What do you think?
Rate this book
The Hungry Heart
To Liane, marriage was total commitment.
She'd been devastated to learn of her husband's casual infidelities. And that was why. after two years of marriage. Liane had left Julian Wilde, the high-powered businessman who'd been the center of her world.
Now a crisis concerning Julian's young son—her adored stepchild—had brought Liane back into his life. The past rushed into the present, and it was all Liane could do to maintain her fragile hold on her control.
Because, despite everything, she still loved Julian, body and soul...
She'd been devastated to learn of her husband's casual infidelities. And that was why. after two years of marriage. Liane had left Julian Wilde, the high-powered businessman who'd been the center of her world.
Now a crisis concerning Julian's young son—her adored stepchild—had brought Liane back into his life. The past rushed into the present, and it was all Liane could do to maintain her fragile hold on her control.
Because, despite everything, she still loved Julian, body and soul...
188 pages, Paperback
First published February 1, 1989
About the author
Margaret Way
622 books165 followersMargaret Way was born and educated in the river city of Brisbane, Australia. Before her marriage she was a well-known pianist, teacher, vocal coach and accompanist, but her hectic musical career came to a halt when her son was born and the demands of motherhood dictated a change of pace.
On a fortuitous impulse she decided to try her hand at romance writing and was thrilled when Mills & Boon accepted her first effort, Time of the Jacaranda, which they published less than a year later in 1970; a feat that brought tears to her father's eyes. Some seventy odd books have followed resulting in a loyal readership whose letters provide a source of support and encouragement. A driving force in all her writing has been the promotion of her much loved country, Australia. She delights in bringing it alive for her readers; its people, way of life, environment, flora and fauna. Her efforts so far have not excited official recognition, but she expects one day she will be awarded the "Order of Australia."
Her interests remain with the arts. She still plays the piano seriously, but her "top Cs" have gone. She is still addicted to collecting antiques and paintings and browsing through galleries. She now lives within sight and sound of beautiful Moreton Bay and its islands, inspiration for some of her books. Her house is full of books, spectacular plants, Chinese screens and pots. She is devoted to her garden and spends much time "directing the design and digging and providing cold drinks and chocolates."
On a fortuitous impulse she decided to try her hand at romance writing and was thrilled when Mills & Boon accepted her first effort, Time of the Jacaranda, which they published less than a year later in 1970; a feat that brought tears to her father's eyes. Some seventy odd books have followed resulting in a loyal readership whose letters provide a source of support and encouragement. A driving force in all her writing has been the promotion of her much loved country, Australia. She delights in bringing it alive for her readers; its people, way of life, environment, flora and fauna. Her efforts so far have not excited official recognition, but she expects one day she will be awarded the "Order of Australia."
Her interests remain with the arts. She still plays the piano seriously, but her "top Cs" have gone. She is still addicted to collecting antiques and paintings and browsing through galleries. She now lives within sight and sound of beautiful Moreton Bay and its islands, inspiration for some of her books. Her house is full of books, spectacular plants, Chinese screens and pots. She is devoted to her garden and spends much time "directing the design and digging and providing cold drinks and chocolates."
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
April 21, 2022
Second chance story. H/h have been separated/divorced for two years. Heroine thought hero cheated on her after a woman confessed to her. Hero was angry she didn't believe his denials and let her go. Hero's son from his first marriage was four at the time, and suffered the most.
The H/h are brought together when the son is kidnapped. The boy is found with the heroine's help. The hero uses this opportunity to convince the heroine to stay with the boy until he recovers from his ordeal. Hero and his son are happy.
Not happy: the boy's aunt who ran off the heroine the first time. And the heroine's boss who is an enemy of the hero and is in love with the beautiful heroine.
Don't worry. A stay at a billionaire's house on the ocean, and enough crazy talk from the wannabe OW reveals the forces working against the H/h.
No outback in this one, but MW's purple prose throbs throughout.
The H/h are brought together when the son is kidnapped. The boy is found with the heroine's help. The hero uses this opportunity to convince the heroine to stay with the boy until he recovers from his ordeal. Hero and his son are happy.
Not happy: the boy's aunt who ran off the heroine the first time. And the heroine's boss who is an enemy of the hero and is in love with the beautiful heroine.
Don't worry. A stay at a billionaire's house on the ocean, and enough crazy talk from the wannabe OW reveals the forces working against the H/h.
No outback in this one, but MW's purple prose throbs throughout.
June 5, 2016
Bad writing. Plus heroine claims she loves her husband but is thrilled by her boss's kisses. Hypocrite much?
January 15, 2016
The heroine allows a stranger to accuse her husband of infidelity and on the strength of the OW's accusation she divorces him. She was utterly stupid. The hero was a nasty piece of work. On one memorable occasion he offers the h her choice of A) being raped or B) making love. So romantic isn't it?
April 24, 2022
I was in the mood for a story involving an evil OW and this one delivered. Found it on Internet Archive's free online reading service and based on StMargarets review, gave it a look and so glad I did. Husband is typical alpha tycoon but he loves and is faithful to his wife>. His first wife died in childbirth and her sister is in need of either psychiatric care or a good spanking...maybe both. She engineers a divorce with wife #2 but is finally found out though she is anything but apologetic.
The hurt feelings of the H at not being believed are smoothed. The naivete of the h is strengthened and she is growing along with gaining some commonsense. The presence of the OM adds a little spice to the story.
Satisfying.
The hurt feelings of the H at not being believed are smoothed. The naivete of the h is strengthened and she is growing along with gaining some commonsense. The presence of the OM adds a little spice to the story.
Satisfying.
November 7, 2025
This book gets an extra star for entertainment value, otherwise it was just bat crap over-the-top nonsense.
The h was such a nincompoop she believes everything anyone tells her about the H, never suspecting they have an ulterior motive, when anyone with half a brain could see how manipulating the H's former sister-in-law (the villainous OW) was being and how the "hatred" she felt for her late sister's husband was really frustrated love. This woman was an obsessed mental case and had been for years, yet the TSTL h thinks she's her dear friend and confidant, only wanting what's best for her! For someone who was supposed to have brains, the h comes off as a real airhead! The OW told her so many lies it's hard to keep track, yet the h fell for them all hook, line and sinker! Even when she (finally) started to realize the truth, she still believed some of the lies, particularly the one about the H cheating on her, the one she should have known better to believe, considering the source.
And how come that supposed gift of intuition (the one that told her who had kidnapped the H's six-year-old son) failed her every time when it came to both the OW and the OM, her wealthy, older man boss who had the major hots for her, but she never picked up on it, even after being his PA for two years? (He was a controlling jerk as well, and she never had a clue about this, either!) She was actually blindsided by his declaration of love, though she did get a bit of a thrill when he rained kisses all over her face, enough to need a thick towel to wipe off the saliva!
It's obvious that, despite her declarations of not caring about money, this h is turned on by wealthy men because she's a mass of horniness whenever the H comes near her, and her boss's kisses gave her a bit of a thrill. However, the other OM, the former cop the H hired as a bodyguard after his son was kidnapped (who BTW, was the only person in this story worth anything), was good looking and athletic and had a great personality as well, but he didn't do a thing for her physically, she wanted his friendship, but didn't feel a spark. I guess it takes the $$$/power to get her juices flowing!
Ironically, this second OM was the only man who treated her the right way. The H tended to be overcome by passion, would get possessive and make her feel like his property rather than the woman he claimed to love, while Mr. Boss treated her like a naive, innocent child who needed his help and guidance, he wanted to care for her, shower with jewelry and furs, keep her like a pretty little doll. He also hated the H (stemming from a business rivalry from years back that drove the H's father to suicide and the H to revenge) and part of his pursuit of the h was the thrill of perhaps taking him away from her. Meanwhile, this second OM clearly had feeling for her, but he was a good friend to the H and would never overstep his bounds or play games (unlike Crazy Lady and Controlling Boss). In fact, he told her she should trust the H and not believe all the rumors and stories, and that he was certain the OW was in need of psychiatric care.
This h did two things I can't stand!! One was (in common with too many other h's) her condemning the H right away and making him out to be a villain, while either giving the OM a free pass or else idealizing him. The OM tells her she owes him because he was good enough to give her a job when her marriage to the H fell apart and she decides he's right. (!!!) Meanwhile, she didn't seem to think she owed the H the benefit of the doubt when he told her more than once that he did NOT cheat on her!! The OM tells her he loves her like he never loved any other woman, even his late wife, goes on and on about how much he wants her, all the material possessions he'll shower on her, how he wants to have children with her, and a host of other stuff, as if it's already a done deal, and she pretty much lets him go on without a protest, even though she's blindsided by it all. Meanwhile, she'll make all kinds of remarks to the H whenever he says something she doesn't like, even when he makes sense. She doesn't care about the H's feelings, yet she'll tiptoe around the Om for fear of offending him. What a crap bowl!
And what about her stepson, whose mother died when he was born? She was his mother for two years, yet she assumed he'd forget all about her after she and the H split up, not realizing the hurt she caused that little boy and how much he missed her!!! Talk about a NINCOMPOOP!!!
The other thing I can't stand is her yelling "I HATE you" at the H in those moments when she wants nothing more than to get naked with him! If she were younger (say 19 or 20) and a bit overwhelmed by her sexuality, I could understand it, but at this point the h was 26 and at that age shouting like a high-strung college girl is just ridiculous!
The H wasn't perfect by a longshot! While he was right to be angry that the h didn't believe him when he told her (truthfully) that he was never unfaithful, and he did have a point that maybe the h was afraid of commitment and used his supposed cheating as an excuse to leave, still he came across as obsessed with her body (in fact, he mentioned obsession more than once) and it seemed that was all he wanted from her. In his way, he was as obsessed with the h as the cuckoo bird OW was with him! And, much as he loved his son, he didn't spend all that much time with him and didn't seem to have a clue that the boy's aunt didn't care for him all that much anymore than he picked up on her lust for him. Another nincompoop!
And telling the h (during a bad attack of the horndogs) that she can make love with him willingly or else be raped (some choice) is not exactly the way to win a woman back!
The ending was too abrupt, as was their decision to remarry (while they were both in bed, ready to orgasm), without ever really talking through things, like the OW's machinations, the Boss OM and his guilt over the H's father, and - worst of all - the h didn't grovel for her mistake in believing both the OW and her accomplice (who was paid to say she got naked with the H). As much as readers like a groveling H, I like it when the h goofs up and has to do some groveling herself, but it didn't happen here.
And the sex scenes were just that: sex, without any love or tenderness vibe, just two people eager for the big "O"! It gives you the feeling that these two are going to burn themselves out and have nothing left to their relationship but ashes.
Also, the nice OM was supposed to do some detective work and find out the truth about all the conniving going on but after he leaves for this purpose, he's out of the story, so he gets no credit.
And does the OW get any comeuppance for all the crappy things she did? Of course not! Instead, the Boss OM gives her a job, so she'll do something useful with her life! and no starting in the mailroom for her, she'll be an executive, naturally! UNBELIEVABLE!
To sum it up, when a six-year-old boy (who was far too precocious, talking more like he's 9 or 10) makes more sense than the H and h, that tells you something about the story!
The h was such a nincompoop she believes everything anyone tells her about the H, never suspecting they have an ulterior motive, when anyone with half a brain could see how manipulating the H's former sister-in-law (the villainous OW) was being and how the "hatred" she felt for her late sister's husband was really frustrated love. This woman was an obsessed mental case and had been for years, yet the TSTL h thinks she's her dear friend and confidant, only wanting what's best for her! For someone who was supposed to have brains, the h comes off as a real airhead! The OW told her so many lies it's hard to keep track, yet the h fell for them all hook, line and sinker! Even when she (finally) started to realize the truth, she still believed some of the lies, particularly the one about the H cheating on her, the one she should have known better to believe, considering the source.
And how come that supposed gift of intuition (the one that told her who had kidnapped the H's six-year-old son) failed her every time when it came to both the OW and the OM, her wealthy, older man boss who had the major hots for her, but she never picked up on it, even after being his PA for two years? (He was a controlling jerk as well, and she never had a clue about this, either!) She was actually blindsided by his declaration of love, though she did get a bit of a thrill when he rained kisses all over her face, enough to need a thick towel to wipe off the saliva!
It's obvious that, despite her declarations of not caring about money, this h is turned on by wealthy men because she's a mass of horniness whenever the H comes near her, and her boss's kisses gave her a bit of a thrill. However, the other OM, the former cop the H hired as a bodyguard after his son was kidnapped (who BTW, was the only person in this story worth anything), was good looking and athletic and had a great personality as well, but he didn't do a thing for her physically, she wanted his friendship, but didn't feel a spark. I guess it takes the $$$/power to get her juices flowing!
Ironically, this second OM was the only man who treated her the right way. The H tended to be overcome by passion, would get possessive and make her feel like his property rather than the woman he claimed to love, while Mr. Boss treated her like a naive, innocent child who needed his help and guidance, he wanted to care for her, shower with jewelry and furs, keep her like a pretty little doll. He also hated the H (stemming from a business rivalry from years back that drove the H's father to suicide and the H to revenge) and part of his pursuit of the h was the thrill of perhaps taking him away from her. Meanwhile, this second OM clearly had feeling for her, but he was a good friend to the H and would never overstep his bounds or play games (unlike Crazy Lady and Controlling Boss). In fact, he told her she should trust the H and not believe all the rumors and stories, and that he was certain the OW was in need of psychiatric care.
This h did two things I can't stand!! One was (in common with too many other h's) her condemning the H right away and making him out to be a villain, while either giving the OM a free pass or else idealizing him. The OM tells her she owes him because he was good enough to give her a job when her marriage to the H fell apart and she decides he's right. (!!!) Meanwhile, she didn't seem to think she owed the H the benefit of the doubt when he told her more than once that he did NOT cheat on her!! The OM tells her he loves her like he never loved any other woman, even his late wife, goes on and on about how much he wants her, all the material possessions he'll shower on her, how he wants to have children with her, and a host of other stuff, as if it's already a done deal, and she pretty much lets him go on without a protest, even though she's blindsided by it all. Meanwhile, she'll make all kinds of remarks to the H whenever he says something she doesn't like, even when he makes sense. She doesn't care about the H's feelings, yet she'll tiptoe around the Om for fear of offending him. What a crap bowl!
And what about her stepson, whose mother died when he was born? She was his mother for two years, yet she assumed he'd forget all about her after she and the H split up, not realizing the hurt she caused that little boy and how much he missed her!!! Talk about a NINCOMPOOP!!!
The other thing I can't stand is her yelling "I HATE you" at the H in those moments when she wants nothing more than to get naked with him! If she were younger (say 19 or 20) and a bit overwhelmed by her sexuality, I could understand it, but at this point the h was 26 and at that age shouting like a high-strung college girl is just ridiculous!
The H wasn't perfect by a longshot! While he was right to be angry that the h didn't believe him when he told her (truthfully) that he was never unfaithful, and he did have a point that maybe the h was afraid of commitment and used his supposed cheating as an excuse to leave, still he came across as obsessed with her body (in fact, he mentioned obsession more than once) and it seemed that was all he wanted from her. In his way, he was as obsessed with the h as the cuckoo bird OW was with him! And, much as he loved his son, he didn't spend all that much time with him and didn't seem to have a clue that the boy's aunt didn't care for him all that much anymore than he picked up on her lust for him. Another nincompoop!
And telling the h (during a bad attack of the horndogs) that she can make love with him willingly or else be raped (some choice) is not exactly the way to win a woman back!
The ending was too abrupt, as was their decision to remarry (while they were both in bed, ready to orgasm), without ever really talking through things, like the OW's machinations, the Boss OM and his guilt over the H's father, and - worst of all - the h didn't grovel for her mistake in believing both the OW and her accomplice (who was paid to say she got naked with the H). As much as readers like a groveling H, I like it when the h goofs up and has to do some groveling herself, but it didn't happen here.
And the sex scenes were just that: sex, without any love or tenderness vibe, just two people eager for the big "O"! It gives you the feeling that these two are going to burn themselves out and have nothing left to their relationship but ashes.
Also, the nice OM was supposed to do some detective work and find out the truth about all the conniving going on but after he leaves for this purpose, he's out of the story, so he gets no credit.
And does the OW get any comeuppance for all the crappy things she did? Of course not! Instead, the Boss OM gives her a job, so she'll do something useful with her life! and no starting in the mailroom for her, she'll be an executive, naturally! UNBELIEVABLE!
To sum it up, when a six-year-old boy (who was far too precocious, talking more like he's 9 or 10) makes more sense than the H and h, that tells you something about the story!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 11, 2015
Good vintage Harlequin.
I liked the kid in the story (rare for me) and I liked the dialogue between the H and h.
Could've used more plot, but that's not unusual with Harlequins.
I liked the kid in the story (rare for me) and I liked the dialogue between the H and h.
Could've used more plot, but that's not unusual with Harlequins.
July 12, 2019
Nothing memorable ...
thanks to how stupid the h is and how idiotic the H was!
thanks to how stupid the h is and how idiotic the H was!
February 17, 2021
Sort of like being tossed into a blender. Everything comes out mushy. The story is redeemed by the nice twist at the end.
February 6, 2025
The h is one of the most stupid and pathetic book-heroines I have ever read. Everyone else is sincere & truthful except her husband.
Read
May 26, 2025I dislike the style of writing - especially their conversations - and the h is TSTL, so DNF.
October 27, 2015
the h in this one was a stupid child believing the evil ow. even she believed everyone else and divorced her husband in haste. but the hero was wonderful n he was madly in love with her to let her go. his son was another wonderful character who loved h dearly.
four stars is for the hero who was obsessed with h to even look anyone other than her.
four stars is for the hero who was obsessed with h to even look anyone other than her.
May 29, 2025
Uma história divertida, com uma mocinha dura na queda e um herói gostoso e apaixonado. Depois de uma separação, eles retornam porém com muita ação contra pela OW malvada, causando muita diversão com o H e seu filho ( outro obcecado). Divirtam-se !!!
January 3, 2017
Star Rating: ★★½☆☆
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews