Beneath Wimmera Skies

by Kerry Allyne

Mallory said goodbye to the glamorous life

Being an international model had lost its appeal. She wanted only to go home--to Avalon, the family farm in Australia. The she discovered, if she wanted to stay there, she'd have to manage the place on her own.

But, there was a major obstacle: Bren Dalton, the insolent representative of the corporation who owned the farm. He refused her application on the grounds thast as a woman she was not capable of real management responsibility.

His arrogant assumptions made Mallory furious, but she was certain she could change his mind

Genres: Romance, Harlequin Romance, Harlequin

190 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1988

About the author

Kerry Allyne was born in England, UK. Her early childhood was uneventful, she remembered, until her father came home one day and began talking about emigrating to Australia. When they eventually arrived in Australia, Kerry took to her new land with a passion. During the family's first years "down under," she explored as much of the country as she could, journeying northward into Queensland and out onto the Great Barrier Reef, and sometimes south through New South Wales into Victoria. As a adult she returned to England for a short time. A long working holiday enabled her to travel the world before returning to Australia where she met her engineer husband-to-be, and they had a couple of children. The family eventually moved to a rural area and she started to write. She used the people and countryside as inspiration for her romances. She was published by Mills & Boon from 1976 to 1994.

Reviews

[Trenchologist · Rating 3 out of 5]

2+

I've read a few other Allyne books & usually what happens is about midway through I remember it's Yvonne Whittall who writes similar books but often with a defter touch. This was a good one for either.

It's a clanger. They have good chemistry. Dynamics I enjoy (hero who is closed off & distrustful until *her* -- heroine who knows her worth but life isn't fully meaningful until *him*).

But I skimmed a lot. Because their clanging got them nowhere, his angry chauvinism is wearing, and she's too easily put back on her heels by him [we suspect only him, but she has one too many reacted-poorly-looked-worse moments in front of him -- give her a wee victory already!]

Her goal/motivation is barely mentioned; sure maybe we don't want to read in detail about her ranch work, but the majority of the book is her getting permission to work the ranch and then reasons to not be on the ranch. On the other hand, there's not a litany of failures she gets herself in trouble with.

She learns the most sensitive and vulnerable things about him via an old family friend, which. Not the greatest.

They have sex midway through the book and then again after they can't stay away from one another; early and a big deal for a vintageharleqin. lol

But. Again, cracking chemistry. He does find how to be vulnerable and sensitive for her and she finds how to tell him what she wants. And, I enjoy how her modeling savings for the home she thought she wanted but can't have goes to investing in their future. And he takes it and congratulates her for earning it, instead of grumping he can't take a woman's money, when before he disparaged her modeling (because Mom Issues, that thankfully he's gotten over wrt the heroine). Nice, progress, HEA!

Oh--and I like that he isn't a gazillionaire, that for all he earns well and and rose in the ranks from determination & results, he still has to work to make his recently-purchased property home. That he needs her help and support (money) to get a jump-start on the rest of their lives. Sure, the plot elements that he disappears work on the property, and then she offers the money earned, wouldn't make sense if he were worth gazillions, but the author made that choice and I'm glad for it. They're well-suited -- worked for what they got and then spent it on what they wanted most, and they'll rehab the new place together. Nice, yay, HEA!

[StMargarets · Rating 3 out of 5]

An international supermodel goes home to her stepfather in the Outback only to find he's thinking of resigning as manager and marrying another woman. Supermodel is resentful of the new corporation taking over, so she is rude to the company representative (the H) who arrives to accept her stepfather's resignation. Sparks fly. Supermodel decides she wants to be a trainee manager and talks her way into the job.

The H is resentful and there is a long corporate party scene where she learns about his faithless mother and he flirts with OW. They end up in bed by pg. 100 which is pretty quick from this era. Hero accuses her of trying to sleep her way to his good graces. Heroine proves her worth on the ranch and Hero leaves every weekend for parts unknown. Heroine follows him and finds that he has bought his own property and plans to leave the company. When hero arrives he orders off his property, but they fall in bed together instead. There's one last wrinkle when a photographer friend from her super model days shows up to make the H jealous. They kiss and make up - supermodel offers to give H her savings to get his property up and running. H accepts.

Nice to see the heroine have so much going for her - including her own bank account. A solid HR read.

[Rachelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the story of Mallory, who was a professional model, who no longer wished to model anymore. She comes to her home, Avalon, a farm in Australia. She find out that her step-father has decided to leave his post managing the farm and she cannot stay unless she manages the place. However, Bren Dalton, the representative of the corporation that owns the farm, does not accept her application to be manager as he feels as a woman she is not capable of real management responsibility. She does not like his attitude and goes over his head. It takes some time before they are willing to tell each other how they feel. This contains some descriptions of love making that may not be suitable for some younger readers.

[Νίνα Δοδούδη · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ο ουρανός της Γουϊμέρα - Kerry Allyne , Συλλογή, 967

[RomLibrary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mallory said goodbye to the glamorous life.

Being an international model had lost its appeal. She wanted only to go home—to Avalon, the family farm in Australia. Then she discovered, if she wanted to stay there, she'd have to manage the place on her own.

But, there was a major obstacle: Bren Dalton, the insolent representative of the corporation who owned the farm. He refused her application on the grounds that as a woman she was not capable of real management responsibility.

His arrogant assumptions made Mallory furious, but she was certain she could change his mind.

[Wendy Nutting · Rating 3 out of 5]

I ran across some Harlequin Romance books in the barn and thought I'd read them before I give them away. They are a quick read and I enjoy them once in a while!

[PAINTED BOX]

Mallory said goodbye to the glamorous life

Being an international model had lost its appeal. She wanted only to go home--to Avalon, the family farm in Australia. The she discovered, if she wanted to stay there, she'd have to manage the place on her own.

But, there was a major obstacle: Bren Dalton, the insolent representative of the corporation who owned the farm. He refused her application on the grounds thast as a woman she was not capable of real management responsibility.

His arrogant assumptions made Mallory furious, but she was certain she could change his mind.