Charade In Winter

by Anne Mather

It was too late to turn back now.

Alix stood in front of the gates of the Hall apprehensively. Had she been mad in agreeing to this deception? If Oliver Morgan discovered the real reason behind her taking this job, the consequences, she knew, could be terrible.

What A'ix didn't know was that the disturbingly handsome Oliver Morgan had his own reasons for wanting her there--and had hired her for a job that didn't exist.

Alix soon found herself in a bizarre situation from which she couldn't escape. To be honest, she wasn't sure she wanted to.

Genres: Romance, Harlequin Presents, Harlequin, Contemporary, Contemporary Romance

Mass Market Paperback

First published July 1, 1977

About the author

Anne Mather is the pseudonym used by Mildred Grieveson, a popular British author of over 160 romance novels. She also signed novels as Caroline Fleming and Cardine Fleming.
Mildred Grieveson began to write down stories in her childhood years. The first novel that she actually finished, Caroline (1965), was also her first book to be published. Her novel, Leopard in the Snow (1974), was developed into a 1978 film.

Reviews

[Iris · Rating 4 out of 5]

The M&B cover is by Jørn Beinkamp, one of his simpler compositions.

The HP cover is by artist Fred Oakley and his first for the HP line. Heroine's straight-as-a-board hair isn't his most naturalistic approach but it's distinctive and one of my favorites of his heroine "looks".

11/29/22 After a re-read I'm upping this to 4 stars.

For me Charade in Winter is a better than average vintage AM but I'm probably it's ideal reader; I have a penchant for glowering sculptors (reader, I married one) and a significant preference for vintage heroines who've reached adulthood prior to the opening of the book. True even when reading these as a teen—13 year old me wasn't at all interested in dewy 18 yr olds—I was itching to be a grown-up so maturity was much more appealing. This h, at 26, is practically in her dotage.


Alix writes for a tabloid but successfully applies for a position as librarian to catalogue books at the sculptor hero's remote estate, aiming to investigate rumors that Oliver killed his wife for her money. Although protags misrepresenting themselves and invading someone's privacy is my least favorite method for getting MCs together, in this case both Oliver and Alix are busy trampling the moral high ground. Alix is pretending to be a librarian in order to dig up some dirt on the H; Oliver is pretending to need a librarian when what he's seeking is a tutor for his 8 year old daughter Melly—whose existence he's trying to keep from the press—so the lucky tutor is to be something of a prisoner on the estate lest they inform the gutter press about his hitherto unknown child.

Alix realizes she can't use a child to further her career so although curious for increasingly personal reasons, her attempts to unearth Oliver's various mysteries are paltry. Life at Darkwater Hall isn't especially comfortable either—sure she has a TV in her room, and can walk the grounds if she's careful of the guard dogs—but her heroine mojo isn't enough to get the staff to trust her. There's a funny scene where the gatekeeper accidentally on purpose cockblocks Oliver—damn! just as he's got Alix exactly where he wants her—and it's debatable just who the gatekeeper thinks he's protecting! Even Melly is uncooperative and resistant to her instruction. Good! Their hostility was mild enough and Alix deserved it; her response—moderately patient but not a doormat was fitting as well.

Really the only person in the household who appreciates her company, though it's mainly expressed through sardonic baiting, is Oliver, the kind of hero who considers himself a bad-tempered loner when actually he's just really lonely. He's 41 and stuck in an Anne Mather novel so of course many years before he married his beautiful, glittering cousin, for unstated reasons—and this is one time I wanted a few more details about why the cultured H entered into one of AM's weird insular marriages. The marriage was a failure, it seemingly lasted for years and he was too much of a martyr to end it. By the time Alix enters the picture, he's desperate, irritable, jaded, and almost transparently hopeful. I was charmed by his sarcastic vulnerability and his realistically portrayed affection for Melly.

Alas the representation of disability felt off—not cruel—but written with a sensibility that reads older than the publishing date of 1979, even worse was the stereotyping of Melly's Japanese nursemaid, probably no more than was typical for a vintage HP, but it dimmed my reading glow.

[Sandra R · Rating 3 out of 5]

A classic M & B romance, originally published in 1977 and recently re-released and I really have to review this one, as I'd love modern readers to give it a go, purely to understand just what contemporary romances were for us 'back in the day' and just how lucky they are to have some of the fabulous books available now.

I probably read this book after it's original release date, (but don't remember it), as Anne Mather was my all time favourite romance author and has been one of M & B's most popular and prolific authors. In fact, she pushed the boundaries of romance with her sensual scenes and was, as far as I can remember, the first author who began writing the hero's POV and also one of the first writers who wrote scenes that went 'all the way' and described it.

Naturally Oliver (42) is an alpha and tortured internally to a certain extent and Alix (26) is a virgin and can't state her feelings because she's scared to. Yes, the age gap is normal for 70's and 80's M & B romances. Anne Mather pushed that too - one of her first heroines was 17/18. There is a great deal of internal narration which was the norm back then and not a huge amount of meaningful communication via dialogue between the H/h, apart from an instant attraction - at a distance. Insta love, in other words. There's push/pull and yes/no scenes. There are meddling side characters and an 8 year old child. There's a bit of an Jane Eyre vibe going on too, as the manor is in the north of England (happens to be dreary and foggy), our heroine has to teach a young girl whose mother died in unfortunate circumstances and the father (the hero) is mysterious and brooding.

I think aspiring Historical romance authors would do themselves a favour if they read this (sort of) proper, slow burn English romance; then imagine how it really was back in Regency or Victorian England as this is only the 1970's. The majority of the unmarried readers of my generation - knew nothing much about sex. Lots of my friends and I read M & B as teens. I chuckled at the mention of the 'colour' television, the one phone, the need to write a letter to tell her mother she arrived safely - a true blast from the past. Midi skirts, jerkins, corded pants, long boots - Anne Mather loved describing the fashion. 🙂

I smiled at the way they dressed for dinner at home - everyone dressed up in those days. I remember dressing up to go to the movies. Alix wore a caftan and Oliver wore black velvet trousers and a ruffled silk shirt - I can visualize him for sure... Pirate anyone? Yes, that's the sort of clothes we wore back then and they were the height of fashion. When the romance scenes were written, the author does a really good job of describing, but not actually mentioning the body part she's describing; I managed to figure it out when I was reading last night - finally... Back in the day most of us had no clue what she was describing - my friends and I were pretty clueless - so modern, young readers, think yourselves lucky you have the romance books you have today.

I enjoyed reading it, but I won't give it more than 3 stars, because I'd probably have readers scratching their heads if I give it more. It's beautifully written and worth a read. I have a heap more of Anne's books on my Kindle. I didn't read much in the 80's/90's while I had my family, (too busy to read), so I'm sure I'll find a few more gems from older authors hiding as ebooks. 💝 PS...Bear in mind, the book abruptly ends - no epilogues back then either. LOL. If I'd have been rating books back in 1977, I would have given this one 5 stars.😍

[Nightwitch · Rating 3 out of 5]

Starts out promisingly, with our heroine Alix hiding a terrible secret, but we learn what that is on like page six (she's a reporter, here to dig up dirt on a reclusive wealthy sculptor who lives on a giant estate in Northumberland) and it's pretty much all downhill from there. Everyone has secrets - the hero has withdrawn from the world following the death of his well-known, unhappy wife-cousin (yes, she was both) and now is hiring a librarian, but... surprise!... he actually needs a governess for his spoiled, secret half-Japanese daughter who grew up in a remote part of Japan until six months ago but somehow speaks perfect English, needs to be prepared for boarding school, and, oh yeah, is crippled. Very little of this is actually relevant to the plot and there is a Japanese nursemaid who speaks only in broken English. That is, of course, setting aside the silliness of deciding that the best way to hire a governess for a child is to advertise for, and hire, a librarian, while doing a vetting process that does not permit you to discover that said "librarian" is using the name and qualifications of her mother (yes, you heard me) and is totally unqualified for, well, anything. I mean, I guess it could all be entertainingly crazy, but it's actually pretty low-key for the level of "wait, what?" which in turn means there's not much to say about it afterwards. Meh.

[Sandra Girard-Demontigny · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is my very first harlequin novel. It was good, but nothing more. A light romance, without big surprises.

ll s'agit ici de mon tout premier roman harlequin. C'était bien, mais sans plus. Une romance légère, sans grande surprise.

[Tia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read in February 2009.

Can't remember much of the book but my ratings have always been based on fairness and likability for me, so the book must have been pretty on the fence considering that is what most of my three star books are.

[More Books Than Time · Rating 3 out of 5]

They fall in love and into bed and engagement in two weeks? He’s over 40 and she’s 25 or 26. Giving 3 stars because I read and liked it but situation is icky.

[Lin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Alix is an undercover magazine reporter hired by Oliver Morgan, a famous sculptor, to catalogue his massive library, when she arrives at his very secluded estate, Darkwater Hall she feels like a prisoner, not able to leave or phone her editor. The estate is guarded by two enormous wolfehounds and she can't even open the terrace doors without notifying Giles that she would like to spend some time outside. She finds out as soon as she arrives that the job isn't as posted but that she will be the governess to his daughter, whom the world doesn't know exists. What a scope, but can she do that to a child?

[Sandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is a nice Harlequin book which I enjoy as they are fast to read usually light-hearted entertainment.