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Cord & Stacy #3
Fiesta San Antonio
Colter Langston's daughter Missy needed a mother, and Deirdre wouldn't do. She was too sexy to play housewife. That's why sweet, young Natalie Crane was so perfect. And when they were married, Colter decided he had to be honest with her about his it was cold. Natalie didn't know what to do--could she make him love her? Or would Deirdre lure him back into her arms?
251 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1977
About the author
Janet Dailey
400 books1,862 followersJanet Anne Haradon Dailey was an American author of numerous romance novels as Janet Dailey (her married name). Her novels have been translated into nineteen languages and have sold over 300 million copies worldwide.
Born in 1944 in Storm Lake, Iowa, she attended secretarial school in Omaha, Nebraska before meeting her husband, Bill. Bill and Janet worked together in construction and land development until they "retired" to travel throughout the United States, inspiring Janet to write the Americana series of romances, where she set a novel in every state of the Union. In 1974, Janet Dailey was the first American author to write for Harlequin. Her first novel was NO QUARTER ASKED.
She had since gone on to write approximately 90 novels, 21 of which have appeared on the New York Times Bestseller List. She won many awards and accolades for her work, appearing widely on Radio and Television. Today, there are over three hundred million Janet Dailey books in print in 19 different languages, making her one of the most popular novelists in the world.
Janet Dailey passed away peacefully in her home in Branson on Saturday, December 14, 2013. She was 69.
Born in 1944 in Storm Lake, Iowa, she attended secretarial school in Omaha, Nebraska before meeting her husband, Bill. Bill and Janet worked together in construction and land development until they "retired" to travel throughout the United States, inspiring Janet to write the Americana series of romances, where she set a novel in every state of the Union. In 1974, Janet Dailey was the first American author to write for Harlequin. Her first novel was NO QUARTER ASKED.
She had since gone on to write approximately 90 novels, 21 of which have appeared on the New York Times Bestseller List. She won many awards and accolades for her work, appearing widely on Radio and Television. Today, there are over three hundred million Janet Dailey books in print in 19 different languages, making her one of the most popular novelists in the world.
Janet Dailey passed away peacefully in her home in Branson on Saturday, December 14, 2013. She was 69.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews
May 16, 2022
One of the coldest heroes ever.
He marries the heroine because she's poor and she needs a job and he needs a woman to take care of his orphaned daughter.
We know he had a hard childhood and his wife never loved him, only married him for money.
He doesn't seem to care for anyone, not even his daughter.
The heroine has her lil nephew to take care of, and she accepts.
She's tired and destitute.
When she arrives at the hero's ranch she thinks she's gone to heaven. Yes, she has to take care of the children and of the house, but she's got plenty of everything.
Sadly there's also an evil ow, a neighbour who wants the hero, maybe they had an affair before he married the heroine but it's not explained.
The heroine meets also the foreman, that is kind, warm and gentle.
She thinks that if she had met him before she met the hero she would have married him instead.
Thank god there's no love at first sight and doormat heroine here, because he really doesn't deserve it.
The hero is also attracted to her and he wants a real marriage, so we have some forced seduction bordering on rape, that was something you could expect in a victorian romance where the woman didn't enjoy sex and was humiliated by the act.
Of course the hero is not remorseful and then there are hints that after the first time the heroine enjoys sex with him even if he's cold and unfeeling during the day.
OW is always around being spiteful and hateful to the heroine, and the hero doesn't do nothing to stop her, which was cruel, but thank god there's om who's making her life a lil bit happier, and the hero who's starting to fume when he understand that there might be feeling between the heroine and om.
There's a moment where the hero shows he can have feelings, that is when he saves his bf from a plane accident.
The heroine starts falling in love with him, there's much misunderstanding because the hero thinks she loves om, while she's in love with him instead and eventually all is well.
The hero is the first to declare his love, and it was fair because he put her through hell.
I know I shouldn't but I liked it.
So many triggers.
The hero is one of the coldest and unfeeling brute in hp history.
There's forced seduction.
He's verbally abusive and always tells her he'll never love her.
He really make her suffer.
So why did I like it?
Because it was well written, because the heroine really had some feelings for om, because she wasn't a complete doormat even if the book seems to be written 100 years ago. Because you can understand that in his whole life nobody loved him and he was always alone, so he closed himself completely. Almost. Not quite.
I don't know why, but surely I'll read other books from this authors, so I'll understand why I liked her style.
He marries the heroine because she's poor and she needs a job and he needs a woman to take care of his orphaned daughter.
We know he had a hard childhood and his wife never loved him, only married him for money.
He doesn't seem to care for anyone, not even his daughter.
The heroine has her lil nephew to take care of, and she accepts.
She's tired and destitute.
When she arrives at the hero's ranch she thinks she's gone to heaven. Yes, she has to take care of the children and of the house, but she's got plenty of everything.
Sadly there's also an evil ow, a neighbour who wants the hero, maybe they had an affair before he married the heroine but it's not explained.
The heroine meets also the foreman, that is kind, warm and gentle.
She thinks that if she had met him before she met the hero she would have married him instead.
Thank god there's no love at first sight and doormat heroine here, because he really doesn't deserve it.
The hero is also attracted to her and he wants a real marriage, so we have some forced seduction bordering on rape, that was something you could expect in a victorian romance where the woman didn't enjoy sex and was humiliated by the act.
Of course the hero is not remorseful and then there are hints that after the first time the heroine enjoys sex with him even if he's cold and unfeeling during the day.
OW is always around being spiteful and hateful to the heroine, and the hero doesn't do nothing to stop her, which was cruel, but thank god there's om who's making her life a lil bit happier, and the hero who's starting to fume when he understand that there might be feeling between the heroine and om.
There's a moment where the hero shows he can have feelings, that is when he saves his bf from a plane accident.
The heroine starts falling in love with him, there's much misunderstanding because the hero thinks she loves om, while she's in love with him instead and eventually all is well.
The hero is the first to declare his love, and it was fair because he put her through hell.
I know I shouldn't but I liked it.
So many triggers.
The hero is one of the coldest and unfeeling brute in hp history.
There's forced seduction.
He's verbally abusive and always tells her he'll never love her.
He really make her suffer.
So why did I like it?
Because it was well written, because the heroine really had some feelings for om, because she wasn't a complete doormat even if the book seems to be written 100 years ago. Because you can understand that in his whole life nobody loved him and he was always alone, so he closed himself completely. Almost. Not quite.
I don't know why, but surely I'll read other books from this authors, so I'll understand why I liked her style.
April 13, 2019
I love this book. I love the whole Cord and Tracy related books even with Travis and Raine! I have a hard copy of their stories that I got many many years ago. I have probably read these at least twenty times each. This was written the year I graduated high school and was dating my husband! Janet Dailey was another favorite of my Mother's and we read them all together. Great times. s
The Hero was such a jerk and how She fell in love with him is beyond me. I loved it though. Still do. And I will continue to re-read it whenever I can. Going to re-read For Bitter or Worst now. Another tough one to read but still an old friend!!
The Hero was such a jerk and how She fell in love with him is beyond me. I loved it though. Still do. And I will continue to re-read it whenever I can. Going to re-read For Bitter or Worst now. Another tough one to read but still an old friend!!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 9, 2019
Needed to overlook a couple of annoyances but it had two of my favourite tropes: MOC and heroine self-sacrificingly taking care of her dead sibling’s child so it kind of worked for me.
H is a widower with an older, somewhat shy and withdrawn daughter of about 11. They’re at the Fiesta in San Antonio, Texas when they encounter a precocious little boy of six who doesn’t even know he’s lost. He is the nephew of the h, who is frantically looking for him.
There is instant antagonism between the adults when they meet. And contrastingly, an instant friendship between the children. They find themselves reluctantly thrown together during the week-long celebration.
The h is struggling to make ends meet. To her shock, before they part for good, the H suggests an MOC. He needs someone to take care of home at his ranch and since their kids get along so well, he convinces her that it’s a win-win situation as she gets the financial security and stability she desperately needs for her nephew.
Now this H is not just cold, his emotions are in deep freeze and he is a ruthless, unfeeling dickhead sometimes, a brooder, overbearing and non-communicative who later becomes very possessive of the h. So he could be a problem for some readers. Or a major turn-on depending how you swing. His indifference and cynicism extends even a little to his child though he is never cruel and grows up as a father by the end.
It is very much a novel of its time (1977) meaning that she’s pretty much the maid, nanny, cook combo type of h but I like that Dailey gave her some spirit and backbone like when she firmly puts her foot down about the OW, even if their marriage isn’t supposed to be a love-based one.
His wife has been dead for 10 years, but it wasn’t a great marriage so no love lost. Dailey gave her just the right amount of page time. Kids were also not just plot devices though I do wish the daughter was fleshed out more. There were lots of cold war and sparring between H and h, but I like that it didn’t happen in front of the kids and they were good as step-parents to the other child.
