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The Passionate Winter
Librarian's note: This book was published with ISBN 0373707940, which was subsequently used on another book.
Love has nothing to do with age limits.
Leigh knew that Piers Sinclair was old enough to be her father. In fact, he was her boyfriend Gavin's father. But that didn't stop her from falling in love with him.
No woman could resist his powerful attraction. Piers was sophisticated, experienced, and dangerously exciting. His very presence unsettled Leigh.
She knew she should try to avoid him; she knew she had to forget him. But it just wasn't possible. Especially when Gavin decided to play matchmaker!
Love has nothing to do with age limits.
Leigh knew that Piers Sinclair was old enough to be her father. In fact, he was her boyfriend Gavin's father. But that didn't stop her from falling in love with him.
No woman could resist his powerful attraction. Piers was sophisticated, experienced, and dangerously exciting. His very presence unsettled Leigh.
She knew she should try to avoid him; she knew she had to forget him. But it just wasn't possible. Especially when Gavin decided to play matchmaker!
190 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published December 1, 1978
43 people are currently reading
151 people want to read
About the author
Carole Mortimer
1,297 books908 followersI have written almost 250 romance novels in contemporary and Regency.
I am a USA Today Bestselling Author and recipient of the 2015 RWA Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2014 I received a Pioneer of Romance Award from Romantic Times in the US and in 2012 I was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II for my 'outstanding service to literature'.
I am very happily married to Peter with six sons, and live on the Isle of Man
I am a USA Today Bestselling Author and recipient of the 2015 RWA Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2014 I received a Pioneer of Romance Award from Romantic Times in the US and in 2012 I was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II for my 'outstanding service to literature'.
I am very happily married to Peter with six sons, and live on the Isle of Man
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
June 21, 2024
Not only is the trope of a father-son-heroine love triangle a tsunami of tackiness to begin with, the author executed it so poorly here that the book became repetitive and tedious. I was especially disgusted by the fact that heroine kept switching between dating the father and dating the son, all to make the father jealous. She shows up not ONCE but TWICE, uninvited, at hero's home, as the date of his son, after she almost went to bed with the father several times already, and he made it clear that he wasn't going to involve himself with a "child" when he had sophisticated women he could crook his finger at. Who the HELL does that???? The happy ending is engineered by the son who pretends that he asked the heroine to get married, leading his dad to finally be backed into a corner and do his own marriage proposal. *face palm*. For a very effective, angst-filled take on the trope, look no further than here Charlotte Lamb's Temptation.
May 30, 2021
I have wanted to read this book for a very long time!The long age gap didn`t bother me at all in this story,they were too much beautiful together for that.We saw how Piers couldn`t keep himself away from Leigh and gosh how i love his every appearance,his obvious love and adoration for Leigh.
Leigh may be 1 year older than me, but she really is an independant mature young woman who fall in love with the older, macho looking man like Piers Sinclair.I just love that Gavin decides to match-make Leigh with his father.I really enjoyed this story with its charm,lovely romance and hilarious jealousy moments.
***
Leigh smiled shyly into the face of the man she loved, seeing her adoration returned if not excelled.
"Will I really do?’ she asked tremulously. ‘I’m not experienced. I won’t know how to satisfy you and then you will discard me for someone else,’ and she shuddered involuntarily. ‘I couldn’t bear it if I didn’t please you.’
‘You please me. And when you’re my wife I’ll— ‘
‘Your wife !’ cut in Leigh. ‘But—but you didn’t say any‑ thing about— ‘ she broke off in confusion.
‘About marrying you? Really, Leigh ! You shock me,’ his blue eyes teased her. ‘What did you think I was going to do with you, lock you up in my apartment solely to satisfy my manly lusts?’ He shook his dark head.
‘Oh no, young lady. You belong to me and I’m going to make sure everyone knows it. Make your escape now or stay with me for ever. Nothing less will satisfy me.’
-Leigh & Piers
Leigh may be 1 year older than me, but she really is an independant mature young woman who fall in love with the older, macho looking man like Piers Sinclair.I just love that Gavin decides to match-make Leigh with his father.I really enjoyed this story with its charm,lovely romance and hilarious jealousy moments.
***
Leigh smiled shyly into the face of the man she loved, seeing her adoration returned if not excelled.
"Will I really do?’ she asked tremulously. ‘I’m not experienced. I won’t know how to satisfy you and then you will discard me for someone else,’ and she shuddered involuntarily. ‘I couldn’t bear it if I didn’t please you.’
‘You please me. And when you’re my wife I’ll— ‘
‘Your wife !’ cut in Leigh. ‘But—but you didn’t say any‑ thing about— ‘ she broke off in confusion.
‘About marrying you? Really, Leigh ! You shock me,’ his blue eyes teased her. ‘What did you think I was going to do with you, lock you up in my apartment solely to satisfy my manly lusts?’ He shook his dark head.
‘Oh no, young lady. You belong to me and I’m going to make sure everyone knows it. Make your escape now or stay with me for ever. Nothing less will satisfy me.’
-Leigh & Piers
August 16, 2017
Decent read. I like the older hero, very young heroine theme.
October 30, 2024
Really? 4? Ummm... Yup. Ok, so here’s the thing: this is a silly book. Sillier than usual. But then again read it keeping in mind that it was written by an 18 year old. I connected. With the 18 year old author not the characters... lol. I too was once that dumb.
The most hilarious part is that when our 18 year old heroine shows up at her parents house at Christmas with her friends 37 year old dad as her date... mom and dad are cool about it! The don’t interfere with her private life. They don’t even ask a single question cause... you know... they’re cool 😎
I don’t think I’d be cool. I think I’d be pulling the guy to the side -cause pulling a teenager in love to the side is probably futile- for a ‘WTF? No, really! WTF?’
Yeaaah. I’m not cool. But it’s funny to see how an 18 year old author would imagine open minded parents would be like. And other things too. It over the top and the heroine is extremely juvenile and misunderstood everything.‘I gotta go now’ in her mind translates to ‘I wanna have sex with a hot model’ even if... there’s no model in the story.
But it’s fun. It’s completely unbelievable and very much enjoyable.
Oh yes and his chauvinistic lines make all other vintage alpha males blush. And then... he lets her continue her training. Huh? K, then. :)
The most hilarious part is that when our 18 year old heroine shows up at her parents house at Christmas with her friends 37 year old dad as her date... mom and dad are cool about it! The don’t interfere with her private life. They don’t even ask a single question cause... you know... they’re cool 😎
I don’t think I’d be cool. I think I’d be pulling the guy to the side -cause pulling a teenager in love to the side is probably futile- for a ‘WTF? No, really! WTF?’
Yeaaah. I’m not cool. But it’s funny to see how an 18 year old author would imagine open minded parents would be like. And other things too. It over the top and the heroine is extremely juvenile and misunderstood everything.‘I gotta go now’ in her mind translates to ‘I wanna have sex with a hot model’ even if... there’s no model in the story.
But it’s fun. It’s completely unbelievable and very much enjoyable.
Oh yes and his chauvinistic lines make all other vintage alpha males blush. And then... he lets her continue her training. Huh? K, then. :)
November 30, 2019
"The Passionate Winter" is the story of Leigh and Piers.
A very sweet May-December romance, between a sassy young heroine who is a nursing student, and an obsessed, older, ex-race driver hero. They meet when his son, her college friend escorts her to his home, and the hero accuses her to trapping him. They engage in a heated banter, after which the hero drives her home.
Soon their paths seem to cross again..and again..and again, and they both realize their feelings run much deeper.
I really enjoyed this book. It was fabulous how supportive the heroine's family and friends were about her relationship, and how strong the heroine was. She defended herself, fought back against the hero's baseless allegations and ultimately tamed him to be hers.
Safe
4/5
A very sweet May-December romance, between a sassy young heroine who is a nursing student, and an obsessed, older, ex-race driver hero. They meet when his son, her college friend escorts her to his home, and the hero accuses her to trapping him. They engage in a heated banter, after which the hero drives her home.
Soon their paths seem to cross again..and again..and again, and they both realize their feelings run much deeper.
I really enjoyed this book. It was fabulous how supportive the heroine's family and friends were about her relationship, and how strong the heroine was. She defended herself, fought back against the hero's baseless allegations and ultimately tamed him to be hers.
Safe
4/5
September 13, 2022
2022 reread this late at night and I want to sleep so I will rewrite in a bit. But I have to say I now days this book a solid 2.5/3 stars. The H is definitely a mess of contradictions - calls her a child, threatening violence and though I like unPC H's - Piers version didn't bring the awws in me. As for the h, mehhh.. She's was a mess of contradictions too. On. One side she seemed innocent, then she's all brazen, then she's on guard, I dunno... Meh... I agree with the other reviewer - on my 2nd reread the characters and story seemed all over the place. Frankly I was slightly skimming as well. By the time I reached the HEA, I was glad I was done. On second thought I gives this 2.5 stars for sure after this 2nd reread. It'll be awhile if I reread again if at all as the story and characters didn't give me a warm feeling of satisfaction. Looking at my review it looks like I wasn't pleased either. Pretty meh... 9/13/2022 I just edited my above reviews for misspellings due to autocorrect at midnight lol but my final thought is I may just have to sell this book after a couple of re-reads. It looks like reading it once was alright since I didn't know the story and the allure of the whole father/son/unPC H trope but it looks like re-read value is not that great - at least for me it isn't. :(
3.75 first few chapters down to 3.50 over all 3 stars
Took me more than a month to write a review and now that I have the time to do so I kind of forgot the story and will have to reread this again lol!
So the only thing I remember was that I read this book after months of reading hiatus. During the first 3 chapters possibly I was entertained because the h was seemingly strong-willed and spunky for her young age. She and the H would have funny back and forth dialogues/quips/kinda turning H down flat/proving him wrong kind of thing (yay girl!). To me it seemed she wasn't, how do you call it, intimidated by the H. I liked it - h didn't seem to be falling for the arrogant H's spell so soon. (Yea that time I must have been in a "girl you better not be a simpering idiot so fast" kind of mood!) But after those several chapters there seemed to be an abrupt change in character - like the h was one way then boom "are you the same girl?!" I just remember the H being such a pain in the ass. First he says he isn't interested in h in that way (then why the heck are you always showing up?!!) Then H always says these things i want to punch him for (I just remember he was just too i dont know, chauvinistic and his words dont match his actions!) Anyhoo I guess he wore the h down. I would have to read this book again to remember all the details but there are other books I'd rather reread or new books to read for now. I bought this book because i was lured by the whole older man-younger woman, father of "boyfriend" trope. I think there are better books with similar storyline. For $1.50 from a used annex sale in Barnes and Noble I dont regret buying the book too much! I may reread a 2ND time in the not too distant future but for now my overall 3 stars stand.
3.75 first few chapters down to 3.50 over all 3 stars
Took me more than a month to write a review and now that I have the time to do so I kind of forgot the story and will have to reread this again lol!
So the only thing I remember was that I read this book after months of reading hiatus. During the first 3 chapters possibly I was entertained because the h was seemingly strong-willed and spunky for her young age. She and the H would have funny back and forth dialogues/quips/kinda turning H down flat/proving him wrong kind of thing (yay girl!). To me it seemed she wasn't, how do you call it, intimidated by the H. I liked it - h didn't seem to be falling for the arrogant H's spell so soon. (Yea that time I must have been in a "girl you better not be a simpering idiot so fast" kind of mood!) But after those several chapters there seemed to be an abrupt change in character - like the h was one way then boom "are you the same girl?!" I just remember the H being such a pain in the ass. First he says he isn't interested in h in that way (then why the heck are you always showing up?!!) Then H always says these things i want to punch him for (I just remember he was just too i dont know, chauvinistic and his words dont match his actions!) Anyhoo I guess he wore the h down. I would have to read this book again to remember all the details but there are other books I'd rather reread or new books to read for now. I bought this book because i was lured by the whole older man-younger woman, father of "boyfriend" trope. I think there are better books with similar storyline. For $1.50 from a used annex sale in Barnes and Noble I dont regret buying the book too much! I may reread a 2ND time in the not too distant future but for now my overall 3 stars stand.
May 24, 2021
A superb, Seventies spectacular of an insanely implausible but enjoyable plot, The Passionate Winter is a must-read for any vintage Romance fans.
We've got a (barely) 18-year-old heroine, a 37-year-old playboy hero (who's also her boyfriend's dad) and a plot that is racy, ridiculous and a romp to end all romps. Leigh falls in insta-lust with Piers Sinclair, a former racing driver, who "rescues" her from his son's nefarious intentions to seduce her, and is soon slavering all over her himself.
She has parents who blithely invite Piers for Christmas when he shows up at their house in the middle of the night with their teenage daughter, and even give her some alone time with him. "You really don't mind?" "Don't be silly, darling. He's absolutely fascinating." My parents would have called the police.
An excellent parallel for this book is Caroline by Anne Mather. Caroline was Mather's first novel, written when she was just 19, and also features a teenage heroine and not-very-believable over-passionate, barely-controlling-himself older man. The Passionate Winter is Mortimer's debut novel, written when she was only 18, with the same scenario of a teenage heroine and a rakish bloke twice her age who can't control his urges.
The 1970s are out in full force: fashion, food and fastidious mores. There's an awful lot of talk about Leigh's virginity and will she/won't she sacrifice it and so on, and is she a wanton slut if she does? And Piers is constantly all over her and blaming her for his arousal.
Seriously. There's a scene in which he's been exploring her "firm untilted breasts" ("untilted" - WTF? perhaps "uptilted" is meant, there were a few typos in my copy, including a "petrol blue" dress) and then she puts her hand up his jumper and feels his back muscles.
There's a LOT of this kind of stuff: heavy petting, things nearly going further but then not. Often they're interrupted. Piers is about to bang Leigh in his own bedroom at his own party - rather a sexy scene, he's pressing her down on the bed - when one of the briefest Other Women in Romance novel history appears at the door (she has a "tinkling laugh" for anyone playing Mills & Boon bingo). There's also rather excruciating dialogue where Piers does some mansplaining about "sex" vs "making love", when Leigh is fretting about "not knowing how to please him".
Yeah. God, this is superb nonsense, isn't it?
The food
On the menu we have grapefruit starters and prawn cocktail, barbecued chicken and lemon sorbet. But my absolute favourite - a "mandarin cheesecake" - you just know it's decorated with those little segments of canned mandarin harvested to extinction by the 1980s.
The fashion
Endless sheepskin coats, velvet trouser and waistcoats (for girls), ruffly shirts (for men), and this. Our first sight of Piers:
This is what Piers wears around his own home, while alone. An unbuttoned shirt and a sheepskin jacket.
Interestingly Leigh gets to keep her job as a trainee nurse. It's nice to see a book throwing a bit of support behind women's careers, rather than the usual vintage Romance ending of them becoming corporate wives and mothers. Also interestingly, they consummate before the marriage (though he has proposed).
I love this book. I love everything about it because it reminds me of the sort of nonsense ideas and fantasies I had about Older Men when I was 18. So I totally get why Caroline Mortimer wrote it the way she did, and I thank her for it.
We've got a (barely) 18-year-old heroine, a 37-year-old playboy hero (who's also her boyfriend's dad) and a plot that is racy, ridiculous and a romp to end all romps. Leigh falls in insta-lust with Piers Sinclair, a former racing driver, who "rescues" her from his son's nefarious intentions to seduce her, and is soon slavering all over her himself.
She has parents who blithely invite Piers for Christmas when he shows up at their house in the middle of the night with their teenage daughter, and even give her some alone time with him. "You really don't mind?" "Don't be silly, darling. He's absolutely fascinating." My parents would have called the police.
An excellent parallel for this book is Caroline by Anne Mather. Caroline was Mather's first novel, written when she was just 19, and also features a teenage heroine and not-very-believable over-passionate, barely-controlling-himself older man. The Passionate Winter is Mortimer's debut novel, written when she was only 18, with the same scenario of a teenage heroine and a rakish bloke twice her age who can't control his urges.
The 1970s are out in full force: fashion, food and fastidious mores. There's an awful lot of talk about Leigh's virginity and will she/won't she sacrifice it and so on, and is she a wanton slut if she does? And Piers is constantly all over her and blaming her for his arousal.
Seriously. There's a scene in which he's been exploring her "firm untilted breasts" ("untilted" - WTF? perhaps "uptilted" is meant, there were a few typos in my copy, including a "petrol blue" dress) and then she puts her hand up his jumper and feels his back muscles.
"Stop it, Leigh! Don't you realise what you're doing to me? Do you think I can take much more of ths?"
"What, Piers?" Her violet eyes provoked him to further action. "What am I doing to you?"
"You know damn well what you're doing to me," he groaned. "But I don't care any more. I just don't care!"
There's a LOT of this kind of stuff: heavy petting, things nearly going further but then not. Often they're interrupted. Piers is about to bang Leigh in his own bedroom at his own party - rather a sexy scene, he's pressing her down on the bed - when one of the briefest Other Women in Romance novel history appears at the door (she has a "tinkling laugh" for anyone playing Mills & Boon bingo). There's also rather excruciating dialogue where Piers does some mansplaining about "sex" vs "making love", when Leigh is fretting about "not knowing how to please him".
"Sex is completely different from making love. Sex is just the satisfying of bodily senses, whereas making love is the union of two people who love each other and want to give themselves to each other. It's something I've never experienced either, and I can assure you I'm just as nervous as you are."
Yeah. God, this is superb nonsense, isn't it?
The food
On the menu we have grapefruit starters and prawn cocktail, barbecued chicken and lemon sorbet. But my absolute favourite - a "mandarin cheesecake" - you just know it's decorated with those little segments of canned mandarin harvested to extinction by the 1980s.
The fashion
Endless sheepskin coats, velvet trouser and waistcoats (for girls), ruffly shirts (for men), and this. Our first sight of Piers:
Dark brown hair, almost black, flecked with grey at the temples, grew low on his collar and the sideburns low on his jawline. He was dressed in close-fitting black trousers and a black silk shirt unbuttoned almost to the waistband of his trousers, and looked very lean and attractive. Over these he wore a thick sheepskin jacket, and Leigh found herself wishing that he would take it off so she could see him better.
This is what Piers wears around his own home, while alone. An unbuttoned shirt and a sheepskin jacket.
Interestingly Leigh gets to keep her job as a trainee nurse. It's nice to see a book throwing a bit of support behind women's careers, rather than the usual vintage Romance ending of them becoming corporate wives and mothers. Also interestingly, they consummate before the marriage (though he has proposed).
I love this book. I love everything about it because it reminds me of the sort of nonsense ideas and fantasies I had about Older Men when I was 18. So I totally get why Caroline Mortimer wrote it the way she did, and I thank her for it.
September 15, 2015
Ok I don't know why their age difference bothered me so but it did. He has an kid older then her and sick but sick he was lusting after her and for some reason seemed mad when she acted her age. It was just too creepy for me I could see her asking to have kids and him saying I had one already you don't need to have one I know what's good for you. The whole letting her finish nursing school!??? Come on he was just too much of a ass for me.
March 29, 2016
2 1/2 Stars ~ The Passionate Winter is Carole Mortimer's debut. In this story, Ms. Mortimer uses the older hero and very young heroine theme, which proves to be a favourite for her in stories that follow.
Leigh has just turned 18 and she shares a flat in London with another girl, both of them are nurse trainee's and taking classes at the university. It's at university that Leigh meets Gavin, a wealthy young man who can't seem to decide on a career. They become friends, and naively Leigh thinks his invitation to spend the weekend at his father's country home to be a platonic weekend. When she discovers he's after much more and that he lied about his father being home, she panics and when she tries to flee, both of them are discovered by the father unexpectedly home. One look at Gavin's father and Leigh is stunned by his virile good looks and she finds herself tongue tied. That is until Piers makes the assumption that Leigh was a willing participant in Gavin's weekend plans and she finds her moral character under attack. Something about Piers has her biting his head off for his false assumptions but Piers isn't the sort to take rudeness from a brat and he easily halts her verbal onslaught. This begins a volatile relationship, one with Piers finding excuses to spend time with her, and in the process checking out the males she hangs out with, and Leigh fighting back for his chauvinistic man handling.
While this is an obvious early work from Ms. Mortimer, I did enjoy the sparks Leigh and Piers seemed to shoot off one another. As this is a late 70's story, the 18 year old heroine with a mid 30's hero is perfectly acceptable, though today it would be frowned on. The addition of the hero's son as the same age as the heroine made for very interesting plot twists. Overall, I enjoyed this story.
Leigh has just turned 18 and she shares a flat in London with another girl, both of them are nurse trainee's and taking classes at the university. It's at university that Leigh meets Gavin, a wealthy young man who can't seem to decide on a career. They become friends, and naively Leigh thinks his invitation to spend the weekend at his father's country home to be a platonic weekend. When she discovers he's after much more and that he lied about his father being home, she panics and when she tries to flee, both of them are discovered by the father unexpectedly home. One look at Gavin's father and Leigh is stunned by his virile good looks and she finds herself tongue tied. That is until Piers makes the assumption that Leigh was a willing participant in Gavin's weekend plans and she finds her moral character under attack. Something about Piers has her biting his head off for his false assumptions but Piers isn't the sort to take rudeness from a brat and he easily halts her verbal onslaught. This begins a volatile relationship, one with Piers finding excuses to spend time with her, and in the process checking out the males she hangs out with, and Leigh fighting back for his chauvinistic man handling.
While this is an obvious early work from Ms. Mortimer, I did enjoy the sparks Leigh and Piers seemed to shoot off one another. As this is a late 70's story, the 18 year old heroine with a mid 30's hero is perfectly acceptable, though today it would be frowned on. The addition of the hero's son as the same age as the heroine made for very interesting plot twists. Overall, I enjoyed this story.
April 9, 2015
I really liked Leigh's character, she was strong and witty, too bad she was forced to grow up too soon for Piers (the predator, ups I mean the hero). And despite all the love declaration in the end I still couldn't buy their relationship. It's another thing when 30 years old woman married 50 years old man, but 18 and 37? Just sad...
November 29, 2010
Ok. Well, this book really didn't do it for me. It may be because of the time period and the nature of the genre "back then," but I was alternately enraged, disgusted, and shocked at the behavior of practically everyone in this book. My favorite...the hero complaining that the heroine is acting like a child in a situation that I, at 39, had a hard time swallowing and deciphering how she was "supposed" to act. Oh, did I mention the hero is 37 and the heroine 18?? What the heck did he expect from her???
May 25, 2012
This book is full of WTF situations yet readable.. The hero, Piers, is the father of the heroine, Leigh''s boyfriend. She continues going out with the son as a "special friend" despite hot pashing sessions with the dad who is freaked out by the age gap. Her parents are relaxed about him. Yet she continues to politely refer to him as 'Mr Sinclair' even 20 pages from the ending. He keeps refering to her as an adolescent, kid, young lady etc. The age gap was irksome but I kept reminding myself of pairings such as Celine Dion's and Catherine Zeta Jones. Also, it was the major issue for the two protagonists and not dismissed. The heroine keeps being told that she deserves a beating from both the hero and her father and she keeps slapping people. Horridness abounds and love is only realised by sexual atteaction. There is the usual Mills and Boon HEA but I kept imagining what life would be like for these two in 20 years time. Not pretty.
October 12, 2019
An older hero/younger heroine old school romance where sometimes the age difference is quite disturbing: the heroine meets the hero because she dates his son and the gap in experience (not only sexual but life experience) is sometimes so huge that the hero looks like a "cradle robbing" guy.
Nevertheless, after fighting against the attraction and a lot of push-pull play, the hero puts some sweetness at the end of the story and proves to be really in love... but I am a pessimistic person, so I think this is a HFN...
Nevertheless, after fighting against the attraction and a lot of push-pull play, the hero puts some sweetness at the end of the story and proves to be really in love... but I am a pessimistic person, so I think this is a HFN...
May 3, 2018
My rating is while bearing in mind this book was originally written in the 1970s. By today's standards, the H was an abusive ass. The romance genre was much different 40 years ago, though. You can tell this was a first effort by an author who later would become a classic in Harlequin land. It is typical of her work, and a 4 star book, for me, when compared with similar ones from the time.
January 21, 2021
"Δώσ'μου πίσω την καρδιά μου"- Κάρολ Μόρτιμερ, Συλλογή 86, έτος έκδοσης: 1978
ΠΟΛΥ ΩΡΑΙΑ ΙΣΤΟΡΙΑ!!!!
ΠΟΛΥ ΩΡΑΙΑ ΙΣΤΟΡΙΑ!!!!
January 5, 2020
I saw this one on my feed after Chitra CJ reviewed it and I had to move it up my tbr pile.
As I've said before I'm not a huge fan of dating relatives but in this case I will kind of give the h a pass as she was very casually dating the H's son when the book starts. He is actually a bit of a dirt bag and tricks the h into going to his dads house to seduce her and gets caught. He is very lucky the h forgives him and his dad should have been firmer with him as a child so he didn't turn out to be such a brat.
The h has a bit of backbone and she is also determined to pursue her career so I give her bonus points for that. She also has some decent family support as well which makes a pleasant change. I'm glad the H came to his senses in the end but the h is definitely the stronger character in this book.
As I've said before I'm not a huge fan of dating relatives but in this case I will kind of give the h a pass as she was very casually dating the H's son when the book starts. He is actually a bit of a dirt bag and tricks the h into going to his dads house to seduce her and gets caught. He is very lucky the h forgives him and his dad should have been firmer with him as a child so he didn't turn out to be such a brat.
The h has a bit of backbone and she is also determined to pursue her career so I give her bonus points for that. She also has some decent family support as well which makes a pleasant change. I'm glad the H came to his senses in the end but the h is definitely the stronger character in this book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 16, 2018
Fantastic, I really fell in love with this book. A May-December romance masterpiece. All characters, especially the hero and heroine, storyline, dialogues, everything was well written and I would have given this book 1000000 stars if it was possible. 😍💕😍💕😍💕😍💕😍💕😍💕😍💕😘😘😘😘😘😘😘
November 1, 2023
Leigh Stanton meets Piers Sinclair when his late teens/early 20's son tricks her into going to the
September 21, 2019
Loved it!
I now remember why I liked this author so much when this book was originally published. Her descriptions of emotions spoke to me in ways that others didn’t. She was and remains a favorite today. Yes, this classic reflects the culture of forty years ago and may not appeal to younger readers. The young women were always mature and the older men always “masterful” and wealthy, but that’s the theme that was popular then. The lack of explicit sex scenes reflected the rather rigid view of what was acceptable in print or even on tv. Today’s books reflect current cultural views towards gender and sexuality in that both “clean” and “x-rated” books are published. Personally I enjoy both depending on my mood at the time. Therefore I recommend this book as an excellent example of non-explicit story that concentrates on the emotions while still following the publication rules and restrictions of the 70’s and 80’s.
I now remember why I liked this author so much when this book was originally published. Her descriptions of emotions spoke to me in ways that others didn’t. She was and remains a favorite today. Yes, this classic reflects the culture of forty years ago and may not appeal to younger readers. The young women were always mature and the older men always “masterful” and wealthy, but that’s the theme that was popular then. The lack of explicit sex scenes reflected the rather rigid view of what was acceptable in print or even on tv. Today’s books reflect current cultural views towards gender and sexuality in that both “clean” and “x-rated” books are published. Personally I enjoy both depending on my mood at the time. Therefore I recommend this book as an excellent example of non-explicit story that concentrates on the emotions while still following the publication rules and restrictions of the 70’s and 80’s.
October 17, 2019
Own as passionate winter
Love has nothing to do with age limits.
Leigh knew that Piers Sinclair was old enough to be her father. In fact, he was her boyfriend Gavin's father. But that didn't stop her from falling in love with him.
No woman could resist his powerful attraction. Piers was sophisticated, experienced, and dangerously exciting. His very presence unsettled Leigh.
She knew she should try to avoid him; she knew she had to forget him. But it just wasn't possible. Especially when Gavin decided to play matchmaker!
Love has nothing to do with age limits.
Leigh knew that Piers Sinclair was old enough to be her father. In fact, he was her boyfriend Gavin's father. But that didn't stop her from falling in love with him.
No woman could resist his powerful attraction. Piers was sophisticated, experienced, and dangerously exciting. His very presence unsettled Leigh.
She knew she should try to avoid him; she knew she had to forget him. But it just wasn't possible. Especially when Gavin decided to play matchmaker!
March 30, 2022
I've enjoyed immensely reading this book, knowing that it was written by an 18 year old author. If I'm not mistaken, Georgette Heyer wrote These Old Shades in her teenage or early twenties. That book was something else and to learn after I finished reading that it was written at such a young age was nothing short of astonishing.
September 27, 2023
I liked the theme - older man younger woman. Unfortunately the writing lacked depth and made the pair to be ridiculous in their relationship. Piers was around too often without real reasons and and appeared not strong enough to manly hold his position. After all he was a well known racing driver but did not act it. Disappointing.
June 7, 2024
Good read.
Even though I am not a big fan of such a huge age gap between lovers, this one is well written and interesting. Published in 1978, so it an oldie but goodie. They both fight their attraction and some misunderstandings follow leaving you to wonder will they make it?
Even though I am not a big fan of such a huge age gap between lovers, this one is well written and interesting. Published in 1978, so it an oldie but goodie. They both fight their attraction and some misunderstandings follow leaving you to wonder will they make it?
November 9, 2017
at the end the son was more mature than hero and heroine.
January 10, 2024
Title made no sense. Both main character were abusive. Finished it but did t like it
October 28, 2025
J'ai eu du mal à accrocher au début mais j'ai bien fait de continuer car j'ai apprécié la fin
February 4, 2019
I was looking for a light read, and this book proved fun. I am not much for age differences when such involve a teenager just turned 18, but this book was a good read and I enjoyed it.
August 13, 2021
Loved this early Carole Mortimer novel when I read it as a teenager on its release in 1978. I enjoyed the story and and I liked her characters.
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