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Troubleshooter
No terms for a truce
Wealthy businessman Tolly Devenko had made Imogen an offer she couldn't refuse--a high-level job with his prestigious chain of department stores. The gossip-hungry press quickly jumped to the wrong conclusions about their relationship. But she was unprepared for the stinging words from Tolly's son, Ales.
He'd made up his mind that she had a less than golden character and was determined to put himself between her and his father at every opportunity. Whether she was burning with rage or desire, Imogen realized she was at war--with both Alex Devenko... and her heart.
Wealthy businessman Tolly Devenko had made Imogen an offer she couldn't refuse--a high-level job with his prestigious chain of department stores. The gossip-hungry press quickly jumped to the wrong conclusions about their relationship. But she was unprepared for the stinging words from Tolly's son, Ales.
He'd made up his mind that she had a less than golden character and was determined to put himself between her and his father at every opportunity. Whether she was burning with rage or desire, Imogen realized she was at war--with both Alex Devenko... and her heart.
192 pages, Paperback
First published March 1, 1992
About the author
Diana Hamilton
315 books77 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.
Diana Hamilton was born in a English town. Wanting to be a country child, her imagination came into play at an early age, transforming a neighbor’s tree into a forest, a hole in a stone wall into a gingerbread house, a gas puddle into a fairyland, complete with mountains, lakes and flower meadows. She loathed housework but made to do her share, to lessen the boredom, she told herself stories, in a very loud voice, featuring princesses and flower gardens, discovering that telling herself stories was almost as good as reading them in a book.
She loathed school with an equal passion and got through it by pretending to be somewhere else. Even so she left grammar school with respectable grades... And was sent to art college when she wanted to study to be a vet. This was nowhere as bad as it had seemed because it was there, at age 18, she first saw Peter. He had returned from two years’ active service in Korea to resume his studies, and Diana immediately fell in love with him.
Gaining a degree in advertising copywriting, Diana worked as a copywriter and married Peter. They moved to a remote part of Wales after the birth of their second child, Paul, when their daughter, Rebecca, was three years old. There, Diana enjoyed pony trekking and walking in the mountains; and her third child, Andrew, was born. Itchy feet brought them back to England to the beautiful county of Shropshire four years later and they have been there ever since, gradually restoring the rambling Elizabethan manor that Diana gave her heart to on sight, creating a garden out of a wilderness of nettles, brambles and old bedsteads.
In the mid-'70s Diana took up her pen again to write stories to read to her three children at bedtime. These were never offered for publication but the bug had bitten. Over the next 10 years she combined writing over 30 novels, published by Robert Hale of London, with bringing up her children, gardening and cooking for the restaurant of a local inn—a wonderful excuse to avoid the dreaded housework! In 1987 Diana realized her dearest ambition—the publication of her first Mills & Boon romance, Song in a Strange Land. She had come home. And that feeling persists to this day as, around 30 Harlequin/Mills & Boon romantic novels late, she was still in love with the genre.
Sadly, Diana Hamilton passed away on May 3, 2009, at her home in Shropshire, surrounded by her family. She will be sorely missed by her fans and everyone at Mills & Boon/Harlequin
Diana Hamilton was born in a English town. Wanting to be a country child, her imagination came into play at an early age, transforming a neighbor’s tree into a forest, a hole in a stone wall into a gingerbread house, a gas puddle into a fairyland, complete with mountains, lakes and flower meadows. She loathed housework but made to do her share, to lessen the boredom, she told herself stories, in a very loud voice, featuring princesses and flower gardens, discovering that telling herself stories was almost as good as reading them in a book.
She loathed school with an equal passion and got through it by pretending to be somewhere else. Even so she left grammar school with respectable grades... And was sent to art college when she wanted to study to be a vet. This was nowhere as bad as it had seemed because it was there, at age 18, she first saw Peter. He had returned from two years’ active service in Korea to resume his studies, and Diana immediately fell in love with him.
Gaining a degree in advertising copywriting, Diana worked as a copywriter and married Peter. They moved to a remote part of Wales after the birth of their second child, Paul, when their daughter, Rebecca, was three years old. There, Diana enjoyed pony trekking and walking in the mountains; and her third child, Andrew, was born. Itchy feet brought them back to England to the beautiful county of Shropshire four years later and they have been there ever since, gradually restoring the rambling Elizabethan manor that Diana gave her heart to on sight, creating a garden out of a wilderness of nettles, brambles and old bedsteads.
In the mid-'70s Diana took up her pen again to write stories to read to her three children at bedtime. These were never offered for publication but the bug had bitten. Over the next 10 years she combined writing over 30 novels, published by Robert Hale of London, with bringing up her children, gardening and cooking for the restaurant of a local inn—a wonderful excuse to avoid the dreaded housework! In 1987 Diana realized her dearest ambition—the publication of her first Mills & Boon romance, Song in a Strange Land. She had come home. And that feeling persists to this day as, around 30 Harlequin/Mills & Boon romantic novels late, she was still in love with the genre.
Sadly, Diana Hamilton passed away on May 3, 2009, at her home in Shropshire, surrounded by her family. She will be sorely missed by her fans and everyone at Mills & Boon/Harlequin
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
January 19, 2018
Re Troubleshooter - Diana Hamilton continues the HPlandia theme of June 1993 of an H thinking his rival is his father for the h's affections. Unlike Helen Bianchin's Stormfire, this H's dad is alive and well and wants the h to head up all the advertising for his group of luxury department stores.
However the 26 yr old h is a looker and when the press sees the h and the H's father together, they leap the older man/trophy mistress conclusion. The H, who is engaged to the daughter of a long time family friend - mainly at his father's behest, is all set to loose the dogs of war on such a conniving, tarty, career climbing gold digging h - he is his dad's Troubleshooter and he knows how to deal with woman like her.
The h, who thinks she is smarter than she actually is, thinks it would be a great wind up to make the H believe that she is a tarty golddigger sleeping with the H's dad to advance her career, so she doesn't do much to correct his impression and in fact, actively encourages it.
The problem is that the H really loves his dad, and the dad has a history of getting involved with very rampant golddiggers after his mother died - this comes out much later in the story, but after the H's mum died, he dad fell in love with another ambitious young lady resembling the h. He married her, she then tried it on with all and sundry, spent zilliions and finally ruined her gravy train when she tried to seduce the H and another man right in his father's house at a party - or so the H said.
The upshot was that when the H rammed it down his dad's throat that his beloved young wife would poke anyone with a pike, the H's dad did divorce the woman and then fell into a severe depression that has lasted for years. (Now whether that was because his new wife betrayed him or because he suspected his son of manipulating things into their worst possible light, we don't know.)
What we do know is that right after the second wife fiasco, the H's father pushed him hard to marry the daughter of the friend - mainly cause he feels grandchildren are all that is left for him. The H felt badly about breaking up his father's second marriage, so he agreed to marry the woman.
But now the H's dad has an entirely new lease on life. The h did a big ad campaign for the one of the luxury stores when she worked at her old agency. Since she has no further room to advance at her old job, when the H's dad offered her the top ad exec slot for his new idea to handle the stores as a group instead of on an individual basis, the h is quick to accept.
The H, convinced something underhanded is going on, is determined to drive the h away. So he tries to buy her off, she hangs tough. Then he tries to undermine her and she still refuses to leave. So then he goes the seduction route. He starts in on the roofie kisses and gropey hands moves right away. He calls her "Pet" and the h just can't resist his fatal love mojo. He moves the new ad division's headquarters to Windsor. The h is offered a flat in the huge manorial estate complex that the H bought to hold all the offices needed for the ad division and as a place to live for himself in the main house.
Then the H goes about using the h's treacherous body lurve mojo response to seduce her. He claims he loves her, even as he is berating her for sleeping with his father. Then he gives the flat promised to the h to someone else, mainly to compel the h to shack up with him in the big house, so he can continue with lurve clubings and keep the h's hourly beratement schedule on target.
It is a little schizophrenic, on one hand the h and H are canoodling like love birds and on the other, the H is still convinced she is a grabby pay to play tart as the h claims she has a thing against marriage as her own parents were miserable. When the h tells him that she and his father had no intimate relationship, the H is very dismissive of her protest and claims it doesn't matter.
On top of all that maneuvering, he also manages to juggle his fiancee around too, until he finally claims he broke it off with her. That doesn't stop the fiancee from being very displeased that she lost her socially and monetarily lucrative dynastic marriage destiny and she gets the h off in a corner to let her know that the H is maneuvering all this NOT because he loves the h, as he claims.
Nope, the H wants the h gone and he believes she is still leading his dad on, so he plans to reveal the h's tartiness in shacking up with him in the big house and then when his dad is upset over the h's very real lack of professionalism and her engagement wrecker status and that he lost his young lover, the H plans to toss her out and fire her.
As this is HPlandia and the only person more believing of third hand troublemaker statements than the HP H who thinks he is infertile, is the gullible h. Who takes the OW's allegations as sworn truth when the h KNOWS the H's dad is not going to be offended that his son stole his lover and packs her bags and runs off to a friend's couch - the h gave up her London flat and is homeless. Apparently she did not get paid either to get a hotel room.
Then the H's dad has a heart incident and ends up in hospital. He is asking for the h and the H thinks that the h left him for another man, so he is suitably mean and nasty when he drags the h off to go see his dad.
The H's dad is really grumpy, the H actually told the dad all his plans to capture the h. He was really seriously courting her and lurving her up and the H's dad also says that he told the H the h was not his mistress. The dad wasn't mad about the engagement, the OW was too young for the H really and the dad just wants some grandkids, plus he likes the h. The dad then told the OW all of this on the flight over to England from the US, so that was how she was able to twist everything around.
The h realizes that she made a big mistake in believing the OW and she goes to the H to apologize. He doesn't look very forgiving, until the h loses her own temper and points out he was the one making tart accusations every hour on the hour and he never said he was wrong either, in fact he had to go get his dad's all clear before he shacked up with her . So really both of them are stupid.
The H agrees with that statement and he explains the drama with his father's second wife. So as he loves the h and she loves him and both of them love each other enough to forgive their idiotic behavior, the h claims that the H has convinced her marriage would be a good idear for the big HEA.
This one was okay, but neither of these two were going to win the sharpest pencil awards. Additionally the treacherous body betrayal trope was rather heavy handed here, I had a hard time believing that the h , who worked for YEARS to get the position she was offered by the H's dad, would so easily succumb to a man who obviously is against her.
Don't get me started on the name "Pet" either - I am just not going there and never want to go there in ANY HPlandia outing.
However the 26 yr old h is a looker and when the press sees the h and the H's father together, they leap the older man/trophy mistress conclusion. The H, who is engaged to the daughter of a long time family friend - mainly at his father's behest, is all set to loose the dogs of war on such a conniving, tarty, career climbing gold digging h - he is his dad's Troubleshooter and he knows how to deal with woman like her.
The h, who thinks she is smarter than she actually is, thinks it would be a great wind up to make the H believe that she is a tarty golddigger sleeping with the H's dad to advance her career, so she doesn't do much to correct his impression and in fact, actively encourages it.
The problem is that the H really loves his dad, and the dad has a history of getting involved with very rampant golddiggers after his mother died - this comes out much later in the story, but after the H's mum died, he dad fell in love with another ambitious young lady resembling the h. He married her, she then tried it on with all and sundry, spent zilliions and finally ruined her gravy train when she tried to seduce the H and another man right in his father's house at a party - or so the H said.
The upshot was that when the H rammed it down his dad's throat that his beloved young wife would poke anyone with a pike, the H's dad did divorce the woman and then fell into a severe depression that has lasted for years. (Now whether that was because his new wife betrayed him or because he suspected his son of manipulating things into their worst possible light, we don't know.)
What we do know is that right after the second wife fiasco, the H's father pushed him hard to marry the daughter of the friend - mainly cause he feels grandchildren are all that is left for him. The H felt badly about breaking up his father's second marriage, so he agreed to marry the woman.
But now the H's dad has an entirely new lease on life. The h did a big ad campaign for the one of the luxury stores when she worked at her old agency. Since she has no further room to advance at her old job, when the H's dad offered her the top ad exec slot for his new idea to handle the stores as a group instead of on an individual basis, the h is quick to accept.
The H, convinced something underhanded is going on, is determined to drive the h away. So he tries to buy her off, she hangs tough. Then he tries to undermine her and she still refuses to leave. So then he goes the seduction route. He starts in on the roofie kisses and gropey hands moves right away. He calls her "Pet" and the h just can't resist his fatal love mojo. He moves the new ad division's headquarters to Windsor. The h is offered a flat in the huge manorial estate complex that the H bought to hold all the offices needed for the ad division and as a place to live for himself in the main house.
Then the H goes about using the h's treacherous body lurve mojo response to seduce her. He claims he loves her, even as he is berating her for sleeping with his father. Then he gives the flat promised to the h to someone else, mainly to compel the h to shack up with him in the big house, so he can continue with lurve clubings and keep the h's hourly beratement schedule on target.
It is a little schizophrenic, on one hand the h and H are canoodling like love birds and on the other, the H is still convinced she is a grabby pay to play tart as the h claims she has a thing against marriage as her own parents were miserable. When the h tells him that she and his father had no intimate relationship, the H is very dismissive of her protest and claims it doesn't matter.
On top of all that maneuvering, he also manages to juggle his fiancee around too, until he finally claims he broke it off with her. That doesn't stop the fiancee from being very displeased that she lost her socially and monetarily lucrative dynastic marriage destiny and she gets the h off in a corner to let her know that the H is maneuvering all this NOT because he loves the h, as he claims.
Nope, the H wants the h gone and he believes she is still leading his dad on, so he plans to reveal the h's tartiness in shacking up with him in the big house and then when his dad is upset over the h's very real lack of professionalism and her engagement wrecker status and that he lost his young lover, the H plans to toss her out and fire her.
As this is HPlandia and the only person more believing of third hand troublemaker statements than the HP H who thinks he is infertile, is the gullible h. Who takes the OW's allegations as sworn truth when the h KNOWS the H's dad is not going to be offended that his son stole his lover and packs her bags and runs off to a friend's couch - the h gave up her London flat and is homeless. Apparently she did not get paid either to get a hotel room.
Then the H's dad has a heart incident and ends up in hospital. He is asking for the h and the H thinks that the h left him for another man, so he is suitably mean and nasty when he drags the h off to go see his dad.
The H's dad is really grumpy, the H actually told the dad all his plans to capture the h. He was really seriously courting her and lurving her up and the H's dad also says that he told the H the h was not his mistress. The dad wasn't mad about the engagement, the OW was too young for the H really and the dad just wants some grandkids, plus he likes the h. The dad then told the OW all of this on the flight over to England from the US, so that was how she was able to twist everything around.
The h realizes that she made a big mistake in believing the OW and she goes to the H to apologize. He doesn't look very forgiving, until the h loses her own temper and points out he was the one making tart accusations every hour on the hour and he never said he was wrong either, in fact he had to go get his dad's all clear before he shacked up with her . So really both of them are stupid.
The H agrees with that statement and he explains the drama with his father's second wife. So as he loves the h and she loves him and both of them love each other enough to forgive their idiotic behavior, the h claims that the H has convinced her marriage would be a good idear for the big HEA.
This one was okay, but neither of these two were going to win the sharpest pencil awards. Additionally the treacherous body betrayal trope was rather heavy handed here, I had a hard time believing that the h , who worked for YEARS to get the position she was offered by the H's dad, would so easily succumb to a man who obviously is against her.
Don't get me started on the name "Pet" either - I am just not going there and never want to go there in ANY HPlandia outing.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 19, 2024
A little hot scenario with some tumultous secrets never hurts😁everything ends well anyway.
December 16, 2019
No terms for a truce
Wealthy businessman Tolly Devenko had made Imogen an offer she couldn't refuse--a high-level job with his prestigious chain of department stores. The gossip-hungry press quickly jumped to the wrong conclusions about their relationship. But she was unprepared for the stinging words from Tolly's son, Ales.
He'd made up his mind that she had a less than golden character and was determined to put himself between her and his father at every opportunity. Whether she was burning with rage or desire, Imogen realized she was at war--with both Alex Devenko... and her hear
Wealthy businessman Tolly Devenko had made Imogen an offer she couldn't refuse--a high-level job with his prestigious chain of department stores. The gossip-hungry press quickly jumped to the wrong conclusions about their relationship. But she was unprepared for the stinging words from Tolly's son, Ales.
He'd made up his mind that she had a less than golden character and was determined to put himself between her and his father at every opportunity. Whether she was burning with rage or desire, Imogen realized she was at war--with both Alex Devenko... and her hear
August 8, 2020
Likeable people except for the man, who assumes woman is trashy golddigger aiming at his 69-year-old brilliant businessman father (which he sees as a bad thing) and acts accordingly. The woman could have saved the whole drama by explaining from the very beginning that she was a platonic business associate of his father's, especially since dude was busin ess associate of father's as well, not some trampy predator, but she gets stubborn, he stays abusively accusatory, and it gets yuck. I love the idea of these old books much more than the actual sexism and assaultive aspects--I used to sell them way back when.
August 3, 2025
They started off on the wrong page with him believing she is a gold-digger trying to seduce his old father (which isn’t that far-fetched in my opinion from the way she and his father behaved).
But after a while he is besotted and he tells and shows her again and again that he loves her. So I don’t understand how she could doubt his love for her based on the OW’s story.
There were too many pages dedicated on the work environment, so it became a bit boring.
But after a while he is besotted and he tells and shows her again and again that he loves her. So I don’t understand how she could doubt his love for her based on the OW’s story.
There were too many pages dedicated on the work environment, so it became a bit boring.
January 20, 2021
"Αντίπαλοι στον έρωτα" - Diana Hamilton, Σειρά Χρυσά, νούμερο 605, έτος έκδοσης στην Ελλάδα: 1992
"Όσοι έκαναν το λάθος στο παρελθόν να με υποτιμήσουν, όπως εσύ τώρα, το μετάνιωσαν πικρά..."
Η Ίμοτζεν είχε καταλάβει πόσο επικίνδυνος άνθρωπος ήταν ο Άλεξ και δεν ήθελε να τον έχει εχθρό της.
Ωστόσο δεν έφταιγε εκείνη που αυτός είχε παρεξηγήσει τη σχέση της με τον πατέρα του, το μεγαλοεπιχειρηματία Τόλι Ντεβένκο. Είχε όμως έναν ακόμη λόγο να μην τον θέλει αντίπαλό της. Αυτός ο δυναμικός άντρας με τα χρυσαφένια μάτια και τη βελούδινη φωνή, κυριολεκτικά τη συνάρπαζε. Αλλά, για να τα βγάλει πέρα μαζί του, θα έπρεπε να χρησιμοποιήσει όλη την εξυπνάδα και τη γυναικεία επινοητικότητά της...
ΠΟΛΥ ΩΡΑΙΑ ΙΣΤΟΡΙΑ!!!!!
"Όσοι έκαναν το λάθος στο παρελθόν να με υποτιμήσουν, όπως εσύ τώρα, το μετάνιωσαν πικρά..."
Η Ίμοτζεν είχε καταλάβει πόσο επικίνδυνος άνθρωπος ήταν ο Άλεξ και δεν ήθελε να τον έχει εχθρό της.
Ωστόσο δεν έφταιγε εκείνη που αυτός είχε παρεξηγήσει τη σχέση της με τον πατέρα του, το μεγαλοεπιχειρηματία Τόλι Ντεβένκο. Είχε όμως έναν ακόμη λόγο να μην τον θέλει αντίπαλό της. Αυτός ο δυναμικός άντρας με τα χρυσαφένια μάτια και τη βελούδινη φωνή, κυριολεκτικά τη συνάρπαζε. Αλλά, για να τα βγάλει πέρα μαζί του, θα έπρεπε να χρησιμοποιήσει όλη την εξυπνάδα και τη γυναικεία επινοητικότητά της...
ΠΟΛΥ ΩΡΑΙΑ ΙΣΤΟΡΙΑ!!!!!
October 2, 2025
I was liking this until Imogen became a total doormat due to horny. Alex barely even redeemed himself before the last two pages. “Yeah I was a total dick to you but eh I’m not now let’s fuck” “yeah okay”
Girl have some standards
Girl have some standards
Want to Read
July 22, 2012Didn't really get around to it past the first pages, so am changing it to TBR for some future date.
June 19, 2015
I really did not like this book too much. Never could find anything i liked about hero the He called the Heroine horrible names even after he claimed ti love her Disappointed in this one.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews