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67th out of 385 books
—
468 voters
Parting Gifts (Homespun #30)
Marrying Maddie, a woman who works in a brothel in order to survive, widower Charles Lawson hopes to provide his three children with a loving mother until his terminal illness causes him to arrange a match between Maddie and his brother.
Mass Market Paperback, 288 pages
Published
December 28th 1994
by Diamond/Charter
(first published December 1994)
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502)
Sep 06, 2012
Kristen
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommended to Kristen by:
Jenny E
4 stars
My goodness, what an emotional book! This story definitely played havoc with my emotions. I went from feeling happy to sad to frustrated to giddy. Occasionally it brought tears to my eyes.
The characters were wonderfully develop and extremely endearing, the plot well fleshed out and captivating. My only qualm about this book is that the three main characters refused to communicate with each other regarding some very important issues and other, less important issues that caused unneeded em...more
My goodness, what an emotional book! This story definitely played havoc with my emotions. I went from feeling happy to sad to frustrated to giddy. Occasionally it brought tears to my eyes.
The characters were wonderfully develop and extremely endearing, the plot well fleshed out and captivating. My only qualm about this book is that the three main characters refused to communicate with each other regarding some very important issues and other, less important issues that caused unneeded em...more
view all 21 comments
"Good. My children so enjoy gifts. It is my hope, Maddie, that you shall be the finest one I ever give them."
When i'm looking for something to get me out of a reading funk or maybe just a good Western, I always turn to Lorraine Heath. This is a stand alone book but this may be one of my favorites.
In Parting Gifts we meet Maddie, a girl who's come to the end of her struggle and has nothing else but her body to sell in order to eat and survive. She finds herself at Bevs standing on a table sellin...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
This was a wonderful book. (Don't read it if you don't like to cry--I was crying by the end of the first chapter.)
You will know what the outcome is pretty much from the first couple pages of chapter two but that doesn't matter the story was really good and there is a twist in the middle that I didn't expect.
I don't want to write a review with spoilers but the story is about a woman that has no skills, her father and brother have just been killed, she has sold her coat and shoes and has nothing e...more
You will know what the outcome is pretty much from the first couple pages of chapter two but that doesn't matter the story was really good and there is a twist in the middle that I didn't expect.
I don't want to write a review with spoilers but the story is about a woman that has no skills, her father and brother have just been killed, she has sold her coat and shoes and has nothing e...more
Most of the books from Lorraine Heath are truly amasing. She is a very talented writer.
First of all, if you do not feel like crying don't read this book, because i was crying my heart out.
Mostly this is a romance, but to me i got more out of it than just a love story.
This book questions life and what we as individuals can do to make most of it. Do we hold the reins of our life? Are we led just by our responsibilities and what are the right things to do? Is it the most logical choice the right on...more
First of all, if you do not feel like crying don't read this book, because i was crying my heart out.
Mostly this is a romance, but to me i got more out of it than just a love story.
This book questions life and what we as individuals can do to make most of it. Do we hold the reins of our life? Are we led just by our responsibilities and what are the right things to do? Is it the most logical choice the right on...more
I've wanted to read Parting Gifts for some time, but didn't want to pay the out of print price. Thank goodness Heath's once out of print historicals are now being re-released on Kindle because I finally got my chance!
This book was amazing.
Heath is known for her ability to tug at heart strings and write some profound tear-jerkers, and Parting Gifts is certainly "one of those".
A widower, Charles Lawson rescues Maddie from a brothel where she is about to surrender her body to the highest bidder. H...more
This book was amazing.
Heath is known for her ability to tug at heart strings and write some profound tear-jerkers, and Parting Gifts is certainly "one of those".
A widower, Charles Lawson rescues Maddie from a brothel where she is about to surrender her body to the highest bidder. H...more
Unlike most historical novel that shoves technicalites on the onset, this book pulls you into the story with the nakedness of the character's plight. I believe the author is writing to tell a story and not to impress. And what a story worth telling. The plot is smoothly woven with the character's development that all you can do is enjoy and feel with your fellow travelers on the story until the end.
Meet the catalyst of the story - Charles, a man who has first hand experienced of that once in a l...more
Meet the catalyst of the story - Charles, a man who has first hand experienced of that once in a l...more
Wow!! What an emotional roller coaster this book is! I have to hand it to Lorraine Heath for another wonderful Western Romance! She is the queen of these!! Mt favorite character is Jessie ~sigh~ This story is very different and very absorbing.
On a side note, the new Kindle cover is SO much better! Its wonderful that LH's older books are now available on Kindle ( Along with the steamy covers!)
On a side note, the new Kindle cover is SO much better! Its wonderful that LH's older books are now available on Kindle ( Along with the steamy covers!)
I loved this book! If I could give it more than 5* I would. This one is one of my favorite all time reads and the best one that I've read this year. I didn't want to put it down and the only time I did was when I knew poeple would be at my door soon and I was at a very sad part, I could feel my throat closing and knew that the tears would be flowing freely at any minute. Not the way I would like to answer the door.lol I did tell my family after dinner to just ingnore me for awhile because I was...more
The book for the reader who longs to ugly-cry. This is a very emotional book. Even things that you know are going to happen destroy your composure when they do. It's a rough one.
I won't go into the story line. These early books of Heath's have some clunkyness, but it's minor. She's a great writer of historical romance and I love her books that take place in Texas. She's got a great feel for the old fashioned cowboy life.
Keep the tissues close. Make sure you don't have to be anywhere for a while...more
I won't go into the story line. These early books of Heath's have some clunkyness, but it's minor. She's a great writer of historical romance and I love her books that take place in Texas. She's got a great feel for the old fashioned cowboy life.
Keep the tissues close. Make sure you don't have to be anywhere for a while...more
I really enjoyed this book. There were places I laughed and cried. If you love romance stories then this book is for you.
Maddie walks into a brothel, because she has no other means of supporting herself and is desperate, where she meets Charles, who offers to marry her, so he can have a woman to hold at night, and a mother for his three children and she will always have a roof over her head and food in her belly.
This book is about dreams, gifts, generous and the gracious Charles, who I had a lit...more
Maddie walks into a brothel, because she has no other means of supporting herself and is desperate, where she meets Charles, who offers to marry her, so he can have a woman to hold at night, and a mother for his three children and she will always have a roof over her head and food in her belly.
This book is about dreams, gifts, generous and the gracious Charles, who I had a lit...more
The Best of Lorraine Heath <3 <3 <3
Maddie is a desperate young women with a past hunting her. Her father and brother recently died and she can't provide for her self .. she goes to a brothel and there where she meet her rescuer ..
Charles is a widower who lives with his three young children and his elder brother "Jesse". They have an Inn which isn't paying will. so, they join their monies and Charles go to the city to by a flock. He steps into the brothel and ends spending his money and...more
Maddie is a desperate young women with a past hunting her. Her father and brother recently died and she can't provide for her self .. she goes to a brothel and there where she meet her rescuer ..
Charles is a widower who lives with his three young children and his elder brother "Jesse". They have an Inn which isn't paying will. so, they join their monies and Charles go to the city to by a flock. He steps into the brothel and ends spending his money and...more
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
I don't know what happened with this book; I usually love stories where the heroine is in love with her fiance's/husband's brother, so it wasn't the subject that put me off. I also love Heath, especially her older books, so it wasn't the writing. And yet, it took me over 2 weeks to finish this book.
Maddie is saved from working in a brother by Charles Lawson. He makes a huge bid for her virginity and then askes her to become his wife, but mostly, a mother to his children. Maddie, out of any optio...more
Maddie is saved from working in a brother by Charles Lawson. He makes a huge bid for her virginity and then askes her to become his wife, but mostly, a mother to his children. Maddie, out of any optio...more
Aug 06, 2012
Jenny E
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
all-time-favorite,
favorite-couple,
have-kleenex-handy,
on-my-kindle,
romance,
swoony,
western
Can you love and hate a book at the same time?
I loved this book, but I snot-sobbed cried through the last third...OMG talk about digging a knife into my heart and twisting!! Totally not the type of book I usually read, but I couldn't help myself and it was sooo soooooo good, but sooo soooooo sad! I knew this going in and read it anyway...glutton for punishment!
I cried ugly tears and bawled my eyes out...yay me for torturing myself!!
It really is a beautiful story though *sigh*
I loved this book, but I snot-sobbed cried through the last third...OMG talk about digging a knife into my heart and twisting!! Totally not the type of book I usually read, but I couldn't help myself and it was sooo soooooo good, but sooo soooooo sad! I knew this going in and read it anyway...glutton for punishment!
I cried ugly tears and bawled my eyes out...yay me for torturing myself!!
It really is a beautiful story though *sigh*
A very emotional story from the very start. He chose her as his wife (really he bought her at a bordello, brrrrrrrr!) because he's a widow with little children and a brother needing of someone and he's ill and will die in little time.
We have all the emotional factors we can count here:
orphaned little children
a girl forced to sell herself in order to survive
a brother in love with his brother's wife
as I said very emotional!
We have all the emotional factors we can count here:
orphaned little children
a girl forced to sell herself in order to survive
a brother in love with his brother's wife
as I said very emotional!
Apr 25, 2010
Jess the Romanceaholic
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Shelves:
tearjerker,
major-character-death,
2010-read,
angsty-read,
forbidden-love,
marriage-of-convenience,
child-or-children-play-a-big-part,
on-the-run,
kidnapped,
mistress-or-courtesan,
assassin-mercenary-or-bounty-hunter,
auto-buy,
blame-it-on-your-parents,
celibate-hero,
enemies-to-lovers,
love-triangle,
oh-noes-u-saw-me-nekkid,
law-enforcement,
last-will-and-testament,
second-or-more-marriage,
sexual-dysfunction,
tortured-hero,
frontier-romance
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Classic Lorraine Heath at her best! Maddie, suddenly left with no means to support herself, sacrifices the last she has to offer to a brothel and to the highest bidder. Charles, who happens to be in the audience, makes a bid no one can challenge....
Now married, they return to his home where his 3 children and handsome older brother Jesse await. Oh yeah, Maddie has a dark past. Jesse is a former Texas Ranger. And Charles, he's only expected to live a few more months.....
I loved this book. It *alm...more
Now married, they return to his home where his 3 children and handsome older brother Jesse await. Oh yeah, Maddie has a dark past. Jesse is a former Texas Ranger. And Charles, he's only expected to live a few more months.....
I loved this book. It *alm...more
Apr 01, 2013
Babyfishmouth
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
kindle,
historical-romance
I'm so glad I decided to read this book. I was in the mood for something different and this book threw me right back to the early 90's and the old style of romantic hero. Unfortunately, the 90's hero comes with a 90's heroine but I didn't let that ruin my enjoyment.
The plot is predicable, the villains are cartoonish and the resolution is sappy and sweet. There are some touching moments and also some TSTL moments. What really worked for me, though, is how well Lorraine Heath builds the tension a...more
The plot is predicable, the villains are cartoonish and the resolution is sappy and sweet. There are some touching moments and also some TSTL moments. What really worked for me, though, is how well Lorraine Heath builds the tension a...more
After reading two of Heath's most recent books (Pembroke Lords, #1 and #2) and being very disappointed, I found this to be very good and a little angsty at times. The plot is good and the characters are well drawn; she even throws in a bit of a mystery as well. Published in 1994, this was one of her earlier books and you can sense the talent that propelled her to be a favorite writer among her many fans.
Lorraine Heath is one of my favorite authors, but this is not one of her best. While the premise is interesting (a man who is dying marries a girl to save her from destitution/prostitution, become a mother to his kids, and save everyone in his family from loneliness), it just wasn't that well executed. All of the characters were just kind of blah. There are better Heath books out there.
I love a good "honourable people/forbidden love" story. This one was a bit reminiscent of Hearts of the West by Penelope Williamson, but in a much less epic, much more sentimental vein. Perhaps too sentimental for some readers, but the themes are explored so carefully and thoroughly that it worked for me.
My least favorite of Lorraine Heath's western historicals. Found the plot too obvious - the "surprise" ending was clear from the start. The pace was too slow and I did not particularly like the characters.
Managed to finish, though, so three stars.
Managed to finish, though, so three stars.
Probably I would be very glad about this story, if I still loved het romances. The problem is, I don't. It was nice, but I wasn't interested. And that was suppose to be a tear-jerker? Ekhm, I doubt it. Definitely not for me.
This book was OK, and while it did get an emotional reaction in some cases, the main romance itself just kind of fell flat at times. It's my personal preference, but I've never felt comfortable with the borderline cheating stories, even though in this case said romance was encouraged and even arranged.
Very sweet. I'm not usually a fan of love triangles, and this one was pleasantly not a love triangle at all. It was sad, but not overly so. The characters were wonderful, and I felt like they were real people.
Lorraine Heath has a unique ability to flip between different cultures adeptly. She is a very descriptive writer and paints a scene quickly. I love the visuals.
What to say about this one - it was sweet, it was nice, it was sweet, um, it was sweet?
If I had to use one word, I would use tepid. Nice heroine, nicer husband-in-name-only who stays alive too long, nice Hero, great kids, everyone is just so freaking NICE!
Angsty? Not really.
Sad? Kind of.
Wasted potential for a major tear-jerker? Yup.
Steamy? Nuh-uh.
It read to me like a watered-down version of The Fulfillment. Boy, there was some angst. A much better read, btw, if you're looking for brothers, babie...more
If I had to use one word, I would use tepid. Nice heroine, nicer husband-in-name-only who stays alive too long, nice Hero, great kids, everyone is just so freaking NICE!
Angsty? Not really.
Sad? Kind of.
Wasted potential for a major tear-jerker? Yup.
Steamy? Nuh-uh.
It read to me like a watered-down version of The Fulfillment. Boy, there was some angst. A much better read, btw, if you're looking for brothers, babie...more
Charles saves Maddie from being auctioned off in a brothel. But it's Charles' older brother Jesse that Maddie comes to love. On my Kindle.
This was an amazing story. It's sweet and moving and you won't be able to put it down!
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Lorraine Heath has always had a soft spot for emotional love stories. No doubt because growing up, watching movies with her mom, she was taught that the best movies "won't half make you cry."
She is the daughter of a British beauty (her mom won second place in a beauty contest sponsored by Max Factor® during which she received a kiss from Caesar Romero--Joker on the original Batman TV series) and a...more
More about Lorraine Heath...
She is the daughter of a British beauty (her mom won second place in a beauty contest sponsored by Max Factor® during which she received a kiss from Caesar Romero--Joker on the original Batman TV series) and a...more
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“He stirred the fire, and when he spoke, his voice blended in with the roar of the fire's blaze. "I want tonight, Maddie." He twisted his body away from the fire until his attention was focused entirely on her. "Tell me you don't love me, and I'll sleep on the other side of the fire. Otherwise, I intend to take tonight.”
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“If she made a cake for him, she'd use salt in place of sugar-and lots of it.”
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