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โลกของซูซาน แบล็คสโตนหยุดหมุนเมื่อเธอมองข้ามห้องที่แออัดไปเห็นชายแปลกหน้า แล้วหัวใจเธอก็หยุดชะงักเมื่อรู้จักชื่อเขา เขาคือคอร์ด แบล็คสโตน แกะดำของครอบครัว และเป็นญาติโดยการแต่งงานของเธอ แม้ว่าสามีเธอจะเสียชีวิตไปแล้วถึงห้าปีเต็ม
คอร์ดกลับมาด้วยเหตุผลเพียงข้อเดียว...แก้แค้น แต่เขาไม่ไว้ใจซูซานมากไปกว่าที่เธอไว้ใจเขา ความรักกลายเป็นสิ่งไม่คาดฝันท่ามกลางการต่อสู้เพื่ออำนาจควบคุมบริษัทของครอบครัว และมันเร็วเกินไปที่จะรู้ว่าใครเป็นฝ่ายมีชัย...
โลกของซูซาน แบล็คสโตนหยุดหมุนเมื่อเธอมองข้ามห้องที่แออัดไปเห็นชายแปลกหน้า แล้วหัวใจเธอก็หยุดชะงักเมื่อรู้จักชื่อเขา เขาคือคอร์ด แบล็คสโตน แกะดำของครอบครัว และเป็นญาติโดยการแต่งงานของเธอ แม้ว่าสามีเธอจะเสียชีวิตไปแล้วถึงห้าปีเต็ม
คอร์ดกลับมาด้วยเหตุผลเพียงข้อเดียว...แก้แค้น แต่เขาไม่ไว้ใจซูซานมากไปกว่าที่เธอไว้ใจเขา ความรักกลายเป็นสิ่งไม่คาดฝันท่ามกลางการต่อสู้เพื่ออำนาจควบคุมบริษัทของครอบครัว และมันเร็วเกินไปที่จะรู้ว่าใครเป็นฝ่ายมีชัย...
224 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 1985
242 people are currently reading
849 people want to read
About the author
Linda Howard
223 books7,174 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.
Linda S. Howington is an American best-selling romance author writing under the pseudonym Linda Howard. After 21 years of penning stories for her own enjoyment, she submitted a novel for publication which was very successful. Her first work was published by Silhouette in 1982. She is a charter member of Romance Writers of America and in 2005 Howard was awarded their Career Achievement Award.
Linda Howard lives in Gadsden, Alabama with her husband, Gary F. Howington, and two golden retrievers. She has three grown stepchildren and three grandchildren.
Linda S. Howington is an American best-selling romance author writing under the pseudonym Linda Howard. After 21 years of penning stories for her own enjoyment, she submitted a novel for publication which was very successful. Her first work was published by Silhouette in 1982. She is a charter member of Romance Writers of America and in 2005 Howard was awarded their Career Achievement Award.
Linda Howard lives in Gadsden, Alabama with her husband, Gary F. Howington, and two golden retrievers. She has three grown stepchildren and three grandchildren.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 144 reviews
September 19, 2022
LOL, another one of my attempts at audiobooks biting the dust. I started listening to this and coz I was so impatient to wait to continue it as audio, I went ahead and grabbed a kindle copy. Linda Howard’s books are hit and misses for me, some of them do work brilliantly with a tight knit plot, a heroine to root for and a hero to die for, Tears of Renegade, I can say is partly a hit... Yes, coz my expectation was low and it was kind of the mindless reading that I wanted to be lost in for a few hours. Reading time has dwindled down to zero so obviously I was happy with my choice of reading this.
Cord Blackstone’s reason to take revenge on his family for the wrongs done to him lacked impact coz the matriarch and her son were not portrayed as cruel villains who destroyed our MC, in fact, the plot of the black sheep returning for revenge didn't completely work for me. The intense romance between Susan and Cord was exciting though I wanted Susan to show some backbone in her dealings with Cord.
This is an early Linda Howard book, so if you are picking this one up, just expect the kind of romance prevalent in those times and I believe you won’t be disappointed.
Oh well, entertaining read and exactly what the doctor ordered for book craving soul like me…
This review is published in my blog Rain'n'Books, ##Goodreads, ##Amazon India, ##Facebook, ##Twitter.
Cord Blackstone’s reason to take revenge on his family for the wrongs done to him lacked impact coz the matriarch and her son were not portrayed as cruel villains who destroyed our MC, in fact, the plot of the black sheep returning for revenge didn't completely work for me. The intense romance between Susan and Cord was exciting though I wanted Susan to show some backbone in her dealings with Cord.
This is an early Linda Howard book, so if you are picking this one up, just expect the kind of romance prevalent in those times and I believe you won’t be disappointed.
Oh well, entertaining read and exactly what the doctor ordered for book craving soul like me…
This review is published in my blog Rain'n'Books, ##Goodreads, ##Amazon India, ##Facebook, ##Twitter.
March 8, 2020
The end saved this book for me. I really wasn’t liking the direction for most of the book, but I am a sucker for a good ending. Overall, I just didn’t like the behavior of any of the characters. I felt they were all in the wrong except for the heroine and she just frustrated the crap out of me. The surprise twist did make me feel better about the hero though. I do think he should have groveled more to the heroine. The epilogue was sweet.
January 16, 2019
The renegade H was quite an obnoxious fella and the ‘serene genteel’ h made me feel like whacking her on the head a few times. This book had more fillers filling it than a self-respecting LH book ever should! The h’s thought processes were as unstoppable and repetitive as a tail-chasing dog.
I like a h who knows her mind and heart, and does some guy-chasing especially a cool customer like her but something was very off with it all. For one, her one sided devotion was more sexual obsession than love (with full marks on perseverance). At least the H was more asinine-ly honest about his intentions. And then she lovingly dwells on him and his for pages at end.
And her ‘ability’ to command respect and acquiescence from one and all (with one notable exception!) by a mere look or nod not only made her sound like a Victorian matron but also didn't gel with her complete capitulation to the H. Only her decision to take on the H in the business war had my respect but then she didn't last long, did she?
The jerk-y H and his self serving behavior mostly turned me off and then he went and had a bawling fit at the end just to justify the title (I wondered and wondered about the title and then I knew!). The h’s bleeding heart reflections on his lonely isolation and sad-ish childhood were completely ott and farfetched. Nothing about his past seemed too worthy of a sympathetic ‘awww’. So his parents died but apparently he had a good hell-raising youth with girls/women falling all over him from most directions.
He had an affair with an older (by 15 yrs.) woman that broke her marriage and alienated her from her kids, family and the whole town. The widowed h’s mother-in-law and brother-in-law had a role in humiliating the woman and now the H is back to avenge his former lover. Too late and too tacky!
The ending-semi grovel was nice-okay and the baby epilogue was sweet. All in all, could have been better if it had more meat than hyperbole.
I like a h who knows her mind and heart, and does some guy-chasing especially a cool customer like her but something was very off with it all. For one, her one sided devotion was more sexual obsession than love (with full marks on perseverance). At least the H was more asinine-ly honest about his intentions. And then she lovingly dwells on him and his for pages at end.
And her ‘ability’ to command respect and acquiescence from one and all (with one notable exception!) by a mere look or nod not only made her sound like a Victorian matron but also didn't gel with her complete capitulation to the H. Only her decision to take on the H in the business war had my respect but then she didn't last long, did she?
The jerk-y H and his self serving behavior mostly turned me off and then he went and had a bawling fit at the end just to justify the title (I wondered and wondered about the title and then I knew!). The h’s bleeding heart reflections on his lonely isolation and sad-ish childhood were completely ott and farfetched. Nothing about his past seemed too worthy of a sympathetic ‘awww’. So his parents died but apparently he had a good hell-raising youth with girls/women falling all over him from most directions.
He had an affair with an older (by 15 yrs.) woman that broke her marriage and alienated her from her kids, family and the whole town. The widowed h’s mother-in-law and brother-in-law had a role in humiliating the woman and now the H is back to avenge his former lover. Too late and too tacky!
The ending-semi grovel was nice-okay and the baby epilogue was sweet. All in all, could have been better if it had more meat than hyperbole.
October 4, 2018
No ha estado mal la historia.
Me ha parecido más o menos como la historia anterior que leído de la misma autora. Corta, fácil de leer y entretenida.
Pero en este caso ella a veces me volvía un poco loca.
Me ha parecido más o menos como la historia anterior que leído de la misma autora. Corta, fácil de leer y entretenida.
Pero en este caso ella a veces me volvía un poco loca.
December 16, 2025
I’m beginning to think there are two Linda Howard authors, or perhaps she suffers from split personality disorder. One Linda writes captivating plots and strong leading ladies. Her books may not always be perfect, but they’re still enjoyable reads.
Then there’s this other Linda who writes incredibly dull books, about nothing, with the worst excuse for a heroine I can imagine.
“Tears of the Renegade” was the latter. It revolved around nothing and was utterly boring. I realised I despised her, if only slightly. She was a saint and martyr who, at the book’s end, lost everything in a game between two men. She was a wealthy widow who had no trouble losing everything she had, except her house, to a family feud with in-laws who demanded she prostitute herself. Loyalty is just another word for stupidity. Neanderthal may be a throwback, but she’s worse: Victorian, prudish, downright stupid and naive. She’s in love with love, as she never knew it. Brrr.
Save me from this ideal of a woman.
2022 update: I tried reading it again but couldn’t get past the first chapters. Saying I despised her isn’t enough.
Then there’s this other Linda who writes incredibly dull books, about nothing, with the worst excuse for a heroine I can imagine.
“Tears of the Renegade” was the latter. It revolved around nothing and was utterly boring. I realised I despised her, if only slightly. She was a saint and martyr who, at the book’s end, lost everything in a game between two men. She was a wealthy widow who had no trouble losing everything she had, except her house, to a family feud with in-laws who demanded she prostitute herself. Loyalty is just another word for stupidity. Neanderthal may be a throwback, but she’s worse: Victorian, prudish, downright stupid and naive. She’s in love with love, as she never knew it. Brrr.
Save me from this ideal of a woman.
2022 update: I tried reading it again but couldn’t get past the first chapters. Saying I despised her isn’t enough.
May 19, 2020
Cord Blackstone has returned to his family home, ready to fight for his portion of the family business. Susan Blackstone is a widow who was married to Cord's cousin, Vance. She works closely with Vance's mother and brother. They certainly aren't happy that Cord has returned and know he is going to cause them nothing but trouble.
This is an older Linda Howard title (1985) that was reissued. The story is very dated. Susan is the typical doormat heroine who acts like she's in a trance every time Cord comes near her. Cord is an alpha jerk who can't be bothered to tell Susan what his plans are, then is upset when she keeps interfering. For some unknown reason she falls in love with him. I call it lust. We only get her point-of-view in this story, so we never know what Cord actually thinks of her until the end of the book. My rating: 2 Stars.
This is an older Linda Howard title (1985) that was reissued. The story is very dated. Susan is the typical doormat heroine who acts like she's in a trance every time Cord comes near her. Cord is an alpha jerk who can't be bothered to tell Susan what his plans are, then is upset when she keeps interfering. For some unknown reason she falls in love with him. I call it lust. We only get her point-of-view in this story, so we never know what Cord actually thinks of her until the end of the book. My rating: 2 Stars.
June 15, 2015
** 3.5 stars **
Early Linda Howard, not as good as most of her books.
Early Linda Howard, not as good as most of her books.
July 11, 2017
When I checked this book out I knew it was an early LH. I knew here earlier books differ from her later ones. Still, I didn't care. It was set in the time for when she wrote it. It was a romance novel. I will never give her books less than 3 stars because I am a LH fan through and through.
December 13, 2020
I hate this one so much. She is a biddable handmaid in the form of a socialite. He is supposedly charismatic. She is, err, hypnotized by his, err, masculine appeal and voluntarily suppresses any personality she might have had.
May 14, 2016
3.5 Stars
July 25, 2022
3-3.5 stars
I loved it and hated it at the same time.
The heroine frustrated the hell out of me and I really wanted to smack the hero at times.
But.
Buuuut...
It's Linda Howard.
So the writing is so freaking good, you wanna curl your toes and howl to the moon.
And so I'm incapable of any negative feelings here.
Generally speaking, I'm not a fan of heroines chasing after the hero. Full stop.
Also, I'm not a fan of heroines who believe they can cure the hero from whatever damage they suffer.
You know, with their love.
Or their pussy.
Unfortunately, the heroine here is both and I didn't like it one bit.
She does wake up finally and finds her brain but that was a bit too little, too late for my liking.
Also, the hero should have grovelled waaaay more than he actually did.
But the story was good, just not as good as I hoped.
But I know it's one of Howard's earlier works so maybe that's why.
Dunno.
I loved it and hated it at the same time.
The heroine frustrated the hell out of me and I really wanted to smack the hero at times.
But.
Buuuut...
It's Linda Howard.
So the writing is so freaking good, you wanna curl your toes and howl to the moon.
And so I'm incapable of any negative feelings here.
Generally speaking, I'm not a fan of heroines chasing after the hero. Full stop.
Also, I'm not a fan of heroines who believe they can cure the hero from whatever damage they suffer.
You know, with their love.
Or their pussy.
Unfortunately, the heroine here is both and I didn't like it one bit.
She does wake up finally and finds her brain but that was a bit too little, too late for my liking.
Also, the hero should have grovelled waaaay more than he actually did.
But the story was good, just not as good as I hoped.
But I know it's one of Howard's earlier works so maybe that's why.
Dunno.
November 8, 2020
"Tears Of The Renegade" is the story of Susan and Cord.
Our heroine is a young widow, working hard and having the affection of her late husband's family. Her sedate life takes a turn when the black sheep of the family, her late husband's estranged and prodigal cousin enters her life. He is bearded, handsome, ruthless and out for revenge against the people who did him wrong. She is loyal, protective and ready to do anything for those she cares for. The dilemma arises when their sexual chemistry becomes too strong to deny, and the heroine is forced to choose between her married family and the man she loves. How far will he go for revenge? Is no strings sex all he wants?
Angsty, sexy and filled with familial drama and loads of emotions. The book drips with blatant lust, and simmers with the undertone of vengeance. The heroine was wayy more into the hero, than he was into her apparently- and that kinda did bug me a little.
I enjoyed it- and ended with a nice epilogue.
Safe
3.5/5
Our heroine is a young widow, working hard and having the affection of her late husband's family. Her sedate life takes a turn when the black sheep of the family, her late husband's estranged and prodigal cousin enters her life. He is bearded, handsome, ruthless and out for revenge against the people who did him wrong. She is loyal, protective and ready to do anything for those she cares for. The dilemma arises when their sexual chemistry becomes too strong to deny, and the heroine is forced to choose between her married family and the man she loves. How far will he go for revenge? Is no strings sex all he wants?
Angsty, sexy and filled with familial drama and loads of emotions. The book drips with blatant lust, and simmers with the undertone of vengeance. The heroine was wayy more into the hero, than he was into her apparently- and that kinda did bug me a little.
I enjoyed it- and ended with a nice epilogue.
Safe
3.5/5
December 19, 2017
I didn't see the end coming. Like the poor heroine, I was clueless throughout. Good for you Ms. Howard!
I love early contemporaries by Linda Howard. They are such train-wrecks! (But in a good way.) And so freaking hot! I don't know how she does it but the chemistry is usually off the charts.
Cord is the black sheep of the Blackstone family and Susan is his cousin's widow. They meet when he returns to the fold, looking for revenge for the way he had been treated as a youth. There's a lot of enmity on both sides but once Susan hooks up with Cord, she refuses to takes side. She cares for both of them, you see, and thinks they should make peace with each other instead of fighting. At the beginning, I thought the reasons for the fight were petty but this was one of those fights were little things kept escalating it until full out war ensues.
Susan was a great heroine. Once she realized her feelings for Cord, she decided to give the relationship a try even though Cord didn't trust her at all. She didn't take sides in the stupid fight between them and instead tried to get Cord to back down. Of course, since she was in the middle, she was the one who ended being used by both sides. If there was one thing this book needed was a LOT of groveling as both Cord and her husband's family treated her abominably.
I totally enjoyed it though!
I love early contemporaries by Linda Howard. They are such train-wrecks! (But in a good way.) And so freaking hot! I don't know how she does it but the chemistry is usually off the charts.
