The Heir's Chosen Bride

Castle at Dolphin Bay #2

by Marion Lennox

As a widow and single mom, Susan is wary about meeting the man who has just inherited the rambling castle in Australia where she and her small daughter live. Surely New York financier Hamish Douglas will want to sell up?

Hamish had planned to turn the castle into a luxury hotel — until he met the beautiful Susie. He might see everything as a potential business deal, but even he couldn't deny the attraction between them. Nor could he evict her and her baby from their beloved home. For Hamish, surely marriage was the only sensible solution?

But Susie is the last person who will accept a marriage proposal just because it's "sensible." If Hamish wants to marry her, he'll have to prove he loves her first!

Genres: Romance, Harlequin, Fiction

192 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2006

About the author

Writing romance sounds fascinating. Huh?

I'm a writer. I'm boring. Day after day I sit behind a word processor making up people in my head. Why do I do it? I love it. My husband, Dave, gets up in the morning, puts on a suit and heads out into the ice and cold of Ballarat's winter. (Sadly I live in one of the tiny parts of Australia that qualifies as cold.) I make myself another cup of coffee, head up to my study, choose what music I want and sit and daydream. And I get paid for doing it. Hooray!

My first attempt at writing romance, 'Dare To Love Again', a Medical Romance, was published by Harlequin Mills and Boon in 1990. It still stands today as a monument to my family's ability to survive on cheese sandwiches and spaghetti.

Since then I've written over 80 Romances for Harlequin Mills and Boon, with more on the drawing board. (I used a pseudonym - Trisha David - for the first few Romances but suffered with a split personality and have since reverted to being Marion Lennox all the time.) In between romances, I've co-authored a non-fiction history, (I love local history) done the odd (very odd) spot of housework and done a heap of travelling - research :-)

I come from a farming community. You can probably tell this from my books. There's not a skyscraper in sight. I'm very much a pets person. Chloe and Harry were my constant canine companions for many years as I wrote, demanding walks and air freshener at frequent intervals. Sadly I lost them, and for a while I vowed not to get another. My heart was broken and my study smelled so clean! But.. The cat and I missed them so badly we weakened and bought Mitzi. Mitzi's a black and silver mini-schnauzer who makes me and the cat laugh. Expect to find her in future stories.

If you're interested in formalities, I hold a Bachelor of Commerce degree and a teaching diploma. I have a couple of kids and a huge extended family who look on me with affectionate tolerance. Marion? The crazy one who talks to people in her head... I've had nine nominations for the Rita, winning twice, and fourteen for the Australian Book of the Year. After years of thinking of my writing as a hobby I guess I finally now qualify as a `real' writer.

Thank your for taking the trouble to check out my web page. Now try my books. We might even end up having fun together. And write to me. I show my family - `See? Real people do like the things that go in in my head.'

Reviews

[kye_sg · Rating 4 out of 5]

a very long but delightful read. would be better if susie is less angry .. she seemed to be angry 90% of the book

[Kay · Rating 5 out of 5]

4 1/2 Stars! ~ When Angus Douglas passed away, it was the oldest living male heir that inherited his title of Earl of Loganaich and all the properties belonging to the family trust. At one time the heir would have been his nephew Rory, but Rory’s jealous brother had murdered him; and now the legacy belongs to their long lost cousin Hamish. Susie was Rory’s widow and she and her baby daughter Rose had lived with Angus during the last year of his life. When Hamish arrives in Australia, he tells Susie he has no desire to keep the Castle Loganaich and that he has invited an appraiser to discuss selling the Castle to a hotel developer. Hamish likes the controlled life he leads; he is very uncomfortable with any intense show of emotion. Meeting Susie shakes him up, as there is nothing controlled or unemotional about her. And she has a way of getting him to do things that he is surprised to find he enjoys, like wearing Douglas tartan. In full Scottish glory; kilt, sporran, socks with tassels and all; and appearing as Lord Douglas at the Dolphin Bay Harvest Thanksgiving fete, Hamish starts the matchmaking tongues wagging.

This book should have been nominated for a RITA as well. It was wonderful. What fun watching Hamish come to terms with his own emotions and learning that not all women use tears to manipulate. I found him thoroughly adorable. Susie has come along way since losing her husband, than Angus, and now the Castle. These two make a great couple. This is another must read book.

[Estara · Rating 4 out of 5]

This has the worst realistic villain of any Marion Lennox book I've read - pretty often she doesn't have a villain at all. Susan is just getting to grips with normal life again, trying to keep the old Earl invigorated, working on the garden around the castle, when the newly notified heir (her husband would have been the direct heir), a broker from the US, shows up and basically says he wants to sell the castle to a luxury hotel company.

There's lots of give and take and a guy who's only ever been after the business of making money slowly thawing into relaxing life and taking it as it comes in Banksia Bay.

I liked the fact that his fiancee wasn't vilified all that much, just totally focused on her own life (whose vision he had used to share) - I could have done with the final kick in the pants of her making love to someone else, especially when that came after he had already kissed, etc. Susan.

I liked the town of Banksia Bay again playing a role and welcoming everyone - and I loved the eventual fate for the Scottish Castle.

[Colleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was pleasantly surprised. For a Mills and Boon book, this one was quite good. The only thing I didn't particularly like was the turn around. If it had have been a few chapters longer, it'd have been a four or five star book. It just changed too quickly from a lovely romance to a cliche novel.

[Tia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This novel was fucking crazy but it happened to be whacky good crazy. I enjoyed it!