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Alissa's Miracle (That's My Baby)
Alissa's Miracle by Ginna Gray
He'd told her that he could never have a child...
and widow Alissa Kirkpatrick was so in love with enigmatic Dirk Matheson that she agreed to a childless marriage. She put away that dream of babies, moving on to her life with her handsome bridegroom.
Until the pregnancy test proved positive...
Alissa's joy turned to sadness after she told Dirk. This announcement was one he'd never expected, and couldn't he had past pain that he couldn't share. Suddenly Alissa was in for the fight of her life--her man or her child. And with her little miracle budding within her, Alissa vowed she'd win both--and love for a lifetime!
THAT'S MY BABY: Bringing up baby can bring surprises...and showers of love!
He'd told her that he could never have a child...
and widow Alissa Kirkpatrick was so in love with enigmatic Dirk Matheson that she agreed to a childless marriage. She put away that dream of babies, moving on to her life with her handsome bridegroom.
Until the pregnancy test proved positive...
Alissa's joy turned to sadness after she told Dirk. This announcement was one he'd never expected, and couldn't he had past pain that he couldn't share. Suddenly Alissa was in for the fight of her life--her man or her child. And with her little miracle budding within her, Alissa vowed she'd win both--and love for a lifetime!
THAT'S MY BABY: Bringing up baby can bring surprises...and showers of love!
251 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published July 1, 1997
14 people are currently reading
119 people want to read
About the author
Ginna Gray
89 books46 followersGinna sold her first novel in 1983, after winning the Golden Heart Award, given by Romance Writers of America for the best unpublished novel in a category. She has been working as a full-time writer ever since. When she finishes her current contracts, Ginna will have written 33 books. She has also given many lectures and writing workshops, and judged in writing contests.
A native Texan, Ginna lived in Houston all her life — until 1993, when she and her husband Brad built their "dream home" and moved to the mountains of Colorado. Ginna also enjoys other creative activities such as oil painting, sewing, sketching, knitting, and needlepoint. "But my first love will always be writing. It is simply part of who I am."
A native Texan, Ginna lived in Houston all her life — until 1993, when she and her husband Brad built their "dream home" and moved to the mountains of Colorado. Ginna also enjoys other creative activities such as oil painting, sewing, sketching, knitting, and needlepoint. "But my first love will always be writing. It is simply part of who I am."
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
January 23, 2022
One of the sweetest tearjerkers i have ever read,"Alissa`s Miracle" is a mix of Linda Howard`s Sarah's Child and Carole Mortimer`s Uncertain Destiny.Reading how the enigmatic womanizing business tycoon Dirk Matheson overhearing the lovely secretary Alissa Kirkpatrick admit to finding him attractive to her friends-and how he relentlessly courts her!Ahh my beating hear how this hero was romantic without even trying to be!He took Alissa with storm and with the way both honestly conveyed their fears and emotions to each other was wonderful!Dirk hurt Alissa when she told him about her pregnancy,but what made me forgive him was that it was all for self-less reasons.The abuse and torture his family put him through had scarred him for life,so much that he thought he was capable of their cruelty and wanted to protect Alissa and the unborn child from it.He went so far to protect them from himself and together with Alissa it broke my heart but Alissa`s patience and dedication stunned me as she had her husband`s back through his recovery.This is such a pure beautiful love-story.Ginna Gray have never disappointed me!
November 25, 2020
Plot:
Sweet widowed heroine finds herself in the sights of the charismatic alpha H at work. Alpha H has some serious baggage from being horrifically abused as a child. Enough details are supplied to know that it was bad and he has a serious issue to overcome.
But before we get there there is an Oink alert. Hard to believe that this was written in 1997 as it reeks of 70s/80s big boss/secretary dynamics and is pre-personal computer. This alone makes me think it was written much earlier as by 1997 most if not all offices would have had office computers.
When she says she’s been widowed for just a year, the H says,”Great, you can stay late to work.” Huh? What ever happened to the insincere, “I am sorry for your loss.”
The H plants a big one on her under the mistletoe at the company Christmas party in front of everyone which, of course, humiliates her.
Things improve as now that the H has the heroine in his sights, he is one besotted, haunted and passionate man. The heat was well done as it relied on actual passion rather than just oodles of sexual position details.
The H is the hunter and she’s the hunted. He woos her into an immediate wedding as he’s smart enough to know that his happiness lies with her. His troubled past raises its head and he does some really dumb stuff, but I’ll give him a pass as for once I actually bought his fear of damaging people close to him. His issues go fay beyond Mommy/Daddy issues especially when he confronts the siblings he resents. Very sad and poignant.
Hold on to your horses, the H and h go to therapy.
He’s stupid a couple of times, but comes through for the h and their baby with a way too abrupt ending.
Close to 4 stars as I bought their romance, his intense need and love as well as his changes. Plus the setting is my hometown Houston and Brenham, TX, one of the few cute Texas small towns and home to Bluebell Ice Cream.
Sweet widowed heroine finds herself in the sights of the charismatic alpha H at work. Alpha H has some serious baggage from being horrifically abused as a child. Enough details are supplied to know that it was bad and he has a serious issue to overcome.
But before we get there there is an Oink alert. Hard to believe that this was written in 1997 as it reeks of 70s/80s big boss/secretary dynamics and is pre-personal computer. This alone makes me think it was written much earlier as by 1997 most if not all offices would have had office computers.
When she says she’s been widowed for just a year, the H says,”Great, you can stay late to work.” Huh? What ever happened to the insincere, “I am sorry for your loss.”
The H plants a big one on her under the mistletoe at the company Christmas party in front of everyone which, of course, humiliates her.
Things improve as now that the H has the heroine in his sights, he is one besotted, haunted and passionate man. The heat was well done as it relied on actual passion rather than just oodles of sexual position details.
The H is the hunter and she’s the hunted. He woos her into an immediate wedding as he’s smart enough to know that his happiness lies with her. His troubled past raises its head and he does some really dumb stuff, but I’ll give him a pass as for once I actually bought his fear of damaging people close to him. His issues go fay beyond Mommy/Daddy issues especially when he confronts the siblings he resents. Very sad and poignant.
Hold on to your horses, the H and h go to therapy.
He’s stupid a couple of times, but comes through for the h and their baby with a way too abrupt ending.
Close to 4 stars as I bought their romance, his intense need and love as well as his changes. Plus the setting is my hometown Houston and Brenham, TX, one of the few cute Texas small towns and home to Bluebell Ice Cream.
July 26, 2017
I'm not used to these longer categories - this one was 252 pages long that ultimately delivered an emotional punch, but not before a slow buildup and courtship.
The first part of the story is the office courtship between the 36 year-old widowed heroine and the rising star 42 year-old heartthrob hero. They have known each other for 15 years - but have always kept it professional.
The hero overhears the office ladies teasing the heroine about him. The heroine admits that he is attractive and then is mortified that he heard it all. This is where I almost dnf'd - hello are we in junior high?
This was the spark that lit the hero's interest and from there he pursues the heroine. Everyone in the office warns him to not to toy with the nice heroine. Hero decides to propose because he can't live without her and because she can't have children. Hero is adamant they don't have children. Heroine realizes that ship sailed in her first marriage and agrees.
There's lots of heartwarming Christmas, wedding plans, house plans, office gossip, the wanna be OM upset, zzzzzz Reader, I skimmed.
Their marriage is fine until the heroine gets pregnant.
From here - finally - it got interesting. The hero betrays her the biblical three times:
He accuses her of cheating because he got snipped a decade before.
He crawls back after consulting with his doctor and finding the procedure didn't hold - but asks her to get an abortion.
Once the baby is born, he leaves for six weeks.
After he apologized for thinking the heroine cheated, the heroine insists he tell her his reasons for not wanting children. Turns out he was horrifically abused by both his mother and father. He ran away at 14 and hasn't seen them since. He's worried he'll parent like they did.
Heroine insists he go to therapy - with her and on his own. They spend her pregnancy working through this. The hero actually traces his older brother and sister as some sort of closure.
The closure sucked by the way. The brother and sister were never abused and have felt guilty about their complicity in watching their sibling being abused without alerting authorities or intervening. (They were 7 and 5 years older - so no excuses) The father is already dead, the mother has dementia. And the brother's son who looked like the hero was abused so badly by his grandfather that his spine was severed and he's in a nursing home for life. The hero's father was never prosecuted for any of these sins. Like I said. Sucky closure.
For the last betrayal, it is resolved when the heroine contracts the flu and can't take care of the colicky baby. The heroine's sister calls the hero and tells him to come take care of his family. He does and manages to survive the acid test of a week of non-stop colicky baby crying. HEA
The angst was diluted by the long, slow courtship, the jokey friends, etc. . . The details of the hero's abuse are the stuff of nightmares and I hated to hear them. Especially with the parents only having the fires of Hades as eternal punishment. *sigh*
Heroine was strong. Hero was crazy about the heroine and his daughter - just afraid.
The first part of the story is the office courtship between the 36 year-old widowed heroine and the rising star 42 year-old heartthrob hero. They have known each other for 15 years - but have always kept it professional.
The hero overhears the office ladies teasing the heroine about him. The heroine admits that he is attractive and then is mortified that he heard it all. This is where I almost dnf'd - hello are we in junior high?
This was the spark that lit the hero's interest and from there he pursues the heroine. Everyone in the office warns him to not to toy with the nice heroine. Hero decides to propose because he can't live without her and because she can't have children. Hero is adamant they don't have children. Heroine realizes that ship sailed in her first marriage and agrees.
There's lots of heartwarming Christmas, wedding plans, house plans, office gossip, the wanna be OM upset, zzzzzz Reader, I skimmed.
Their marriage is fine until the heroine gets pregnant.
From here - finally - it got interesting. The hero betrays her the biblical three times:
He accuses her of cheating because he got snipped a decade before.
He crawls back after consulting with his doctor and finding the procedure didn't hold - but asks her to get an abortion.
Once the baby is born, he leaves for six weeks.
After he apologized for thinking the heroine cheated, the heroine insists he tell her his reasons for not wanting children. Turns out he was horrifically abused by both his mother and father. He ran away at 14 and hasn't seen them since. He's worried he'll parent like they did.
Heroine insists he go to therapy - with her and on his own. They spend her pregnancy working through this. The hero actually traces his older brother and sister as some sort of closure.
The closure sucked by the way. The brother and sister were never abused and have felt guilty about their complicity in watching their sibling being abused without alerting authorities or intervening. (They were 7 and 5 years older - so no excuses) The father is already dead, the mother has dementia. And the brother's son who looked like the hero was abused so badly by his grandfather that his spine was severed and he's in a nursing home for life. The hero's father was never prosecuted for any of these sins. Like I said. Sucky closure.
For the last betrayal, it is resolved when the heroine contracts the flu and can't take care of the colicky baby. The heroine's sister calls the hero and tells him to come take care of his family. He does and manages to survive the acid test of a week of non-stop colicky baby crying. HEA
The angst was diluted by the long, slow courtship, the jokey friends, etc. . . The details of the hero's abuse are the stuff of nightmares and I hated to hear them. Especially with the parents only having the fires of Hades as eternal punishment. *sigh*
Heroine was strong. Hero was crazy about the heroine and his daughter - just afraid.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 9, 2021
"Alissa's Miracle" is the story of Alissa and Dirk.
Underwhelming.
Going into the book having expectations of "Sarah's Child" was a huge mistake, because while the former is a delicious and heartbreaking tale of pain and one of my favorites- this is disappointing.
Widowed heroine suddenly finds her interest in her boss reciprocated. They end up married. He doesn't want a baby, she gets pregnant, he whines about his tragic past, miraculous resolution of lifelong traumas after the hero behaves like an utter imbecile, the end. Didnt enjoy it.
Swe/Unsafe
2/5
Underwhelming.
Going into the book having expectations of "Sarah's Child" was a huge mistake, because while the former is a delicious and heartbreaking tale of pain and one of my favorites- this is disappointing.
Widowed heroine suddenly finds her interest in her boss reciprocated. They end up married. He doesn't want a baby, she gets pregnant, he whines about his tragic past, miraculous resolution of lifelong traumas after the hero behaves like an utter imbecile, the end. Didnt enjoy it.
Swe/Unsafe
2/5
August 6, 2011
Alissa's Miracle was an amazing book, I loved it totally.
Alissa is feeling weird these-days, she lost her husband almost a year before, a man with whom she had a comfortable marriage and who was her one and only and now she is feeling attracted to Dirk, one of the VP's of the company she works for, a man known for dating glamorous women and someone who hasn't noticed her in the fifteen years she's worked there.
While indulging in some girl-talk, she confesses she finds him attractive and Dirk is nearby, she fears he overheard her and that proves correct and while at the company's Christmas party Dirk makes a move, he dances with her and kisses her, and an embarrassed Alissa flees the scene.
Dirk noticed Alissa in the beginning but she was married and then she became a part of the office. Her talk made him start noticing her, she's the type of woman he wants but avoids since she's the sweet, marriage sort and he's a 40 year old bachelor not known for his love of marriage or anything of that sort but he still finds himself asking her out on a date and then slowly cementing his place in her life.
He also finds himself jealous of other men looking at her and proposes to her and works hard to make Alissa say yes. They both agree not to have children despite the fact as it turns out Dirk is amazing with Alissa's nieces and nephews. Alissa is reconciled to not having children since her first marriage didn't produce one.
They make love for the first time on their wedding day and are happy. Alissa makes his house a home, loving him unconditionally and asking no questions about his past.
I loved the book, their whole courtship. I also liked how Dirk's fears were never made light of when he found out Alissa was expecting, he came from a family who abused him and he despite loving Alissa tried to protect her, even while hurting them both. I loved both of them and the book and felt so bad for Dirk.
Alissa is feeling weird these-days, she lost her husband almost a year before, a man with whom she had a comfortable marriage and who was her one and only and now she is feeling attracted to Dirk, one of the VP's of the company she works for, a man known for dating glamorous women and someone who hasn't noticed her in the fifteen years she's worked there.
While indulging in some girl-talk, she confesses she finds him attractive and Dirk is nearby, she fears he overheard her and that proves correct and while at the company's Christmas party Dirk makes a move, he dances with her and kisses her, and an embarrassed Alissa flees the scene.
Dirk noticed Alissa in the beginning but she was married and then she became a part of the office. Her talk made him start noticing her, she's the type of woman he wants but avoids since she's the sweet, marriage sort and he's a 40 year old bachelor not known for his love of marriage or anything of that sort but he still finds himself asking her out on a date and then slowly cementing his place in her life.
He also finds himself jealous of other men looking at her and proposes to her and works hard to make Alissa say yes. They both agree not to have children despite the fact as it turns out Dirk is amazing with Alissa's nieces and nephews. Alissa is reconciled to not having children since her first marriage didn't produce one.
They make love for the first time on their wedding day and are happy. Alissa makes his house a home, loving him unconditionally and asking no questions about his past.
I loved the book, their whole courtship. I also liked how Dirk's fears were never made light of when he found out Alissa was expecting, he came from a family who abused him and he despite loving Alissa tried to protect her, even while hurting them both. I loved both of them and the book and felt so bad for Dirk.
September 9, 2017
Like another review said this book was very reminiscent to me of Linda Howard's older work. It was angsty, heartbreaking and absolutely terrific. Hero has a very dark sad past, heroine is a widow, they get married and with her love and inner strength she helps him fight and eventually conquer his demons. I loved that they named their daughter Faith because as Alissa said she gave them faith to overcome the dark past. A must read book!
November 21, 2017
I believe I read this a long time ago, not sure I enjoyed it as much as I should have.
June 2, 2011
I was so moved by the story absolutely terrific read,won't give any spoilers but the way Alissa took a chance on her love and there were hurdles but she never once gave up,she stood there and had faith in her love and Dirk he came when he realised his mistake and then when he pores his heart out,Alissa guides him and supports him,goes with him to counselling and helps him to find a closure on his childhood trauma with the help of the counseller
the most awe part of the story was they named their daughter Faith,so true when Alissa gave thereason for naming her Faith"She gave them Faith to overcome the dark past"
Loved the book,recommend it
Do keep a tissue of boxes especially towards the end when Dirk reveals his past and how they both overcome the past
the most awe part of the story was they named their daughter Faith,so true when Alissa gave thereason for naming her Faith"She gave them Faith to overcome the dark past"
Loved the book,recommend it
Do keep a tissue of boxes especially towards the end when Dirk reveals his past and how they both overcome the past
October 25, 2016
Widowed h fell in love with H - he was not her boss but an executive where they worked. H became very possessive of her and obsessed with her. H proposed and h agreed to a childless marriage - H told h he couldn't have a child. When h became pregnant, H didn't believe he was the father because H had a vasectomy years ago. H never wanted children - wanted to break the cycle of child abuse in his family - H was terribly abused as a child. h gets H to agree to counseling and H confronts his older siblings regarding the childhood abuse - Dad had died so H didn't get closure in that respect. There is a HEA.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 5, 2021
This book creeps along and is extremely bland until the H's issues are revealed, whereupon things get REAL. It's incongruous and it involves some extremely dramatic pushing away from the H.
Points to the author for exploring a serious issue, but she should have seeded the cloud more in the first half because it is very unbalanced in intensity.
Points to the author for exploring a serious issue, but she should have seeded the cloud more in the first half because it is very unbalanced in intensity.
November 14, 2022
This one left me sad and depressed at the unrealistic way it dealt with childhood abuse and evil, not just abusers but those who enable and turn a blind eye to it :( I know it's just a Harlequin but I have read books of this genre that dealt with the issue a lot more realistically, and with more sensitivity. The author obviously had good intentions but missed the mark imho.
January 2, 2022
Very predictable.
May 24, 2014
very sweet one! i loved how those two were so sincerely in love! alissa loved dirk unconditionally. she did not expect anythg in return. dirk did love her but he was afraid to admit it! it was so obvious, his love shone and his jealousy just got the better of him each time! u're not so possessive of a woman if u do not love her! add to dat, he wanted to be wid her every time of the day. he was definitely madly in love but cud not face it as he was badly damaged in his past. he had to escape from his own home and lived on the streets. he faced many hardships before coming the highly successful man he was now. he worked hard and played hard but never had anythg serious going on in his private life. so i cud understand where he was coming from but he was never mean nor nasty wid alicia. he was warm, affectionate, compassionate and really nice where she was concerned. he may have left his head behind when he thought she was unfaithful but dats only logical. lol:P very good one! it dealt with a maelstrom of emotions but it lacked the usual high level of angst which i love. so i minused 2 stars.
January 19, 2015
2.5 star. This is my first book by the author and I am puzzled on how to rate it. It's definitely dated. The best description I could come up for the book is that it is a bridge between old harlequin world of alpha males(dominant, possessive)/ weak females and a brave new world of more sensitively drawn somewhat likable characters. It is a fast read and has elements that I normally like (hero with a dark past, heroine who help him to triumph over it, married life with obstacles to overcome) but for some reason the story did not work for me. Plus the ending was so abrupt that I honestly thought my Kindle just skipped the last chapter.
April 21, 2016
Just did a re-read of this book. Still 5 stars!
February 20, 2019
Love rocks
When you love some one like Dirk loved Alissa even the most horrible things life deals you can be overcome. Loved this story even shed a tear or two over Dirks childhood.But his love was was
's childhood
When you love some one like Dirk loved Alissa even the most horrible things life deals you can be overcome. Loved this story even shed a tear or two over Dirks childhood.But his love was was
's childhood
May 18, 2025
Didn't work for me.. If it's a miracle baby then it should be in whole story or even in more than half of the story but it was nothing like that. Beside this I didn't like FMC continuously comparing her dead husband and Hero.
June 11, 2025
So talk about the patience of a saint! That was the mfc Alissa! What she put up with from the mmc Dirk was insane! The true miracle in this book was that she didn’t kill him!!!
If you want some plot twists and angst then this is your book!!
If you want some plot twists and angst then this is your book!!
January 6, 2018
3 Stars
I am getting into these older books. This was a little over the top but a good book that I read in a couple of hours.
I am getting into these older books. This was a little over the top but a good book that I read in a couple of hours.
July 6, 2021
This is one of those "issues" Harlequins from the '90s, where you have a perfectly pleasant, standard category romance for a while - in this case, starring a thirty-six-year-old widowed secretary and the commitmentphobic forty-something VP at her company - and then the Issue arrives and suddenly everyone sounds like an explanatory pamphlet. In this case, the hero had an abusive childhood, so he has to get therapy, everyone has to learn about how abuse can manifest and the effects it can have on the child, and there's a bunch of over-the-top drama about the hero's unwillingness to love that feels vaguely uncomfortable because by this point all the characters seem to be made out of cardboard and you've lost all sympathy with them. The hero's Issues mean that the heroine has to totally overlook his terrible and unsupportive behavior, but at the same time his love for his wife and child basically snap him out of his trauma, which is an intensely uncomfortable message even if we are told that it's prefaced with therapy. This didn't work for me at all.
July 12, 2016
This is an enjoyable read if you like romances. It was very reminiscent to me of Linda Howard's older work. Alissa is a kind, likable heroine with an inner strength, while Dirk is the strong alpha male with a tender core. Some of Dirks background was surprising when it was finally revealed but I thought Gray did a good job of bringing Alissa and Dirk through their challenges in a believable and satisfactory way.
March 9, 2015
I remember reading this book when I was in high school. This was the first adult romance book I read and I was so taken to it. this book is so endearing. the relationship between the characters is so sweet and heart warming and their chemistry is breath shattering ;). its a book for you if you love light romance novels. Its one my favourite books of all time, I remember reading it 5 to 6 times.
January 4, 2015
*3.5 stars*
July 22, 2016
2.5*.
September 24, 2015
3.5 stars!!!
May 10, 2019
Alright whoa, straight white male privilege whoa. Liked our heroine who has seen some things and gone through stuff. Our hero has too, but we wouldn’t know it til he’s up against the wall. Didn’t like the heroine saying “I’ll quit, I wanna be a house wife”...to what?! The dude travels a lot! But hero says some awful things and does some awful things all at the end of the book, like jeez dude “I gotta get away”, from your new born?! Yeah YOU take care of her...thanks, bye. Uh no. And asking heroine to get an abortion for pretty much no reason. What was the reason the hero was abused and his siblings weren’t? I know in life there aren answers but come on, can’t believe his siblings let another child get hurt, that’s nuts. There are so many good elements to this book but they weren’t explored, just breezed over. What happened to the farm? Just too many unanswered questions.
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews