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Billionaires at the Altar #1
The Greek Claims His Shock Heir
The billionaire's discovered her secret...
She's had his son!
Learning of tycoon Eros Nevrakis's betrayal, personal chef Winnie Mardas walks out of his life, determined never to look back - or reveal the child she's carrying. A year later she's shocked when Eros arrives to legitimise his heir! Swept away to his lavish Mediterranean villa, Winnie is overwhelmed by the fire still burning between them. But can she accept her new role as his convenient wife...?
She's had his son!
Learning of tycoon Eros Nevrakis's betrayal, personal chef Winnie Mardas walks out of his life, determined never to look back - or reveal the child she's carrying. A year later she's shocked when Eros arrives to legitimise his heir! Swept away to his lavish Mediterranean villa, Winnie is overwhelmed by the fire still burning between them. But can she accept her new role as his convenient wife...?
256 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 10, 2019
About the author
Lynne Graham
1,914 books1,465 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
Lynne Graham was born on July 30, 1956 of Irish-Scottish parentage. She has livedin Northern Ireland all her life. She grew up in a seaside village with her brother. She learnt to read at the age of 3, and haven't stopped since then.
Lynne first met her husband when she was 14. At 15, she wrote her first book, but it was rejected everywhere. Lynne married after she completed a degree at Edinburgh University. She started writing again when she was at home with her first child. It took several attempts before she sold her first book in 1987 and the delight of seeing that first book for sale in the local newsagents has never been forgotten. Now, there are over 10 million of her books in print worldwide.
Lynne always wanted a large family and has five children. Her eldest and her only natural child is 19 and currently at university. Her other four children, who are every bit as dear to her heart, are adopted. She has two 9-year-olds adopted from Sri Lanka and a 5- and a 3-year-old adopted from Guatemala.
In Lynne's home, there is a rich and diverse cultural mix, which adds a whole extra dimension of interest and discovery to family life. The family lives in a country house surrounded by a woodland garden, which is wonderfully private.
The family has two pets. Thomas, a very large and affectionate black cat, bosses the dog and hunts rabbits. The dog is Daisy, an adorable but not very bright white West Highland terrier, who loves being chased by the cat. At night, dog and cat sleep together in front of the kitchen stove.
Lynne loves gardening, cooking, collects everything from old toys to rock specimens and is crazy about every aspect of Christmas.
Lynne Graham was born on July 30, 1956 of Irish-Scottish parentage. She has livedin Northern Ireland all her life. She grew up in a seaside village with her brother. She learnt to read at the age of 3, and haven't stopped since then.
Lynne first met her husband when she was 14. At 15, she wrote her first book, but it was rejected everywhere. Lynne married after she completed a degree at Edinburgh University. She started writing again when she was at home with her first child. It took several attempts before she sold her first book in 1987 and the delight of seeing that first book for sale in the local newsagents has never been forgotten. Now, there are over 10 million of her books in print worldwide.
Lynne always wanted a large family and has five children. Her eldest and her only natural child is 19 and currently at university. Her other four children, who are every bit as dear to her heart, are adopted. She has two 9-year-olds adopted from Sri Lanka and a 5- and a 3-year-old adopted from Guatemala.
In Lynne's home, there is a rich and diverse cultural mix, which adds a whole extra dimension of interest and discovery to family life. The family lives in a country house surrounded by a woodland garden, which is wonderfully private.
The family has two pets. Thomas, a very large and affectionate black cat, bosses the dog and hunts rabbits. The dog is Daisy, an adorable but not very bright white West Highland terrier, who loves being chased by the cat. At night, dog and cat sleep together in front of the kitchen stove.
Lynne loves gardening, cooking, collects everything from old toys to rock specimens and is crazy about every aspect of Christmas.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 75 reviews
January 9, 2020
meh started surprisingly strong but TOO much fcking bickering.
like y'all have a kid together, learn to communicate.
like y'all have a kid together, learn to communicate.
January 2, 2019
Yeah, that's me after I'd finished reading this book. It's no secret that I'm a huge Lynne G fan. She's my fav HP author, after all. So, it kills me to write a less than favourable review but I won't tarnish my integrity by writing a less than honest response to this book. It was a fairly good book but it definitely belongs in the lower tier of LG's combined works.
I had such high hopes for this book. When I started this story, I was so excited and rearing to go !
The prologue was fabulous and filled with drama. It had all the earmarks of a winner ! But, by the time I got to chapter 6, I was becoming a little bit frustrated with the way the storyline was unfolding. I was all ready to throw a mini reader's tantrum !
This is the first novel in Lynne G's newest trilogy for 2019. It deals with a trio of sisters whose interfering billionaire grandfather intervenes in their lives to procure husbands for them ! This novel is almost like deja vu for me: in 2018, Lynne G's first novel in last year's trilogy was also a bit of a disappointment. That book was The Secret Valtinos Baby.
I've been lazy and procrastinating a lot with my book reviews, so I have a huge backlog to write. As a result of my chronic tardiness, I will get straight to the point with the chief issue in this novel -The H was married while he'd had an affair with the heroine ! BUT, there are important factors that need to be considered before one rushes to judgement:
1. Eros, the H, is NOT and never has been a manwhore. He'd been celibate during the entire period of his marriage because he was concerned with building his business and didn't want to cause undue gossip by dating other women. His unplanned and unexpected affair with Winnie, the heroine, was his one aberration - if one wants to use that word as a euphemism for factual adultery. LOL. ( Sorry. I shouldn't be joking about this stuff ...)
2. He was NOT in love with his wife. It was the purest form of platonic marriage of convenience. He'd married her when she was just 18 because his mentor, her father, had been dying and had begged him to marry her in order to protect her from future fortune hunters.
3. Eros NEVER lived in the same house as his wife and he acted solely as her guardian. It was said that she'd had a crush on him but he never encouraged her, he never even kissed her once and he even encouraged her to date other guys while she was at college. During the course of their marriage, his wife had several boyfriends and even a live in lover. He didn't mind, he wasn't bitter about it and he didn't feel cuckolded because he was waiting for her to finish college and get settled with her life, before they got their inevitable divorce. Winnie was his live in housekeeper and it appeared as if he'd really fallen in love with her and that's why he broke his self imposed rule to be celibate even while in a business like marriage of convenience.
4. Eros was celibate after the short affair with Winnie ended. He was also celibate even after he got his divorce from his wife and was basically free to date other women.
This is Eros:
And this is the heroine, Winnie:
I liked Winnie a lot. She had a lot of self respect, integrity and was very ashamed of herself when she realized that she'd been inadvertently having an affair with a married man. This heroine would never have even touched this guy if she knew he'd had a wife - even if she knew that the marriage was purely one of convenience. She was stronger and smarter than LG's usual heroine and she didn't take shit from Eros when he came back into her life. She wasn't afraid to tell him how she felt and she definitely made him work hard to regain her trust.
I don't like the whole adultery issue but I understood the H's circumstances. I can sympathize with a person who finds himself in a position like Eros but my issue with the H stemmed from his inability to take a more proactive role in reuniting with the woman he loved. Eros would've never looked for Winnie if her grandfather Stam hadn't acted as the instigator and manipulator. I felt that Eros needed to be a little more of an alpha hunk H like the guy in Patricia Lake's vintage HP novel, Untamed Witch. That H had also been in a similar situation but, unlike Eros, he was always totally caveman possessive and obsessed with his heroine. That guy almost went crazy with anguish after his heroine found out about his wedded state and left him. He didn't stop searching for her until he found her. It seemed as Eros hadn't given much thought to Winnie until her grandfather turned up and gave him the ultimatum: to marry her if he wanted to regain his family's ancestral island, Trilis.
I also felt that this couple didn't share as much chemistry as in LG's most recent novels. The writing fell down a little in certain areas: there seemed to be a little more "telling" and relatively less "showing". LG told the reader that these two wanted each other but the prose itself didn't reflect that in a consistent manner. I didn't feel the same kind of chills that I usually get when I come across a couple with spectacular chemistry. Eros also seemed to be a little too indecisive and that's not the kind of alpha H I like to read about. It seemed as if he'd tried too hard to act like an older brother to his wife Tasha and he created more disaster for himself because he sacrificed a lot to keep his promise to her dead father. Winnie was smart enough to figure out how he'd gotten himself into such an untenable situation:
Winnie stared back at him, disconcerted by the amount of guilt he still bore from the past.
‘You should never have agreed to marry her and her father should never have put pressure on you to marry her.’
‘And if I did marry her, I should have gone for a divorce the minute she began having relationships with other men,’ he added heavily. ‘But I’d agreed to that and it wasn’t fair to change the rules because they no longer suited me. I tried to keep my promise to her and when I turned to you, I failed, so I didn’t make you any promises.’
‘You didn’t,’ she agreed ruefully.
‘I couldn’t admit to myself that I’d fallen for you, I couldn’t let myself chase after you when you left either because that would have been admitting that the divorce was all about you. And I couldn’t admit that to myself back then,’ Eros confided starkly. ‘Because that’s what my father did to my mother—fell for another woman and went for a divorce. And even though my marriage to Tasha was never a proper marriage, I still couldn’t accept that I could have anything in common with a man who was that weak and cruel.’
This was a fairly good story that I did enjoy, in parts, even if if failed to dazzle me and fill me romantic bliss. The MC's little son Teddy was adorable and there was a cute epilogue which revealed that the heroine was once again pregnant. I'm also really looking forward to the second and third books in the trilogy - especially the second book because the H is that one is gonna be a hot, sexy aristocratic billionaire Italian guy: The Duke of Mancini. And all of my close Goodreads friends know that I have a huge lady boner for dukes ! Lol.
This novel has absolutely no effect on my overall appreciation for Lynne G's writing. It's understandable that every author writes one book that might not be as good as her many others. Lynne G is awesome and she's one of the few authors in HPlandia that I will always automatically have on my reading list. Her upcoming books are like mini Christmas presents that come at select points during the course of the year and each month that includes a Lynne G book is a month that I always anticipate with relish. Lol.
I've read most of the HP's that came out this month and this one isn't my favourite but it's not the worst either. It's somewhere in the middle. I've a pretty good idea which of this month's HP's is my favourite and that review will be written tomorrow. Lol. The only HP from the new releases that I won't be reading is the one by Louise Fuller because I find her style to be boring and I'd rather refrain from repeating authors that just don't appeal to my notion of what is romantic in HPlandia.
Safety: Both MC's are celibate during their separation. The H is not a manwhore but he was legally married ( platonic marriage of convenience ! ) when he had an affair with the heroine. I guess that makes him an adulterer so readers with rigid rules about this stuff might not like this. I don't like it but I can appreciate the gray areas sometimes and, like in Untamed Witch, I can sympathize with a character who finds himself in a horrible platonic marriage and then falls in love with the heroine.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 9, 2019
This second chance/secret baby story was strangely flat considering all the double-dealing from the heroine’s tyrant grandfather and the hero.
I think the problem was that all of the injuries the H/h inflicted on each other were passive actions, that is, what they didn’t do:
*The hero didn’t tell her he was married (although it was never consummated)
*The heroine didn’t tell him he had a son
*The hero didn’t look for her after his divorce
*The heroine didn’t plan on living with him after she was forced into marriage by both her grandfather and the hero.
*The hero didn’t tell her about the island blackmail, etc. . .
The were both so passive about declaring themselves or even speaking up about their needs. The hero just let his first wife call all the shots. The heroine was a people pleaser to the nth degree. So I had no respect or real liking for either of them.
The next book in the series about the three granddaughters looks more interesting. That hero actively ruined one of the sister’s reputation. Now that’s how to begin an HP romance.
I think the problem was that all of the injuries the H/h inflicted on each other were passive actions, that is, what they didn’t do:
*The hero didn’t tell her he was married (although it was never consummated)
*The heroine didn’t tell him he had a son
*The hero didn’t look for her after his divorce
*The heroine didn’t plan on living with him after she was forced into marriage by both her grandfather and the hero.
*The hero didn’t tell her about the island blackmail, etc. . .
The were both so passive about declaring themselves or even speaking up about their needs. The hero just let his first wife call all the shots. The heroine was a people pleaser to the nth degree. So I had no respect or real liking for either of them.
The next book in the series about the three granddaughters looks more interesting. That hero actively ruined one of the sister’s reputation. Now that’s how to begin an HP romance.
March 31, 2019
Phoned in malarkey and a very non-LG Lynne Graham.
The heroine worked for the H and fell in love and then in bed not knowing he was MARRIED! Yes and yuck, married. LG tries to dig herself out of the hole her characters found themselves in by making it a semi-MOC where the hero stays celibate for years before and after he meets the heroine, and it is the wife, the one who is in love WITH HIM, that has affairs. Hmmm. Really? The honorable little heroine has no idea he is married. He doesn't feel married so doesn't tell her. Oh, Ms. Graham, there is just no excuse for this.
When the heroine figures it all out she leaves taking her zygote with her. Lucky girl, turns out she has an interfering Greek grandfather that comes in deus ex machina to mess everything up. He tracks down the hero and tells him about the baby and throws out some threats and insults. The H is furious she never told him and, oh, who cares. Been there, done that too many times.
The hero cheated on his pretend marriage. Truly moved into cad territory by not telling the heroine he was married, but then he wouldn't have had sex. Then, compounds it all with a bad cherry on top of this romance sundae but NOT going after her. He had no intention either as he tells her at the end as he felt he had hurt her enough.
The heroine is not your typical doormat and actually does something few characters much less heroines do in HP's. She expresses herself! She tells the H how she feels plus she does a little scheming of her own. Of course, that doesn't stop her quivering loins and treacherous body syndrome from going into effect.
Her two sisters have books coming. I am interested in the last one where the tiny h is a shutdown little sparrow.
The heroine worked for the H and fell in love and then in bed not knowing he was MARRIED! Yes and yuck, married. LG tries to dig herself out of the hole her characters found themselves in by making it a semi-MOC where the hero stays celibate for years before and after he meets the heroine, and it is the wife, the one who is in love WITH HIM, that has affairs. Hmmm. Really? The honorable little heroine has no idea he is married. He doesn't feel married so doesn't tell her. Oh, Ms. Graham, there is just no excuse for this.
When the heroine figures it all out she leaves taking her zygote with her. Lucky girl, turns out she has an interfering Greek grandfather that comes in deus ex machina to mess everything up. He tracks down the hero and tells him about the baby and throws out some threats and insults. The H is furious she never told him and, oh, who cares. Been there, done that too many times.
The hero cheated on his pretend marriage. Truly moved into cad territory by not telling the heroine he was married, but then he wouldn't have had sex. Then, compounds it all with a bad cherry on top of this romance sundae but NOT going after her. He had no intention either as he tells her at the end as he felt he had hurt her enough.
The heroine is not your typical doormat and actually does something few characters much less heroines do in HP's. She expresses herself! She tells the H how she feels plus she does a little scheming of her own. Of course, that doesn't stop her quivering loins and treacherous body syndrome from going into effect.
Her two sisters have books coming. I am interested in the last one where the tiny h is a shutdown little sparrow.
February 4, 2019
3.5 stars...This is going to be real short.....
I was torn between a 3-4 star read and decided to 3.5 star this one.
This was a middle of the road read,certainly not the best by her,but a good one none the less.
I think that famed "spark" was missing in this one.The hero was blah and beta,the heroine was on the irrating side, baby Teddy was cute,the sisters seemed to have more life in them,and the grandfather was pure Machiavellian!
I have high hopes for the next sister's book Vivi and the Italian Duke.
I was torn between a 3-4 star read and decided to 3.5 star this one.
This was a middle of the road read,certainly not the best by her,but a good one none the less.
I think that famed "spark" was missing in this one.The hero was blah and beta,the heroine was on the irrating side, baby Teddy was cute,the sisters seemed to have more life in them,and the grandfather was pure Machiavellian!
I have high hopes for the next sister's book Vivi and the Italian Duke.
January 13, 2019
I couldn’t feel the luvre, I didn’t like the H. I didn’t buy his reasons for not to pursue h.
3 stars because I’m fan of LG, if not it would be 2. However I’m excited about the sister’s stories.
3 stars because I’m fan of LG, if not it would be 2. However I’m excited about the sister’s stories.
January 2, 2019
LG is a great author but this book was just boring. It is safe. Hero is celibate and even though he is a married man when he meets the heroine he is not a cheater because his marriage was only on paper. He never slept with his wife he didn’t even live with her so he is not a cheater he is in fact a very nice man. I like my Harlequin heroes alpha and ruthless and cruel and this hero was just too sweet. Heroine is virginal but I didn’t like her I thought she was mean and cruel. Hero and heroine didn’t have chemistry even though the love scenes were well written. I really want to read the heroines sisters stories though! I can’t believe I gave 1 star to Lynne Graham. I guess nobody is perfect. Lol
January 5, 2021
What I liked- strong heroine, celibate and decent alpha hero, heroine’s sisters.
It also scored brownie points that his marriage to ow was only on papers. Though the icky factor was absent in their affair sometimes it still irritated me.
What rankled was hero didn’t come after heroine even though he admitted he fell in love with the heroine during their affair. Not even after getting a divorce.
Epilogue was cute.
Safe and kinda recommended.
It also scored brownie points that his marriage to ow was only on papers. Though the icky factor was absent in their affair sometimes it still irritated me.
What rankled was hero didn’t come after heroine even though he admitted he fell in love with the heroine during their affair. Not even after getting a divorce.
Epilogue was cute.
Safe and kinda recommended.
January 28, 2020
I picked up the second book in this series without realizing it and really liked it. Since I hurriedly read book one and was not a fan the first time through I decided to give it another go.
The hero had a MOC wife that he had nothing much to do with and she lived in another country. Their marriage was never consummated and he agreed to marry her because her father, who was dying, was the H's mentor and she was too young to be left alone. It could have been solved easily by a guardianship but this hero stupidly sacrificed eight years of his life and the woman he fell in love with. Up until that eighth year he had not been involved with anyone sexually, no one....not even his legal wife!... The MOC wife had an arrangement that allowed her to date, have sex with, sleep with and move in and live with men but he was not allowed ANYTHING...but his own hand! What kind of man is this...?? Spineless?! A weakling!!! A definite Beta. He couldn't even look at another woman while she was sexing it up with quite a few different other men.
He never told the woman he loved and was dating that he was married because he looked at himself as unattached while he was legally married. For me, this was cheating of a sort. It made the heroine feel horrible that she had come between a married couple. When she found out he was married she left and then found out she was pregnant so thinking he was still with his wife she didn't tell him about the pregnancy.
It was entirely unfair for him not to have told the heroine...she had not a clue. Then by accident the wife shows up one day and the h is introduced to the wife she knew nothing about. The h runs away, kind of hides away and has his child.
He finally divorces the wife but never goes after the heroine who he was so gone over which infuriated me. She knew he could not have loved her to not tell her the truth and then once he was free yet never came after her or even check on her to see if she was okay. A real heartless Bas&ard.
Some parts I liked and others I wasn't thrilled about. It was a tough call. The hero had a lot of reasons why he did what he did and he dealt with a tremendous amount of guilt but I thought his reasoning made him appears quite weak...very beta. I was also very upset that he finally got his divorce from his MOC wife and never went after the heroine.
I liked it enough to read it again sometime down the road.
The hero had a MOC wife that he had nothing much to do with and she lived in another country. Their marriage was never consummated and he agreed to marry her because her father, who was dying, was the H's mentor and she was too young to be left alone. It could have been solved easily by a guardianship but this hero stupidly sacrificed eight years of his life and the woman he fell in love with. Up until that eighth year he had not been involved with anyone sexually, no one....not even his legal wife!... The MOC wife had an arrangement that allowed her to date, have sex with, sleep with and move in and live with men but he was not allowed ANYTHING...but his own hand! What kind of man is this...?? Spineless?! A weakling!!! A definite Beta. He couldn't even look at another woman while she was sexing it up with quite a few different other men.
He never told the woman he loved and was dating that he was married because he looked at himself as unattached while he was legally married. For me, this was cheating of a sort. It made the heroine feel horrible that she had come between a married couple. When she found out he was married she left and then found out she was pregnant so thinking he was still with his wife she didn't tell him about the pregnancy.
It was entirely unfair for him not to have told the heroine...she had not a clue. Then by accident the wife shows up one day and the h is introduced to the wife she knew nothing about. The h runs away, kind of hides away and has his child.
He finally divorces the wife but never goes after the heroine who he was so gone over which infuriated me. She knew he could not have loved her to not tell her the truth and then once he was free yet never came after her or even check on her to see if she was okay. A real heartless Bas&ard.
Some parts I liked and others I wasn't thrilled about. It was a tough call. The hero had a lot of reasons why he did what he did and he dealt with a tremendous amount of guilt but I thought his reasoning made him appears quite weak...very beta. I was also very upset that he finally got his divorce from his MOC wife and never went after the heroine.
I liked it enough to read it again sometime down the road.
January 2, 2019
I'm very happy the first book I read this year was written by LG. Though not the best of her work, it was a very good start to the trilogy.
Winnie is a cross between calm and impulsive. At times she was extremely sweet, but at times she was very bitter. However I could understand that because she didn't like that she had unknowingly had an affair with a married man, the H, Eros.
Eros is a very nice guy, who got tangled up in some unwise decision, which he agreed to only because he felt he owed to his mentor. He is not a womanizer but he is a clever and shrewd guy, a trait must required when dealing with Bull Fotakis.
My God, what a character! Winnie's grandpa is a force to be reckoned with. I loved him because he is an anti-hero. He wants what's best and he will unflinchingly blackmail, threaten or even manipulate people to get that. LG rarely writes such characters these days and it's a delight to read about him.
Super excited for the next one because the next guy has seriously wronged Winnie' s sister Vivi and unknowingly waved a red flag to the bull.
Winnie is a cross between calm and impulsive. At times she was extremely sweet, but at times she was very bitter. However I could understand that because she didn't like that she had unknowingly had an affair with a married man, the H, Eros.
Eros is a very nice guy, who got tangled up in some unwise decision, which he agreed to only because he felt he owed to his mentor. He is not a womanizer but he is a clever and shrewd guy, a trait must required when dealing with Bull Fotakis.
My God, what a character! Winnie's grandpa is a force to be reckoned with. I loved him because he is an anti-hero. He wants what's best and he will unflinchingly blackmail, threaten or even manipulate people to get that. LG rarely writes such characters these days and it's a delight to read about him.
Super excited for the next one because the next guy has seriously wronged Winnie' s sister Vivi and unknowingly waved a red flag to the bull.
March 24, 2019
The hero was absolutely charmless. Lynne Graham could shove a million descriptions of his stunning good looks, curly black hair, and emerald green eyes down my throat, and it simply does not compensate for his inability to accept responsibility for hurting the heroine through silence and neglect. No, I do not find his boilerplate backstory (mom was hurt when dad abandoned her for a younger model + wifey's dad was his beloved mentor) adequate excuse for deceiving the heroine about his marital status and never seeking her out.
If he'd looked her up to apologize for his deceit, he would have known about his son, so shut your mouth about the secret baby, you selfish @ss.
I have allowed LG to redeem some of the most selfish bastards imaginable. I *like* the hero in The Greek Tycoon's Convenient Mistress (so take THAT, doubters). But this guy says and does nothing to redeem himself. I'm not even going to bother to be happy the heroine's happy. I'm just going to hope her sisters' stories don't force me to recall the details of this book or pretend I care about the protagonists' wellbeing. (Also, ha. This Greek billionaire is so low on the foodchain he isn't in the same business class as the titled bastard in the next book. I hope the Italian Duke of Ruining the Next Heroine's Reputation rolls his yacht over this guy's island.)
If he'd looked her up to apologize for his deceit, he would have known about his son, so shut your mouth about the secret baby, you selfish @ss.
I have allowed LG to redeem some of the most selfish bastards imaginable. I *like* the hero in The Greek Tycoon's Convenient Mistress (so take THAT, doubters). But this guy says and does nothing to redeem himself. I'm not even going to bother to be happy the heroine's happy. I'm just going to hope her sisters' stories don't force me to recall the details of this book or pretend I care about the protagonists' wellbeing. (Also, ha. This Greek billionaire is so low on the foodchain he isn't in the same business class as the titled bastard in the next book. I hope the Italian Duke of Ruining the Next Heroine's Reputation rolls his yacht over this guy's island.)
January 18, 2019
Ok so I am finally penning this review down ...
To start with its a LG book and she is auto buy for me ... and she has a special talent of her own and I always like her books ... I liked this one too ...
H is married to OW but in the most platonic way there is so I wouldn't say he cheated ... h is his housekeeper and he falls for her ... she finds out he is married and she walks away ... her meddling grandfather holds a property hostage and gets H to go back to h's life where he discovers she has a baby boy ... his son ... they marry and build their relationship ..
One thing I will say ... I absolutely loved and adored the h; she is smart, hard working, self-respecting and has taken all her doses of calcium and then some extra ... she is also somewhat callous towards H's dramas ... she understands why he married but tells his straightaway that he was wrong to give in to his adopted father's deathbed blackmail and even more wrong to remain married to someone he would never have settled with ... shet gets that his marriage was platonic but she doesn't like that he made her the third party ...
The H is the problem; there is a paradox in the way LG portrayed him. The book emphasises that h was the best thing to happen to him and that he loved her when they were having an affair ... but his actions towards her, both in the beginning and later when they meet again contradict it; he is a somewhat beta character; he didn;t have the wild passion and intensity packed in a cool exterior that LG's H's are famous for ... she seems to have missed the mark with him slightly ...
Other than that, what else I loved; that when he asked her to have another baby, she refused. I have been wanting to see this for aeons ... when H and h reconnect with a secret baby, before matters are resolved, often h is either pregnant through poor contraception choices or H asks (sometimes demand) for another baby and she complies as she thinks another baby would bond them ... I don't like this ... I have been waiting for a h to say, no thanks, you were not around the last time and I went through the experience alone; I would rather take some time and enjoy the fruit of my labour, pun intended, before getting down to growing another fruit ... if you missed the experience, well, please hold on till I am ready ... in one book a h refused and H guilt-tripped her into agreeing by saying she didn't want another moppet with him - as usual cannot recall the name but that book dive-bombed for me instantly
While Winnie doesn't say outright what I just wrote, she tells him that they need to sort themselves out before bringing another baby in the mix ... which I applauded
So basically, in this book, Winnie is the stronger character who holds her cards to her chest while Eros is the beta character who is often running to catch up with her .. she doesn't let his guilt trips get her down and has zero compunctions with telling him where he can find the nearest cliff and jump off ...
Overall I liked the book and adored the h, the plot moppet was cute, the future h's were intriguing, the meddling grandfather was nice ... H was slightly off the mark and their chemistry didn't leap off the pages as LG's books do but I guess he will have to do ... although h could have done loads better than him ... but H knows that and I feel he will mind his p's and q's where she is concerned ...
To start with its a LG book and she is auto buy for me ... and she has a special talent of her own and I always like her books ... I liked this one too ...
H is married to OW but in the most platonic way there is so I wouldn't say he cheated ... h is his housekeeper and he falls for her ... she finds out he is married and she walks away ... her meddling grandfather holds a property hostage and gets H to go back to h's life where he discovers she has a baby boy ... his son ... they marry and build their relationship ..
One thing I will say ... I absolutely loved and adored the h; she is smart, hard working, self-respecting and has taken all her doses of calcium and then some extra ... she is also somewhat callous towards H's dramas ... she understands why he married but tells his straightaway that he was wrong to give in to his adopted father's deathbed blackmail and even more wrong to remain married to someone he would never have settled with ... shet gets that his marriage was platonic but she doesn't like that he made her the third party ...
The H is the problem; there is a paradox in the way LG portrayed him. The book emphasises that h was the best thing to happen to him and that he loved her when they were having an affair ... but his actions towards her, both in the beginning and later when they meet again contradict it; he is a somewhat beta character; he didn;t have the wild passion and intensity packed in a cool exterior that LG's H's are famous for ... she seems to have missed the mark with him slightly ...
Other than that, what else I loved; that when he asked her to have another baby, she refused. I have been wanting to see this for aeons ... when H and h reconnect with a secret baby, before matters are resolved, often h is either pregnant through poor contraception choices or H asks (sometimes demand) for another baby and she complies as she thinks another baby would bond them ... I don't like this ... I have been waiting for a h to say, no thanks, you were not around the last time and I went through the experience alone; I would rather take some time and enjoy the fruit of my labour, pun intended, before getting down to growing another fruit ... if you missed the experience, well, please hold on till I am ready ... in one book a h refused and H guilt-tripped her into agreeing by saying she didn't want another moppet with him - as usual cannot recall the name but that book dive-bombed for me instantly
While Winnie doesn't say outright what I just wrote, she tells him that they need to sort themselves out before bringing another baby in the mix ... which I applauded
So basically, in this book, Winnie is the stronger character who holds her cards to her chest while Eros is the beta character who is often running to catch up with her .. she doesn't let his guilt trips get her down and has zero compunctions with telling him where he can find the nearest cliff and jump off ...
Overall I liked the book and adored the h, the plot moppet was cute, the future h's were intriguing, the meddling grandfather was nice ... H was slightly off the mark and their chemistry didn't leap off the pages as LG's books do but I guess he will have to do ... although h could have done loads better than him ... but H knows that and I feel he will mind his p's and q's where she is concerned ...
January 21, 2019
I'm a great fan of Lynne Graham. I read The Greek Claims His Shock Bride in paperback by Mills and Boon. I love reading the modern collection it brings us towards the modern lives of today, but with a fair amount of romance. The story started of a little sad, One of the most riches man in the world . This must have been a huge shock in his seventies Stamboulas Fotakis know as Bull, didn't know that he had three beautiful granddaughters and a handsome great grandson, but to him their lives were a mess they were very sadly orphaned and growing up in care. Had he had known that his grandchildren were suffering in care he would have raised them himself. Could it be time for Stam to sort out his granddaughters lives? And if so what is his plan ? One perhaps that I didn't see coming.
January 2, 2019
LG can do so much better 😐 I only liked baby teddy !
Excited about the sisters 😉
Excited about the sisters 😉
May 31, 2019
Me da pena ponerle una estrella, primero porque es Lynne Graham y después porque esperaba leerlo con muchas expectativas.
No parece escrito por ella, los personajes no son queribles ni comparten una química explosiva. Me pasa que no me hallo con sus nuevos libros. Espero que la historia de Vivi con el duque sea mejor que esta.
No parece escrito por ella, los personajes no son queribles ni comparten una química explosiva. Me pasa que no me hallo con sus nuevos libros. Espero que la historia de Vivi con el duque sea mejor que esta.
December 8, 2023
Holy cow! This is a toxic hot mess.
January 9, 2019
Actual Rating 3.5 Stars
See the full review at HarlequinJunkie.com
Power struggles, deception, and instant chemistry made for an intense romance in The Greek Claims His Shock Heir. Lynne Graham bumped up the heat level even more once our hero and heroine reunited after a year or so apart, and being as this was set mainly on a beautiful Greek island, I have a feeling that the location didn’t hurt matters any either. The family drama was also abundant, with Winnie’s grandfather scheming and trying to run her life as well as that of Eros. Read More
See the full review at HarlequinJunkie.com
Power struggles, deception, and instant chemistry made for an intense romance in The Greek Claims His Shock Heir. Lynne Graham bumped up the heat level even more once our hero and heroine reunited after a year or so apart, and being as this was set mainly on a beautiful Greek island, I have a feeling that the location didn’t hurt matters any either. The family drama was also abundant, with Winnie’s grandfather scheming and trying to run her life as well as that of Eros. Read More
February 2, 2019
Fiery, secret-baby, reunion romance with a feisty, matchmaking grandfather
Stamboulas Fotakis, a 70-something, Greek billionaire, has recently discovered that he has three granddaughters, Winnie, Vivi and Zoe Mardas, and a great-grandson, Winnie's baby, Teddy. Nearly 30 years ago, Stam disowned their father, his youngest son, Cy, when Cy was barely more than a teenager, in an impulsive act of frustrated rage, because Cy refused to obey Stam and study business at university. Stam’s late wife, Azra, an Arabian princess, never forgave him for the loss of her precious son. Cy himself, as proud and headstrong as his father, changed his name to his maternal grandmother’s maiden name, Mardas, which made it impossible for Stam to trace Cy, when his temper finally cooled sufficiently that he could try to correct his tragic mistake.
Winnie is currently 26 years old, Vivi is 23, and Zoe is 20. Their parents died in a car crash when Winnie was eight years old, Vivi was five, and Zoe was a toddler. When they were thrown into state care, they were callously separated, and they all had bad experiences, particularly Winnie, until she was removed from a physically abusive foster family and placed with John and Liz Brooke. A loving, compassionate couple, the Brookes not only rescued Winnie, they also made persistent inquiries until they located Vivi and Zoe and reunited the sisters. The nurturing care of the Brookes saved the traumatized young girls, and the three sisters have maintained a close, chosen-family relationship with the Brookes up to the present day. There is nothing they would not do for their beloved foster parents, and when they learn the Brookes are in dire financial straits and are within days of having their rundown farmhouse repossessed and losing the foster children currently in their care, Winnie approaches Stam for a loan to bail them out. He informs her that he is more than willing to freely offer enough money to solve all the monetary woes of the Brookes on behalf of his three granddaughters. However, being a major control-freak, he puts conditions on his cooperation. All three of the sisters must marry men of his choosing, whom he considers suitable. And first on his list to marry off is Winnie, as an unmarried mother.
Stam’s conservative values are outraged that Eros Nevrakis, a 30-year-old, fellow Greek billionaire, took Winnie as his mistress two years before when she was in his employ as a personal chef. Eros was married at the time and, even if he wanted to, he could not have married Winnie when she got pregnant. As a result, Stam’s great-grandson is illegitimate, a stigma that Stam is determined to erase. Winnie informs Stam that she had not known Eros was married when they got involved. But as soon as she found out, she walked out of his life and never got back in touch. As a result of this information, Stam puts the entire blame for her predicament on Eros.
Eros is surprised to be summoned to meet with the elusive billionaire, Stam Fotakis, from whom he has been unsuccessfully trying to purchase the island of Trilis for many years. Eros would pay just about any price to regain Trilis, because it is the sole possession that his father truly regretted losing when he went bankrupt 15 years before, and which, on his deathbed, when Eros was 18, he begged Eros to regain on behalf of the Nevrakis family. Trilis was the Nevrakis home base for generations, and their ancestors are buried there. But when Stam offers to sell Trilis to Eros, his terms are insanely perverse. The only payment he will accept is marriage to an unnamed granddaughter. Stam tells Eros that he knows he is divorced, so he is legally able to remarry. Eros flatly refuses, having zero desire to get married again. It is only then that Stam snidely informs him which granddaughter he has in mind. He tells Eros it is his former mistress, Winnie Mardas, and that Winnie has borne him a son. Stam makes it clear to Eros that he thinks that Winnie is too good for him, and he doesn’t want her to stay married to him. The marriage will merely be a formality, to give the child his name.
Eros is enraged on multiple counts at Fotakis’s degrading scheme. First, after years of being trapped in a marriage of convenience, the last thing Eros wants is to enter another one. He is also mortally offended at Fotakis’s accusation that Eros is a shady creep who preys on his vulnerable, female staff. In addition, Eros has never had a mistress—at the time of their affair, he viewed Winnie as his lover, not a mistress. And, technically, Eros assures himself, he did not cheat on his wife, Tasha, because theirs was an unconsummated marriage, with the two of them leading separate lives the whole time they were legally bound together. Though, in fact, due to his stringent, personal ethics, Eros remained celibate during all the years of his marriage until Winnie came along, and the temptation of his overwhelming attraction to her was too much to resist. But when Winnie left him, those same prickly principles kicked in again, and guilt over betraying them was what prevented Eros from tracking Winnie down during the two years since he last saw her.
Using Winnie’s contact information that Stam Fotakis has given him, Eros flies on his private jet from Greece to London and shows up on Winnie’s doorstep unannounced. And thus begins the romantic adventure of their explosive, secret-baby, reunion.
There is a huge amount of thrilling, emotional intensity and sexual chemistry between Winnie and Eros. Winnie is a compelling heroine, and Eros is a worthy match for her. He is an amazing hero—ardent, determined, ethical, and loyal. It is a fun and unique twist in this HP story that Eros was celibate for years, which mirrors the typical HP, virginal heroine, and it is he, rather than the heroine, who is unfairly accused of sleazy, sexual misbehavior. In addition, in another fun tweak of a popular romance trope, the matchmaking grandmother, who is typically a lovably quirky, poor or middle-class old lady, the matchmaker within each book of this trilogy is a hard-nosed, arrogant, fabulously wealthy grandfather. Stam’s attempts to dominate and control Eros, and the battle of the titans between these two alpha males, creates potent conflict in every scene in this book in which the two of them lock horns.
Another aspect of this novel that is highly unusual for LG is that Winnie and Eros are only four years apart in age. The vast majority of LG heroines are between 20-23 and, early in her career, her heroes were typically 32-33. Over the past decade and more, her heroines have tended to stay within the same age range, but her heroes have been lowered in age to between 28-30, most often 29. By raising Winnie’s age to 26 and having their ages be only four years apart in this book, presenting the two of them as equally chaste before meeting each other, and making Winnie the heiress to a man as rich as Eros, LG has created a fascinating situation in this story in which, in every way possible, the two of them are social and emotional equals.
All in all, this is a terrific romance novel, one of my favorites by LG. I have reread it multiple times, and I will definitely revisit it many times in the future.
I rate this novel as follows:
Heroine: 5 stars
Hero: 5 stars
Matchmaking Grandfather: 5 stars
Romance Plot: 5 stars
Writing: 5 stars
Overall: 5 stars
Stamboulas Fotakis, a 70-something, Greek billionaire, has recently discovered that he has three granddaughters, Winnie, Vivi and Zoe Mardas, and a great-grandson, Winnie's baby, Teddy. Nearly 30 years ago, Stam disowned their father, his youngest son, Cy, when Cy was barely more than a teenager, in an impulsive act of frustrated rage, because Cy refused to obey Stam and study business at university. Stam’s late wife, Azra, an Arabian princess, never forgave him for the loss of her precious son. Cy himself, as proud and headstrong as his father, changed his name to his maternal grandmother’s maiden name, Mardas, which made it impossible for Stam to trace Cy, when his temper finally cooled sufficiently that he could try to correct his tragic mistake.
Winnie is currently 26 years old, Vivi is 23, and Zoe is 20. Their parents died in a car crash when Winnie was eight years old, Vivi was five, and Zoe was a toddler. When they were thrown into state care, they were callously separated, and they all had bad experiences, particularly Winnie, until she was removed from a physically abusive foster family and placed with John and Liz Brooke. A loving, compassionate couple, the Brookes not only rescued Winnie, they also made persistent inquiries until they located Vivi and Zoe and reunited the sisters. The nurturing care of the Brookes saved the traumatized young girls, and the three sisters have maintained a close, chosen-family relationship with the Brookes up to the present day. There is nothing they would not do for their beloved foster parents, and when they learn the Brookes are in dire financial straits and are within days of having their rundown farmhouse repossessed and losing the foster children currently in their care, Winnie approaches Stam for a loan to bail them out. He informs her that he is more than willing to freely offer enough money to solve all the monetary woes of the Brookes on behalf of his three granddaughters. However, being a major control-freak, he puts conditions on his cooperation. All three of the sisters must marry men of his choosing, whom he considers suitable. And first on his list to marry off is Winnie, as an unmarried mother.
Stam’s conservative values are outraged that Eros Nevrakis, a 30-year-old, fellow Greek billionaire, took Winnie as his mistress two years before when she was in his employ as a personal chef. Eros was married at the time and, even if he wanted to, he could not have married Winnie when she got pregnant. As a result, Stam’s great-grandson is illegitimate, a stigma that Stam is determined to erase. Winnie informs Stam that she had not known Eros was married when they got involved. But as soon as she found out, she walked out of his life and never got back in touch. As a result of this information, Stam puts the entire blame for her predicament on Eros.
Eros is surprised to be summoned to meet with the elusive billionaire, Stam Fotakis, from whom he has been unsuccessfully trying to purchase the island of Trilis for many years. Eros would pay just about any price to regain Trilis, because it is the sole possession that his father truly regretted losing when he went bankrupt 15 years before, and which, on his deathbed, when Eros was 18, he begged Eros to regain on behalf of the Nevrakis family. Trilis was the Nevrakis home base for generations, and their ancestors are buried there. But when Stam offers to sell Trilis to Eros, his terms are insanely perverse. The only payment he will accept is marriage to an unnamed granddaughter. Stam tells Eros that he knows he is divorced, so he is legally able to remarry. Eros flatly refuses, having zero desire to get married again. It is only then that Stam snidely informs him which granddaughter he has in mind. He tells Eros it is his former mistress, Winnie Mardas, and that Winnie has borne him a son. Stam makes it clear to Eros that he thinks that Winnie is too good for him, and he doesn’t want her to stay married to him. The marriage will merely be a formality, to give the child his name.
Eros is enraged on multiple counts at Fotakis’s degrading scheme. First, after years of being trapped in a marriage of convenience, the last thing Eros wants is to enter another one. He is also mortally offended at Fotakis’s accusation that Eros is a shady creep who preys on his vulnerable, female staff. In addition, Eros has never had a mistress—at the time of their affair, he viewed Winnie as his lover, not a mistress. And, technically, Eros assures himself, he did not cheat on his wife, Tasha, because theirs was an unconsummated marriage, with the two of them leading separate lives the whole time they were legally bound together. Though, in fact, due to his stringent, personal ethics, Eros remained celibate during all the years of his marriage until Winnie came along, and the temptation of his overwhelming attraction to her was too much to resist. But when Winnie left him, those same prickly principles kicked in again, and guilt over betraying them was what prevented Eros from tracking Winnie down during the two years since he last saw her.
Using Winnie’s contact information that Stam Fotakis has given him, Eros flies on his private jet from Greece to London and shows up on Winnie’s doorstep unannounced. And thus begins the romantic adventure of their explosive, secret-baby, reunion.
There is a huge amount of thrilling, emotional intensity and sexual chemistry between Winnie and Eros. Winnie is a compelling heroine, and Eros is a worthy match for her. He is an amazing hero—ardent, determined, ethical, and loyal. It is a fun and unique twist in this HP story that Eros was celibate for years, which mirrors the typical HP, virginal heroine, and it is he, rather than the heroine, who is unfairly accused of sleazy, sexual misbehavior. In addition, in another fun tweak of a popular romance trope, the matchmaking grandmother, who is typically a lovably quirky, poor or middle-class old lady, the matchmaker within each book of this trilogy is a hard-nosed, arrogant, fabulously wealthy grandfather. Stam’s attempts to dominate and control Eros, and the battle of the titans between these two alpha males, creates potent conflict in every scene in this book in which the two of them lock horns.
Another aspect of this novel that is highly unusual for LG is that Winnie and Eros are only four years apart in age. The vast majority of LG heroines are between 20-23 and, early in her career, her heroes were typically 32-33. Over the past decade and more, her heroines have tended to stay within the same age range, but her heroes have been lowered in age to between 28-30, most often 29. By raising Winnie’s age to 26 and having their ages be only four years apart in this book, presenting the two of them as equally chaste before meeting each other, and making Winnie the heiress to a man as rich as Eros, LG has created a fascinating situation in this story in which, in every way possible, the two of them are social and emotional equals.
All in all, this is a terrific romance novel, one of my favorites by LG. I have reread it multiple times, and I will definitely revisit it many times in the future.
I rate this novel as follows:
Heroine: 5 stars
Hero: 5 stars
Matchmaking Grandfather: 5 stars
Romance Plot: 5 stars
Writing: 5 stars
Overall: 5 stars
August 14, 2019
The premise is that a mega rich man wants to take care of his adult grandchildren that he just learned about but he doesn't want to know that he'd helping them. Didn't like that premise. Worse, the description of the hero is terrible. Don't like him, don't want to get to know him. Quit at about page 19.
If you like romance novels, if you like the kind where a super rich and powerful man learns he has a child and wants to lay claim, then this book might be worth your while.
If you like romance novels, if you like the kind where a super rich and powerful man learns he has a child and wants to lay claim, then this book might be worth your while.
June 3, 2019
I usually adore a second chance romance, but the whole infidelity aspect in this story put me off. I like my romance with a bit more ROMANCE! Hopefully the other 2 books in the series are more true to LG's gold standard of HPs.
April 11, 2022
This was a nice story overall.
The Hero started as a pushover but didn't turn into a mean monster.
Liked the ending, as well.
The Hero started as a pushover but didn't turn into a mean monster.
Liked the ending, as well.
July 19, 2024
This book felt... inconsistent. There were times I was interested and times when I felt bored by the slow pacing. The other sisters in the series seem interesting so we'll see...
Read
May 20, 2019Una Novia Para El Griego (Tres Novias #1)
August 12, 2024
I was a bit frustrated with the heroes attitude but it was a good read
Read
February 1, 2019Miniseries: Billionaires at the Altar
January 10, 2019
A bullying Grandfather, misunderstandings, broken promises hidden pregnancy this romance appears on the surface to have too much going on but when it comes down to the way it is written it makes for a well written wonderful romantic read.
July 14, 2019
I’ve said this in other reviews I have written recently, but as of late Harlequin Presents hasn’t quite been doing for me like it used to. There just some disconnect between myself and the stories. They have the same themes that have been done countless times before in Presents and have been themes I have enjoyed in the past, but as I said I haven’t gotten the feels that use to get while reading this series. I just feel like there has been a lack of connection between the couples aside from some passionate scenes thrown in the story, and they haven’t felt like love stories. At times they felt very rushed to get to the happily ever after, which made it a little unbelievable even though this series is dedicated more to fantasy than reality, but I still want to feel it and believe it. There’s also has been a lack of intensity in the stories lately too. Yes, there’s been conflict that has stood in the couples way that complicated their romance, but it was enough to give the romance that compelling feel. And since there was a lack of intensity in these stories meant there was a lack of angst. I’m a big fan of angst and when there’s a lack of it I tend to notice and not enjoy as much as I should. I also feel like the type of hero has been changing over the more recent books. I understand it’s meant to fit more the modern scope of the world today and trying to be more politically correct in today’s world, but I miss the heroes of old where they were completely alpha, a bit of an a**hole but not overly so where you can’t stand the guy and can not root for him to get his happily ever after, intense, have more of edge to them, but fall putty for the woman that came into his lives and he’s a Teddy Bear. Then he repents for his wicked and cruel ways in order to woo the woman that he loved back into life again by any means possible with huge grovel scenes. I love seeing an alpha like that melt and really show affection and caring towards his life. Plus I love seeing his vulnerable side that showed why he became such a jerk before meeting the heroine. That’s what I want from my alpha, and it doesn’t seem like I’m getting that. They were more beta than alpha where the hero’s too soft. The hero can still be a nice guy, but still be an alpha and again that’s what has been missing at least for me of late in Presents.
Now why did a big paragraph generalizing Presents that I have not be fond of as of late, instead of discussing this particular book? It’s because the same issues that I have been having with Presents in the past was what I had issues with in this book as well as a few more a long the way.
The big thing about this book was that I felt Eros wasn’t alpha enough for me. Yes, when he learned that Winnie hid his son from him all these years he vowed revenge on her and make her life miserable, but his heart was not really in it. Yes, there was a bribe from Winnie’s grandfather about his family’s island, and that if he wanted it back then he had to marry Winnie, but her really wasn’t forced into it, therefore there was no friction, intensity, or edge to the whole blackmail theme. He wasn’t as conflicted about the decision to marry like I expected and made it less of a conflict. He did have his moments where he took over control of the situation and even threatened Winnie, but again his heart wasn’t in it so there wasn’t much tension. Despite the fact that he got involved with Winnie when he was married and was the reason that Winnie left and didn’t tell him that she was pregnant that should have added so much tension and conflict as well as sparks between them, but really it just fell flat for me. It was just blah and felt like a million stories I have read in the past. He just wan’t that special of hero for me because of his lack of alphaness.
Another thing that I had huge issues with was the fact that he was married when he got involved with Winnie. Yes, I know it was more of an arrangement than a marriage with his wife living separately from him and doing her own thing while he did his and they never slept together nor were feelings involved, but even still that just left a bad taste in my mouth and set tone for rest of the book. Yes, it technically not cheat, but it really was. I know it was stated multiple times it wasn’t a real marriage, but it didn’t matter I just didn’t like that. Now if there was an attraction between them that added all this tension and angst to their relationship but was never acted on until the divorce I would have been more okay with that. I just wasn’t a fan of that storyline.
In the beginning of story, I felt like there was a lack of sparks between them, which lessened flair of the romance between them. There was tension between them, but it wasn’t enough for me so it would have that element of intensity that would have been all consuming. Even their attraction for one another was put on the back burner with very little simmer to it because they were dealing with other stuff like thieir son, her grandfather, and just the past issues, but again it didn’t feel compelling enough of a story to me.
Until the last third of the book that was when it really came to life. The attraction was in full force at that point leading to some sensual scenes between them that seemed to be carried over from their past relationship. I liked seeing that they were developing more of a connection between them that had to do with caring, support, and respect. I really enjoyed seeing them have that connection as they got closer and closer after they married. After they married that was really where they shined as a couple whereas in the beginning they were just really dull and uninteresting. In the last third, there was more of romantic vibe that I was looking throughout the entire story not just the end. The last third was leaps and bounds better than the rest of book and if carried over throughout the rest of the book I would have probably liked it a lot more than I did.
Overall I just didn’t care for this book between the storyline, the lack angst and tension and friction between Winnie and Eros, there weren’t a lot of feels going on. I wanted to feel what Winnie went through when she found out Eros was married and just all the pain that went through that, instead it was just kind of brushed over. In fact a majority of their relationship was brushed over except in the end once they got married then more things were explored, but the most part a lot of their relationship was summarized and glossed over. There was no real agony felt throughout the story even though I know for Winnie that betrayal had really hurt her. I wanted to see that pain and how it healed when they fell in love again, but I got none that. I needed more development. The best part of the book was the last third where it really showed off their connection in a way that they hadn’t for two thirds of it. This was where I saw them as a couple that had affection for each other for the first time. i felt their connection and passion in a way I didn’t in the beginning. I liked seeing the cute and romantic moments between them but I liked seeing the serious ones to in order to make them have a better relationship, and I wish that was the case for the entire book. Instead there was a lack of specialness and spark between them in the beginning that it made it really hard to be really into the story. I wasn’t into their romance until end, and it was almost to late if I’m being honest. I wished I liked it more than I did, but honestly I just wasn’t. The end did save it though hence the higher rating than I would have expected I would have given it while I was reading it.
All books can’t be winners but I hope that this isn’t going to be an ongoing trend for Presents where they are going in the future. I would hate to be disappointed with the series because it has become a series that I have known and love over the years. Hopefully they will get better.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 15, 2019
3,5 Estrellas
Este es el primer libro de una trilogía en la que tres hermanas descubren el amor. Cada libro está dedicado a una pareja, por lo que se pueden leer de forma independiente.
El nexo de las historias, además del parentesco de las chicas, es su recién descubierto abuelo. Un millonario griego manipulador y egoísta. A pesar de que Stamboulas no es precisamente una buena persona, me ha encantado su personaje.
Lynne Graham nos ofrece una historia de segundas oportunidades. Eros y Winnie tuvieron una relación previa que terminó mal, e incluso hay un hijo secreto por medio. Se reencuentran por las maquinaciones del abuelo de ella y tendrán que afrontar que tienen un hijo en común.
La historia está entretenida aunque no es de las mejores de la autora, y tampoco es muy novedosa. Se lee muy bien y, aunque es previsible, te apetece seguir leyendo. También te deja con ganas de saber que va a ocurrir con Zoe y Vivi, y que nueva jugada tiene preparada el abuelo. Mi intención es leer la novela de Vivi muy pronto.
Este es el primer libro de una trilogía en la que tres hermanas descubren el amor. Cada libro está dedicado a una pareja, por lo que se pueden leer de forma independiente.
El nexo de las historias, además del parentesco de las chicas, es su recién descubierto abuelo. Un millonario griego manipulador y egoísta. A pesar de que Stamboulas no es precisamente una buena persona, me ha encantado su personaje.
Lynne Graham nos ofrece una historia de segundas oportunidades. Eros y Winnie tuvieron una relación previa que terminó mal, e incluso hay un hijo secreto por medio. Se reencuentran por las maquinaciones del abuelo de ella y tendrán que afrontar que tienen un hijo en común.
La historia está entretenida aunque no es de las mejores de la autora, y tampoco es muy novedosa. Se lee muy bien y, aunque es previsible, te apetece seguir leyendo. También te deja con ganas de saber que va a ocurrir con Zoe y Vivi, y que nueva jugada tiene preparada el abuelo. Mi intención es leer la novela de Vivi muy pronto.
February 5, 2019
I actually was ready to give this 4 *s, but I just can't get past that no matter how he explained it away, Eros *was* married at the time he started his affair with his *employee* Winnie and didn't tell her and then blamed *her* for not telling him about the baby! ... and then when he tried to convince Winnie to have another child "to prove she could be trusted"?! WTH? I agree with her 'Only couples who are happy and secure together should bring babies into the world.'
That said, it was well-written and I'm looking forward to reading the stories of the other two sisters, as their grandfather continues to bribe (aka blackmail) men into marrying his granddaughters.
That said, it was well-written and I'm looking forward to reading the stories of the other two sisters, as their grandfather continues to bribe (aka blackmail) men into marrying his granddaughters.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 2, 2019
The H was a self delusional creep for all that his claims about never having had any other affair except with h when he was married. I really don't think this book is a romance considering he accepts a bribe from h's grandfather to marry her and legitimize his son. The last chapter where he offers to return back the bribe and declares his love seems almost like an afterthought when he gets caught out by the h and makes it all up while he romanticizes his affair.
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