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A Rekindled Passion
The wedding brought them together again
For Kate it was a shock to meet the man she'd loved and believed had betrayed and abandoned her. What was he doing at her daughter's wedding?
Joss Bennett was an unexpected guest. And Kate's world shattered when he looked at the bride and said, "Sophy is my child." But was he only interested in the daughter whose childhood he'd missed, or had he other motives?
Was it possible to go on loving when so much time had passed? Certainly Joss was still a disturbingly attractive man--and Kate knew she was as susceptible as ever to his charms....
For Kate it was a shock to meet the man she'd loved and believed had betrayed and abandoned her. What was he doing at her daughter's wedding?
Joss Bennett was an unexpected guest. And Kate's world shattered when he looked at the bride and said, "Sophy is my child." But was he only interested in the daughter whose childhood he'd missed, or had he other motives?
Was it possible to go on loving when so much time had passed? Certainly Joss was still a disturbingly attractive man--and Kate knew she was as susceptible as ever to his charms....
Paperback
First published October 1, 1990
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About the author
Penny Jordan
1,131 books671 followersPenelope Jones Halsall
aka Caroline Courtney, Annie Groves, Lydia Hitchcock, Melinda Wright
Penelope "Penny" Jones was born on November 24, 1946 at about seven pounds in a nursing home in Preston, Lancashire, England. She was the first child of Anthony Winn Jones, an engineer, who died at 85, and his wife Margaret Louise Groves Jones. She has a brother, Anthony, and a sister, Prudence "Pru".
She had been a keen reader from the childhood - her mother used to leave her in the children's section of their local library whilst she changed her father's library books. She was a storyteller long before she began to write romantic fiction. At the age of eight, she was creating serialized bedtime stories, featuring make-believe adventures, for her younger sister Prue, who was always the heroine. At eleven, she fell in love with Mills & Boon, and with their heroes. In those days the books could only be obtained via private lending libraries, and she quickly became a devoted fan; she was thrilled to bits when the books went on full sale in shops and she could have them for keeps.
Penny left grammar school in Rochdale with O-Levels in English Language, English Literature and Geography. She first discovered Mills & Boon books, via a girl she worked with. She married Steve Halsall, an accountant and a "lovely man", who smoked and drank too heavily, and suffered oral cancer with bravery and dignity. Her husband bought her the small electric typewriter on which she typed her first novels, at a time when he could ill afford it. He died at the beginning of 21st century.
She earned a living as a writer since the 1970s when, as a shorthand typist, she entered a competition run by the Romantic Novelists' Association. Although she didn't win, Penny found an agent who was looking for a new Georgette Heyer. She published four regency novels as Caroline Courtney, before changing her nom de plume to Melinda Wright for three air-hostess romps and then she wrote two thrillers as Lydia Hitchcock. Soon after that, Mills and Boon accepted her first novel for them, Falcon's Prey as Penny Jordan. However, for her more historical romance novels, she adopted her mother's maiden-name to become Annie Groves. Almost 70 of her 167 Mills and Boon novels have been sold worldwide.
Penny Halsall lived in a neo-Georgian house in Nantwich, Cheshire, with her Alsatian Sheba and cat Posh. She worked from home, in her kitchen, surrounded by her pets, and welcomed interruptions from her friends and family.
aka Caroline Courtney, Annie Groves, Lydia Hitchcock, Melinda Wright
Penelope "Penny" Jones was born on November 24, 1946 at about seven pounds in a nursing home in Preston, Lancashire, England. She was the first child of Anthony Winn Jones, an engineer, who died at 85, and his wife Margaret Louise Groves Jones. She has a brother, Anthony, and a sister, Prudence "Pru".
She had been a keen reader from the childhood - her mother used to leave her in the children's section of their local library whilst she changed her father's library books. She was a storyteller long before she began to write romantic fiction. At the age of eight, she was creating serialized bedtime stories, featuring make-believe adventures, for her younger sister Prue, who was always the heroine. At eleven, she fell in love with Mills & Boon, and with their heroes. In those days the books could only be obtained via private lending libraries, and she quickly became a devoted fan; she was thrilled to bits when the books went on full sale in shops and she could have them for keeps.
Penny left grammar school in Rochdale with O-Levels in English Language, English Literature and Geography. She first discovered Mills & Boon books, via a girl she worked with. She married Steve Halsall, an accountant and a "lovely man", who smoked and drank too heavily, and suffered oral cancer with bravery and dignity. Her husband bought her the small electric typewriter on which she typed her first novels, at a time when he could ill afford it. He died at the beginning of 21st century.
She earned a living as a writer since the 1970s when, as a shorthand typist, she entered a competition run by the Romantic Novelists' Association. Although she didn't win, Penny found an agent who was looking for a new Georgette Heyer. She published four regency novels as Caroline Courtney, before changing her nom de plume to Melinda Wright for three air-hostess romps and then she wrote two thrillers as Lydia Hitchcock. Soon after that, Mills and Boon accepted her first novel for them, Falcon's Prey as Penny Jordan. However, for her more historical romance novels, she adopted her mother's maiden-name to become Annie Groves. Almost 70 of her 167 Mills and Boon novels have been sold worldwide.
Penny Halsall lived in a neo-Georgian house in Nantwich, Cheshire, with her Alsatian Sheba and cat Posh. She worked from home, in her kitchen, surrounded by her pets, and welcomed interruptions from her friends and family.
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
May 24, 2017
Re A Rekindled Passion - Penny Jordan does the long parted lovers reunited in this one. The h is 37 and the H is 42. They met when they were both on holiday in Cornwall when the h was 16 and the H was 21. Over the course of their holiday, they fell in love. (The h fibbed about her age and said she was 19.) Then the H suddenly left and when she went to the H's lodging house to meet him, the jealous landlady told her the H had dumped her and gone back to his wife and child.
The h went home heartbroken. Six weeks later she found out she would be having a permanent memorial of her brief but overwhelming love. Fortunately her parent's were really nice and understanding people. When she told them about her romance, they did all they could to support her.
But since they all believed the H was married, the parents convinced the h that to seek the H out would tear his family apart and that wasn't a nice thing to do at all. When the book opens, the h's daughter is getting married. The h is delighted that her 21 year old daughter has found her true love, but very sad that her parents have passed and are going to only be at the big day in spirit.
Nevertheless, the wedding is beautiful and the h is sad and proud and happy all at the same time. Over the years the h has started a catering business with one of her friends. She gardens and does things, but she has never had another lover or a marriage. The experience with the H has weighed to heavily on her heart, she knows she will never love anyone else like she loved him. Plus the h worries that at 37, she is no longer attractive or wanted by men - she has bought into the eternal belief that older men want sweet young things and wouldn't give her a second look.
The h also carries the morals of her older parent's generation, she feels shame over her affair with the H and having a child out of wedlock. Which is a bit ironic, since her mum tried to get her to date again and explained that the h had no reason to worry that men would see her as easy.
(PJ for once has her h's parents be more modern in outlook than the h. She just couldn't resist her penchant for orphaning her h tho. It is just a PJ thing she can't seem to help herself on.)
So the wedding is going swimmingly and the h sees herself sliding into a solitary, but fulfilled middle age, with maybe some grandma times in her future someday. Then she looks across the wedding reception and sees the H.
Her heart stops, cause she never thought to see him again and here he is being introduced as the cousin of the groom's mother. (Which also makes the daughter and her husband distantly related, tho it might only be by marriage.) He also has a very possessive redhead hanging off of him and at first the h thinks it is his wife and she almost passes out. Then she learns the woman is his secretary and the h gets really angry. To her it seems the H is still up to his seductive, unfaithful ways.
She meets the H in the receiving line and manages to pretty much blow him off as an almost forgotten acquaintance. Since she is with her daughter's godfather, the H assumes she is married to him and they distantly part ways. Then the H talks to his cousin and finds out the h's daughter is his child too. He seeks out the h at her house, ready to lay into her over denying him his child just because she wanted to indulge in a bit of summer pump and dump.
There is a tense conversation when the H wanders into her house through her open garden french doors, until the h explains her side of the story and how at 16 she really did not know what to do and listened to her parents.
The H gets two shocks, the first was that the message with his full name and address and phone number had been tossed away by the landlady who was angry that she couldn't manage to seduce him and the second was that the h was only 16 when he met her - this is one H who doesn't fancy himself hankering after teenagers, no matter how beautiful. As he says to the h, if he had been her father he would have hunted himself down and punched him.
The H goes on to explain that he had to leave so suddenly because his father had a heart attack and later passed on. The family firm was in a shambles and by the time he was able to get back hunting the h, the landlady claimed that the h just wanted a fling and left no forwarding address or information. The two of them are really sweet as they determine that the wicked landlady lied, but neither one of them is really to blame in the circumstances. The H does want to meet his daughter though and the h, while feeling the bite of maternal jealousy, agrees that a meeting must be arranged.
The H and h go out to dinner and it is clear the H is still as enchanted as he originally was by the h. But the h can't see it, because when it comes to love and relationships, the h is still emotionally 16 and terrified the H is going to reject her. The h even thinks the H might be seriously involved with his secretary and surely he must be thinking of her when a mighty protuberance pokes her leg while dancing. The H arranges for the h to come up to his home in London to help facilitate the meeting between father and daughter, after the daughter gets back from her honeymoon.
The h goes to London, expecting to be in a hotel but the H actually wants her to stay at his home. Tho the h thinks it is more hotel-like than home-like and the H confesses to being very lonely. He did get married for a very brief period when he was 30, but the marriage was all wrong and the wife left him when he wanted kids.
He got a divorce and we later find out that the H has been celibate for over 10 years ever since. The h, who has been fretting for pages about her age, her wayward hormones, losing her close bond with her daughter and the curious rush of lust and love she feels when she looks at, thinks of or even sniffs a hint of the H's cologne, is trying so hard to hide her response to the H that she can't see just how besotted he is.
( I was kinda hoping he would hire out a billboard in ten foot tall letters, declaring his love for the h, but these are nice and modest people, so nothing doing there but the H may have been considering a sky writer.)
The H's secretary manages to insinuate herself between the H and h during the h's visit and the h gets rather angry at her attempts to intimidate the h into running off. Especially since the H is EXTREMELY clear he only sees the woman as a secretary and nothing else. The h still has the random bursts of jealousy when she thinks of the woman tho, she just can't help herself.
So the H and the daughter finally meet and they get along great, but they are still unsure around each other. The H and the daughter both want the h to be there when they visit each other again, this time at the H's newly purchased Elizabethan country home. There is some roofie kissing moments too, but the h doesn't want to get anything started in the heat of emotional reunion moments.
The H comes to pick her up for the weekend a few weeks later, and they go to his country house. The H badly needs a homey type decorator, (you can see PJ badly wanted to start eulogizing about French Blue paint and rag rolling techniques, but she restrained herself and had the h stick to restoring the Elizabethan garden ideas.)
Then the daughter has to cancel her visit, but does manage to let the h know that the H has fired the aggressive secretary - she was getting too personal with the H and he has a different target in mind. (There was more than a hint of a cute little conspiracy to get the h alone with the H at this part, it was pretty sweet.)
The H insists the h stay for the weekend and he combats her continual aspersions that she is too old to be attractive. He asks the h to marry him, but the h is thinking he just wants a companion for old age and refuses him. Then he gives her a sapphire engagement ring he has been carrying around for 20 years. He wanted to give it to her in Cornwall but the h got away and he has kept it close ever since.
The h is overwhelmingly moved by the ring and the meaning behind it. The ring was almost exactly what she had once described as her ideal engagement ring and the H has had it all this time. (PJ even lets us know the box is old, like the H had been keeping it safe for years.) The h changes her mind about not marrying him, because she loves him and always has and she thinks that maybe he only likes her, but surely that can be fanned into a hotter flame. She puts on a silky nightie and goes to get her man. During her shy seduction she declares that she will marry the H and that she loves him.
The H is wishing he had hired a billboard fifty pages earlier and then plastered it in front of the h. Because he has only been trying to show her he is just as in love for the last 100 pages, but he thought she just wasn't that into him, until he realized the h needs small succinct words stated repeatedly in a very outside voice.
The lurve mojo is high and they find each other enraptured on the shores of pink cloud true love forever rosy glow bliss. They decide to marry right away and the ending scene is a christening. The h and H have a three month old son and they are all lurved up and happy with the daughter and the son in law's family all sharing the joy for a big HEA with the h and H deciding to try for another visit to the cabbage patch. Cause the h is still a youthful 38 and the H has plenty of lurve mojo motility still in store to populate this corner of PJ's HPlandia.
This one is sweet and very nice for a non-Christmas, but holiday happy December release. PJ addresses a lot of the issues that older women might feel, the fears of aging, the pain of having your children leave the nest and the uncertainty of falling in love at an older age. This book is not for everyone, the h did a lot of fretting and worrying for a large portion of it. But now that I am over a half a century in age myself, I can relate better to the h's worries than I could when I first read this almost thirty years ago.
This is a sensitive look at love in almost middle age. It is a truly rosy glow-no-glasses-required and cozy love story with a highly believable HEA. I am huge fan of H's pining for years and this H was so sweet I could feel the sugar rush. Plus with his years of NOT sampling the HP lurvely lady buffet and his firing of the secretary cause she bothered the h, topped with over ten years of celibacy on top of it - this one is a permanent HP reread and one I like to visit HPlandia with often.
The h went home heartbroken. Six weeks later she found out she would be having a permanent memorial of her brief but overwhelming love. Fortunately her parent's were really nice and understanding people. When she told them about her romance, they did all they could to support her.
But since they all believed the H was married, the parents convinced the h that to seek the H out would tear his family apart and that wasn't a nice thing to do at all. When the book opens, the h's daughter is getting married. The h is delighted that her 21 year old daughter has found her true love, but very sad that her parents have passed and are going to only be at the big day in spirit.
Nevertheless, the wedding is beautiful and the h is sad and proud and happy all at the same time. Over the years the h has started a catering business with one of her friends. She gardens and does things, but she has never had another lover or a marriage. The experience with the H has weighed to heavily on her heart, she knows she will never love anyone else like she loved him. Plus the h worries that at 37, she is no longer attractive or wanted by men - she has bought into the eternal belief that older men want sweet young things and wouldn't give her a second look.
The h also carries the morals of her older parent's generation, she feels shame over her affair with the H and having a child out of wedlock. Which is a bit ironic, since her mum tried to get her to date again and explained that the h had no reason to worry that men would see her as easy.
(PJ for once has her h's parents be more modern in outlook than the h. She just couldn't resist her penchant for orphaning her h tho. It is just a PJ thing she can't seem to help herself on.)
So the wedding is going swimmingly and the h sees herself sliding into a solitary, but fulfilled middle age, with maybe some grandma times in her future someday. Then she looks across the wedding reception and sees the H.
Her heart stops, cause she never thought to see him again and here he is being introduced as the cousin of the groom's mother. (Which also makes the daughter and her husband distantly related, tho it might only be by marriage.) He also has a very possessive redhead hanging off of him and at first the h thinks it is his wife and she almost passes out. Then she learns the woman is his secretary and the h gets really angry. To her it seems the H is still up to his seductive, unfaithful ways.
She meets the H in the receiving line and manages to pretty much blow him off as an almost forgotten acquaintance. Since she is with her daughter's godfather, the H assumes she is married to him and they distantly part ways. Then the H talks to his cousin and finds out the h's daughter is his child too. He seeks out the h at her house, ready to lay into her over denying him his child just because she wanted to indulge in a bit of summer pump and dump.
There is a tense conversation when the H wanders into her house through her open garden french doors, until the h explains her side of the story and how at 16 she really did not know what to do and listened to her parents.
The H gets two shocks, the first was that the message with his full name and address and phone number had been tossed away by the landlady who was angry that she couldn't manage to seduce him and the second was that the h was only 16 when he met her - this is one H who doesn't fancy himself hankering after teenagers, no matter how beautiful. As he says to the h, if he had been her father he would have hunted himself down and punched him.
The H goes on to explain that he had to leave so suddenly because his father had a heart attack and later passed on. The family firm was in a shambles and by the time he was able to get back hunting the h, the landlady claimed that the h just wanted a fling and left no forwarding address or information. The two of them are really sweet as they determine that the wicked landlady lied, but neither one of them is really to blame in the circumstances. The H does want to meet his daughter though and the h, while feeling the bite of maternal jealousy, agrees that a meeting must be arranged.
The H and h go out to dinner and it is clear the H is still as enchanted as he originally was by the h. But the h can't see it, because when it comes to love and relationships, the h is still emotionally 16 and terrified the H is going to reject her. The h even thinks the H might be seriously involved with his secretary and surely he must be thinking of her when a mighty protuberance pokes her leg while dancing. The H arranges for the h to come up to his home in London to help facilitate the meeting between father and daughter, after the daughter gets back from her honeymoon.
The h goes to London, expecting to be in a hotel but the H actually wants her to stay at his home. Tho the h thinks it is more hotel-like than home-like and the H confesses to being very lonely. He did get married for a very brief period when he was 30, but the marriage was all wrong and the wife left him when he wanted kids.
He got a divorce and we later find out that the H has been celibate for over 10 years ever since. The h, who has been fretting for pages about her age, her wayward hormones, losing her close bond with her daughter and the curious rush of lust and love she feels when she looks at, thinks of or even sniffs a hint of the H's cologne, is trying so hard to hide her response to the H that she can't see just how besotted he is.
( I was kinda hoping he would hire out a billboard in ten foot tall letters, declaring his love for the h, but these are nice and modest people, so nothing doing there but the H may have been considering a sky writer.)
The H's secretary manages to insinuate herself between the H and h during the h's visit and the h gets rather angry at her attempts to intimidate the h into running off. Especially since the H is EXTREMELY clear he only sees the woman as a secretary and nothing else. The h still has the random bursts of jealousy when she thinks of the woman tho, she just can't help herself.
So the H and the daughter finally meet and they get along great, but they are still unsure around each other. The H and the daughter both want the h to be there when they visit each other again, this time at the H's newly purchased Elizabethan country home. There is some roofie kissing moments too, but the h doesn't want to get anything started in the heat of emotional reunion moments.
The H comes to pick her up for the weekend a few weeks later, and they go to his country house. The H badly needs a homey type decorator, (you can see PJ badly wanted to start eulogizing about French Blue paint and rag rolling techniques, but she restrained herself and had the h stick to restoring the Elizabethan garden ideas.)
Then the daughter has to cancel her visit, but does manage to let the h know that the H has fired the aggressive secretary - she was getting too personal with the H and he has a different target in mind. (There was more than a hint of a cute little conspiracy to get the h alone with the H at this part, it was pretty sweet.)
The H insists the h stay for the weekend and he combats her continual aspersions that she is too old to be attractive. He asks the h to marry him, but the h is thinking he just wants a companion for old age and refuses him. Then he gives her a sapphire engagement ring he has been carrying around for 20 years. He wanted to give it to her in Cornwall but the h got away and he has kept it close ever since.
The h is overwhelmingly moved by the ring and the meaning behind it. The ring was almost exactly what she had once described as her ideal engagement ring and the H has had it all this time. (PJ even lets us know the box is old, like the H had been keeping it safe for years.) The h changes her mind about not marrying him, because she loves him and always has and she thinks that maybe he only likes her, but surely that can be fanned into a hotter flame. She puts on a silky nightie and goes to get her man. During her shy seduction she declares that she will marry the H and that she loves him.
The H is wishing he had hired a billboard fifty pages earlier and then plastered it in front of the h. Because he has only been trying to show her he is just as in love for the last 100 pages, but he thought she just wasn't that into him, until he realized the h needs small succinct words stated repeatedly in a very outside voice.
The lurve mojo is high and they find each other enraptured on the shores of pink cloud true love forever rosy glow bliss. They decide to marry right away and the ending scene is a christening. The h and H have a three month old son and they are all lurved up and happy with the daughter and the son in law's family all sharing the joy for a big HEA with the h and H deciding to try for another visit to the cabbage patch. Cause the h is still a youthful 38 and the H has plenty of lurve mojo motility still in store to populate this corner of PJ's HPlandia.
This one is sweet and very nice for a non-Christmas, but holiday happy December release. PJ addresses a lot of the issues that older women might feel, the fears of aging, the pain of having your children leave the nest and the uncertainty of falling in love at an older age. This book is not for everyone, the h did a lot of fretting and worrying for a large portion of it. But now that I am over a half a century in age myself, I can relate better to the h's worries than I could when I first read this almost thirty years ago.
This is a sensitive look at love in almost middle age. It is a truly rosy glow-no-glasses-required and cozy love story with a highly believable HEA. I am huge fan of H's pining for years and this H was so sweet I could feel the sugar rush. Plus with his years of NOT sampling the HP lurvely lady buffet and his firing of the secretary cause she bothered the h, topped with over ten years of celibacy on top of it - this one is a permanent HP reread and one I like to visit HPlandia with often.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 7, 2017
Wonderful, emotional second chance at love story!
16 year old Kate meets and falls in love with 21 years old Joss Bennett. She gets pregnant but Joss's landlady tells her that Joss is already married with a child. Heartbroken she decides to keep her baby and not contact him again. 22 years later Kate's daughter is getting married and Joss is a guest to the wedding. He realises that Sophy is his daughter and tries to win Kate's heart again.
I loved the angst, the drama and the chemistry Kate and Joss have. Their lives were destroyed by a despicable evil woman. I felt very much for them. They were both mature, loving people. They deserved their sweet HEA. Kate was not your typical PJ heroine. She resisted Joss and didn't give in until the end! Epilogue with their baby boy melted my heart! For those who care heroine was celibate during separation but hero had a brief disastrous marriage but he has been celibate for many years (more than 10 I think)
16 year old Kate meets and falls in love with 21 years old Joss Bennett. She gets pregnant but Joss's landlady tells her that Joss is already married with a child. Heartbroken she decides to keep her baby and not contact him again. 22 years later Kate's daughter is getting married and Joss is a guest to the wedding. He realises that Sophy is his daughter and tries to win Kate's heart again.
I loved the angst, the drama and the chemistry Kate and Joss have. Their lives were destroyed by a despicable evil woman. I felt very much for them. They were both mature, loving people. They deserved their sweet HEA. Kate was not your typical PJ heroine. She resisted Joss and didn't give in until the end! Epilogue with their baby boy melted my heart! For those who care heroine was celibate during separation but hero had a brief disastrous marriage but he has been celibate for many years (more than 10 I think)
February 13, 2018
Po faced heroine just can't let go over her poor pitiful me, mother martyr syndrome. She thinks she was abandoned at a pregnant 16 only to find out at her daughter's wedding that the man she THOUGHT abandoned her was dealt an emotional blow as well. Too bad it was still all about her and her old age.
She's 37 now, and apparently has one foot in the grave. Perhaps some of my irritation lies in the fact that I had my son at 35.
The hero deserves better, and she finally gets a clue.
It's an okay read, but read free and roam, my friends. There is far better and more worthy romance and angst out there.
She's 37 now, and apparently has one foot in the grave. Perhaps some of my irritation lies in the fact that I had my son at 35.
The hero deserves better, and she finally gets a clue.
It's an okay read, but read free and roam, my friends. There is far better and more worthy romance and angst out there.
October 1, 2011
Oh Kate. Of all the Penny Jordan heroines in the world, you’re the Penny Jodan-ist. Who else but a Jordan heroine would feel a man’s hard-on while they’re dancing and wonder if he deliberately brought it on by thinking of someone else, “just to prove a point to her”? I am not making this up.
Kate is horrified when at her daughter’s wedding, the cousin of the mother of the groom turns out to be none other than her long-lost lover and her daughter’s father. (Which in itself, oddly enough, gave her no pause at all. I know the British are less uptight about cousins marrying than Americans are, but I can’t believe she didn’t stop a second to do the math before letting the marriage proceed.) Kate had never told Joss she was pregnant, believing that he had left her to go back to a wife and child, but in fact both were deceived by an Evil Other Woman. Now Joss knows about their daughter, wants to be in their lives, and practically has “I’m still into you, you blithering idiot!” tattooed on his chest. Yet Kate is convinced he could never love an ancient hag of 37.
There was a nice passion to the story; we see very little of Joss’s point of view, so it’s all told with tragic looks and pauses, which works pretty well. But the stupidity of the heroine was a turn-off, and I was annoyed by frequent redundancies in the writing. For example, “It was more like a hotel bedroom than a bedroom in a private home... ” is followed on the very next page by ”It might have been the bathroom in a very upmarket and expensive hotel, rather than a private home.” And there are two completely different characters, one named Lucy, the other named Lucille. And what kind of bitter, vengeful obstetrician wouldn't let a woman have sex until three months after giving birth, in 1989?! Little stuff like that kept tripping me up. It had its good points as a romance, but I wouldn’t recommend it unless you’re really into this type of story.
Kate is horrified when at her daughter’s wedding, the cousin of the mother of the groom turns out to be none other than her long-lost lover and her daughter’s father. (Which in itself, oddly enough, gave her no pause at all. I know the British are less uptight about cousins marrying than Americans are, but I can’t believe she didn’t stop a second to do the math before letting the marriage proceed.) Kate had never told Joss she was pregnant, believing that he had left her to go back to a wife and child, but in fact both were deceived by an Evil Other Woman. Now Joss knows about their daughter, wants to be in their lives, and practically has “I’m still into you, you blithering idiot!” tattooed on his chest. Yet Kate is convinced he could never love an ancient hag of 37.
There was a nice passion to the story; we see very little of Joss’s point of view, so it’s all told with tragic looks and pauses, which works pretty well. But the stupidity of the heroine was a turn-off, and I was annoyed by frequent redundancies in the writing. For example, “It was more like a hotel bedroom than a bedroom in a private home... ” is followed on the very next page by ”It might have been the bathroom in a very upmarket and expensive hotel, rather than a private home.” And there are two completely different characters, one named Lucy, the other named Lucille. And what kind of bitter, vengeful obstetrician wouldn't let a woman have sex until three months after giving birth, in 1989?! Little stuff like that kept tripping me up. It had its good points as a romance, but I wouldn’t recommend it unless you’re really into this type of story.
January 24, 2018
(Oh so there are two PJ books with hs named Kate Seton, both from the Dales and both are single moms! And I happened to read these two books back to back. And both have nice caring Hs.)
I like to read about older couples and this one is unique in that they are meeting again after twenty odd years at their daughter’s wedding!
But this book has a little immature air to it considering we are dealing with an ‘older’ couple – all because of the h. In the time tested PJ h way this one is bristly and uptight and seemingly for no reason. The H shows more than a little interest in her, compared to a complete non-interest in the ow, and she realizes it but still she’s bent on giving him cold rebuffs. Self-protection is one thing but so much paranoid wall-building in a 37 yos. is painful.
Secondly the number of times the H had to reassure the h and the reader that she’s not really that old or menopausal is distracting.
Also it became too much about the h’s insecurities than about a man finding and bonding with a grown up daughter he never knew he had.
I don’t mind vulnerable hs but not perpetually self-doubting, prickly ones.
Still I couldn’t dislike the h but she sure is annoying and immature for her age.
The sexual tension (and frustration) builds up as only PJ can do it and then conflagrates into a ending which is sweet and spicy and it also has an endearing baby epilogue.
I like to read about older couples and this one is unique in that they are meeting again after twenty odd years at their daughter’s wedding!
But this book has a little immature air to it considering we are dealing with an ‘older’ couple – all because of the h. In the time tested PJ h way this one is bristly and uptight and seemingly for no reason. The H shows more than a little interest in her, compared to a complete non-interest in the ow, and she realizes it but still she’s bent on giving him cold rebuffs. Self-protection is one thing but so much paranoid wall-building in a 37 yos. is painful.
Secondly the number of times the H had to reassure the h and the reader that she’s not really that old or menopausal is distracting.
Also it became too much about the h’s insecurities than about a man finding and bonding with a grown up daughter he never knew he had.
I don’t mind vulnerable hs but not perpetually self-doubting, prickly ones.
Still I couldn’t dislike the h but she sure is annoying and immature for her age.
The sexual tension (and frustration) builds up as only PJ can do it and then conflagrates into a ending which is sweet and spicy and it also has an endearing baby epilogue.
September 12, 2018
**Just did a reread of this. Adore this book!
**Another re-read, this is like a twin book to A CURE FOR LOVE. Low angst, 20-year separation, adorable and sweet reconciliation.**
This was so sweet. Might be my favorite 2nd-chance romance ever.
And so amusing that the 37 year old heroine thinks she's an old dinosaur! Hee hee!
Grade: A
**Another re-read, this is like a twin book to A CURE FOR LOVE. Low angst, 20-year separation, adorable and sweet reconciliation.**
This was so sweet. Might be my favorite 2nd-chance romance ever.
And so amusing that the 37 year old heroine thinks she's an old dinosaur! Hee hee!
Grade: A
September 23, 2013
This is a really wonderful Penny Jordan romance which illustrates just why she was such a popular author. Indeed, I've got to say that all of the romances written around this point in her career are particularly good and I do think that it might have been around this period of books (late 80s, early 90s) that she reached the height of her powers as a romantic novelist.
This one relates the story of Kate, who has a young girl on holiday (16) meets and falls in love with Joss Bennett (21) and falls pregnant with his child. Due to the vindictive interference of Joss's landlady (who wouldn't mind a piece of him herself) Kate leaves her holiday romance believing that Joss is already married with a child and resigns herself to bringing up baby alone. Nearly 22 years later, that baby (Sophy)is getting married and guess who should come to the wedding - yes, long lost cousin Joss on her fiance's side!! Joss sees Sophy, realises that he's her father and then tries to woo Kate back. Obviously Kate is very suspicious of this and this presents the obstacle to their love - cue the next 100 pages of wooing, nearly falling into his arms, thinking better of it, then falling into his arms again, before the inevitable Mills and Boon ending is ultimately achieved.
Yes, it sounds like standard M&B fare, but there's a bit of everything going on in this book and it really does make for a very well-constructed romance. There's the vindictive meddling from all the other females who want to be the next Mrs Bennett and plus the fact that they are aiming to become a woman of that name, which is redolent of another very popular romance by Jane Austen and featuring a female lead of that name. There are some heartrendingly romantic passages (I was nearly weeping at one point, and not with laughter - unusual for a mills and boon): "Hadn’t she known from the moment she saw him again that nothing had changed... that despite her age and maturity she was no more proof against loving him now than she had been at sixteen?" p. 132. There is social commentary about the wisdom of becoming a single mother: "'Come to bed with me,’ he repeated against her ear, sending fine shivers of sensation racing over her skin. ‘I want you,Kate...’
‘No. You don’t,’ she told him flatly, pushing away from him. ‘Not really. You think you do because... because of the emotional trauma of everything that’s happened. It wouldn't be sensible. We’d both regret it...’
She didn’t want to look at him, but she had to.
‘Would we?’ he asked her bleakly, and then added. ‘Perhaps you’re right. Sensible Kate. The Kate I knew wasn’t sensible at all, was she?’
‘No,’ Kate agreed shortly, as she pulled away from him and was set free. ‘And look what happened to her....’ p. 145
And there's humour: "He watched her and then said softly, ‘Well, if you won’t sleep with me, and you won’t come to the gym with me, will you at least stay and have breakfast with me?’ p. 148.
Kate is feisty and determined and (unlike your normal Jordan heroine) not rendered speechless by tall, dark, handsome Joss. In fact, normally in Mills and Boons, it seems as if most of the communication is being done by engorged, over-sensitised nipples (and other engorged body parts) but in this one the hero and heroine actually communicate with each other.
It's not perfect - there are two paragraphs on pages 98 and 99 in my edition where the heroine thinks the same thing twice which made me wonder if an editor had actually cast an eye over it before publishing it - but it's as near perfect as you're going to get in the genre. A beautifully told, well-rounded story. A must read for Jordan fans.
This one relates the story of Kate, who has a young girl on holiday (16) meets and falls in love with Joss Bennett (21) and falls pregnant with his child. Due to the vindictive interference of Joss's landlady (who wouldn't mind a piece of him herself) Kate leaves her holiday romance believing that Joss is already married with a child and resigns herself to bringing up baby alone. Nearly 22 years later, that baby (Sophy)is getting married and guess who should come to the wedding - yes, long lost cousin Joss on her fiance's side!! Joss sees Sophy, realises that he's her father and then tries to woo Kate back. Obviously Kate is very suspicious of this and this presents the obstacle to their love - cue the next 100 pages of wooing, nearly falling into his arms, thinking better of it, then falling into his arms again, before the inevitable Mills and Boon ending is ultimately achieved.
Yes, it sounds like standard M&B fare, but there's a bit of everything going on in this book and it really does make for a very well-constructed romance. There's the vindictive meddling from all the other females who want to be the next Mrs Bennett and plus the fact that they are aiming to become a woman of that name, which is redolent of another very popular romance by Jane Austen and featuring a female lead of that name. There are some heartrendingly romantic passages (I was nearly weeping at one point, and not with laughter - unusual for a mills and boon): "Hadn’t she known from the moment she saw him again that nothing had changed... that despite her age and maturity she was no more proof against loving him now than she had been at sixteen?" p. 132. There is social commentary about the wisdom of becoming a single mother: "'Come to bed with me,’ he repeated against her ear, sending fine shivers of sensation racing over her skin. ‘I want you,Kate...’
‘No. You don’t,’ she told him flatly, pushing away from him. ‘Not really. You think you do because... because of the emotional trauma of everything that’s happened. It wouldn't be sensible. We’d both regret it...’
She didn’t want to look at him, but she had to.
‘Would we?’ he asked her bleakly, and then added. ‘Perhaps you’re right. Sensible Kate. The Kate I knew wasn’t sensible at all, was she?’
‘No,’ Kate agreed shortly, as she pulled away from him and was set free. ‘And look what happened to her....’ p. 145
And there's humour: "He watched her and then said softly, ‘Well, if you won’t sleep with me, and you won’t come to the gym with me, will you at least stay and have breakfast with me?’ p. 148.
Kate is feisty and determined and (unlike your normal Jordan heroine) not rendered speechless by tall, dark, handsome Joss. In fact, normally in Mills and Boons, it seems as if most of the communication is being done by engorged, over-sensitised nipples (and other engorged body parts) but in this one the hero and heroine actually communicate with each other.
It's not perfect - there are two paragraphs on pages 98 and 99 in my edition where the heroine thinks the same thing twice which made me wonder if an editor had actually cast an eye over it before publishing it - but it's as near perfect as you're going to get in the genre. A beautifully told, well-rounded story. A must read for Jordan fans.
November 8, 2012
3.5 stars. I don't love Penny Jordan's stories with older heroines for some reason. This one particularly -- it just puts a damper on the HEA that they lost 20 years of their life and the experience of raising their first child together. And pretty much only because of the spiteful words of an acquaintance -- what a total waste! This heroine was particularly blind to the very obvious signals the hero was sending that he loved her, but the ending was satisfying so I still gave it 3.5 stars.
September 24, 2019
Although there's a lot to love about this classic lil' Harlequin, from the perfectly nice hero to the country setting, there's a lot that might make you want to tear your hair out by the roots. Let's examine!
1) The heroine is 37. Apparently this means she's one step away from joining 99 Happy Haunts at the Haunted Mansion ride in Disneyland. I can't even tell you how many times she brings up her advanced years. Poor guy just asks if she wants a cup of coffee and she's legit like "at MY AGE?????" Seriously, she even refuses to dance with him because she thinks she's too elderly. I had to laugh. I'm 37. I consider myself maybe 16 in maturity, at a push.
2) At one point, the hero, Joss, takes our heroine, Kate, out for a nice meal at a country hotel. So she wears an entirely backless dress that has "diamond points" at the neckline, is also super low-cut and comes up to her bottom. It's spectacularly inappropriate and yet, obviously totally awesome.
3) Kate's daughter is 20, and has already gotten a first from Oxford, had a job, lived abroad, and gotten engaged. She's clearly a time traveler and this is never discussed.
4) Kate and Joss first get together when she's 16 and he's 21. Eww. Also, after their affair, in which she gets pregnant, SHE NEVER HAS SEX WITH ANOTHER MAN EVER AGAIN. I'm pretty sure this is still a "thing" in most books in the romance genre. The heroine is supposed to stay "pure" so the hero knows that no one's touched that vagina besides him. It reminds me of Dawson's Creek - I was a HUGE Pacey/Joey fan, and knew they'd end up together the SECOND she had sex with him. Those writers (as misogynistic as they were), were never going to let Dawson end up with sloppy seconds.
I digress. Suffice to say, this whole trope about the heroine growing back her hymen is just so very tired, icky, and unrealistic. Are you telling me she didn't want to fuck ONCE in those twenty-one years? Gah.
5) Lastly, it turns out that Joss is his daughter's fiance's cousin. And no one cares. I think that would give me pause, and yet... it is never even discussed.
Obviously, this book is worth reading. Just remember, the heroine's one step from the nursing home, so it's a different kind of Harlequin.
1) The heroine is 37. Apparently this means she's one step away from joining 99 Happy Haunts at the Haunted Mansion ride in Disneyland. I can't even tell you how many times she brings up her advanced years. Poor guy just asks if she wants a cup of coffee and she's legit like "at MY AGE?????" Seriously, she even refuses to dance with him because she thinks she's too elderly. I had to laugh. I'm 37. I consider myself maybe 16 in maturity, at a push.
2) At one point, the hero, Joss, takes our heroine, Kate, out for a nice meal at a country hotel. So she wears an entirely backless dress that has "diamond points" at the neckline, is also super low-cut and comes up to her bottom. It's spectacularly inappropriate and yet, obviously totally awesome.
3) Kate's daughter is 20, and has already gotten a first from Oxford, had a job, lived abroad, and gotten engaged. She's clearly a time traveler and this is never discussed.
4) Kate and Joss first get together when she's 16 and he's 21. Eww. Also, after their affair, in which she gets pregnant, SHE NEVER HAS SEX WITH ANOTHER MAN EVER AGAIN. I'm pretty sure this is still a "thing" in most books in the romance genre. The heroine is supposed to stay "pure" so the hero knows that no one's touched that vagina besides him. It reminds me of Dawson's Creek - I was a HUGE Pacey/Joey fan, and knew they'd end up together the SECOND she had sex with him. Those writers (as misogynistic as they were), were never going to let Dawson end up with sloppy seconds.
I digress. Suffice to say, this whole trope about the heroine growing back her hymen is just so very tired, icky, and unrealistic. Are you telling me she didn't want to fuck ONCE in those twenty-one years? Gah.
5) Lastly, it turns out that Joss is his daughter's fiance's cousin. And no one cares. I think that would give me pause, and yet... it is never even discussed.
Obviously, this book is worth reading. Just remember, the heroine's one step from the nursing home, so it's a different kind of Harlequin.
March 24, 2019
Am I the only one who wondered how young she must have looked at 16, if she looked young at 37.
March 22, 2022
3.5 stars to be more precise. I thought the premise was very realistic, well chosen.
At 16 and 21, young boy-girl romance for Kate and Joss seems like a heavenly experience. Its a holiday romance but both are very serious about each other. However, some malicious piece of mischief played by a random character in the story causes them to spilt. Absolutely no fault of theirs, just a quirk of fate.
However, both of them carry a grievance in their hearts that the other partner was in it only for fun. And both Kate and Joss are scarred for life over their lost love. As it turns out, Kate is left with a child as a result of the affair. At 16 !!!!!!!!!! And Joss is left with a broken heart that doesn't allow him to settle with another marriage even years later.
After an entire lifetime passes by, both of them meet by chance, 21 years later ! She is 37, he is 42. She is a single mom hosting her daughter's wedding. And he is an invitee from the boy's side !!
Shocked recognition, angry recriminations, justifications from both sides. All done within 30% of the story. So what next , HEA !@?!@??
Nah, its been a lifetime you see, they have all sorts of mental hangups. She is scared of being middle aged and menopausal. He is scared of appearing too needy and clingy. Its fairly real reasoning from the author. I absolutely agree with this scenario.
The only grouse I had was that PJ focusses too much on these shortcomings. And loses sight of the basic fact - that both of them have been carrying their love for each other in their hearts for decades. Now thats surely enough to surpass all shortcomings. But the small fears and reluctances take up too much of space in the story. Making the tone of the story more apologetic and defensive, rather than being passionate and loving.
Good read. Could have been a great read. Just real life happened to intervene. Sigh !
At 16 and 21, young boy-girl romance for Kate and Joss seems like a heavenly experience. Its a holiday romance but both are very serious about each other. However, some malicious piece of mischief played by a random character in the story causes them to spilt. Absolutely no fault of theirs, just a quirk of fate.
However, both of them carry a grievance in their hearts that the other partner was in it only for fun. And both Kate and Joss are scarred for life over their lost love. As it turns out, Kate is left with a child as a result of the affair. At 16 !!!!!!!!!! And Joss is left with a broken heart that doesn't allow him to settle with another marriage even years later.
After an entire lifetime passes by, both of them meet by chance, 21 years later ! She is 37, he is 42. She is a single mom hosting her daughter's wedding. And he is an invitee from the boy's side !!
Shocked recognition, angry recriminations, justifications from both sides. All done within 30% of the story. So what next , HEA !@?!@??
Nah, its been a lifetime you see, they have all sorts of mental hangups. She is scared of being middle aged and menopausal. He is scared of appearing too needy and clingy. Its fairly real reasoning from the author. I absolutely agree with this scenario.
The only grouse I had was that PJ focusses too much on these shortcomings. And loses sight of the basic fact - that both of them have been carrying their love for each other in their hearts for decades. Now thats surely enough to surpass all shortcomings. But the small fears and reluctances take up too much of space in the story. Making the tone of the story more apologetic and defensive, rather than being passionate and loving.
Good read. Could have been a great read. Just real life happened to intervene. Sigh !
May 22, 2021
Wow. This was really good (and potentially biased because I haven't read a book in the last few months).
Though Kate, the h, harped on about not being beautiful and how she was too old to no longer be desirable, I rather liked her immature way of thinking about things, because her emotional maturity pretty much stalled when she was only 16.
I also really loved seeing Joss (the H's) reactions, because it was quite evident to the reader, though not necessarily to Kate, that he was still besotted and utterly in love with Kate, no matter that 20 years had already passed.
As far as I'm concerned, with second-chance romances being my absolute favourite trope, this book did the job brilliantly.
Though Kate, the h, harped on about not being beautiful and how she was too old to no longer be desirable, I rather liked her immature way of thinking about things, because her emotional maturity pretty much stalled when she was only 16.
I also really loved seeing Joss (the H's) reactions, because it was quite evident to the reader, though not necessarily to Kate, that he was still besotted and utterly in love with Kate, no matter that 20 years had already passed.
As far as I'm concerned, with second-chance romances being my absolute favourite trope, this book did the job brilliantly.
April 29, 2025
I did not like it. The twenty-two years seperation was way too long. He slept with other women during all those years and even got married (of course he would during a 22 year seperation).
Also their daughter married a cousin and it didn't seem to occur to anybody that she did. P.
Also their daughter married a cousin and it didn't seem to occur to anybody that she did. P.
July 7, 2025
I loved loved this book immensely especially now that I’ve hit an older age and totally relate with the h’s insecurities. Penny has written every feeling of h as if one could feel it and s tortured rommance revealed in the end is just what one wanted. Definitely a keeper!
September 5, 2012
This novel was beyond screwed up. Just reading it gave me an instant headache. I couldn't believe how ironic some of the novel was. I couldn't believe Penny Jordan actually wrote this. It was either her greatest failing or some stroke of genius even I can't follow. Two stars.
September 8, 2012
hero yg g tw klo dy udah punya anak...salah satu tema cerita fav aq,cz menarik untuk melihat bagaimana dy menanggapi berita itu... ;p
February 5, 2015
not going into keep pile.
May 9, 2010
Secret baby for over 20 years? Are you freakin' kidding me?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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