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Pacific Waterfront #12
One Secret Too Many
Pacific Waterfront Romances, #3: "Alex" would never forget the magic of the night she met Sam on a deserted beach in Vancouver. But now the spell was broken and Alex Diamond, crimewriter extraordinary, was forced to return to her solitary existence as Mary Houseman from Prince Rupert. When Sam Dempsey, her "Sam," arrived to take up residence as the local doctor, Mary panicked.
192 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 1, 1990
1 person is currently reading
81 people want to read
About the author
Vanessa Grant
88 books44 followers"I love writing fiction - it's the perfect occupation for someone who can't decide what they want to be when they grow up. With each new story, I get to explore a new world."
Vanessa Grant's love affair with writing fiction began during a protracted illness at the age of 12 when she decided to write a novel of her own, sitting up in bed using the typewriter she'd been given for her birthday. Not a computer, not an electric typewriter, but a then-state-of-the-art manual typewriter. The story ground to a halt on page 50 but Vanessa never forgot the excitement of bringing her own characters to life.
In 1985 Vanessa's novel Pacific Disturbance was published in hardcover by Mills and Boon. She now has over 10 million books sold and has been translated into 15 languages. She also has written what one critic described as, "by far the best writing book I've ever read." Writing Romance, published by Self Counsel Press, won the Under the Covers Best Writing Book Award, and is currently in its third edition.
Over the years her love of storytelling and curiosity about people led Vanessa to study psychology, volunteer on a crisis line, complete individual and relationship counselor training, volunteer as a peer counselor for a family life organization, and tell stories about life, love, and secrets. Vanessa is also a university professor, a publisher of educational materials and eBooks, and has given workshops to writers' groups in Australia, New Zealand, the USA and Canada.
Vanessa and her husband live on Vancouver Island in the Pacific Northwest with their two Australian Shepherd dogs.
Vanessa Grant's love affair with writing fiction began during a protracted illness at the age of 12 when she decided to write a novel of her own, sitting up in bed using the typewriter she'd been given for her birthday. Not a computer, not an electric typewriter, but a then-state-of-the-art manual typewriter. The story ground to a halt on page 50 but Vanessa never forgot the excitement of bringing her own characters to life.
In 1985 Vanessa's novel Pacific Disturbance was published in hardcover by Mills and Boon. She now has over 10 million books sold and has been translated into 15 languages. She also has written what one critic described as, "by far the best writing book I've ever read." Writing Romance, published by Self Counsel Press, won the Under the Covers Best Writing Book Award, and is currently in its third edition.
Over the years her love of storytelling and curiosity about people led Vanessa to study psychology, volunteer on a crisis line, complete individual and relationship counselor training, volunteer as a peer counselor for a family life organization, and tell stories about life, love, and secrets. Vanessa is also a university professor, a publisher of educational materials and eBooks, and has given workshops to writers' groups in Australia, New Zealand, the USA and Canada.
Vanessa and her husband live on Vancouver Island in the Pacific Northwest with their two Australian Shepherd dogs.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
July 24, 2017
Re One Secret Too Many - Vanessa Grant's take on the 'Perfect Woman' theme takes a distinctly different tone than the preceding Emma Darcy novel.
In this one, the 25 yr. old small town minister's daughter h takes herself off to the big city for the weekend and has herself a little washed up on the beach rescued pirate captive fantasy with the 38 yr old physician H. They have one night of bliss and then part ways, seemingly forever and both left with a treasured memory of the perfect partner - only to be revisited in dreams.
The H and h are both damaged people, but in different ways. The H got a rough start in life with no family and dragged from one abusive or indifferent home after another. He is terrified of rejection, and tho he is a very competent surgeon and a competent doctor, he has no clue how interpersonal relationships work. His only friend and confidant is Jake, the H from Jenny's turn and Jake wants the H to consider leaving the full time but isolating demands of working in hospital and taking a job as a GP/Surgeon in a small practice in the north of Canada. The H has to admit that he is getting closer to burn out than he would like to be, so he agrees and he ends up as the newest physician in the h's hometown.
The h, on the other hand, has been raised by an abusive, domineering mother her whole life - while the woman is not physically abusive, her continual beratements and harrangues towards the h, coupled with an indifferent minster father have beaten this h down until she is a shadow of the woman she would like to be. Part of it is that the h's brother went wild on the drink and the drugs and died, but the other part is that the h's mother is more worried about her status and her town image than she actually is about her children.
The h has a few secrets tho, one of them is that she has just sold her first novel, a murder mystery and that is why she was in the big city and met the H. The second is that her little encounter with the H is going to have nine month consequences. To the H's credit, he is happy she is having a baby but he is just as internally insecure as she is, albeit in a different way, so when he offers to marry the h, she turns his proposal down as she doesn't believe in marrying for a baby's sake.
That doesn't stop the H from offering her space in his newly purchased huge house - it has a somewhat separate area that could be an apartment. The h agrees to rent it from him for a reduced rate as her mother goes ballistic when she finds out about the h's impending bundle of joy. Remarkably, the h manages to stand up to her mother and her demands that the h leave town and put her baby up for adoption.
Instead the h moves in with the H and his newly acquired ward, a young kid who got into a bit of trouble and the H gives him a hand to get on the straight and narrow, and soon a little family unit is formed. The h also starts using her middle name of Alex instead of Mary to exemplify the person she wants to grow into and she starts writing another book. We get to see the H and h from Takeover Man as well, as the H and h start to make friends with other couples.
As the days go by and time passes, the H and h get to know each other better and start to realize that the other person may really be permanently perfect for them and not just as a one time fantasy. The h gradually learns to assert herself and stand up to the gossips of the town, she also learns to let her mother's obsessions go and there really is no reconciliation between them.
The H, for his part, learns to share his feelings and ask for help when he needs it, especially after losing a patient at work. Both the them soon realize that the are two halves of a perfect whole and they try to figure out how to tell the other one how they really feel. The young man the H and h take in and mentor gets off to a good start with school and a job and finally the H and h declare they love each other and decide to marry for the big HEA.
This is a really simple but extremely sweet romance. Both the H and h have to overcome some significant internal hang ups to find each other but both of them are very understanding and patient with the other. Give this one a go when you want a sweet romance with low angst and a fluffy cotton candy HEA trip to HPlandia.
In this one, the 25 yr. old small town minister's daughter h takes herself off to the big city for the weekend and has herself a little washed up on the beach rescued pirate captive fantasy with the 38 yr old physician H. They have one night of bliss and then part ways, seemingly forever and both left with a treasured memory of the perfect partner - only to be revisited in dreams.
The H and h are both damaged people, but in different ways. The H got a rough start in life with no family and dragged from one abusive or indifferent home after another. He is terrified of rejection, and tho he is a very competent surgeon and a competent doctor, he has no clue how interpersonal relationships work. His only friend and confidant is Jake, the H from Jenny's turn and Jake wants the H to consider leaving the full time but isolating demands of working in hospital and taking a job as a GP/Surgeon in a small practice in the north of Canada. The H has to admit that he is getting closer to burn out than he would like to be, so he agrees and he ends up as the newest physician in the h's hometown.
The h, on the other hand, has been raised by an abusive, domineering mother her whole life - while the woman is not physically abusive, her continual beratements and harrangues towards the h, coupled with an indifferent minster father have beaten this h down until she is a shadow of the woman she would like to be. Part of it is that the h's brother went wild on the drink and the drugs and died, but the other part is that the h's mother is more worried about her status and her town image than she actually is about her children.
The h has a few secrets tho, one of them is that she has just sold her first novel, a murder mystery and that is why she was in the big city and met the H. The second is that her little encounter with the H is going to have nine month consequences. To the H's credit, he is happy she is having a baby but he is just as internally insecure as she is, albeit in a different way, so when he offers to marry the h, she turns his proposal down as she doesn't believe in marrying for a baby's sake.
That doesn't stop the H from offering her space in his newly purchased huge house - it has a somewhat separate area that could be an apartment. The h agrees to rent it from him for a reduced rate as her mother goes ballistic when she finds out about the h's impending bundle of joy. Remarkably, the h manages to stand up to her mother and her demands that the h leave town and put her baby up for adoption.
Instead the h moves in with the H and his newly acquired ward, a young kid who got into a bit of trouble and the H gives him a hand to get on the straight and narrow, and soon a little family unit is formed. The h also starts using her middle name of Alex instead of Mary to exemplify the person she wants to grow into and she starts writing another book. We get to see the H and h from Takeover Man as well, as the H and h start to make friends with other couples.
As the days go by and time passes, the H and h get to know each other better and start to realize that the other person may really be permanently perfect for them and not just as a one time fantasy. The h gradually learns to assert herself and stand up to the gossips of the town, she also learns to let her mother's obsessions go and there really is no reconciliation between them.
The H, for his part, learns to share his feelings and ask for help when he needs it, especially after losing a patient at work. Both the them soon realize that the are two halves of a perfect whole and they try to figure out how to tell the other one how they really feel. The young man the H and h take in and mentor gets off to a good start with school and a job and finally the H and h declare they love each other and decide to marry for the big HEA.
This is a really simple but extremely sweet romance. Both the H and h have to overcome some significant internal hang ups to find each other but both of them are very understanding and patient with the other. Give this one a go when you want a sweet romance with low angst and a fluffy cotton candy HEA trip to HPlandia.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 24, 2024
A repressed vicar's daughter leads a "secret" life as an author of murder mysteries in spite of her overbearing mother and her tedious life in a judgmental, gossipy little Canadian town. She manages to escape to the brights lights of the big city of Vancouver for a couple of nights to meet with her book editor. There, she meets the scarred, broody hero while walking at night on the beach. She promptly loses her virginity to him under the stars and then returns home, knowing it was a short-lived dream and she must be back in her ordered, monotonous life.
Lo and behold, it turns out that the hero is a doctor who has just been invited to join the general practice in the heroine's small town. The heroine visits his clinic to take a pregnancy test. Yup, the 25 year old virgin got knocked up from her one night stand despite the hero taking "precautions." There are some anguish-filled moments as heroine dithers over getting a secret abortion, giving up the baby, or facing the wrath of her parents and the judgey small town by becoming a single mother.
The hero is initially a big fat jerk to her too. He has a Sad, Traumatik background story (a prostitute mother, neglected childhood, more abuse and hardships throughout foster homes, until he finally became a juvenile delinquent at the age of 14) to explain away his commitment phobia but still, it was really hard to get past his initially volcanic reaction to her news of pregnancy.
The rather dull story starts to pick up pace as the heroine, against all odds, does NOT fall apart, or let herself get bullied. She stands up to her parents and to the hero, and decides she will bring up the baby on her own. The hero, ashamed of his previous outburst, grovels a bit and offers heroine to stay with him at least until she can get financially stable. Rather than martyrizing herself by renting out a grotty bedsit, working her fingers through the bones, and subsisting on beans and toast, the heroine pragmatically accepts his offer, provided she remains in a separate, private apartment unit that is an add-on to his house.
The hero proceeds to bend over backwards to make her stay as pleasant as possible, giving her the space she requires, making a very nice office for her where she can work on her next novel, and even taking in a former juvenile delinquent who he has decided to help try to turn his life around, just like he was helped himself in his troubled youth. Before long, they all become a makeshift family and even add a dog to the equation.
At some point, the hero and heroine realize that they are in love with each other but what is more important is that the hero realizes that conquering his fear of "family life" is actually well worth it, while the heroine realizes that she should stop being scared of other people's judgments. Once she has the gumption to live life on her own terms, she easily earns the respect of the townspeople, even if they don't agree with her choices. The fraught relationship with her pretty terrible parents is left twisting in the air, which I think was a pretty realistic way to conclude things. No doubt they will be coming around once the baby is born and they realize that the town is not heaping shame on them. I am just happy that the heroine came into her own and carved some real happiness for herself instead of trying to live with "one secret too many" :)
Lo and behold, it turns out that the hero is a doctor who has just been invited to join the general practice in the heroine's small town. The heroine visits his clinic to take a pregnancy test. Yup, the 25 year old virgin got knocked up from her one night stand despite the hero taking "precautions." There are some anguish-filled moments as heroine dithers over getting a secret abortion, giving up the baby, or facing the wrath of her parents and the judgey small town by becoming a single mother.
The hero is initially a big fat jerk to her too. He has a Sad, Traumatik background story (a prostitute mother, neglected childhood, more abuse and hardships throughout foster homes, until he finally became a juvenile delinquent at the age of 14) to explain away his commitment phobia but still, it was really hard to get past his initially volcanic reaction to her news of pregnancy.
The rather dull story starts to pick up pace as the heroine, against all odds, does NOT fall apart, or let herself get bullied. She stands up to her parents and to the hero, and decides she will bring up the baby on her own. The hero, ashamed of his previous outburst, grovels a bit and offers heroine to stay with him at least until she can get financially stable. Rather than martyrizing herself by renting out a grotty bedsit, working her fingers through the bones, and subsisting on beans and toast, the heroine pragmatically accepts his offer, provided she remains in a separate, private apartment unit that is an add-on to his house.
The hero proceeds to bend over backwards to make her stay as pleasant as possible, giving her the space she requires, making a very nice office for her where she can work on her next novel, and even taking in a former juvenile delinquent who he has decided to help try to turn his life around, just like he was helped himself in his troubled youth. Before long, they all become a makeshift family and even add a dog to the equation.
At some point, the hero and heroine realize that they are in love with each other but what is more important is that the hero realizes that conquering his fear of "family life" is actually well worth it, while the heroine realizes that she should stop being scared of other people's judgments. Once she has the gumption to live life on her own terms, she easily earns the respect of the townspeople, even if they don't agree with her choices. The fraught relationship with her pretty terrible parents is left twisting in the air, which I think was a pretty realistic way to conclude things. No doubt they will be coming around once the baby is born and they realize that the town is not heaping shame on them. I am just happy that the heroine came into her own and carved some real happiness for herself instead of trying to live with "one secret too many" :)
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 8, 2017
Sweet and lovely romance.
Mary who has a secret life as an author that no one at home knows about wants to let loose. Letting loose for her is as simple as stealing away to Vancouver, calling her self Alex, and walking on the beach. There she meets a mysterious stranger and nature takes its course.
Five weeks later the mysterious stranger arrives in her very small town. Struggling with the consequences of their night together, she also has to deal with shame brought down by a very domineering and shallow mother, a weak father who happens to be vicar (he needs to read the Bible a little better as he is useless), the threat of the biggest gossip finding out, and dealing with her one night stand's emotional distance. He's not real happy when he finds out she's pregnant, but he does step up to the plate.
The h ends up living with the hero and his new ward once he buys a big humongous house. He's not aware why he bought the house, but he wants the heroine to be safe and cared for even if he doesn't think he can do it.
The story took a nose dive for a while as the heroine is so afraid of anyone finding out. One would think that this was 1970-something rather than 1990. Anachronistic until you think of what it's like to be raised in a very small town by a such a domineering mother with an eye on to what will the neighbors think. Some interesting side stories that were dangled out there and then dropped: the bad boy brother that committed suicide, the bad girl aunt the the mother disapproves, and well I guess those are it.
Nice resolution when both the H and the h wake up to what they really have together. Very sweet.
Mary who has a secret life as an author that no one at home knows about wants to let loose. Letting loose for her is as simple as stealing away to Vancouver, calling her self Alex, and walking on the beach. There she meets a mysterious stranger and nature takes its course.
Five weeks later the mysterious stranger arrives in her very small town. Struggling with the consequences of their night together, she also has to deal with shame brought down by a very domineering and shallow mother, a weak father who happens to be vicar (he needs to read the Bible a little better as he is useless), the threat of the biggest gossip finding out, and dealing with her one night stand's emotional distance. He's not real happy when he finds out she's pregnant, but he does step up to the plate.
The h ends up living with the hero and his new ward once he buys a big humongous house. He's not aware why he bought the house, but he wants the heroine to be safe and cared for even if he doesn't think he can do it.
The story took a nose dive for a while as the heroine is so afraid of anyone finding out. One would think that this was 1970-something rather than 1990. Anachronistic until you think of what it's like to be raised in a very small town by a such a domineering mother with an eye on to what will the neighbors think. Some interesting side stories that were dangled out there and then dropped: the bad boy brother that committed suicide, the bad girl aunt the the mother disapproves, and well I guess those are it.
Nice resolution when both the H and the h wake up to what they really have together. Very sweet.
February 9, 2015
4 Stars ~ A preacher's daughter, still living at home, twenty-five year old Mary feels like she's constantly living in a fish bowl. Her mother has her convinced that any wrong move will set off the town gossips and ruin her reputation. So Mary lives her real life alone in her bedroom writing down her fantasy stories. Telling her parents that she's visiting a friend in Vancouver, she's really attending a meeting with her literary agent and a publisher who wants to publish her first book, one written under a pen name Alex Diamond. Swept up under her Alex persona, she signs the contract, setting her secret life into motion to becoming public. Late that afternoon she goes to the beach, where she is alone except for a solitary man in the distance. And as he gets closer, Mary can't help noticing that he's a man that carries his own secrets and he's bearing an emotional burden. Something about him calls out to her.
Sam's career as a doctor started late in his life, and now at 38 he's a surgeon at a busy Vancouver hospital. He's a product of the foster care system, with a hard past that has his convinced that family life will never be for him. The young woman on the beach draws him; somehow she seems to see right into his very soul, reaching at his pain and loneliness. Together the sit and watch a clipper ship on the horizon as the sun sets, weaving a tale about a maiden who is captured by the ships captain and manages to escape to their beach. They bond over this fantasy, and Mary tells him her name is Alex, and that she's a writer and all about her life of secrets as the preacher's daughter. Not wanting to end the night, they have dinner and then one thing leads to another, they make love. Both want a single night to remember. When Sam turns up in her town as the new doctor to join the medical center, Mary is just learning that their one night has had consequences, even though they had used protection. And now Mary's has a choice to make, is she Mary the preacher's daughter, or is she Alex a woman who is not a coward in living her own life.
This is the first book I've read by Vanessa Grant, and I really enjoyed it. I liked that the author actually changed the heroine's name from Mary to Alex as she came to recognize which woman she wanted to be. Both Sam and Alex have strong hangups from their upbringing. Sam's from a series of rejections in foster care, and Alex's from constantly living a her life to please everyone but herself. I wanted to slap her mother for her narrow minded opinions, and would have liked for her to have a bit of a comeuppance, and was thoroughly disappointed in Alex's father. Often the author has Sam remembering that Alex may be 25 but she's like a teenager when it comes to life's experience. Alex comes to realize that Sam will never ask for anything for himself, but will always be there for others when they need him. Together these two learn to overcome their hangups and find the HEA that they deserve. Nice story all around.
Sam's career as a doctor started late in his life, and now at 38 he's a surgeon at a busy Vancouver hospital. He's a product of the foster care system, with a hard past that has his convinced that family life will never be for him. The young woman on the beach draws him; somehow she seems to see right into his very soul, reaching at his pain and loneliness. Together the sit and watch a clipper ship on the horizon as the sun sets, weaving a tale about a maiden who is captured by the ships captain and manages to escape to their beach. They bond over this fantasy, and Mary tells him her name is Alex, and that she's a writer and all about her life of secrets as the preacher's daughter. Not wanting to end the night, they have dinner and then one thing leads to another, they make love. Both want a single night to remember. When Sam turns up in her town as the new doctor to join the medical center, Mary is just learning that their one night has had consequences, even though they had used protection. And now Mary's has a choice to make, is she Mary the preacher's daughter, or is she Alex a woman who is not a coward in living her own life.
