What do you think?
Rate this book
Whirlpool
"Old lovers make very good advisers."
Or so Kirby Waterford's friends told her. However, Kirby--widowed a year earlier--wasn't sure she could trust
Damian Holt's advice . . . or his motives. Damian was a wildly successful businessman, with a reputation for ruthlessness. He was also the man she'd loved as a teenager--not that they'd actually been lovers. He was the man who'd rejected and humiliated her... .
But Kirby really had no choice. She needed Damian's help if Waterford Electronics, her late husband's company, was to survive. More than that, she needed his love if she was to survive!
Or so Kirby Waterford's friends told her. However, Kirby--widowed a year earlier--wasn't sure she could trust
Damian Holt's advice . . . or his motives. Damian was a wildly successful businessman, with a reputation for ruthlessness. He was also the man she'd loved as a teenager--not that they'd actually been lovers. He was the man who'd rejected and humiliated her... .
But Kirby really had no choice. She needed Damian's help if Waterford Electronics, her late husband's company, was to survive. More than that, she needed his love if she was to survive!
192 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published April 1, 1992
1 person is currently reading
37 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
February 15, 2018
RE Whirlpool - Madeleine Ker and HPlandia docudrama's present
A Standard Day at the HP Office - with reader commentary and special consultation with Captain Morgan
Chapter One -
In which we learn the h is a 25 yr old widowed Yorkshire woman. Her beloved husband died ten months earlier, leaving control of his large company entirely in her hands. But there are problems with the company and our girl isn't a business person really. She is invited for a weekend at her older also widowed BFF friend's estate.
There our girl meets her distant cousin and his new fiance. Clearly our girl isn't happy about this, this distant relation seems to have done her a great wrong in the past. Not only that, but it seems the distant relation is now the head of huge international conglomerate, which goes around creating environmental disasters and then conning the victims out of their rightful repayment. The distant relation is quite clear on being in league with Lucifer, he claims it pays in advance and really well.
(Reader commentary: well, we got the standard HP office set up, h with a past unrequited love, female friend all ready to pimp the h out, engaged past unrequited love H with a witch fiancee, and some dubious character morals to ponder over.)
Chapter Two
Our girl meets the Devil H in the library, he offers some condolences and offers some help in sorting out her late husband's company. Our girl rejects the offer and off to bed to reminisce she goes. It seems our girl spent her childhood in love with the Devil H and then something horrible happened on her 18th birthday.
Apparently our Devil H is a devil with the ladies too, but the h still at one point wanted to marry him. That obviously did not happen and now our girl's BFF is all keen to pimp our girl out to the H. So in that interest, the BFF invites the Devil H and his fiancee to go horse riding. Tho the h doesn't want anything to do with the Devil H, the BFF is determined to make our girl ask him for business advice.
Our girl and the Devil H have hostile conversations about his exploitation of victims his company created and then our girl's horse rears and hits the Witchy fiancee's horse and sends the woman out of the saddle. The Devil H has to help his fiancee back to the house and she is seething.
(Reader Commentary: That was funny, the OW is on her hiney and looking ready to spit tacks. The h is very angry with the H, the remarks that he is a vile exploiter of people have seemed to hit his sore spot. He also seems overly interested in the h, but I do wish for once an h would tell her BFF to jump when they start the pimp-o-rama push.)
Chapter Three :
Our girl gets an ultimatum from one the shareholders of her husband's electronic company. The man is a bully slime swiller snot and wants the chairman position and to marry the h. She is pretty repulsed, especially when the slime snot claims she never loved her husband.
Our girl calls her second highest shareholder, who is also gunning for the big spot. This one is keen on our girl turning everything over to him and continuing on as a frivolous female. Our girl knows she has a battle on her hands, but she isn't sure about what to do.
Then the Devil H calls, he wants to meet for lunch, his fiancee is off to London for the week. Our girl tells him off. It seems that years earlier, our girl was humiliated by the H. He knew she was in love with him and instead of gently brushing her off, he berated her and flung numerous OW in her face. It hurt our girl pretty badly, cause she was really in love and then something really terrible happened.
However as our girl looks at the portrait of her dead husband, she knows she loved him - they did not have the passion she felt for the Devil H, but he was a good man and they were devoted. So for that reason alone, our girl is going to meet the H for lunch, he might be the one man who can save her husband's company and her husband's philanthropic local programs.
(Reader Commentary: Well things are certainly spicing up. Tho I wonder did this girl never hear of management consultants? But then again, this is HPlandia, so making a smart executive move is probably not on in any HP story line.)
Chapters Four to Eight
Our girl meets the Devil H, he agrees to help with the company problems as our girl is really concerned that the other two shareholders will do away with the philanthropy division of our girl's company. Our girl is very insistent that all of the support the company gives the local town goes on, it is her home, it was her husband's and his family's home and these are true Yorkshire folk, they support their own against all outsiders.
The Devil H tells our girl he needs a week to do the research and refine the plan and they will need to have frequent meet ups. Our girl heads into the office with a little sigh of relief. The two aggressive shareholders are on notice that a bigger shark is on the loose and our girl is happy they seem to be falling into line.
The Devil H and our girl meet on a long horse jaunt to go over the save the company game plan. Our girl lets the H know that his actions of kissing her, leading her on and then casting her aside on her eighteenth birthday to go sample the lady buffet in London hurt her terribly. Especially as he was all on fire for her one minute and in the next casting her off like a used tissue and being incredibly cold about it.
The Devil H makes excuses for himself that all the women he dated only reminded him of our girl, but that he was ten years older, he thought she was just infatuated and her parents were a bit askance at him making a move on their daughter. So he hurt her and he supposedly hurt himself, but it had to be done.
Then he makes his big seduction move and even tho he is still engaged, our girl goes to bed with him and we get a huge lurve club mojo moment.
(Reader Commentary: I am just not believing this girl. OMG where is the Captain?
Captain Morgan : I am here for ya lass, get some o' this in your gullet.
RC: *Taking a double shot* WTF? He tells her that he was only being a slime snot to keep her from making a mistake and she buys that piece of cow manure? Are you kidding me, he wasn't hurt, he is just missing what he passed up. Why is she sleeping with him? Who does that? He is ENGAGED! Captain M. I am getting really worried about this here.
Captain Morgan: Now lass, we have been down this road before, take a small swig and some milk thistle and we will get through this together. )
Chapter Eight:
Our girl is happy after her big night of love and she goes to meet the H for lunch. She is in love all over again and has even taken off her wedding ring. She loved her husband, but surely he would want her to be happy and he is gone and the sun is shinning and her dreams have all come true.
She gets to the restaurant and reality shatters her happy little illusion. Cause not only is the H there, but so is his fiancee. The h is stunned, she forgot she was just the cheap bit on the side and with mounting horror, she listens as she finds out from the Witch Fiancee that the H is taking over her company. He wants her shares, he has already managed to buy a lot of the others and the h is betrayed and furious.
She storms out and the H follows, she tells him off and then goes to call her shareholders. She finds out that a lot of them have sold, but the guy who wants to be the new chairman hasn't and she makes an ally of sorts out of him.
(RC: That just bites! I mean, I know the h was a trampy tart and all, but I still feel bad for her. She only wanted to preserve her beloved husband's philanthropically minded company and everyone is intent on tearing her down. Cheaters never prosper tho. But what a really mean thing for the H to do!
Captain Morgan: Here add a splash o' this to your Coke lass,*pouring in half a bottle*, it makes the rocky parts easier. But I have to tell ya, these Witchy OW are harder than some of the Harbor Wenches I have occasionally run afoul of, and as for that H - he makes Blackbeard look like a tree hugging kitten rescuer.
I should be used to it, as I have been consulting with ya for so long now, but really how these stories become absolute carnage and blood baths is truly frightening. I think sailing the high seas and boarding Spanish Galleons under heavy canon fire is a lot safer. But buck up lass! There is only two chapters to go, maybe a White Knight with a shiny Maserati will ride up and save the day!)
Chapter Nine
Our girl is heartbroken and feeling used and abused and very stupid. So she goes to hang with her widow BFF. Who has called the H to come over in spite of our girl's fierce defiance. He claims that he never intended to hurt our girl and that he has to take his now ex-fiancee to the airport but he wants to meet later to talk.
Our girl lets the Devil H know that she will never trust him, in fact she claims that she is marrying the guy who wants to be chairman, and between them they have enough shares to hold the H off. Then she goes home. She is pleased that the engagement is off, but she still feels that the H will destroy the philanthropy projects that meant so much to her and her husband.
After all, the Devil H has betrayed hundreds of his companies victims in the past, he himself has admitted he has no qualms about it and our girl is still smarting from sleeping with an engaged man. Then the Witch Fiancee calls and tells our girl that she should listen to the H's plan.
The Witch Fiancee claims that the H actually helped his environmental disaster victims out of his own pocket on the quiet and that really he is a good person. Our girl politely thanks the OW and then her housekeeper tells her she should sell her house and get married again, as even tho it has only been a year, a woman like her shouldn't be without a man.
(RC: Give me that bottle! *gulping frantically* I don't freaking BELIEVE this! Who has the OW call up and do that!?! WTF, that is just so TACKY! I also can't believe every single person in this story is totally pimping that idiot girl out. Is there no END to the tackiness here! Captain! Is there another bottle around here?
Captain Morgan: Lass, I dunno what to tell ya! *breaks open another bottle and swigs half* I am as stunned as you are? This is shocking, in our many sails throughout HPlandia, I can't ever recall any OW being helpful outside of a Penny Jordan beta H and shy h book, (but they always need the extra help cause they are usually about as declarative as a dead carp) - she has got to be a'plottin something, let's keep an eye on that wench.)
Chapter Ten and the conclusion of our story
The H shows up to take our girl to lunch the next the day. Except they don't go to lunch, the H takes our girl to a 16th century manor house and dangles it and it's original furnishings in front of our girl like candy, if only she will marry him and be his love and have his rugrats.
The Devil H confesses that he has always loved our girl, but he miscalculated and she married another guy and then he felt nothing and got engaged for business reasons and then found our girl widowed and broke his engagement the very next day.
Our girl admits that she loves the Devil H back and that the OW called up and explained how he was kind to the people his company messed over and that she really never loved her husband after all.
The end is the H and our girl are married and the new chairman of the company is the guy who originally wanted it, but with the H controlling it, the philanthropy programs will be expanded and the two of them are lurving it up together, for a new house, new life HEA.
(RC: I need a triple shot after that! *slamming triple shot down* I mean, what a skanky tarty tartlet! She NEVER loved her husband after NINE chapters of vowing that she did?!? That tramp! She deserves whatever the OW has planned cause really, HOW TACKY CAN YOU BE!
Captain Morgan: Make mine a triple too lass, *drinks and slams the mug down* I am just not feelin the lurve here. Whatdya say we finish these up and find our skillets and my crew can hold em' while we bash them about the knees a few times then force them down the plank into a sea of tiger sharks?
RC: Oh Captain M! You always have the best idears when we are two bottles into things, no wonder I always appreciate you on these outings!
Captain Morgan: Lass, I am always here for ya, but really do you think you could ever invite me along for one of the nicer HP voyages? I mean, I am getting a little tired of only being called in for the rough weather ones.
RC: Captain, I am so sorry. You are absolutely right of course, tho I did share the sweet beta H Penny Jordan one.
Captain Morgan: But I never get to go on the Patricia Wilson ones and you only think of me as a foul weather friend!
RC: Okay Cap'n M. I promise, I will invite you along on the next pink sparkly rainbows and kitten HEA HP outing. Now I gotta go pass out.
Captain Morgan: I will be remindin' ya of your promise lass, now I am all for passing out in my berth myself. Until next time then. )
And that concludes our inside look at the HPlandia's Standard Day at the HP Office.
Stay tuned for our next installment where HPlandia Productions takes you on a Classic HPlandia Train Wreck. Complete with Special Captain Morgan consult in collusion with Bombay Sapphire!
A Standard Day at the HP Office - with reader commentary and special consultation with Captain Morgan
Chapter One -
In which we learn the h is a 25 yr old widowed Yorkshire woman. Her beloved husband died ten months earlier, leaving control of his large company entirely in her hands. But there are problems with the company and our girl isn't a business person really. She is invited for a weekend at her older also widowed BFF friend's estate.
There our girl meets her distant cousin and his new fiance. Clearly our girl isn't happy about this, this distant relation seems to have done her a great wrong in the past. Not only that, but it seems the distant relation is now the head of huge international conglomerate, which goes around creating environmental disasters and then conning the victims out of their rightful repayment. The distant relation is quite clear on being in league with Lucifer, he claims it pays in advance and really well.
(Reader commentary: well, we got the standard HP office set up, h with a past unrequited love, female friend all ready to pimp the h out, engaged past unrequited love H with a witch fiancee, and some dubious character morals to ponder over.)
Chapter Two
Our girl meets the Devil H in the library, he offers some condolences and offers some help in sorting out her late husband's company. Our girl rejects the offer and off to bed to reminisce she goes. It seems our girl spent her childhood in love with the Devil H and then something horrible happened on her 18th birthday.
Apparently our Devil H is a devil with the ladies too, but the h still at one point wanted to marry him. That obviously did not happen and now our girl's BFF is all keen to pimp our girl out to the H. So in that interest, the BFF invites the Devil H and his fiancee to go horse riding. Tho the h doesn't want anything to do with the Devil H, the BFF is determined to make our girl ask him for business advice.
Our girl and the Devil H have hostile conversations about his exploitation of victims his company created and then our girl's horse rears and hits the Witchy fiancee's horse and sends the woman out of the saddle. The Devil H has to help his fiancee back to the house and she is seething.
(Reader Commentary: That was funny, the OW is on her hiney and looking ready to spit tacks. The h is very angry with the H, the remarks that he is a vile exploiter of people have seemed to hit his sore spot. He also seems overly interested in the h, but I do wish for once an h would tell her BFF to jump when they start the pimp-o-rama push.)
Chapter Three :
Our girl gets an ultimatum from one the shareholders of her husband's electronic company. The man is a bully slime swiller snot and wants the chairman position and to marry the h. She is pretty repulsed, especially when the slime snot claims she never loved her husband.
Our girl calls her second highest shareholder, who is also gunning for the big spot. This one is keen on our girl turning everything over to him and continuing on as a frivolous female. Our girl knows she has a battle on her hands, but she isn't sure about what to do.
Then the Devil H calls, he wants to meet for lunch, his fiancee is off to London for the week. Our girl tells him off. It seems that years earlier, our girl was humiliated by the H. He knew she was in love with him and instead of gently brushing her off, he berated her and flung numerous OW in her face. It hurt our girl pretty badly, cause she was really in love and then something really terrible happened.
However as our girl looks at the portrait of her dead husband, she knows she loved him - they did not have the passion she felt for the Devil H, but he was a good man and they were devoted. So for that reason alone, our girl is going to meet the H for lunch, he might be the one man who can save her husband's company and her husband's philanthropic local programs.
(Reader Commentary: Well things are certainly spicing up. Tho I wonder did this girl never hear of management consultants? But then again, this is HPlandia, so making a smart executive move is probably not on in any HP story line.)
Chapters Four to Eight
Our girl meets the Devil H, he agrees to help with the company problems as our girl is really concerned that the other two shareholders will do away with the philanthropy division of our girl's company. Our girl is very insistent that all of the support the company gives the local town goes on, it is her home, it was her husband's and his family's home and these are true Yorkshire folk, they support their own against all outsiders.
The Devil H tells our girl he needs a week to do the research and refine the plan and they will need to have frequent meet ups. Our girl heads into the office with a little sigh of relief. The two aggressive shareholders are on notice that a bigger shark is on the loose and our girl is happy they seem to be falling into line.
The Devil H and our girl meet on a long horse jaunt to go over the save the company game plan. Our girl lets the H know that his actions of kissing her, leading her on and then casting her aside on her eighteenth birthday to go sample the lady buffet in London hurt her terribly. Especially as he was all on fire for her one minute and in the next casting her off like a used tissue and being incredibly cold about it.
The Devil H makes excuses for himself that all the women he dated only reminded him of our girl, but that he was ten years older, he thought she was just infatuated and her parents were a bit askance at him making a move on their daughter. So he hurt her and he supposedly hurt himself, but it had to be done.
Then he makes his big seduction move and even tho he is still engaged, our girl goes to bed with him and we get a huge lurve club mojo moment.
(Reader Commentary: I am just not believing this girl. OMG where is the Captain?
Captain Morgan : I am here for ya lass, get some o' this in your gullet.
RC: *Taking a double shot* WTF? He tells her that he was only being a slime snot to keep her from making a mistake and she buys that piece of cow manure? Are you kidding me, he wasn't hurt, he is just missing what he passed up. Why is she sleeping with him? Who does that? He is ENGAGED! Captain M. I am getting really worried about this here.
Captain Morgan: Now lass, we have been down this road before, take a small swig and some milk thistle and we will get through this together. )
Chapter Eight:
Our girl is happy after her big night of love and she goes to meet the H for lunch. She is in love all over again and has even taken off her wedding ring. She loved her husband, but surely he would want her to be happy and he is gone and the sun is shinning and her dreams have all come true.
She gets to the restaurant and reality shatters her happy little illusion. Cause not only is the H there, but so is his fiancee. The h is stunned, she forgot she was just the cheap bit on the side and with mounting horror, she listens as she finds out from the Witch Fiancee that the H is taking over her company. He wants her shares, he has already managed to buy a lot of the others and the h is betrayed and furious.
She storms out and the H follows, she tells him off and then goes to call her shareholders. She finds out that a lot of them have sold, but the guy who wants to be the new chairman hasn't and she makes an ally of sorts out of him.
(RC: That just bites! I mean, I know the h was a trampy tart and all, but I still feel bad for her. She only wanted to preserve her beloved husband's philanthropically minded company and everyone is intent on tearing her down. Cheaters never prosper tho. But what a really mean thing for the H to do!
Captain Morgan: Here add a splash o' this to your Coke lass,*pouring in half a bottle*, it makes the rocky parts easier. But I have to tell ya, these Witchy OW are harder than some of the Harbor Wenches I have occasionally run afoul of, and as for that H - he makes Blackbeard look like a tree hugging kitten rescuer.
I should be used to it, as I have been consulting with ya for so long now, but really how these stories become absolute carnage and blood baths is truly frightening. I think sailing the high seas and boarding Spanish Galleons under heavy canon fire is a lot safer. But buck up lass! There is only two chapters to go, maybe a White Knight with a shiny Maserati will ride up and save the day!)
Chapter Nine
Our girl is heartbroken and feeling used and abused and very stupid. So she goes to hang with her widow BFF. Who has called the H to come over in spite of our girl's fierce defiance. He claims that he never intended to hurt our girl and that he has to take his now ex-fiancee to the airport but he wants to meet later to talk.
Our girl lets the Devil H know that she will never trust him, in fact she claims that she is marrying the guy who wants to be chairman, and between them they have enough shares to hold the H off. Then she goes home. She is pleased that the engagement is off, but she still feels that the H will destroy the philanthropy projects that meant so much to her and her husband.
After all, the Devil H has betrayed hundreds of his companies victims in the past, he himself has admitted he has no qualms about it and our girl is still smarting from sleeping with an engaged man. Then the Witch Fiancee calls and tells our girl that she should listen to the H's plan.
The Witch Fiancee claims that the H actually helped his environmental disaster victims out of his own pocket on the quiet and that really he is a good person. Our girl politely thanks the OW and then her housekeeper tells her she should sell her house and get married again, as even tho it has only been a year, a woman like her shouldn't be without a man.
(RC: Give me that bottle! *gulping frantically* I don't freaking BELIEVE this! Who has the OW call up and do that!?! WTF, that is just so TACKY! I also can't believe every single person in this story is totally pimping that idiot girl out. Is there no END to the tackiness here! Captain! Is there another bottle around here?
Captain Morgan: Lass, I dunno what to tell ya! *breaks open another bottle and swigs half* I am as stunned as you are? This is shocking, in our many sails throughout HPlandia, I can't ever recall any OW being helpful outside of a Penny Jordan beta H and shy h book, (but they always need the extra help cause they are usually about as declarative as a dead carp) - she has got to be a'plottin something, let's keep an eye on that wench.)
Chapter Ten and the conclusion of our story
The H shows up to take our girl to lunch the next the day. Except they don't go to lunch, the H takes our girl to a 16th century manor house and dangles it and it's original furnishings in front of our girl like candy, if only she will marry him and be his love and have his rugrats.
The Devil H confesses that he has always loved our girl, but he miscalculated and she married another guy and then he felt nothing and got engaged for business reasons and then found our girl widowed and broke his engagement the very next day.
Our girl admits that she loves the Devil H back and that the OW called up and explained how he was kind to the people his company messed over and that she really never loved her husband after all.
The end is the H and our girl are married and the new chairman of the company is the guy who originally wanted it, but with the H controlling it, the philanthropy programs will be expanded and the two of them are lurving it up together, for a new house, new life HEA.
(RC: I need a triple shot after that! *slamming triple shot down* I mean, what a skanky tarty tartlet! She NEVER loved her husband after NINE chapters of vowing that she did?!? That tramp! She deserves whatever the OW has planned cause really, HOW TACKY CAN YOU BE!
Captain Morgan: Make mine a triple too lass, *drinks and slams the mug down* I am just not feelin the lurve here. Whatdya say we finish these up and find our skillets and my crew can hold em' while we bash them about the knees a few times then force them down the plank into a sea of tiger sharks?
RC: Oh Captain M! You always have the best idears when we are two bottles into things, no wonder I always appreciate you on these outings!
Captain Morgan: Lass, I am always here for ya, but really do you think you could ever invite me along for one of the nicer HP voyages? I mean, I am getting a little tired of only being called in for the rough weather ones.
RC: Captain, I am so sorry. You are absolutely right of course, tho I did share the sweet beta H Penny Jordan one.
Captain Morgan: But I never get to go on the Patricia Wilson ones and you only think of me as a foul weather friend!
RC: Okay Cap'n M. I promise, I will invite you along on the next pink sparkly rainbows and kitten HEA HP outing. Now I gotta go pass out.
Captain Morgan: I will be remindin' ya of your promise lass, now I am all for passing out in my berth myself. Until next time then. )
And that concludes our inside look at the HPlandia's Standard Day at the HP Office.
Stay tuned for our next installment where HPlandia Productions takes you on a Classic HPlandia Train Wreck. Complete with Special Captain Morgan consult in collusion with Bombay Sapphire!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 27, 2021
I didn't buy any of it. Not hero's self-serving explanation that he brutally dumped the sweet, besotted heroine on her eighteenth birthday for her own good. Neither did I buy his laughable claim that he continued loving the heroine from afar during all their years of separation. Definitely didn't buy that the dumped OW fiancee would suddenly be calling the heroine to play Cupid for her and the hero, unless she had an ulterior motive.
What I saw was a man who wanted to escape from his small town into The Bright Lights, Big City of London and this little country bumpkin heroine, while sweet, would have anchored him in Smallville. He would have been stuck in the mundane life of a 9 to 5 small town husband and father and he shuddered at the thought. It would have been much more honest to admit that he hurt her horribly and callously because he was looking out for number one i.e. himself, instead of the cockamamie story that he dumped her for her own good. Especially the way he did it with insults and shouts on her 18th birthday! Way to let someone down gently, buddy.
He was an insatiable, unrepentant, lecherous, sex-addicted, HUGE manho when he was living in a small, countryside community so I can't even imagine what he got up to in London all these years. There goes the fiction that he pined for the heroine all these years while social climbing and sleeping his way to his lofty ambitions.
The saddest part is that the heroine is the real "other woman" here. She and the hero got involved knowing full well he was engaged to someone else. That makes them despicable. Maybe the OW thought the sweetest revenge would be to get these two back together because they deserved each other and would make each other miserable, or maybe the hero paid her off to fool the heroine since it would mean a financial windfall. Whatever the case, since the hero values his sexual freedom above all else while the heroine is clingy and obsessed with him, this does not spell a happily ever after for them. So, yeah, maybe this was the OW's ultimate revenge: to make sure these two would make each other miserable to the end of time. Well played, lady well played.
What I saw was a man who wanted to escape from his small town into The Bright Lights, Big City of London and this little country bumpkin heroine, while sweet, would have anchored him in Smallville. He would have been stuck in the mundane life of a 9 to 5 small town husband and father and he shuddered at the thought. It would have been much more honest to admit that he hurt her horribly and callously because he was looking out for number one i.e. himself, instead of the cockamamie story that he dumped her for her own good. Especially the way he did it with insults and shouts on her 18th birthday! Way to let someone down gently, buddy.
He was an insatiable, unrepentant, lecherous, sex-addicted, HUGE manho when he was living in a small, countryside community so I can't even imagine what he got up to in London all these years. There goes the fiction that he pined for the heroine all these years while social climbing and sleeping his way to his lofty ambitions.
The saddest part is that the heroine is the real "other woman" here. She and the hero got involved knowing full well he was engaged to someone else. That makes them despicable. Maybe the OW thought the sweetest revenge would be to get these two back together because they deserved each other and would make each other miserable, or maybe the hero paid her off to fool the heroine since it would mean a financial windfall. Whatever the case, since the hero values his sexual freedom above all else while the heroine is clingy and obsessed with him, this does not spell a happily ever after for them. So, yeah, maybe this was the OW's ultimate revenge: to make sure these two would make each other miserable to the end of time. Well played, lady well played.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 17, 2019
I don't need to add much to this Boogenhagen has the best guide to this outing. All I can say is this book is full of cheaters!
The h cheated her dead husband out of proper love (she claimed she loved him throughout the whole book then at the end she confessed she didn't really)
The H cheated on his fiancee (he didn't dump her that quickly)
The h cheated with the H
Not a fan of cheating here in Yorkshire I'm afraid but I did give the book an extra star just for being set in this wonderful County!
The h cheated her dead husband out of proper love (she claimed she loved him throughout the whole book then at the end she confessed she didn't really)
The H cheated on his fiancee (he didn't dump her that quickly)
The h cheated with the H
Not a fan of cheating here in Yorkshire I'm afraid but I did give the book an extra star just for being set in this wonderful County!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 6, 2024
Wow, what a mess this one was.
Tempers constantly flying, and non-stop bickering.
Hero..a creep..ewe factor.
Heroine..for someone running her late husbands company...it screamed.."air head" here.
Lots of angst, cheating, too many others involved.."who was that character again?"
This one was rather a let down..oh well.
Tempers constantly flying, and non-stop bickering.
Hero..a creep..ewe factor.
Heroine..for someone running her late husbands company...it screamed.."air head" here.
Lots of angst, cheating, too many others involved.."who was that character again?"
This one was rather a let down..oh well.
November 15, 2024
This started out OK although tiresome with the h wallowing in her heartbroken love for H all the while assuring herself, H and everyone else that she loved her dead hubby, she did, she really really did. Well, yes, in a way I suppose she did, they shared a warm companionship and she cared for him, so the love for a very old, treasured friend, not a husband.
Book trotted along (see Boogenhagen's review for spoilers as neither the plot nor story are worth recapping) until we got to the part where H once more shoves the boot in. First he makes love with her all night, after refusing to tell her his great plan to save her company. Then the very next day he meets the h, with his fiancé in tow to share that his great plan amounts to swallowing her company and presumably herself too.
Let's count the ethical problems here:
1. She shared confidential company information with him with zero reason to believe he was acting in confidence and did so without informing any of the other board members who in fact have already objected to H showing up and asking questions.
2. Here's a big one. Major breach of business ethics. He did not tell h, who owned the very large majority of stock, his great plan but he did tell his fiancé all about and presumably did nothing to curb her patronizing communicating all about it to everyone.
3. Even bigger. H acted on the confidential information h provided without telling her. He should have known the information was confidential and provided with expectation that he would treat it properly. See point 1 that h did not ensure this understanding.
I worked on acquisitions and divestitures for years and this is wrong in so many ways. He betrayed her all over again and she'd be a fool to ever trust him.
It might even hit insider trading problems - I don’t know English law on this - if company has enough shareholders to be registered the directors who sold could have been naughty.
On a personal note, he claims he dumped her - after nearly seducing her, in fact while in the midst of seduction - for her own good. And she's going back to him!
I got to page 146 and had to stop because I could not read any more about a cheating H, lying, bamboozling H, completely unethical H and a cheating h. Ugh.
Update, I went back and finished. Still ugh.
Book trotted along (see Boogenhagen's review for spoilers as neither the plot nor story are worth recapping) until we got to the part where H once more shoves the boot in. First he makes love with her all night, after refusing to tell her his great plan to save her company. Then the very next day he meets the h, with his fiancé in tow to share that his great plan amounts to swallowing her company and presumably herself too.
Let's count the ethical problems here:
1. She shared confidential company information with him with zero reason to believe he was acting in confidence and did so without informing any of the other board members who in fact have already objected to H showing up and asking questions.
2. Here's a big one. Major breach of business ethics. He did not tell h, who owned the very large majority of stock, his great plan but he did tell his fiancé all about and presumably did nothing to curb her patronizing communicating all about it to everyone.
3. Even bigger. H acted on the confidential information h provided without telling her. He should have known the information was confidential and provided with expectation that he would treat it properly. See point 1 that h did not ensure this understanding.
I worked on acquisitions and divestitures for years and this is wrong in so many ways. He betrayed her all over again and she'd be a fool to ever trust him.
It might even hit insider trading problems - I don’t know English law on this - if company has enough shareholders to be registered the directors who sold could have been naughty.
On a personal note, he claims he dumped her - after nearly seducing her, in fact while in the midst of seduction - for her own good. And she's going back to him!
I got to page 146 and had to stop because I could not read any more about a cheating H, lying, bamboozling H, completely unethical H and a cheating h. Ugh.
Update, I went back and finished. Still ugh.
February 8, 2022
Anyone else feel bad for the dead husband? He seemed like a kind jolly fellow! These two hero and heroine are kind dumptrucks. First up the heroine, next time you kiss someone new for the first time PLEASE react like she did, and I promise you you’ll get the exact same reaction that the she did. She sounded insane! “We are gonna get married, it’s destiny, you know it.” Girl slow the heck down! The hero…just is a jerkface. Like most of the time. “Oh I hurt myself when I hurt you!”…uh huh, he banged like everyone and got a fiancé, who he proposed to in bed. Let’s you know his priorities. “I came back.”(assumed you would still be single/desperate enough to be with me and have me dish out whatever I choose). And the whole company thing. “Oh you can’t do this job, you are a young woman.” Jeee thanks everyone. Wish she had buckled down and figured that stuff out, nope just marrying so I can wash my hand from it. Classy and so forward thinking. Ugh, like you read flashes of the good story that was there but it never overshadowed the drawbacks to this story and this couple. I’d say skip, cause they sleep together while the hero still had a fiancé, hard to root for a couple like that.
November 8, 2022
I loved the h in this one. At 18 she well and truly had her heart ripped out, but she got up, dusted herself off, and got married to another dude. 5 years later she's a widow and the old bastard who ripped her heart out way back when is back.
The thing I enjoyed most was the h didn't immediately crumble at first sight of her old love. Nuh-uh. She's heart sore and heart wise now, and tells him straight up 'you hurt me bad and now I'm off limits' and boy does she stick to her guns. She's honest, she's sensible, but she also vulnerable to past hurts and when she does finally start to soften up to the H it feels well earned and not infuriating.
I also liked how she had bigger fish to fry than just dealing with the H. She had the memory and wishes of her deceased husband to contend with, and the company she inherited to take care of. She had priorities outside of 'mah feelings' that she was devoted to, and she worked hard to meet those responsibilities.
Also loved the OW in this - she was a catty bitch with an actual heart.
The thing I enjoyed most was the h didn't immediately crumble at first sight of her old love. Nuh-uh. She's heart sore and heart wise now, and tells him straight up 'you hurt me bad and now I'm off limits' and boy does she stick to her guns. She's honest, she's sensible, but she also vulnerable to past hurts and when she does finally start to soften up to the H it feels well earned and not infuriating.
I also liked how she had bigger fish to fry than just dealing with the H. She had the memory and wishes of her deceased husband to contend with, and the company she inherited to take care of. She had priorities outside of 'mah feelings' that she was devoted to, and she worked hard to meet those responsibilities.
Also loved the OW in this - she was a catty bitch with an actual heart.
January 16, 2022
I didn’t buy how the H. explained his ruthless rejection, it was rather smarmy and rang false in my ears. I would prefer an honest cruelty. He claimed that he suffered too but He didn’t lack of female companions. He was still engaged to OW when he slept with the heroine but he broke it off directly after the fact. I wish the heroine had learned to really love her husband in the end as the H deserved to be second best after all.
January 17, 2023
His rejection when she was younger was ruthless. That’s why I don’t really believe in his love for her. His explanation why he rejected her, was not enough.
September 2, 2011
It's another woman meets man in the future, they still have resolved issues from the past, they fight, make up, fight, make up, have a misunderstanding and make up.
I do not think this a genre of books I want to keep reading, they have been a nice distraction but they are not for me.
I do not think this a genre of books I want to keep reading, they have been a nice distraction but they are not for me.
August 11, 2016
I loved this novel a lot. I think it's the best of Madeleine Ker's. The characters are very much mature and believable and their love is very much felt. Well-written and an excellent read.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews