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Devil In Paradise
Kate knew exactly what she wanted to do
Since her great-uncle Henry had died and left her a half share in a villas in the south of France, she would pack her things and head straight there for the summer.
There was only one drawback. The other half of the villa had been left to Rafe Clarendon--a man whose reputation was legendary in her family!
Upon arriving, Kate found herself confronted by this man whom her mother had always claimed was half devil. Hardly surprising then that so much trouble quickly followed...
Since her great-uncle Henry had died and left her a half share in a villas in the south of France, she would pack her things and head straight there for the summer.
There was only one drawback. The other half of the villa had been left to Rafe Clarendon--a man whose reputation was legendary in her family!
Upon arriving, Kate found herself confronted by this man whom her mother had always claimed was half devil. Hardly surprising then that so much trouble quickly followed...
192 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1990
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July 3, 2017
Re Devil in Paradise - the French Riviera is the setting for Joanna Mansell's foray into HP suspense. The h is a 22 yr old aspiring author who unexpectedly inherits half of her great uncle's fortune - which includes half of a really nice French Riviera villa. So the h chucks her job, tells her mum to quit being such a mother and it is off to the Cote d'Azur we go. Except when we get there, the h is rudely locked out of the fabulous Villa de Anges by her devilish cousin.
He tells her she can't stay and won't let her in the door. Well the h is a Clarendon and more than a match for another Clarendon - JM lets us know that Clarendon's are tall, dark and very, very stubborn. The h breaks a window after the H goes out for the evening and climbs right in. She picks a bedroom and is all cozied up for a nap when she is rudely awakened by the H hauling her off over his shoulder to throw her out. So she pinches him in a self defense move and he drops her. Then she threatens him with a newspaper story about "Local Heiress Denied Access to Inheritance" if the H doesn't let her stay in her half of the villa.
The H reluctantly agrees and the h is happy she won, but worried about what this dark-eyed Clarendon devil might do next. What he does is feed the cats. We get a multi cat bonus in this one. There are cats One, Two and Three- they are local roamers and keep showing up and inviting themselves in for foods cause that is what cats like to do - and the H is cat person. The h is surprised at first until she thinks about it and realizes that the H is independent, does what he wants and is indifferent to opinion - just like those cats who are rather loudly demanding breakfast before roaming off again.
Later on the villa's private beach, the H tries to get very close to the h, he is eyeballing her and she is noticing him back. She thinks he is trying to use his manly hairy chest mojo to intimidate her into leaving, but the H is her cousin, so she isn't worried. Until the H reveals that he is adopted, it was just genetic circumstance that he looks and acts just like a Clarendon. This startles the h a bit, but she isn't leaving - so we go off to Nice for the day and there are a lot of nice shops.
The next day the cats are back for breakfast and they had a great dinner the night before. The H shows up as the h is finishing her morning swim and to the h's mortification he is quite starkers - he doesn't believe in swimsuits or pajamas and thought the h would like to know. The h leaves the H on the beach again, but not before taking a moment to appreciate his backside view adding to the magnificent scenery. Later that day the h finds the H's car by the side of the road , and being rather inquisitively cat-like herself, she stops to check things out. Only to be rudely grabbed and hauled into the bushes next to a private villa by the H. He is pretty angry and he sends her off.
The h is on full alert now. She knows the H is an enquiry agent, tho she thinks it is kinda silly for a grown man to be playing detectives. But she has a pretty insatiable curiosity herself, so she won't rest until she finds out what the H is up to. When the H comes home very late that night, the h is wandering around in her little nightie and the H can't resist a few roofie kisses.
He also is tired enough to explain that he is watching that particular villa because the man who lives there kidnapped his son. The six yr old's mum has full custody and the rich, powerful father did not like that and took him. The H is debating kidnapping the little boy back, but he needs to know how the little boy is and if he is happy in his new home. The H thinks if the little boy has adjusted, it might be better to leave him and let the mum fight it out legally. The h decides she needs to help the H out, he doesn't know anything about little kids, and frankly neither does she -but she is female and supposed to have maternal instincts or something. Plus she did a spot or two of babysitting as a teen.
So pretending to be swimmer's struck by cramp, the H and h swim over to the other villa's private beach. While the H and the boy's bodyguard are having a bit of a dust up, the little boy makes a break for the open sea. It is pretty obvious he is trying to get away and the H has to rescue him. The H and h meet the boy's father and the man has told the little boy that his mother is dead. This irks the h and the H and h accept the father's invitation to dinner the next evening. The little boy's father is the big mega tycoon type and it is very clear that he can't keep his eyes off the h's tiny bikini that the H had her buy for this outing.
So we go the other villa for dinner and the tension is high, the H and h are getting closer and there have been roofie kissing incidents. The h doesn't think much of the father, he is very regimented and cold and seems to have no time for his son. So the h wanders around the villa and finds out where the little boy's room is. That night the H kidnaps him and brings the child back to the H and h's villa. Unfortunately the little boy's mum is in hospital and can't come collect him with the proper paperwork right away. So the little boy feeds the cats and swims in the pool for several days until the h convinces the H to take them all to Cannes for an outing.
That turns out to be a mistake as the child's father's bodyguard sees them on the way back and follows them and makes them all go back to the boy's father's villa. The bodyguard beats the H up and then locks the H and h in a room. This enforced confinement leads to body parts colliding and the h is in love and the H calls it the best night ever.
The next morning the tycoon father starts demanding explanations from the H and h and the h tells him off roundly. She explains that his kid hates him and doesn't want to live with him and unless he fixes things right now and lets the boy live with his mum and only see the father for visits, he isn't going to have a son for much longer, the little boy will become a teenager and make the father's life miserable and will probably reject his empire too when he grows up.
The tycoon father calls the little boy down and the kid is very clear that he doesn't like his father AT ALL. So the tycoon realizes that he isn't winning anybody over and it seems to really hurt him that his own son doesn't even like him, so he lets everybody go. The little boy's mum comes to collect him and there is a big happy reunion.
The H and h are having another colliding moment, but the H calls a halt. He loves the h and wants to get married - the h's mum won't like it, she thinks the H is a devil pirate- but the h doesn't care. She loves the H and can write bonkbuster books anywhere, so it is back to England for the quick wedding with all the trimmings and lots of time after to do a lot of colliding for the big HEA.
This one was cute. The banter between the H and h was fun and both of them were likable characters. There are complaints that the suspense with the father just letting them go isn't very realistic, but I totally agreed with that outcome. This is 1990's HPlandia, little kids and puppies and kittens are all supposed to go to good homes and bad fathers are supposed to see the error of their ways and do the right thing. Which is exactly what happened here and everybody got an HEA and nobody went to jail for kidnapping. What more can you ask for in an HP outing than that?
He tells her she can't stay and won't let her in the door. Well the h is a Clarendon and more than a match for another Clarendon - JM lets us know that Clarendon's are tall, dark and very, very stubborn. The h breaks a window after the H goes out for the evening and climbs right in. She picks a bedroom and is all cozied up for a nap when she is rudely awakened by the H hauling her off over his shoulder to throw her out. So she pinches him in a self defense move and he drops her. Then she threatens him with a newspaper story about "Local Heiress Denied Access to Inheritance" if the H doesn't let her stay in her half of the villa.
The H reluctantly agrees and the h is happy she won, but worried about what this dark-eyed Clarendon devil might do next. What he does is feed the cats. We get a multi cat bonus in this one. There are cats One, Two and Three- they are local roamers and keep showing up and inviting themselves in for foods cause that is what cats like to do - and the H is cat person. The h is surprised at first until she thinks about it and realizes that the H is independent, does what he wants and is indifferent to opinion - just like those cats who are rather loudly demanding breakfast before roaming off again.
Later on the villa's private beach, the H tries to get very close to the h, he is eyeballing her and she is noticing him back. She thinks he is trying to use his manly hairy chest mojo to intimidate her into leaving, but the H is her cousin, so she isn't worried. Until the H reveals that he is adopted, it was just genetic circumstance that he looks and acts just like a Clarendon. This startles the h a bit, but she isn't leaving - so we go off to Nice for the day and there are a lot of nice shops.
The next day the cats are back for breakfast and they had a great dinner the night before. The H shows up as the h is finishing her morning swim and to the h's mortification he is quite starkers - he doesn't believe in swimsuits or pajamas and thought the h would like to know. The h leaves the H on the beach again, but not before taking a moment to appreciate his backside view adding to the magnificent scenery. Later that day the h finds the H's car by the side of the road , and being rather inquisitively cat-like herself, she stops to check things out. Only to be rudely grabbed and hauled into the bushes next to a private villa by the H. He is pretty angry and he sends her off.
The h is on full alert now. She knows the H is an enquiry agent, tho she thinks it is kinda silly for a grown man to be playing detectives. But she has a pretty insatiable curiosity herself, so she won't rest until she finds out what the H is up to. When the H comes home very late that night, the h is wandering around in her little nightie and the H can't resist a few roofie kisses.
He also is tired enough to explain that he is watching that particular villa because the man who lives there kidnapped his son. The six yr old's mum has full custody and the rich, powerful father did not like that and took him. The H is debating kidnapping the little boy back, but he needs to know how the little boy is and if he is happy in his new home. The H thinks if the little boy has adjusted, it might be better to leave him and let the mum fight it out legally. The h decides she needs to help the H out, he doesn't know anything about little kids, and frankly neither does she -but she is female and supposed to have maternal instincts or something. Plus she did a spot or two of babysitting as a teen.
So pretending to be swimmer's struck by cramp, the H and h swim over to the other villa's private beach. While the H and the boy's bodyguard are having a bit of a dust up, the little boy makes a break for the open sea. It is pretty obvious he is trying to get away and the H has to rescue him. The H and h meet the boy's father and the man has told the little boy that his mother is dead. This irks the h and the H and h accept the father's invitation to dinner the next evening. The little boy's father is the big mega tycoon type and it is very clear that he can't keep his eyes off the h's tiny bikini that the H had her buy for this outing.
So we go the other villa for dinner and the tension is high, the H and h are getting closer and there have been roofie kissing incidents. The h doesn't think much of the father, he is very regimented and cold and seems to have no time for his son. So the h wanders around the villa and finds out where the little boy's room is. That night the H kidnaps him and brings the child back to the H and h's villa. Unfortunately the little boy's mum is in hospital and can't come collect him with the proper paperwork right away. So the little boy feeds the cats and swims in the pool for several days until the h convinces the H to take them all to Cannes for an outing.
That turns out to be a mistake as the child's father's bodyguard sees them on the way back and follows them and makes them all go back to the boy's father's villa. The bodyguard beats the H up and then locks the H and h in a room. This enforced confinement leads to body parts colliding and the h is in love and the H calls it the best night ever.
The next morning the tycoon father starts demanding explanations from the H and h and the h tells him off roundly. She explains that his kid hates him and doesn't want to live with him and unless he fixes things right now and lets the boy live with his mum and only see the father for visits, he isn't going to have a son for much longer, the little boy will become a teenager and make the father's life miserable and will probably reject his empire too when he grows up.
The tycoon father calls the little boy down and the kid is very clear that he doesn't like his father AT ALL. So the tycoon realizes that he isn't winning anybody over and it seems to really hurt him that his own son doesn't even like him, so he lets everybody go. The little boy's mum comes to collect him and there is a big happy reunion.
The H and h are having another colliding moment, but the H calls a halt. He loves the h and wants to get married - the h's mum won't like it, she thinks the H is a devil pirate- but the h doesn't care. She loves the H and can write bonkbuster books anywhere, so it is back to England for the quick wedding with all the trimmings and lots of time after to do a lot of colliding for the big HEA.
This one was cute. The banter between the H and h was fun and both of them were likable characters. There are complaints that the suspense with the father just letting them go isn't very realistic, but I totally agreed with that outcome. This is 1990's HPlandia, little kids and puppies and kittens are all supposed to go to good homes and bad fathers are supposed to see the error of their ways and do the right thing. Which is exactly what happened here and everybody got an HEA and nobody went to jail for kidnapping. What more can you ask for in an HP outing than that?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 10, 2012
The book started off really awesome, I was sitting there feeling the sexual chemistry and brazen cockiness of it all. Then all of a sudden the "villain" got really tame and I was like what the heck? This is not suppose to happen. A villain should not be a pussycat, he or she should remain one all through out the book. It came off really childish and rushed after that. I was not too impressed at all. I wouldn't read this novel again.
November 4, 2020
This is probably more like a 3.5. I rounded up.
Overall, a pleasant read with some good chemistry between the leads who are cousins but not linked by blood.
The h is a wanna be novelist which is mentioned a few times but not developed. With the H by her said she will have plenty of material!
Overall, a pleasant read with some good chemistry between the leads who are cousins but not linked by blood.
The h is a wanna be novelist which is mentioned a few times but not developed. With the H by her said she will have plenty of material!
January 13, 2016
I kinda liked this one. The h inherits a half share of a villa in France together with her cousin the H (he is adopted so not blood relation). When she goes to stay at the villa, the H is already in residence and tries to keep her out. She is offended since she owns half and he has no right to do this. H is very insistent,'turns out he is a private investigator and is on a job for a client. Some mystery ensures, the h wants to help out so suddenly it reads like a mild thriller. I know what the other reader meant, because just as everything comes to a climax and they are confronted with the villain in a potentially dangerous situation, the character of the villain does a complete about face and just lets them go! So unbelievable but then I guess its a romance and not a thriller - so I'll just let it pass. It didn't affect the romance much it just made the background story a bit ridiculous but well...so in the end case closed they can now confess their ILYs to each other.
I liked the h because she was feisty and sassy and the H couldn't push her around. I liked the H because he wasn't an A-hole at all, he only tried to keep her away from the villa to protect her and when he couldn't he treated her as an equal. Their chemistry was good and the H showed that he was quite attracted to her from the start.
I liked the h because she was feisty and sassy and the H couldn't push her around. I liked the H because he wasn't an A-hole at all, he only tried to keep her away from the villa to protect her and when he couldn't he treated her as an equal. Their chemistry was good and the H showed that he was quite attracted to her from the start.
October 2, 2021
Unremarkable in some ways - our hero and heroine jointly inherit a house; our heroine shows up and finds the hero doesn’t want her there, and while he starts by physically manhandling her out of the house, he eventually ends up kissing and touching her explicitly against her will; then she discovers that he, a private investigator, is engaged in a case and he begrudgingly enlists her help, although he finds ways to do it that, e.g., require her to wear a tiny bikini. Her body betrays her every time he mauls her. Etc.
However, the key issue with this book: he’s her cousin. Like, her father is his uncle cousin. Setting aside that the heroine’s mother’s such an awful person that she refused to take the hero in at the age of eleven when he was orphaned (and this is presented as her being, like, opinionated rather than the world’s most horrible aunt), the hero and heroine are legally and were raised as first cousins. We learn eventually that the hero’s adopted, so “he’s a [lastname] in name only” which - what? I’m sorry, I hadn’t realized that my adopted cousins didn’t count as family members. Jesus. And, like, I get that it’s legal (the author is insistent about it), but you - you get that the whole “well they’re not REALLY family even though they grew up as family and legally ARE family because they’re genetically unrelated” thing is gross, right? Right?
Anyway, this isn’t quite as bad as the Elizabeth Peters book where one leg of the love triangle is the heroine’s brother and we don’t learn until the last couple of pages that he’s actually adopted (no seriously), but it’s closer than I’d expect from a Harlequin Presents novel, frankly. Additional negative points for the fact that the hero and heroine bang, once, but he then proposes marriage and announces that they won't have sex again until then because waiting makes everything better. Just so we know she's still a good girl and he respects her. Also, the "suspense" plot is nothing of the sort, which other reviewers have covered pretty thoroughly. All in all a disappointment.
However, the key issue with this book: he’s her cousin. Like, her father is his uncle cousin. Setting aside that the heroine’s mother’s such an awful person that she refused to take the hero in at the age of eleven when he was orphaned (and this is presented as her being, like, opinionated rather than the world’s most horrible aunt), the hero and heroine are legally and were raised as first cousins. We learn eventually that the hero’s adopted, so “he’s a [lastname] in name only” which - what? I’m sorry, I hadn’t realized that my adopted cousins didn’t count as family members. Jesus. And, like, I get that it’s legal (the author is insistent about it), but you - you get that the whole “well they’re not REALLY family even though they grew up as family and legally ARE family because they’re genetically unrelated” thing is gross, right? Right?
Anyway, this isn’t quite as bad as the Elizabeth Peters book where one leg of the love triangle is the heroine’s brother and we don’t learn until the last couple of pages that he’s actually adopted (no seriously), but it’s closer than I’d expect from a Harlequin Presents novel, frankly. Additional negative points for the fact that the hero and heroine bang, once, but he then proposes marriage and announces that they won't have sex again until then because waiting makes everything better. Just so we know she's still a good girl and he respects her. Also, the "suspense" plot is nothing of the sort, which other reviewers have covered pretty thoroughly. All in all a disappointment.
September 6, 2020
Kate’s Great-Uncle Henry dies leaving her a half-share in a villa in the South of France. The only downside to this is that her cousin, Rafe Clarendon has been named a beneficiary in Great-Uncle Henry’s will which means he owns half of the Villa de Anges. Last she heard of him, he’d set up his business as a private investigator.
With the help of the instructions the lawyer had given her, she finally finds the villa. When she tries to use the key the lawyer gave to unlock the door, the door doesn’t budge. Why can’t she get in? Has someone changed the locks?
When someone finally answers the door, it’s her cousin Rafe. But Rafe won’t let her in. He suggests she starts making other arrangements. Apparently, she can’t claim the villa for another two weeks.
With the help of the instructions the lawyer had given her, she finally finds the villa. When she tries to use the key the lawyer gave to unlock the door, the door doesn’t budge. Why can’t she get in? Has someone changed the locks?
When someone finally answers the door, it’s her cousin Rafe. But Rafe won’t let her in. He suggests she starts making other arrangements. Apparently, she can’t claim the villa for another two weeks.
July 25, 2025
I just don't like mysteries/intrigue with my romances and this story is no exception.
Plus, the "mystery" concerns a child caught up in a custody battle and the hero's "job" is to kidnap him from his father. Yikes. And the child's mother is a former girlfriend of the hero's - double yikes. And heroine and hero are cousins. Yikes. Yikes. Yikes.
So - not my cup of tea.
Plus, the "mystery" concerns a child caught up in a custody battle and the hero's "job" is to kidnap him from his father. Yikes. And the child's mother is a former girlfriend of the hero's - double yikes. And heroine and hero are cousins. Yikes. Yikes. Yikes.
So - not my cup of tea.
December 14, 2020
I remember at one point thinking, "Man, I'm glad they're not really cousins..."
BTW, I was 10 the first time I read this, so... #AdvancedReader
BTW, I was 10 the first time I read this, so... #AdvancedReader
July 24, 2022
It has cats which automatically means at least 3 stars. Story was good but should have been better given an unusual plot and H.
April 27, 2020
Since her great-uncle Henry had died and left her a half share in a villas in the south of France, she would pack her things and head straight there for the summer.
There was only one drawback. The other half of the villa had been left to Rafe Clarendon--a man whose reputation was legendary in her family!
Upon arriving, Kate found herself confronted by this man whom her mother had always claimed was half devil. Hardly surprising then that so much trouble quickly followed...
There was only one drawback. The other half of the villa had been left to Rafe Clarendon--a man whose reputation was legendary in her family!
Upon arriving, Kate found herself confronted by this man whom her mother had always claimed was half devil. Hardly surprising then that so much trouble quickly followed...
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews