Cinderella After Midnight

by Mary Burchell

Three months of luxury, at an exclusive seaside resort, and all at Aunt Gabrielle's expense! Elaine would indeed have considered herself lucky, had there not been one very, very delicate condition attached to the situation -- a condition on which her whole future depended. She held out no great hopes that she would succeed, but what was to become of her if she did not?

Genres: Romance, Clean Romance, Harlequin Romance

188 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1945

About the author

Ida Cook was born on 1904 at 37 Croft Avenue, Sunderland, England. With her eldest sister Mary Louise Cook (1901), she attending the Duchess' School in Alnwick. Later the sisters took civil service jobs in London, and developed a passionate interest in opera. The sisters helped 29 jews to escape from the Nazis, funded mainly by Ida's writing. In 1965, the Cook sisters were honored as Righteous Gentiles by the Yad Vashem Martyrs and Heroes Remembrance Authority in Israel.

As Mary Burchell, she published more than 125 romance novels by Mills & Boon since 1936. She also wrote some western novels as James Keene in collaboration with the author Will Cook (aka Frank Peace). In 1950, Ida Cook wrote her autobiography: "We followed our stars". She helped to found the Romantic Novelists' Association, and was its president from 1966 to her death on December 22, 1986.

Reviews

[Linda (NOT RECEIVING NOTIFICATIONS) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this light romance from 1945 between some darker mysteries. The H/h’s behavior reminded me of some stories by Betty Neels. Except neither was a doctor or a nurse.

[Leona · Rating 2 out of 5]

Glad I read it, but definitely not one of my favorites by Burchell.

[JR · Rating 3 out of 5]

'Cinderella After Midnight' by the indomitable Mary Burchell has already been reviewed very adequately, so I'll only make two observations on the book:

(1) When a hero constantly refers to the object of his romantic affections as 'child', he really cannot later legitimately exclaim in exasperation: "Confound it! Must you make me sound like a middle-aged uncle?"
- and -
(2) It would have been more satisfying for the heroine to have had an actual job, even if only for a few months. Despite her (rather gallant) efforts at teaching herself touch typing, once the hero proposes it's clear she'll go straight from her manipulative god-mother's payroll onto her older husbands...

I'm rating the novel a three-and-a-half star vintage romance read- this one is seriously twee...

[Jane · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've been going through the box of genre romances I kept from years ago. Mary Burchell is my favorite genre romance writer. This one starts out strong but has a somewhat weak finish. The heroine is a bit of a dolt not to realize that one man she is attracted to is using her.

*spoiler*

I did like this one line, on the second to last page, spoken by the hero after the heroine realizes she has been in love with the wrong man. Mary Burchell is a good writer, even when the plot isn't that great.

"I'm not like Roger. I'll give you my side of it first. I love you - I adore you - I think you're the sweetest, kindest, silliest little darling who ever tried to throw herself away on a skunk, while a fairly respectable, but quite helpless admirer had to stand by and chew his fingernails."

[Fiona Marsden · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of those books where you sort of spend a lot of time wanting to yell at the heroine to look behind her like an old Christmas Pantomime.

We know there is something not quite about Roger the dodger and that lovely Adrian who is so grumpy but vulnerable because he was crocked in a car accident is much more the man for us.

We see Elaine developing the friendship with Adrian, alongside the ups and downs of her relationship with Roger. This is a lovely story I've read a couple of times and enjoyed.

[Margo · Rating 3 out of 5]

As the saying goes, this was as sweet as pie. A light and enjoyable read. It’s not one of her classics, but it doesn’t need to be.

[Iris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay, not super memorable, but it sure was fun, fast reading 😍

[Last Chance Saloon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Here a slightly interesting (but silly) heroine (22) spends 3 months in a grand hotel paid for her as a last gesture by her controlling godmother. The hero (early 30s) is trying to recuperate after a car crash a year ago that killed his father and left him penniless and simultaneously burning up 10 years of chemical studies. He says he is looming for a rich wife. They become friends and she hunts the OM, whilst he goes into hospital for corrective surgery to fix his spine. She visits about 3 times (and encounters what she thinks is the OW), whilst quivering helplessly about the awful OM, then when her eyes are opened, dashes to see him - HEA.
I did not feel the chemistry between them, which is a shame as he was an interesting character, as was she until she developed an overwhelming crush on the playwright OM and became rather pitiful.

[Nightwitch · Rating 3 out of 5]

I feel guilty giving this four stars because it's eminently forgettable, but it's a very sweet, easy read, a good example of Burchell's writing.

[Alice · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75 Stars I bought this book from ThriftBook.com. It was a paperback from 1969 it was in good shape for 1969 but the binding was brittle and when I turned the pages many came loose. I may need to pull out the archival tape. I believe it was actually written in the 1930s and republished in the 1960s through Harlequin.

This was a good book, and I enjoyed it, and was well written but why I read it wasn't for the story, it was for the author. The book was about a girl who is caught between worlds a life of luxury and then being forced to fend for herself. She doesn't need a fairy godmother , because after midnight, she is going to blossom with the help of her prince!

The Author's real name is Irene Cook and her pen name in Mary Burchell. Read about her life in the book Opera Sisters by Marianne Monson (link below) It is AMAZING . She sold stories like this book and used the money to help Jewish People out of danger spots in Europe before and During WWII. Unsung Hero! She is a talented writer but this book means more to me because of the author and her quiet contribution to the good of the world.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6...

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hello new favorite. Wow, this captivated my whole heart. I think I'm just such a sucker for the whole dynamic of a heroine being a gentle inspiration for the hero. Not storming in trying to mold him or "fix" him, not having the expectations of anything, just being the right kind of person that makes someone feel inspired on their own to grow.

[Karen-Leigh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Three months of luxury, at an exclusive seaside resort, and all at Aunt Gabrielle's expense! Elaine would indeed have considered herself lucky, had there not been one very, very delicate condition attached to the situation -- a condition on which her whole future depended. She held out no great hopes that she would succeed, but what was to become of her if she did not?

[Melody · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cleverly written, especially about Aunt Gabrielle.

Grey-eyed characters: Roger