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Running Wild
In bed with her tutor!Kip was at an American college on an athletics scholarship. But she needed to be more than a good runner. She was severely dyslexic, and luckily her gorgeous tutor Whit Delaney offered to help....Kip was grateful for his help--she needed it if she was ever going to realize her dream of running at the Olympics. Then, despite it breaking every college rule, Whit began to seduce her.... It was a mutual passion that could wreck both their careers....
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First published January 1, 1996
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
January 22, 2020
Compelling writing and an extremely sympathetic heroine unfortunately end up nowhere in Alison Fraser's story of a poor-little-waif college runner and the creepy literature professor "hero" who takes advantage of her.
The heroine is diagnosed as dyslexic, but it isn't the professor hero who helps her overcome the odds, it is the hero's father.
The hero ignores the heroine for most of the story, even as she is recuperating from a debilitating accident that almost left her with an amputated foot and threatened to shatter her dreams of Olympic glory.
When he is giving her attention, it is to insult her (he accused her of cheating on her school assignment because he equated dyslexia with stupidity!!!! Nice going, professor!) or to sexually assault her. Seriously, that scene where he pounces on her and tears away her virginity, then he gets up, puts his clothes on and leaves, is so painful. She should have brought him up on rape charges! I don't think he ever redeemed himself for that. I don't even recall a proper apology. He just told her to notify the college if she wanted to, which he didn't care about anyways because teaching was not his primary career. He is a successful author of trashy books that get made into Hollywood films and he thinks if the story gets out that he pumped one of his students, it will just add to his macho aura YYYYUUUCCKK!
Then he asks her to shack up with him since he doesn't see a future for them but she will be a convenient live-in lay and surrogate mom to his little plot moppet of a daughter. Double Yuck!
Heroine eventually leaves and achieves her dream of becoming a successful runner, though she never attains Olympic-level success. The weasel hero looks her up when he happens to be in the same town as her on business and decides to propose cause she made it clear this cow milk ain't for free anymore.
On top of all this, the vile succubus OW who called her the R word and taunted her that she might be better off competing in the paraplegic olympics never gets any comeuppance. The hero pays her off so she won't spread rumours about the heroine. What????!!! What a wimp :(
The heroine is diagnosed as dyslexic, but it isn't the professor hero who helps her overcome the odds, it is the hero's father.
The hero ignores the heroine for most of the story, even as she is recuperating from a debilitating accident that almost left her with an amputated foot and threatened to shatter her dreams of Olympic glory.
When he is giving her attention, it is to insult her (he accused her of cheating on her school assignment because he equated dyslexia with stupidity!!!! Nice going, professor!) or to sexually assault her. Seriously, that scene where he pounces on her and tears away her virginity, then he gets up, puts his clothes on and leaves, is so painful. She should have brought him up on rape charges! I don't think he ever redeemed himself for that. I don't even recall a proper apology. He just told her to notify the college if she wanted to, which he didn't care about anyways because teaching was not his primary career. He is a successful author of trashy books that get made into Hollywood films and he thinks if the story gets out that he pumped one of his students, it will just add to his macho aura YYYYUUUCCKK!
Then he asks her to shack up with him since he doesn't see a future for them but she will be a convenient live-in lay and surrogate mom to his little plot moppet of a daughter. Double Yuck!
Heroine eventually leaves and achieves her dream of becoming a successful runner, though she never attains Olympic-level success. The weasel hero looks her up when he happens to be in the same town as her on business and decides to propose cause she made it clear this cow milk ain't for free anymore.
On top of all this, the vile succubus OW who called her the R word and taunted her that she might be better off competing in the paraplegic olympics never gets any comeuppance. The hero pays her off so she won't spread rumours about the heroine. What????!!! What a wimp :(
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 7, 2018
Running Wild is the tenth romance novel by British author, Alison Fraser. Kipling Wilson was over from England on an athletic scholarship with Radford: all she really wanted to do was run. But of course, she had to complete some courses. Luckily her English lit tutor, old Professor Alex Delaney understood: he knew she had a reading problem and made allowances.
But the old man’s heart attack meant his son, a successful author, was taking over his classes. And Whitman Delaney wasn’t giving out any free passes. There was an attraction between them, though, and to both their consternations, they ended up in bed together. Neither Whit’s life as a single parent, nor Kip’s Olympic ambitions had room for a relationship. And yet…
Fraser is expert at creating the prickly heroine with a talent for the insulting put-down, although in this case the strength and duration of Kip’s resistance does get a little tiresome. In a small field of fifteen, this one is not Fraser’s best.
But the old man’s heart attack meant his son, a successful author, was taking over his classes. And Whitman Delaney wasn’t giving out any free passes. There was an attraction between them, though, and to both their consternations, they ended up in bed together. Neither Whit’s life as a single parent, nor Kip’s Olympic ambitions had room for a relationship. And yet…
Fraser is expert at creating the prickly heroine with a talent for the insulting put-down, although in this case the strength and duration of Kip’s resistance does get a little tiresome. In a small field of fifteen, this one is not Fraser’s best.
September 16, 2017
OOoooOoOOOOohhh I LOVED this! Now, I'm certain it won't be to everyone's taste but it sure hit plenty of right notes with me. The sort-of-boyish heroine, her no-bullshit, single-minded attitude, it even hit my secret teacher-student kink!
Kip's another one of those tortured souls with a sad, lonely past, but she's got a seriously lofty goal of winning Olympic gold for track and she's not letting little things like a reading disability and extreme poverty stand in her way! She has an athletic scholarship and a job and no time for anything but work, training, and school.
The Hero is the famous-writer son of her literature professor, who takes over the class when his father is hospitalized. At first, he just takes special notice of her because of her reading disability and her detachment from everything. Honestly, Kip's a textbook case of me-against-the-world, she's never had anyone on her side and she's going to keep it that way. So Whit's intrigued by her complexity and the disastrous state of her papers compared to her IQ.
They come together through a variety of ways. She starts taking private tutoring from his father, who studies up on dyslexia. She eventually becomes the nanny for his precocious 8-year-old daughter (his first wife's dead), who is really one of my all-time favorite plot moppets.
All in all I enjoyed this book so much for its heroine. Usually in romances it's the Hero who's the more compelling one, but really all my love was for Kip here. Not that Whit was bad or anything; he was actually a very kind, perceptive, and patient Hero . Kip was just like some force of nature, driven inexorably on by sheer willpower. I liked how blunt she was, and her loner personality. I liked her running, even after she realized she was living her father's dream instead of her own. I liked her independence and pride, and how she didn't take any shit from anyone.
If I had to quibble, the ending was kind of short. It wasn't even really that short, but after getting so deeply involved with all the details, it seemed short to me. I wanted to see more of Abby, more of the old professor, even more of the grumpy housekeeper. Did Kip finish her degree, what did she decide to do with her life (other than being Mrs. Whit, obv), did that bitch Stacey ever find out Kip & Whit were actually a thing, etc. These are important questions!! But anyway, it was still a great read that kept me glued.
Kip's another one of those tortured souls with a sad, lonely past, but she's got a seriously lofty goal of winning Olympic gold for track and she's not letting little things like a reading disability and extreme poverty stand in her way! She has an athletic scholarship and a job and no time for anything but work, training, and school.
The Hero is the famous-writer son of her literature professor, who takes over the class when his father is hospitalized. At first, he just takes special notice of her because of her reading disability and her detachment from everything. Honestly, Kip's a textbook case of me-against-the-world, she's never had anyone on her side and she's going to keep it that way. So Whit's intrigued by her complexity and the disastrous state of her papers compared to her IQ.
They come together through a variety of ways. She starts taking private tutoring from his father, who studies up on dyslexia. She eventually becomes the nanny for his precocious 8-year-old daughter (his first wife's dead), who is really one of my all-time favorite plot moppets.
All in all I enjoyed this book so much for its heroine. Usually in romances it's the Hero who's the more compelling one, but really all my love was for Kip here. Not that Whit was bad or anything; he was actually a very kind, perceptive, and patient Hero . Kip was just like some force of nature, driven inexorably on by sheer willpower. I liked how blunt she was, and her loner personality. I liked her running, even after she realized she was living her father's dream instead of her own. I liked her independence and pride, and how she didn't take any shit from anyone.
If I had to quibble, the ending was kind of short. It wasn't even really that short, but after getting so deeply involved with all the details, it seemed short to me. I wanted to see more of Abby, more of the old professor, even more of the grumpy housekeeper. Did Kip finish her degree, what did she decide to do with her life (other than being Mrs. Whit, obv), did that bitch Stacey ever find out Kip & Whit were actually a thing, etc. These are important questions!! But anyway, it was still a great read that kept me glued.
October 30, 2011
Not much romance, more like a case study. I was initially drawn by the back blurb which is misleading, BTW. Heroine is NOT dyslexic, she's NOT grateful when offered help by her hawt temp professor who's a fill-in for his ill dad. The writing is a bit odd. Heroine is an orphan, a driven athlete, lives a bleak, singular existence, mistakenly perceived as dyslexic, bullied by plastic college mates channeling Mean Girls. Hero is a divorced, single dad w/ an ill-mannered daughter, both become drawn to loner heroine & want her to be their nanny. It felt weird that the romance was barely simmering & bam, by chapter 3 he stuck his flagpole into her gravy w/out touching the finish line. Heroine did a lotta running, not just on the race track, but to get away from hero. I wouldn't bankrupt myself to get her backlist but I'd check out her other books.
May 5, 2014
rating 3.5 stars
I find this author's writing deeply conflicting because on the one hand her plot-lines are really good but sometimes her writing can come across as very dry and angst filled. Now, with this book I felt there was so much potential yet it never fulfilled it. The heroine is a runner not because she loves it but because it was her parent's dream. We see her run no matter what, despite her impoverished condition, failing grades. Then, she meets the hero, who is her substitute teacher who doesn't let her get away with her grades. The hero is a single father as well.
Now, things so happen that the hero's father starts tutoring the heroine, she starts looking after his kid and they become close. But where the book faltered for me was when they showed such a long separation between them.
I find this author's writing deeply conflicting because on the one hand her plot-lines are really good but sometimes her writing can come across as very dry and angst filled. Now, with this book I felt there was so much potential yet it never fulfilled it. The heroine is a runner not because she loves it but because it was her parent's dream. We see her run no matter what, despite her impoverished condition, failing grades. Then, she meets the hero, who is her substitute teacher who doesn't let her get away with her grades. The hero is a single father as well.
Now, things so happen that the hero's father starts tutoring the heroine, she starts looking after his kid and they become close. But where the book faltered for me was when they showed such a long separation between them.
January 30, 2020
He was beta and she was an afraid/insecure alpha!
November 21, 2023
Ratings all over the place for this one but I really liked it. Love a professor H (I know, sometimes these taboo things are cringe and if I were feeling puritanical, their first dubious sexual encounter was definitely...dubious, but 😂). In this case I fear I might well have been clustering around the desk of bestseller writer and temporary teacher Whit myself. I even googled Kris Kristofferson (apparently he resembles him). The h, Kip (short for Kipling) is closed-off from the world of peer fun and games and concentrating solely on her running. Her solitary, stoical outlook is the result of dyslexia (or some such thing, I never quite understood what the actual diagnosis was) and the shattered dreams of her athlete parents - a mother who died young of cancer and a father who drank himself to death. Over the course of the story she's taken in and helped by the Hs family which consists of his lovely lit professor dad, at home recovering from heart surgery, 8 yr old sparky, precocious daughter of his ex-wife and a no messing Housekeeper. The sexual tension is strong in this and they both battle and retreat throughout, in one case for over a year. I found it a pretty compellingly read. I did wonder how AF managed to pull off a plausible attraction between such an attractive, worldly H and a very callow, spiky gamine, but she did.
August 12, 2025
Любовта е просто доброта и грижа. Другото са подробности. Убедителна и трогателна история, наистина показва най-хубавото у хората. Нито един слаб герой или сцена, красота. Единствено героинята изтормози героя повечко, но това е от редките случаи в арлекиноландия, когато всичко е естествено, логично и убедително.
4,5⭐️
4,5⭐️
May 12, 2018
This book was alright the H seemed to fall for the h pretty quickly and she liked him but lead him a merry dance. I kind of admired her for defending herself but she did really put him through the ringer keeping away from him for over a year. He seemed a really nice guy who did kind things for her without ever expecting her to find out. We never really did find out from him what when on with his ex and her dyslexia seemed to disappear and we never find out why she had struggled all her life when really she was a closet genius I wanted more epilogue! A few lines wasn't enough!!!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 25, 2018
Estoy confundida en si me gustó la historia o no.
La relación entre Kip y Whit no me gustó del todo, eso es seguro.
Kip me daba dolores de cabeza, siempre salía huyendo y no podía creer o confiar en Whit a pesar de todo el apoyo que le brindaba. Cuando él le dijo sus sentimientos y ella salió corriendo yo estaba a punto del colapso, Whit merecía más que eso.
“—Eso es Justo lo que me he dicho a mí mismo cientos de veces— replicó haciendo una mueca— No puedes estar enamorado de alguien que te trata como a una colilla, pero no me ha servido de nada. Supongo que el amor puede más que la razón.”
Whit apoyó a Kip en sus peores momentos y la sacó adelante proporcionándole una familia, estabilidad económica, etc. Incluso la ayudó a mejorar en su vida académica, ¿qué más se podía pedir?
“El amor no era simplemente una palabra de cuatro letras. No era algo imaginario como siempre había creído. El amor era dolor y era anhelo y su poder era aterrador.”
Definitivamente el final y el que quedarán juntos fue todo gracias a Whit porque aún con todos los sentimientos desmantelados, Kip se mantenía fría y con ganas de huir, YO QUERÍA ENTRAR A LA HISTORIA Y GOLPEARLA. Me gustó el final porque aunque no tuvo epílogo, sí pude ver lo que ocurrió meses después de que Kip por fin aceptara los sentimientos de Whit y sus propios sentimientos también.
La relación entre Kip y Whit no me gustó del todo, eso es seguro.
Kip me daba dolores de cabeza, siempre salía huyendo y no podía creer o confiar en Whit a pesar de todo el apoyo que le brindaba. Cuando él le dijo sus sentimientos y ella salió corriendo yo estaba a punto del colapso, Whit merecía más que eso.
“—Eso es Justo lo que me he dicho a mí mismo cientos de veces— replicó haciendo una mueca— No puedes estar enamorado de alguien que te trata como a una colilla, pero no me ha servido de nada. Supongo que el amor puede más que la razón.”
Whit apoyó a Kip en sus peores momentos y la sacó adelante proporcionándole una familia, estabilidad económica, etc. Incluso la ayudó a mejorar en su vida académica, ¿qué más se podía pedir?
“El amor no era simplemente una palabra de cuatro letras. No era algo imaginario como siempre había creído. El amor era dolor y era anhelo y su poder era aterrador.”
Definitivamente el final y el que quedarán juntos fue todo gracias a Whit porque aún con todos los sentimientos desmantelados, Kip se mantenía fría y con ganas de huir, YO QUERÍA ENTRAR A LA HISTORIA Y GOLPEARLA. Me gustó el final porque aunque no tuvo epílogo, sí pude ver lo que ocurrió meses después de que Kip por fin aceptara los sentimientos de Whit y sus propios sentimientos también.
February 24, 2022
This is my third book by this author and I’ve loved every one. Atypical, independent heroines, strong story lines and characters, completely believable attraction and romance. (Each one has also had a difficult but appealing kid.) The author manages to stay true to the things Harlequin is known for—drama, angst, uncertainty, etc.—and creatively expands beyond them. Each book so far has been its own little world with engrossing stories and heightened emotion.
Some readers might find this one slow or maybe even sleepy, because it’s grounded in everyday life, schoolwork, and a small university setting, but I loved every bit of it. I don’t need excitable Greeks or possessive Italians or playboy millionaires. I much prefer young college professors named after poets.
Some readers might find this one slow or maybe even sleepy, because it’s grounded in everyday life, schoolwork, and a small university setting, but I loved every bit of it. I don’t need excitable Greeks or possessive Italians or playboy millionaires. I much prefer young college professors named after poets.
August 7, 2011
Although I was not tempted to dnf it, it was a rather dreary story. I felt no real connection with either the H or h. The hero was a beta type, but sleeping with a student is a big no-no (even if he was only filling in for his father). May try one or two more by this author, but I don't think she's one for me.
June 20, 2023
The Stars are only for the heroine.
Nakesed said all about the awful and despicable H, he should be in jail or to get in an accident and be paraplegic. He deserved the succubus OW. He didn't care for the h most of the book, and the way he treat her after tearing her virginity he hasn't a conscience, he should do time in prison to be punished.
He shouldn't never be given a position of power to deal with students. He is a predator. His father didn't deserved the despicable son.
Nakesed said all about the awful and despicable H, he should be in jail or to get in an accident and be paraplegic. He deserved the succubus OW. He didn't care for the h most of the book, and the way he treat her after tearing her virginity he hasn't a conscience, he should do time in prison to be punished.
He shouldn't never be given a position of power to deal with students. He is a predator. His father didn't deserved the despicable son.
August 13, 2016
One of my favourite Mills and Boon romances - my copy has been reread so many times... :-)
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews