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Pregnant Brides #3
Greek Tycoon, Inexperienced Mistress
Lindy was amazed when shipping tycoon Atreus Drakos made her his mistress. Her —with her fuller figure and lowly lifestyle making candles and potpourri! However, Atreus seemed enchanted by her curves when he made passionate love to her at his country retreat.
But Lindy came down to earth with two bumps, first when Atreus revealed she was just his weekend mistress; his bride would be selected from the upper echelons of Greek society. The second bump she wouldn't be able to hide…because she was carrying Atreus's baby!
But Lindy came down to earth with two bumps, first when Atreus revealed she was just his weekend mistress; his bride would be selected from the upper echelons of Greek society. The second bump she wouldn't be able to hide…because she was carrying Atreus's baby!
192 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published February 1, 2010
238 people are currently reading
928 people want to read
About the author
Lynne Graham
1,763 books1,448 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
Lynne Graham was born on July 30, 1956 of Irish-Scottish parentage. She has livedin Northern Ireland all her life. She grew up in a seaside village with herbrother. She learnt to read at the age of 3, and haven't stopped since then.
Lynne first met her husband when she was 14. At 15, she wrote her firstbook, but it was rejected everywhere. Lynne married after she completed adegree at Edinburgh University. She started writing again when she was athome with her first child. It took several attempts before she sold herfirst book in 1987 and the delight of seeing that first book for sale in thelocal newsagents has never been forgotten. Now, there are over 10 million ofher books in print worldwide.
Lynne always wanted a large family and has five children. Her eldest and heronly natural child is 19 and currently at university. Her other fourchildren, who are every bit as dear to her heart, are adopted. She has two9-year-olds adopted from Sri Lanka and a 5- and a 3-year-old adopted fromGuatemala. In Lynne's home, there is a rich and diverse cultural mix, whichadds a whole extra dimension of interest and discovery to family life. Thefamily lives in a country house surrounded by a woodland garden, which iswonderfully private. The family has two pets. Thomas, a very large andaffectionate black cat, bosses the dog and hunts rabbits. The dog is Daisy,an adorable but not very bright white West Highland terrier, who loves beingchased by the cat. At night, dog and cat sleep together in front of thekitchen stove. Lynne loves gardening, cooking, collects everything from oldtoys to rock specimens and is crazy about every aspect of Christmas.
Lynne Graham was born on July 30, 1956 of Irish-Scottish parentage. She has livedin Northern Ireland all her life. She grew up in a seaside village with herbrother. She learnt to read at the age of 3, and haven't stopped since then.
Lynne first met her husband when she was 14. At 15, she wrote her firstbook, but it was rejected everywhere. Lynne married after she completed adegree at Edinburgh University. She started writing again when she was athome with her first child. It took several attempts before she sold herfirst book in 1987 and the delight of seeing that first book for sale in thelocal newsagents has never been forgotten. Now, there are over 10 million ofher books in print worldwide.
Lynne always wanted a large family and has five children. Her eldest and heronly natural child is 19 and currently at university. Her other fourchildren, who are every bit as dear to her heart, are adopted. She has two9-year-olds adopted from Sri Lanka and a 5- and a 3-year-old adopted fromGuatemala. In Lynne's home, there is a rich and diverse cultural mix, whichadds a whole extra dimension of interest and discovery to family life. Thefamily lives in a country house surrounded by a woodland garden, which iswonderfully private. The family has two pets. Thomas, a very large andaffectionate black cat, bosses the dog and hunts rabbits. The dog is Daisy,an adorable but not very bright white West Highland terrier, who loves beingchased by the cat. At night, dog and cat sleep together in front of thekitchen stove. Lynne loves gardening, cooking, collects everything from oldtoys to rock specimens and is crazy about every aspect of Christmas.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 122 reviews
January 29, 2022
I want to stab this book with knives! Then I want to rip out the last 50 pages and burn them and when they are nothing but ash, stomp them into oozing black mud.
There are going to be spoilers and I'm not going to black them out so don't come crying to me if you read further.
I was really liking this book. It wasn't one of those where they've already broken up and the author goes back to tell their story or tells of them getting back together. It starts at the beginning of their relationship and tells the whole thing. About half way through, they break up when the hero, Atreus, tells her, Lindy, that “I don't want a child with you.” Oh burn. And then he tells her she is his mistress and she isn't good enough for him to marry. Double, triple burn. He goes on and on with the whole with the whole cold sneering condescending thing.
He decides he doesn't want to see her anymore so he tells his estate manager that he'd like her to move then denies having anything to do with it when she gets evicted.
When he finds out she's pregnant, he tries to get her to sign a paper saying the child isn't his. When he finally decides to believe her, he withholds sex in order to get her to marry him. That's not cool especially when he smirked about it.
At their wedding, he sees no reason that the woman he hooked up with while they were apart shouldn't be there and why he shouldn't dance with her twice. On their wedding night, he admits that he has brought the other woman to this same island house and doesn't feel the need to tell the heroine that it was years ago when they were teenagers attending a party then he wonders why Lindy won't sleep with him. Then he decides she owes him an apology and keeps refusing to sleep with her. When she finally apologizes, for which total weakass lameness I will not forgive her, Atreus tells Lindy that he never slept with the other woman. I'm thinking at least that's good. But no, he didn't sleep with the other woman not because he couldn't bring himself to be with anyone but Lindy but rather because he knew if he did, the other woman would "get her hopes up". Full of yourself much?
He does finally admit that it had been a mistake to let her go and that he had missed her. Too damn little. Too damn late. And to top it off, Lindy tells him it was her own fault for pressuring him. OMG fire coming out of my ears!
I could have accepted all this asshatery if only the hero had realized he was the worst dick in romance land and grovelled until he had road rash on his chin.
There are going to be spoilers and I'm not going to black them out so don't come crying to me if you read further.
I was really liking this book. It wasn't one of those where they've already broken up and the author goes back to tell their story or tells of them getting back together. It starts at the beginning of their relationship and tells the whole thing. About half way through, they break up when the hero, Atreus, tells her, Lindy, that “I don't want a child with you.” Oh burn. And then he tells her she is his mistress and she isn't good enough for him to marry. Double, triple burn. He goes on and on with the whole with the whole cold sneering condescending thing.
He decides he doesn't want to see her anymore so he tells his estate manager that he'd like her to move then denies having anything to do with it when she gets evicted.
When he finds out she's pregnant, he tries to get her to sign a paper saying the child isn't his. When he finally decides to believe her, he withholds sex in order to get her to marry him. That's not cool especially when he smirked about it.
At their wedding, he sees no reason that the woman he hooked up with while they were apart shouldn't be there and why he shouldn't dance with her twice. On their wedding night, he admits that he has brought the other woman to this same island house and doesn't feel the need to tell the heroine that it was years ago when they were teenagers attending a party then he wonders why Lindy won't sleep with him. Then he decides she owes him an apology and keeps refusing to sleep with her. When she finally apologizes, for which total weakass lameness I will not forgive her, Atreus tells Lindy that he never slept with the other woman. I'm thinking at least that's good. But no, he didn't sleep with the other woman not because he couldn't bring himself to be with anyone but Lindy but rather because he knew if he did, the other woman would "get her hopes up". Full of yourself much?
He does finally admit that it had been a mistake to let her go and that he had missed her. Too damn little. Too damn late. And to top it off, Lindy tells him it was her own fault for pressuring him. OMG fire coming out of my ears!
I could have accepted all this asshatery if only the hero had realized he was the worst dick in romance land and grovelled until he had road rash on his chin.
May 3, 2022
Die Liebesgeschichte von Lindy und Atreus ist ziemlich vorhersehbar und kitschig. Er ist ein Millionär, sie ist eine arme Künstlerin. Die beiden fühlen sich zueinander hingezogen und führen eine heimliche Wochenendbeziehung. Niemand darf wissen, dass sie zusammen sind, da Lindy nicht in die Gesellschaft passt. Lindy verliebt sich in Atreus, doch eines Tages macht er mit ihr Schluss. Er möchte eine Frau aus seinen Kreisen suchen und diese dann heiraten. Lindy ist natürlich todunglücklich und bemerkt dann auch noch, dass sie schwanger ist. Sie sagt Atreus nichts davon, und die beiden sehen sich monatelang nicht mehr. Kurz vor der Geburt gibt es dann ein Wiedersehen und nach einigem Hin und Her ist dann plötzlich alles gut und alle sind glücklich...
Natürlich weiß man als Leser, auf was man sich bei diesen kleinen Romanheften einlässt. Anspruchsvolle Lektüre darf man wohl nicht erwarten. :) Dennoch gibt es auch hier gute und weniger gute Geschichten.
Die Geschichte von Lindy und Atreus hat mir leider nicht gefallen, denn sie war viel zu vorhersehbar, plump und voller Klischees.
Natürlich weiß man als Leser, auf was man sich bei diesen kleinen Romanheften einlässt. Anspruchsvolle Lektüre darf man wohl nicht erwarten. :) Dennoch gibt es auch hier gute und weniger gute Geschichten.
Die Geschichte von Lindy und Atreus hat mir leider nicht gefallen, denn sie war viel zu vorhersehbar, plump und voller Klischees.
December 22, 2016
This fits many of Lynne Graham's favorite tropes: sweet virginal heroine, big hunky alpha tycoon, I'm-a-mistress-but-didn't-know-it, oops I'm pregnant, etc. Where it falls flat for me is, unlike some of her other alpha ass-hat heroes, this one doesn't seem as in over-his-head over the heroine as the others. Even with some of her other heroes who say and do horrible, horrible things, you get the feeling the heroes just can't help themselves and can't keep away. Atreus can and does restrain.
PLOT:
The h and H meet on his property as she is a tenant at the small guest house. They fall into a romance of sorts; he visits her only on the weekend and it is torrid when they're together. He really does light up her life. It's not until she makes the huge mistake of suggesting that she visit in London, I mean who wouldn't, and the even bigger mistake ask him if he wants kids. Oh yeah, he wants kids, but not with her. He wants kids with someone worthy, someone of the same social and financial status. Ouch. She kicks him out much to his shock.Who is she to...blah, blah, blah.
To add injury to insult in this case, she finds out she has been evicted from her guest house. She finally gets her trip to London to tell him what an ass he is and he just cements the whole concept of ass-hattedness by his cold and insulting demeanor. Quite blood pressure inducing! Grrr!
Turns out that he is going to have a child with her although she decides that he probably won't be the best daddy material since he is now hooked up with a blonde stick figure with impeccable social credentials. Kind of sad. It's like seeing an old boyfriend out with a new girlfriend but on an epic level.
The h moves into a new guesthouse owned by a conveniently fabulously wealthy friend. The papers get a whiff of scandal and do an expose on the h being the knocked-up ex of Atreus. He flies in on his helicopter, attorney in tow, asking her to sign documents stating this is not his baby. What a gem. Her friend's equally alpha husband shows up to make sure she's okay, but doesn't get to throw the other alpha asshat out on his ear as I am sure he would like to do. Would love to have seen one 6' 3" tycoon throw down against another, but sadly not today.
Long story slightly shorter, H and h get married where the ex fiancee shows up at the wedding to throw some mean, skinny girl shade, and the H can't understand why the h is not ready, willing and able for the honeymoon. He makes her work for the consummation and is just not hero worthy.
Yeah yeah he says he loves her later, but he is too paint by the numbers for me, my friends. If we and the heroines have to live with these asshats and their temper tantrums, blackmail schemes, cold shoulders, even colder exes, and sometimes nasty in-laws then we and the h's deserve a little groveling angst. Besides, no matter what he says, he only shows up after the newspaper article comes out and only then to have her deny he's the dad. Again, just no H material.
I am giving it two stars as this is the second time I read it so there has to be something there. I read it quite a while and forgotten some things like characters' names. I enjoyed it the first time much more than I did this time. Ah well.
Not terrible, but there are better heroes out there.
PLOT:
The h and H meet on his property as she is a tenant at the small guest house. They fall into a romance of sorts; he visits her only on the weekend and it is torrid when they're together. He really does light up her life. It's not until she makes the huge mistake of suggesting that she visit in London, I mean who wouldn't, and the even bigger mistake ask him if he wants kids. Oh yeah, he wants kids, but not with her. He wants kids with someone worthy, someone of the same social and financial status. Ouch. She kicks him out much to his shock.Who is she to...blah, blah, blah.
To add injury to insult in this case, she finds out she has been evicted from her guest house. She finally gets her trip to London to tell him what an ass he is and he just cements the whole concept of ass-hattedness by his cold and insulting demeanor. Quite blood pressure inducing! Grrr!
Turns out that he is going to have a child with her although she decides that he probably won't be the best daddy material since he is now hooked up with a blonde stick figure with impeccable social credentials. Kind of sad. It's like seeing an old boyfriend out with a new girlfriend but on an epic level.
The h moves into a new guesthouse owned by a conveniently fabulously wealthy friend. The papers get a whiff of scandal and do an expose on the h being the knocked-up ex of Atreus. He flies in on his helicopter, attorney in tow, asking her to sign documents stating this is not his baby. What a gem. Her friend's equally alpha husband shows up to make sure she's okay, but doesn't get to throw the other alpha asshat out on his ear as I am sure he would like to do. Would love to have seen one 6' 3" tycoon throw down against another, but sadly not today.
Long story slightly shorter, H and h get married where the ex fiancee shows up at the wedding to throw some mean, skinny girl shade, and the H can't understand why the h is not ready, willing and able for the honeymoon. He makes her work for the consummation and is just not hero worthy.
Yeah yeah he says he loves her later, but he is too paint by the numbers for me, my friends. If we and the heroines have to live with these asshats and their temper tantrums, blackmail schemes, cold shoulders, even colder exes, and sometimes nasty in-laws then we and the h's deserve a little groveling angst. Besides, no matter what he says, he only shows up after the newspaper article comes out and only then to have her deny he's the dad. Again, just no H material.
I am giving it two stars as this is the second time I read it so there has to be something there. I read it quite a while and forgotten some things like characters' names. I enjoyed it the first time much more than I did this time. Ah well.
Not terrible, but there are better heroes out there.
May 14, 2011
This first half of this was -- well, let's just say not the best writing in the world, but an interesting enough story that I was willing to go with it. Then somewhere along the line we lost all input from the hero -- no POV, no indication of any kind of feeling towards the heroine whatsoever -- and the book became about as romantic as a root canal. Note to romance authors: Those long drawn-out confession of love at the end are pretty much worthless without any supporting evidence.
August 12, 2010
I am giving this book five stars just for entertaining the hell out of me. First of all, the name of the hero on the back of the book is not the name of the hero inside the book! Good job, Harlequin blurb-writers!
Every one of the following sentences end with an unspoken "No, REALLY."
So, the heroine, Fatty McWhiner leaves her awesome London job and flat when her mother dies, and starts selling potpourri in a cabin in the woods and crying over dying kittens or something. One day, she decides to live it up by skinnydipping in the creek behind her cabin, because "no one ever comes out here during the week." What do you think happens? I think you know, internet. Her landlord -- the Greek Tycoon, of course -- walks by and thinks she's a whore trying to seduce him, and he demands that she get her butt out of the water and walk naked past him to get back to her house. She is mortified because she's a shy, 30-year-old virgin who is not the beautiful blonde stick figure that Greek Tycoons are accustomed to seeing, and so this whole ordeal is just plain awful, but she does it anyway and goes home to cry about it. When Mr. Greek Tycoon realizes she's not a whore, he sends her a bouquet of flowers and asks if she wants to be HIS whore. She is super duper offended that he would dare think of her as a sexual being and ignores him for a few days until she's looking out the window, gazing at his mansion for god-knows what reason one evening and notices that his mansion is on fire. So she runs into the mansion to wake him up and they decide to call the fire department. WAIT, that's what normal, sane people would do! They forget that firefighters exist at all, and they try and put out the fire and get everything out of the house themselves. While in the house, Fatty McWhiner realizes that one of her decrepit animals is in the burning kitchen, so she runs inside to save it just as the support beams catch fire and crash down all around her. But don't worry, just as she's about to be crushed by burning wood, she's saved by Greek Tycoon, who pulls her away just in time to ravish her in the middle of the burning room. The butler busts in and is all like, "Guys, quit Doing It and get out of the damn house." Somehow, the fire manages to knock out all the power for miles, and Greek Tycoon insists that Fatty McWhiner go with him to one of his high-class hotel rooms.
This is all in the first twenty pages, I kid you not. And it only gets better from there. They talk about their awful childhoods and have sob-worthy sex. It's great. And I call her Fatty McWhiner because she's one of those heroines who wastes her energy whining about how fat she is and how no one will ever love her because she's not beautiful and blonde and thin and wah wah wah, I'm going to eat a cheeseburger and make potpourri.
Every one of the following sentences end with an unspoken "No, REALLY."
So, the heroine, Fatty McWhiner leaves her awesome London job and flat when her mother dies, and starts selling potpourri in a cabin in the woods and crying over dying kittens or something. One day, she decides to live it up by skinnydipping in the creek behind her cabin, because "no one ever comes out here during the week." What do you think happens? I think you know, internet. Her landlord -- the Greek Tycoon, of course -- walks by and thinks she's a whore trying to seduce him, and he demands that she get her butt out of the water and walk naked past him to get back to her house. She is mortified because she's a shy, 30-year-old virgin who is not the beautiful blonde stick figure that Greek Tycoons are accustomed to seeing, and so this whole ordeal is just plain awful, but she does it anyway and goes home to cry about it. When Mr. Greek Tycoon realizes she's not a whore, he sends her a bouquet of flowers and asks if she wants to be HIS whore. She is super duper offended that he would dare think of her as a sexual being and ignores him for a few days until she's looking out the window, gazing at his mansion for god-knows what reason one evening and notices that his mansion is on fire. So she runs into the mansion to wake him up and they decide to call the fire department. WAIT, that's what normal, sane people would do! They forget that firefighters exist at all, and they try and put out the fire and get everything out of the house themselves. While in the house, Fatty McWhiner realizes that one of her decrepit animals is in the burning kitchen, so she runs inside to save it just as the support beams catch fire and crash down all around her. But don't worry, just as she's about to be crushed by burning wood, she's saved by Greek Tycoon, who pulls her away just in time to ravish her in the middle of the burning room. The butler busts in and is all like, "Guys, quit Doing It and get out of the damn house." Somehow, the fire manages to knock out all the power for miles, and Greek Tycoon insists that Fatty McWhiner go with him to one of his high-class hotel rooms.
This is all in the first twenty pages, I kid you not. And it only gets better from there. They talk about their awful childhoods and have sob-worthy sex. It's great. And I call her Fatty McWhiner because she's one of those heroines who wastes her energy whining about how fat she is and how no one will ever love her because she's not beautiful and blonde and thin and wah wah wah, I'm going to eat a cheeseburger and make potpourri.
October 14, 2017
I had to stop reading this book mid-way to go google. About condoms.
This is the second HP I've read where the heroine gets pregnant in spite of the Hero conscientiously putting on a condom (in a manner almost bordering on OCD) so I just had to find out how effective they are against pregnancies..
So condoms are still one of the best ways to prevent pregnancies (98%) PROVIDED they are used correctly. Otherwise it goes down to 85%. So these modern Heros, supposedly with brains that can run a billion-dollar company, can't seem to slide a condom properly down their penis. Go figure.
Back to the book. I've wanted to read a Lynne Graham for a while but I'm guessing I defintely did not pick her best with this one. I should have known when it was the only one available from my online library. This book is a good example of how being able to string together grammatically correct sentences does not equate good writing. I found it difficult to read and the h was not the brightest of bulbs so I was whispering "vasectomy" at the HEA since H will likely mess up on contraception again.
H is the billionaire with the bad childhood. In other words, he gets a free pass to act like a dickhead. She is painted as a free spirit who sells potpourri for a living but I suspect she inhales more than just dried flowers based on her thinking and actions. So they meet in OTT circumstances, (skinny-dipping by h amid accusations of trespassing and ogling by H). They copulate after the adrenaline-high of saving his burning home, and long story short, it takes her 18 months, yes 18 long months to figure out she's only his weekend booty call and not marriage material.
It picks up a bit when she finds her backbone by breaking it off, then confronting him about trying to evict her. She also can't understand why she's feeling nauseuos (she has not read up on condoms) and finally realises she's pregnant. She decides to keep the baby a secret from him. But she also decides to do an online photoshoot to promote her business with her prominent belly looking very apparent.So of course he finds out, shows up, slut shames her then does an about turn and decides to marry her because "he trusts her."
At which point I went to research on condoms because I could not understand why he wasn't yelling for a paternity test when he made such a big deal about women tricking him before. I guess this would be the sign that he lurved her. But too bad she was busy obsessing about her unattractive non size-zero body for most of the book and probably missed it. And unfortunately, what I found out about condoms was infinitely more interesting than the rest of the book.
Sorry LG, maybe it was just my mood this week, I just wasn't feeling it. Perhaps next time :))
This is the second HP I've read where the heroine gets pregnant in spite of the Hero conscientiously putting on a condom (in a manner almost bordering on OCD) so I just had to find out how effective they are against pregnancies..
So condoms are still one of the best ways to prevent pregnancies (98%) PROVIDED they are used correctly. Otherwise it goes down to 85%. So these modern Heros, supposedly with brains that can run a billion-dollar company, can't seem to slide a condom properly down their penis. Go figure.
Back to the book. I've wanted to read a Lynne Graham for a while but I'm guessing I defintely did not pick her best with this one. I should have known when it was the only one available from my online library. This book is a good example of how being able to string together grammatically correct sentences does not equate good writing. I found it difficult to read and the h was not the brightest of bulbs so I was whispering "vasectomy" at the HEA since H will likely mess up on contraception again.
H is the billionaire with the bad childhood. In other words, he gets a free pass to act like a dickhead. She is painted as a free spirit who sells potpourri for a living but I suspect she inhales more than just dried flowers based on her thinking and actions. So they meet in OTT circumstances, (skinny-dipping by h amid accusations of trespassing and ogling by H). They copulate after the adrenaline-high of saving his burning home, and long story short, it takes her 18 months, yes 18 long months to figure out she's only his weekend booty call and not marriage material.
It picks up a bit when she finds her backbone by breaking it off, then confronting him about trying to evict her. She also can't understand why she's feeling nauseuos (she has not read up on condoms) and finally realises she's pregnant. She decides to keep the baby a secret from him. But she also decides to do an online photoshoot to promote her business with her prominent belly looking very apparent.So of course he finds out, shows up, slut shames her then does an about turn and decides to marry her because "he trusts her."
At which point I went to research on condoms because I could not understand why he wasn't yelling for a paternity test when he made such a big deal about women tricking him before. I guess this would be the sign that he lurved her. But too bad she was busy obsessing about her unattractive non size-zero body for most of the book and probably missed it. And unfortunately, what I found out about condoms was infinitely more interesting than the rest of the book.
Sorry LG, maybe it was just my mood this week, I just wasn't feeling it. Perhaps next time :))
October 5, 2017
Accidental re-read of a "I'm your mistress?" story. Hero is a horrible person - rude, entitled, closed off from his emotions. A typical LG alpha. Heroine is sweet, nurturing and trusting. A typical LG heroine.
The H first encounters the heroine skinny dipping in his river and he's rude to her. Then there is a house fire and they spend the night in a hotel together. The heroine stays in the country and the hero makes booty calls for the next 18 months. The heroine accepts his excuse that he escorts beautiful women to social events but doesn't sleep with them.
Finally the hero slips up and explains that she is mistress material only and not marriage material. Heroine breaks up, but hero one ups her by kicking her out of her cottage.
She has friends married to LG heroes from other books so she lands on her feet. She discovers she's pregnant and decides not to tell the H. He finds out from a magazine shoot she did for her lavender/herb business.
Now it's the hero's turn to show his nurturing alpha role, so the heroine does an about face and refuses to marry him. She has the baby and then agrees to marry him. They have a rocky honeymoon because she is jealous. She finally tells the hero what's wrong. They each declare their love. HEA
As you can see the plot is all in order. The hero was ruder than some of LG's heroes and he had no sense of humor. The heroine likes him, so it's one of those be-happy-because-LG-says-they're-happy. There's an epilogue three years later with twins on the way.
The H first encounters the heroine skinny dipping in his river and he's rude to her. Then there is a house fire and they spend the night in a hotel together. The heroine stays in the country and the hero makes booty calls for the next 18 months. The heroine accepts his excuse that he escorts beautiful women to social events but doesn't sleep with them.
Finally the hero slips up and explains that she is mistress material only and not marriage material. Heroine breaks up, but hero one ups her by kicking her out of her cottage.
She has friends married to LG heroes from other books so she lands on her feet. She discovers she's pregnant and decides not to tell the H. He finds out from a magazine shoot she did for her lavender/herb business.
Now it's the hero's turn to show his nurturing alpha role, so the heroine does an about face and refuses to marry him. She has the baby and then agrees to marry him. They have a rocky honeymoon because she is jealous. She finally tells the hero what's wrong. They each declare their love. HEA
As you can see the plot is all in order. The hero was ruder than some of LG's heroes and he had no sense of humor. The heroine likes him, so it's one of those be-happy-because-LG-says-they're-happy. There's an epilogue three years later with twins on the way.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 16, 2022
Idiot tycoon, doormat heroine is the correct title.
It's amazing how ms Graham makes her heroes look like some intellectually challanged hunks and her heroines like hormonal teenagers even when they are on the wrong side of 20.
Both of them are hopeless.
The plot is typical LG, but she's so good a writer that I enjoyed it without feeling much angst.
The heroine is a poor, animal lover, virgin, who makes pot-purri for a living.
She's a tenant in the hero's property and they accidentally meet and become lovers.
The hero is a intellectually challange by-product of too many inbreeding and has only been endowed with the original LG triad:
-He's billionaire
-He's a hunk
- He's good in bed
Any other endowment you can require be sure you'll never find.
He's not smart, he's no morals, he's utterly selfish and only sees the world as an mirror of his desires.
In his poor lil mind, people exist only to fulfil his needs, and have no needs or desires of their own, and when they are no longer useful they can be easily disposed and replaced by other new and more interesting ones.
And of course so women are.
He doesn't consider the heroine as nothing more than an outlet for his sexual needs during the weekend, and the rest of his days he goes out and dates proper rich and glamorous women, women he isn't ashamed of showing(unlike the heroine).
After 18 months, that is one year and a half, the heroine accidentally makes some remarks about pregnancy and he candidly blurts out that he will marry a proper woman and he doesn't want the heroine as his wife and as a mother of his children.
This remark is made with such an idiocy and naivety that I couldn't even feel sorry for the heroine who, on the contrary, felt as the hero shot her.
She thought they had a relationship can you believe it???
LOL!
A man who, in 18 months, only turns up to shag you, never introduces you to any of his relatives or friends, never takes you out once, what do you expect, that he declares his love and proposes?
Stupid, stupid girl.
Ok, after hearing this, even if she's not herself the brightest star in the sky of intellect, she dumps him immediately trying to have some of her lost dignity back.
The hero, of course, since she didn't make a mindmap or even a drawing to try to explain what he did wrong, is really bewildered and uttelry offended that someone could ever treat Him like that.
He thinks he's well rid of her and there are many women so very willing to take her place, so he doesn't worry very much.
Unfortunately his brighter and smarter self, his lil one who rules under his belt, doesn't think the same, and he refuses to be interested in any other woman than the heroine.
Then we have the Big Misunderstanding, when the hero finds that another man slept in the heroine's bed and is angry, furious and feels oddly, like he is jealous.
But since he's too idiot to understand the feeling, he only lets his lil one make all the moves and so he and the hormonal heroine have another bout of great and furious sex that leads to... nothing, because unfortunately it's not his lil one who rules but it's his lil damaged and useless brain, so he leaves the heroine again and once and for all.
Yeah, dream on.
The heroine then is evicted by his property because she hasn't paid the rent. And this is another of the hero's many failure. He doesn't check on his business and I wonder how he could be so rich doing that kind of mistakes. Of course his ancestor left him bags of money, in addition to bad genes.
Luckily the heroine has good friends and she can go living with one of her well married friends, and goes on living her life.
She also finds out she's pregnant but sagely she doesn't tell the hero. Better no father that a brainless and amoral father.
Months later the cat is out of the bag, because the tabloids found out she's having a child with the brainless billionaire. And what does he do?
He asks her to sign an agreement where she tells the child is not his.
Not once the hero thought the child could be his, and the heroine tells him that of course it is.
The hero in the past months dated several women and is now almost engaged with a proper, rich and faultless woman so he now has to re-think and make other plans, which depletes all his brain energy for the next two years.
Then he proposes and the heroine, who is a hormonal teenager, accepts, but not immediately, which made me respect her a lil more.
Eventually they get married, after his son's born, and we have other unfortunate accidents due to the hero's brain impairment, until, in the end, he tells her his sob story, which didn't move me at all, and declares he has always loved her but wasn't able to recongize his feelings, which is the first right thing he said in all the book.
He never loved ow, never banged her even if it was for the wrong reasons, and we don't know if he was celibate or not with all the other women he dated but he at least admits she couldn't be replaced by any other woman.
I think he was celibate because his lil one was much smarter that him and knew he loved the heroine, so no other woman would do. Lol!
This is all you can expect by a man like this.
What more can I say.
Don't take this book too seriously, or you'll have a dangerous issue with your blood pressure.
This is LG of old, where heroes are idiot and the heroine are stupid, where all is well what ends well, and you can't expect much from a man.
The heroine. Oh, the heroine. Well, a woman who, after 18 months doesn't still understand that there's something wrong in her relationship with her man if said man still hasn't introduced her to any of his aquaintances or family, I think she deserved what she got.
One of my friends dumped her boyfriend after four weeks because he still hadn't introduced her to his parents.
A bit extreme? maybe. But even 18 months is extreme.
And all she thought about him was how sexy and phisically perfect he is.
This is why I like LG, because her heroines' love for their hunks is more like lust, since the poor darlings have not much more than their bodies and their money to offer.
And even if the heroine's IQ is a lil higher than the hero's, and she's hurt by his utter insensitivity, you know she will recover very quickly when the man will eventually come to his senses and will proposes and declare his love.
I enjoyed this LG of old, with the hero's multiple failures and the heroine's slaps in her poor clueless face, it was entertaining and ludicruous to see the hero's many errors and where his stupidity was leading him, like when you see an accident happening and you know nothing can stop it.
Every time he uttered a word I was like no no no no don't say it, ouch... you've done it again.
The poor man.
And the saddest thing is that those couples are oh so fertile... We can only hope that since the heroine is not an inbreed their children will be smarter than their parents.
It's amazing how ms Graham makes her heroes look like some intellectually challanged hunks and her heroines like hormonal teenagers even when they are on the wrong side of 20.
Both of them are hopeless.
The plot is typical LG, but she's so good a writer that I enjoyed it without feeling much angst.
The heroine is a poor, animal lover, virgin, who makes pot-purri for a living.
She's a tenant in the hero's property and they accidentally meet and become lovers.
The hero is a intellectually challange by-product of too many inbreeding and has only been endowed with the original LG triad:
-He's billionaire
-He's a hunk
- He's good in bed
Any other endowment you can require be sure you'll never find.
He's not smart, he's no morals, he's utterly selfish and only sees the world as an mirror of his desires.
In his poor lil mind, people exist only to fulfil his needs, and have no needs or desires of their own, and when they are no longer useful they can be easily disposed and replaced by other new and more interesting ones.
And of course so women are.
He doesn't consider the heroine as nothing more than an outlet for his sexual needs during the weekend, and the rest of his days he goes out and dates proper rich and glamorous women, women he isn't ashamed of showing(unlike the heroine).
After 18 months, that is one year and a half, the heroine accidentally makes some remarks about pregnancy and he candidly blurts out that he will marry a proper woman and he doesn't want the heroine as his wife and as a mother of his children.
This remark is made with such an idiocy and naivety that I couldn't even feel sorry for the heroine who, on the contrary, felt as the hero shot her.
She thought they had a relationship can you believe it???
LOL!
A man who, in 18 months, only turns up to shag you, never introduces you to any of his relatives or friends, never takes you out once, what do you expect, that he declares his love and proposes?
Stupid, stupid girl.
Ok, after hearing this, even if she's not herself the brightest star in the sky of intellect, she dumps him immediately trying to have some of her lost dignity back.
The hero, of course, since she didn't make a mindmap or even a drawing to try to explain what he did wrong, is really bewildered and uttelry offended that someone could ever treat Him like that.
He thinks he's well rid of her and there are many women so very willing to take her place, so he doesn't worry very much.
Unfortunately his brighter and smarter self, his lil one who rules under his belt, doesn't think the same, and he refuses to be interested in any other woman than the heroine.
Then we have the Big Misunderstanding, when the hero finds that another man slept in the heroine's bed and is angry, furious and feels oddly, like he is jealous.
But since he's too idiot to understand the feeling, he only lets his lil one make all the moves and so he and the hormonal heroine have another bout of great and furious sex that leads to... nothing, because unfortunately it's not his lil one who rules but it's his lil damaged and useless brain, so he leaves the heroine again and once and for all.
Yeah, dream on.
The heroine then is evicted by his property because she hasn't paid the rent. And this is another of the hero's many failure. He doesn't check on his business and I wonder how he could be so rich doing that kind of mistakes. Of course his ancestor left him bags of money, in addition to bad genes.
Luckily the heroine has good friends and she can go living with one of her well married friends, and goes on living her life.
She also finds out she's pregnant but sagely she doesn't tell the hero. Better no father that a brainless and amoral father.
Months later the cat is out of the bag, because the tabloids found out she's having a child with the brainless billionaire. And what does he do?
He asks her to sign an agreement where she tells the child is not his.
Not once the hero thought the child could be his, and the heroine tells him that of course it is.
The hero in the past months dated several women and is now almost engaged with a proper, rich and faultless woman so he now has to re-think and make other plans, which depletes all his brain energy for the next two years.
Then he proposes and the heroine, who is a hormonal teenager, accepts, but not immediately, which made me respect her a lil more.
Eventually they get married, after his son's born, and we have other unfortunate accidents due to the hero's brain impairment, until, in the end, he tells her his sob story, which didn't move me at all, and declares he has always loved her but wasn't able to recongize his feelings, which is the first right thing he said in all the book.
He never loved ow, never banged her even if it was for the wrong reasons, and we don't know if he was celibate or not with all the other women he dated but he at least admits she couldn't be replaced by any other woman.
I think he was celibate because his lil one was much smarter that him and knew he loved the heroine, so no other woman would do. Lol!
This is all you can expect by a man like this.
What more can I say.
Don't take this book too seriously, or you'll have a dangerous issue with your blood pressure.
This is LG of old, where heroes are idiot and the heroine are stupid, where all is well what ends well, and you can't expect much from a man.
The heroine. Oh, the heroine. Well, a woman who, after 18 months doesn't still understand that there's something wrong in her relationship with her man if said man still hasn't introduced her to any of his aquaintances or family, I think she deserved what she got.
One of my friends dumped her boyfriend after four weeks because he still hadn't introduced her to his parents.
A bit extreme? maybe. But even 18 months is extreme.
And all she thought about him was how sexy and phisically perfect he is.
This is why I like LG, because her heroines' love for their hunks is more like lust, since the poor darlings have not much more than their bodies and their money to offer.
And even if the heroine's IQ is a lil higher than the hero's, and she's hurt by his utter insensitivity, you know she will recover very quickly when the man will eventually come to his senses and will proposes and declare his love.
I enjoyed this LG of old, with the hero's multiple failures and the heroine's slaps in her poor clueless face, it was entertaining and ludicruous to see the hero's many errors and where his stupidity was leading him, like when you see an accident happening and you know nothing can stop it.
Every time he uttered a word I was like no no no no don't say it, ouch... you've done it again.
The poor man.
And the saddest thing is that those couples are oh so fertile... We can only hope that since the heroine is not an inbreed their children will be smarter than their parents.
March 1, 2012
This had such great potential.......and then fell flat on its face. Which can happen in a Lynne Graham novel.. I really have to stop reading her.
She just makes her Heros so disgustingly mean, self-centered and callous that it is hard to believe that there is any reason to love them. Of course her heroines do, because they have no backbone. Therefore when you get to the last page, you feel cheated. I especially did with this book, because the first half was so well done. They meet, and we have the case of opposites attract. He is one gorgeous hunk...she a bit on the womanly curvy side is not his typical stick figure, sophisticated mistress. They carry on an affair for 18 months, and truly spend every waking moment on the weekend together enjoying each other. The chemistry sizzles...but you suddenly get an inking that something is not quite right....The heroine questions...... Is she just a mistress? Why does he not take her out? Why is he seen with other women in magazines????
They fight, he says some truly awful, callous things. She finally gets a spine and walks out and there you are ready to be swept away...into an incredible second half of the book. Only it never happens. He remains a callous unlikeable jerk. You want to say, "don't let the door hit you on the way out". Only it never happens, because she loses her spine again. And you finish the book realizing that you were cheated out of the happy ending. Which let's face it, is the reason we read these novels! This hero will never love anybody but himself. A marriage doesn't equal a happy ending.....Divorce statistics prove that.
Sorry.....I know I was brutal, but this book really bugged me.
She just makes her Heros so disgustingly mean, self-centered and callous that it is hard to believe that there is any reason to love them. Of course her heroines do, because they have no backbone. Therefore when you get to the last page, you feel cheated. I especially did with this book, because the first half was so well done. They meet, and we have the case of opposites attract. He is one gorgeous hunk...she a bit on the womanly curvy side is not his typical stick figure, sophisticated mistress. They carry on an affair for 18 months, and truly spend every waking moment on the weekend together enjoying each other. The chemistry sizzles...but you suddenly get an inking that something is not quite right....The heroine questions...... Is she just a mistress? Why does he not take her out? Why is he seen with other women in magazines????
They fight, he says some truly awful, callous things. She finally gets a spine and walks out and there you are ready to be swept away...into an incredible second half of the book. Only it never happens. He remains a callous unlikeable jerk. You want to say, "don't let the door hit you on the way out". Only it never happens, because she loses her spine again. And you finish the book realizing that you were cheated out of the happy ending. Which let's face it, is the reason we read these novels! This hero will never love anybody but himself. A marriage doesn't equal a happy ending.....Divorce statistics prove that.
Sorry.....I know I was brutal, but this book really bugged me.
December 13, 2023
Hated this book still on re-read. I am sticking with the two stars but I really hated the hero and I don't believe a word that came out of his mouth. He is a pig and I bet he did sleep with those other women or at least made out with them. Even his proposed bride. This book made me cry and it was written well but I just don't like the plot and how he treated her. And I don't think he ever groveled or anything and his explanation at the end was suck.
He kept her hidden in the country for 18 months and dated other women during the week. He didn't sleep with them HE SAID. But he never thought to ask the heroine. Just a louse. Then he breaks up with her and immediately starts looking for another woman and then decides to get married. The worst line in the story, and there were many, was when he said "I don't want a baby with you". That broke my heart. At least the heroine was strong. I just hated him and I hated everything about him. At no time did he ever appear to be a hero to me. When he came to her after the pregnancy story and said you are hurting the woman who is going to be my wife? WTF??? And then he was just an ass. I do think he loved her in his fashion and they certainly had lust but I don't see him being a good husband ever. He was just awful. I can't even begin to describe how much I hated him. I never felt he redeemed himself at all. I just wish she would have never married him. I hate this type of book and I will remember it over all the good ones I have read. Well I guess something pressed my button on this. And it made me cry and now I want to go hit something. Maybe my husband. LOL. Just kidding but watch out wall....
Okay Rant over. Just a terrible book.
And another thing. HE never even looked for her after the break up, he just moved on. And he was getting engaged too. If someone, and I think it was Ben (the horrible friend), hadn't sold the story to the newspaper, he wouldn't have looked her up and he would be married to the coke sniffing whore. I really hated him. Did I mention that?
Okay 2nd rant over. I may be back....
He kept her hidden in the country for 18 months and dated other women during the week. He didn't sleep with them HE SAID. But he never thought to ask the heroine. Just a louse. Then he breaks up with her and immediately starts looking for another woman and then decides to get married. The worst line in the story, and there were many, was when he said "I don't want a baby with you". That broke my heart. At least the heroine was strong. I just hated him and I hated everything about him. At no time did he ever appear to be a hero to me. When he came to her after the pregnancy story and said you are hurting the woman who is going to be my wife? WTF??? And then he was just an ass. I do think he loved her in his fashion and they certainly had lust but I don't see him being a good husband ever. He was just awful. I can't even begin to describe how much I hated him. I never felt he redeemed himself at all. I just wish she would have never married him. I hate this type of book and I will remember it over all the good ones I have read. Well I guess something pressed my button on this. And it made me cry and now I want to go hit something. Maybe my husband. LOL. Just kidding but watch out wall....
Okay Rant over. Just a terrible book.
And another thing. HE never even looked for her after the break up, he just moved on. And he was getting engaged too. If someone, and I think it was Ben (the horrible friend), hadn't sold the story to the newspaper, he wouldn't have looked her up and he would be married to the coke sniffing whore. I really hated him. Did I mention that?
Okay 2nd rant over. I may be back....
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 28, 2015
I enjoyed it. It was one of my favorite themes: the h who doesn't quite accept that she's a mistress and not a girlfriend, until bluntly told otherwise by the H.
Atreus was a serious POS when Lindy started wanting to know where the relationship was headed. (Lindy - such a typical LG heroine name, they almost all seem to end in 'y' or 'ie').
If you get a sort of sick enjoyment out of seeing the hero dig his hole deeper and deeper and watching the h walk out to the astonishment of his continent-sized ego, you may enjoy this one.
Personally, I thought it was quite obvious that he cared more deeply for her than he wanted too or recognized. And when he showed back up with the flowers and the proposal, I knew it was love and not duty pushing him. Towards the latter portion, it was obvious that his pride and ego had taken a beating and he was clueless how to fix things.
Like I said. I LOVE this crazy theme, but for some indefinable reason, this one isn't my fav. Perhaps it's because of how the theme of her being plain was belabored SOOO much. Maybe she isn't Miss America, but I like to see the H believing she is because he loves and wants her. Maybe he did. He was very, very attracted to her, no doubt. But I needed more acknowledgement of that. Or maybe it's because I'm desperately overworked right now (and bitter about it) that's making me picky. *shrugs*
Atreus was a serious POS when Lindy started wanting to know where the relationship was headed. (Lindy - such a typical LG heroine name, they almost all seem to end in 'y' or 'ie').
If you get a sort of sick enjoyment out of seeing the hero dig his hole deeper and deeper and watching the h walk out to the astonishment of his continent-sized ego, you may enjoy this one.
Personally, I thought it was quite obvious that he cared more deeply for her than he wanted too or recognized. And when he showed back up with the flowers and the proposal, I knew it was love and not duty pushing him. Towards the latter portion, it was obvious that his pride and ego had taken a beating and he was clueless how to fix things.
Like I said. I LOVE this crazy theme, but for some indefinable reason, this one isn't my fav. Perhaps it's because of how the theme of her being plain was belabored SOOO much. Maybe she isn't Miss America, but I like to see the H believing she is because he loves and wants her. Maybe he did. He was very, very attracted to her, no doubt. But I needed more acknowledgement of that. Or maybe it's because I'm desperately overworked right now (and bitter about it) that's making me picky. *shrugs*
December 8, 2023
Another reread 12/7/2023
Reread 2/18/2022… popped into a feed and it apparently needed rereading. Didn’t like it as much on the reread, but still entertaining. Dropped a star.
I have this strange weakness for the “I’m your mistress????” trope.
Eighteen months into their relationship she’s quite shocked to realize she’s his weekend mistress.
He works in London all week, claims he’s faithful to her, but does nothing to move their relationship along. And, then the truth comes out, ‘no, I’m not marrying you and I’m only going to marry someone with a similar background (rich and Greek)’. Now their relationship crashes and burns, it isn’t pretty and he’s turns into a stab worthy 🔪🔪🔪 ruthless swine.
She finds out she’s pregnant after the breakup and since he has no desire to have a baby with any one other than his future, rich Greek wife, she doesn’t tell him.
Fast forward a few months and it looks like he’s found the perfect future wife. Then he finds out she’s pregnant, and once again he’s an arrogant ass. First not believing the baby is his and then believing and insisting she marry him. Of course, now she’s not interest in marrying for baby’s sake.
After the baby is born, she gives in and marries him, a little more drama, I love yous and a nice little epilogue.
This shouldn’t work, but it’s Lynne Graham, she’s good at pulling arrogant, idiots' heads out of their...
Reread 2/18/2022… popped into a feed and it apparently needed rereading. Didn’t like it as much on the reread, but still entertaining. Dropped a star.
I have this strange weakness for the “I’m your mistress????” trope.
Eighteen months into their relationship she’s quite shocked to realize she’s his weekend mistress.
He works in London all week, claims he’s faithful to her, but does nothing to move their relationship along. And, then the truth comes out, ‘no, I’m not marrying you and I’m only going to marry someone with a similar background (rich and Greek)’. Now their relationship crashes and burns, it isn’t pretty and he’s turns into a stab worthy 🔪🔪🔪 ruthless swine.
She finds out she’s pregnant after the breakup and since he has no desire to have a baby with any one other than his future, rich Greek wife, she doesn’t tell him.
Fast forward a few months and it looks like he’s found the perfect future wife. Then he finds out she’s pregnant, and once again he’s an arrogant ass. First not believing the baby is his and then believing and insisting she marry him. Of course, now she’s not interest in marrying for baby’s sake.
After the baby is born, she gives in and marries him, a little more drama, I love yous and a nice little epilogue.
This shouldn’t work, but it’s Lynne Graham, she’s good at pulling arrogant, idiots' heads out of their...
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 27, 2021
Most readers are either going to love or hate this one. It’s really going to boil down to how serious/offended you get while reading soapy-smut. If you typically laugh at the alphahole shenanigans, you’ll probably find it entertaining. If alphaholes piss you off and you’re looking for a realistic romance, you’ll probably hate it.
On paper this looks pretty awesome. The unsuitable wife…WHAT, I’m a mistress…secret baby trope. YUM. Unfortunately, it just didn’t completely stick. I blame this on 2 things… First, L.G. was off her A-game, so much so, that I actually double checked that she was in fact the author at the quarter mark. It’s slow, doesn’t flow, and is kinda boring. Good news is that it picks up...BUT, then the H finds his stride. Again, on paper Atreus looks great. He’s the standard 6’3 gorgeous Greek Tycoon with a hot bod and wavy hair…and eyes the color of shoes. 😕(see what I mean about her A-game) The issue is LG makes him dumber than the scarecrow missing his brain. Some readers felt he was an asshole, and I can see their point, but I felt he was just stupid. He has zero common sense, no self-preservation, and at any opportunity reacts in a manner that ensures the worst possible outcome. How does this dude run a company?? Don’t believe me?? Let’s take a quiz.
Bottom Line- Not bad, not overly awesome. (I’d have needed more on-page with OW Krista for that) There’s not really any groveling, and she’s the one to apologize at the end. He does do a pretty good attempt at reassuring her (and us) that he loves her. There’s also an epilogue 3 years later where he’s super dad/husband which helps.
On paper this looks pretty awesome. The unsuitable wife…WHAT, I’m a mistress…secret baby trope. YUM. Unfortunately, it just didn’t completely stick. I blame this on 2 things… First, L.G. was off her A-game, so much so, that I actually double checked that she was in fact the author at the quarter mark. It’s slow, doesn’t flow, and is kinda boring. Good news is that it picks up...BUT, then the H finds his stride. Again, on paper Atreus looks great. He’s the standard 6’3 gorgeous Greek Tycoon with a hot bod and wavy hair…and eyes the color of shoes. 😕(see what I mean about her A-game) The issue is LG makes him dumber than the scarecrow missing his brain. Some readers felt he was an asshole, and I can see their point, but I felt he was just stupid. He has zero common sense, no self-preservation, and at any opportunity reacts in a manner that ensures the worst possible outcome. How does this dude run a company?? Don’t believe me?? Let’s take a quiz.
Bottom Line- Not bad, not overly awesome. (I’d have needed more on-page with OW Krista for that) There’s not really any groveling, and she’s the one to apologize at the end. He does do a pretty good attempt at reassuring her (and us) that he loves her. There’s also an epilogue 3 years later where he’s super dad/husband which helps.
March 22, 2020
I just didn't believe that Atrocious, er, Atreus loved Lindy. I never saw any evidence to support the claim. Reading between the lines didn't do me any good because there was nothing in between. Atreus would never had committed himself to Lindy if not for her pregnancy. It was really his son whom he fell in love with, while Lindy was just an unwanted part of the package.
The kicker is that he never groveled for being such an ass. (No apology = not caring.) During their initial time together, Lindy excused Atreus's shitty treatment because she was besotted and a bit insecure. So much so that I wouldn't have been surprised if there'd been a scene where she literally wiped his ass!
Where to begin with the atrocities? Atreus used Lindy for booty calls for 1.5 YEARS, yet didn't even want to acknowedge her as his secret mistress. Atreus never intended to marry Lindy or conceive a child with her because she lacked wealth and the proper social background. Poor 'lil rich boy wanted to avoid gold diggers who might use a false paternity claim to hitch him. Going by how he treated her, Atreus apparently felt Lindy held elite membership in the Gold Digging Club in spite of having no evidence to support this belief. To make things worse, Atreus went on to date other women after their breakup. And, I repeat, didn't grovel at all for his cruel pre- and post-breakup treatment of Lindy! Nope, grateful-to-have-any-attention Lindy apologized to him in the end. What the hell?
Other one-star reviews have done an excellent job of recapping all of Atreus's non-heroic and unrepentant behavior. The examples I listed are just the tip of the iceberg.
The kicker is that he never groveled for being such an ass. (No apology = not caring.) During their initial time together, Lindy excused Atreus's shitty treatment because she was besotted and a bit insecure. So much so that I wouldn't have been surprised if there'd been a scene where she literally wiped his ass!
Where to begin with the atrocities? Atreus used Lindy for booty calls for 1.5 YEARS, yet didn't even want to acknowedge her as his secret mistress. Atreus never intended to marry Lindy or conceive a child with her because she lacked wealth and the proper social background. Poor 'lil rich boy wanted to avoid gold diggers who might use a false paternity claim to hitch him. Going by how he treated her, Atreus apparently felt Lindy held elite membership in the Gold Digging Club in spite of having no evidence to support this belief. To make things worse, Atreus went on to date other women after their breakup. And, I repeat, didn't grovel at all for his cruel pre- and post-breakup treatment of Lindy! Nope, grateful-to-have-any-attention Lindy apologized to him in the end. What the hell?
Other one-star reviews have done an excellent job of recapping all of Atreus's non-heroic and unrepentant behavior. The examples I listed are just the tip of the iceberg.
April 6, 2011
Ugh! This book was one of the worst books I've ever read! It was not fun to read! The hero did NOT love the heroine, I don't care what he said in the end. I don't believe him! After all he did and said to the heroine words alone didn't cut it! The author did not make him show his love for the heroine through out the whole book, but instead told her that he would never want a baby with her and he would never marry her because when he was ready to get married, he would find someone else to marry! Indeed, he didn't want to marry a poor candle making over weight woman without pedigree! Believe me, it wouldn't have been such a slap in the face if this was when they had just met, it would have just made it all the more exciting to see the hero get bitten by the love bug, but this was 18 months after he was positioning her ever which way in bed! You would think the dude would have had some feelings for her by then- but no! She got pregnant by him even though he always used condoms with her. It was no moment of passion mistake! Not once did this guy prove in any way that he was falling in love with her. It never happened. Why can't authors understand that what readers want is to actually see how the couples fall in love and not told! Action not words! He married her just because he got her pregnant and nothing more! This is not one of those book that's so bad it's good either, it's just so bad it's depressing! If anyone see me reading another pregnancy HP- shoot me, please!
March 28, 2016
I'll give it a 2.5***
I know harlequins can be a bit over the top but that's why I enjoy them. I'm a total sucker for "surprise I'm pregnant" but This one just pissed me off.
Ok so boy meets girl. He's a huge dick to girl. Girl sees his house on fire she goes to save boy. Again boy's a total dick to girl. Boy gets girl back to a hotel since there is no power in either his or her place. Girl agrees, they kiss and this leads to sex. Boy is told she a virgin and he's good with it.
18 months go by....aww couples bliss. Yeah not so much.
Ok so H only sees h on weekends. During the week he's in London going on dates to charity events with other girls. He tells h not to worry because he's only sleeping with her. Seriously! Slap yourself please. After 18 months she doesn't find it odd she's not invited? That he takes her nowhere just keeps her at his house? Ugh, back to my story. One day there is yet another picture of homeboy on a date with someone other than her. Her guy BFF yells at her and tells her to wake up and stop being a doormat. She ignores him goes to H again for her weekend rendezvous. I forget what happens but she brings something up and he basically tells her he doesn't want children with her, isn't planning to marry her. That he will only marry someone of his stature and then have children.
She freaks out because she finally realizes homeboy was right all along. She was nothing to boy so they breakup. He than treats her like shit, kicks her out of her house even though he knows she was poor and needed that house for her company and again let's her know she was nothing to him.
Girl finds out she pregnant and decides not to tell dude. I normally don't agree with that but in her case, I wouldn't have told him either. While they were fighting about him not want to have a kid with her, he explained that if he did sire an illegitimate child he would just pay the mom off and send her on her way. So I wouldn't have bothered him either. Anyway.....
It gets leaked out she's preggers and is splashed all through the tabloids Boy douche shows up and demands she sign a statement stating the kid is not his so that he can move on with his life and marry some chick he's currently wooing who is of his social status. She refuses, says it's his, boy accuses her of lying and wants a paternity test and than tells her he's going sick his lawyers on her and put her through a legal battle. Wtf dude! You totally knew she was naive and innocent and always told him the truth but now she's a liar sleeping around and blaming him for dad! Ugh ok, again getting off topic.
He calms down and tells her to marry him. They need to marry for his kids sake. She turns him down. I would too because there has been zero graveling. He becomes distant and cold but does show up to appointments and shit. Finally at like 9 months boy takes her to meet his family and she has the baby at his home. After labor he explains how much he loves his son and can't live without him. So she agrees to his proposal. Boy Ignores her some more until the wedding. Day of wedding he dances two songs with his ex and spends the night talking to her. Bitch Ex tells her she was the wrong bride and homeboy will bounce soon enough.
h is crazy insecure. She's been hard on herself the whole book. But now up close and personal with bitch ex, she really starts to feel insignificant. On the wedding night she freaks out that she's not good enough for ol dude and declines having sex with him. 3 weeks later and he still refuses to touch her or look at her. Finally fed up she approaches him about it and this pendejo tells her she has to apologize to him for turning him away on their wedding night and explain why she did it. If she doesn't he won't touch her again.
She caves and gravels to him about how sorry she is. Wtf! He tells her how in love with her he is and how much he missed her and was so lucky he got his second chance with her. Did I miss something? because your actions did not scream love. Wtf did that come from?
Anyway, they lived HEA because she ate his shit up.
I know harlequins can be a bit over the top but that's why I enjoy them. I'm a total sucker for "surprise I'm pregnant" but This one just pissed me off.
Ok so boy meets girl. He's a huge dick to girl. Girl sees his house on fire she goes to save boy. Again boy's a total dick to girl. Boy gets girl back to a hotel since there is no power in either his or her place. Girl agrees, they kiss and this leads to sex. Boy is told she a virgin and he's good with it.
18 months go by....aww couples bliss. Yeah not so much.
Ok so H only sees h on weekends. During the week he's in London going on dates to charity events with other girls. He tells h not to worry because he's only sleeping with her. Seriously! Slap yourself please. After 18 months she doesn't find it odd she's not invited? That he takes her nowhere just keeps her at his house? Ugh, back to my story. One day there is yet another picture of homeboy on a date with someone other than her. Her guy BFF yells at her and tells her to wake up and stop being a doormat. She ignores him goes to H again for her weekend rendezvous. I forget what happens but she brings something up and he basically tells her he doesn't want children with her, isn't planning to marry her. That he will only marry someone of his stature and then have children.
She freaks out because she finally realizes homeboy was right all along. She was nothing to boy so they breakup. He than treats her like shit, kicks her out of her house even though he knows she was poor and needed that house for her company and again let's her know she was nothing to him.
Girl finds out she pregnant and decides not to tell dude. I normally don't agree with that but in her case, I wouldn't have told him either. While they were fighting about him not want to have a kid with her, he explained that if he did sire an illegitimate child he would just pay the mom off and send her on her way. So I wouldn't have bothered him either. Anyway.....
It gets leaked out she's preggers and is splashed all through the tabloids Boy douche shows up and demands she sign a statement stating the kid is not his so that he can move on with his life and marry some chick he's currently wooing who is of his social status. She refuses, says it's his, boy accuses her of lying and wants a paternity test and than tells her he's going sick his lawyers on her and put her through a legal battle. Wtf dude! You totally knew she was naive and innocent and always told him the truth but now she's a liar sleeping around and blaming him for dad! Ugh ok, again getting off topic.
He calms down and tells her to marry him. They need to marry for his kids sake. She turns him down. I would too because there has been zero graveling. He becomes distant and cold but does show up to appointments and shit. Finally at like 9 months boy takes her to meet his family and she has the baby at his home. After labor he explains how much he loves his son and can't live without him. So she agrees to his proposal. Boy Ignores her some more until the wedding. Day of wedding he dances two songs with his ex and spends the night talking to her. Bitch Ex tells her she was the wrong bride and homeboy will bounce soon enough.
h is crazy insecure. She's been hard on herself the whole book. But now up close and personal with bitch ex, she really starts to feel insignificant. On the wedding night she freaks out that she's not good enough for ol dude and declines having sex with him. 3 weeks later and he still refuses to touch her or look at her. Finally fed up she approaches him about it and this pendejo tells her she has to apologize to him for turning him away on their wedding night and explain why she did it. If she doesn't he won't touch her again.
She caves and gravels to him about how sorry she is. Wtf! He tells her how in love with her he is and how much he missed her and was so lucky he got his second chance with her. Did I miss something? because your actions did not scream love. Wtf did that come from?
Anyway, they lived HEA because she ate his shit up.
March 22, 2013
The heroine Lindy has been in love with her best friend her whole life but he never saw her as sexy or attractive. As a result she has self esteem issues and when a rich handsome playboy shows interest in her she falls for his charms instantly. They hook up every weekend and 18 months later Lindy considers their relationship serious but Arteus informs her that he plans to marry and have children with a woman from his social circles. They break up, Lindy finds out she is pregnant and keeps her pregnancy a secret from Arteus but he finds out and is determined to make her his again.
I loved this book. Yes Arteus Drakos is the epitome of an alpha male and yes he frustrated me deeply. But that's a traditional harlequin romance and I love this formula. I didn't mind his coldness but I wanted him to express his feelings for Lindy much earlier in the book cause she deserved it. I wanted him to value her more. She was a very sweet woman who worked hard to support herself and tried to overcome her emotional insecurities and self esteem issues.
In short the whole story was intense and angsty and I loved every single moment!
I loved this book. Yes Arteus Drakos is the epitome of an alpha male and yes he frustrated me deeply. But that's a traditional harlequin romance and I love this formula. I didn't mind his coldness but I wanted him to express his feelings for Lindy much earlier in the book cause she deserved it. I wanted him to value her more. She was a very sweet woman who worked hard to support herself and tried to overcome her emotional insecurities and self esteem issues.
In short the whole story was intense and angsty and I loved every single moment!
October 20, 2017
UGH. Another one where at first, I relished all the horrible behavior from the H thinking of what delicious groveling he would have to do in the end... only to completely lose my shit when it finally dawned on me that he was going to get away with all of that over-the-top asshole BS because the heroine had no pride at all.
This is one "romance" where the H's love is shockingly unconvincing. There is just no way to buy that he ever actually had real feelings for her. He took her generous, whole-hearted love and adoration, shit all over and threw it in the garbage, then magnanimously took her back ONLY because of circumstances (but not before he proposed to another woman). Disgusting characters, not a romance. One of my least-liked HP heroes for sure.
This is one "romance" where the H's love is shockingly unconvincing. There is just no way to buy that he ever actually had real feelings for her. He took her generous, whole-hearted love and adoration, shit all over and threw it in the garbage, then magnanimously took her back ONLY because of circumstances (but not before he proposed to another woman). Disgusting characters, not a romance. One of my least-liked HP heroes for sure.
December 14, 2018
"Greek Tycoon, Inexperienced Mistress" is the story of Atreus and Lindy.
So.. BOOOOO.
If you want to read something that will leave you boiling with rage, this is it for you.
-The h is a voluptuous self conscious small town businesswoman, who is just getting over her first crush when she is spotted skinny dipping by the H on his estate
-He calls her a desperate hoe and later apologizes
-There's a fire in his home and h ends up spotting it- rescuing his stuff
-They end up in bed
Then begins one of the WORST stories Ive ever read.
The heroine legit treats the H like garbage- has sex with her on weekends and goes away to accompany OW all over the place. She accepts it just because she doesn't want notoriety. When she realizes he's getting serious with OW, he dumps her, evicts her and moves on with OW.
Then she falls preggo and is homeless and without a place to run her business- takes help from her friends to find footing. Then a scandal breaks and he finds he's having a baby- whisks into her life expecting marriage and rights to paternity. She agrees for the baby's sake. His confession was 0% believable.
Rest is as predictable as my to be rating for this book.
Dear Atreus. F off. And dearest Lindy, please, for god sake, HAVE SOME SELF RESPECT.
GAH.
SWE
1/5 (actual rating -100/5)
So.. BOOOOO.
If you want to read something that will leave you boiling with rage, this is it for you.
-The h is a voluptuous self conscious small town businesswoman, who is just getting over her first crush when she is spotted skinny dipping by the H on his estate
-He calls her a desperate hoe and later apologizes
-There's a fire in his home and h ends up spotting it- rescuing his stuff
-They end up in bed
Then begins one of the WORST stories Ive ever read.
The heroine legit treats the H like garbage- has sex with her on weekends and goes away to accompany OW all over the place. She accepts it just because she doesn't want notoriety. When she realizes he's getting serious with OW, he dumps her, evicts her and moves on with OW.
Then she falls preggo and is homeless and without a place to run her business- takes help from her friends to find footing. Then a scandal breaks and he finds he's having a baby- whisks into her life expecting marriage and rights to paternity. She agrees for the baby's sake. His confession was 0% believable.
Rest is as predictable as my to be rating for this book.
Dear Atreus. F off. And dearest Lindy, please, for god sake, HAVE SOME SELF RESPECT.
GAH.
SWE
1/5 (actual rating -100/5)
May 26, 2014
Awful main leads!
May 25, 2022
I think he would have married the OW if the h hadn’t turned up pregnant. I was not feeling the love in this one, and side eyed their HEA.
June 17, 2013
The hero was an asshole. He deserved to be shot, tarred and feathered. I couldn't believe his rudeness and arrogance, then at the end of the novel, he is all about the love. Gag me please!
October 29, 2022
THERE WILL BE SPOILERS AHEAD!!!!!
THERE WILL BE SPOILERS AHEAD!!!!!
Ok, so this wasn’t as bad as some of the reviews I read portrayed, but it wasn’t great either.
The hero is cold, unemotional and says some really hideous, hurtful things to the heroine, such as “I don’t want to have a child with you.” He then proceeds to let her know that he has no interest in her as wife material. It was pretty brutal. And look, I don’t mind a ruthless, brutal hero who doesn’t know his emotions from his elbow. That’s the lure of these books—the hard and jaded hero who FALLS for the sweet and innocent heroine.
But he actually has to fall. And he has to be able to redeem himself. The more cruel and callous he is, the more falling and groveling I want to see. There was barely any grovel. And his declarations were so tepid and unemotional, they left me cold and pissed off. And I wanted to hear him apologize for what he said to the heroine, to show some shame for ripping her tender heart to shreds. He never does.
After breakup with the h, he goes on his merry way and is seen swanning around some Greek heiress—he doesn’t sleep with her, but NOT because he can’t get over the heroine, but because he didn’t want to raise the OWs expectations!!! Ummm, whaaaat?! That’s not romantic. Not to mention that during their 18 months together, he would take other women out to social engagements, since the h didn’t want to be in the public eye. He tells the h there’s nothing physical or intimate going on with them, but it still made my skin crawl.
There was no sense of his yearning or being miserable without the heroine. If she hadn’t been pregnant, would he even have come back? Doubtful. I would’ve loved this book far more if the hero had shown some emotion, if there had been more grovel and the hero had shown how gutted he was over the h. Instead he’s as cold and callous as he started out—and that doesn’t bring the swoon. The whole point of a cold and callous and cruel hero is for him to melt for the heroine.
Not safe. Hero’s past is mentioned and he’s a manwhore until heroine. He dates OWs for social engagements during relationship and immediately begins to pursue a relationship with OW he’s known for years, although he claims no sex occurs between them. Heroine is a virgin and belongs only to her hero, although she was once in love with a guy from school, who friendzoned her and they kept in touch. She got over him, but he’s still in her life. No sex with others after meeting, no sharing. HEA with epilogue years out.
THERE WILL BE SPOILERS AHEAD!!!!!
Ok, so this wasn’t as bad as some of the reviews I read portrayed, but it wasn’t great either.
The hero is cold, unemotional and says some really hideous, hurtful things to the heroine, such as “I don’t want to have a child with you.” He then proceeds to let her know that he has no interest in her as wife material. It was pretty brutal. And look, I don’t mind a ruthless, brutal hero who doesn’t know his emotions from his elbow. That’s the lure of these books—the hard and jaded hero who FALLS for the sweet and innocent heroine.
But he actually has to fall. And he has to be able to redeem himself. The more cruel and callous he is, the more falling and groveling I want to see. There was barely any grovel. And his declarations were so tepid and unemotional, they left me cold and pissed off. And I wanted to hear him apologize for what he said to the heroine, to show some shame for ripping her tender heart to shreds. He never does.
After breakup with the h, he goes on his merry way and is seen swanning around some Greek heiress—he doesn’t sleep with her, but NOT because he can’t get over the heroine, but because he didn’t want to raise the OWs expectations!!! Ummm, whaaaat?! That’s not romantic. Not to mention that during their 18 months together, he would take other women out to social engagements, since the h didn’t want to be in the public eye. He tells the h there’s nothing physical or intimate going on with them, but it still made my skin crawl.
There was no sense of his yearning or being miserable without the heroine. If she hadn’t been pregnant, would he even have come back? Doubtful. I would’ve loved this book far more if the hero had shown some emotion, if there had been more grovel and the hero had shown how gutted he was over the h. Instead he’s as cold and callous as he started out—and that doesn’t bring the swoon. The whole point of a cold and callous and cruel hero is for him to melt for the heroine.
Not safe. Hero’s past is mentioned and he’s a manwhore until heroine. He dates OWs for social engagements during relationship and immediately begins to pursue a relationship with OW he’s known for years, although he claims no sex occurs between them. Heroine is a virgin and belongs only to her hero, although she was once in love with a guy from school, who friendzoned her and they kept in touch. She got over him, but he’s still in her life. No sex with others after meeting, no sharing. HEA with epilogue years out.
May 6, 2016
3.5 stars
Admittedly the beginning of the book was a little shaky and I didn't like it or Atreus. Like at all. I thought he was an immature, pompous jerk who hadn't clue why his actions were hurting Lindy. Really? He just very unfeeling and was only thinking about below the belt thus treating Lindy likewise. He offered nothing of caring towards her out the bedroom. And though other heroes in other books have done this, the way Atreus did it was more callous and careless and basically crass about it that it didn't earn him any points in my book. And what happened during the break up was downright cruel and spineless. He knew how to put the knife in her heart. Basically he told her she wasn't good enough to marry but good enough for sex. What a prince? It was a wonder how Lindy was able to put herself together again.
The beginning felt really rushed and combined with his horrible treatment didn't exactly endear me to this book. They came together way too quickly and so quickly that it felt unbelievable. It was like flip the page and they were in bed already. Really? Where was the anticipation? Where was the build up? Where was the tension before they got to that point. I wanted that. And just more preparation before that scene.
Plus their attraction, at least for me, didn't make a lot of sense. Maybe on naive Lindy side but not his. Okay maybe it's not that complicated for a guy, but it didn't feel genuine. Their attraction didn't give that nice flow and believability to give it smoothness that necessary in a romance. It didn't have a natural feel to it. It just was all over the place and choppy. And the fact that it happened so quickly didn't help either.
The early love scenes weren't that exciting either. It felt kind forced because it was happening so quickly. It wasn't sexy or tender or romantic or emotional. It was just two bodies flopping around in bed. That was it. It was nothing to get the pulse racing. And the scenes ended as quickly as the began. Very rushed. They were forgettable and unpalatable. It was just about the pleasure which that felt forced too. Didn't enjoy them
The last two love scenes were much better because there was more behind them. There was passion and a genuine feeling that they actually wanted each other. Also these scenes were very much emotional based instead of physical. Those were good.
What I enjoyed most in this story was the pain. Weird right? But that was where I felt the most. I felt so bad for Lindy after she was beaten (not literally) with a brick over and over by his hurtful and callous treatment of her. Some of the things he did make me shake my head and wonder how the heck they were going to come back from this. He was really bad. But Lindy really touched me and though she was very naive and way too accommodating to him, my heart still broke for her. Between the two men in her life she wasn't treated like she should have. Did I think at times she was a fool? Yes, but that didn't mean I didn't like her or feel sympathize with her. There was just that sweet and vulnerable as well as her pain that just punched me in the gut. I wanted to give her a hug. And I was glad that she stood up to Atreus and didn't give into him too easily in the end. He had to work for it. But I liked seeing her emotional journey that was utterly gut wrenching. That was good.
I warmed up to Atreus near the very end, but up until that point he wasn't that redeemable. He was sweet in the end. Where was that guy throughout? I wanted to see more of him than the cold callous one. I wasn't convinced he loved her until the last few pages because he didn't show that his feelings were on a deeper level for her. There was no evidence really. But I did believe it by the end. But for the majority of the book I didn't like him.
And what was up with Ben? He was an even bigger jerk than Atreus and that's saying something. I don't even understand why he was in the story. Well I do. To cause problems but they had enough problems without him. Man, I really couldn't stand Ben. He should just have left her alone. Plus aside from his behavior I just question who he was as a person.
Overall the book was okay. Not my favorite Lynne Graham book. The last half was definitely better than the first. It just felt way too rushed. There was no establishment to their romance just their sex life. That just got to be too much and was very unappealing until the emotions came into play. I wanted more anticipation and build up in their story. I wanted to feel more passion not just the lust. It didn't help I didn't like him very much either. I just wanted less of the rushing and more emotional development in their relationship than I thin it would have been better. Oh well they can't all be winners.
Admittedly the beginning of the book was a little shaky and I didn't like it or Atreus. Like at all. I thought he was an immature, pompous jerk who hadn't clue why his actions were hurting Lindy. Really? He just very unfeeling and was only thinking about below the belt thus treating Lindy likewise. He offered nothing of caring towards her out the bedroom. And though other heroes in other books have done this, the way Atreus did it was more callous and careless and basically crass about it that it didn't earn him any points in my book. And what happened during the break up was downright cruel and spineless. He knew how to put the knife in her heart. Basically he told her she wasn't good enough to marry but good enough for sex. What a prince? It was a wonder how Lindy was able to put herself together again.
The beginning felt really rushed and combined with his horrible treatment didn't exactly endear me to this book. They came together way too quickly and so quickly that it felt unbelievable. It was like flip the page and they were in bed already. Really? Where was the anticipation? Where was the build up? Where was the tension before they got to that point. I wanted that. And just more preparation before that scene.
Plus their attraction, at least for me, didn't make a lot of sense. Maybe on naive Lindy side but not his. Okay maybe it's not that complicated for a guy, but it didn't feel genuine. Their attraction didn't give that nice flow and believability to give it smoothness that necessary in a romance. It didn't have a natural feel to it. It just was all over the place and choppy. And the fact that it happened so quickly didn't help either.
The early love scenes weren't that exciting either. It felt kind forced because it was happening so quickly. It wasn't sexy or tender or romantic or emotional. It was just two bodies flopping around in bed. That was it. It was nothing to get the pulse racing. And the scenes ended as quickly as the began. Very rushed. They were forgettable and unpalatable. It was just about the pleasure which that felt forced too. Didn't enjoy them
The last two love scenes were much better because there was more behind them. There was passion and a genuine feeling that they actually wanted each other. Also these scenes were very much emotional based instead of physical. Those were good.
What I enjoyed most in this story was the pain. Weird right? But that was where I felt the most. I felt so bad for Lindy after she was beaten (not literally) with a brick over and over by his hurtful and callous treatment of her. Some of the things he did make me shake my head and wonder how the heck they were going to come back from this. He was really bad. But Lindy really touched me and though she was very naive and way too accommodating to him, my heart still broke for her. Between the two men in her life she wasn't treated like she should have. Did I think at times she was a fool? Yes, but that didn't mean I didn't like her or feel sympathize with her. There was just that sweet and vulnerable as well as her pain that just punched me in the gut. I wanted to give her a hug. And I was glad that she stood up to Atreus and didn't give into him too easily in the end. He had to work for it. But I liked seeing her emotional journey that was utterly gut wrenching. That was good.
I warmed up to Atreus near the very end, but up until that point he wasn't that redeemable. He was sweet in the end. Where was that guy throughout? I wanted to see more of him than the cold callous one. I wasn't convinced he loved her until the last few pages because he didn't show that his feelings were on a deeper level for her. There was no evidence really. But I did believe it by the end. But for the majority of the book I didn't like him.
And what was up with Ben? He was an even bigger jerk than Atreus and that's saying something. I don't even understand why he was in the story. Well I do. To cause problems but they had enough problems without him. Man, I really couldn't stand Ben. He should just have left her alone. Plus aside from his behavior I just question who he was as a person.
Overall the book was okay. Not my favorite Lynne Graham book. The last half was definitely better than the first. It just felt way too rushed. There was no establishment to their romance just their sex life. That just got to be too much and was very unappealing until the emotions came into play. I wanted more anticipation and build up in their story. I wanted to feel more passion not just the lust. It didn't help I didn't like him very much either. I just wanted less of the rushing and more emotional development in their relationship than I thin it would have been better. Oh well they can't all be winners.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 23, 2024
3.5 stars
⏳ [7th re-read in 2022, 1st proper review, rating maintained]
Okay, this book has been a guilty pleasure re-read for many years now. It is far from being perfect, more so after my 2022 re-read, but there are a few original plot elements that were well written and resonated well with my romantic heart and keep having me come back for the torture: The whole arc of the H, Atreus, coldly telling the h, Lindy, that (a) he did not want children with her and that it would be a deal breaker if she became pregnant; and (b) he would only have children with an heiress of the same background as himself, was indeed classical HP but oh so effective in ratching up all the dramatic and heartbreaking angst. Also, the part where Atreus stormed on Lindy demanding she denied the press claims that she was pregnant with his child, because of course, he could not be the father.... LG's pen is certainly very good in this type of exercise and the reason I always come back to this book.
Now on the less than stellar points, most revolting in many ways:
So, while I always come back to this book because of the high angst feels moments (hence the generous rating), I am not blind to all the wrong themes and resolution in it. Whenever I read it, I always wish that someone, maybe even LG, take the good elements and expand them in a more sensible, gratifying and emotional plot with a worthy grovel/ courtship. The book always gives me a taste of missed opportunity. Yet I know I will keep coming back just for the feels that fires my imagination.
P.S. That cover is plain stupid as the heroine is totally different physically.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 14, 2020
Wtf really. I’m disappointed! I always expect better from LG.
The beginning of the book was actually interesting and there was a nice meet cute but the book derailed pretty quick after that. Lindy is a tenant on Atreus’s estate and I take 1 star off for their first meeting. Any h who is skinny dipping is already off the charts for me. That is borderline ho behaviour imho.
Lindy is seemingly traumatized by that meeting and shies off of meeting Atreus again. She’s seemingly shy and awkward but I assure you she’s anything but. She’s loud, speaks her mind, rebellious and rambunctious. Totally unlike able to me.
The h and H have another meeting under pretty dire circumstances. The H is a true hero and carts off Lindy to a hotel to recuperate for the night. They share a suite with separate bedrooms and guess what, this shy and stumbling Lindy decides to sleep butt naked knowing there’s a man 10 feet away from her. Her nightmares lead to Atreus barging in and finding needy Lindy already naked and in distress. And 10 seconds later virginal Lindy is having sex.
So I agree that Atreus was just another rich playboy but at least he wasn’t saying something and doing something different. While Lindy, miss sacrificial-virgin was a total ho! She kept lowering her moral walls every time she met Atreus. They continuously slept for almost 2 years before she reminds herself that she’s actually turned into a ho. Great job Lindy.
When she’s knocked up and Atreus tries to save the day, Lindy acts like a prude and tbh by then I’d lost all respect for Lindy myself. If you’re easy, then don’t cry for pity. People WILL look down on you in HPlandia if you’re unmarried and pregnant after 1.5 years of sleeping with the H.
Sorry I was put off by Lindy. She was needy at some points and acted without inhibition most of the other times. Atreus wasn’t anything memorable either. Emotionally detached and he kept sleeping with other people while he was with Lindy and had also asked another woman to marry him.
In the end I was disappointed that easy Lindy took the easy way and went back to Atreus despite her moral calls and Atreus having humiliated her enough times. Do not recommend.
The beginning of the book was actually interesting and there was a nice meet cute but the book derailed pretty quick after that. Lindy is a tenant on Atreus’s estate and I take 1 star off for their first meeting. Any h who is skinny dipping is already off the charts for me. That is borderline ho behaviour imho.
Lindy is seemingly traumatized by that meeting and shies off of meeting Atreus again. She’s seemingly shy and awkward but I assure you she’s anything but. She’s loud, speaks her mind, rebellious and rambunctious. Totally unlike able to me.
The h and H have another meeting under pretty dire circumstances. The H is a true hero and carts off Lindy to a hotel to recuperate for the night. They share a suite with separate bedrooms and guess what, this shy and stumbling Lindy decides to sleep butt naked knowing there’s a man 10 feet away from her. Her nightmares lead to Atreus barging in and finding needy Lindy already naked and in distress. And 10 seconds later virginal Lindy is having sex.
So I agree that Atreus was just another rich playboy but at least he wasn’t saying something and doing something different. While Lindy, miss sacrificial-virgin was a total ho! She kept lowering her moral walls every time she met Atreus. They continuously slept for almost 2 years before she reminds herself that she’s actually turned into a ho. Great job Lindy.
When she’s knocked up and Atreus tries to save the day, Lindy acts like a prude and tbh by then I’d lost all respect for Lindy myself. If you’re easy, then don’t cry for pity. People WILL look down on you in HPlandia if you’re unmarried and pregnant after 1.5 years of sleeping with the H.
Sorry I was put off by Lindy. She was needy at some points and acted without inhibition most of the other times. Atreus wasn’t anything memorable either. Emotionally detached and he kept sleeping with other people while he was with Lindy and had also asked another woman to marry him.
In the end I was disappointed that easy Lindy took the easy way and went back to Atreus despite her moral calls and Atreus having humiliated her enough times. Do not recommend.
January 31, 2016
This was an entertaining read, but nothing all that spectacular. Lindy is a "curvy" virgin. Atreus is a Greek tycoon (do those even exist at the moment? Greece's economy does not seem to lend itself to having tycoons, even in 2010, when this was first published). The two start having sex and basically continue doing so for 18 months. When Lindy asks Atreus the inevitable "Where is this 18 month relationship heading?" question, he pretty much tells her that she's good enough to screw, but he needs to marry someone from his own tax bracket. Understandably, Lindy breaks things off. (Not that she was perfect -- being afraid to ask the guy you believe to be your boyfriend for 18 months where your relationship is headed was a bit weak on her part.)
A couple of miscommunications ensue and the two of them manage to make matters worse for themselves, culminating in Lindy declaring that she wouldn't forgive Atreus for his actions if he came crawling to her on bended knee. At this point, my inner angst whore, Violet, rubs her hands together with glee and anticipation.
Lindy is, of course, pregnant, and in the way of HP females everywhere, decides not to tell the guy who should really be paying child support. In the way of HP males everywhere, Atreus finds out about the pregnancy and confronts her, at first demanding that she admit publicly that the baby isn't his. When she can't, he demands they marry.
Here's the thing. Atreus was an ASSHAT . Sure he had REASONS for being the way he was, but at the end of the day... ASSHAT . The fact that he would sleep with Lindy for 18 months, have pretty much no contact with her during the week other than phone calls, get upset with her when she asks where their relationship is going, and then doesn't understand why she would break off such a great deal for her, is asshat behavior of the first order. Lindy was right to declare she wouldn't have him back if he groveled. Does Atreus grovel?
Nay nay, my GR friends. He does not. Fuck Atreus. In fact, at the end of the book, he makes her grovel. Not that they weren't both acting like ridiculous children by that point, but the fact that he never had to even so much as utter an apology for behaving like a first-class dickhole, insulting Lindy several times over, essentially calling her a whore, telling her she's good enough to screw, but not good enough to settle down with, then attempting to sweep the problem under the rug by trying to get her to leave (an attempt that backfires on him), then doesn't really have to pay any sort of emotional price? Totally unsatisfactory.
Honestly, the rest of the book was not bad. Had a lot of potential to be pretty good. I got the reasoning both characters acted the way they did -- Violet and I just like a little more grovel in our stories.
All the usual HP disclaimers apply on this one. If you aren't a fan of mega-drama, don't pick up an HP.
A couple of miscommunications ensue and the two of them manage to make matters worse for themselves, culminating in Lindy declaring that she wouldn't forgive Atreus for his actions if he came crawling to her on bended knee. At this point, my inner angst whore, Violet, rubs her hands together with glee and anticipation.
Lindy is, of course, pregnant, and in the way of HP females everywhere, decides not to tell the guy who should really be paying child support. In the way of HP males everywhere, Atreus finds out about the pregnancy and confronts her, at first demanding that she admit publicly that the baby isn't his. When she can't, he demands they marry.
Here's the thing. Atreus was an ASSHAT . Sure he had REASONS for being the way he was, but at the end of the day... ASSHAT . The fact that he would sleep with Lindy for 18 months, have pretty much no contact with her during the week other than phone calls, get upset with her when she asks where their relationship is going, and then doesn't understand why she would break off such a great deal for her, is asshat behavior of the first order. Lindy was right to declare she wouldn't have him back if he groveled. Does Atreus grovel?
Nay nay, my GR friends. He does not. Fuck Atreus. In fact, at the end of the book, he makes her grovel. Not that they weren't both acting like ridiculous children by that point, but the fact that he never had to even so much as utter an apology for behaving like a first-class dickhole, insulting Lindy several times over, essentially calling her a whore, telling her she's good enough to screw, but not good enough to settle down with, then attempting to sweep the problem under the rug by trying to get her to leave (an attempt that backfires on him), then doesn't really have to pay any sort of emotional price? Totally unsatisfactory.
Honestly, the rest of the book was not bad. Had a lot of potential to be pretty good. I got the reasoning both characters acted the way they did -- Violet and I just like a little more grovel in our stories.
All the usual HP disclaimers apply on this one. If you aren't a fan of mega-drama, don't pick up an HP.
June 7, 2018
Looking back and remembering that this was the first Lynne Graham book I read, I confess that I'm surprised I ever read another.
Seriously, the male lead in this story is a 24-carat titweasel. Selfish, manipulative, dishonourable, and vain.
This is one of the few stories where I agree with the heroine's decision not to tell the male lead (this dude is not a hero, he's an ass) about a surprise pregnancy. I have strong feelings about this, having put on my big-girl panties and informed a useless specimen of the male gender that he was most unexpectedly going to be a dad myself. I probably would have been better off if I hadn't, but it was the honourable thing to do. In this story's case, keeping her trap shut was perfectly reasonable in the circumstances. The jerk had already made it clear what his response was going to be. Since she didn't want his money and didn't want anything to do with him, and had reasonable cause to believe that he wouldn't want anything to do with the baby, there was absolutely no reason to tell him.
He spends a large part of the story abusing her (abusing her trust, taking advantage of her being naive, verbally abusing her, I could go on) and none of that is made better by a last-minute love confession. This story is a recipe for an abusive marriage, since the male lead has demonstrated repeatedly, throughout the book, that he has not an ounce of respect for the heroine, and not much basic human decency either.
Personally, I'd have set myself on fire before marrying a verbally abusive tyrant like him.
Seriously, the male lead in this story is a 24-carat titweasel. Selfish, manipulative, dishonourable, and vain.
This is one of the few stories where I agree with the heroine's decision not to tell the male lead (this dude is not a hero, he's an ass) about a surprise pregnancy. I have strong feelings about this, having put on my big-girl panties and informed a useless specimen of the male gender that he was most unexpectedly going to be a dad myself. I probably would have been better off if I hadn't, but it was the honourable thing to do. In this story's case, keeping her trap shut was perfectly reasonable in the circumstances. The jerk had already made it clear what his response was going to be. Since she didn't want his money and didn't want anything to do with him, and had reasonable cause to believe that he wouldn't want anything to do with the baby, there was absolutely no reason to tell him.
He spends a large part of the story abusing her (abusing her trust, taking advantage of her being naive, verbally abusing her, I could go on) and none of that is made better by a last-minute love confession. This story is a recipe for an abusive marriage, since the male lead has demonstrated repeatedly, throughout the book, that he has not an ounce of respect for the heroine, and not much basic human decency either.
Personally, I'd have set myself on fire before marrying a verbally abusive tyrant like him.
April 7, 2017
Arteus , you're the most cold ruthless bastard hero I ever saw but that didn't stopped me from falling in love with you!
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April 24, 2017Leído el 06/10/2010
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