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The Greek's Blackmailed Mistress

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“I do have an option to offer you.”

Three months between the Greek’s sheets!

Blackmailed into the billionaire’s bed? Elvi can’t believe her attempt to appeal to heartless Xan’s benevolent side has gone so wrong! But to save her stepmother’s job, she nervously agrees to the Greek’s outrageous terms. Xan is gorgeous with a damaged side only Elvi sees—but how will he react when he realizes that his new mistress is an innocent virgin?

“This series was amazing. I loved this book. 5 stars for sure. Lynne Graham is always a keeper as far as I’m concerned.” —Goodreads Reader on Da Rocha’s Convenient Heir

“Ms. Graham has delivered a really good read in this book where the chemistry between this couple was strong; the romance was delightful and convincing” —Harlequin Junkie on Castiglione’s Pregnant Princess

224 pages, Mass Market Paperback

Published August 21, 2018

189 people are currently reading
244 people want to read

About the author

Lynne Graham

1,763 books1,450 followers
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.


Lynne Graham was born on July 30, 1956 of Irish-Scottish parentage. She has livedin Northern Ireland all her life. She grew up in a seaside village with herbrother. She learnt to read at the age of 3, and haven't stopped since then.

Lynne first met her husband when she was 14. At 15, she wrote her firstbook, but it was rejected everywhere. Lynne married after she completed adegree at Edinburgh University. She started writing again when she was athome with her first child. It took several attempts before she sold herfirst book in 1987 and the delight of seeing that first book for sale in thelocal newsagents has never been forgotten. Now, there are over 10 million ofher books in print worldwide.

Lynne always wanted a large family and has five children. Her eldest and heronly natural child is 19 and currently at university. Her other fourchildren, who are every bit as dear to her heart, are adopted. She has two9-year-olds adopted from Sri Lanka and a 5- and a 3-year-old adopted fromGuatemala. In Lynne's home, there is a rich and diverse cultural mix, whichadds a whole extra dimension of interest and discovery to family life. Thefamily lives in a country house surrounded by a woodland garden, which iswonderfully private. The family has two pets. Thomas, a very large andaffectionate black cat, bosses the dog and hunts rabbits. The dog is Daisy,an adorable but not very bright white West Highland terrier, who loves beingchased by the cat. At night, dog and cat sleep together in front of thekitchen stove. Lynne loves gardening, cooking, collects everything from oldtoys to rock specimens and is crazy about every aspect of Christmas.

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 51 reviews
Profile Image for Ivy H.
856 reviews
August 9, 2018
description


That's the expression on Xan's ( the H ) face the first time he saw the voluptuous heroine Elvi. Xan's accustomed to his super skinny, "modelesque" mistresses and at the start of the novel he is dumping the current one because he's already bored with her ! And, that's only after 2 months. But he's really got the hots for Elvi because she's totally unlike his assembly line style of mistresses. Elvi's curvy like those 1940's pin up models. She thinks she's too plump but she's one of those lucky girls with the tiny waist, big boobs and curvy hips. She's also ashamed of her figure because ( like most women ) she wants to be like the super skinny taller girls who are clothes horses. Anyway, the MC's had seen each other from afar but Xan hadn't pursued Elvi then because her stepmom had been his maid and he didn't like getting involved with employees or their relatives. Xan's a bit of a control freak and he's got some obsessive compulsive tendencies with his need to maintain order at all times.

Xan got his opportunity to get his lustful hands on Elvi's curves after her half-brother Daniel makes the dumbest mistake ever ! Daniel steals a valuable jade brush pot from Xan's penthouse, by mistake. Yes, it really was a mistake because Daniel's kinda stupid. He's just won a scholarship to study medicine at Oxford but he's a little lacking in common sense and survival skills. In the wise words of my little impertinent dog Harold:

description

( Aside: and everybody needs to forgive me for the mess, the old boxes, wires, containers, books etc that surrounds Harold in the above photo since he's in my storage room. Lol. )

Anyway, it's poor Sally, the heroine's lovable and sweet stepmom, who ends up in trouble because she's the one employed by the H. Sally also knows that her precious son will lose his scholarship if he gets into trouble for the theft. So, like any loving momma, Sally takes the blame for the theft ! But, Sally has her own troubles:

1. She's a recovering alcoholic who attends AA and any stress like this this might cause her to return to alcohol again.

2. She used to be a secondary school teacher who got fired due to the alcoholism and now she won't be able to get a new job without a reference and with a police record.

3. Her family ( Elvi and Daniel ) cannot survive on Elvi's meagre salary.

This is Sally after she returns from the police station:

description

Well, it was up to Elvi to solve poor Sally's problems and the solution was one that would take place in the H's bedroom. Xan was still lusting after the heroine's curvaceous sexiness and he gave her an ultimatum:

‘It’s simple and unscrupulous,’ Xan warned her without hesitation. ‘I want you. Give yourself to me and I will drop the charges.’

OK, so he's a man of few words and he gets right to the point; he manages to do that while ogling Elvi's boobs too. The heroine is appalled because she's not that kind of girl. The rest of us who also have some moral standards, will feel the same and be a little disappointed in the H:

description

But Xan, like mentioned previously, is in the market for a mistress and he wants Elvi. He's the type of guy who is accustomed to putting up his mistresses in a fancy apartment, providing all their material comforts while they make themselves available for his pleasure. He's like this smug doggy who's lying down like a king while the poor little pussy scratches his itch ( Lol )

description

Xan and Elvi reminded me of the MC's ( Angelo and Gwenna ) from The Italian's Inexperienced Mistress. Their interaction starts off as purely sexual but grows from there. Xan wanted to keep it all businesslike and purely sexual but he found himself feeling a little ashamed of the way he'd inveigled Elvi into such a tawdry arrangement. Before he could stop himself, he invited her to his half sister's wedding in Greece. Then, when all his relatives loved Elvi and kept telling him he should marry her, he became cold and defensive. It was heartwarming to read a story where all of the H's relatives responded warmly to the heroine. Anyway, Xan got scared because he was also starting to fall in love with the heroine. What's his solution to this new problem ? He decided to flirt with an old flame ( whom he hated, by the way ) so that Elvi would spurn him. It was a bit cowardly of him to end things this way and he regretted it after Elvi left him. Incidentally, he had no interest in Angie ( the old flame ). In fact, he rebuffed her skanky, gold digging advances after Elvi had departed.

The MC's were reunited when the old surprise pregnancy popped into the picture. Xan was happy that he finally had an excuse to marry Elvi, because he couldn't tell her how he really felt about her. That would be totally going against how a besotted alpha male H is supposed to act. At their wedding, though, Xan has this major fit of jealousy when Elvi's platonic best friend Joel tells her that he loves her. Xan got so angry and possessive that he punched the guy right there at the wedding reception and told Elvi:

‘Your best friend is a man?’ Xan countered in disbelief. ‘Well, that ends now. I’m not putting up with that kind of nonsense. You’re my wife...you’re mine. You don’t let other men come onto you like that!’

The MC's sort out all their issues in a beautiful manner while they're on their honeymoon and there's no long drawn out period of angst or brooding. They actually communicate with each other in a realistic fashion and their mutual honesty was refreshing. Elvi was also a smarter type of the heroine than the usual ones who would just sulk in silence. The heroine didn't let him storm off in a huff after their argument:


Elvi planted herself in his path to the front door. ‘No, Xan, you shouldn’t be driving anywhere when you’re upset—’

Stormy amber-gold eyes locked to her. ‘I’m not upset! Now move away from the door.’

‘No.’ Elvi stood her ground and when he tried to lift her to shift her to one side she swarmed up his lean, powerful body like a monkey climbing a tree and clung, her arms wrapping round his neck.

‘Please talk to me, please don’t walk away...don’t hide things—’



The epilogue was the perfect ending for a very sexy and romantic novel. It's five years after their wedding and they have 2 kids: a 4 yr old daughter called Molly, who's inherited the H's OCD tendencies and a toddler son named Ajax. Elvi's stepmom has also gotten married to Xan's former security chief Dimitri and the erstwhile absentminded Daniel is now a young doctor. And the H is still in love with his wife, as is shown when he tells her:


‘Loving each other and living happily ever after... I didn’t think I’d ever have that, but you gave it to me.’


Safety: There's no cheating, no OW or OM. The H had just ended his relationship with his former mistress at the start of the story.


This is the heroine, Elvi:

description


This is the H, Xan:

description


description
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for StMargarets.
3,227 reviews634 followers
November 23, 2018
Low angst, virgin-heroine-blackmailed-into-mistress story that rises above three stars because:

H/h were both smitten before the blackmail opportunity arose.
Both their families were nice.
Hero realized how gross his blackmail scheme was early on.
Everyone hated the wannabe OW and sided with the heroine.
Hero clocks the sniveling wannabe OM at his wedding and reminds heroine that OM could have spoken up at anytime before she met the hero.
Hero was thrilled about the pregnancy and of course they're all still happy in the epilogue.

I can't think of anything else to say, really. It's Lynne Graham. He's rich and hot. She has big boobs and a sweet nature. Life is good in this universe and it's fun to spend time there.
Profile Image for Jenny.
3,160 reviews558 followers
August 7, 2018
Loved this hero. He was a manwhore and super jealous and possessive of Elvi. I love it when a playboy hero is insecure and vulnerable when it comes to the heroine. They had a hot and passionate relationship. Epilogue with 2 kids was nice but I needed more babies. Overall a very entertaining read. Safe: heroine is a virgin and hero is faithful. Can’t wait for Lynne’s next Harlequin!
Profile Image for Debbie DiFiore.
2,732 reviews315 followers
September 20, 2018
Love this Lynne Graham!

I really enjoyed this book. Lynne Graham can tak a horrible hero and make him vulnerable and oh so sweet. Now there were a couple of times I wanted to hurt him but overall this book is charming. I had to suspend belief in this in the wake of Metoo because this could never happen but I was raised in these and I just going to la la land with it. In real life, not a chance buster but I will just go with it in make believe land. The scene where the H punches her male friend in the face for telling her he loved her was priceless. He was so jealous. I loved that she made him feel. The wedding scene where he pushed her away was just painful to read and broke my heart. But I loved the heroine. She pushed back too and made him feel shame. I really liked the story. Thank you Melody for recommending it.
Profile Image for Vintage.
2,716 reviews721 followers
August 16, 2018
Thank you Ivy for the book, and as far as review I doubt I can do better than hers.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

It's been a while since I've had a Greek tycoon, hey hey, fictionally speaking, and this one fit the bill.

Bad dad- check
Multiple half-siblings - check
Greedy gold-digger ex as a first- check
Mistress on tap- check, check, CHECK
Sex as anesthesia- check

He fails the tycoon test in several areas:
Feels shame and remorse over his blackmail bargain with a virgin. Repeat shame and remorse. Feels!
He has OCD and puts his clothes up.

For once I bought the heroine's acceptance of the sleazy deal the H set out as she really was trying to protect her stepmother and brother. Neither one knew anything about it nor would they have let her do it if they had known. In fact, the whole family was falling all over themselves to accept blame for the dustup. Nice change.

Too brief appearances of a potential OM for the heroine and the evil ex OW. Too bad as they always add spice to the broth.
Profile Image for JennyG.
92 reviews
August 8, 2018
Reminiscent of Spanish Groom, but wasn't able to even come close to topping it.

3, 5* stars actually.

Loved:

* beautiful, innocent heroine who stood up for herself, her love for her family
* the fact that the hero took one look at her and fell hard for her
* his possessiveness and jealousy
* sexual tension between them

Hated:

* not enough dialogue, telling not showing
* heroine belittling herself
* accidental pregnancy YET AGAIN!
* hero's reaction to his growing feelings for heroine and hero's reaction to the pregnancy news which was the SAME as in her previous books
* EXACTLY the SAME PLOT yet again!

I want LG to write an old school hero who sees the heroine and doesn't let anything stop him from getting her. I want him to be aware of his feelings and NOT deny them or RUN from them. I want him to be crazy about our heroine, possessive and jealous and to react with pride and elation to the news that she is pregnant. I want a hero in pursuit and a more elaborate plot. Heroine who is beautiful and smart and has her own business, maybe is a tycoon herself.

Oh, how I wish I could write, but unfortunately I cannot. I can only wish for my favorite romance author to write another besotted hero and more elaborate plots like the ones she wrote in the 90s.





Profile Image for AvidReader.
1,476 reviews330 followers
May 8, 2020
Too much information about hero’s mistress arrangements and exes. But thankfully not one woman in particular.
I first thought I have read this book before but the published date didn’t add up. Then realized it’s because this book resembles many other’s from this author.
I had fun but I wasn’t bowled by it.
Safe and recommended.
Profile Image for Caro.
513 reviews47 followers
January 15, 2020
Otra vez, siento que Lynne Graham perdió el rumbo.
Atrás quedaron personajes tan queribles como Alex Terzakis y Sarah de Bond of Hatred. Esta protagonista literalmente se prostituye porque liberen a su madrastra de un delito que nadie cometió y es un gran malentendido. El héroe no puede lidiar con sus sentimientos y utiliza a una ex que fue el amor de su juventud para darle celos a la heroína en un casamiento con toda la familia presente.
El reencuentro sólo se produce porque hay un hijo de por medio, o sea que si no fuera por esto, nuestros protagonistas no se verían nunca más. Acá no hay una prota trabajadora e independiente, sino una muy cómoda que utiliza el embarazo para seguir viviendo bien.
Esperaba encontrar reseñas más acordes a mi opinión, pero ninguna logró convencerme.
Profile Image for Diya✨.
246 reviews12 followers
September 23, 2018
3.75🌟

This was good book, typical story line recycled again by LG. It was enjoyable read and I was laughing at times but this was much much better than all her recent releases but it still felt a little lacking in angst department nothing like her early work.
Profile Image for MissKitty.
1,747 reviews
June 3, 2020
This was very well done. Loved the chemistry between the couple.

Just one thing ....

The Greek’s Blackmailed Mistress by Lynne Graham NOT to be confused with The Greek Tycoon’s Blackmailed Mistress also by Lynne Graham

Come on Harlequin...really!!! Whats up with all the generic corny titles?🙄😖Author’s are creative people, just let them give titles to their own books! I didnt read this for the longest time because i thought I had already done so. Turns out I read the other one. Dont your editors get confused themselves?!

So except for unfortunate title, the story was quite good. The Hero blackmails the heroine into a mistress position, so its a well used trope. What i liked hough was that he wasnt nasty to her and kept having inner monologues about doing nice things for her. The heroine was not a doormat either, she was a truly nice sweet person and everyone loved her.
Profile Image for Jacqueline J.
3,565 reviews371 followers
September 4, 2018
Three stars probably because it is LG. She is always a competent writer. This was basically fluff. At least the family she was 'hoing herself out for was worthwhile here. I don't know, this was just pretty same ol' same ol'. Not a lot of angst or conflict. Sometimes I think this type of book suffers a bit when there is too much POV from the hero. It's hard to buy into the asshat hero if you can see him thinking. His motivations for example to get her off the island were weak and his actions silly. hmm...
Profile Image for reeder (reviews).
204 reviews116 followers
September 23, 2018
Every one of those three stars may be for this line:
Incredulous as only a young, handsome billionaire could be at meeting with the word no for the first time, Xan raked a slightly shaky hand through his tousled black hair.

Oh, stock HP character, I love you.

This book is mostly a pastiche of every other Lynne Graham book in which a sweet, virginal heroine allows herself to be blackmailed into a billionaire's bed for the sake of her relatives, with the noted exception that this time her relatives are nice. (So are his.) Also, everyone who knows what the hero is doing (including the hero) regards it as pretty skeevy.

I read Lynne Graham to get Lynne Graham, so I feel pretty cynical when I read a book that is "Lynne Graham by the numbers" and want something more.
Profile Image for Vee.
715 reviews204 followers
July 22, 2021
2.5 stars

Didn't feel the love. Just a couple with huge lust towards each other esp the H that was a major player and jerk. Left me cold tbh.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for iamGamz.
1,549 reviews51 followers
May 6, 2019
A delicious Lynne Graham with an H with Obsessive Compulsive disorder and an h who is his exact opposite in every way.

Believing that her mum stole something from him, he blackmails the h when she comes to beg him to drop the charges on her mum.

He agrees, but only if she becomes his mistress for 3 months. She’s horrified, dumps water on him and clearly states that she is not a slut. He tells her to take some time to think it over and make a decision.

Of course, circumstances makes her realize that she doesn’t really have a choice, so she accepts his deal.

He soon learns that she is an innocent and that the chemistry between them is explosive. But that explosive chemistry causes him to lose control and have unprotected sex for the first time in his life. He also learned exactly how innocent the h truly was.

A great Lynne Graham read. Reminiscent of her earlier works that I love so much. It was a delightful read.
Profile Image for Rgreader.
734 reviews54 followers
February 27, 2022
Perfection. The world problems went out of my mind as I read this romance. I loved how the heroine tamed the hero. I loved the last few pages, seeing the heroine and hero as parents.


I do think the heroine's friend Joel should get his own book. He was her best friend since childhood and he disappeared into the mists. Sigh.
2,345 reviews
September 25, 2018
4.5 stars

Another great read from the fabulous Lynne Graham. Even though Xan was a bit of a piece work in this book, I absolutely adored the book, and even more adored the two of them. From the get go, I was immediately drawn into the story and the characters of Xan and Elvi, and really felt myself consumed with them as a couple. Something about this story just really grabbed ahold of me and kept hanging on until the very end.

The flow of the story was really easy to get into and had a very nice progression to it. It felt very smooth and effortless. There was a lot of good build up and anticipation between Xan and Elvi, who really had chemistry from the very beginning. They just had this connection that was special as soon as they met even if they didn’t quite know it yet.

Xan was a bit of piece of work especially with his little proposition to Elvi, which wasn’t the most flattering one. He did and said some things that I definitely didn’t agree with, and honestly I wanted to slap him couple of times with his crudeness, but once he realized his mistake then the softer side of him really came out to play especially when it came to Elvi. I really adored him after that. He realized very quickly that Elvi was different from the woman he usually had been with and couldn’t treat her the same way and so did accordingly. Even if he couldn’t acknowledge it, he really needed that closeness with her and that intimacy that he was missing in his previous arrangements. I could see him being sucked more and more into Elvi as his feelings grew and grew for her, and that was really nice to see. He really was being brought down to his knees by this very special woman. He might not have known what to do with that at first, but I gave him props for trying. He really did make her feel special and that added to the specialness of their relationship. I enjoyed seeing that side of him. I loved seeing him fall deeper and deeper in love with her.

I loved Elvi so much. She was an amazing character with a heart of gold. She was selfless and did what she had to do in order to protect her family even if that meant entering into a sordid arrangement with Xan. She had a bit of crush on Xan, which was very interesting especially as she entered into the arrangement with him. She didn’t want to like him. She didn’t want to be attracted to him, but she very much was. As soon as their lips touched for the first, she was his. There was no going back, and she fell in love with him very quickly, and that felt totally believable in the story. Elvi felt very much like a three dimensional character to me with her insecurities and hurts from the past as she was coming to deal with her feeling and relationship with Xan, and Ioved seeing her progression throughout the story.

I really enjoyed seeing their relationship play out on the pages. There were just immediate sparks between them from the first time they met, but what I really liked the most was seeing the byplay between them. It was flirty yet intense. It was fun yet serious. They just really knew how to push each other’s buttons along the way and combine that with their chemistry, and they were just explosive together. Plus she wouldn’t let him get away with anything, which made for some really interesting banter. I just loved seeing them relate and build and build intensity as the story progressed. Also they developed that closeness that I loved seeing as their intimacy grew and grew along the way. It was very much about their chemistry both physically and emotionally. I just loved seeing them together.

Their passionate scenes were really hot and steamy and really started front heir first kiss to all their bedroom scenes. They just had this fire between them that was sizzling throughout the book and never really got put out. It was always there between them, but what made more intense was the fact that their feelings for each other kept growing and growing over the course of the book, which made their love scenes even more intense along the way. Also after their first time, that was really when things began to change between them because Xan realized that he may have been wrong to enter into this sordid relationship with innocent Elvi in the first place. In fact he felt really remorsefully of how he treated her and that when he made the decision to get closer to her and be a little bit softer toward her, but that didn’t mean the intensity of the relationship went down. It was more intense, which was seen by the following love scenes. The love scenes were really passionate, sexy and about the emotional connection that they had developing between them. They just needed each other and no other person would do.

This was just a very enjoyable story between two people that came together during less than ideal circumstances to find an all consuming love that was intense, emotional, sensual, and loving. The flow to the story was effortless and flawless. It made the story very easy to read and very easy to get into. It was consuming as I got sucked into the story. The development was really good with a very nice steady build until it reached a climax and then just kept on building and building until the happy ending finally came. There wasn’t angst in this story, but in this instance that was okay and worked with the story, but there wasn’t definitely a lot of intensity and misunderstandings along the way which compensated for that. Their connection was pretty immediate as soon as they appeared on the page together and that just really sparked off of each other really nicely. I love that she stood up to him and call him out on a lot of stuff, and she really did make him a better person once he realized that she was different and special to him. I also thought it was very interesting that she had a crush on him, which added another layer to story, but also showed that there were really feeling for him from the very beginning. The love scenes were really good and very satisfying as they finally came together and really showed off their intimacy nicely. I loved when they cuddled in the aftermath of a passionate interlude. Those were the moments I enjoyed seeing the most. Them getting closer and increasing their connection to one another and just how important they were becoming to each other. I loved seeing that specialness develop between the two of them. Just there was so much goodness to this story that there was no way not to adore this book. It was a very enjoyable and satisfying romance, and another great Lynne Graham book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Jena .
2,313 reviews2 followers
September 1, 2021
Lust yes, love, not really. Honestly, I didn’t quite buy this Hs love for h, he was just too cold. He also got rid of her easily enough, and I doubt he would’ve gone after her if she hadn’t gone to see him for the baby issue.

Also all the mention of his arrangements with the ow, including seeing his first love in the book was annoying to me. The h is his 2nd love, which is a small pet peeve of mine in romance novels, cuz you never forget your first love. I would’ve skipped reading this if I had known.

‘“Angie was my first love. We met at university. I fell hard for her,’ he admitted harshly, his lean, strong face grim.”

Bottom line, I was totally engrossed with the story, which probably meant that it was a good book, and I liked the h, I liked that she had a curvy body with big boobs, and she wasn’t a doormat.
4 stars.

Safe
They’re apart for 2 weeks.
The h was a virgin.
Profile Image for SassyLeg.
547 reviews
May 21, 2019
3.5 stars

A billionaire alpha that seems just a cold manwhore that changes his mistresses more often than his clothes... and a feisty but innocent h, that confronts him to save her family but accepts his "scandalous" proposal for their sake.
Soon we understand that she is desperately falling for him and he is not so cold..... love so much his jealousy and possessivenss!!!
What else? The plot is quite simple but the author is good at conveying their growing passion and how they face their insecurities and past issues to get real love.
Yes!!!
Profile Image for Aou .
2,047 reviews215 followers
September 8, 2018
I love LG and this one is better than most recent works. But i miss the angst.
Profile Image for Blaze King.
146 reviews24 followers
September 11, 2018
Wash and rinse. Wash and rinse. Write something new and different Ms Graham. Ur writing is good as always, but it's so.... repetitive - In your EVERY book!
Profile Image for Mtve41.
663 reviews23 followers
May 27, 2019
I've read better from LG. Elvi is in a predicament where she agrees to become Xan's mistress as last resort, when she tries out all other options and fails. There was some angst and some weak plot. I was bored in the beginning by the droning on of Elvi’s family chit chat. Unfortunately her mother and her brother bore too much baggage in the book and I couldn’t wait for them to get out of the picture!

Didn’t like Xan too much either. He was definitely an alpha but way too cold for my liking. His interactions and love making with Elvi also seemed calculated except maybe in one scene on the plane!!

I couldn’t feel the presence of ANY romance at all in the entire book! Inside I kind of felt bad for Elvi to get Xan for his wealth and good looks. He was certainly not attuned to Elvi on a deeper level, just sexual! Elvi I found to be very sweet and real. I loved her realistic replies to the ugly things Xan would say to her. I hated how at their first time sleeping (esp Elvi’s first time) he didn’t even bother to check on her if she was faring ok. There was just no follow up on that.

Alright epilogue! Nothing memorable for me in this one!
1,508 reviews51 followers
August 9, 2018
Passionate, romantic read with a hero that learns a few lessons from our heroine.
Profile Image for Mrs Caroline Trevor.
443 reviews10 followers
October 21, 2019
Great

I found this a really good book. Elvi is a great character. She would do anything to protect her family even enter into an intimate relationship with Xan a billionaire businessman but things don't turn out how he usually sees his sexual relationships. Can she mend his heart
Profile Image for Aisha.
482 reviews17 followers
September 15, 2021
Another great success from the Harlequin Queen.

When Elvi Cartwright's mother, Sally, is accused of a crime she didn't committed, Elvi intercedes by her before Xan Ziakis, Sally's boss and the one who reported her to the police. Xan, who has wanted Elvi since he saw her for the first time, blackmailed her in response: Elvi must be his lover for three months and he will withdraw the charges against her mother. What Xan doesn't know is what really happened the day of the crime and that Elvi is a virgin ...

The plot is developed fluently. It presents two strong, opposite and even stubborn characters. With a dysfunctional childhood, Xan is a control/order/stability freak, the last two because he never had them in his home and seeks them. He also shows himself vulnerable and insecure (apart from jealous) before Elvi, which makes it a fascinating hero as contrasting and complex he can be. Elvi, on the other hand, had a relatively happy childhood, but the death of her father provoked certain events that left her, her mother (is her stepmother but she's the only mother she knows and love because hers died when Elvi was a baby) and his brother in a precarious economic state. Her life experiences make her a woman with high values ​​(which are threatened by Xan's blackmail) and extremely loyal towards the people she loves, an adorable heroine. However, as soon as they are known, they connect immediately. Chemistry is fantastic and sexual tension is latent. More importantly, they learn from each other and they are better thanks to that.

The secondary characters are very good. Dimitri reminds me of Taylor, Christian Grey's bodyguard, hehehe. Sally lives tormented by guilt because of the mistakes of the past, and Daniel and Ariadne (Elvi's brother and Xan's mother, respectively) have very defined personalities.

For the record, Lynne Graham is my number one fetish author. That said, I can be objective and mention that Mrs. Graham has constant writing patterns in her stories. Let's go to some of the numbers (because the numbers do not lie, or so they say):

1. 100% of heroines are virgin.
2. 95% of heroes have golden eyes and 98% are alpha males.
3. 80% of the names of the heroines are written in diminutive (Betsy, Letty, ELVI, etc.)
4. The level of drama in her stories is high. VERY. HIGH. Tangles everywhere...

In spite of those -and some more- of those patterns, Mrs. Graham always manages to bring refreshing stories. The way she tells the story is exquisite by itself.

Although there is no high level of angst, there's a well-written plot and scenes created intentionally. In addition, the greatest asset of this author is in this book: how careful she is with the details, without leaving loose ends. There's nothing in the story that doesn't have the right reason be there, as well as nothing written to fill pages. Add an easy, simple and perfectly pace reading and you would know why Lynne Graham is, without a doubt, the total and absolute QUEEN of Harlequin.
Profile Image for Ishara.
559 reviews9 followers
August 19, 2018
Let me start by saying I absolutely adored our MCs! Elvi was an absolute darling with good values and through the book she was level headed and thought things through. Xan, oh Xan! He fell in lust with Elvi long before he actually met her face to face and that lust quickly morphed to love. He felt bad for the way he propositioned her almost immediately and didn't want to treat her the way he treated his other mistresses.

Lovely read with great characters which definitely ticked all the HP boxes. Nice one, Lynne.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Bec.
1,659 reviews42 followers
August 16, 2018

Review Posted at HarlequinJunkie.com

Xan will do anything to have Elvi in his bed, even if it means blackmailing her. In exchange, he’ll drop the theft charges her mom is facing. Knowing she has no choice, Elvi agrees, but soon she finds herself falling in love. Will she be able to show Xan that their relationship is worth giving a real chance or will she walk away before she gets hurt? Read More
Profile Image for Aisha.
482 reviews17 followers
September 14, 2021
Otro gran éxito de la Reina de Harlequin.

Cuando la madrastra de Elvi Cartwright, Sally, es acusada de un crimen que no cometió, Elvi intercede por ella ante Xan Ziakis, el jefe de Sally y quien la reportó ante la policía. Xan, que ha deseado a Elvi desde que la vio por primera vez, la chantajea en respuesta: Elvi debe ser su amante por tres meses y él retirará los cargos contra su madre. Lo que Xan no sabe es qué sucedió realmente en el supuesto crimen y que Elvi es virgen...

La trama está desarrollada de manera fluida. Nos presenta a dos personajes fuertes, opuestos y hasta obstinados. Con una infancia disfuncional, Xan es un obseso del control, el orden, y la estabilidad, estos dos últimos los busca porque nunca los tuvo en su hogar. También se muestra vulnerable e inseguro (aparte de celoso) ante Elvi, lo que lo hace un héroe fascinante por lo contrastante que puede ser. Elvi, por otro lado, tuvo una infancia relativamente feliz, pero la muerte de su padre provocó ciertos eventos que la dejaron a ella, su madre (es su madrastra pero es la única madre que conoce pues la suya murió cuando Elvi era un bebé y la quiere como tal) y a su hermano en un precario estado económico. Sus experiencias de vida la hacen una mujer con altos valores (los cuales se ven amenazados por el chantaje de Xan) y sumamenteleal con los que ama, toda una chica adorable. Sin embargo, tan pronto se conocen, conectan de inmediato. La química es fantástica y la tensión sexual es latente. Más importante, ellos aprenden el uno del otro y son mejores gracias a ello.

Los personajes secundarios son muy buenos. Dimitri me recuerda a Taylor, el guardaespaldas de Christian Grey, hehehe. Sally vive atormentada por la culpa que acarrean los errores del pasado y Daniel y Ariadne (hermano de Elvi y madre de Xan, respectivamente) tienen personalidades muy definidas.

Para estar en récord, Lynne Graham es mi autora fetiche número uno. Dicho esto, puedo ser objetiva y mencionar que la señora Graham tiene unos patrones de escritura constantes en sus historias. Vamos a algunos de los números (porque los números no mienten, o eso dicen):

1. El 100% de las heroínas son vírgenes.
2. El 95% de los héroes tienen los ojos dorados y un 98% son machos alfa.
3. Un 80% de los nombres de las heroínas son diminutivos (Betsy, Letty, etc.)
4. El nivel de drama en sus historias es ALTO. MUY. ALTO. Enredos por doquier...

A pesar de esos —y algunos más— de esos patrones, la señora Graham siempre logra traer historias refrescantes y acordes a la época. No inserta la tecnología ultra moderna (entiéndase las redes sociales), pero no la necesita; su forma de relatar la historia es exquisita por sí sola.

Aunque no hay un alto nivel de angustia, sí hay una trama bien escrita y escenas creadas a conciencia. Además, el mayor activo de esta autora está presente: el extremo cuidado que pone a los detalles, sin dejar nada al azar. No hay nada que esté en la historia que no tenga su justa razón, así como tampoco hay nada escrito para rellenar páginas. Añade una lectura fácil, sencilla y con ritmo perfecto y podrás saber por qué Lynne Graham es, sin lugar a dudas, es la total y absoluta REINA de Harlequin.
Profile Image for Tabatha Reed.
1,687 reviews199 followers
December 22, 2021
Needed a break from Christmas reads. This was as melodramatic as all HP books are. I liked it ok. It was neither great nor awful.

The YAY:
I love seeing a rigid, jaded nan like this H (Xan) come undone at the hands of an innocent woman. I liked her a lot.

The NAY:
Hurting her to push her away is a sad tired trope. All authors out there if you ever see this - lay this overused trope to rest. It’s predictable and annoying.

Story 3/5, Heat 2.5/5, Angst 3.75/5

Fast-ish burn, the H steals her vCard at 34%.

Condoms used (mostly), virgin h, manwhore H, push away from h, OW drama, slight OM drama, brief separation. No cheating, no cliffhanger and HEA.

Safety - there is no cheating but he flirts with a former lover to hurt her and push her away *eye roll*. She assumes he banged OW after she left but he says he didn’t. She has a male best friend who declares his love for her on her wedding day resulting in a fight with H.
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