Seduction by Design

by Erin St. Claire, Sandra Brown

Librarian’s note: This is a previously-published edition of
Kindle ASIN: B001J2UVAW.

Hailey Ashton is devoted to her challenging job at the Serendipity Amusement Park. But Hailey's tough exterior hides a fragile self-image that dashes any hopes of a love life. Until a minor emergency brings her into contact with Tyler Scott.

Genres: Romance, Contemporary Romance, Fiction, Contemporary, Audiobook, Harlequin, Chick Lit

183 pages, ebook

First published January 1, 1983

About the author

Pseudonym of Sandra Brown.

Reviews

[Sandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hailey Ashton (Serendipity Amusement Park 'Director of Guest Relations') meets hero Tyler Scott after his 11-year-old daughter (Faith) locks herself in the ladies room after she gets stung by a bee. Hailey eventually gets the girl to come out and befriends her. Then Hailey learns that Tyler is the owner of the amusement park and her long absent boss (whom she has never met before). Tyler makes it clear very soon that he is interested in Hailey and plans to seduce her. At first Hailey is mad and suggests if he tries anything she will claim sexual harassment. But Tyler is handsome and charming and he begins to grow on Hailey.



Hailey is twenty-eight and she doesn’t think very highly of herself. Her sister Ellen is the beauty of the family. Ellen is impulsive, fun, and sexy. Hailey is sensible, reliable, and unattractive (or so she thinks). When she was young she wore braces and glasses and was tall and gawky. She thinks Tyler is interested in her only as a free baby-sitter for his daughter. But she couldn’t be more wrong.

Tyler (in his late 30’s) was married years ago to Monica…they were married and had Faith but divorced soon afterwards. Faith was living with Monica until she died in a boating accident a few months ago. Now Faith is living with Tyler and he is adjusting to being a full-time parent.

I really enjoyed this book. It was dated (from the 80’s) but that was part of the book’s charm. With references to 80’s stars and fads, (Pac-Man, Stevie Nicks's permed hair-do, etc). I liked the hero Tyler. At first he seemed a bit domineering but he grew on me. I liked his sweet daughter Faith. Hailey was a good heroine. Hailey and Tyler had good chemistry. I also liked the setting of the amusement park.

A fun, romantic oldie by Sandra Brown.

[Mo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well this was another one with an eighties feel to it. I suppose if it was written in the eighties, that just might be the case.


Arrogant, boorish alpha male.


Younger, innocent woman who cannot see how pretty she is.


Throw in his daughter to the mix.


To me, even the "bad" SB books are not that bad.

An enjoyable enough read.

[Geo Just Reading My Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hailey este directorul departamentului Relații cu clienții al parcului de distracții Serendipity, o tânără frumoasă, care-și face meseria cu drag.
Viața ei este complet dată peste cap din cauza unei albine, dacă vă vine să credeți, care nici nu o înțeapă pe ea, ci pe o copilă de 11 ani care se sperie. Deoarece acest fapt se întâmplă în parcul de distracții, ea se vede nevoită să facă față unui tată nervos și unui copil speriat... O zi obișnuită atunci când ești în plin sezon.
Tyler este speriat pentru fiica lui, dar este luat prin surprindere de această tânără sigură pe ea, care-și păstrează calmul în această situație anume și care reușește să ajungă la miezul problemei.
Acesta este începutul unei povești de dragoste simple, care emoționează și îți dă o stare de bine la final.
Se pare că tatăl nervos este chiar șeful lui Hailey! Iar acesta este hotărât să își seducă angajata.
Faith este momentul de bucurie și calmare a situațiilor tensionate dintre cei doi tineri hotărâți și încăpățânați.
Eroina noastră are probleme cu încrederea în ea însăși, cu stima de sine, o problemă care-și are rădăcinile în copilărie. Această traumă o împiedică să se deschidă în fața unei relații cu un bărbat, deoarece nu are încredere.
Tyler se luptă din greu să îi dărâme zidurile, să o convingă că între ei nu este doar atracție. Sentimentele lor iau amploare pe măsură ce tânăra se deschide în fața lui.
Dar, “O propunere îndrăzneață” este carte unui pas în față și doi înapoi. De câte ori Tyler reușește să o facă să lase garda jos, ceva se întâmplă astfel încât Hailey să ridice rapid zidul în jurul ei.
Când să spui că totul se așează în sfârșit, totul explodează în jurul acestui cuplu care este nevoit să depășească obstacole peste obstacole pentru a putea fi împreună.
O poveste care îți umple sufletul de bucurie la final, care te face să zâmbești pe parcursul lecturii și să simți fiecare bucurie sau tristețe pe care o experimentează eroii noștri.
Autoarea Sandra Brown oferă cititorilor o speranță prin intermediul poveștii acesteia. O speranță către fericirea până la adânci bătrâneți.

[Saly · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed Seduction by Design, it had a forceful hero Tyler who took one look at Hailey and knew he wanted her and told her he would seduce her. Overbearing you may think but the execution was good.

Hailey doesn't know her own beauty and worth, years under the shadow of a beautiful sister, the awkward teenage phase and then taking care of her parents have convinced her that she is no beauty and she has the perfect personal persona that people don't get through. She comes across Tyler when his daughter locks herself in the bathroom.

As it turns out Tyler is her missing boss and he informs her the very next day about her intentions, Hailey tells him he better not try or she'll scream sexual harassment. I liked that part, a heroine who thinks.
She starts getting close to his daughter when he leaves for a trip and her doubts make her think he wants her as baby-sitter.

Of course he laughs at her idea and then her spoiled sister makes her doubts surface again.
I liked how Tyler never made light of her insecurities but instead tried to show her how great she was. I enjoyed the utter sensuality of the book, though I would have preferred that Hailey confront her sister instead of Tyler.

[Dee · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 Stars

This was originally written in the early 80's and published by Harlequin. Nice enough romance story and as usual well written but not what I would expect from SB, it's not easily recognised as her work.

[*TANYA* · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sooooo cheesy!!! Super fun filled cheese. Lol

[Mareli · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a wonderful delicious book. I read it a looooooot of years ago!! Totally recommended!

[Robin · Rating 2 out of 5]

An irate parent and an upset child have Hailey Ashton wishing she had any other job than the director of public relations at Serendipity Amusement Park. To make matters worse, the irate parent, Tyler Scott, turns out to be her boss whom she has never met. After the incident, Tyler requests that Hailey meet him in his office the next morning. Hailey is sure she is going to be fired. Instead, Tyler announces that he means to seduce Hailey and make her his lover. And so starts one of the dumbest stories ever written....

This is an older Sandra Brown book originally published under her pseudonym Erin St. Clair. Time has not been good to this story. The hero, Tyler, is the usual alpha jerk that believes he knows everything about women and can seduce anything in a skirt. But the character that really bothered me was Hailey. I've never seen a heroine jump from one stupid conclusion to the next for no apparent reason. She has such low self-esteem she doesn't believe any man would ever be interested in her. When Tyler has to go out of town, he asks Hailey to look in on his daughter. She immediately assumes he wants her as a glorified babysitter. The moment Tyler meets Hailey's vamp sister, she believes he will immediately dump her and date the sister. She needs years of therapy. It got to the place where I would laugh and roll my eyes. I gave it an extra star because I considered it a comedy. My rating: 2 Stars.

[atomickitten · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars

When the hero is the instigator of the relationship?
When he is the one doing all the chasing?
And when the heroine isn't all that interested at first?
Hell yeah...!

That is exactly what I want.

[L Cherry · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sweet romance that takes place in the Smokey mountains.

[Maria Vlaicu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hailey Ashton, Director of Customer Relations at Serendipity Amusement Park, is dedicated body and soul to her challenging work.
Moreover, the contingencies that arise daily and which they resolve with an iron hand keep her away from friends and a thrilling social life. Although Hailey turns the eyes of many men, she does not consider herself an attractive woman, and finding love remains only an unfulfilled dream.
But things are starting to change the day

[Rbeey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heyyy in ever Romantic Sensuous Way..Seduction By Design is a delicious forte.,I read&listen to in October 22, 2005
SEDUCTION BY DESIGN:
Is by far....
Not for the faint of Heart..OOOH NO,nooo!
I found it sensuously reallll...,Spicey HOT & erotic! ((((ooola,la...nice!)));)
It HONESTLY affects your senses,for it's flow bursts from the Pages with POTENT fires & passions.
A refreshingly educated READ & brilliant Storyline of Love lessons.
Whose Realities are to the likes of a 4th of JULY'S fire work Show goes off with a ...BOOOM..B LAM! Right in your face .
It's Spirit sounds out with a shout loud and clear...."take me or leave me & NO holds bar!"

BEWARE! this READ is definitely a...pleasurable Heated Turn on!
An enjoyable ,but a believable fun READ & it's power pack with REAL characters that Ms. Brown doesn't sugar coat ..
Heyyy quite frankly,you either like or dislike... these characters.
Characters whether or not one chooses to acknowledge...DO live on planet earth.

I frequently revisit this Audio read. Love losing myself in the Lost City of city of Atlantis this Utopia's Payton Place. A time, a place
A setting of yesteryear love an original romantic feel I love experiencing every time Barbra Streisand lyrics: Memories. I listen to this read also it reminds me of.....sigh...nice..!

The Hero & Heroine Read mere flesh & blood humans off the Romantic pages.
In all the glory of their life forces..tsk,tsk, that dag blaster Hunk/Hot blood Rebel with a cause(TYLER) pleases me!
I Love a Manly acting man,whose male through & through!
TYLER kept me in stitches,he was fun to be around.
I for ONE AM A WOMAN THAT DOESN'T WANT MY MAN TO HAVE THE UNCANNY SPIRIT OF A WIMP! Tyler was allll man...who want's an Hen Peck man...?!!!
Wow what a man...I love a bad boy..yesss!
Haley was a She-roe!

I was over JOYED with the TRUE LOVE ,affections,&kindness Haley had for FAITH.
(a beautiful child that NEEDED a mother's Love,and thank God Haley came in time..which reminds me of IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE)
I champion for the Beautiful & lovely spirit Giving...Haley.
HALEY was a take charge gal,a leader with faults & TYLER was her weakness!
Both TYLER & HALEY compilmented each other, smart,&strong willed.
I was truly happy that Haley & Tyler's end was a HAPPY EVER AFTER !
I also love to hate ELLEN(HALEY'S...Witchy sis' I must confess..curiosity can't help but leave me wondering what became of ELLEN..?!

I truly THANK SANDRA BROWN for here Talents & Gift sharing!
Much kudo's to SANDRA BROWN...who's NOT afraid to do her THANG !!!
from a HAPPY SATISFIED FAN! ;)

I frequently revisit this Audio read. Love losing myself in this Lost City of city of Atlantis in which I in vision it has picturesque Utopia's Payton Place. A time, a place
A setting of yesteryears love. An original romantic feel I love experiencing every time it imposes a feel or remembrance of Barbra Streisand's great classic: Memories. I can listen to this read countless times again & again..ooh what a pleasurable demise reminds me of*sigh*nice..!

[Melanie♥ · Rating 2 out of 5]

An old classic Sandra Brown from her category writing days.
Sorry to say this one was just too dated to make the cut.

Although I remember enjoying it when I read it many years ago, revisiting it in audio was a mistake.

The narrator kept me thinking of perms, shoulder pads and leg warmers with a nice dose of women's lib thrown in. It's a decent story, but the feel of the eighties was just overpowering.

Also not one of my favorite narrators.

[Kristen · Rating 3 out of 5]

In Sandra Brown's Seduction by Design, she told a beautiful and classic romantic suspense in this sweet story. For Hailey Ashton, she was devoted to her challenging job at the Serendipity Amusement Park. Her fragile self-image hides behind her tough interior that dashed any chance of her love life. Until a minor emergency happened at the park, that's when she made contact with Tyler Scott.

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow this book was really dated but then again I enjoyed it for a quick read. The theme of wanting to be loved instead of being pushed aside for someone else is timeless. I reconmend this book for a quick read to pass the time.

[Lita · Rating 2 out of 5]

Can U imagine there is still Hailey Ashton character's nowadays ?? One in a million , i guess .

[Maria Vlaicu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hailey Ashton, director al Departamentului de relații cu clienții în parcul de distracții Serendipity, este dedicată trup și suflet muncii sale provocatoare.
Mai mult, situațiile neprevăzute care apar zilnic și pe care le rezolvă cu o mână de fier o țin departe de prieteni și de o viață socială palpitantă. Deși Hailey întoarce privirile multor bărbați, nu se consideră o femeie atrăgătoare, iar găsirea dragostei rămâne doar un vis neîmplinit.
Însă lucrurile încep să se schimbe în ziua în care o urgență minoră într-o zi aglomerată la Serendipity o aduce față în față cu Tyler Scott, proprietarul companiei la care lucrează.
Tyler Scott a urmărit și a condus din umbră afacerile familiei, fără ca angajații să-l cunoască. Dar într-o zi se hotărăște să-și facă apariția în parcul de distracții ca un simplu vizitator.
Un mic accident îi dă planurile peste cap și astfel ajunge să o cunoască pe cea care se ocupă de relațiile cu clienții. Impresionat de frumusețea tinerei sale angajate, Tyler nu își ascunde deloc intenția de a o seduce.
Însă frumoasa Hailey nu este tocmai ușor de cucerit, iar Tyler trebuie să apeleze la toate armele seducției pentru a o face să-și depășească nesiguranța și temerile care i-au marcat atât de profund adolescența.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love these old classic romances by Sandra Brown, she was the first author I read when I tried romance back when I was probably too young to read it. I’ve been going through and rereading my collection and Seduction by Design got picked next because it is set in September and October. Hailey being a career minded woman in her twenties, Tyler a career minded man in his thirties who happens to own the amusement park Hailey works at. An unfortunate encounter has them sparring and falling in love at the same time. Though Hailey is reluctant to fall for her boss, she still sees herself as an awkward teenager nobody would want, but Tyler sees her for the beautiful woman she has become and her intelligence is a bonus. Raising his daughter alone after the untimely death of her mother, these two have some hurdles to cross to reach that happily ever after.

[Judy Churchill · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fluff. I guess this was the vogue in the 80s but it wouldn’t go big today. Nevertheless, the cute story unfolded in a readable way.

[PatriceC · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.4⭐️ ...it was a quick read

[Sarah Sammis · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sandra Brown is one of those super prolific authors. If I'm counting correctly, she's written seventy-two books. To complicate things further, she has been published under a variety of names: Rachel Ryan, Laura Jordan, Erin St. Claire and finally Sandra Brown. She's obviously most well known as Sandra Brown and many of her early novels have been republished under the name Sandra Brown. For example, the 2001 edition of Seduction by Design was originally published in 1983 and listed Erin St. Claire as the author.

Seduction by Design isn't one of Brown's better books but it is among her earliest published works. It does show hints at how she likes to play with genre expectations and cliches but in this novel she doesn't pull it off.

Hailey Ashton may be a successful business woman but the shit she puts up with from her boss is creepy and abusive. In a modern Brown novel I would expect the heroine to quit her job and get a restraining order against her boss, sue him and hook up with her lawyer but not in this one.

Then there is the added ick factor of Tyler (the boss) being a single father and using his daughter as a bargaining chip. Again, in a modern Brown novel, Hailey would probably call child protective services but not here.

I read the book cover to cover mostly for the amazement at how much Brown has improved as a writer. If you're a fan of her writing and want to read everything she's published, then go ahead and read Seduction by Design. If not, feel free to skip it.

[Aarann · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

Hailey is a responsible, sensible doormat. She's extremely good at her job, capable, and intelligent. She meets Tyler Scott, the owner of the amusement park she works for, and his daughter, Faith, and Tyler makes it pretty clear from the start that he intends for he and Hailey to have a relationship. Unfortunately, Hailey has a lifetime of insecurities, courtesy of her now-dead parents and her user little sister, so she keeps making mental jumps to convince herself that Tyler doesn't really want her. It was understandable but after a while became annoying too.

As for Tyler, he was alpha but kind of a sweet one. He was cheerful, didn't call her names or get all ragey every time Hailey went off the deep end (even when I would have gotten ragey, Tyler still kept his cool). The whole book was told from Hailey's perspective so it was hard to get a feel for him as a real person with friends and interests outside of Hailey, but that's fairly common in many of the category romances.

My biggest complaint about this one was that Hailey's sister didn't really get nearly enough of a comeuppance. I just didn't believe that Hailey the doormat would be able to tell her no when Tyler wasn't around.

This was an audio read and I wasn't a big fan of the narrator. The quality of her voice made this book sound even more 80s than it already would have seemed. It's probably not fair to say I just didn't like her voice, but I didn't. Her performance was fine, I guess, it was just the sound of her voice I didn't like.

All in all, a cute read. Not very memorable, but cute.

[Gayle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm excited! Thank you, Ms. Sandra Brown and Goodreads Giveaways for the gracious gift of an autographed copy of Seduction by Design. I can hardly wait to receive, read and review!

This book was an enjoyable 'take me away' kind of experience.

At the beginning I felt that our male protagonist was boorish and forward and I wasn't going to like him..........but..........there can be no fault found with a man who loves a woman and teaches 'said' woman to love him, but to also love herself. And he's rich too!!

The book may have been written in the '80's' but the love story is forever new.

Thank you Ms. Brown and Goodreads Giveaways for the lovely gift of an autographed copy of 'Seduction By Design.'

[Jenna Hackworth · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this book through a Goodreads giveaway win. Though, technically, I won another book, but this audiobook came along with it. I'll never turn away a free book!

This was a sweet love story between Hailey and Tyler. A typical, he wants her but she's shy and unsure of herself story with him having a daughter thrown in.

I definitely enjoyed this book. It was sweet and fluffy. Those are always enjoyable.

Not much else to say with regards to this except that if you want something light and romantic, this is a good choice.

[Lorma · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a nice surprise....Loved It!!! A beautifully written short read that has everything going for it....A strong, handsome leading man in Tyler and a beautiful, smart woman who is not full of herself in Hailey...and Faith, Tyler's preteen daughter who draws them together and flourishes along with their love for each other.

A lovely love story!!!!

[Mem · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hailey Ashton works in a Tennessee theme park. A park emergency, the result of a bee sting, results in her meeting the park's owner, Tyler Scott.
He turns her quiet life upside down with the help of his daughter.

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

I never get bored with Sandra's books. This was the first classic love story I have read of hers and I couldn't put it down. I thought this was well written and very interesting. I am gonna have to read some of the other titles now just to see if they are as good.

[Lisa Stilgenbauer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it!

[Shaun Collins · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ugh. I'll preface this by saying I'm well aware that not books/genres can be all things to all people, and perhaps my personal tastes simply don't mesh well with certain tropes of "the romance" novel.

But having said that, I enjoy reading about relationships and people and yes, I like a good romance story.

But I don't think this was one.

The male lead, who is supposed to be dangerously dreamy, came across to me as controlling, domineering, and borderline abusive. He puts his hands on the heroine in very inappropriate non-sexual ways (grabbing her around the neck), tells her he's going to seduce her right off in non-sexy ways and harasses/stalks her. There's coming on strong and then there's attempted rape. And then when they do finally get together, she's expected to quit her job and move away with him. I know this was written before the #MeToo movement, but honestly, I was uncomfortable for her and embarrassed by him way more than I was turned on. (Oh, did I mention he's her boss?!?)

I'm sure there is a slice of the female population that is turned on by this fantasy. And quite honestly, that makes me sad. Ladies, you deserve so much better in your lives than Tyler Scott.

AND THEN there was the poor writing, where we re-hash EVERY feeling and emotion the torn character feels about this forbidden love (incorrectly) every other chapter. At least the descriptives weren't the usual "full, sensual lips" and "piercing grey eyes"...oh wait, they WERE. Trope-y and boring and oh so NOT SEXY.

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wasn’t sure I was going to like this book at first because Tyler was very pushy, and I wouldn’t enjoy being told someone is going to have me, especially if said person was the owner of the company where I work. Now, if this were to happen in today’s society, SO much of this would be considered sexual harassment. But, I kept in mind that this book was written in the early 80s and judged it as such. As the story went along, Tyler became very likable, and I felt both sorry and excited for Hailey as I realized that she had no confidence in herself, but was about to fall in love. I have never bought a Harlequin novel (and was shocked to realize this was originally released as one), but this honestly didn’t read trashy like what I would expect of those. The sexual harassment aside, it turned into a nice little love story, with some steamy scenes intertwined, and a sweet happy ending with the creation of a family of three. Hailey falling in love and Faith figuring out that she was going to have a Mom and Dad who loved her was super sweet. It was also interesting that this took place in Gatlinburg, NC since I’ve been there many times. I really enjoy Sandra Brown’s writing. I’ve only read two of her books (completely different novels), but I’m looking forward to more. Funnily enough, if this book was written now, I probably would have given it 2.5-3 stars, but with it being the time period it was, I think it deserves the 4 stars I gave it. It entertained me when I needed it, and I enjoyed the happy ending for everyone involved.