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Chase a Green Shadow
Librarian's note: This book was originally published with ISBN 0373705611, which was subsequently reused on this book. For alternate cover editions of Chase a Green Shadow, see here and here.
The child of a broken marriage, seventeen-year-old Tamsyn wasn't at all looking forward to going to Wales to visit the father she hardly knew--until she arrived there and met Hywel Benedict.
Her first feelings of antagonism towards him soon changed into something so deep and violent that they threatened to overwhelm her completely, and it was clear that she affected him in some way--but marriage? No, he said. He was too old for her, her father's contemporary, not hers. It would not be fair. And besides, there were...other complications.
Or did it all add up to the fact that he didn't really want her?
The child of a broken marriage, seventeen-year-old Tamsyn wasn't at all looking forward to going to Wales to visit the father she hardly knew--until she arrived there and met Hywel Benedict.
Her first feelings of antagonism towards him soon changed into something so deep and violent that they threatened to overwhelm her completely, and it was clear that she affected him in some way--but marriage? No, he said. He was too old for her, her father's contemporary, not hers. It would not be fair. And besides, there were...other complications.
Or did it all add up to the fact that he didn't really want her?
190 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1973
8 people are currently reading
109 people want to read
About the author
Anne Mather
799 books360 followersAnne Mather is the pseudonym used by Mildred Grieveson, a popular British author of over 160 romance novels. She also signed novels as Caroline Fleming and Cardine Fleming.
Mildred Grieveson began to write down stories in her childhood years. The first novel that she actually finished, Caroline (1965), was also her first book to be published. Her novel, Leopard in the Snow (1974), was developed into a 1978 film.
Mildred Grieveson began to write down stories in her childhood years. The first novel that she actually finished, Caroline (1965), was also her first book to be published. Her novel, Leopard in the Snow (1974), was developed into a 1978 film.
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
November 3, 2019
Surprisingly good May-December romance written by Anne Mather, who is usually the Queen of Trainwrecks. This was not the case in Chase a Green Shadow.
I love that the author made a most unlikely candidate, he of the great sideburns and dusty station-wagon, into a Great, Romantic Hero. Her heroine, despite her young age, was not a petulant, immature ninny. She had more gumption than the wishy-washy hero and went after what she wanted with a single-minded determination that made me root for her. The Wales setting was gorgeous and eerie and just perfect as the backdrop.
Not much happens, it is mostly about the characterizations and the characters' internal musings but it works. I really enjoyed it :)
I love that the author made a most unlikely candidate, he of the great sideburns and dusty station-wagon, into a Great, Romantic Hero. Her heroine, despite her young age, was not a petulant, immature ninny. She had more gumption than the wishy-washy hero and went after what she wanted with a single-minded determination that made me root for her. The Wales setting was gorgeous and eerie and just perfect as the backdrop.
Not much happens, it is mostly about the characterizations and the characters' internal musings but it works. I really enjoyed it :)
February 28, 2017
Yeah he was old enough to be her father and there was no drama and it had no sex and it was sedate and quiet and slow-paced and super old-skool... I don't care, I liked it! A LOT! Not gonna be everyone's cup of tea I guess but I paid five bucks to read this impossible-to-find little story and I don't regret it. Sex might've been good though. Something about him being so much older and respected and her parents' friend and an established scholar and the village preacher, and insanely in love with her...
February 22, 2016
What a complete waste of time. He wants her she wants him he is too old so he makes like he is married and then she leaves and wants to come back after 6 months and wait 3 more to get married blah blah blah. Completely boring. I only like the part where it ended. Even his description was creepy a guy with side burn up to the middle of his cheeks and smoking a pipe!!!! I wanted to barf! So gross.
June 22, 2013
This was a sweet story. Tamsyn really is too young for Hywel, at seventeen he's twenty years her senior. She falls almost immediately in love, though she doesn't know that's what it is at first. And it wasn't because he was handsome, he wasn't, nor was he rich, he wasn't, nor did she take her cue from the bevvy of women who, more sophisticated than she dictated how she saw him) there was only one non-start OW who didn't even really rate. She just felt an immediate attraction to his maleness and, without being a Lolita (at least not intentionally) found herself expressing it in her every word and behaviour. It's pretty obvious Hywel feels the same, but he's having none of it. Tamsyn is just too young for him... or is she?
The passion between those two was palpable without ever evolving past a kiss or two. By the end, my only reservation was that, I did wonder if Tamsyn had really found the love of her life or if she wouldn't wake up in ten years and feel trapped by the new course of her life. I still loved the book though.
The passion between those two was palpable without ever evolving past a kiss or two. By the end, my only reservation was that, I did wonder if Tamsyn had really found the love of her life or if she wouldn't wake up in ten years and feel trapped by the new course of her life. I still loved the book though.
October 2, 2019
So here's another one on my quest to read the first 100 HPs. This is numbered 61 and was published in 1973. The heroine, Tamsyn, is 17 and the hero, Hywel, (I think that is pronounced hoo WEL) is around 20 years older.
So this age gap is very common for Anne Mather in the 1970s. Here is was addressed as a concern for all parties except the heroine. She was all in immediately. The hero fell in love pretty quickly but tried to resist her because of concerns over her age and local gossip. The heroine chased him a little bit but not too obnoxiously. He couldn't stay away from her though. It was of its time, pretty sweet.
Over all I quite enjoyed it. It moved quickly and the hero and heroine spent quite a bit of time together which is not always a given in these older HPs. I liked both the hero and the heroine.
So this age gap is very common for Anne Mather in the 1970s. Here is was addressed as a concern for all parties except the heroine. She was all in immediately. The hero fell in love pretty quickly but tried to resist her because of concerns over her age and local gossip. The heroine chased him a little bit but not too obnoxiously. He couldn't stay away from her though. It was of its time, pretty sweet.
Over all I quite enjoyed it. It moved quickly and the hero and heroine spent quite a bit of time together which is not always a given in these older HPs. I liked both the hero and the heroine.
August 18, 2018
A four star book that gets 5 stars, because I still like it - more than 20 years after I first read it =)
May 30, 2022
I thoroughly enjoyed this little May/December offering from 1973 written by Anne Mather. She is not everyone’s cup of tea, but even those opposed to her style may enjoy this one!? It is vintage, so in regards to passionate love scenes don’t expect much.
So is this the right story for you? Let’s get a few deal breakers out of the way.
1. *This IS a true May/December romance. 17 year old heroine Tamsyn falls in love with 37 year old Hywell. However, Hywell understands this is forbidden. He really does try to thwart any attempts made by the h who actively pursues him. I am a huge fan of M/D romance, so this was fine by me. My mother was married by 17 in 1962, and had my sister by the ripe old age of 18 the following year(she arrived 17 months into the marriage, so no shotgun here). However, my father was only 3 years older than mom, not 20. I am just trying to point out that it was not uncommon for a 17/18 year old to be married and in many cases that was expected(graduate high school, get married).
2. * The h and H do not share a lot of page time. There are lots of pages dedicated to the h and her interactions with other characters. Yet, I felt the time together was well done.
3. * Angst Junkies, I would not say I was experiencing full on angst, but there was an abundance of tension woven throughout. You could feel the H’s struggle to keep himself in check and the h trying to grapple with understanding why she can’t have what she wants.
Ok so here is the overview: Tamsyn at 17 goes to stay with her father in Wales(not England as AM has the heroine clarify several times, it is basically like visiting Scotland and saying you are in England). Her scholarly mother is getting remarried and she and the new husband are traveling on the west coast while he gives lectures. Tamsyn does not have a close relationship with her father as her mother made their home in Boston. Although her father visited over the years, it was difficult as he was a country doctor and his village relied on him. Her mother did not encourage a relationship with the father and was rather cold and selfish.
Tamsyn arrives in England where she instantly feels a man’s eyes on her. She has a hard time looking away and feels a weird sort of pull to the man. When he comes up to her he introduces himself and tells her he is a friend of her father’s and will be driving her to Wales. The car ride is uncomfortable. The H seems almost hostile with the h and she comes off as little bit of a snob. Come to find out he is the cousin of the h’s stepmom which she has predetermined not to like. In fact she isn’t really a fan of her father. (Side note: The father left the h’s mom when she was 7 to return to his roots(Wales) where he married Joanna. Now the H lets the h know that Joanna was not the ow, the h’s mom was the ow. Joanna and the h’s dad Lance grew up together and were originally coupled. Now, AM doesn’t dwell on this or give much specifics, but Lance and Joanna could have easily had their own HP story and I would have read that as well!
The H drops the h off to her fathers. When the h asks if she will see him again he gives her a rather cold reply about it. The h is surprised to find that her father’s wife is very heavily pregnant. She chooses to ignore it and sulks off to bed. The next morning the h comes across the stepmom singing while making the h breakfast. Now our h is acting like a surly teenager with a huge chip on her shoulder. The stepmom decides to clear the air with the h and basically lets her know how she has hurt her father and she isn’t going to put up with that. It is actually a well done scene, and the stepmom is a lovely woman. It is also very clear that the father loves his daughter very much and he is over the moon that she is finally at his home. So this is actually a nice addition to the story. Not only is it a story about the h falling in love with the H, but she starts to fall in love with her surroundings and those people that make up the rest of her family. She really starts to grow up while grappling with her all consuming love for the H. She sees that she has had the wrong impression of her father. Where her mom is rather unemotional(although loves her daughter) and cold, her father is warm and loving.
Ok back to the h and H. First off this is a small village and tongues get a wagging at the slightest possibility of something untoward happening in their town.
Some things we find out about the H…he is a writer…he is the local preacher….and he is married. Ok, so his marriage broke up more than 5 years ago and was rocky before that. Not much is known about his wife, except that she currently resides in London and as far as anyone knows they have never divorced as the H is a religious man(You won’t get to the bottom of this until the last 5 pages of the story)
Meanwhile the h finds any opportunity she can to meander by the H’s house. She even is bold enough to knock on his door. He hesitantly lets her in, but discourages her from repeating the performance. The cute local farmer boy David can’t even extinguish the H from the h’s head. Then the H is asked by the h’s dad to take the h on some sight seeing trips he does and they turn out well since the h has decided she is going to play it cool and not be overly eager with the H. It isn’t until almost 2/3 of the way in the book that the H and h have a very, very passionate kissing session. He immediately throws her from him but does express that he loves her!!!(What? This is unheard of…we don’t usually get proclamations of love from a vintage H until the last couple of pages)However, he is not going to act on loving her as she is just a child and he is a full grown man. A few more things happen and then He ends up leaving town for a few days, and meanwhile the h’s mom sends for her. She doesn’t want to leave, but her mom has broken her ankle and needs a caretaker. So off to Boston she goes. She ends up staying in Boston for 5 months as her mom and stepdad is not willing to let her go. (Very selfish mom here!) So she ends up sneaking out of the house(she is 18 now) and goes back to her father’s house. Eerily no one is home at her father’s house so she walks to the village and goes to the H’s house. He is gone as well, but his door is unlocked. She makes herself at home and ends up falling asleep on the couch. She hears some noise upstairs and goes to investigate and catches the H with his shirt off. He sees her and is shocked.
There is a reason for him being shocked. He is described as looking thin and gaunt at this point in the story. Although he still feels the h is too young to commit to such an older man, the H decides he cannot go on without her. He takes her to her Dad’s house. He is overjoyed to see his daughter and is not willing to give her up yet. So the H and h agree to wait 3 months before getting married. The story ends 6 months later and the H and h are visiting her mom and stepdad. It is clear that these two want to be together and the h’s old life in posh Boston holds no interest for her.
Overall, a well done romance. The H is actually not described as overly handsome or wealthy. What a nice change that the h is actually very attractive but is in love with and older less attractive man. He does ooze charisma though. It is also interesting to note that we really didn’t get to know much of the H’s history. Even the reason for his first marriage was strange. I also do not get the impression that he is a manwhore. In fact I think he has lived a pretty female free life which gives his attraction for the h even more impact. The h does show her immaturity several times throughout the story which may put some off. The H really did try hard to keep away, but for both of them it was love at first sight. They were meant for each other. I love fairy tales, so I’m all in on the whole destiny, love at first sight scenario!
So is this the right story for you? Let’s get a few deal breakers out of the way.
1. *This IS a true May/December romance. 17 year old heroine Tamsyn falls in love with 37 year old Hywell. However, Hywell understands this is forbidden. He really does try to thwart any attempts made by the h who actively pursues him. I am a huge fan of M/D romance, so this was fine by me. My mother was married by 17 in 1962, and had my sister by the ripe old age of 18 the following year(she arrived 17 months into the marriage, so no shotgun here). However, my father was only 3 years older than mom, not 20. I am just trying to point out that it was not uncommon for a 17/18 year old to be married and in many cases that was expected(graduate high school, get married).
2. * The h and H do not share a lot of page time. There are lots of pages dedicated to the h and her interactions with other characters. Yet, I felt the time together was well done.
3. * Angst Junkies, I would not say I was experiencing full on angst, but there was an abundance of tension woven throughout. You could feel the H’s struggle to keep himself in check and the h trying to grapple with understanding why she can’t have what she wants.
Ok so here is the overview: Tamsyn at 17 goes to stay with her father in Wales(not England as AM has the heroine clarify several times, it is basically like visiting Scotland and saying you are in England). Her scholarly mother is getting remarried and she and the new husband are traveling on the west coast while he gives lectures. Tamsyn does not have a close relationship with her father as her mother made their home in Boston. Although her father visited over the years, it was difficult as he was a country doctor and his village relied on him. Her mother did not encourage a relationship with the father and was rather cold and selfish.
Tamsyn arrives in England where she instantly feels a man’s eyes on her. She has a hard time looking away and feels a weird sort of pull to the man. When he comes up to her he introduces himself and tells her he is a friend of her father’s and will be driving her to Wales. The car ride is uncomfortable. The H seems almost hostile with the h and she comes off as little bit of a snob. Come to find out he is the cousin of the h’s stepmom which she has predetermined not to like. In fact she isn’t really a fan of her father. (Side note: The father left the h’s mom when she was 7 to return to his roots(Wales) where he married Joanna. Now the H lets the h know that Joanna was not the ow, the h’s mom was the ow. Joanna and the h’s dad Lance grew up together and were originally coupled. Now, AM doesn’t dwell on this or give much specifics, but Lance and Joanna could have easily had their own HP story and I would have read that as well!
The H drops the h off to her fathers. When the h asks if she will see him again he gives her a rather cold reply about it. The h is surprised to find that her father’s wife is very heavily pregnant. She chooses to ignore it and sulks off to bed. The next morning the h comes across the stepmom singing while making the h breakfast. Now our h is acting like a surly teenager with a huge chip on her shoulder. The stepmom decides to clear the air with the h and basically lets her know how she has hurt her father and she isn’t going to put up with that. It is actually a well done scene, and the stepmom is a lovely woman. It is also very clear that the father loves his daughter very much and he is over the moon that she is finally at his home. So this is actually a nice addition to the story. Not only is it a story about the h falling in love with the H, but she starts to fall in love with her surroundings and those people that make up the rest of her family. She really starts to grow up while grappling with her all consuming love for the H. She sees that she has had the wrong impression of her father. Where her mom is rather unemotional(although loves her daughter) and cold, her father is warm and loving.
Ok back to the h and H. First off this is a small village and tongues get a wagging at the slightest possibility of something untoward happening in their town.
Some things we find out about the H…he is a writer…he is the local preacher….and he is married. Ok, so his marriage broke up more than 5 years ago and was rocky before that. Not much is known about his wife, except that she currently resides in London and as far as anyone knows they have never divorced as the H is a religious man(You won’t get to the bottom of this until the last 5 pages of the story)
Meanwhile the h finds any opportunity she can to meander by the H’s house. She even is bold enough to knock on his door. He hesitantly lets her in, but discourages her from repeating the performance. The cute local farmer boy David can’t even extinguish the H from the h’s head. Then the H is asked by the h’s dad to take the h on some sight seeing trips he does and they turn out well since the h has decided she is going to play it cool and not be overly eager with the H. It isn’t until almost 2/3 of the way in the book that the H and h have a very, very passionate kissing session. He immediately throws her from him but does express that he loves her!!!(What? This is unheard of…we don’t usually get proclamations of love from a vintage H until the last couple of pages)However, he is not going to act on loving her as she is just a child and he is a full grown man. A few more things happen and then He ends up leaving town for a few days, and meanwhile the h’s mom sends for her. She doesn’t want to leave, but her mom has broken her ankle and needs a caretaker. So off to Boston she goes. She ends up staying in Boston for 5 months as her mom and stepdad is not willing to let her go. (Very selfish mom here!) So she ends up sneaking out of the house(she is 18 now) and goes back to her father’s house. Eerily no one is home at her father’s house so she walks to the village and goes to the H’s house. He is gone as well, but his door is unlocked. She makes herself at home and ends up falling asleep on the couch. She hears some noise upstairs and goes to investigate and catches the H with his shirt off. He sees her and is shocked.
There is a reason for him being shocked. He is described as looking thin and gaunt at this point in the story. Although he still feels the h is too young to commit to such an older man, the H decides he cannot go on without her. He takes her to her Dad’s house. He is overjoyed to see his daughter and is not willing to give her up yet. So the H and h agree to wait 3 months before getting married. The story ends 6 months later and the H and h are visiting her mom and stepdad. It is clear that these two want to be together and the h’s old life in posh Boston holds no interest for her.
Overall, a well done romance. The H is actually not described as overly handsome or wealthy. What a nice change that the h is actually very attractive but is in love with and older less attractive man. He does ooze charisma though. It is also interesting to note that we really didn’t get to know much of the H’s history. Even the reason for his first marriage was strange. I also do not get the impression that he is a manwhore. In fact I think he has lived a pretty female free life which gives his attraction for the h even more impact. The h does show her immaturity several times throughout the story which may put some off. The H really did try hard to keep away, but for both of them it was love at first sight. They were meant for each other. I love fairy tales, so I’m all in on the whole destiny, love at first sight scenario!
August 27, 2018
Location: Wales
Age Difference: The H is 20 years older than the 17 year old h.
Tamsyn, the h, is sent to stay with her estranged dad while her mum goes off on honeymoon with her new hubby. When the h gets to the UK she expects her dad to meet her at the airport. He isn’t there but sends a friend instead.
The H, Hywel, see’s the h as a spoiled little girl. He uses the ride to Wales to give her a few truths. In the process, some feelings get bruised and bonds form.
One she reaches her father’s the h has a lot to adjust to. A pregnant stepmother. People judging her without giving her a chance. Feeling a strong attraction to a man her father’s age. To be fair to the H, he tried to dissuade her. He was cruel to be kind pretty often, but the h was persistent.
What I enjoyed the most about this book was the way the writing flowed. It was smooth and easy to read. The author wove a story that you wanted to continue. I found it to be a really lovely read.
The age difference between the MCs was really obvious. The h was so immature. Even after the author “matured” her, she still came off sounding like the teenager she was. And that was a bit jarring. But for all that, it was still an enjoyable read.
Also, why can’t the new HP’s have lovely poetic titles like the older books? “Chase a Green Shadow”. Such a nice name.
So much nicer than “The Legendary Billionaire’s Pregnant Virgin Mistress” (fictional title for demonstration purposes). Please HP, go back to the lovely, poetic names.
Age Difference: The H is 20 years older than the 17 year old h.
Tamsyn, the h, is sent to stay with her estranged dad while her mum goes off on honeymoon with her new hubby. When the h gets to the UK she expects her dad to meet her at the airport. He isn’t there but sends a friend instead.
The H, Hywel, see’s the h as a spoiled little girl. He uses the ride to Wales to give her a few truths. In the process, some feelings get bruised and bonds form.
One she reaches her father’s the h has a lot to adjust to. A pregnant stepmother. People judging her without giving her a chance. Feeling a strong attraction to a man her father’s age. To be fair to the H, he tried to dissuade her. He was cruel to be kind pretty often, but the h was persistent.
What I enjoyed the most about this book was the way the writing flowed. It was smooth and easy to read. The author wove a story that you wanted to continue. I found it to be a really lovely read.
The age difference between the MCs was really obvious. The h was so immature. Even after the author “matured” her, she still came off sounding like the teenager she was. And that was a bit jarring. But for all that, it was still an enjoyable read.
Also, why can’t the new HP’s have lovely poetic titles like the older books? “Chase a Green Shadow”. Such a nice name.
So much nicer than “The Legendary Billionaire’s Pregnant Virgin Mistress” (fictional title for demonstration purposes). Please HP, go back to the lovely, poetic names.
April 30, 2021
Three things irked me about the hero in Chase a Green Shadow: 37-ish Welsh writer Hywel, who's paired with 17-year-old Tamsyn.
1. The first is that his name - Hywel Benedict - sounds just like the actor Hywel Bennet (also Welsh)
2. He's described looking just like Welsh singer Tom Jones, all dark and hairy with massive sideburns that "reached his jawline" and a "thick covering of dark hair" on his wrist (euurgggh), "harshly carved features and deeply set eyes", and he smokes a pipe in the car
3. Most critically, he apparently fell in love with Tamsyn at first sight, despite being twice her age, her father's friend, and despite her being a really juvenile and bratty teenager. If he had simply lusted after her, fair enough. But no: "I’ve loved you since that day you stood in the airport lounge and asked so nervously to see my credentials!"
I can't admire any of that.
That's not to say this isn't a good book. It's Anne Mather after all, and she's always excellent value. The hero just seemed so far from Love's Young Dream that it was rather unpleasant. Older men are at least supposed to be rich, powerful, devastatingly sexy and a bit of a rake. Not rude, ugly, hairy apes. I was reminded of the awful "swarthy Welshman" hero in Jilly Cooper's Octavia.
Then there's this endless faff about how she can't be seen "at his place" in case of Village Gossip. So it's okay for her father's friend to drive 200 miles to pick her up from the airport, with the two of them alone in his car that whole time. But the minute they're back in Llandrindol-Y-Cwm it's going to be a national scandal if they're even seen speaking together?
"If anyone was to see my car parked outside here at this time of night with your father and Joanna away there would be plenty to talk about, wouldn’t there?"
Now this book is set in 1974. And in fairness, English villages - and doubtless Welsh villages too - could be pretty gossipy and priggish back then. One of my parents' friends had a Readers' Wives photo of herself published in a porn mag, and the village was so scandalised that they called a village meeting (how the hell did they find out about the photo, one might ask?) to discuss the problem. I'm not sure what they thought they'd do: chase her out with burning pitchforks?
Anyway, I digress. The point is that the mores here seemed a little over-the-top for the 1970s. A rather tantalising theme - that regrettably doesn't go anywhere - is that Hywel is a lay preacher. But we don't get any religious angst or defrocking or anything like that. It just makes him frankly rather staid and boring. Religiosity is only interesting in a Romance if we're going to get some super-forbidden-priest-passion etc. And we don't.
The whole outcome of this novel is also odd. Yes, it's the 1970s, and there were still women who didn't work/have careers. But Tamsyn's obsession with housekeeping is not exactly aspirational, even for the era. (Hywel only married his first wife because "She was older than I was, and I needed a housekeeper.") And despite throughout the whole novel being considered too young to even spend a night by herself in a house with the Grown-Ups away, she's considered old enough to get married?
Tamsyn's future looks absolutely bleak. Some hairy Welsh bloke with no money who's old enough to be her dad, stuck in the Welsh Valleys, playing housekeeper.
1. The first is that his name - Hywel Benedict - sounds just like the actor Hywel Bennet (also Welsh)
2. He's described looking just like Welsh singer Tom Jones, all dark and hairy with massive sideburns that "reached his jawline" and a "thick covering of dark hair" on his wrist (euurgggh), "harshly carved features and deeply set eyes", and he smokes a pipe in the car
3. Most critically, he apparently fell in love with Tamsyn at first sight, despite being twice her age, her father's friend, and despite her being a really juvenile and bratty teenager. If he had simply lusted after her, fair enough. But no: "I’ve loved you since that day you stood in the airport lounge and asked so nervously to see my credentials!"
I can't admire any of that.
That's not to say this isn't a good book. It's Anne Mather after all, and she's always excellent value. The hero just seemed so far from Love's Young Dream that it was rather unpleasant. Older men are at least supposed to be rich, powerful, devastatingly sexy and a bit of a rake. Not rude, ugly, hairy apes. I was reminded of the awful "swarthy Welshman" hero in Jilly Cooper's Octavia.
Then there's this endless faff about how she can't be seen "at his place" in case of Village Gossip. So it's okay for her father's friend to drive 200 miles to pick her up from the airport, with the two of them alone in his car that whole time. But the minute they're back in Llandrindol-Y-Cwm it's going to be a national scandal if they're even seen speaking together?
"If anyone was to see my car parked outside here at this time of night with your father and Joanna away there would be plenty to talk about, wouldn’t there?"
Now this book is set in 1974. And in fairness, English villages - and doubtless Welsh villages too - could be pretty gossipy and priggish back then. One of my parents' friends had a Readers' Wives photo of herself published in a porn mag, and the village was so scandalised that they called a village meeting (how the hell did they find out about the photo, one might ask?) to discuss the problem. I'm not sure what they thought they'd do: chase her out with burning pitchforks?
Anyway, I digress. The point is that the mores here seemed a little over-the-top for the 1970s. A rather tantalising theme - that regrettably doesn't go anywhere - is that Hywel is a lay preacher. But we don't get any religious angst or defrocking or anything like that. It just makes him frankly rather staid and boring. Religiosity is only interesting in a Romance if we're going to get some super-forbidden-priest-passion etc. And we don't.
The whole outcome of this novel is also odd. Yes, it's the 1970s, and there were still women who didn't work/have careers. But Tamsyn's obsession with housekeeping is not exactly aspirational, even for the era. (Hywel only married his first wife because "She was older than I was, and I needed a housekeeper.") And despite throughout the whole novel being considered too young to even spend a night by herself in a house with the Grown-Ups away, she's considered old enough to get married?
Tamsyn's future looks absolutely bleak. Some hairy Welsh bloke with no money who's old enough to be her dad, stuck in the Welsh Valleys, playing housekeeper.
February 19, 2018
I liked this story very much. May/December
Tamsyn fall in love with Hwelyn. The H is a local pastor and acclaimed writer living in small village in wales where Tamsyn ends up staying there with her father and expecting step mother. The H is best friends with her father and Tamsyn can't help being draw to him...
Tamsyn fall in love with Hwelyn. The H is a local pastor and acclaimed writer living in small village in wales where Tamsyn ends up staying there with her father and expecting step mother. The H is best friends with her father and Tamsyn can't help being draw to him...
September 1, 2016
This is one of those older classic HP gems.....a sweet love story.
Young Tamsyn goes off to stay with her father in Wales and recieves a few surprises. One in the form of the older manly Hywel.
She is drawn to the strong Hywel who is both interesting and wise without understanding why. Hywel tries to resist this young beauty but can't. They exchange some fun banter as Tamsyn secretly chases him around the village and countryside. A girl who knows what she wants.....and she wants him!
Likeable characters and absolute amazing decriptions of the Wales' countryside makes this a nice sweet entertaining read.
Young Tamsyn goes off to stay with her father in Wales and recieves a few surprises. One in the form of the older manly Hywel.
She is drawn to the strong Hywel who is both interesting and wise without understanding why. Hywel tries to resist this young beauty but can't. They exchange some fun banter as Tamsyn secretly chases him around the village and countryside. A girl who knows what she wants.....and she wants him!
Likeable characters and absolute amazing decriptions of the Wales' countryside makes this a nice sweet entertaining read.
November 19, 2021
Stupid title, stupid writing. The 17 year old chit and 38 yrs old Preacher fall in love the first time they see each other at an airport in Wales. Then they spent weeks without seeing each other and only interacting for minutes at most where H treats her like shit. There's no physical intimacy yet they are both physically attracted to each other despite each finding physical flaws in the other. What a waste of a good may-December setup!!!
Even 3 months after they are married, he still doesn't trusts her love for him. Unsurprising considering Hero's stupid name.
Even 3 months after they are married, he still doesn't trusts her love for him. Unsurprising considering Hero's stupid name.
September 3, 2020
"You should have warned me you were coming and I’d have made an effort to put on a clean shirt."
- The hero
"Oh, come along! A bit of dust never hurt anyone."
- The hero again
It was nice. It was relaxing. It was sweet. Got the extra cool bit of the hero being the heroine's father's best friend. If you like a 20 year age difference, a reasonably reluctant older hero and a sensible enough heroine get it. Its quite drama free I thought and I liked most of the characters.
I also enjoy Mather's heroes. Hywel (I had to search for the pronunciation) is not handsome, not rich, not well dressed. I like them real.
Cant say much about Tam other than I liked that she knew what she wanted. She doesn't get swayed by what others expect. Sure she does go on a date she doesn't want but she's generally quite clear on who is in the friend zone. I don't like heroines who just can't say no to anyone.
Clean. Just 2 kisses.
- The hero
"Oh, come along! A bit of dust never hurt anyone."
- The hero again
It was nice. It was relaxing. It was sweet. Got the extra cool bit of the hero being the heroine's father's best friend. If you like a 20 year age difference, a reasonably reluctant older hero and a sensible enough heroine get it. Its quite drama free I thought and I liked most of the characters.
I also enjoy Mather's heroes. Hywel (I had to search for the pronunciation) is not handsome, not rich, not well dressed. I like them real.
Cant say much about Tam other than I liked that she knew what she wanted. She doesn't get swayed by what others expect. Sure she does go on a date she doesn't want but she's generally quite clear on who is in the friend zone. I don't like heroines who just can't say no to anyone.
Clean. Just 2 kisses.
July 22, 2016
This book made my heart sing. I loved the story, the heroine and mostly the hero. One of the best Harlequins I've read. This is a clean romance book, but oh, so good.
December 30, 2013
i liked it. it's not anne mather at her best but it's still a nice n pleasant read. though very old-fashioned n slow paced. it worked in dat era but not nowadays. i frankly cant imagine a 17yr old really in love, wid a man in his late thirties at dat !
did-not-finish
May 14, 2023I couldn’t get past the huge age difference.
January 25, 2025
Another good book from AM
This is an old fashioned Harlequin. It has all the elements of early Harlequin novels. This is also an age gap romance as well.
While well written and filled with lots of drama and angst but there is a lack of romance. It ends with an HEA.
This is an old fashioned Harlequin. It has all the elements of early Harlequin novels. This is also an age gap romance as well.
While well written and filled with lots of drama and angst but there is a lack of romance. It ends with an HEA.
March 8, 2025
Tamsyn's mother arranged for her to stay with her father for a couple of months without consulting her when she decided to get married! She had last met her father when she was eight and now is almost 18! She didn't think she would enjoy the two months in Wales, yet when she arrived there, she met Hywel Benedict who was her father's friend and his wife's cousin and their meeting changed everything. Her feelings for Hywel changed from attraction to curiosity and eventually to love. But, Hywel was married and wanted no relationship with her and that hurt her, but didn't touch her determination!
The story lacks conviction and angsty. No real events happened and the twenty years age gap between the hero and heroine made it hard to believe the whole story. Not to mention the hero was married!! Not an interesting story to read or later remember. Very dull.
The story lacks conviction and angsty. No real events happened and the twenty years age gap between the hero and heroine made it hard to believe the whole story. Not to mention the hero was married!! Not an interesting story to read or later remember. Very dull.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 7, 2025
I read this book as a very young teen - in fact, it was the first romance I ever read. I was intrigued by this new genre that had crossed my path (loaned to me by a girl in my class at school). Back then, I saw no problem with the 20 year age difference between the hero and heroine.
It also never occurred to me that maybe, once the heroine realized hero was a famous writer, she should try reading one of his books. Or that, despite seeing herself as an intellectual at the beginning of the book, she wrinkles her nose in disgust when she realizes he is reading a boringly serious book about the rise of socialism - shouldn’t she think that’s a good thing, if she values intellectualism? And though she initially sees her stepmother as empty-headed (presumably for never getting a higher education), in the end she herself chooses to get married and be a housewife instead of finishing college.
Ah feminism. So lacking in my younger years. So lacking in this novel. It was interesting to read it again with middle aged perspective. But still - there is something refreshingly naive about these old stories, in which a young girl is swept off her feet by the older hero, who makes her head swim with a single kiss, and who will of course marry her before anything else happens between them. Maybe it just reminds me of what it was like to be 13.
It also never occurred to me that maybe, once the heroine realized hero was a famous writer, she should try reading one of his books. Or that, despite seeing herself as an intellectual at the beginning of the book, she wrinkles her nose in disgust when she realizes he is reading a boringly serious book about the rise of socialism - shouldn’t she think that’s a good thing, if she values intellectualism? And though she initially sees her stepmother as empty-headed (presumably for never getting a higher education), in the end she herself chooses to get married and be a housewife instead of finishing college.
Ah feminism. So lacking in my younger years. So lacking in this novel. It was interesting to read it again with middle aged perspective. But still - there is something refreshingly naive about these old stories, in which a young girl is swept off her feet by the older hero, who makes her head swim with a single kiss, and who will of course marry her before anything else happens between them. Maybe it just reminds me of what it was like to be 13.
August 26, 2021
The child of a broken marriage, seventeen-year-old Tamsyn wasn't at all looking forward to going to Wales to visit the father she hardly knew--until she arrived there and met Hywel Benedict.
Her first feelings of antagonism towards him soon changed into something so deep and violent that they threatened to overwhelm her completely, and it was clear that she affected him in some way--but marriage? No, he said. He was too old for her, her father's contemporary, not hers. It would not be fair. And besides, there were...other complications.
Or did it all add up to the fact that he didn't really want her?
Her first feelings of antagonism towards him soon changed into something so deep and violent that they threatened to overwhelm her completely, and it was clear that she affected him in some way--but marriage? No, he said. He was too old for her, her father's contemporary, not hers. It would not be fair. And besides, there were...other complications.
Or did it all add up to the fact that he didn't really want her?
October 27, 2025
A beautiful young heroine (17/18) and a less than beautiful older man (38) with very little going for him in comparison... but she is madly in love, and it’s gripping.
It's dated and it's dreamy and she is everything a heroine should be in my book - determined, with her own mind, beautiful, kind but not too gentle, and so in love.
He, well, he is a man who does not know what hit him.
The culmination is everything I could have wanted. Total bliss - one of Anne Mather's very best!
It's dated and it's dreamy and she is everything a heroine should be in my book - determined, with her own mind, beautiful, kind but not too gentle, and so in love.
He, well, he is a man who does not know what hit him.
The culmination is everything I could have wanted. Total bliss - one of Anne Mather's very best!
April 2, 2016
I'm trying to decide whether the shortcomings of this book are because it's from the '70s and people had different expectations from romance novels, or whether it was just plain badly executed.
~More to follow~
~More to follow~
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