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Untouched Until Marriage
When infamous Raul Carducci learns that a little baby may challenge his inheritance he will stop at nothing—a new Carducci heir will not take away what is rightfully his.
To safeguard baby Gino, unassuming Libby Maynard has been forced to pretend she is his mother—but she hasn't counted on having to convince the wolfish Raul Carducci of her deception.
And when Raul, with his achingly seductive voice, asks her to marry him, Libby is powerless to refuse...even if their wedding night will blow her cover!
192 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2010
46 people are currently reading
274 people want to read
About the author
Chantelle Shaw
660 books158 followersI grew up without a TV, let alone DVD’s, computer games etc that my kids spend so much time engrossed in, but I learned to read at an early age and from then on I was always entertained – so much so that my friends used to hide their books when I visited them because all I wanted to do was read!
When I was a teenager I discovered Mills & Boon romances in my local library, and so began a lifelong love affair. I still remember that feeling of anticipation when I settled down with a pile of books - all bearing the famous rose logo - knowing that I would be drawn into a world of love, passion and emotional intensity that I have never found in any other books. I enjoy reading a wide range of books, especially historical novels, and I am a big fan of Agatha Christie, mainly I think because her characters seem so real, but I love romances and unashamedly admit that I only want to read books with a guaranteed happy ending. Reading is my joy and pleasure and I don’t want to cry buckets at the end of a book or have my sleep disturbed by its gruesome content.
For me, the characters in Harlequin Mills & Boon romances are the key. I love reading and writing about strong, alpha heroes and feisty, independent heroines who find that they can’t fight the blazing attraction between them.
When I married my own tall, dark, but sadly not wealthy hero, we moved out of London to the Kent coast and started a family that grew and grew. I adore my six children, and when they were small I loved being a stay-at-home mum, but there can be days, as I’m sure many of you know, when you feel isolated and – dare I say it – bored of conversing with three-year-olds. Harlequin Mills & Boon romances were my life-line and my sanity and I read them whenever I had a spare five minutes (in the bath, pacing the floor at three am with colicky baby on one shoulder and a book in the other hand!)
My imagination soared and I decided to try and write a book myself. My first attempt was typed up on a manual type-writer with the full-stop key and the letter p missing. Luckily my hero and heroine were not called Paul and Poppy, but it still meant going over my manuscript with a pen to fill in the gaps!
That first book was duly rejected as were my next two. I suppose I was disheartened and by now I had four small children and very little spare time, so although I continued to read romances, I gave up writing. It wasn’t until my youngest son started school that I tried writing again. I was struggling to come to terms with the death of my darling mum Gabrielle and writing became my therapy. Mum had always nagged me to get on and write a book and had an unshakeable belief that I would one day be published – I’m so glad that she was proved right and my biggest regret is that she isn’t here to share my success with me.
I wrote two more books which were both rejected by HM&B, but I was given some advice on my writing from the editorial team that encouraged me to try again. Third time lucky certainly applied to me – the day I received ‘the call’ was exactly four years after Mum had died. It was one of the most exciting moments of my life - but instead of chatting to the editor about contracts I had to dash off and pick my sick daughter up from school. Reality is never far away in my house!
I have now had nine books published - At the Sheikh's Bidding was released in September 08. My next book, Argentinian Playboy, Unexpected Love-Child will be out in the UK in July 09, and The Greek Billionaire's Innocent Princess in the UK in August 09. I have just had my twelfth book accepted and am already busy on my thirteenth. Now that my children are growing up I am able to write every day between 9 am and 3 pm, but often I become so involved with my characters that I sneak off to write again in the evening!
I feel I must be one of the luckiest people in the world to be doing something that I love, but I work hard at my luck and I believe that w
When I was a teenager I discovered Mills & Boon romances in my local library, and so began a lifelong love affair. I still remember that feeling of anticipation when I settled down with a pile of books - all bearing the famous rose logo - knowing that I would be drawn into a world of love, passion and emotional intensity that I have never found in any other books. I enjoy reading a wide range of books, especially historical novels, and I am a big fan of Agatha Christie, mainly I think because her characters seem so real, but I love romances and unashamedly admit that I only want to read books with a guaranteed happy ending. Reading is my joy and pleasure and I don’t want to cry buckets at the end of a book or have my sleep disturbed by its gruesome content.
For me, the characters in Harlequin Mills & Boon romances are the key. I love reading and writing about strong, alpha heroes and feisty, independent heroines who find that they can’t fight the blazing attraction between them.
When I married my own tall, dark, but sadly not wealthy hero, we moved out of London to the Kent coast and started a family that grew and grew. I adore my six children, and when they were small I loved being a stay-at-home mum, but there can be days, as I’m sure many of you know, when you feel isolated and – dare I say it – bored of conversing with three-year-olds. Harlequin Mills & Boon romances were my life-line and my sanity and I read them whenever I had a spare five minutes (in the bath, pacing the floor at three am with colicky baby on one shoulder and a book in the other hand!)
My imagination soared and I decided to try and write a book myself. My first attempt was typed up on a manual type-writer with the full-stop key and the letter p missing. Luckily my hero and heroine were not called Paul and Poppy, but it still meant going over my manuscript with a pen to fill in the gaps!
That first book was duly rejected as were my next two. I suppose I was disheartened and by now I had four small children and very little spare time, so although I continued to read romances, I gave up writing. It wasn’t until my youngest son started school that I tried writing again. I was struggling to come to terms with the death of my darling mum Gabrielle and writing became my therapy. Mum had always nagged me to get on and write a book and had an unshakeable belief that I would one day be published – I’m so glad that she was proved right and my biggest regret is that she isn’t here to share my success with me.
I wrote two more books which were both rejected by HM&B, but I was given some advice on my writing from the editorial team that encouraged me to try again. Third time lucky certainly applied to me – the day I received ‘the call’ was exactly four years after Mum had died. It was one of the most exciting moments of my life - but instead of chatting to the editor about contracts I had to dash off and pick my sick daughter up from school. Reality is never far away in my house!
I have now had nine books published - At the Sheikh's Bidding was released in September 08. My next book, Argentinian Playboy, Unexpected Love-Child will be out in the UK in July 09, and The Greek Billionaire's Innocent Princess in the UK in August 09. I have just had my twelfth book accepted and am already busy on my thirteenth. Now that my children are growing up I am able to write every day between 9 am and 3 pm, but often I become so involved with my characters that I sneak off to write again in the evening!
I feel I must be one of the luckiest people in the world to be doing something that I love, but I work hard at my luck and I believe that w
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
October 4, 2018
Hero really needed a private investigator - or Google. Yes, mother and daughter have the same name, but there are so many public records that could have tipped him off that the mother was dead and this young woman(heroine) had not been his adopted father's mistress or this child's mother.
T hat's the big misunderstanding that fuels the entire story. Hero must bring the child and mother to the family estate in Italy and he must let her vote at board meetings. Heroine goes along with it because she doesn't want to lose her half brother to the hero or social services. (Never mind she's signing contracts in someone else's name and - who am I kidding? I'm sure it's okay in HPlandia)
The H/h are wildly attracted to each other and convince each other that they should marry for "the sake of the child." The gig is up when h surrenders her v-card and hero throws a tantrum.
There's still a final black moment to go, but it's a minor lie by the hero concerning the shares, and it doesn't amount to much.
This is a standard HP with all the familiar tropes. It's already starting to fade from my memory. (Note to self: this is the one where heroine likes to wear orange and purple and green to highlight her vibrant nature) If you like misunderstandings and marriages of conveniences, you'll like this one.
T hat's the big misunderstanding that fuels the entire story. Hero must bring the child and mother to the family estate in Italy and he must let her vote at board meetings. Heroine goes along with it because she doesn't want to lose her half brother to the hero or social services. (Never mind she's signing contracts in someone else's name and - who am I kidding? I'm sure it's okay in HPlandia)
The H/h are wildly attracted to each other and convince each other that they should marry for "the sake of the child." The gig is up when h surrenders her v-card and hero throws a tantrum.
There's still a final black moment to go, but it's a minor lie by the hero concerning the shares, and it doesn't amount to much.
This is a standard HP with all the familiar tropes. It's already starting to fade from my memory. (Note to self: this is the one where heroine likes to wear orange and purple and green to highlight her vibrant nature) If you like misunderstandings and marriages of conveniences, you'll like this one.
January 19, 2017
Hero mistakes heroine for adoptive father's mistress. (I love when the H thinks the h is a whore that's sleeping with one of his relatives and the lust and jealousy consumes him buahahaha)
So this one was a super sweet h vs a super bastard H.
So this one was a super sweet h vs a super bastard H.
May 22, 2017
Inocente Hasta El Matrimonio aunque predecible y tipica fue una buena lectura, es cierto que no aporta nada nuevo a la tematica pero me gusto mucho la forma en la que esta escrita, en parte porque Chantelle Shaw escribe de una forma muy cuidada.
Si eres fan de este estilo estoy segura de que te gustara esta pequeña novela : es corta, agil, entretenida y sin sorpresas. Ideal para pasar una tarde.
2.5 Estrellas!
February 20, 2016
Too much insta love and little substance to the hero, heroine or the story.
Heroine is way too sweet for the hero. He's pretty much a stinker.
Paint by the numbers Harlequin.
Heroine is way too sweet for the hero. He's pretty much a stinker.
Paint by the numbers Harlequin.
August 17, 2011
The hero Raul is livid when he discovers that not only does his late adopted father have an infant son but also that he will not gain full control of the family business because of this. He tracks down the baby and his mother and is shocked to discover that the mother is the very young and very beautiful Libby, the heroine. He thinks Libby is a gold differ as why else would she have an affair with a man more than twice her age. Libby is actually baby Gino's sister, it was her mother who had the affair with Raul's father and she died suddenly not long after the birth. Libby has been pretending to be Gino's mother in order to stop him being taken away and put into care. When Raul informs her that Gino has been provided for in his father's will and that Raul plans to bring him up as his own son she continues with the pretence, taking all of Raul's scorn fearing he would take the Gino away from her. Raul suggests that they marry, he wants to adopt Gino and despite what he thinks of her, he knows she loves Gino. Libby agrees knowing this is best for Gino but worries about Raul's reaction if he realises she is a virgin as well as worrying about the ulterior motives Raul has for marrying her.
I quite enjoyed this book, as expected from Chantelle Shaw, the book is quite emotional and full of misunderstandings. The story itself is quite original and well written, the characters interact well also. At times the hero did act a little cruel towards to the heroine and this was frustrating, I kept wanting to tell the hero to shut up, and tell the heroine to actually stick up for herself! The pace of the book does drag a little at times and I feel the ending was a little too rushed.
Overall, the book is interesting, emotional and passionate. Worth a read.
Originally posted at http://everyday-is-the-same.blogspot....
I quite enjoyed this book, as expected from Chantelle Shaw, the book is quite emotional and full of misunderstandings. The story itself is quite original and well written, the characters interact well also. At times the hero did act a little cruel towards to the heroine and this was frustrating, I kept wanting to tell the hero to shut up, and tell the heroine to actually stick up for herself! The pace of the book does drag a little at times and I feel the ending was a little too rushed.
Overall, the book is interesting, emotional and passionate. Worth a read.
Originally posted at http://everyday-is-the-same.blogspot....
January 19, 2017
The implication of a relationship of the hero and his father's mistress makes my skin crawl (it sounds almost like incest), but if I rate the story down for that it will really be grossly unfair.
So only one star down for that.
Hero was an asshole, but I think he redeemed himself by his vulnerability. It was quite satisfactory to see him scared to death worrying h won't love him back
So only one star down for that.
Hero was an asshole, but I think he redeemed himself by his vulnerability. It was quite satisfactory to see him scared to death worrying h won't love him back
November 1, 2015
Emotional book full of angst and passion. Heroine was a sweetheart and hero was sex on legs. Chemistry between these two is hot!!! Epilogue was adorable I couldn't help smiling!
December 19, 2016
Buena lectura. Entretenida para pasar un rato , aunque en mi caso fueron unas tardes por el poco tiempo que tenía para leer.
October 4, 2018
4,5 stars
January 29, 2021
The h pretends that she is the mother of her little halfbrother. The father of her halfbrother is also the father of the H. So the H thinks the h was his dad’s mistress. But that doesn’t stop him from falling in lust with the h.
The h didn’t tell the H she was still a virgin. So their wedding night was a painful disaster. After the sex she runs to the bathroom to vomit.
Haha, imagine a man vomiting after he had sex with you. That would be such a turn-off. But not for this writer.
The H storms away mad that he was being lied to. After he comes back he wants to have sex again with that vomiting woman.
Bleh.
The h didn’t tell the H she was still a virgin. So their wedding night was a painful disaster. After the sex she runs to the bathroom to vomit.
Haha, imagine a man vomiting after he had sex with you. That would be such a turn-off. But not for this writer.
The H storms away mad that he was being lied to. After he comes back he wants to have sex again with that vomiting woman.
Bleh.
February 2, 2017
Raul believes that Libby was his father's mistress and gave birth to his son. Libby was afraid that her baby half brother would be taken from her so she pretended to be his mother. This deception leads to a forced marriage and lots of heartache.
Good story with it's share of drama. Libby is sweet but fiery and Raul was the quintessential Latin alpha male - all heat and arrogance. It's an enjoyable book, not very memorable, but enjoyable all the same.
Good story with it's share of drama. Libby is sweet but fiery and Raul was the quintessential Latin alpha male - all heat and arrogance. It's an enjoyable book, not very memorable, but enjoyable all the same.
February 28, 2017
Alpha H to Beta H, cute read.
February 15, 2020
Another winner from CS. But like all other reviews, this is pretty safe and easy reading. The h is sweet and the H is an alpha Italian who is seemingly ruthless. I didn’t find the H to be too mean. He was kind and took things under control as soon as he meets the h. He was also a tender lover once he finds out that he has wrongly assumed about the h.
The book moved fast and the epilogue was also sickly sweet. A feel good book for anyone needing a little uplifting!
The book moved fast and the epilogue was also sickly sweet. A feel good book for anyone needing a little uplifting!
November 15, 2025
C. S. is now one of my favourite authors. I really enjoyed reading this book it was very well written. Love both characters and off the chart chemistry between them. Also the Beautiful epilogue.
August 14, 2013
Raul discovers he has a brother after his adopted father passes away. He seeks to discover this child and fulfill his father’s will. Also Raul needs them so that he can take the company in a new direction. This alpha handsome man shows up at Libby’s house proclaiming rights and setting out some legalese for her and the child. Libby lies and claims parental rights over her brother and easily goes along w/ this stranger! Not a great parent, IMHO. Sure things were addressed legally in this story about Libby not really having rights to bring up the child, but then neither did Raul. There was no DNA test done and I find it hard to believe that if Libby’s mom wouldn’t name her own father on her BC because of his runner and duplicity then why would she name Raul’s father on the BC when he failed to acknowledge the bun? Technicalities I suppose. Raul is appalled to find himself attracted to his late father’s mistress, but he is.
Anyway Raul gets Libby to go w/ him and she maintains her lie because she wants so badly to be a part of the baby’s life and she can’t provide much for him. She also believes that Raul has more rights than her, dummy. Are there no pro bono, legal aid attorneys in HP either? Raul needs to completely control the company and he doesn’t like sharing it w/ Libby and the baby. Question: why would his father not give complete control to him? Did he not trust him? Raul had been previously married to a gold digger and so, of course, he believes that Libby is one as well. Maybe his pa didn’t trust him after that failed marriage and the fact that dipstick didn’t do up a pre-nup?! Raul hits upon a plan, the will states that if Libby marries then she loses the right to help in the company. Raul decides he will marry her and then he gets it ALL. However, he does have second thoughts and sets things right, but he doesn’t tell her ANY of that and he KNOWS she didn’t read the document disclosing her loss very closely. Also, when he discovers that she was UNTOUCHED and couldn’t be the mother of the baby he gets very angry and threatens divorce. NOTE that he has already come to the table dirty! His duplicity has already been acted out as they don’t sleep together until their wedding night! She lied to him and deceived him and yet….so did he! He rethinks things and returns but he still doesn’t fess up to her. Nope it’s a naughty relative that lets the cat out of the bag and Libby isn’t too happy w/ Raul, but she forgives him after all is discussed. It was an enjoyable read.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 5, 2011
You wonder how naive some women can be to think that they can pretend to be more experienced than they are and yes, this probably only happens in romance novels. At least I think they do.
It hilarious because "untouched" Tamsin tries to deceive Raul into thinking her baby brother Gino is hers. Raul tries to deceive Tamsin that he wants to get married and become a good father to Gino when he does want that but also wants to have full control of the family's company.
When it all gets unraveled , he gets mad at her for her deception but forgives her easily and decides to stay married. She gets mad at him for his deception not too much later but doesn't see forgiveness at the end of the rainbow. I wanted to slap her and it wasn't the first time. I don't know why CS made Tamsin so immature on this point but I guess there wouldn't be a story if she wasn't.
Raul should have tossed her to the curb, took the baby and the company, and said ciao. How she could be so unforgiving when her transgression seemed a hundred times worse was beyond me and CS didn't really redeem her, imho. Definitely, Raul was a character that grew on you and worthy of more than a simpering heroine.
Tamsin gets my first too-stupid-to-live heroine award this year.
It hilarious because "untouched" Tamsin tries to deceive Raul into thinking her baby brother Gino is hers. Raul tries to deceive Tamsin that he wants to get married and become a good father to Gino when he does want that but also wants to have full control of the family's company.
When it all gets unraveled , he gets mad at her for her deception but forgives her easily and decides to stay married. She gets mad at him for his deception not too much later but doesn't see forgiveness at the end of the rainbow. I wanted to slap her and it wasn't the first time. I don't know why CS made Tamsin so immature on this point but I guess there wouldn't be a story if she wasn't.
Raul should have tossed her to the curb, took the baby and the company, and said ciao. How she could be so unforgiving when her transgression seemed a hundred times worse was beyond me and CS didn't really redeem her, imho. Definitely, Raul was a character that grew on you and worthy of more than a simpering heroine.
Tamsin gets my first too-stupid-to-live heroine award this year.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 15, 2015
Rating: 3 stars
I really like how sweet the heroine and misunderstood by the hero. Like most books I read, this is definitely emotional, full of misunderstandings and assumptions and a sorta grovelling hero at the end. A decent read.
I really like how sweet the heroine and misunderstood by the hero. Like most books I read, this is definitely emotional, full of misunderstandings and assumptions and a sorta grovelling hero at the end. A decent read.
June 8, 2017
sebenarnya aku berharap ceritanya sedikit nyesek gitu. Terutama karena berdasar sinopsisnya terlihat Heronya begitu arogan. Tapi yah...ternyata cuma di awal-awal saja dia seperti itu. Gimana gak arogan dalam sekejap saja ia sudah memaksa agar Libby segera berkemas dan membawanya ke Italia. Dia pikir pindahan itu gampang kali yak?! Meski begitu sikap H sama baby Gino, anak dari ayah angkatnya, adorable banget. Bagaimanapun H merasa punya hutang pada ayah angkatnya yang telah memungutnya dari sebuah panti dan mengasuh serta membesarkannya dengan kasih sayang. Gak heran kan dia sayang banget sama baby Gino.
Sama Libby pun dia bersikap baik, meski sempat mengira kalo Libby adalah kekasih gelap ayahnya tapi H tidak bisa menyangkal gairahnya yang makin memuncak pada Libby. Begitu mengetahui rahasia Libby, dia sempat marah tapi kemudian ia bisa berfikir jernih dan mau menerima alasan2 Libby kenapa dia sampai berpura-pura jadi ibu Gino.
Sebenarnya tidak ada konflik yang berarti, apalagi sampai emosi serasa diremas-remas. Konfliknya begitu ringan, panasnya begitu terasa. Lumayan lah.
Sama Libby pun dia bersikap baik, meski sempat mengira kalo Libby adalah kekasih gelap ayahnya tapi H tidak bisa menyangkal gairahnya yang makin memuncak pada Libby. Begitu mengetahui rahasia Libby, dia sempat marah tapi kemudian ia bisa berfikir jernih dan mau menerima alasan2 Libby kenapa dia sampai berpura-pura jadi ibu Gino.
Sebenarnya tidak ada konflik yang berarti, apalagi sampai emosi serasa diremas-remas. Konfliknya begitu ringan, panasnya begitu terasa. Lumayan lah.
April 12, 2018
Entertaining read with some minor flaws that others may overlook. For an HP Extra, I thought there should've been more time to flesh out the characters and the attraction. Instant lust within one day is all well and good, but given the soapy plot set-up, a little more character/relationship build-up would've served the story better.
All in all, not a bad read, it just felt a little like I had seen and read it all before. The h was lively and brave in the beginning, but lost most of her pep by the middle of the book. There was some repetitive inner monologuing, but thankfully it happened in between scenes not in the middle of conversations!
And, I'm not really a big fan of huge age differences. Although the book never acknowledged it or made it an issue, there were times that the h really did come off way too young even though she was supposed to be this independent woman that was raised to be self-sufficient, etc. Fourteen years is a pretty big gap.
However, I would recommend it for a quick and steamy read.
All in all, not a bad read, it just felt a little like I had seen and read it all before. The h was lively and brave in the beginning, but lost most of her pep by the middle of the book. There was some repetitive inner monologuing, but thankfully it happened in between scenes not in the middle of conversations!
And, I'm not really a big fan of huge age differences. Although the book never acknowledged it or made it an issue, there were times that the h really did come off way too young even though she was supposed to be this independent woman that was raised to be self-sufficient, etc. Fourteen years is a pretty big gap.
However, I would recommend it for a quick and steamy read.
March 21, 2019
This worked, quite well. The guy is a bit of an ass, but starts getting his facts right sooner than later and amends his behavior even earlier than that so that helps a lot.
Not a lot of this particular type of story, daughter pretends to be her half-sibling's parent because her mom died and they have the same/similar name etc. But I'm oddly fond of them. This is a really good version of that.
I quite liked Libby, which always helps.
Not a lot of this particular type of story, daughter pretends to be her half-sibling's parent because her mom died and they have the same/similar name etc. But I'm oddly fond of them. This is a really good version of that.
I quite liked Libby, which always helps.
June 3, 2020
i didn't finish this book until today. after flipping a few chapters, i realized i put it away for a rainy day. now i know why i didn't finish it - i hate storylines when H thinks everyone is lying to him. that in itself made him the biggest asshole and i don't respect that. and even after he gets married to h he still believes she's lying to him.
June 3, 2020
i didn’t finish this book until today. after flipping a few chapters, i realized i put it away for a rainy day. now i remember why i didn’t finish it - i hate tropes when H thinks everyone is lying to him. that in itself made him the biggest asshole and i don’t respect that. and even after he gets married to h he still believes she’s lying to him.
January 11, 2026
First introduction to Chantelle Shaw, and I’m very very impressed. She’s definitely going on my insta-read shelf. The characters are well written and the steam level is pretty high (which I live for 😍). If I had to nitpick, it would be the fact that the hero’s bitter aunt never got a stern dressing down from him after she maliciously tried to sabotage his marriage.
September 25, 2020
7️⃣/🔟
Simple entretenimiento. Aunque la disfrute mucho y me engancho lo suficiente para acabarlo en el mismo día, no es una historia que perdure en mis recuerdos, lo más probable es que la termine olvidando
📱scribd
Simple entretenimiento. Aunque la disfrute mucho y me engancho lo suficiente para acabarlo en el mismo día, no es una historia que perdure en mis recuerdos, lo más probable es que la termine olvidando
📱scribd
July 31, 2019
4.5 stars
Would love to see her pregnancy journey but this is a lovely book. I enjoy every single chapter in this book and love both MCs and the lil baby Gino. The epilogue was sweet.
Would love to see her pregnancy journey but this is a lovely book. I enjoy every single chapter in this book and love both MCs and the lil baby Gino. The epilogue was sweet.
January 23, 2023
I enjoy the story along with the intimacy or the couple and the story be hind each person in the book
January 10, 2025
Too explicit and formulaic but I read every page. Rounded up to 3 stars.
March 26, 2016
I started reading this book with a high expectation - for a HQ romance - but I'm disappointed. Such a pity, because I do like both the hero and heroine. The heroine, especially, has a lot of potentials because it's not everyday we were given an HQ heroine with brash and impulsive personality but still smart - or street-smart, to be exact. I really like that she likes to dress in vibrant colors. Oh yes, I've had have too many HQ heroines with elegant tastes so having a different one is refreshing. The hero is also likable and judging from his background he has potentials to be developed into a 3-dimensional character.
Unfortunately my hopes had to crash against the old cliche of "lust at first sight". OK, I know that the "lust at first sight" trope is like a must in all HQ romance, but seriously, this story would have done better without that (or maybe if it's executed in better way?). The plot also doesn't help, what with the hero gives in to his 'heart' (or in this case, the ache in his groin) so fast and the unneeded charade from the heroine comes off as 'meh'. I guess it would be better if the author just let the book be about them dealing with their growing feelings. (But if that were the case this book wouldn't be an HQ after all) I realize that the theme is quite similar with Bond of Hatred but maybe because I wasn't expecting much when reading that, I end up liking that book - especially the first half - because the both the hero and heroine's hatred toward each other is so well written, thus making the UST so enjoyable.
Before this one, I've read Proud Greek, Ruthless Revenge by the same author and I like the way she depicts the relationship development between the two leads (yes, that one is also lust at first sight but it's done well in regards with the plot). Somehow I had certain expectations from this one also, which maybe why I get so disappointed that I only grant it 2 stars.
Unfortunately my hopes had to crash against the old cliche of "lust at first sight". OK, I know that the "lust at first sight" trope is like a must in all HQ romance, but seriously, this story would have done better without that (or maybe if it's executed in better way?). The plot also doesn't help, what with the hero gives in to his 'heart' (or in this case, the ache in his groin) so fast and the unneeded charade from the heroine comes off as 'meh'. I guess it would be better if the author just let the book be about them dealing with their growing feelings. (But if that were the case this book wouldn't be an HQ after all) I realize that the theme is quite similar with Bond of Hatred but maybe because I wasn't expecting much when reading that, I end up liking that book - especially the first half - because the both the hero and heroine's hatred toward each other is so well written, thus making the UST so enjoyable.
Before this one, I've read Proud Greek, Ruthless Revenge by the same author and I like the way she depicts the relationship development between the two leads (yes, that one is also lust at first sight but it's done well in regards with the plot). Somehow I had certain expectations from this one also, which maybe why I get so disappointed that I only grant it 2 stars.
August 2, 2021
Infamous Raul Carducci learns that a little baby may challenge his inheritance he will stop at nothing—a new Carducci heir will not take away what is rightfully his.
To safeguard baby Gino, unassuming Libby Maynard has been forced to pretend she is his mother—but she hasn't counted on having to convince the wolfish Raul Carducci of her deception.
And when Raul, with his achingly seductive voice, asks her to marry him, Libby is powerless to refuse...even if their wedding night will blow her cover!
To safeguard baby Gino, unassuming Libby Maynard has been forced to pretend she is his mother—but she hasn't counted on having to convince the wolfish Raul Carducci of her deception.
And when Raul, with his achingly seductive voice, asks her to marry him, Libby is powerless to refuse...even if their wedding night will blow her cover!
December 21, 2013
Standard run of the mill Harlequin Romance. They even got the heroine's name wrong once. It's comforting how poorly written these books are, that alone gets a 3 star rating from me. But it is nice to read a story that you know is going to have a happy ending, unlike real life romance where there's nothing but work to make it work. So definitely a 3.
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