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ΣΚΟΤΕΙΝΗ ΑΓΑΠΗ ΣΥΛΛΟΓΗ #986
Charlotte had known that she might see Jude again, but even so, the sudden sight of him had rooted her to the spot. Jude made it clear he still blamed Charlotte for the death of his twin. She had to keep the truth from Jude, but could she bear his scorn?
- GenresHarlequin Presents
Unknown Binding
First published June 1, 1988
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
December 12, 2016
Re A Shadowed Love - Rachel Ford's first venture into HPlandia is a strange mishmash of a second chance story and maybe a wanna be revenge plot that just fizzles at the end. Throw in a really callous H and an h that spends most of the book being TSTL and you have a bit of a disappointment.
This one starts with the h escorting a tour group around Stratford-upon-Avon, it is the annual Procession and the h is co-owner of a tourist guide agency. Ostensibly she is unofficially engaged to her partner, but it is clear the guy is a waste of sewer sludge and probably having it on with the agency's secretary. (Tho it is never made clear that he is, the signs were all over the place and the h was just to TSTL to see it.)
A famous movie actor has returned to the stage to perform various Shakespeare plays, as you do in Stratford-upon-Avon when you are big British star and come from a family of stars. The h and the actor have a bit of history. The H lost his twin brother seven years ago and he blames the h for the loss. The backstory to this is that the h was left to be raised by her grandmother when her widowed mum remarried. The twins were neighbors and the h's only childhood friends for a long time. The h turned 17 and the twins both became actors.
Except the H was much better at it than his brother and because they were doing the same plays, the H decided to make a break and go off and do movies. He figured it would give his seriously messed up brother a chance to shine. One of the big problems is that since the entire family was theatrical, the H's twin was expected to be that way too. He couldn't compare to his brother and he knew it. He flubbed lines, drank a lot and then proposed to the h, knowing that the h was in love with the H, his brother.
The h, who had been slammed and then banned by the H in the conservatory, had to see the H become very relieved when she hesitantly accepted his brother's proposal. The h was trying to calm the brother down after the H dropped the bombshell that he was abandoning his brother and off to do movies. I am not sure if the h meant to marry the man, SHE wasn't sure either, but she was young, he was upset and she had just been dumped by the H, who looked like his universe had been saved when his brother announced he was marrying the h.
(This relief by the H is NEVER addressed, and it is a huge problem in the veracity of this book. You just can't buy the love when the H completely blows the h off and is happy that he is off the hook and off to fields anew.)
The H went off, the h found out she was preggers and she told the H's brother that she couldn't marry him. He promptly went out, got drunk, drove wildly and died. The H blames her for the accident cause the brother conveniently called him. The brother had also been fired from his theater role and was really going off the rails, but the H also conveniently overlooks that.
To spare the H's twin feeling even more second class than he already did, the h lied and told him she met someone else and wanted to try that relationship. She just couldn't admit to the brother that his twin had gotten in first and that once again he came in second place She very rightly feared what that would do to him, even tho he clearly did not love the h, he just wanted something his brother couldn't get (or so he thought,) not because the H was wanting her, but because he knew his twin and figured his brother the H wouldn't touch the h with a ten foot barge pole. (The dead twin did not figure on darkened conservatories and the H's need for stress relief, I guess.)
Seven years on they meet again and the H and h wind up spending the night together when the h's car gets boosted and he won't take her home. Nothing happens, but it throws a huge knot in the relationship between the h and her partner - not that I cared cause he was hideous- but the h was very upset and angry with the H for essentially kidnapping her. Things devolve between the h and her partner, the h is a mess of angst and torment cause she knows the H wants revenge and yet she can't bring herself to tell the H what was really going on.
Then the H arranges another kidnapping under the guise of the doormatty h being required to provide tourist services for two elderly ladies. In reality the H meets her at the meeting point, takes her off on his boat and they wind up at some hidden cottage. They have some spats and fights and then wind up doing the bouncing mattress bit.
Then the h finds out about the H's serious relationship with another actress, whom he is expected to marry, when the woman does a TV interview the h sees. The h runs off back to her office, gets into a fight with her nasty partner and lets him call her all kinds of names, including telling the H that she had a pregnancy termination when the H tracks her down a bit later on. The H hits the obnoxious business partner, (one of the few cheery moments of the book,) and the h explains that their slam, bam, no thank you ma'am had left a little parting gift.
The h broke it off with the H's brother, cause dumping other guy's babies on unsuspecting troubled men is JUST NOT DONE, and the h's mother insisted that she have a termination. But the h miscarried instead, so at 17 and heartbroken and grieving over her friend's death , the H is swanning around on the lurvely lady buffet and telling the h off at the cemetery. The h is trying to rebuild her life and instead of grabbing Granny's skillet and hitting some dangly bits, the h tries to protect her dearest love, the H, by accepting responsibility for a 23 yr old's drinking and driving.
The H then has his big realization that between he and his brother, he has really created huge messes in the h's life. (Between the 17 yr h's old miscarriage and then his deliberate interference between the h and her partner - who was a slime slurper, true, but the h deserved to see that for herself. As it was the h felt guilty for betraying the guy the with the H, and that was very unfair to her, I just sorta felt like the poor thing never caught a break.) The H kinda says he is sorry, the h tells him not to worry about it, cause she figures he is feeling guilty about his actress now, and the H wanders off.
We get months of h mopey moments, her slimy partner wants the h to buy out his half of the business or sell it all together and the slime guy and the secretary are making the h's work life horrible. Then the H goes to see the h's grandmother with his actress in tow. The grandmother breaks it to the h that the H is not selling the manor house next door, he is getting married and will live in it with his wife and future kids, (presumably the actress.)
He asks the grandmother if she wants her old nursery nanny job back and when the h hears this, she is even more heartbroken, cause her Grandma knows about her love for the H. The H and his actress return for the next round of Shakespeare, and the h spends her days and nights in misery, unable to make to any decisions.
The h is out with tourists one day when the H hunts her down and asks to meet up with her later. The h agrees and decides she doesn't care if he is getting married, if he wants another round of bouncing, she will happily provide it. She waits all night and finally falls asleep, the H never shows. The evil secretary calls her up to gloat about the H getting stabbed during the sword fight of his play and the rumor is he is dying. The h rushes to the hospital, only to be told the H left with his actress.
The h drives around for hours and FINALLY decides she has to start deciding things. She goes home and the H is there, laying on the couch and looking pale and interesting. He supposedly loves her, the actress has been using the H as a shield for her affair with a married director whose wife was stuck behind the Iron Curtain and they were trying to get her out, so a husband who is involved with cheating on his wife would not be good. The H swears that he loves the h and has since she was three and after a heavy dosing of painkillers, they are lurving it up for the big H will travel and make movies and the h will keep the home fires and babies burning HEA.
With three shots around page 173 of 185, you can almost squint your eyes and believe the HEA for this book. The h was really sad tho, and after being pushed and pulled and matyred and put last on everyone's list except Grandma's, I guess I was sorta happy that she was happy. But she really needed her head examined. The H was just useless, tho he sorta made a half-hearted apology, it is impossible to believe he really cared one way or the other about this h. Except when he used her as a punching bag to blame for his own guilt over his brother's death. I was just not feeling love here and so this one should only be read if you want to keep the HP firmament intact and help that h drink the HP kool-aid to keep the universe going.
This one starts with the h escorting a tour group around Stratford-upon-Avon, it is the annual Procession and the h is co-owner of a tourist guide agency. Ostensibly she is unofficially engaged to her partner, but it is clear the guy is a waste of sewer sludge and probably having it on with the agency's secretary. (Tho it is never made clear that he is, the signs were all over the place and the h was just to TSTL to see it.)
A famous movie actor has returned to the stage to perform various Shakespeare plays, as you do in Stratford-upon-Avon when you are big British star and come from a family of stars. The h and the actor have a bit of history. The H lost his twin brother seven years ago and he blames the h for the loss. The backstory to this is that the h was left to be raised by her grandmother when her widowed mum remarried. The twins were neighbors and the h's only childhood friends for a long time. The h turned 17 and the twins both became actors.
Except the H was much better at it than his brother and because they were doing the same plays, the H decided to make a break and go off and do movies. He figured it would give his seriously messed up brother a chance to shine. One of the big problems is that since the entire family was theatrical, the H's twin was expected to be that way too. He couldn't compare to his brother and he knew it. He flubbed lines, drank a lot and then proposed to the h, knowing that the h was in love with the H, his brother.
The h, who had been slammed and then banned by the H in the conservatory, had to see the H become very relieved when she hesitantly accepted his brother's proposal. The h was trying to calm the brother down after the H dropped the bombshell that he was abandoning his brother and off to do movies. I am not sure if the h meant to marry the man, SHE wasn't sure either, but she was young, he was upset and she had just been dumped by the H, who looked like his universe had been saved when his brother announced he was marrying the h.
(This relief by the H is NEVER addressed, and it is a huge problem in the veracity of this book. You just can't buy the love when the H completely blows the h off and is happy that he is off the hook and off to fields anew.)
The H went off, the h found out she was preggers and she told the H's brother that she couldn't marry him. He promptly went out, got drunk, drove wildly and died. The H blames her for the accident cause the brother conveniently called him. The brother had also been fired from his theater role and was really going off the rails, but the H also conveniently overlooks that.
To spare the H's twin feeling even more second class than he already did, the h lied and told him she met someone else and wanted to try that relationship. She just couldn't admit to the brother that his twin had gotten in first and that once again he came in second place She very rightly feared what that would do to him, even tho he clearly did not love the h, he just wanted something his brother couldn't get (or so he thought,) not because the H was wanting her, but because he knew his twin and figured his brother the H wouldn't touch the h with a ten foot barge pole. (The dead twin did not figure on darkened conservatories and the H's need for stress relief, I guess.)
Seven years on they meet again and the H and h wind up spending the night together when the h's car gets boosted and he won't take her home. Nothing happens, but it throws a huge knot in the relationship between the h and her partner - not that I cared cause he was hideous- but the h was very upset and angry with the H for essentially kidnapping her. Things devolve between the h and her partner, the h is a mess of angst and torment cause she knows the H wants revenge and yet she can't bring herself to tell the H what was really going on.
Then the H arranges another kidnapping under the guise of the doormatty h being required to provide tourist services for two elderly ladies. In reality the H meets her at the meeting point, takes her off on his boat and they wind up at some hidden cottage. They have some spats and fights and then wind up doing the bouncing mattress bit.
Then the h finds out about the H's serious relationship with another actress, whom he is expected to marry, when the woman does a TV interview the h sees. The h runs off back to her office, gets into a fight with her nasty partner and lets him call her all kinds of names, including telling the H that she had a pregnancy termination when the H tracks her down a bit later on. The H hits the obnoxious business partner, (one of the few cheery moments of the book,) and the h explains that their slam, bam, no thank you ma'am had left a little parting gift.
The h broke it off with the H's brother, cause dumping other guy's babies on unsuspecting troubled men is JUST NOT DONE, and the h's mother insisted that she have a termination. But the h miscarried instead, so at 17 and heartbroken and grieving over her friend's death , the H is swanning around on the lurvely lady buffet and telling the h off at the cemetery. The h is trying to rebuild her life and instead of grabbing Granny's skillet and hitting some dangly bits, the h tries to protect her dearest love, the H, by accepting responsibility for a 23 yr old's drinking and driving.
The H then has his big realization that between he and his brother, he has really created huge messes in the h's life. (Between the 17 yr h's old miscarriage and then his deliberate interference between the h and her partner - who was a slime slurper, true, but the h deserved to see that for herself. As it was the h felt guilty for betraying the guy the with the H, and that was very unfair to her, I just sorta felt like the poor thing never caught a break.) The H kinda says he is sorry, the h tells him not to worry about it, cause she figures he is feeling guilty about his actress now, and the H wanders off.
We get months of h mopey moments, her slimy partner wants the h to buy out his half of the business or sell it all together and the slime guy and the secretary are making the h's work life horrible. Then the H goes to see the h's grandmother with his actress in tow. The grandmother breaks it to the h that the H is not selling the manor house next door, he is getting married and will live in it with his wife and future kids, (presumably the actress.)
He asks the grandmother if she wants her old nursery nanny job back and when the h hears this, she is even more heartbroken, cause her Grandma knows about her love for the H. The H and his actress return for the next round of Shakespeare, and the h spends her days and nights in misery, unable to make to any decisions.
The h is out with tourists one day when the H hunts her down and asks to meet up with her later. The h agrees and decides she doesn't care if he is getting married, if he wants another round of bouncing, she will happily provide it. She waits all night and finally falls asleep, the H never shows. The evil secretary calls her up to gloat about the H getting stabbed during the sword fight of his play and the rumor is he is dying. The h rushes to the hospital, only to be told the H left with his actress.
The h drives around for hours and FINALLY decides she has to start deciding things. She goes home and the H is there, laying on the couch and looking pale and interesting. He supposedly loves her, the actress has been using the H as a shield for her affair with a married director whose wife was stuck behind the Iron Curtain and they were trying to get her out, so a husband who is involved with cheating on his wife would not be good. The H swears that he loves the h and has since she was three and after a heavy dosing of painkillers, they are lurving it up for the big H will travel and make movies and the h will keep the home fires and babies burning HEA.
With three shots around page 173 of 185, you can almost squint your eyes and believe the HEA for this book. The h was really sad tho, and after being pushed and pulled and matyred and put last on everyone's list except Grandma's, I guess I was sorta happy that she was happy. But she really needed her head examined. The H was just useless, tho he sorta made a half-hearted apology, it is impossible to believe he really cared one way or the other about this h. Except when he used her as a punching bag to blame for his own guilt over his brother's death. I was just not feeling love here and so this one should only be read if you want to keep the HP firmament intact and help that h drink the HP kool-aid to keep the universe going.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 11, 2015
i disliked this one. all the intrigue about the twins was really lame ! it was not Charlotte's fault if Simon died. he was reckless and liked to drive his cars really fast! Jude's anger was illogical. it was Charlotte who had cause to be angry. after all, he left her after deflowering her and he was relieved when he learned she wud be marrying his brother ! so, not his responsibility after all ! he did not even check if he had made her pregnant, which he had! it was lucky dat she suffered a miscarriage ! who wud want to have a baby for a man who valued her so cheaply !?
April 27, 2023
I like the story, but I think the main character could have been a little nicer in the beginning.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews