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Pilgrim's Promise
Pilgrim's Promise by Emma Goldrick released on Apr 24, 1989 is available now for purchase.
187 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1988
About the author
Emma Goldrick
149 books33 followersEmma Goldrick is the penname used by the marriage formed by Emma Elizabeth Jean Sutcliffe, borned 7 February 1923 in Puerto Rico, and Robert N. Goldrick, borned on 22 March 1919 in Massachusetts, USA. They met in Puerto Rico, where married. She was a licensed practical nurse, volunteered with American Red Cross and she taught American Sign Language and he was a career USA military man. Thirty years and 4 children later they retired, and in 1980 they started to write in collaboration, and their first novel was accepted and published in 1983 by Mills & Boon. They continued publishing 40 novels until Robert passed away at 76, in 22 January 1996. After her husband death, she published her last novel and retired. Emma Goldrick passed away at 85, in 20 November 2008.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
April 23, 2022
Nostalgic silliness!
January 28, 2012
Now, this book was so much better, it had characters with depth, even the confused little teenager hanging on to the hope that her actress mother who had clearly abandoned her would reconcile with her father.
The heroine is a school-teacher but not a typical one and she is smart, funny and into social activism and even though she doesn't like the lawyer hero hoping to be a judge at first, since she sees him draped over a blonde and his messed up daughter, she agrees to take the job since the pay is good and before she knows it, the daughter is adjusting better and the blonde is gone and for the sake of the hero's judicial aspirations, she's wearing a rock on her finger and screaming she won't marry him even when she buys the wedding dress.
I liked how even though we didn't get the hero's POV it was obvious he was hell-bent on getting her to marry him, after all he was appointed to the bench and there was no need for him to insist for her to marry him and keep her in the dark about it and the reason was obvious, love.
It was realization that came later for the heroine though.
I enjoyed the book.
The heroine is a school-teacher but not a typical one and she is smart, funny and into social activism and even though she doesn't like the lawyer hero hoping to be a judge at first, since she sees him draped over a blonde and his messed up daughter, she agrees to take the job since the pay is good and before she knows it, the daughter is adjusting better and the blonde is gone and for the sake of the hero's judicial aspirations, she's wearing a rock on her finger and screaming she won't marry him even when she buys the wedding dress.
I liked how even though we didn't get the hero's POV it was obvious he was hell-bent on getting her to marry him, after all he was appointed to the bench and there was no need for him to insist for her to marry him and keep her in the dark about it and the reason was obvious, love.
It was realization that came later for the heroine though.
I enjoyed the book.
July 23, 2018
This was OK. At the beginning I thought the H was too much of a sleaze to ever be acceptable, but by the end, he'd convinced me.
February 7, 2022
3 days and 3 EG books. They aren’t necessarily fulfilling my angst junkie tendencies, but they are often “comfort, sipping hot cocoa, in front of a fire, on a snowy February day” read.
Heroine, Valeria-25 year old virgin, high school teacher looking for a summer job to pay some bills(sounds about right) The h is also very active in local protests, just like her dead grandma. She is a chain yourself to the bulldozer kind of gal! In search of a job, she decides to go for an interview as a companion for a 13 year old. She shows up at the Plymouth hotel and is directed to the pool area where she finds her prospective boss lounging with a blonde acting as a beach cover up.
Hero- Bart, 30’s, corporate lawyer looking to get a position as a judge. He has recently acquired his surly daughter as his ex wife is looking to marry a movie producer. He needs someone who can handle his kid while he is out and about getting the support he needs to become judge.
Daughter-Maria, 13, Although her parents have been separated since she was a baby, she still holds out for the great big reconciliation. From what is said, she seems to love her mom, but her mom has been a pretty hands off person prone to being critical of her chubby daughter. I am going to assume that she has had access to her father over the years, per usual custody agreements. She isn’t eager to have a companion, and is even less eager for any woman to be within her father’s circle. She is adversarial right away.
Amele, aka other woman, is blonde perfection wrapped in a perfect body, she is also a senators daughter. She is really only present in the beginning of the book. She is looking to be the next Mrs. Thomas, but Bart Thomas isn’t the marrying kind…anymore. Of course his daughter hates her, and she turns on the charm whenever he is around.
Throw in a family housekeeper, chauffeur/handyman, and a senior dog and you have yourself a story.
The H hires the h. Then leaves for Boston right away leaving his daughter in her care at her house. She makes him promise to be back on Monday. He arrives back Monday, late and exhausted at the h’s abode. She gives him some wine and he passes out in a deep sleep.
The next morning, the H tells her to pack up her things so she can move into her his house as a live in for his daughter. His and her reputation will be fine as there is the housekeeper and chauffeur who lives there as well. As they leave, the h’s nosy neighbor who likes to write gossip makes note of the handsome man leaving early in the morning.
He is a little concerned about her making it newsworthy as it could hurt his chances as a judge. The h assures him she writes for the little paper so it wont travel past the neighborhood.
They get to the H’s house where he is informed that the ow is lounging in her little gold bikini. She has moved into one of the guest bedrooms(which is bad because there are only 3 beds furnished and 4 people) and has been waiting for his arrival. The housekeeper announces he needs to order more furniture. The child skulks off to her bedroom to get her suit on, the H tells the h to go make his guest welcome while he makes some phone calls. The h, who is hired to be a companion to his daughter is not pleased about him pawning her off on his lover, but she heads to the pool grumbling about it(the housekeeper is team heroine at this point).
The ow’s days are limited. Especially when she tries to order the h around like a common servant. Our h is no pushover, and she makes quick work of the ow’s attempts to put her down. I especially like this line of questioning:
... One more turn of the screw, Valeria thought. 'I'm a schoolteacher, Miss Poitras. What do you do for a living?' Val cut the question short. Besides sleeping around, she had wanted to add.
'Do?' Amele queried. *Why should I do anything? I don't have to grub around to make a living. My father provides for me adequately. He's a State senator, you know!'
The H and daughter make it down to the pool and the ow turns on the sugar. Although, she does let out a venomous remark about the daughter and the h shuts her down quick in front of the H. Since her suit and make-up is for show and not swimming, she kisses the H and tells him she needs to go up to the house, he decides to follow her(afternoon delight?)
The h follows shortly so she can change and swim with the daughter who is pleased that the h was able to get under the ow’s skin. When the h enters the house, she is accosted by the Hero who tells her that the ow has told him how rude she was and that he will fire her if she attempts to be rude again. Our h tells him to send her 3 day check in the mail, no need to fire her, she quits. He tries to subdue her with a punishing rather exciting kiss, but she is not to be trifled with.
And guess what, she left!!!! A few hours later the distraught daughter shows up as well. The H comes to get both of them and haul them back to the house. The put out ow is gone shortly after this due to her own bumbling. She told the local reporter where to find the h and H one day while out and about with his daughter. He entered into a fake engagement with the h to squash any reputation destroying reports.
This is about 1/2 way through our story. The story continues with the fake engagement. The h keeps fighting the good fight. The H keeps finding an excuse to extend the fake engagement to the h’s confusion. The daughter continues to hold out hope for her parents even though her mom is now married. The h keeps assuring her and anyone in earshot that she will most definitely not be marrying the H(even after buying a dress)
Well they do enter into a platonic marriage, and while saying her vows the h finally realizes that she loves the H. (We already know he loves her). The ex shows up at the wedding with her new husband in tow. They are looking for someone to finance her big “break”(honey, you are well into your 30’s, and if you haven’t made it yet, you probably never will!) The daughter is dirty after rescuing the dog and she goes to hug her mom, who is disgusted that the daughter would even attempt such a gesture. The lightbulb goes off for the daughter and she ends up hugging the h(complete in wedding dress)
The wedding night is a bust with both the h and H in separate rooms. The next night the h stumbles upon some news that totally changes the circumstances. She enters the H’s bedroom freshly showered in a robe to confront him. He is laying in the bed dressed in a sheet. They have their big aha moment and are on their way to a HEA. The h is pleased to have a stepdaughter as she thinks it will nice to have a baby sitter for the future kids. The H goes to work on making that a possibility.
Just a couple of criticisms:
The H was concerned about his reputation yet he had the senator’s daughter draped across him on a pool lounger in a very public hotel in Plymouth. Then, he had no issue with her shacking up with him at his house. (HUH?) That all seems like catnip for the gossip columnists and politicians trying to get ahead!
Then, there was the daughter. Children of divorces do hold out hope for their parents to reconnect, I am not arguing with that. However, she was a baby when they went their separate ways. She has never known them together. So, her feelings about getting her parents together feels a little too ott. Now, doing things to get her father’s attention and not wanting to share him makes more sense.
Little to no sexy times in this book. They get together in the end and it is pretty much off page. This was an enjoyable story overall. I enjoyed the characters and their interactions.
Heroine, Valeria-25 year old virgin, high school teacher looking for a summer job to pay some bills(sounds about right) The h is also very active in local protests, just like her dead grandma. She is a chain yourself to the bulldozer kind of gal! In search of a job, she decides to go for an interview as a companion for a 13 year old. She shows up at the Plymouth hotel and is directed to the pool area where she finds her prospective boss lounging with a blonde acting as a beach cover up.
Hero- Bart, 30’s, corporate lawyer looking to get a position as a judge. He has recently acquired his surly daughter as his ex wife is looking to marry a movie producer. He needs someone who can handle his kid while he is out and about getting the support he needs to become judge.
Daughter-Maria, 13, Although her parents have been separated since she was a baby, she still holds out for the great big reconciliation. From what is said, she seems to love her mom, but her mom has been a pretty hands off person prone to being critical of her chubby daughter. I am going to assume that she has had access to her father over the years, per usual custody agreements. She isn’t eager to have a companion, and is even less eager for any woman to be within her father’s circle. She is adversarial right away.
Amele, aka other woman, is blonde perfection wrapped in a perfect body, she is also a senators daughter. She is really only present in the beginning of the book. She is looking to be the next Mrs. Thomas, but Bart Thomas isn’t the marrying kind…anymore. Of course his daughter hates her, and she turns on the charm whenever he is around.
Throw in a family housekeeper, chauffeur/handyman, and a senior dog and you have yourself a story.
The H hires the h. Then leaves for Boston right away leaving his daughter in her care at her house. She makes him promise to be back on Monday. He arrives back Monday, late and exhausted at the h’s abode. She gives him some wine and he passes out in a deep sleep.
The next morning, the H tells her to pack up her things so she can move into her his house as a live in for his daughter. His and her reputation will be fine as there is the housekeeper and chauffeur who lives there as well. As they leave, the h’s nosy neighbor who likes to write gossip makes note of the handsome man leaving early in the morning.
He is a little concerned about her making it newsworthy as it could hurt his chances as a judge. The h assures him she writes for the little paper so it wont travel past the neighborhood.
They get to the H’s house where he is informed that the ow is lounging in her little gold bikini. She has moved into one of the guest bedrooms(which is bad because there are only 3 beds furnished and 4 people) and has been waiting for his arrival. The housekeeper announces he needs to order more furniture. The child skulks off to her bedroom to get her suit on, the H tells the h to go make his guest welcome while he makes some phone calls. The h, who is hired to be a companion to his daughter is not pleased about him pawning her off on his lover, but she heads to the pool grumbling about it(the housekeeper is team heroine at this point).
The ow’s days are limited. Especially when she tries to order the h around like a common servant. Our h is no pushover, and she makes quick work of the ow’s attempts to put her down. I especially like this line of questioning:
... One more turn of the screw, Valeria thought. 'I'm a schoolteacher, Miss Poitras. What do you do for a living?' Val cut the question short. Besides sleeping around, she had wanted to add.
'Do?' Amele queried. *Why should I do anything? I don't have to grub around to make a living. My father provides for me adequately. He's a State senator, you know!'
The H and daughter make it down to the pool and the ow turns on the sugar. Although, she does let out a venomous remark about the daughter and the h shuts her down quick in front of the H. Since her suit and make-up is for show and not swimming, she kisses the H and tells him she needs to go up to the house, he decides to follow her(afternoon delight?)
The h follows shortly so she can change and swim with the daughter who is pleased that the h was able to get under the ow’s skin. When the h enters the house, she is accosted by the Hero who tells her that the ow has told him how rude she was and that he will fire her if she attempts to be rude again. Our h tells him to send her 3 day check in the mail, no need to fire her, she quits. He tries to subdue her with a punishing rather exciting kiss, but she is not to be trifled with.
And guess what, she left!!!! A few hours later the distraught daughter shows up as well. The H comes to get both of them and haul them back to the house. The put out ow is gone shortly after this due to her own bumbling. She told the local reporter where to find the h and H one day while out and about with his daughter. He entered into a fake engagement with the h to squash any reputation destroying reports.
This is about 1/2 way through our story. The story continues with the fake engagement. The h keeps fighting the good fight. The H keeps finding an excuse to extend the fake engagement to the h’s confusion. The daughter continues to hold out hope for her parents even though her mom is now married. The h keeps assuring her and anyone in earshot that she will most definitely not be marrying the H(even after buying a dress)
Well they do enter into a platonic marriage, and while saying her vows the h finally realizes that she loves the H. (We already know he loves her). The ex shows up at the wedding with her new husband in tow. They are looking for someone to finance her big “break”(honey, you are well into your 30’s, and if you haven’t made it yet, you probably never will!) The daughter is dirty after rescuing the dog and she goes to hug her mom, who is disgusted that the daughter would even attempt such a gesture. The lightbulb goes off for the daughter and she ends up hugging the h(complete in wedding dress)
The wedding night is a bust with both the h and H in separate rooms. The next night the h stumbles upon some news that totally changes the circumstances. She enters the H’s bedroom freshly showered in a robe to confront him. He is laying in the bed dressed in a sheet. They have their big aha moment and are on their way to a HEA. The h is pleased to have a stepdaughter as she thinks it will nice to have a baby sitter for the future kids. The H goes to work on making that a possibility.
Just a couple of criticisms:
The H was concerned about his reputation yet he had the senator’s daughter draped across him on a pool lounger in a very public hotel in Plymouth. Then, he had no issue with her shacking up with him at his house. (HUH?) That all seems like catnip for the gossip columnists and politicians trying to get ahead!
Then, there was the daughter. Children of divorces do hold out hope for their parents to reconnect, I am not arguing with that. However, she was a baby when they went their separate ways. She has never known them together. So, her feelings about getting her parents together feels a little too ott. Now, doing things to get her father’s attention and not wanting to share him makes more sense.
Little to no sexy times in this book. They get together in the end and it is pretty much off page. This was an enjoyable story overall. I enjoyed the characters and their interactions.
April 13, 2011
Aw! This book is so cute! and the premise is quite (well in regard to the behavior of the child) realistic. Children do hate interference in their parents' time by some new party and most kids from divorced families keep hoping for a reconciliation. Usually this approach makes the kids look angry and bitter but here you could empathize with her (as did the heroine)
Also, there a certain thing which goes with all of EG's books such as:
- heroine thinking to herself (and keeping things 'real')
- words of wisdom
- an independent heroine
Oh, what the heck! The whole book was lovely.
-The End-
Also, there a certain thing which goes with all of EG's books such as:
- heroine thinking to herself (and keeping things 'real')
- words of wisdom
- an independent heroine
Oh, what the heck! The whole book was lovely.
-The End-
July 17, 2011
I’ve always considered Emma Goldrick as one of the Harlequin Romance editions of Julia Garwood. Aside from the zingers between H/h, both authors like to put their heroines in strange situations where they have to find their way out in a comedic fashion.
Valeria starts out as a school-marmish disciplinarian who unveils her oddball, eccentric character as the story progresses. Hired to teach circumspection to a rebellious teen-ager, she soon finds herself embroiled in political gossip which threatens to derail the judicial nomination of the hero Bart. I found the running joke - her insistence that she’s not getting married ever to him - entertaining. She contends that she’s only going so far, and nothing more, even though it is most evident that she is being slowly reeled in.
Bart serves as a foil for Valeria. In the beginning, he’s depicted as a shameless Don Juan, a shirker of parental responsibilities, and a stuffed shirt. But as with the episode of the catamaran, he’s not above playing practical jokes and baiting the heroine to see her reaction. However, as there were so many secondary characters, like the girlfriend, the ex-wife, nosy neighbor, and especially the troubled daughter, there’s a sense that the relationship between H/h wasn’t as lengthy and the hero wasn’t as fleshed out as they could have been with less minor plots. I wanted more of the dialogues between H/h, found in the beginning, to show his growing affection and to bring more emotional impact. As it is, there was only one page of “I love you” and then it was back to humorous interplay.
Frothy read.
Valeria starts out as a school-marmish disciplinarian who unveils her oddball, eccentric character as the story progresses. Hired to teach circumspection to a rebellious teen-ager, she soon finds herself embroiled in political gossip which threatens to derail the judicial nomination of the hero Bart. I found the running joke - her insistence that she’s not getting married ever to him - entertaining. She contends that she’s only going so far, and nothing more, even though it is most evident that she is being slowly reeled in.
Bart serves as a foil for Valeria. In the beginning, he’s depicted as a shameless Don Juan, a shirker of parental responsibilities, and a stuffed shirt. But as with the episode of the catamaran, he’s not above playing practical jokes and baiting the heroine to see her reaction. However, as there were so many secondary characters, like the girlfriend, the ex-wife, nosy neighbor, and especially the troubled daughter, there’s a sense that the relationship between H/h wasn’t as lengthy and the hero wasn’t as fleshed out as they could have been with less minor plots. I wanted more of the dialogues between H/h, found in the beginning, to show his growing affection and to bring more emotional impact. As it is, there was only one page of “I love you” and then it was back to humorous interplay.
Frothy read.
November 29, 2012
meh....just okay. A little too cutesy for my taste.. I found myself rather annoyed with the heroine most of the time.
November 27, 2022
"Pilgrim's Promise" is the story of Valeria and Bart.
A sweet and funny romance.
The heroine is a teacher, who gets hired during summer break to help the hero's teenage daughter. He is a judge with an obstinate child, who has become troublesome during his divorce.
Ofcourse, there are the expected scenes of the daughter being an absolute brat (I mean she assaults the heroine multiple times, and even blackmails her which never gets addressed) but the heroine wins her over with her rebellious and patient nature.
The crux of the plot is the hero being pretty smitten with the heroine from the start and somehow coercing her into marriage with very obvious white lies- I mean the heroine is so confused it's stupid funny. I did chuckle a few times.
Good one time read.
Safe
3/5
A sweet and funny romance.
The heroine is a teacher, who gets hired during summer break to help the hero's teenage daughter. He is a judge with an obstinate child, who has become troublesome during his divorce.
Ofcourse, there are the expected scenes of the daughter being an absolute brat (I mean she assaults the heroine multiple times, and even blackmails her which never gets addressed) but the heroine wins her over with her rebellious and patient nature.
The crux of the plot is the hero being pretty smitten with the heroine from the start and somehow coercing her into marriage with very obvious white lies- I mean the heroine is so confused it's stupid funny. I did chuckle a few times.
Good one time read.
Safe
3/5
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews