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Vacation with a Commanding Stranger
Read this classic romance by New York Times bestselling author Penny Jordan, now available for the first time in e-book! Previously published as French Leave in 1994.
An irresistible temptation…
When Livvy arrives at her cousin’s holiday home in France, she’s looking forward to a well-earned break away from it all. What she doesn’t expect is to have to share the farmhouse with a total stranger!
Brooding, arrogant—and devastatingly handsome!—Richard Field is certainly not an ideal companion. Preoccupied with his own agenda, he makes it clear that he has no time for Livvy at all.
But when the sparks between them start to fly, Livvy finds it increasingly difficult to resist her delectable houseguest…
An irresistible temptation…
When Livvy arrives at her cousin’s holiday home in France, she’s looking forward to a well-earned break away from it all. What she doesn’t expect is to have to share the farmhouse with a total stranger!
Brooding, arrogant—and devastatingly handsome!—Richard Field is certainly not an ideal companion. Preoccupied with his own agenda, he makes it clear that he has no time for Livvy at all.
But when the sparks between them start to fly, Livvy finds it increasingly difficult to resist her delectable houseguest…
184 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 1, 1994
10 people are currently reading
33 people want to read
About the author
Penny Jordan
1,127 books668 followersPenelope Jones Halsall
aka Caroline Courtney, Annie Groves, Lydia Hitchcock, Melinda Wright
Penelope "Penny" Jones was born on November 24, 1946 at about seven pounds in a nursing home in Preston, Lancashire, England. She was the first child of Anthony Winn Jones, an engineer, who died at 85, and his wife Margaret Louise Groves Jones. She has a brother, Anthony, and a sister, Prudence "Pru".
She had been a keen reader from the childhood - her mother used to leave her in the children's section of their local library whilst she changed her father's library books. She was a storyteller long before she began to write romantic fiction. At the age of eight, she was creating serialized bedtime stories, featuring make-believe adventures, for her younger sister Prue, who was always the heroine. At eleven, she fell in love with Mills & Boon, and with their heroes. In those days the books could only be obtained via private lending libraries, and she quickly became a devoted fan; she was thrilled to bits when the books went on full sale in shops and she could have them for keeps.
Penny left grammar school in Rochdale with O-Levels in English Language, English Literature and Geography. She first discovered Mills & Boon books, via a girl she worked with. She married Steve Halsall, an accountant and a "lovely man", who smoked and drank too heavily, and suffered oral cancer with bravery and dignity. Her husband bought her the small electric typewriter on which she typed her first novels, at a time when he could ill afford it. He died at the beginning of 21st century.
She earned a living as a writer since the 1970s when, as a shorthand typist, she entered a competition run by the Romantic Novelists' Association. Although she didn't win, Penny found an agent who was looking for a new Georgette Heyer. She published four regency novels as Caroline Courtney, before changing her nom de plume to Melinda Wright for three air-hostess romps and then she wrote two thrillers as Lydia Hitchcock. Soon after that, Mills and Boon accepted her first novel for them, Falcon's Prey as Penny Jordan. However, for her more historical romance novels, she adopted her mother's maiden-name to become Annie Groves. Almost 70 of her 167 Mills and Boon novels have been sold worldwide.
Penny Halsall lived in a neo-Georgian house in Nantwich, Cheshire, with her Alsatian Sheba and cat Posh. She worked from home, in her kitchen, surrounded by her pets, and welcomed interruptions from her friends and family.
aka Caroline Courtney, Annie Groves, Lydia Hitchcock, Melinda Wright
Penelope "Penny" Jones was born on November 24, 1946 at about seven pounds in a nursing home in Preston, Lancashire, England. She was the first child of Anthony Winn Jones, an engineer, who died at 85, and his wife Margaret Louise Groves Jones. She has a brother, Anthony, and a sister, Prudence "Pru".
She had been a keen reader from the childhood - her mother used to leave her in the children's section of their local library whilst she changed her father's library books. She was a storyteller long before she began to write romantic fiction. At the age of eight, she was creating serialized bedtime stories, featuring make-believe adventures, for her younger sister Prue, who was always the heroine. At eleven, she fell in love with Mills & Boon, and with their heroes. In those days the books could only be obtained via private lending libraries, and she quickly became a devoted fan; she was thrilled to bits when the books went on full sale in shops and she could have them for keeps.
Penny left grammar school in Rochdale with O-Levels in English Language, English Literature and Geography. She first discovered Mills & Boon books, via a girl she worked with. She married Steve Halsall, an accountant and a "lovely man", who smoked and drank too heavily, and suffered oral cancer with bravery and dignity. Her husband bought her the small electric typewriter on which she typed her first novels, at a time when he could ill afford it. He died at the beginning of 21st century.
She earned a living as a writer since the 1970s when, as a shorthand typist, she entered a competition run by the Romantic Novelists' Association. Although she didn't win, Penny found an agent who was looking for a new Georgette Heyer. She published four regency novels as Caroline Courtney, before changing her nom de plume to Melinda Wright for three air-hostess romps and then she wrote two thrillers as Lydia Hitchcock. Soon after that, Mills and Boon accepted her first novel for them, Falcon's Prey as Penny Jordan. However, for her more historical romance novels, she adopted her mother's maiden-name to become Annie Groves. Almost 70 of her 167 Mills and Boon novels have been sold worldwide.
Penny Halsall lived in a neo-Georgian house in Nantwich, Cheshire, with her Alsatian Sheba and cat Posh. She worked from home, in her kitchen, surrounded by her pets, and welcomed interruptions from her friends and family.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
June 6, 2021
3.5 stars
Good but not the best by PJ (only my personal preference, of course).
Misunderstandings fest - fake identity - slut shaming - angry attraction - denied sexual attraction - insecurity.
Good one time read
Good but not the best by PJ (only my personal preference, of course).
Misunderstandings fest - fake identity - slut shaming - angry attraction - denied sexual attraction - insecurity.
Good one time read
June 20, 2017
At some point during the mid-90s, the teaching profession started to experience difficulties in retaining staff because of the stress of the job – I remember it being widely reported at the time. Similarly, at some point during the late 80s, the bestselling book “A Year in Provence” was published making the dream of owning French homes and living the rural French idyll very popular amongst a certain class of people – here in this offering from Jordan from 1994, these two worlds collide as Livvy (our heroine), a stressed out teacher, takes a break in her cousin’s French farmhouse in the Dordogne to unwind from the stress of her job.
It should be the most wonderful break for her, but unfortunately, a run in with an arrogant BMW driver who first nearly runs her over in the auberge car park, then fails to save her from attempted rape by some yobbos and then turns up to ruin her holiday by staying in the same farmhouse as her and refusing to leave, leaves her even more stressed out.
It’s an odd one this one because the chap who does arrive (“Richard Field”, although it turns out this isn’t his real name at all) is truly is a horrible person and it’s hard to comprehend just why Livvy convinces herself she’s in love with him. Perhaps the thought of returning to teaching is just too terrible to contemplate, and she'd rather get pregnant and marry Richard Field instead. Whatever the reason, after the usual action on pages 89-94, Livvy overhears the vile Richard on a telephone conversation telling someone “He knows how to get rid of her” and immediately thinks it must be herself who is the one to be ridded. Driving off into the French night, Livvy does a runner and refuses to speak to Richard ever again. Unfortunately, he refuses to go away and the eventual, inevitable happy ending occurs.
However, this is a very strange Mills & Boon romance. First off, one of the complications of the storyline is that Livvy’s cousin’s husband is having an affair (that doesn’t happen in romantic novels!! It’s too realistic).
Secondly, there are several things going on in this book which tell the reader that the hero is just not behaving as he should do. He fails to rescue Livvy from the potential rapist, leaving her to save herself (fortunately, she is able to do this). When the terrible storm arrives (a storm always arrives in Jordan's works to nearly drown the heroine and also demonstrate nicely the tumultuous state of her psychological landscape), it’s not Livvy who needs saving from it, but Richard, who ends up losing his BMW in a ditch.
The BMW is another thing. Jordan has got an obsession with them and they turn up (normally being driven erratically or by arrogant, dangerous drivers) in so many of her novels, I’ve lost count. Cars are a bit feature of this one – in fact, cars feature a lot in Jordan’s work which makes you think that there’s more going on here than just talking about how to get from A to B.
In the end, this isn’t the greatest example of Jordan’s work. Jordan is obviously at a loss as how to unite the “hero” (who is vile) and the heroine, and so ends up skipping large chunks of time and moving the action on at an unnatural pace, just to get to the final denouement of the novel. Not great – but worth it, for the BMW alone.
It should be the most wonderful break for her, but unfortunately, a run in with an arrogant BMW driver who first nearly runs her over in the auberge car park, then fails to save her from attempted rape by some yobbos and then turns up to ruin her holiday by staying in the same farmhouse as her and refusing to leave, leaves her even more stressed out.
It’s an odd one this one because the chap who does arrive (“Richard Field”, although it turns out this isn’t his real name at all) is truly is a horrible person and it’s hard to comprehend just why Livvy convinces herself she’s in love with him. Perhaps the thought of returning to teaching is just too terrible to contemplate, and she'd rather get pregnant and marry Richard Field instead. Whatever the reason, after the usual action on pages 89-94, Livvy overhears the vile Richard on a telephone conversation telling someone “He knows how to get rid of her” and immediately thinks it must be herself who is the one to be ridded. Driving off into the French night, Livvy does a runner and refuses to speak to Richard ever again. Unfortunately, he refuses to go away and the eventual, inevitable happy ending occurs.
However, this is a very strange Mills & Boon romance. First off, one of the complications of the storyline is that Livvy’s cousin’s husband is having an affair (that doesn’t happen in romantic novels!! It’s too realistic).
Secondly, there are several things going on in this book which tell the reader that the hero is just not behaving as he should do. He fails to rescue Livvy from the potential rapist, leaving her to save herself (fortunately, she is able to do this). When the terrible storm arrives (a storm always arrives in Jordan's works to nearly drown the heroine and also demonstrate nicely the tumultuous state of her psychological landscape), it’s not Livvy who needs saving from it, but Richard, who ends up losing his BMW in a ditch.
The BMW is another thing. Jordan has got an obsession with them and they turn up (normally being driven erratically or by arrogant, dangerous drivers) in so many of her novels, I’ve lost count. Cars are a bit feature of this one – in fact, cars feature a lot in Jordan’s work which makes you think that there’s more going on here than just talking about how to get from A to B.
In the end, this isn’t the greatest example of Jordan’s work. Jordan is obviously at a loss as how to unite the “hero” (who is vile) and the heroine, and so ends up skipping large chunks of time and moving the action on at an unnatural pace, just to get to the final denouement of the novel. Not great – but worth it, for the BMW alone.
September 8, 2018
Two stars for the ending only. No stars for the rest. What a bastard Richard/Robert was. He judged Olivia by what he "thought" he saw. If the Manager and waiter hadn't arrived when they did.......
His opinion about Gale was awful too. I really just wanted to climb into the book and rip into him.
Will not be a re-read.
His opinion about Gale was awful too. I really just wanted to climb into the book and rip into him.
Will not be a re-read.
September 3, 2011
Ok Penny Jordan. Started out pretty decent, but lulled in the middle and had a lukewarm conclusion.
October 9, 2022
J in my A-Z romance read-a-thon.
God this was a slog to get through. Long story short, he spends the whole book calling her a filthy whore and she responds with 'frissons' of excitement and hard nipples. Wash and repeat over and over and over. The book was super repetitive all over in fact, we are told no less than 100,000 times that the h is a teacher. Did you know she's a teacher? Yes, a teacher; she has students and she teaches them. She can't do a single task without reflecting to herself about being a teacher. Lawdy shut uppppp already.
God this was a slog to get through. Long story short, he spends the whole book calling her a filthy whore and she responds with 'frissons' of excitement and hard nipples. Wash and repeat over and over and over. The book was super repetitive all over in fact, we are told no less than 100,000 times that the h is a teacher. Did you know she's a teacher? Yes, a teacher; she has students and she teaches them. She can't do a single task without reflecting to herself about being a teacher. Lawdy shut uppppp already.
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February 12, 20152nd suckiest penny jordan book ever
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews