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Marcolini Men #1
Amor a la fuerza (Bianca)
Nadie iba a obligar a un Marcolini a divorciarse. Y menos una ambiciosa mujer que podía marcharse con la fortuna de la familia. Antonio Marcolini estaba dispuesto a que Claire pagara. Y tenía el plan perfecto para vengarse: le exigiría que pasara tres meses con él, como marido y mujer. Nada conseguiría interponerse en su camino.
Pero Claire era inocente. ¿Cómo podía conseguir demostrarlo antes de que su marido le hiciera chantaje para que volviera a ser su esposa?
Pero Claire era inocente. ¿Cómo podía conseguir demostrarlo antes de que su marido le hiciera chantaje para que volviera a ser su esposa?
Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2009
25 people are currently reading
170 people want to read
About the author
Melanie Milburne
1,147 books392 followersI grew up on a small farm on the outskirts of Sydney and as a keen horse rider, often competed in local gymkhanas and even broke in a few horses from time to time. As I was surrounded by animals, I decided at an early age to become a nurse, however I couldn’t stand the sight of blood and so opted for a career in teaching. It’s a bit ironic that I married a surgeon.
I read my first Mills & Boon novel when I was 17 and that encouraged me to continue reading romance novels; the lure of the tall dark handsome hero, who in reality I fell in love with and knew I was going to marry on our second date! After marrying a year later, we moved to Scotland with our six week old baby so my husband could work and study for his MD in surgery. After the birth of our second son we came back to Australia to settle in Tasmania.
I went back to University and up-graded my teaching diploma to a degree and then went on to do a Masters but still I felt as if something was missing. I sat down one day and began writing and everything clicked into place - I had finally found ‘my brilliant career’! I used to write from instinct rather than a specific plan, but now, so many books later I find a loose plan doesn't go astray. An idea will pop into my head, sometimes it will be just a simple phrase or a what if question and I'm away.
Writing is a skill that can be learned and the best way to learn it is to read and to write. So many people feel they have a novel in them and very probably they are right-the only trick is to get it out. My advice to ‘would be’ writers is to write, write, and write even more. Carry a notebook at all times and jot down ideas. And like any other activity the more you do, the more it feels comfortable.
I hope you enjoy my stories and look forward to hearing from you.
I read my first Mills & Boon novel when I was 17 and that encouraged me to continue reading romance novels; the lure of the tall dark handsome hero, who in reality I fell in love with and knew I was going to marry on our second date! After marrying a year later, we moved to Scotland with our six week old baby so my husband could work and study for his MD in surgery. After the birth of our second son we came back to Australia to settle in Tasmania.
I went back to University and up-graded my teaching diploma to a degree and then went on to do a Masters but still I felt as if something was missing. I sat down one day and began writing and everything clicked into place - I had finally found ‘my brilliant career’! I used to write from instinct rather than a specific plan, but now, so many books later I find a loose plan doesn't go astray. An idea will pop into my head, sometimes it will be just a simple phrase or a what if question and I'm away.
Writing is a skill that can be learned and the best way to learn it is to read and to write. So many people feel they have a novel in them and very probably they are right-the only trick is to get it out. My advice to ‘would be’ writers is to write, write, and write even more. Carry a notebook at all times and jot down ideas. And like any other activity the more you do, the more it feels comfortable.
I hope you enjoy my stories and look forward to hearing from you.
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
April 4, 2021
Italian surgeon from a wealthy Italian family meets and marries an Australian hairdresser after a whirlwind romance resulting in a pregnancy. Hero promptly returns to Italy with his bride to his family's great dismay. He goes back to his punishing schedule and heroine delivers a stillborn daughter. The hero's mother writes heart-broken heroine a check to leave and heroine goes back to OZ.
The story opens five years later when the hero is in Sydney to promote his plastic surgery charity. Heroine's young brother steals and crashes the hero's sports car out of some misguided revenge for hurting his sister, so hero now has the perfect blackmail to get the heroine back. She will spend time with him to determine if their marriage should go forward and young brother won't go to jail.
The rest of the story goes as you might think. The sexual attraction is still there, the grief from their daughter's death is still there, and unfortunately, the hero's mother has Alzheimer's so no justice can be found in that corner of the story. There's also an OW who was a family friend - but while she bothered the h, she wasn't OTT enough to really stand out. (I like my OWs large and in charge of creating havoc). Between sex scenes, the h/H work out their differences.
And yes, this one needed an epilogue - just so the reader could see a viable pregnancy for the heroine.
The story opens five years later when the hero is in Sydney to promote his plastic surgery charity. Heroine's young brother steals and crashes the hero's sports car out of some misguided revenge for hurting his sister, so hero now has the perfect blackmail to get the heroine back. She will spend time with him to determine if their marriage should go forward and young brother won't go to jail.
The rest of the story goes as you might think. The sexual attraction is still there, the grief from their daughter's death is still there, and unfortunately, the hero's mother has Alzheimer's so no justice can be found in that corner of the story. There's also an OW who was a family friend - but while she bothered the h, she wasn't OTT enough to really stand out. (I like my OWs large and in charge of creating havoc). Between sex scenes, the h/H work out their differences.
And yes, this one needed an epilogue - just so the reader could see a viable pregnancy for the heroine.
dnf
March 12, 2017I am getting this vibe that hero hasn't stayed celibate during separation. Doesn't love the heroine. Wants pure sex before cutting ties which he can get from ANY woman since there is no emotion involved. He's just doing this for spite. He wants minimum damage in divorce. The whole thing is so cold and clinical, it left a really bad taste in my mouth and chill down my spine. I had to put this down and delete this off my iPad.
July 17, 2019
Disappointing! While I liked Claire, the same could not be said for Antonio. Blackmailing his wife to stay with him after being a no-show for five years, is not my idea of a hero. I'm sorry this just wasn't for me.
March 7, 2023
Me ha costado la vida terminar el audiolibro, a pesar de todas las risas que me he echado, pero aquí estoy. Esta historia es un libro muy ligero, sin mucha complicación más que la falta de comunicación entre los personajes. Es algo que se podría haber resuelto desde un principio teniendo una conversación de diez minutos. Pero, como siempre digo, "sin traba y drama no hay trama".
August 31, 2014
Hero blackmails h back into marriage. Five years ago his relatives, his career and the loss of their baby destroyed their fragile marriage. Moving on and dealing with the past is not easy but their HEA is well deserved. I wish there was an epilogue!
June 7, 2021
No one asks a Marcolini for a divorce. Especially a gold digger who could walk away with the family's fortune Antonio Marcolini will make Claire pay. And he has got the perfect plan for vengeance--he'll demand she spend the next three months living with him as his reconciled wife, and nothing will stop him from getting what he wants But Claire is innocent. Can she prove it before her husband blackmails her back into marriage...and the marriage bed?
January 4, 2021
Did not like it, heroine was vile little creature the whole book and also in the past recollections of her actions. I normally hate when heroes sleep with other women during separations in this case he should not be with the heroine in first place. She just constantly fights, accuses him of cheating and she makes decisions then blames him for her decisions. I don't even like hero either but he does deserve better then her. P.
December 5, 2018
Por momentos ambos personajes me parecían muy vuelteros, que si, que no, que bueno, que no me toques, a los dos minutos estaban otra vez... la historia algo rara, me quedo con agujeros en el medio que no termine de comprender. Lectura amena pero no es super genial.
September 29, 2020
The first of two books about the Marcolini brothers. This one is about Antonio and Claire where estranged when their child dies in stillbirth. She left believing that her husband cheated on her, with the help of his parents she flew back to Australia to start life anew. Five years later he comes to get her back. Any way he can. But can the problems that were there before be cleared up? I have reread this book several times and still enjoy how Melanie Milburne creates and draws me in with her words.
April 29, 2023
Drama
Angst and drama and adult content... I really wanted to like these two, but it felt like 95% of this story was I'M SO MAD AT HIM, and then the last two pages were the reconciliation. I appreciated the fact that it deals with loss of a child and how different people grieve... Just wanted to see more reconciliation happening.
Angst and drama and adult content... I really wanted to like these two, but it felt like 95% of this story was I'M SO MAD AT HIM, and then the last two pages were the reconciliation. I appreciated the fact that it deals with loss of a child and how different people grieve... Just wanted to see more reconciliation happening.
May 28, 2018
The ending was disappointing but I have the Marco story so I will re-read it and find out the answers to the questions I have.
June 28, 2022
marriage in trouble without a groveling hero i am in pain
April 12, 2021
La trama se basa en un chantaje y no funciona bien para mí.
March 4, 2017
Antonio and Claire have been estranged for 5 years after the stillbirth of their baby daughter (and the reason for the marriage in the first place). They had lots of issues in that first year together and when Claire learns that Antonio is in Australia for 3 months, she delivers divorce papers. But Antonio isn't ready to end things yet - not only isn't he willing to lose half of his inheritance to a gold-digger in a divorce, but he wants her back in his bed. So he blackmails her into spending the 3 months that he's there, with him.
This started out pretty strong. I was liking the set up and then it switches to Antonio's POV and I learned that he was never in love with Claire and he's blackmailing her so he can get a bit of sex before he moves on with his life. He cares nothing for her - the only thing on his mind is when he can get a little action. Oh and of course how he can keep her from getting rich off the divorce. He was pretty much an asshole. More than anything, it disturbed me that Claire, several times admits that she's confused and doesn't know what she wants regarding a physical relationship with him. He asks her if she wants him and she says, "I don't know." That's a man's first cue to back off and let her make up her mind, not continue the seduction. Especially when he's fully aware that in her more lucid moments (when she's not succumbing to major lust hormones) she is adamant about not sleeping with him. Not exactly a prince, this guy. Somewhat emphasized by the heavy implication that he'd not exactly been celibate during their separation. But then he doesn't love her, so why not?
Claire is another piece of work. This woman gave me whiplash with her mood swings. One moment she hates him, then she likes him, then she's cursing him, then she's about to have sex with him, then she regrets it and wants to sleep on the couch and then five minutes later she "doesn't want to be alone." I could not get a fix on this woman's emotions. And honestly I spent a majority of the book feeling embarrassed for her (which is somewhat new for me). She kept swearing up and down to Antonio that she didn't want him, then he'd seduce her and throw it back in her face. Once, we actually end the chapter with the heroine vowing she'd be strong and resist him and show Antonio how much wiser she was and that she "was not going down without a fight." Before the end of that night she'd ended up in bed with him. RME. I wanted to cringe in humiliation on her behalf. No fighting. No self-respect. Just a lust-ridden puddle of goo. And having sex without a condom too. Ugh.
I did like certain aspects of this. I liked that both of the characters have their moments when they realize that they are at fault as well. It's not just a blame game the entire time. The two of them really do some heavy thinking. They just don't always share it with each other. But then the ending was rather rushed and there was very little discussion of their issues and I ended up pretty disappointed with the story as a whole.
This started out pretty strong. I was liking the set up and then it switches to Antonio's POV and I learned that he was never in love with Claire and he's blackmailing her so he can get a bit of sex before he moves on with his life. He cares nothing for her - the only thing on his mind is when he can get a little action. Oh and of course how he can keep her from getting rich off the divorce. He was pretty much an asshole. More than anything, it disturbed me that Claire, several times admits that she's confused and doesn't know what she wants regarding a physical relationship with him. He asks her if she wants him and she says, "I don't know." That's a man's first cue to back off and let her make up her mind, not continue the seduction. Especially when he's fully aware that in her more lucid moments (when she's not succumbing to major lust hormones) she is adamant about not sleeping with him. Not exactly a prince, this guy. Somewhat emphasized by the heavy implication that he'd not exactly been celibate during their separation. But then he doesn't love her, so why not?
Claire is another piece of work. This woman gave me whiplash with her mood swings. One moment she hates him, then she likes him, then she's cursing him, then she's about to have sex with him, then she regrets it and wants to sleep on the couch and then five minutes later she "doesn't want to be alone." I could not get a fix on this woman's emotions. And honestly I spent a majority of the book feeling embarrassed for her (which is somewhat new for me). She kept swearing up and down to Antonio that she didn't want him, then he'd seduce her and throw it back in her face. Once, we actually end the chapter with the heroine vowing she'd be strong and resist him and show Antonio how much wiser she was and that she "was not going down without a fight." Before the end of that night she'd ended up in bed with him. RME. I wanted to cringe in humiliation on her behalf. No fighting. No self-respect. Just a lust-ridden puddle of goo. And having sex without a condom too. Ugh.
I did like certain aspects of this. I liked that both of the characters have their moments when they realize that they are at fault as well. It's not just a blame game the entire time. The two of them really do some heavy thinking. They just don't always share it with each other. But then the ending was rather rushed and there was very little discussion of their issues and I ended up pretty disappointed with the story as a whole.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 20, 2021
It never ceases to amaze me how many reasons these HP heroes can come up with to blackmail women into marrying them/staying married to them or getting them back, and how easily these heroines in question are coerced as if there's really no choice for them but to give in to the heroes' demands. Oh well, that's a staple when it comes to the HP line. Overall, the book was an okay read. Nothing special, but it helped me pass the time though.
January 10, 2015
I like it. The problems are not black and white, both parties had their own faults. It's nice that there's no cliche villain, only misunderstanding because of lack communication. But of course, he's so male and oozed sexual prowess that she couldn't resist sleeping with him even though she 'hated' him and regret it right after the deed was done. Gah...
October 8, 2016
You know when a tv series gets a unexpected cancelation they try to wrap up all the storylines in the last 5 mins of the show. That's what happened in the last 3 pages of this story. The book started out all right but got very boring in the middle. Then suddenly everything is fixed.
June 18, 2010
Is there any Marcolini man left for me????
March 3, 2013
2,5
Şantaj...
Fena değildide aradan 5 yıl geçmiş adamın aklı nerdeydi anlamadım..
Şantaj...
Fena değildide aradan 5 yıl geçmiş adamın aklı nerdeydi anlamadım..
March 27, 2016
Liked it.
June 13, 2017
Blah...wth! Too much going on.
April 16, 2015
Good start, but that was it!
it got sooo boring, it took me days to finish it :(
it got sooo boring, it took me days to finish it :(
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews