The Cornish Hearth

by Isobel Chace

A delightful romance set in a exotic locale!

Genres: Harlequin Romance, Romance

187 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1975

About the author

Elizabeth Mary Teresa de Guise, née Hunter on 24 October 1934 in Nairobi, Kenya. She spent much of her years in Kenya and South Africa, and studied at the Open University. Her brother Alexander also wrote Western novels. After their parents' divorce, she and her sister, decided change their surname by de Guise.

Elizabeth wrote under the pseudonym of Isobel Chace, and under her real names: Elizabeth Hunter and Elizabeth de Guise. She was a member of the Romantic Novelists' Association.

Elizabeth passed away in May 2005, at 70.

Reviews

[Kay · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 1/2 Stars ~ It's taken Anna two years since her mother's death to feel confident in her abilities to finally leave London for her mother's beloved Cornwall. Anna's a designer and she built a bit of a name for herself in the London stores for the lovely pebble and semi-precious stone jewelry she creates. Cornwall is ideally suited to her profession as it's a tremendous resource for the types of stones she loves to work with. Cornwall has been home to Piran's family for centuries, and he's very much entrenched in Cornish history and custom. He owns a mead house, and is happy to promote local artisans in London; which is where he first met Anna. It was a rather embarrassing first meeting for Anna, so when she gets off the train in Penzance and there is Piran to greet her, she's quite put out. But he convinces her to come home with him, and there she meets his 13 year old son. Peter is in a wheelchair, having been badly injured in an auto accident that had taken his mother's life three years before. Peter immediately likes Anna's spunk and he offers her the cottage on their estate. Both father and son are moody males, but Anna seems to get under their skin, and she doesn't hesitate stating her mind. But the woman Piran is partnered with in the mead house, doesn't take kindly to Anna's interference and neither does Peter's uncle who wants the boy for himself.

I'm really enjoying these older Harlequin's where the characters drive the story. Anna is a talented jewelry maker and she's rightly proud of her achievements. Piran and Peter are both suffering from the past; Piran bitter for his wife had been leaving him when the accident occurred, and Peter believing the lies of others that his father has no use for him. It's Anna's generous nature they both are drawn too, each craving the honesty and lively spirit she possesses. Both admire her determination and her ability to fight for what she believes in. This is a lovely story to wile away a rainy afternoon.

[Margo · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one is interesting but not exactly super romantic. The h is an interesting, independent character, and the secondary characters are all interesting, too, except for the H, who is the least interesting of them all.

[Reading with Cats · Rating 3 out of 5]

Poor Anna is going to be soothing hurt man-baby feelings for the rest of her life. I do not envy her.