Heaven Here on Earth

by Carole Mortimer

Ryan's dream-come-true became a nightmare!

The loan of her friend Mark's studio meant three blissful weeks for Ryan to sketch and paint. Every artist should be so lucky!

Then she arrived at Montgomery Hall and found herself reacting to the insinuations of Mark's uncompromising older brother, Grant.

Everything about Grant sent shivers of excitement through Ryan, evoking a response too powerful to ignore. But nothing she could say or do would convince the arrogant man of her integrity. Worst of all, Ryan found herself falling in love with him!

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

189 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published July 1, 1983

About the author

I have written almost 250 romance novels in contemporary and Regency.

I am a USA Today Bestselling Author and recipient of the 2015 RWA Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2014 I received a Pioneer of Romance Award from Romantic Times in the US and in 2012 I was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II for my 'outstanding service to literature'.

I am very happily married to Peter with six sons, and live on the Isle of Man

Reviews

[*CJ* · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Heaven Here on Earth" is the story of Ryan and Grant.

YAAAAAAAAS!!!

So, I love dogs. I love animals, but dogs are my favorite creatures on earth. And this book belongs to the dog, Ragtag. (Dogs>>>>>>>>Humans)

Our h is an artist, who plans to visit her roommate's boyfriend and their mutual friend's home in his village. The reason- his family has one of the best studios and painting collections and will give h the chance to expand her horizons. She travels jovially, only to befriend a stray dog on the way, and ends up meeting the H and his sister. Initially there is friction which soon proceeds to some OW/ OM drama, brotherly deception, loads of jealousy, warnings, hot lovemaking, angst..but the show stealer definitely has to be the DOG Ragtag! The author uses him as the core of the book- he is the main company and source of strength for the h, his identity and "crimes" form the mystery elements, it is him who get our MC together and he is the definite king of this book.

I definitely think the whole confusion about the h's relationship with the H's brother was dragged on a bit too long, and we shouldn't have had to witness the OM/OW kisses and almost molestation (in which Ragtag saves the h)- but other than that, everything else was enjoyable.

Read it for a wonderful dog, strong heroine and a caring hero.

SWME/Safe for me
4.5/5

[Azet · Rating 5 out of 5]

WOW...I JUST HAVE TO SAY WOW!SUCH A MINDBLOWING ROMANTIC NOVEL..AND ONE I WILL NEVER FORGET!

Why hasn`t ANYONE told me to read this book before?Gosh how i love it,love every page of it.

This is said to be a classical romantic novel.Better said than done,Mortimer has created Magic through this book.A bitterweet Magical spell that doesn`t let me go.

I love the plot,the story-line,the nature and the world of England,but pleasently enough it was Grant Montgomery,the hell of a lot sexy land-owner who just captured my heart.I love how he and the heroine,Ryan met.Their chemistry is EXPLOSIVE BOOMA TO HELL and their love-scenes were burning hot...and the love.. oh gosh the love.We instantly see that Grant is the goner to the heroine and you can see his powerful need and love to the heroine.

I got a few tears when she broke his heart over and over again.RYAN!,i wanted to yell.Can`t you see how he desperately loves you!
I enjoyed the supporting characters also and liked the dog Ragtag very much also and i truly felt the connection between the dog and Ryan.

Grant Montgomery,he darkly oozed of sexiness and i just wanted him for myself.He is such a man,such an alpha....love his character incredible,he is one of the best alpha-heroes ever!

My favourite book by Carole Mortimer,and one i certainly will re-read.

[Leona · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not one of my favorites by CM. It didn't have that gripping element that I have come to love from CM. I also really dislike when authors take the following approach:

1) They start having sex when they have barely said more than two words to each other. These two were clawing each others clothes off the day after they meet, yet neither had respect for the other.

2) The hero is so mean and rude, yet the heroine falls madly in love? Really? How do you love someone who treats the trash they take to the curb better than you?

Either situation is bad enough, but when the two hit together, I lose interest in the story and I can't believe in the the HEA. There were other fun elements that had me lift this to a 3 star...but this author has written much better stories.

I would recommend a pass on this one.

[Debby · Rating 3 out of 5]

** WARNING : SPOILERS AND RANTING AHEAD **

The first 130 pages were good. Even 4 stars good.

But then it quickly went downhill. I hated everyone. The only lovable character in the story is Ragtag, the h’s cute dog.

After the first 130 pages, the H slept with the h, knowing that she is in a relationship with his brother. And the h slept with the H, knowing that he is in a relationship with the OW. Both are cheaters.

Although the h wasn’t really his brother’s girlfriend, the H didn’t know that when he slept with her. It was all a lying scheme set up by the h and the H’s brother to protect the h’s bff who was the real girlfriend of the H’s brother.

In the HEA the H talked about the OW as if the OW was nothing. He had been going out with the OW, he had slept with her, she had met his family several times, he had invited her to his house on numerous occasions to have dinner with them, his brother and sister thought he was going to marry her. So he did have some sort of relationship with the OW, but he tried to dismiss that by saying he never said to the OW that he loved her. 🙄

He also told the h that the OW wasn’t a virgin anymore when he slept with the OW. That is classless of him to discuss your previous girlfriend’s sexual past with the new woman in your life. The h was still a virgin when he slept with her, but it isn’t any of the h’s business whether or not the OW was a virgin when he slept with the OW for the first time.

After 130 pages the h went on a major lying spree. She had lied before, but after 130 pages she went berserk and she lied and lied and lied. She lied to the H, she lied to the H’s brother, she lied to his sister, she lied to her bff, she lied to the OW. The OW wasn’t nice to her, but what else did she expect from the OW after she had slept with her man.

What I hated the most, was the dog of the h’s sister being shot. His sister’s dog turned out to be the culprit of the sheep killing and not Ragtag.

The H was mad that the h had thought he would have let Ragtag being shot if Ragtag had been the culprit, because he wouldn’t have done that to the h. But he apparently had no qualms about his sister’s dog being shot to death. So he wouldn’t do that to the h, but he would do (and did) it to his younger 18-year old sister?

Why not first try to train the sister’s dog to stay away from the sheep or keep him on a long leash when he is outside or whatever. At least give him a chance before you shoot him to death.

“And I’ll never lie to you or hold anything back from you.” That’s what the h said in the HEA. Sure. Liar, liar.

[Mtve41 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant idea that I picked this up when I did. When I’d left groceries on the counter the night before for a day of cooking and cleaning. Yeah f that shit.

A total toe curler of the fuzziest kind from CM that deserved a hundred percent of my brain cells. Almost in the bff’s bro category and had sweet reminders of my other forever fave ‘After the night’ from DP. I died a little.

The h is a sweet girl, artist on the making with a roomie who’s also her bff. Bff’s seeing a guy and they’re both mutual friends with him. Wanting private time with this girl (roomie) the guy suggests that the h takes off on a vacation to his family house where there’s a fancy artists studio with great lighting that could benefit her career.

The h reluctantly agrees. In return she agrees to go as the guy’s gf (while her roomie is his real gf) to handle any and all aggression she’d receive from the guys family esp from his bossy older brother.

Grant is expecting another of his bro’s friends to show up, a Ryan but never expects that this Ryan would be a gorgeous tiny thing of the female category. The h and H instantly hit on the wrong ends and their chemistry is packing.

I’m no pet lover but Ragtag totally won me over. The H is brooding and unfazed except with Ryan who sticks back to him and doesn’t think anything of him. Soon enough the H can’t resist the h anymore and he’s in, hook line and sinker.

There’s a great plot at play and I hated how the h almost ruined her life with what she’d intended to do. Can’t blame her too much cuz she’s young and not thinking but just reacting to what she hears from the horse’s mouth.

A very sweet retelling of my favourite kinda trope. Wish there was a detailed epilogue! And the funny bit that even CM may have forgotten that the h was there to work on her art and brings it up just on the last page.

[Aou · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the most idiotic misunderstanding but with the great smackdown of the OW, it deserves 3,5 stars.

[JillyB · Rating 4 out of 5]

At the beginning of the book no one is engaged. By the end of the book, there are 3 couples engaged. Don’t worry, the focus is mainly on the heroine and the hero.

