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A Secret Splendor
When Arden Gentry travels to Maui to search for the son she gave up long ago, she starts to doubt her decision because she knows she may resurrect secrets that surrounded his birth.
288 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1983
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 99 reviews
October 11, 2020
Yayyy, found another one of Sandra Brown's sweet romances!
This was a very unusual and lovely story with a wonderful hero, beautiful settings and a very cute kid, spoiled only by my distaste for the heroine's ploy. So I'm gonna knock it down to 4 stars.
This was a very unusual and lovely story with a wonderful hero, beautiful settings and a very cute kid, spoiled only by my distaste for the heroine's ploy. So I'm gonna knock it down to 4 stars.
August 7, 2017
Again, I know I say this more often than not in regard to Sandra Brown, I love her books. The fashions in this book were super, by the way. I chose to cast a young Robert Redford and Linda Carter. Lol.
December 4, 2019
Tema novel ini lumayan unik juga sebenarnya, ttg surrogate mother yaitu ibu yg meminjamkan rahimnya dan dibayar utk hamil secara klinis. Dan heroine di novel ini melakukan hal tsb yaitu Arden Gentry. Arden adalah tipikal istri yg sudah bercerai dari seorang suami yg jahat, sudah sewajarnya Arden memiliki sifat kebalikan dari mantannya.
Arden mencari jejak anak tsb dan dia berhasil menemukannya. Ternyata putranya itu adalah anak dari Drew McCaslin, petenis tersohor yg istrinya baru-baru ini sudah meninggal. Arden sudah keburu jatuh cinta pada Drew bahkan sblm melihat anaknya, Matt. Tetapi sebelum sempat mengungkapkan rahasianya ini, Drew sudah melamarnya dan Arden hilang keberaniannya utk jujur.
Cerita bergulir layaknya opera sabun tahun 1980an. Ron, si mantan suami yg jahat kembali utk memeras Arden, bahkan mengancam akan membuka rahasianya. Bagaimana Arden mengatasi masalah peliknya ini?
Sebenarnya plot cerita romance-nya lumayan, ada progress hubungan mereka. Juga ada sinergi dimana Arden "menyuntikkan" semangat hidup Drew kembali setelah patah sehabis kematian istrinya. Sayangnya Arden terlalu pengecut utk mengungkapkan rahasianya. Apalagi dia menuruti keinginan Ron, membiarkan dirinya diperas. Saya gak suka tipikal heroine yg model begini, gak sehat juga utk jiwa raga. Tapi saya suka interaksi Arden dgn anaknya itu, Matt.
Sedangkan sosok Drew mengingatkan saya pada petenis bad boy thn 80an, John McEnroe. Saya sangat suka sisi nakal Drew yg seksi, kecemburuannya pd kedekatan Arden dgn putranya menggemaskan. Tapi sama spt Arden, Drew juga tidak sepenuhnya jujur ttg "ibu kandung" Matt. Ya score 1-1 utk mereka.
Arden mencari jejak anak tsb dan dia berhasil menemukannya. Ternyata putranya itu adalah anak dari Drew McCaslin, petenis tersohor yg istrinya baru-baru ini sudah meninggal. Arden sudah keburu jatuh cinta pada Drew bahkan sblm melihat anaknya, Matt. Tetapi sebelum sempat mengungkapkan rahasianya ini, Drew sudah melamarnya dan Arden hilang keberaniannya utk jujur.
Cerita bergulir layaknya opera sabun tahun 1980an. Ron, si mantan suami yg jahat kembali utk memeras Arden, bahkan mengancam akan membuka rahasianya. Bagaimana Arden mengatasi masalah peliknya ini?
Sebenarnya plot cerita romance-nya lumayan, ada progress hubungan mereka. Juga ada sinergi dimana Arden "menyuntikkan" semangat hidup Drew kembali setelah patah sehabis kematian istrinya. Sayangnya Arden terlalu pengecut utk mengungkapkan rahasianya. Apalagi dia menuruti keinginan Ron, membiarkan dirinya diperas. Saya gak suka tipikal heroine yg model begini, gak sehat juga utk jiwa raga. Tapi saya suka interaksi Arden dgn anaknya itu, Matt.
Sedangkan sosok Drew mengingatkan saya pada petenis bad boy thn 80an, John McEnroe. Saya sangat suka sisi nakal Drew yg seksi, kecemburuannya pd kedekatan Arden dgn putranya menggemaskan. Tapi sama spt Arden, Drew juga tidak sepenuhnya jujur ttg "ibu kandung" Matt. Ya score 1-1 utk mereka.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 8, 2022
Novelita genérica que publicó Sandra Brown en los años ochenta. Esta, para Silhouette Intimate Moments, la n.º 29, con el seudónimo de Erin St. Claire. Salió en enero de 1984. Excesiva como un episodio de Santa Bárbara, hombreras incluidas. Drew McCasslin, tenista profesional, está entrenando para volver a ser competitivo. Ha pasado una mala temporada, bebiendo en demasía, después de quedarse viudo, el pobre, con hijo a cargo. Se fija en una mujer muy atractiva que no le hace demasiado caso. Lo que no sabe es Arden Gentry es la madre de alquiler con la que tuvieron a su niño. El tópico que trata es el de las segundas oportunidades, con niño incluido. Yo diría que no es de las que pasa el corte, se alarga demasiado el secreto que guarda Arden. No merece la pena, a menos que seas muy fan de las historias excesivas de los ochenta.
Crítica más amplia, en mi blog.
Crítica más amplia, en mi blog.
January 9, 2022
La escritura es muy años 80. La protagonista da muchas vueltas para decir la verdad. Aunque tiene bastantes escenas hot entre los protagonistas
March 18, 2009
Too much romance and not enough plot for me.
October 4, 2021
First off, this review will be full of spoilers.
Second, I generally love everything Sandra Brown writes, though I am partial to her mystery/thrillers. Of all her books I’ve read since being on Goodreads, I’ve given them either four or five stars, with the exception of STING, which I disliked so much I only gave it one star. So this is my first time giving her three stars.
Third, I work in the adoption and surrogacy fields. I’m always a little leery of reading a book with an adoption plotline, for fear it will be shown in a negative or unrealistic way. But A SECRET SPLENDOR is the first book I’ve come across with a surrogacy plotline. And that’s where all my issues lie.
Arden was in a bad marriage to an OB/GYN. After running his practice into the ground and going into debt, her husband agreed to find a woman to be a surrogate for a rich couple, who were paying him $100,000.00. The woman he finds? His wife, Arden. She’s reluctant, but then agrees on the condition that after the baby is born, she gets half the money, a divorce, and custody of their son, Joey, who was ill. I can’t for the life of me remember what was wrong with him, cancer or something. So her husband takes her to his clinic and inseminates her with the client’s sperm.
Arden would be what is now referred to as a traditional surrogate, in that she is the biological mother of the child. Traditional surrogacy is not practiced very often these days. In fact, in the state where I live, traditional surrogacy is not legally recognized, and is treated by the court as an adoption. But at the time this book was written, there probably weren’t many laws regarding surrogacy. Although even if there were laws, the way Arden’s husband handled this situation was probably illegal anyway. My state did not have any laws on the books until 2019.
Fast forward to after the divorce, and Joey dies. Distraught, Arden begins thinking about the other child she gave birth to, and decides she needs to find him or her. She never met the rich couple, and did not see the baby after it was born. She doesn’t even know if it’s a boy or girl. Well, by chance she sees a famous tennis player on TV who looks familiar, and then suddenly remembers a couple she saw when leaving the hospital, who were surrounded by paparazzi, and she realizes that the tennis player is the father. I kept hoping that when she got to know him she would learn that he was not in fact the father, but no, her instincts are correct. He’s now a widower, and the child, a boy, is 22 months old. Every time Arden thought about needing to see her child, I wanted to say he’s not your child, he’s their child.
Anyway, she finally manages to meet the tennis player, Drew, and starts dating him. And of course they fall in love with each other. Pretty soon she’s married to him and “step-mother” to the child, Matt. And she keeps thinking she needs to come clean and tell Drew who she is, but she puts it off because she doesn’t want him to think she only married him to be with the child. Also because she’s a cowardly liar.
And then the ex shows up, and blackmails her, and at first she gives him money, but then she finally gets a backbone and tells him she’s not paying anymore and she’s going to tell Drew the truth, but she goes shopping first, which gives the ex time to go to Drew and spill the beans himself. And of course Drew is furious, and storms out to go do his tennis stuff, and Arden gets angry that Drew is angry, even though he has every right to be angry, and just before he comes home a week later she packs up and leaves.
Of course, in the end, Drew tracks her down and they talk it out and profess their love and get their happy ever after, while I’m just frustrated, because the synopsis doesn’t say anything about surrogacy, just that there are “half-truths, secrets and unspeakable lies” surrounding Matt’s birth, so when I started this book I had no idea what I was in for.
To her credit, I really liked Drew. Sandra Brown has an uncanny ability to write wonderful heroes and I always fall in love with them (except the hero of STING, who I just could not feel any sympathy or empathy for). And I do like her writing. So the book still gets three stars from me.
Second, I generally love everything Sandra Brown writes, though I am partial to her mystery/thrillers. Of all her books I’ve read since being on Goodreads, I’ve given them either four or five stars, with the exception of STING, which I disliked so much I only gave it one star. So this is my first time giving her three stars.
Third, I work in the adoption and surrogacy fields. I’m always a little leery of reading a book with an adoption plotline, for fear it will be shown in a negative or unrealistic way. But A SECRET SPLENDOR is the first book I’ve come across with a surrogacy plotline. And that’s where all my issues lie.
Arden was in a bad marriage to an OB/GYN. After running his practice into the ground and going into debt, her husband agreed to find a woman to be a surrogate for a rich couple, who were paying him $100,000.00. The woman he finds? His wife, Arden. She’s reluctant, but then agrees on the condition that after the baby is born, she gets half the money, a divorce, and custody of their son, Joey, who was ill. I can’t for the life of me remember what was wrong with him, cancer or something. So her husband takes her to his clinic and inseminates her with the client’s sperm.
Arden would be what is now referred to as a traditional surrogate, in that she is the biological mother of the child. Traditional surrogacy is not practiced very often these days. In fact, in the state where I live, traditional surrogacy is not legally recognized, and is treated by the court as an adoption. But at the time this book was written, there probably weren’t many laws regarding surrogacy. Although even if there were laws, the way Arden’s husband handled this situation was probably illegal anyway. My state did not have any laws on the books until 2019.
Fast forward to after the divorce, and Joey dies. Distraught, Arden begins thinking about the other child she gave birth to, and decides she needs to find him or her. She never met the rich couple, and did not see the baby after it was born. She doesn’t even know if it’s a boy or girl. Well, by chance she sees a famous tennis player on TV who looks familiar, and then suddenly remembers a couple she saw when leaving the hospital, who were surrounded by paparazzi, and she realizes that the tennis player is the father. I kept hoping that when she got to know him she would learn that he was not in fact the father, but no, her instincts are correct. He’s now a widower, and the child, a boy, is 22 months old. Every time Arden thought about needing to see her child, I wanted to say he’s not your child, he’s their child.
Anyway, she finally manages to meet the tennis player, Drew, and starts dating him. And of course they fall in love with each other. Pretty soon she’s married to him and “step-mother” to the child, Matt. And she keeps thinking she needs to come clean and tell Drew who she is, but she puts it off because she doesn’t want him to think she only married him to be with the child. Also because she’s a cowardly liar.
And then the ex shows up, and blackmails her, and at first she gives him money, but then she finally gets a backbone and tells him she’s not paying anymore and she’s going to tell Drew the truth, but she goes shopping first, which gives the ex time to go to Drew and spill the beans himself. And of course Drew is furious, and storms out to go do his tennis stuff, and Arden gets angry that Drew is angry, even though he has every right to be angry, and just before he comes home a week later she packs up and leaves.
Of course, in the end, Drew tracks her down and they talk it out and profess their love and get their happy ever after, while I’m just frustrated, because the synopsis doesn’t say anything about surrogacy, just that there are “half-truths, secrets and unspeakable lies” surrounding Matt’s birth, so when I started this book I had no idea what I was in for.
To her credit, I really liked Drew. Sandra Brown has an uncanny ability to write wonderful heroes and I always fall in love with them (except the hero of STING, who I just could not feel any sympathy or empathy for). And I do like her writing. So the book still gets three stars from me.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 24, 2023
I am fan of Sandra Brown- this book was not a favourite. Every two pages was another drawn out sex scene that lasted longer than most other parts of the plot. I didn’t find the characters that likeable, except the kid. If you are going to try a Sandra Brown book for the first time, this isn’t the one to start with - it doesn’t do her writing justice.
February 3, 2018
This was a refreshing, happy ending romance, with some sculduggery thrown in. In addition, the setting was Maui. Easy, relaxing and enjoyable reading.
April 10, 2018
Es un poco culebrón del mediodía, pero se lee rápidamente y los personajes tienen su encanto. Novela romántica sencilla, con un gran secreto y que se disfruta para desconectar de la realidad y los dramas trágicos.
December 8, 2019
Uma boa leitura de entretenimento
March 28, 2018
For me the plot was interesting but I kept thinking that had she just communicated her story near the beginning, a lot of the book could have been eliminated. I gave it 3 stars because the ending was so abrupt. Arden is married to a Dr who loves gambling more than her. He is approached by a famous tennis player and his wife to find a surrogate so they can have a child. He agrees for a sum of money and confronts his wife to be the surrogate. She agrees only if he splits the money with her and grants a divorce and lets her leave with their sick child. After she delivers the surrogate baby boy, it is taken away. After her son from the Dr dies, she is haunted by the child she gave away. She remembers that a famous tennis player and his wife leave the hospital shortly after her delivery with a baby boy. She looks to find the boy but instead finds the grieving husband who recently lost his wife in a car accident. They meet on the courts and he is drawn to Arden. He pursues dating her and they start to fall in love. Drew wants her to meet his son, which is really their son. At this point, she should have confessed her identity.. but the story goes on until they get married and the Dr. comes back into the scene demanding more money to keep quiet. Arden gives him money but he demands more. When she tells him no, he goes to Drew to tell him everything. Drew is hurt by the betrayal and leaves. She leaves him to start over, he comes back looking for her, and they live happily ever after. The last part is so quick that if you blink you miss the end.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 23, 2019
Sandra Brown's earlier book as Erin St. Claire, A Secret Splendor is a simple love story. Like all her other earlier works when her books were focused on absolute romance, there's not much mystery element in this. Drew is a hot shot tennis player who is working towards regaining his No.1 rank chances to meet Arden in the island of Maui. But is their meeting purely chance or cleverly plotted by Arden. We are clearly shown Arden's dilemma in the decisions that are made but the whole focus of the romance seemed to be on the secret she's holding.
July 5, 2022
Love her novels, hated this one.
Usually Sandra Brown novels have a good story line and the story is a page turner. This story was different. 80% is about
their love for each other and having sex. About 20% through I was tired of one sex scene after the next. Your first big miss in my book Ms. Brown.
Usually Sandra Brown novels have a good story line and the story is a page turner. This story was different. 80% is about
their love for each other and having sex. About 20% through I was tired of one sex scene after the next. Your first big miss in my book Ms. Brown.
October 8, 2014
Couldn't handle her l/t deception, didn't seem necessary and so many opportunities for her to come clean. Couldn't handle his reactivity, considering his "true" feelings.
April 26, 2021
Saya spoiler tentang perjanjian rahasianya saja. Ketika suami Ron terlibat hutang dan butuh uang cepat, dia menerima tawaran Drew dan Ellie yang membutuhkan ibu pengganti yang menyediakan rahimnya untuk mengandung dan melahirkan anak dari Drew. Siapa ibu pengganti itu? Ya tentu saja Ron memanfaatkan istrinya sendiri. Dari segala kelakuan buruk Ron, inilah yang paling membuat Arden marah. Ron berkilah ini untuk menyelamatkan klinik gineokologi-nya dan biaya perawatan Joey, anak mereka. Akhirnya Arden setuju melakukan hal itu dengan syarat Ron harus tanda tangan surat perceraian dan separuh uangnya untuk Arden. Setelah anak tersebut lahir dan perceraian, beberapa bulan (atau tahun? Saya lupa) Joey meninggal dunia. Akibat kehilangan Joey, Arden mulai memikirkan dan mencari anak yang dulu dilahirkannya. Akhirnya ketemulah dengan sang ayah yaitu Drew, seorang petenis yang sedang meniti karirnya lagi setelah banyak skandal akibat kematian istrinya. Yah selanjutnya tinggal mengulur - ulur waktu saja bagaimana tanggapan Drew dengan pengakuan Arden, yah kira - kira hampir 3/4 novel. Apalagi ditambah ancaman Ron yang akan memberitahu Drew siapa sebenarnya Arden yang sekarang menjadi istrinya itu. Dan Arden pun kurang cerdas dan terlalu takut terhadap ancaman pemerasan dari Ron dan mengikuti permainan Ron bahkan memberikan uang yang diminta dan menghadapi prospek Ron akan selalu memeras Arden untuk membayar hutang - hutangnya.
2,5⭐
2,5⭐
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 31, 2024
It's been awhile since I have read a Sandra Brown book and this one did not inspire me to read more. Since it was originally published under the pseudonym Erin St. Claire, it is possible that this was one of her earlier efforts. Anyway, not her best work. The heroine, Arden Gentry, has gotten herself into a fine mess. Her marriage ended in divorce. She despised her husband and the lack of interest he showed in their fatally ill small child. Arden took the opportunity to earn enough money to leave this awful man and care for their son. The method was unconventional to say the least. Her husband was an ob/gyn. A couple had come to him, desperate for a child. They were looking for a surrogate mother who was willing to be impregnated with this man's sperm. And they would pay $100,000.00 for this to be handled with utmost secrecy. Arden agreed to her husband's demand under the condition that he give her half of the money and a divorce. A couple of years later, heart-broken over the death of her little boy, Arden decides to find her other son and see if she could persuade the parents to allow her to see him. Arden didn't expect that the mother had died and that she would fall in love with the father. The plot thickened.
June 7, 2023
A Secret Splendor , is a book that has been sitting in my bookshelve for many years now, it was about time to pick it up and finally read it, so glad l did .
This was my first read from Sandra Brown, l think there will be a few more .
It was an unusual storyline, written in 1983, the romance was very good, plenty of sex , but overall it was a page turner, l thoroughly enjoyed it .
Arden Gentry, a woman who has been forced by her gynaecologist husband to become a surrogate for a power couple sets out to find the child, after the tragic death of her son Joey .
Arden is now divorced from her greedy lousy husband, and only wants to see the baby,she gave birth to but never saw.
It turns out that the father is a tennis pro Drew Mc Cassin.
Drew's wife was killed in an accident that set him off in an alcoholic binge that has ruined his career .
When Drew and Arden meet there is a mutual attraction and they start to date.
Arden meets and instantly loves her son. Problem is that she is afraid to tell Drew that she is Matt's biological mother and the secret is revealed in a tragic way.
Great Read Great Characters, worth the Read !!
This was my first read from Sandra Brown, l think there will be a few more .
It was an unusual storyline, written in 1983, the romance was very good, plenty of sex , but overall it was a page turner, l thoroughly enjoyed it .
Arden Gentry, a woman who has been forced by her gynaecologist husband to become a surrogate for a power couple sets out to find the child, after the tragic death of her son Joey .
Arden is now divorced from her greedy lousy husband, and only wants to see the baby,she gave birth to but never saw.
It turns out that the father is a tennis pro Drew Mc Cassin.
Drew's wife was killed in an accident that set him off in an alcoholic binge that has ruined his career .
When Drew and Arden meet there is a mutual attraction and they start to date.
Arden meets and instantly loves her son. Problem is that she is afraid to tell Drew that she is Matt's biological mother and the secret is revealed in a tragic way.
Great Read Great Characters, worth the Read !!
June 6, 2024
A Secret Splendor is Sandra Brown's usual type of early romance novel. She does, however, miss the mark in one aspect of this story. Arden Gentry has a secret, one she keeps to herself until she almost destroys her life and the lives of others. Portrayed as a strong woman, she should have played things differently.
The grieving mother of a son Arden lost too young, she attempts healing by searching for the other child she bore. One look at the son she gave up was going to be enough, she thought.
Tennis pro Drew McCasslin is, likewise, suffering. His wife died tragically a year earlier, but he begins healing when he meets Arden.
Falling in love had not been the plan for either of them, but it soon occurs. Arden had many times to explain how she came to become surrogate mother to Drew's son. She waited too long. A vengeance filled ex-husband appears and trouble follows.
Good tale, but Arden is too wimpy for my taste.
The grieving mother of a son Arden lost too young, she attempts healing by searching for the other child she bore. One look at the son she gave up was going to be enough, she thought.
Tennis pro Drew McCasslin is, likewise, suffering. His wife died tragically a year earlier, but he begins healing when he meets Arden.
Falling in love had not been the plan for either of them, but it soon occurs. Arden had many times to explain how she came to become surrogate mother to Drew's son. She waited too long. A vengeance filled ex-husband appears and trouble follows.
Good tale, but Arden is too wimpy for my taste.
June 20, 2025
The most annoying fmc in existence, I really regret reading this one. There were SO many opportunities for Arden to let Drew know that she'd been his son's surrogate mother and she let EVERY SINGLE ONE slide by! She was a coward and liar of the worst sort and the author didn't do a great job of redeeming her.she said nothing after they met, after they had a first date, a second, after she met his son, after Drew said he loved her, after admitting she loved him, after getting married, after the honeymoon, after her ex began blackmailing her…uggggggh.
It was all made even worse by the fact that Drew was so open and honest with her. And I don't think it was at all fair to equate him keeping his son's birth story a secret to her being the secret mother. He was protecting his dead wife.
I really lost patience when it came to her giving in to her ex’s blackmail. Only finishing the book to see Drew give her the tonguelashing she deserves.
It was all made even worse by the fact that Drew was so open and honest with her. And I don't think it was at all fair to equate him keeping his son's birth story a secret to her being the secret mother. He was protecting his dead wife.
I really lost patience when it came to her giving in to her ex’s blackmail. Only finishing the book to see Drew give her the tonguelashing she deserves.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 22, 2021
I liked this book but things happened really quickly in it and I wanted to see more relationship development as Arden and Drew get married really quickly.
Although things happen really quickly, the writing isn’t rushed which I liked.
I wanted to see more relationship development not only for Arden and Drew but for Arden and Matt too as he was shown but it would always be very brief.
The only thing that I didn’t really like was that Arden kept her secret
I thought that there could have been more chapters after the final conflict as it seemed too quick, how it was resolved and not really talked about.
Although things happen really quickly, the writing isn’t rushed which I liked.
I wanted to see more relationship development not only for Arden and Drew but for Arden and Matt too as he was shown but it would always be very brief.
The only thing that I didn’t really like was that Arden kept her secret
I thought that there could have been more chapters after the final conflict as it seemed too quick, how it was resolved and not really talked about.
September 30, 2020
This was one of the Sandra Brown's books of the 80's when romance was her genre.
Most people who are not familiar with anything except her recent works will feel ripped off when they get this book on their Kindle. I didn't because I read this book 20 years ago. It is slightly dated, but the story line and the plot still pack a punch. If you can overlook some of the differences between then and now (and remember that its been 35 years since this was written, or thereabouts), you'll read an interesting story line with a plot twist or two. No, nothing like her current works, but not all that bad either. She could write then and she can write now.
Most people who are not familiar with anything except her recent works will feel ripped off when they get this book on their Kindle. I didn't because I read this book 20 years ago. It is slightly dated, but the story line and the plot still pack a punch. If you can overlook some of the differences between then and now (and remember that its been 35 years since this was written, or thereabouts), you'll read an interesting story line with a plot twist or two. No, nothing like her current works, but not all that bad either. She could write then and she can write now.
February 9, 2021
Im Kampf um das Leben ihres kranken Sohnes lässt Angela sich zu etwas hinreißen, das sie später bitter bereut: Sie trägt gegen eine entsprechend hohe Geldsumme für ein Ehepaar ein Kind aus. Als jedoch ihr Sohn trotz der teuren medizinischen Behandlung stirbt, hat Angela nur einen Gedanken: Sie will ihr zweites Kind finden. Ihre Suche führt sie auf die Insel Maui, wo der Tennisstar Daniel McCasslin seit dem Tod seiner Frau allein mit einem kleinen Jungen lebt. Angela und Daniel verlieben sich ineinander. Doch solange sie ihm ihr bittersüßes Geheimnis verschweigt, bleibt ihr das große Glück versagt.
February 21, 2024
So sweet!
Sandra Brown’s books are hit and mess with me. There are been a couple that I have trouble reading again. This was one of the better ones, I thought. Her ex-husband was so evil that I wanted to reach through the pages of the book and ring his neck. The heroine and hero were perfectly matched. There were some times in the book that I outright cried with them. Some of it was typically Harlequin, but I still enjoyed it anyway. As you can tell, I’m not a fan of the Harlequin romances but that’s only because most of them are all the same.
Sandra Brown’s books are hit and mess with me. There are been a couple that I have trouble reading again. This was one of the better ones, I thought. Her ex-husband was so evil that I wanted to reach through the pages of the book and ring his neck. The heroine and hero were perfectly matched. There were some times in the book that I outright cried with them. Some of it was typically Harlequin, but I still enjoyed it anyway. As you can tell, I’m not a fan of the Harlequin romances but that’s only because most of them are all the same.
May 7, 2018
Interesting, unique storyline but lacking.
One of Sandra Brown's more unique plot lines for a love story. But weak in everything else. Not her best dialogue not her best love scenes. At the end I'd say the love scene even got a bit creepy with reference to the child and husband suckling. Easy reading which made it enjoyable enough but with the interesting plot could have been stronger in content.
One of Sandra Brown's more unique plot lines for a love story. But weak in everything else. Not her best dialogue not her best love scenes. At the end I'd say the love scene even got a bit creepy with reference to the child and husband suckling. Easy reading which made it enjoyable enough but with the interesting plot could have been stronger in content.
December 5, 2018
Interesting Read
This book was a bit strange in a way that the dialogue and so much of the interaction between the two protagonists was a bit lacking. However, it was much better at the end with the shared responsibility of both taking the blame for the issues in between them. It's a bit tiresome to see the woman always being blamed and manipulated by men. Give the women a bit more power and gumption.
This book was a bit strange in a way that the dialogue and so much of the interaction between the two protagonists was a bit lacking. However, it was much better at the end with the shared responsibility of both taking the blame for the issues in between them. It's a bit tiresome to see the woman always being blamed and manipulated by men. Give the women a bit more power and gumption.
August 22, 2022
Great old skool Sandra Brown writing as Erin St. Claire. It had a little angst near the end but overall, it was pretty good since Arden and Drew were so much in love through most of the book it was so good.
Arden's ex-husband is a super big creep. He was awful to her.
Sorry, can't seem to get my thoughts together on this one but I really enjoyed it and recommend it as a good read with heart.
Arden's ex-husband is a super big creep. He was awful to her.
Sorry, can't seem to get my thoughts together on this one but I really enjoyed it and recommend it as a good read with heart.
February 5, 2018
An old favorite
So happy this has finally come out in ebook, on of my favorites. A mother’s love for her child knows no boundaries and how deep that love will take her to find what she had to give away to keep the one she had safe. Beautiful story and a sensitive one for its time.
So happy this has finally come out in ebook, on of my favorites. A mother’s love for her child knows no boundaries and how deep that love will take her to find what she had to give away to keep the one she had safe. Beautiful story and a sensitive one for its time.
March 26, 2019
Being set in wonderful Hawaii made the story sensually appealing. The plot and the characters are truly straight out of an 80s drama that it gave me a feeling of guilty pleasure of sorts. I just wished they were able to give a hard cold revenge to the antagonist, though. His exit does not give that much justice to our hero and heroine.
June 16, 2019
Always a Sandra Brown fan. Fun start to the book as my family went to Maui a year ago. Stayed at the Hyatt in Ka’anapali and ate breakfast at the Swan Court. All familiar settings. Wonderful love story. Leaving a bad marriage and finding true, real love. A little too passionate at times. Overall good read with happy ending.
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