini. Soalnya saya gak bisa liat bagus-bagusnya si Belinda ini.
Tapi kalau kamu pecinta romance dgn hero tipe alpha dan novel banyak drama, mungkin novel ini memang utk anda.
Belinda sudah koma 8 bulan dan mendadak suatu hari dia "bangun" dari tidur panjangnya, dan mendapati Vincent, musuh bebuyutannya hadir dlm momen tsb.
Belinda ini tadinya adalah kekasih dan calon tunangan Ricky, tetapi insiden kecelakaan tabrakan membuat Belinda terkapar spt Putri Salju di RS, sedangkan Ricky menikah dgn gadis yg dijodohkan padanya.
Kalau dibilang novel ini retelling Snow White, tampaknya gak tepat jg. Vincent ini tipe manipulator dan controller akut yg hobi banget ngatur-ngatur hidup Belinda. Dan begonya Belinda selalu melawan dgn bodoh, yg dungunya setiap kali dicium Vincent, Belinda langsung meleleh. Tetapi setelah magic spell-nya Vincent pupus, Belinda back to basic, bilang benci mulu kpd Vincent.
Hubungan triangle love Ricky - Belinda - Vincent ini rada nyebelin bagi saya. Ricky tipe cowok manja, Belinda tipe judgmental, Vincent tipe manipulator yg entah kenapa bisa kepincut dgn Belinda ini. Soalnya saya gak bisa liat bagus-bagusnya si Belinda ini.
Tapi kalau kamu pecinta romance dgn hero tipe alpha dan novel banyak drama, mungkin novel ini memang utk anda.
June 27, 2025
This story is bonkers. The heroine is engaged to a wishy-washy playboy type and wakes up from a lengthy coma to find out that her fiancé married someone else but his brother is now obsessed with her. It was short enough that I didn’t feel like I was losing too many brain cells, as the plot revolves around the hero bossing her around, her getting cute and feisty mad, him kissing her until she swoons…and repeat…until the big love declaration at the end. Would I read more from this author? Yeah, probably, because despite finding her plots utterly ridiculous, there’s just something about the writing style that keeps me turning pages.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 8, 2015
She woke to a strange world
After months in a coma, Belinda woke to find she'd lost her job, her apartment and even her fiance, Ricky. He had left her for another woman.
She resolved to get on with things and make a new life for herself. But she hadn't reckoned on the meddling of Ricky's brother, powerful merchant broker Vincent Garrett.
Gradually, despite all her attempts to evade him, Belinda was forced to acknowledge the attractions of a very unconventional Prince Charming ....
After months in a coma, Belinda woke to find she'd lost her job, her apartment and even her fiance, Ricky. He had left her for another woman.
She resolved to get on with things and make a new life for herself. But she hadn't reckoned on the meddling of Ricky's brother, powerful merchant broker Vincent Garrett.
Gradually, despite all her attempts to evade him, Belinda was forced to acknowledge the attractions of a very unconventional Prince Charming ....
November 11, 2013
seems it was love at 1st sight 4 vincent ! in only one meeting, he fell hard 4 her n knew she was the one. i dunno 4u but it sounds cheesy 2me. i did not believe nor feel dat they were actually in love. even their supposed attraction 2 each other seemed false, especially on belinda's part. she was so unaware of him at 1st n felt only antagonism towards him dat it was a very big surprise when she suddenly realised she loved him actually !! lol;)
February 14, 2020
Story:
H:
Manipulate her
Kiss her when she says NO.
More manipulation
Tell her she is stupid.
More manipulation
More forceful kissing.
Of course he loves her.
h : She is just TSTL.
I rest my case.
H:
Manipulate her
Kiss her when she says NO.
More manipulation
Tell her she is stupid.
More manipulation
More forceful kissing.
Of course he loves her.
h : She is just TSTL.
I rest my case.
October 27, 2017
Nothing special, nothing terrible. Just a Liberty print duvet cover and random drinking of tomato juice and pineapple juice.
November 4, 2019
Saat membaca sinopsisnya tentang gadis yang bangus dari koma, saya berpikir ceritanya mungkin menjanjikan. Apalagi gadis ini menemukan kenyataan bahwa kekasihnya telah menikah.
Tapi yang bikin ngeselin adalah si Vincent yang merasa bisa mengatur segalanya. Bukannya memberikan penjelasan logis kepada Belinda, dia malah mengatakan bahwa akan menikahi Belinda. Sampai terakhir masih saja sok ngatur.
Tapi yang bikin ngeselin adalah si Vincent yang merasa bisa mengatur segalanya. Bukannya memberikan penjelasan logis kepada Belinda, dia malah mengatakan bahwa akan menikahi Belinda. Sampai terakhir masih saja sok ngatur.
August 4, 2017
Call me sentimental but I kind of have a soft spot for this one as I've definitely read it in my youth. I felt sorry for our h she got royally messed about by the H's brother and he really did need to get a grip. But our H more than makes up for it and while it's a bit weird falling in lurve with coma girl once she wakes up its a bit more believable and she has him jumping through hoops more or less while she keeps her backbone.
November 28, 2021
Disappointing. I am a fan of Charlotte Lamb, so I expected a lot of reading this.
But it was boring. She sees him and then she doesn’t see him for weeks and then she sees him again and then she doesn’t him again for weeks, etc. The pace felt slow.
I don’t like the ‘keeping it in the family’ trope. She was first in love with his brother. I find that gross. She didn’t sleep with his brother, but still.
I liked the H, but I didn’t like the h. Her emotions were all over the place.
But it was boring. She sees him and then she doesn’t see him for weeks and then she sees him again and then she doesn’t him again for weeks, etc. The pace felt slow.
I don’t like the ‘keeping it in the family’ trope. She was first in love with his brother. I find that gross. She didn’t sleep with his brother, but still.
I liked the H, but I didn’t like the h. Her emotions were all over the place.
December 9, 2020
Yikes. The Hero and his family are just trash. Disliked all of them. Maybe the hero's dad is okay, since he didn't say anything, but everyone else, yuck. Heroine...GO TO New Zealand!!!! Why are you here? Your mom came, leave WITH HER! You've got nothing to stay for. Just leave! That was annoying. Skip, this could have been great story but the execution was not good. Skip.
November 8, 2016
I love the writing style and the storyline. But how Charlote Lamb deals with the emotion is over the top.I hate when the character act out of thier personality for the sake of the storyline I feel... disappointed.
November 20, 2021
he was a sexual deviant psycho and she only stopped herself from being the dumbest woman alive because i could blame a lot of her bullshit on her coma. how many times can a person be too furious to speak or clear up lies??
November 20, 2014
I always like HPs where the hero is the older brother of the heroine's fiance and he manages to steal her away for himself.
January 20, 2022
Cerita orang yang koma dan bangun-bangun dunianya berubah total dalam kurun waktu kurang dari satu tahun. Agak berbeda dari HQ yang biasa saya baca. Well, semoga perbedaan ini timbulin sensasi baca yang baru.
Belinda cinta mati sama Ricky. Sejenis bucin yang bakal maafin laki-lakinya sebesar apa pun kesalahan dia. Terbukti waktu kakak Ricky datang buat jelasin kalau sebenarnya Ricky udah punya tunangan dan jadiin Belinda pelampiasan, Belinda menolak percaya. Begonya lagi, dia maafin aja waktu Ricky ngakuin segalanya. Jalin hubungan kayak enggak ada apa-apa.
Bentar. Baru awal, saya udah pengin mites si Belinda. Aduh, ini perempuan kok bucinnya amit-amit. Si Bego Ricky harusnya ditenggelamin ke Atlantik, bukan dibucinin. Belinda dodol!
Selepas kembali ke dunia nyata, Belinda harus ngadepin kenyataan tentang pernikahan laki-laki yang dicintainya selama Belinda koma. Lagi bulan madu sama istrinya pula. Hadeh, yang jenguk malah kakak Ricky, Vincent.
"Aku akan membuatmu menyesal karena pernah melihatku!"
"Aku memang menyesal," tukas Belinda.
Vincent Garrett bersedia bertanggung jawab atas kecelakaan yang dialami Belinda sama Ricky. Adiknya bodo amat, Vincent yang repot nanggung perawatan Belinda bahkan bela-belain ungsiin Belinda ke tempat pemulihan privat alias rumahnya.
Sekilas rada aneh sama motif Vincent. Masa sih dia sebaik itu demi cegah Belinda nuntut Ricky di pengadilan?
"...Semua terjadi tidak terlalu lama sejak kau benar-benar jatuh cinta pada Ricky. Dan ketika kau tersadar dari koma, kau masih mencintai dia. Aku tak ingin terlihat bodoh dengan berkata aku jatuh cinta padamu ketika kau masih tergila-gila pada adikku..."
Dan jawabannya saya temukan di bab menjelang ending. Love at first sight, haha! Klise dan tipe pasif agresif.
Oke, to be honest, ide cerita ini fresh. Kakak nikung adik, koma, manfaatin keadaan sebisa mungkin, calon ibu mertua yang terkesan baik tapi omongannya nancep, dan male lead yang tegas. Vincent enggak peduli orang tuanya nentang hubungannya dan Belinda karena dialah yang menentukan kebahagiaan hidupnya. Dominan, hobi ngatur, posesif, dan pembohong kawakan.
Minusnya, Vincent enggak terdeskripsikan dengan baik. Sepanjang cerita, isinya Belinda, Belinda, dan segala prasangka Belinda. Sisi Vincent itu minim sekali, padahal pakai third POV. Kesan pembaca terhadap pengarakteran Vincent jadinya negatif dan enggak respect sama tingkahnya. Keterangan sisi lain Vincent malah full diungkapkan di akhir cerita. Panjang kali lebar kali tinggi. Dari cool seketika jadi bucin. Dari Mr. Control seketika jadi Mr. Pengertian. So sudden.
Belum lagi hole-nya. Terdapat narasi yang menyatakan bahwa Belinda belum mengklaim uang asuransi sehabis kecelakaan karena lebih dulu direcokin Vincent. Dia hampir kehabisan uang buat beliin syal buat suster di rumah sakit yang ngerawat dia. Ketambahan beli gaun dan peralatan make-up, baru bangun dari koma, enggak punya kerjaan berbulan-bulan, Belinda bisa dikatakan enggak mampu buat beli tiket penerbangan ke Selandia Baru.
Lah, kok di bab akhir malah berkebalikan dengan fakta yang sudah diungkapkan? Itu duit dateng sendiri ke rekeningkah? Belum lagi nginep di hotel dekat bandara. Enggak masuk akal menurut saya. Ibunya aja enggak sanggup bayar panggilan internasional, Belinda dapet duit tambahan dari mana?
Hadeh.
Terlepas dari kekurangan yang sudah terpampang, cerita ini menarik untuk diikuti bagi pembaca yang nyari bacaan ringan dan enggak perlu misuh-misuh sama tokohnya. Selancar jalan tol dan paling-paling cuma nemu satu tikungan. Vincent nikung Ricky. Good job buat penulisnya!
Belinda cinta mati sama Ricky. Sejenis bucin yang bakal maafin laki-lakinya sebesar apa pun kesalahan dia. Terbukti waktu kakak Ricky datang buat jelasin kalau sebenarnya Ricky udah punya tunangan dan jadiin Belinda pelampiasan, Belinda menolak percaya. Begonya lagi, dia maafin aja waktu Ricky ngakuin segalanya. Jalin hubungan kayak enggak ada apa-apa.
Bentar. Baru awal, saya udah pengin mites si Belinda. Aduh, ini perempuan kok bucinnya amit-amit. Si Bego Ricky harusnya ditenggelamin ke Atlantik, bukan dibucinin. Belinda dodol!
Selepas kembali ke dunia nyata, Belinda harus ngadepin kenyataan tentang pernikahan laki-laki yang dicintainya selama Belinda koma. Lagi bulan madu sama istrinya pula. Hadeh, yang jenguk malah kakak Ricky, Vincent.
"Aku akan membuatmu menyesal karena pernah melihatku!"
"Aku memang menyesal," tukas Belinda.
Vincent Garrett bersedia bertanggung jawab atas kecelakaan yang dialami Belinda sama Ricky. Adiknya bodo amat, Vincent yang repot nanggung perawatan Belinda bahkan bela-belain ungsiin Belinda ke tempat pemulihan privat alias rumahnya.
Sekilas rada aneh sama motif Vincent. Masa sih dia sebaik itu demi cegah Belinda nuntut Ricky di pengadilan?
"...Semua terjadi tidak terlalu lama sejak kau benar-benar jatuh cinta pada Ricky. Dan ketika kau tersadar dari koma, kau masih mencintai dia. Aku tak ingin terlihat bodoh dengan berkata aku jatuh cinta padamu ketika kau masih tergila-gila pada adikku..."
Dan jawabannya saya temukan di bab menjelang ending. Love at first sight, haha! Klise dan tipe pasif agresif.
Oke, to be honest, ide cerita ini fresh. Kakak nikung adik, koma, manfaatin keadaan sebisa mungkin, calon ibu mertua yang terkesan baik tapi omongannya nancep, dan male lead yang tegas. Vincent enggak peduli orang tuanya nentang hubungannya dan Belinda karena dialah yang menentukan kebahagiaan hidupnya. Dominan, hobi ngatur, posesif, dan pembohong kawakan.
Minusnya, Vincent enggak terdeskripsikan dengan baik. Sepanjang cerita, isinya Belinda, Belinda, dan segala prasangka Belinda. Sisi Vincent itu minim sekali, padahal pakai third POV. Kesan pembaca terhadap pengarakteran Vincent jadinya negatif dan enggak respect sama tingkahnya. Keterangan sisi lain Vincent malah full diungkapkan di akhir cerita. Panjang kali lebar kali tinggi. Dari cool seketika jadi bucin. Dari Mr. Control seketika jadi Mr. Pengertian. So sudden.
Belum lagi hole-nya. Terdapat narasi yang menyatakan bahwa Belinda belum mengklaim uang asuransi sehabis kecelakaan karena lebih dulu direcokin Vincent. Dia hampir kehabisan uang buat beliin syal buat suster di rumah sakit yang ngerawat dia. Ketambahan beli gaun dan peralatan make-up, baru bangun dari koma, enggak punya kerjaan berbulan-bulan, Belinda bisa dikatakan enggak mampu buat beli tiket penerbangan ke Selandia Baru.
Lah, kok di bab akhir malah berkebalikan dengan fakta yang sudah diungkapkan? Itu duit dateng sendiri ke rekeningkah? Belum lagi nginep di hotel dekat bandara. Enggak masuk akal menurut saya. Ibunya aja enggak sanggup bayar panggilan internasional, Belinda dapet duit tambahan dari mana?
Hadeh.
Terlepas dari kekurangan yang sudah terpampang, cerita ini menarik untuk diikuti bagi pembaca yang nyari bacaan ringan dan enggak perlu misuh-misuh sama tokohnya. Selancar jalan tol dan paling-paling cuma nemu satu tikungan. Vincent nikung Ricky. Good job buat penulisnya!
March 10, 2023
Eh. I didn't feel this one. It's the same concept as Michelle Reid's Marriage on the Rebound, with the trope of the older brother falling in love with his brother's fiancee at first glance and doing all he can to split then up so he can have her, but this one wasn't done as well. For one thing, the hero was so angry all the time. Of course you can feel his impatience and frustration because he's been falling deeper and deeper in love with a woman in a deep coma, for all that he knew anything tangible about her, as in anything more than her normal resting heart rate as monitored by the machines keeping her alive. Still, the book would have been better if he hadn't been so angry and she hadn't been so contentious. There's an angry forced first kiss, then loads more arguments as they have various other encounters to superfluously bring them closer together. Yawn. They met a ton of other side character fillers with whom they were less angry with and had far more interactions with. There's a long protracted explanation at the end, which was more tedious than heartwarming. Anyhoo, not one of CL's best.
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