Cord is the black sheep of the Blackstone family and Susan is his cousin's widow. They meet when he returns to the fold, looking for revenge for the way he had been treated as a youth. There's a lot of enmity on both sides but once Susan hooks up with Cord, she refuses to takes side. She cares for both of them, you see, and thinks they should make peace with each other instead of fighting. At the beginning, I thought the reasons for the fight were petty but this was one of those fights were little things kept escalating it until full out war ensues.
Susan was a great heroine. Once she realized her feelings for Cord, she decided to give the relationship a try even though Cord didn't trust her at all. She didn't take sides in the stupid fight between them and instead tried to get Cord to back down. Of course, since she was in the middle, she was the one who ended being used by both sides. If there was one thing this book needed was a LOT of groveling as both Cord and her husband's family treated her abominably.
I totally enjoyed it though!
June 24, 2025
ถ้านี่ไม่ใช่นางเอกที่ doormat ที่สุด🙄 ขนาดเป็นคนชอบนางเอก doormat ประมาณนึง (เพราะมัน angst ดี) ยังอึ้งในความ doormat ของนางเอกเล่มนี้ คงเพราะนางเอกรักพระเอกง่ายและรักเว่อเกินในเวลาอันสั้นด้วยมั้งเลยไม่อินกับการเห็นนางเอกทำตัวเป็นพรมเช็ดเท้าให้เขาเหยียบย่ำ เทียบกับเรื่องปริศนาเงาอดีตที่นางเอก doormat สุดๆ เหมือนกัน รู้สึกเล่มนั้นนางเอกมีเหตุผลความ doormat ที่เมคเซนส์กว่า ส่วนพระเอกก็ตามสไตล์งานคุณลินดายุค 80s คือหาความดีอะไรมิได้ อุตส่าห์ลุ้นว่าจะมีเฉลยอะไรที่ทำให้สงสารพระเอกเรื่องโดนครอบครัวขับไล่ไสส่งมั้ย แต่สุดท้ายก็ไม่มี
เนื้อเรื่องในส่วนของดราม่าครอบครัวสนุกพอไปวัดไปวา ไม่มีอะไรแปลกใหม่แหละ แต่ก็เป็นส่วนที่ดึงให้อ่านจนจบได้แม้จะกลอกตาใส่พระเอกนางเอกไปหลายตลบ เพิ่งรู้สึกว่านิยายยุค 80s นี่เค้าฮิตแนวฟาดฟันกันด้วยธุรกิจแฮะ (รึเปล่านะ? เหมือนเจอแนวนี้ในยุคนี้บ่อยสุด) ส่วน romance คือไม่มีเหตุผลใดๆ หลงกันที่ภายนอกล้วนๆ
สิ่งที่คาดไม่ถึงคือพายุทอร์นาโด แรนด้อมมาก 555555 แต่ 3rd act tornado แบบนี้ก็ refreshing ดี มั้ง
เนื้อเรื่องในส่วนของดราม่าครอบครัวสนุกพอไปวัดไปวา ไม่มีอะไรแปลกใหม่แหละ แต่ก็เป็นส่วนที่ดึงให้อ่านจนจบได้แม้จะกลอกตาใส่พระเอกนางเอกไปหลายตลบ เพิ่งรู้สึกว่านิยายยุค 80s นี่เค้าฮิตแนวฟาดฟันกันด้วยธุรกิจแฮะ (รึเปล่านะ? เหมือนเจอแนวนี้ในยุคนี้บ่อยสุด) ส่วน romance คือไม่มีเหตุผลใดๆ หลงกันที่ภายนอกล้วนๆ
สิ่งที่คาดไม่ถึงคือพายุทอร์นาโด แรนด้อมมาก 555555 แต่ 3rd act tornado แบบนี้ก็ refreshing ดี มั้ง
July 9, 2017
#60 for 2017 RC
Genre : Romance
Salah satu buku karangan diawal-awal karirnya, terbit tahun 1985. Kalau sekarang karakter wanitanya kuat, di buku ini karakter wanitanya agak rapuh walau berusaha kuat. Tipe wanita yang akan selalu dilindungi para pria.
Alur cerita gak terlalu menarik, bahkan judulnya agak kurang tepat. Mungkin juga karena sudah lama gak baca novel-novel harlequin makanya plot cerita berasa banget dangkalnya. Tapi lumayan menghiburlah untuk baca yang ringan-ringan.
Genre : Romance
Salah satu buku karangan diawal-awal karirnya, terbit tahun 1985. Kalau sekarang karakter wanitanya kuat, di buku ini karakter wanitanya agak rapuh walau berusaha kuat. Tipe wanita yang akan selalu dilindungi para pria.
Alur cerita gak terlalu menarik, bahkan judulnya agak kurang tepat. Mungkin juga karena sudah lama gak baca novel-novel harlequin makanya plot cerita berasa banget dangkalnya. Tapi lumayan menghiburlah untuk baca yang ringan-ringan.
June 6, 2020
The h was quite possibly the most annoying h I have read in quite some time. This book read like a bad soap opera. Very OTT. I kinda like that kind of thing, but if you don’t, I recommend passing.
August 1, 2014
*Buddy read with Blacky <3<3<3*
The hero was super hot! And the way he dances... *fan myself*
December 13, 2014
★★★½✩ Early LH, so a bit dated, and a Harlequin quickie, too. Still, pretty good. You can see shades of the author to come.
December 10, 2018
La reseña en el blog http://alacamaconunlibro.blogspot.com...
June 30, 2021
What a cheesy name for the novel and story was kind of cheesy too.
Felt weird to read most parts. But even then few parts were good and enjoyable. Nothing special but yet a good read.
Felt weird to read most parts. But even then few parts were good and enjoyable. Nothing special but yet a good read.
December 8, 2017
I'm making this short and... well short-ish because im typing it on my phone and that's a pain.
This book was incredibly difficult to get through. Susan fell for... um... crap... Cord (blanked on the name and I only just finished this yesterday if that tells you anything) waaaay too quickly. It was practically at first sight, but maybe more like at-third-meeting-in-passing. And from then on she is his doormat.
I know Howard wrote this early on, but I've read and loved some pretty crazy Old-Skool romance novels; it was just boring. I also didn't like that Cord was her dead husband's cousin and had a small resemblance to him. It seemed almost incestuous, like I wanted to remind her that it's okay to have a type, but she took it too far.
Susan hit a TSTL high (or maybe low) point when she freaks out mightily during a huge storm and puts them both in danger. It was bad and painful to read.
This book was incredibly difficult to get through. Susan fell for... um... crap... Cord (blanked on the name and I only just finished this yesterday if that tells you anything) waaaay too quickly. It was practically at first sight, but maybe more like at-third-meeting-in-passing. And from then on she is his doormat.
I know Howard wrote this early on, but I've read and loved some pretty crazy Old-Skool romance novels; it was just boring. I also didn't like that Cord was her dead husband's cousin and had a small resemblance to him. It seemed almost incestuous, like I wanted to remind her that it's okay to have a type, but she took it too far.
Susan hit a TSTL high (or maybe low) point when she freaks out mightily during a huge storm and puts them both in danger. It was bad and painful to read.
June 10, 2017
Oldie but definitely not a goodie. LH is not one of my favorites when it cones to her older Harlequin romance books. Way to much angst, a doormat for a heroine and an almost, but not quite, jerk for a hero. I am so glad that LH grew as an author because otherwise we wouldn't have such wonderful books by her as Open Season and Mr. Perfect.
Black sheep Cord Blackstone returns after 14 years away from the family. He is seeking revenge for wrongs done to him and retribution too. Susan is the widow of Cord's cousin, a warm hearted, wonderful lady. When these two meet, all bets are off. As Susan becomes a pawn in Cord's plot to ruin Blackstone Corporation, she must make a choice either to stand with the family who has supported her or to stand with the man she loves.
Black sheep Cord Blackstone returns after 14 years away from the family. He is seeking revenge for wrongs done to him and retribution too. Susan is the widow of Cord's cousin, a warm hearted, wonderful lady. When these two meet, all bets are off. As Susan becomes a pawn in Cord's plot to ruin Blackstone Corporation, she must make a choice either to stand with the family who has supported her or to stand with the man she loves.
June 13, 2017
I liked this more than I thought I would, and that is entirely because of Susan.
I started out really disliking her combination of fragility and sanctimonious use of the word "morals." Cord wasn't a favorite either. But Susan was a fighter. She followed through on what she thought was right, and grasped life where she could. I ended up admiring her a lot. It was also apparent that others around her saw the same qualities the whole time.
I have always agreed with Blair Mallory: walk out, crawl back. I feel that way about betrayal too, and this satisfied without being overly vindictive. There was a lot of love in this book.
I started out really disliking her combination of fragility and sanctimonious use of the word "morals." Cord wasn't a favorite either. But Susan was a fighter. She followed through on what she thought was right, and grasped life where she could. I ended up admiring her a lot. It was also apparent that others around her saw the same qualities the whole time.
I have always agreed with Blair Mallory: walk out, crawl back. I feel that way about betrayal too, and this satisfied without being overly vindictive. There was a lot of love in this book.
April 24, 2010
Heroine bugged the ever living shit out of me.
Linda Howard - humour = rubbish
Linda Howard - humour = rubbish
October 11, 2024
Cord Blackstone, the H, is probably the only character I liked in this book, and he was a jerk. Susan was fighting for a family that literally asks her to be their whore to win the feud between them and Cord and she still fought for them. In the end there was an HEA but the road there was kind of slow, kind of annoying, and repetitive.
May 26, 2011
I have to say I started off not loving this book but the ending made up for it enormously. On the negative side, I'm not a fan of men who wear beards, vengeful men, scheming wealthy men, and men who say up front they only want sex from the women they're involved with which, of course, Cord was. I'm also not a fan of women who put up with ALL of the above.
On the plus side, I liked Susan who was caught so hopelessly between Preston and Cord, her strength of character, her hard work and determination to do what's right made me v.sympathetic. The storm and the boardroom standoff were the best parts along with Susan's decision to walk away. Having Cord come to the realization that their relationship was what was most important to him finally redeems him, imho.
Having him apologize over a period of time and work things out with Susan was truly very touching. Though somewhat dated, it made for a good story.
On the plus side, I liked Susan who was caught so hopelessly between Preston and Cord, her strength of character, her hard work and determination to do what's right made me v.sympathetic. The storm and the boardroom standoff were the best parts along with Susan's decision to walk away. Having Cord come to the realization that their relationship was what was most important to him finally redeems him, imho.
Having him apologize over a period of time and work things out with Susan was truly very touching. Though somewhat dated, it made for a good story.
June 4, 2017
Susan (29) has never known anyone like Cord Blackstone. His pale blue eyes shine with temptation…and dark menace. Cord has a score to settle with his family—the same clan that sheltered Susan after her husband's death. He will stop at nothing to punish the Blackstones—even if it means ruining the one woman who can't stop loving him.…
Its one of older Linda Howard's work and quite typical of the romance genre in the 80s. Strong and ruthless hero seeking out for revenge. Beautiful and helpless heroine gets in the way. It was okay read but a little slow-going. Linda Howard's writing and plotting has improved a lot but even back then her love scenes were sizzling.
December 17, 2018
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Здрасти, нека се запознаем.
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Имаме корпорация.
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Хайде всичко се нарежда.
Още секс. Секс. Секс.
И гореописаният секс не е секс, ами тръпки и т.н.... Не знам. Като мазнем розовите о��исания, остават три страници фабула (:
Все пак и от такива книги има нужда в даден период от живота.
Секс. Секс. Секс.
Здрасти, нека се запознаем.
Секс. Секс. Секс.
Имаме корпорация.
Секс. Секс. Секс.
Хайде всичко се нарежда.
Още секс. Секс. Секс.
И гореописаният секс не е секс, ами тръпки и т.н.... Не знам. Като мазнем розовите о��исания, остават три страници фабула (:
Все пак и от такива книги има нужда в даден период от живота.
February 24, 2021
So good...until it wasn't. Cord needed to grovel some in order for forgiveness and he did exactly none which was terribly disappointing because it ruined what would have been a 5 star read. Shame.
March 25, 2017
Sorry Linda. I love your books, just not this one.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 144 reviews