We have lots of misleading situations and miscommunications in the book. (Again, nothing good can come from eavesdropping).

We have 2 brothers. Grant(35ish), (like Cain) has strong feelings for his brother’s girl. Mark(24)(Abel, but not really) the brother has no interest in the heroine(Ryan,21). They are friends. He is actually interested in the roommate of the the heroine. So, he offers up his studio and family cottage to the h for 3 weeks(she is an artist) out at the country estate. He does this for 2 reasons. First, he wants alone time with the roommate so he can woo her(she is a tad leery of romance). 2nd, by having the heroine at his family home she can be used as a decoy for his brother and sister.(the heroine did not know this little tidbit until after she got to the estate) Essentially, paving the way for his true love Diana.

From here on out, I will be giving away quite a few details, so again you will not want to read if you want surprises. SPOILERS COMING....LOTS(BUT NOT AL)
So, our h Ryan travels to Yorkshire via train and starts walking the the estate. She picks up a stray dog on the way. The local veterinarian picks her up and drops her at the estate. She receives a cold greeting from the sister Mandy(18), and an equally chilly greeting from the H(who thought Ryan was a male friend of his brother’s). The H informs her that the cottage is getting repaired and she will need to be at the estate for a few days. She gets a phone call from the brother and the sister overhears the conversation. At one point, the h agrees with the brother that the Hero is indeed handsome.

She goes with her growly stomach to join the hero and the sister for tea. She hears them talking. The sister tells the H the h thinks he’s handsome. He scorns that remark and refers to her as his brother’s bohemian girl friend who wont last any longer than the others. At this point, undetected the h slinks back to her room and feigns a headache.

Dinner time arrives and so does the very bitchy ow. She sizes up the much younger competition and wastes no time staking her claim of the H. The H keeps sneaking looks at the h(yeah those kind). He ends up leaving with the ow(who refers to the other 2 as children). The sister dislikes the ow as much as the h, but bitchily tells the h she wouldn’t be any better as a sil and flounces off. At this point, I am picturing the h sitting there in a large dining room, at a large table wondering why the hell she is there. Check please!!!

She manages to go to bed, hears the H come home and wonders if he had some “adult” fun. Then she hears the stray dog yowling. She goes to the stables to console the dog(in her nightgown) Of course, hero heard dog too. He tells her to bring it in the house and offers her coffee(tea or me?). Self conscious about her nakedness in her nightgown she dons a robe. When she joins the H he basically indicates that she is 1 in a long line of his brother’s lovers and that she should cut her losses now and not count on being there when the brother inherits his fortune soon. He tells her his brother will never marry her. Now, at this point she could clear up the fact that she is not involved with the brother, but instead she eggs the H on and let’s him believe she is indeed in the running as the next Mrs. So what is our hero to do? Grab her violently, give punishing kisses, that turn passionate with tongue and breast stroking. (The robe did not provide enough of a barrier) Once done he gloats about her response to him(the best kiss ever!!!) He threatens to tell the brother about her response. She’s like, not if I tell him first!!(end scene)

She confronts the brother on the phone the next day and he pleads for her to keep the charade going, as she can hold her own unlike Diana who would be chewed up and spit out. Later that day as she goes for lunch, she walks in on the H and OW in a very passionate embrace. I am just going to say that this scene the h owned it. She put both the H and the OW off kilter with her version of the previous night while having coffee with the H.

Moving along, she has a bonding moment with the sister while washing the dog. Wet tee shirts abound!!! The sis goes to take a shower. The H happens upon the very wet, sexy h and like two randy teenagers, they are rolling around in the hay. The h was ready to give up the farm, until they were interrupted by the sister. The H coming to his senses tells the h to forget this little foible. (Wow, that’s a lot of living packed in less than 36 hours).

Keep it rolling: Basically, we start to see the caring side of the H as it pertains to his beloved sheep. The h gets moved into the cottage, and in doing so, she actively avoids being around the H. The h realizes (as does the intuitive farm manager Don), that she loves the H. Declining dinner invites from sister, and only going to the homestead to the studio when she knows H is nowhere around. The H calls her out on this and she just stammers. Sheep keep showing up dead(is her dog causing the deaths?) Mark the brother shows up for a few days and she throws herself into his arms glad to have a friendly face. There is an uncomfortable dinner with the ow in tow. The next day, There is another bonding moment with the h, Mark, and the sister. They tell the sister that they are not involved. The sister thinks the H should know too(she realizes he has feelings for h) Later in the afternoon, our stealthy little h overhears another conversation between the brother and H. The H basically calls her a promiscuous little gold-digger who kissed him. The brother basically tells the H he isn’t even fit to lick her shoes. To their horror, both realize that the h has heard them.

Dog drama: The real owner of the dog steps up to claim ragtag. He is obviously abusive but the hero says it is his dog. She hands the dog over and is distraught. A couple of days later the dog escapes his rope (Run Toto Run) Everyone knows the h will hide the dog given 1/2 a chance, alas she has no idea where dog is and goes to look for it. When she gets back to the cottage the H is waiting for her with dog in hand and says that the dog is now hers. She throws herself into his arms (and throws her virginity out the door) Unfortunately, they did not get in much cuddle time, as Don the manager comes knocking at the door. There have been more sheep deaths(Ragtag???).

Oh NO!!! The stealthy h is at it again and hears the H talk to Peter the vet about putting the dog down, the one he gave to her. In her haste to go save Ragtag, she breaks her ankle. In hospital she refuses any contact with the H(how could he kill her dog)

The h and H have another showdown, where she basically tells him the sex was no big thing, she wasn’t even a virgin. Being the Bohemian she is, she is sure that once she is married to Mark that the H and her can still have something on the side. He doesn’t quite believe her, yet she gives him no choice.

Evil Ow comes back with her parting shots trying to implant suspicion in the h’s head. The h knows how to get back at OW.

Mark and Diana leave the h and H alone together(hoping they will realize their love) Normally, in a story the H has to do some groveling, but in this case it is Ryan who needs to. She realizes that she jumped to conclusions about the H and he is thoroughly insulted that she thinks he would put HER dog down, and he confronts her about her other lies. Pretty much he is disgusted with her.

The next day before she leaves for London, she has to see the H one more time. She tells him the ow says they are to be married. He basically tells her its none of her business. She begs a kiss from him, he complies with an angry kiss. This doesn’t please her. He basically says oh I guess you aren’t so liberated. I just don’t understand why I had the honor of being your first lover. She says I think you can figure it out and when you do come look me up in London.

2 months go by. No hero visit. One night she has her ex boyfriend Alan over for dinner. He gets fresh and tries to have his way with her(she refused previously) Ragtag the dog saves the day and he is sent on his way leaving the door open for the H. The H tells her he knows all about the ruse she and his brother played on him. He loves her, and told her being with her was the greatest night of his life. They succumb to their mutual passion and then more talking. She means more to him than his estate, brother or sister. He plans on marrying her and filling her womb asap. He then tells her she is promising artist.

There is no epilogue. However, the brother is engaged to the roommate. The sister is engaged to the vet(I did not discuss their little story, not too much to share), the H and h will be married by the end of the week and even Ragtag the scrappy sheep dog has become a father. Who knows maybe even the ow will find happiness, out there somewhere.

Overall, a satisfying read with some angst, a clearly in love hero, and a young heroine who has a spine.

[sbf20112011 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this one. Loved that the hero couldn't help but be attracted to the heroine despite his better judgment, and Carole Mortimer can write some steamy scenes, even in a 1983 book. It was a little overly focused on dogs and various other plot points, but overall this was a good read.

[SassyLeg · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[DamsonDreamer · Rating 3 out of 5]

That wide eyed naive tone...not for me. Feels a bit basic. Moralising about women sleeping with men before marriage also not for me. I like a brothers thing and this does have a good element of that and I liked his moves. Grant was ok, Ryan (the h) was irritating as hell. Ragtag the dog who could be fed after running around (don't do this, gastric torsion can kill) was an unrealistic but lovable pet. Everyone marries everyone within weeks. Also her one painting means he can declare her a successful artist. There's a neatly tied ending and there's an 8 year old's vision of a hea. This was that.

[Tia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this one as well. I was impressed by the hero and heroine, they had a unique chemistry. However at times the heroine was very immature and child like. I think the hero had a lot of patience and forgiveness in him.

[RomLibrary · Rating 4 out of 5]

The loan of her friend's studio should mean three blissful weeks of peace for artist Ryan to sketch and paint. But arriving at Montgomery Hall, she finds she'll be sharing her stay with her friend's arrogant and uncompromising brother, Grant! Everything about Grant sends shivers of excitement through Ryan. But his misunderstanding of her situation evokes a response too powerful to ignore. Nothing she can say can convince Grant of her integrity. And resisting the Lord of the manor is more difficult than she thought!

[MJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

The h is a college student studying art and she spends three weeks at her friend's Yorkshire family home using his studio. There she meets her friend's older brother and younger sister. Both are rude and snobby to her. She picks up a stray dog along the way. The siblings think she is their brother's gf and treat her like a gold-digging dirt bag. Her friend is actually dating her roommate and tricked the heroine to take the heat so when the real fiancee meets the family, they'll be more accepting.

The fact that she's a painter was a very neglected plot point. It got her to the countryside house and that was basically it. Girl barely picked up a brush. The dog ended up taking up most of the story, maybe even more than the H. The two MCs fight their attraction to each other but also indulge in some stolen kisses and more. The breakdown in their relationship occurred due to a small misunderstanding and the h suddenly had a personality transplant and acted like a raging b****. I guess this is what I liked least about this book. The four main characters all act in rude/unwarranted/selfish ways: the H, the h, the H's sister and brother. This story was promising but it ended up being 65% about an English sheepdog named Ragtag.

[Vee · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars

At first it was quite enjoyable until I get to the part when the H was in fact in a relationship with OW moreover the h caught him kissing OW the next day after he groped her and she was nonchalant about it too, so wtf. And the H thought the h was in a relationship with his brother too and he still tried to kiss and had sex with her like.. ew. And the h despite knowing about OW, acted like there was no OW. What a disgusting mess. I only give 1 extra star for Ragtag the dog if not I would only give it 1.5 stars.

[Live2Read · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5
Because I’m considerate of the writing and some, but if I was to rate alone how much I enjoyed the book then it’s 1.5 stars. I found the hero & heroine, including the plot boring. But I was very distracted reading this book so perhaps my mind wasn’t allowing me to engaged.

[Ranjna · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Toni-Lea Chin · Rating 3 out of 5]

The amount of times the heroine picked the dog over the Hero.

This heroine was exasperating.

[Michelle Johnston · Rating 2 out of 5]

One sided dialect makes for a boring read

Read like a teenage book. No depth and childish petulance. And only the view on her side. Makes for a disappointing read. Don’t bother!

[ANGELIA · Rating 2 out of 5]

Just too over-the-top silly for me! The extra star is for the dog.

[Elaine · Rating 5 out of 5]

My 115th Carole Mortimer book!
I really enjoyed this story, an easy read. Loved it! 5☆

[Diamond]

من أجلك أرحل


الاسماء والاماكن في الترجمة العربية مختلفه عن القصة الاصلية


"- وداعاً أندرو !
- وداعاً جوديت ! "
نظرت جوديت إلى الرجل الذي تحبه نظرة أخيرة بقلب مثقل بالحزن , ولكن ألم تكن هذه أفضل نهاية لعلاقتهما التي لم تعرف لحظة هدوء منذ التقيا؟ علاقة كانت مسرحاً لأقوى المشاعر فيها تبادلا أقسى الاتهامات , فقد اتهمها أندرو بأنها فنانة متشردة بلا أخلاق تسعى وراء أخيه طمعاً في ماله , بينما اتهمته جوديت بأنه شخص قاتل دون رحمة لا تعرف العواطف طريقها إلى قلبه
ولكن هل أسدل هذا الوداع الستار نهائياً على علاقتهما أم أن القدر لم يقل كلمته الأخيرة بعد؟