This is the first book I've read by Vanessa Grant, and I really enjoyed it. I liked that the author actually changed the heroine's name from Mary to Alex as she came to recognize which woman she wanted to be. Both Sam and Alex have strong hangups from their upbringing. Sam's from a series of rejections in foster care, and Alex's from constantly living a her life to please everyone but herself. I wanted to slap her mother for her narrow minded opinions, and would have liked for her to have a bit of a comeuppance, and was thoroughly disappointed in Alex's father. Often the author has Sam remembering that Alex may be 25 but she's like a teenager when it comes to life's experience. Alex comes to realize that Sam will never ask for anything for himself, but will always be there for others when they need him. Together these two learn to overcome their hangups and find the HEA that they deserve. Nice story all around.
December 2, 2020
“One Secret Too Many” is the story of Alex/ Mary and Sam.
Our heroine is the timid daughter to a controlling mother and righteous vicar. She goes on a vacation to Vancouver when the secret novel she’s been writing gets publisher approval, and meets an enigmatic man. They end up doing the hanky panky under disguise, and then heroine returns back to her town of Prince Rupert.
As time passes, she realizes her one night of fun might have consequences and freaks out. She also finds that the new doctor in town is none other than the hero!
How she navigates being pregnant in a conservative town forms the story.
It could have been a good book but the heroine was a scaredy cat and the hero was impulsive. She hid the truth from everyone, cowered infront of her parents and refused to accept the hero. The hero was a douche initially but soon he also gives into the heroine’s insane demands.
I didn’t enjoy it much. Ok one time read.
Safe
2/5
Our heroine is the timid daughter to a controlling mother and righteous vicar. She goes on a vacation to Vancouver when the secret novel she’s been writing gets publisher approval, and meets an enigmatic man. They end up doing the hanky panky under disguise, and then heroine returns back to her town of Prince Rupert.
As time passes, she realizes her one night of fun might have consequences and freaks out. She also finds that the new doctor in town is none other than the hero!
How she navigates being pregnant in a conservative town forms the story.
It could have been a good book but the heroine was a scaredy cat and the hero was impulsive. She hid the truth from everyone, cowered infront of her parents and refused to accept the hero. The hero was a douche initially but soon he also gives into the heroine’s insane demands.
I didn’t enjoy it much. Ok one time read.
Safe
2/5
December 2, 2020
Both MCs were sweet!
April 15, 2017
The hero and heroine were both honest, and understanding.
They both needed a little growing up and come to terms with parenthood.
And they were BOTH really respectful to each other. Specially hero, he knew what he was offering was second best and heroine has every right to reject it, and doesn't hold it against the heroine when she does. He rather finds a way to be her friend and offer help and mental support when her family decides to abandon her.
I'll probably praise more once I came down from the high.
Definitely a 4.5 star read.
They both needed a little growing up and come to terms with parenthood.
And they were BOTH really respectful to each other. Specially hero, he knew what he was offering was second best and heroine has every right to reject it, and doesn't hold it against the heroine when she does. He rather finds a way to be her friend and offer help and mental support when her family decides to abandon her.
I'll probably praise more once I came down from the high.
Definitely a 4.5 star read.
April 24, 2014
She's a 25 year old virgin still staying with her parents. Totally unbelievable
September 29, 2017
Loved this book 👌
big-age-difference-skip-for-now
July 3, 2022Note to self:25h/38H
May 27, 2020
It had been sheer fantasy.
"Alex" would never forget the magic of the night she met "Sam" on a deserted beach in Vancouver.
Now the spell was broken and Alex Diamond, crime writer extraordinaire, was forced to return to her solitary existence as ordinary Mary Houseman from Prince Rupert.
When Sam Dempsey, her "Sam," arrived to take up residence as the local doctor, Mary panicked. If the secret of their one fateful night together became known, she'd never find a happy ending to her adventurous fairy tale
"Alex" would never forget the magic of the night she met "Sam" on a deserted beach in Vancouver.
Now the spell was broken and Alex Diamond, crime writer extraordinaire, was forced to return to her solitary existence as ordinary Mary Houseman from Prince Rupert.
When Sam Dempsey, her "Sam," arrived to take up residence as the local doctor, Mary panicked. If the secret of their one fateful night together became known, she'd never find a happy ending to her adventurous fairy tale
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews