What do you think?
Rate this book
Deceptive Heart
He came to her in the darkness of midnight, a stranger hired to perform an outrageous act: Before the night was through, he must sire a child upon the virginal widow of the wealthy Earl of Highcrest. Caught in a tangled skein of love and deception, beautiful young Anne had agreed to the scheme that would give her late husband a false heir, but never did she imagine the throbbing ecstasy she would share with her mysterious lover. During the tumultuous hours before dawn, he would master her senses, bringing her to a fever-pitch of desire that would burn through the lies between them and brand her heart his forever.
368 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published May 1, 1988
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
May 1, 2026
I don't remember how I discovered this book, but it has one of my favorite plot setups/tropes that I've only read once before: man comes to woman to impregnate her in the dark, this scheme is forced, one or both of the lovers don't know who the other is, but they have fantastic sexual chemistry.
In this book, Anne's husband, an elderly earl, dies. Well, I don't think 62 is old, but he was described as an 80-year-old man! Anyway, he was quite old compared to Anne's 17. I was shocked when we learned how old she was; I thought surely she must be 27 at least.
The earl doesn't die before he finds his bastard son and brings him to his estate, where he legitimizes him and makes him the next earl. Right away, Anne is attracted to the man who's technically her stepson, even though he's 31 to her 17, and vice versa. Anne's dastardly father is the issue. When the earl dies, the father's upset that Anne isn't pregnant so the father won't be able to inherit the earl's fortune via a child. Thus, the father comes up with a scheme to get Anne pregnant, so she can pass off the baby as her late husband's, and he can claim the fortune.
I felt bad for the other man, a talented artist who has feelings for Anne, especially when I thought he died! I would have liked an epilogue because I felt the ending was just a tad abrupt. I guess everything was wrapped up, but a few more pages would have been nice.
I also found it surprising and odd that there were 3 or so typos since this was traditionally published. Oh well, I guess a few slip through the cracks here and there. The writing was good, so it wasn't a big deal.
Since I liked this book a lot (not sure why it had a 3.35 average rating on Goodreads before me), I might check out Maureen Kurr's other romances in the future. If anyone's interested in reading this book, I have to warn you that it's no longer in print, though you can find a cheap used copy via Amazon. I was fortunate enough to read it for free via the Internet Archive. That site has been such a blessing for reading books that are out of print. All you need to do is create a free account.
P.S. I just learned that this book is my 2,000th rating here on Goodreads! Wow, I had no idea I was close to that record. Moreover, I finished my 60th book of the year just in time for May. I can't believe it's May already; this year has been passing by fast, and I haven't even been enjoying it so much!
In this book, Anne's husband, an elderly earl, dies. Well, I don't think 62 is old, but he was described as an 80-year-old man! Anyway, he was quite old compared to Anne's 17. I was shocked when we learned how old she was; I thought surely she must be 27 at least.
The earl doesn't die before he finds his bastard son and brings him to his estate, where he legitimizes him and makes him the next earl. Right away, Anne is attracted to the man who's technically her stepson, even though he's 31 to her 17, and vice versa. Anne's dastardly father is the issue. When the earl dies, the father's upset that Anne isn't pregnant so the father won't be able to inherit the earl's fortune via a child. Thus, the father comes up with a scheme to get Anne pregnant, so she can pass off the baby as her late husband's, and he can claim the fortune.
I felt bad for the other man, a talented artist who has feelings for Anne, especially when I thought he died! I would have liked an epilogue because I felt the ending was just a tad abrupt. I guess everything was wrapped up, but a few more pages would have been nice.
I also found it surprising and odd that there were 3 or so typos since this was traditionally published. Oh well, I guess a few slip through the cracks here and there. The writing was good, so it wasn't a big deal.
Since I liked this book a lot (not sure why it had a 3.35 average rating on Goodreads before me), I might check out Maureen Kurr's other romances in the future. If anyone's interested in reading this book, I have to warn you that it's no longer in print, though you can find a cheap used copy via Amazon. I was fortunate enough to read it for free via the Internet Archive. That site has been such a blessing for reading books that are out of print. All you need to do is create a free account.
P.S. I just learned that this book is my 2,000th rating here on Goodreads! Wow, I had no idea I was close to that record. Moreover, I finished my 60th book of the year just in time for May. I can't believe it's May already; this year has been passing by fast, and I haven't even been enjoying it so much!
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews