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A Lamp for Jonathan
Book by Summers, Essie
- GenresRomance
301 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1982
About the author
Essie Summers
106 books54 followersEssie Summers was a New Zealand author who wrote so vividly of the people and landscape of her native country that she was offered The Order Of the British Empire for her contributions to New Zealand tourism.
Ethel Snelson Summers was born on on July 24, 1912 to a newly-emigrated couple, Ethel Snelson and Edwin Summers, situated in Bordesley Street in Christchurch, Essie was always proud of both her British heritage and her New Zealand citizenship. Both her parents were exceptional storytellers, and this, combined with her early introduction to the Anne of Green Gables stories, engendered in her a life-long fascination with the craft of writing and the colorful legacy of pioneers everywhere.
Leaving school at 14 when her father's butcher shop experienced financial difficulties, she worked for a number of years in draper's shops and later turned her experiences to good use in writing the romantic novels for which she became famous.
She met her husband-to-be William Flett when she was only 13 years old, but it was 13 years before she consented to marry him. A minister's wife and the mother of two, William and Elizabeth, she still found many opportunities to pen short stories, poetry and newspaper columns before embarking on her first novel, which sold to the firm of Mills & Boon in 1956.
Summers died in Taradale, Hawkes Bay on the August 27, 1998.
http://christchurchcitylibraries.com/...
Ethel Snelson Summers was born on on July 24, 1912 to a newly-emigrated couple, Ethel Snelson and Edwin Summers, situated in Bordesley Street in Christchurch, Essie was always proud of both her British heritage and her New Zealand citizenship. Both her parents were exceptional storytellers, and this, combined with her early introduction to the Anne of Green Gables stories, engendered in her a life-long fascination with the craft of writing and the colorful legacy of pioneers everywhere.
Leaving school at 14 when her father's butcher shop experienced financial difficulties, she worked for a number of years in draper's shops and later turned her experiences to good use in writing the romantic novels for which she became famous.
She met her husband-to-be William Flett when she was only 13 years old, but it was 13 years before she consented to marry him. A minister's wife and the mother of two, William and Elizabeth, she still found many opportunities to pen short stories, poetry and newspaper columns before embarking on her first novel, which sold to the firm of Mills & Boon in 1956.
Summers died in Taradale, Hawkes Bay on the August 27, 1998.
http://christchurchcitylibraries.com/...
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
February 29, 2016
Engaged , broken up , and now reunited after years as business partners. Courtesy - meddling grandmother !! Bless the grandmothers of M&B :)
Both the leads and their families are in the antiques business - hers in New Zealand, his in London.
The girl thinks the hero cheated on some precious antique sale years ago and breaks up with him. Actually he is rich any times over when compared to her. The girl's accusation doesn't pass muster if you ask me.
She distrusts him and yearns for him still. He comes back because granny insists the girl is still in love. He actually takes her rebuff rather playfully until she reveals her reasons.
Then of course, when the girl realizes in the end what a good samaritan the hero is - all is well !! Stiff read, nothing great. Nothing bad either. Author has tried her hand at some poetry to describe their love and longing, deserves appreciation for that. 3 stars.
Both the leads and their families are in the antiques business - hers in New Zealand, his in London.
The girl thinks the hero cheated on some precious antique sale years ago and breaks up with him. Actually he is rich any times over when compared to her. The girl's accusation doesn't pass muster if you ask me.
She distrusts him and yearns for him still. He comes back because granny insists the girl is still in love. He actually takes her rebuff rather playfully until she reveals her reasons.
Then of course, when the girl realizes in the end what a good samaritan the hero is - all is well !! Stiff read, nothing great. Nothing bad either. Author has tried her hand at some poetry to describe their love and longing, deserves appreciation for that. 3 stars.
May 25, 2018
This is not one of my favorite books by Essie Summers; in fact I barely remember even reading it before, it made so little impression on my. I had trouble liking the hero; and the characterizations are not nearly as good as usual. Five years earlier Camilla broke her engagement to Jonathan, when she believed he had been less than ethical; but she did not tell him the real reason. Now he's back, a partner in the antique business she and her grandmother own, and living in the same house. Can she continue to resist his very persistent advances? To me this was disappointing.
July 9, 2025
Talk about ridiculous!!! I stopped reading as soon as I found out how incredibly DUMB the h was! Dumb with a capital STUPID!!! When I first started reading, I knew something had happened to make the h break her engagement to the H (using the flimsy excuse that she didn't want to leave her NZ home for London when that apparently hadn't been a problem before), something really serious I thought, to make her have that cold as ice attitude toward him. Since they were in the antiques business, and she had such love and respect for Māori artifacts, I assumed it had something to do with them, but I expected something big, something she had no choice but to believe.
What I didn't expect was for the h to be such an incredible ass that she's believe the word of the wannabe OW without even confronting the H to hear his take on it! Her "who needs enemies" friend (who had the hots for the H) claims he conned a woman out of selling him a gemstone for a song and then selling it in his family's London store at an exorbitant price! Naturally this conniving bitch couldn't wait to write and tell the h all about it and the dumbo takes it at face value and dumps the H (also by letter, talk about crappy!)
It never occurred to her that the bitch had an ulterior motive??? SHE SURE DID, since the H later says that right after the breakup, she kept coming on to him, showed up constantly to let him know if he needed comfort she'd be there (preferably naked), and while the h's grandmother was wise to the fact that the girl was selfish, conniving and not to be trusted, apparently the h hadn't a clue! No, she'd rather think all those things about the H instead!!!
That's when I stopped reading! An h this crummy didn't deserve a HEA and the H deserved a woman who loved, trusted and believed in him, which this h did NOT!!
What I didn't expect was for the h to be such an incredible ass that she's believe the word of the wannabe OW without even confronting the H to hear his take on it! Her "who needs enemies" friend (who had the hots for the H) claims he conned a woman out of selling him a gemstone for a song and then selling it in his family's London store at an exorbitant price! Naturally this conniving bitch couldn't wait to write and tell the h all about it and the dumbo takes it at face value and dumps the H (also by letter, talk about crappy!)
It never occurred to her that the bitch had an ulterior motive??? SHE SURE DID, since the H later says that right after the breakup, she kept coming on to him, showed up constantly to let him know if he needed comfort she'd be there (preferably naked), and while the h's grandmother was wise to the fact that the girl was selfish, conniving and not to be trusted, apparently the h hadn't a clue! No, she'd rather think all those things about the H instead!!!
That's when I stopped reading! An h this crummy didn't deserve a HEA and the H deserved a woman who loved, trusted and believed in him, which this h did NOT!!
September 13, 2013
This is a lovely reunion romance. Like many of Essie Summers stories, the separation comes because of a misunderstanding or interference from a third party.
Camilla is a feisty heroine, determined not to give in to the feelings she still has for Jonathan. She believes he could never be trusted because of what she believes he did for the sake of making money.
Jonathan has no idea why she gave him up, as she told him only that she realised she wasn't in love with him. That is was propinquity and pressure from their families who have been friends for generations. He is a lovely hero as are all of Essie's strong and honourable men.
I enjoyed this story and the glimpses we get of New Zealand and the cast of characters that surround the main couple. Sometimes there is a sweet secondary romance and this one was particularly moving.
Camilla is a feisty heroine, determined not to give in to the feelings she still has for Jonathan. She believes he could never be trusted because of what she believes he did for the sake of making money.
Jonathan has no idea why she gave him up, as she told him only that she realised she wasn't in love with him. That is was propinquity and pressure from their families who have been friends for generations. He is a lovely hero as are all of Essie's strong and honourable men.
I enjoyed this story and the glimpses we get of New Zealand and the cast of characters that surround the main couple. Sometimes there is a sweet secondary romance and this one was particularly moving.
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April 16, 2011Might have 2 copies
February 16, 2016
This is the only book by Essie Summers that is just plain not good. I didn't even finish it; couldn't force myself to do so.
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April 26, 2018He was too near -- and not to be trusted
Having Jonathan back in New Zealand was torture for Camilla.
Five years had passed since she'd painfully broken their engagement, though she'd kept her knowledge of his dishonesty a secret. No matter how appealing Jonathan was now, she could never forget what he had done.
Yet Camilla was swept with a longing for things to be different, that money didn't mean everything to Jonathan--that she could trust the only man she could ever love!
Having Jonathan back in New Zealand was torture for Camilla.
Five years had passed since she'd painfully broken their engagement, though she'd kept her knowledge of his dishonesty a secret. No matter how appealing Jonathan was now, she could never forget what he had done.
Yet Camilla was swept with a longing for things to be different, that money didn't mean everything to Jonathan--that she could trust the only man she could ever love!
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews