The Last Woman He'd Ever Date

by Liz Fielding

Claire Thackeray: Hardworking single mom and gossip columnist. Hoping for the inside scoop on sexy billionaire Hal North, aka her teen crush!Most wary of: Gorgeous men who set her heart racing. (Been there, got the T-shirt—and the baby!)

Hal North: Bad boy made good. Back in his hometown as new owner of the Cranbrook Park estate. Determined to put his troubled past behind him.

Most wary of: Journalists—especially pretty ones, like new neighbor and tenant Claire Thackeray.

Genres: Romance, Harlequin, Hqn, Category Romance, Contemporary Romance

Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

Hi, I'm Liz Fielding, and I'm a best selling contemporary romance author with more than 15 million books in print and Katie Fforde wrote, when honouring me with the Romantic Novelists' Association's Outstanding Achievement Award in 2019 said - "Liz Fielding's books, with their warmth, humour and emotion, have charmed millions of readers. She is a true star of the romantic fiction genre..."

And now I've turned to a life of crime with my first cozy mystery. Murder Among the Roses, published on 18 April 2023 - of which Katie Fforde also said, "I was gripped from beginning to end..."

Reading is a big part of my life. I love witty, contemporary romances, not too much sex,, Women's fiction by the likes of Fiona Harper, Julie Cohen, Susan Elizabeth Phillips, Jennifer Crusie and Barbara O'Neal. And I love crime fiction that isn't too gory, or focussed on clue hunting, but is big on character.

My best loved series at the moment are the Ruth Galloway series by Elly Griffiths, The Rivers of London series by Ben Aaronovitch and the Libby Sarjeant Mysteries by Lesley Cookman. I've just read the first in the Georgina Drake crime series from Kate Hardy and looking forward to the next.

For news and excerpts of my new releases, visit me at http://www.lizfielding.com and sign up for my newsletter

Reviews

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good book. Hal was once the bad boy of Maybridge, before he was chased out of town by Claire's father and the previous owner of Cranbrook Park. Now he is back, and the new owner of the estate. Claire's father is gone, so he intends to take his revenge on her, who he remembers as the local princess. Claire is now a single mother, working for the local newspaper. She remembers Hal very well, because she had had a crush on him. Now she wants to do a story on him, but he has no intention of giving it to her. Hal starts out intending to destroy Claire and her home. But every time he does something to make things awkward for Claire he finds himself spending time with her and her daughter and having fun. He hadn't intended to spend any time actually at the estate, but now he is there and doing nice things for Claire and the rest of the town. I loved the way that he kept acting like a ruthless monster, but his inner nice guy kept coming to the surface. I liked Claire also. She had made the decision to give her daughter the best life she could. She works very hard at her job at the newspaper and is determined to get the story on Hal and how he went from bad boy to billionaire. She did have a tendency to jump to conclusions, but had no problem owning up to her mistakes. I loved the way she was a good influence on Hal. There was some wonderful dialog between the two that made them seem even more real to me.

[Sara HarlequinJunkie · Rating 4 out of 5]

My Blog: HarlequinJunkie Romance Reviews

A Heartwarming romance! Let me start by saying that Ms. Fielding is a remarkable storyteller; she has a knack of drawing the readers in from the get go.

The Last Woman He’d Ever Date is a wonderfully charming love story; with a magnificent setting of an English country side in “Canbrook Hall and a good dash of humor. Liz Fielding has written two exceptional and relatable characters in Hal North and Claire Thackeray, one can’t help but connect with the town’s bad boy made good Hal North and single mom and gossip columnist Claire.
I loved Claire’s character She was feisty and sassy, the banter between Claire and Hal was an absolute treat to read...

A quote from the book:
"I brought your shoe" he said
She took it from him without slowing down, without looking at him. It was caked in wet sticky mud and she tossed it defiantly back into the ditch.
'That was stupid'
'Was it?' probably. Undoubtedly. She'd come back and find it later....

The Last Woman He’d Ever Date is a feel good romance, a perfect read for any reader looking to get away from all the angst filled reads out there.

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A witty, charming, and wonderfully uplifting story from one of contemporary romance’s most dazzling voices, The Last Woman He’d Ever Date is the latest sublimely written tale from multi-award winning author Liz Fielding.

Hal North had once been the village bad boy. Written off by his teachers as being a lazy troublemaker who only cared about wreaking mayhem wherever he want, Hal’s future looked bleak and miserable. But what the small-minded village gossips hadn’t realized was that Hal had an ambitious streak and a fierce determination to show those who had passed judgment on him just what he was made of. Fast forward a couple of years and Hal is no longer the devil may care troublemaker heading for nowhere but a multi-millionaire who had built his fortune from nothing. Now one of the world’s most successful businessmen, Hal can have anything he wants and he has set his sights on acquiring the magnificent country estate, Cranbook Park, home to the father who has always refused to acknowledge him. When he achieves his goal, Hal cannot wait to wreak his revenge upon the man who had destroyed his beloved mother’s life and marred his childhood – and to make snooty Claire Thackeray pay for her estate manager father’s past actions.

Claire had spent most of her teenage years fantasizing about Hal North. But the cool leather clad biker didn’t even know she existed! Claire is no longer a gauche teenager with a crush on the village hell raiser, but a single mother trying her hardest to make ends meet. As a freelance journalist working on the local paper, Claire doesn’t make much but she is determined to give her beloved daughter the best possible start in life. There is nothing she wouldn’t do to provide her daughter with a secure future – which is why she is hoping to get the inside scoop on Hal North and hopefully get a more permanent post on the paper. There is only small problem: Hal refuses to talk to the press – and he is adamant that he will not give so much as an inch to the daughter of the man responsible for chucking him out of the village all those years ago.

But Hal’s resolve to keep Claire at arm’s length crumbles the moment he claps eyes on her. Claire might be infuriating and aggravating, but Hal just cannot stop himself from wanting to kiss her! He has spent all these years hating her family for not standing up to his natural father’s bullying ways and obeying his tyrannical instructions, but the more time he spends with Claire and her adorable daughter, the more he finds himself wishing that he could become a permanent part of their lives.

Is Hal prepared to lay the past to rest? And is Claire willing to trust anyone else ever again? Or are they both scared to face up to the truth about their feelings for one another?

Liz Fielding has struck gold once again with The Last Woman He’d Ever Date. A tender, poignant and emotional tale about trust, healing from the past and taking a chance on love that is liberally sprinkled with all the warmth, magic and heart that we’ve come to expect from Liz Fielding, The Last Woman He’d Ever Date is a fantastic contemporary romance that has got it all: a gorgeous hero, a terrific heroine, witty one-liners, sizzling sexual tension, intense emotional drama and moving pathos that will keep readers spellbound from beginning to end!

[Fiona Marsden · Rating 4 out of 5]

Liz Fielding is a must read among the Romance authors. Her stories combine nicely balanced humour with beautifully drawn characters and just a nice touch of sizzle.
This is the story of two people whose lives had been impacted by the Master of Cranbrook Park Estate. Both Hal and Claire grew up on the Estate as children of employees of Sir Robert Cranbrook. Claire, the good girl living up to her mother's ambitions had little to do with the older but very attractive bad boy. Hal's behaviour when he realised he was the illegitimate son of Sir Robert, finally led to his banishment when he was nineteen and Claire barely a teenager.

Now Hal is back and he is planning revenge, best served cold. But his first meeting with Claire, the daughter of one of the men he has cause to hate, gets him all steamed up.

Claire has been wary of men since the birth of her daughter eight years ago. Hal has all sorts of warning buzzers going off and every encounter has her making rules in her head to counter the attraction.

In spite of this, they end up spending a lot of time together, with Hal making friends with Claire's daughter Alice. The funny thing is that every time he thinks of something to make things awkward for Claire, he ends up spending time with her, and enjoying himself.

This is a very sweet love story between two people who have been hurt in the past and are very cautious. Hal's lingering plans for revenge almost put a spanner in the works, especially as they trigger Claire's insecurities. But the ending is satisfying and very sweet.

I really enjoyed this story. Both protagonists had disappointing early romances or marriages that impacted negatively on their emotions. It was nice to see how the sweet nature of Claire drew the poison that had infected Hal because of his bitterness over his birth father's behaviour and the impact it had on his mother.

I received this book as a review copy but would have purchased it at some point. All Liz Fielding's books are keepers.

[Lucy Felthouse · Rating 4 out of 5]

Article first published as Book Review: The Last Woman He'd Ever Date by Liz Fielding on Blogcritics.

The Last Woman He'd Ever Date is a contemporary romance novel by Liz Fielding, published by Mills & Boon, as part of their RIVA line.

It tells the story of Claire Thackeray and Hal North, two people who grew up in the same village, Cranbrook, but on very different sides of the fence, for want of a better description. Claire was privately educated and destined for great things. Hal was the local bad boy, destined for not so good things. However, in a twist of fate, many years later, when Hal returns to the village, Claire is a single mum working on the local newspaper, and Hal is a multi-millionnaire.

They have many things in common, not least Cranbrook Park and its beautiful hall and gardens, growing up in the same familiar place, friends, and family. Unfortunately, they also have several things that threaten to cause serious trouble between them, not least the fact that Hal was slighted by Claire's father and is determined to get his own back on the Thackeray family, and Claire is looking for the next big piece for the newspaper - and local boy done good is the perfect angle.

Will the two resolve their differences and give in to the spark between them? Or is it all set to come crashing down around their ears and start a turf war?

Overall, The Last Woman He'd Ever Date is a great book. The tension between the characters is there from the very beginning. That, coupled with the humour dotted throughout the book, the real-life problems, and the glitz and glamour, make for a very entertaining read, and one I'd recommend for someone looking for a short-ish romantic novel to check out. Especially if you love sassy heroines and hunky heroes.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having been holed up for the (lack of) Summer with a lot of great YA and crime reads, I was delighted to have the opportunity to read and review a romance book. Liz Fielding is a great writer, that is apparent from the off. She has a wit and sense of humour similar to mine, so the little jokes in the text and quips between the character suited me and I had a great laugh about them.

Hal North is a character that you want to crack from the off, he is outwardly haughty, cold and indifferent to our heroine Claire Thackeray, but we as the reader obviously know his reasons for this. I for one wanted to give him a big hug in some parts and a kick up the backside in others. It's one of those stories where you can see the plot coming for the most part; as in you know they are made for each other and will end the book riding off into the sunset, but the way Liz weaves it is so infuriatingly, teasingly good that you cannot put the book down!

I have nothing bad to say about this book, it's well written, fun, an easy read with a generous dollop of romance thrown in. Now that the summer is finally here, this would make a stunning beach read.

[Helen Baggott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not long ago I reviewed Liz Fielding's Little Book of Writing Romance and having enjoyed the theory, I was keen to see how Liz applied her wealth of knowledge. So along came The Last Woman He'd Ever Date. I knew that within a few pages the hero and heroine would meet, there would a connection - in this case, a forceful one on the lips. But just how would they resolve their differences, settle disputes and leave me the reader feeling as satisfied as Claire and Hal surely would be?


They had grown up in the same small village. She held a torch for him, he barely acknowledged her existence. The local bad boy had been banished, so why was he back?


Liz's tale certainly followed the theory of her Little Book, but of course it's never that easy. The characters have to be believable and so do their actions.


I lapped it all up, I willed Claire to see beyond Hal's ruthless persona, for him to realise that money isn't always the key to happiness.


Your emotions are in safe hands with this book - romance with a modern twist.

[Aurelia Rowl · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was delighted to receive an Advance Release Copy (ARC) of Liz Fielding's latest book, she is one of my favourite romance authors and I was keen to get stuck in.

First of all, I loved the cover, both the image - although the models didn't really match what I had in my head (do they ever?) - and the blurb on the back, which was written in a different style than previous works I've read.

When I pick up a Liz Fielding book, I know I'm going to get a good read and I wasn't disappointed. The characters were well-rounded and relatable and the plot flowed, drawing me in further. There was definite page turning quality and the only time I put the book down was to do the school run, I didn't think the teachers would be too impressed if I didn't show up.

I didn't experience as much of a rollercoaster as with other books by this author but it was still a thoroughly enjoyable read and I would happily recommend it.

[SuperWendy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a cute read. There is a revenge plot, but the hero isn't quite as odious about it as I've seen depicted in other books. I liked that the heroine had been knocked down by life a couple of times, but she always managed to get back up. My main quibbles were the pacing (the meet-cute goes on for multiple chapters and I think it could have been trimmed), and the absence of heroine's Mom and hero's father (outside of a couple of pages in Chapter 1). Both hero and heroine have emotional baggage stemming from their parents, so I missed not having those parents "on page" to elevate the angst quotient. But still - typical Fielding for me. Charming, light, engaging.

[Teresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Real life really has got in the way with my reading, and hence I took much longer to read this than I should have.

It was a little slower at the beginning (or that could have been me), and I wouldn't say it's 'beaten' my favourite of Liz Fielding's novels, however, still a good read. Liz does have a way of making the characters sizzle together, which I always enjoy.

[Claire · Rating 5 out of 5]

After finishing Broken Silence by Natasha Preston I really fancied something that sounded like a romantic comedy, this wasn't it, it was so much better than that, what a fantastic story, Hal North is definitely what the doctor ordered. This is definitely on my shelf along with the Beaumont Brides Trilogy.

[Arpit Shah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one is the first book I read of Liz Fielding and I just loved it. The story flows like a river, chapter by chapter. Flawless writing and wonderful story line with strong characters. One of the best books I have read till now in 2017. The way she describes love, emotions and other things, makes you feel connected. You have earned a new reader today, Liz..!!!

[Sian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hal North is dishing out revenge on Claire Thackeray for being her father's daughter. Her father and his real dad done him wrong in Hal's youth. Claire was the posh girl and Hal the working class boy.
I like the posh and working boy/girl trope. This story flowed well and there was some good tension between the two leads. It just lacked an extra wow factor for a five star.

[Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Have you ever read a book, really enjoyed the story, but wished it had a better editor? This was one of those books for me as explained below.

Claire is still living in her hometown in a rented cottage on the edge of the big estate. She’d been her parents golden child but made a young mistake and never left the village. Hal was the town bad boy who left, started a successful business and came back for mysterious reasons. Revenge? Charity? Who knows. The two meet cute – or reacquaint I should say – due to the divine intervention of a donkey named Archie.

Claire’s a reporter for the local newspaper who begins writing stories on Hal. Hal steps it up and forces a situation where they’ll need to spend time together.

The situations are funny. The attraction between them builds and feels real.
Adorable story.

I’ve enjoyed other books by Ms. Fields from the Harlequin Romance Series. The story lines are fun and a step above what you might expect in that particular category line. Yet, the writing style (not grammar) drove me up a while in this book. Some chapters would be page on page of paragraphs that were one or two sentences, at most. It made for choppy reading. I like more “flow” in my books. Then there are two chapters where she introduces this literary devices where every few paragraphs she writes in italics “Working with Hal Rule Number Six.” It felt out of place. I’m not crazy about the self-reflective interspersing details like that, it read like a hash tag, but if you’re going to use them, be consistent throughout the book not just two random chapters. And of course, there were portions of the book that just flowed beautifully. I’m guessing with the Romance series the books get cranked out fairly quickly and less time is spent on making sure everything works, which is too bad. I enjoy Ms. Field’s story, but wish the writing level matched the story.

[Gail · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lovely story about the village bad boy who gets rich and buys up the local English estate for revenge, and the village good girl who had a crush on him back when but was too young to be on his radar, except as proxy for her father who made him mad back then. It sounds all angry and vengeful, but really, it's lovely, with sparkly dialog and a real life fairy godmother, of sorts.

[Irene · Rating 2 out of 5]

Quick romance novel with a rushed ending. I kept on thinking I'd skipped a part, because, with the book being from both characters' perspective, there was nothing to indicate what thought process went behind Hal's quick turn-around. BTW, the cover picture again has nothing to do with the book!

[Linniegayl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I reviewed this for All About Romance and gave it a C+.

http://likesbooks.com/cgi-bin/bookRev...

[Dhaverma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good romance story, held my interest, liked characters, like plot

[ѕєяєηιтι · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5

çeviride kopukluk vardı gibi geldi özellikle sonda hoşlanmadım aslında hikaye ve anlatım çok güzeldi

[Elaine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable romantic storey.