There’s a dramatic plane crash, an OM worth his salt and the OW explained away nicely so I wasn’t irritated or bored. Sex scenes were fade to black which eased the sting of the forced seduction though I think she did him more damage when she fought back. This was no docile h!
It wasn’t amazing but not bad for a vintage romance, it came together at the end. I don’t have fond memories of Janet Dailey when I read her in my teens so I was surprised I kind of really liked this one.
H is a widower with an older, somewhat shy and withdrawn daughter of about 11. They’re at the Fiesta in San Antonio, Texas when they encounter a precocious little boy of six who doesn’t even know he’s lost. He is the nephew of the h, who is frantically looking for him.
There is instant antagonism between the adults when they meet. And contrastingly, an instant friendship between the children. They find themselves reluctantly thrown together during the week-long celebration.
The h is struggling to make ends meet. To her shock, before they part for good, the H suggests an MOC. He needs someone to take care of home at his ranch and since their kids get along so well, he convinces her that it’s a win-win situation as she gets the financial security and stability she desperately needs for her nephew.
Now this H is not just cold, his emotions are in deep freeze and he is a ruthless, unfeeling dickhead sometimes, a brooder, overbearing and non-communicative who later becomes very possessive of the h. So he could be a problem for some readers. Or a major turn-on depending how you swing. His indifference and cynicism extends even a little to his child though he is never cruel and grows up as a father by the end.
It is very much a novel of its time (1977) meaning that she’s pretty much the maid, nanny, cook combo type of h but I like that Dailey gave her some spirit and backbone like when she firmly puts her foot down about the OW, even if their marriage isn’t supposed to be a love-based one.
His wife has been dead for 10 years, but it wasn’t a great marriage so no love lost. Dailey gave her just the right amount of page time. Kids were also not just plot devices though I do wish the daughter was fleshed out more. There were lots of cold war and sparring between H and h, but I like that it didn’t happen in front of the kids and they were good as step-parents to the other child.
There’s a dramatic plane crash, an OM worth his salt and the OW explained away nicely so I wasn’t irritated or bored. Sex scenes were fade to black which eased the sting of the forced seduction though I think she did him more damage when she fought back. This was no docile h!
It wasn’t amazing but not bad for a vintage romance, it came together at the end. I don’t have fond memories of Janet Dailey when I read her in my teens so I was surprised I kind of really liked this one.
November 26, 2013
So just reread this book again. This guy is the epitome of Gamma hero. Whatever is beyond an asshaty controlling jerk is what this guy is. Why do I like this thing? Still I continue to reread it. ;-)
Originally published in 1977, the hero wears leisure suits. You have to just overlook that part. ;-) He is a cold heartless bastard who only comes to realize he loves the heroine late in the book. He does basically rape the heroine on their wedding night when she refuses him. But I just consider the time it was written and read in with the same grain of salt I do all HPs. The same as I do the modern Italian billionaire stories. But if rape scenes offend you, you might not like it. He loves the heroine at the end and is willing to give her up if that will make her happy. He is just a man who has always been a loner and never knew how to love but loving the heroine breaks him out of that shell. She is a naive young girl but she does typically stand up for herself. I have read it many times but I've just reread it for the first time in probably 20 years and I was just as drawn in and riveted as when I read it in 1977.
Originally published in 1977, the hero wears leisure suits. You have to just overlook that part. ;-) He is a cold heartless bastard who only comes to realize he loves the heroine late in the book. He does basically rape the heroine on their wedding night when she refuses him. But I just consider the time it was written and read in with the same grain of salt I do all HPs. The same as I do the modern Italian billionaire stories. But if rape scenes offend you, you might not like it. He loves the heroine at the end and is willing to give her up if that will make her happy. He is just a man who has always been a loner and never knew how to love but loving the heroine breaks him out of that shell. She is a naive young girl but she does typically stand up for herself. I have read it many times but I've just reread it for the first time in probably 20 years and I was just as drawn in and riveted as when I read it in 1977.
November 20, 2019
"Fiesta San Antonio" is the story of Natalie and Colter.
Wow. Definitely has one of the cruelest, unfeeling anti-heroes I've read this year.
Anyways, the book begins with our hero standing at a parade with his daughter, feeling bored and burdened by responsibility of a single parent (which he takes just so that he does not annoy his housekeeper, he barely feels affection for his child). His daughter Missy then spots a lost young boy Ricky. Turns out, he has a young aunt who soon finds him. And that's how our main foursome meet.
The heroine is a aunt, struggling to provide a good life for her orphaned nephew. Chance encounters lead her to meet the hero and his daughter again, until he propositions her with a marriage of convenience. The catch- she would be his housekeeper and take care of the kids- because his daughter is attached to her nephew, and wants someone to shower her love on (as the hero is an unfeeling robot).
Anyways, they have a sterile wedding, after which the hero kisses OW and then mocks the heroine. He then proceeds to be a jealous of OM, repeatedly chastises and humiliates the heroine, and rapes her on the wedding night (no way of softening the blow, sorry). Their future sexual encounters are also having dubious consent. Also, OM is kind and humane to the heroine, which results in an innocent kiss.
Somehow, despite all the mental battering, the desperate heroine falls in "love" with her abuser..I mean the hero. There is drama because Mr-I-dont-feel-anything throws back everything on her face, but since this is a romance novel, they have a delusional HEA.
I genuinely felt bad for Missy for having Colter as her dad. But I did appreciate the love the heroine had for Ricky, and was waiting for scenes where she could lavish it on Missy too.
Also, the hero had a simmering strain of violence in him. I can well imagine him to be capable of abuse. But I was shocked when the heroine scalded him with hot coffee on his face, LOL. I mean not LOL.
Alas. My sanity has a tumor now.
SWE
1.5/5
Wow. Definitely has one of the cruelest, unfeeling anti-heroes I've read this year.
Anyways, the book begins with our hero standing at a parade with his daughter, feeling bored and burdened by responsibility of a single parent (which he takes just so that he does not annoy his housekeeper, he barely feels affection for his child). His daughter Missy then spots a lost young boy Ricky. Turns out, he has a young aunt who soon finds him. And that's how our main foursome meet.
The heroine is a aunt, struggling to provide a good life for her orphaned nephew. Chance encounters lead her to meet the hero and his daughter again, until he propositions her with a marriage of convenience. The catch- she would be his housekeeper and take care of the kids- because his daughter is attached to her nephew, and wants someone to shower her love on (as the hero is an unfeeling robot).
Anyways, they have a sterile wedding, after which the hero kisses OW and then mocks the heroine. He then proceeds to be a jealous of OM, repeatedly chastises and humiliates the heroine, and rapes her on the wedding night (no way of softening the blow, sorry). Their future sexual encounters are also having dubious consent. Also, OM is kind and humane to the heroine, which results in an innocent kiss.
Somehow, despite all the mental battering, the desperate heroine falls in "love" with her abuser..I mean the hero. There is drama because Mr-I-dont-feel-anything throws back everything on her face, but since this is a romance novel, they have a delusional HEA.
I genuinely felt bad for Missy for having Colter as her dad. But I did appreciate the love the heroine had for Ricky, and was waiting for scenes where she could lavish it on Missy too.
Also, the hero had a simmering strain of violence in him. I can well imagine him to be capable of abuse. But I was shocked when the heroine scalded him with hot coffee on his face, LOL. I mean not LOL.
Alas. My sanity has a tumor now.
SWE
1.5/5
November 25, 2015
Rape. Against her will, against her desires, rape. Rape is not the foundation for romance, ever.
edited to add:
I actually have a soft spot for vintage Harlequin romances, and I'm accustomed to overlooking things like TSTL heroines, she-said-no-because-she's-a-nice-girl-but-she's-actually-into-it, etc.
In this case, he strong-armed her into a marriage of convenience, then raped her. She said no; she meant no; she physically tried to fight him off, and he raped her. I stopped reading when she was curled up, crying, afterwards. There it's no way I can finish a "romance" between a rapist and his victim.
edited to add:
I actually have a soft spot for vintage Harlequin romances, and I'm accustomed to overlooking things like TSTL heroines, she-said-no-because-she's-a-nice-girl-but-she's-actually-into-it, etc.
In this case, he strong-armed her into a marriage of convenience, then raped her. She said no; she meant no; she physically tried to fight him off, and he raped her. I stopped reading when she was curled up, crying, afterwards. There it's no way I can finish a "romance" between a rapist and his victim.
August 31, 2022
“After the way I’ve treated you, I have no right to your love,” he muttered in self-disgust. “At this moment you should be hating me.”
Alas, as a true HP h was in love with the deep freezer H!
Alas, as a true HP h was in love with the deep freezer H!
September 11, 2015
Really hard to believe she fell in love with such a hateful human being. The way he was described in the book sound like he was a sociopath.
August 13, 2013
It had a slow start but I liked the ending even though I'm not into love triangles. It was nice to see a heroine groveling for a change!
January 6, 2015
The hero in this one was pretty bad -- not for how he treated the heroine (pretty much par for the course for these books), but for how he treated and thought of his poor daughter. I expect an HP hero to be a perfect, upstanding, ethical person who only treats the heroine like crap, but is great with everyone else. Overall though, definitely high emotional tension and angst in this one, making it a compelling read. There is a sort-of rape their first night, where they definitely physically fight each other, but the book implies that once he actually starts making love to her she enjoys it, so it's one of those iffy ones.
I didn't like getting the backstory of the Travis character, the hero in A Land Called Deseret. I've read that one, and I think I already found the HEA only marginally convincing. The fact that Travis was previously in love with the heroine in this book, who is clearly a much better person than LaRaine, makes the believeability of the HEA in Land Called Deseret even less.
On reread: Wow, this hero is pretty awful. He just seems like a bad person. Still somehow 4 stars because I did want their happily ever after.
I didn't like getting the backstory of the Travis character, the hero in A Land Called Deseret. I've read that one, and I think I already found the HEA only marginally convincing. The fact that Travis was previously in love with the heroine in this book, who is clearly a much better person than LaRaine, makes the believeability of the HEA in Land Called Deseret even less.
On reread: Wow, this hero is pretty awful. He just seems like a bad person. Still somehow 4 stars because I did want their happily ever after.
August 8, 2025
Every time I read this I am shocked anew about how vile the hero (30s) is. He is the coldest, most UNPLEASANT male lead I have ever encountered. He is a widower, had never loved his wife, father, anyone - even his daughter (he’s not sure if she is 10 or 11). He makes out with the OW the day after he marries the heroine (21) in front of the heroine and the man who falls for the heroine. He is never kind, and only gets his eye opened when Cord (from No Quarter Asked) almost dies. The jealousy he feels when his ranch manager kisses the heroine is the only sign he has fallen in love. I did not believe it and although she was largely bitch slapped by falling for him (after he pretty much raped her), I did admire her throwing hot coffee in his face and would have preferred the story to end there.
September 5, 2014
Rating: 2.5/5
Someone should've shot Colter in the balls aeons ago.
Someone should've shot Colter in the balls aeons ago.
August 10, 2018
ppfff !!!! he humiliated her in every possible way.. then at the very last two lines he admitted that he love her.. nonsense!
August 24, 2012
This was my very first romance I ever read ....and I still love it today!
December 18, 2017
Old Skool in all the worst ways. Emotionally distant, rape-y "hero"? Door mat "heroine"? Actual rape? Check, check, check. Nope, nope, nope.
I mean, it was published in the 70's so it is actually Old Skool, but still, pretty gross.
I mean, it was published in the 70's so it is actually Old Skool, but still, pretty gross.
September 30, 2020
I’m not sure this was a 3. The hero was cruel, but not deliciously so. Basically, he is bankrupt in the emotions department, not even expressing love for his lonely daughter. Even his aunt has little use for him...I kept hoping I was going to get that Mr. Rochester feeling in the pit of my stomach but it never happened. Basically, he married a very young woman who is destitute and the guardian of her nephew. Since our hero’s aunt no longer wants to keep house for this unfeeling fish, he decides to propose marriage to our h figuring she can be a mother to his daughter, maid, and sex toy. Our h barely holding on and destined to be homeless figures there are worst things in life then being tied to this handsome, much older but financially stable masochist. I’m not sure how she found herself in love with him, because except for buying her a hat there wasn’t a lot there. Of course, before the end of the book, we do see some emotion and there is an ow which helps set up some of the angst. However his emotional change seemed to be quick and the book lacked the emotional Jane Eyre angst that was needed to make it a really good read. Although I am not big on plot moppets, I really wanted there to be more moments between our h and the little girl. This was skimmed over and never developed. On a positive note, I was introduced to the couple from book 1 in this series(No Quarter Asked), so I read their story after this and liked it better. They are friends with our hero although he was not in their book(I’m sure he was too busy being distant and unattached but not in a sexy way). We are also introduced to Travis, the om, who will be in the next two books(which I have yet to read , and plan on doing so in a few minutes). Although, this is not a hearty recommendation, I’m still glad I read it as it gave me a glimpse into the HEA of the couple in the first book which was lacking an epilogue. It also sets up future stories with Travis who I thought was a good guy!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 8, 2017
مترجمة للعربية بعنوان:
مـــــــــــــــــغــــــــــــرور(22)
الملخص
وانت لاتريد زوجة..بل عبدة.!
-صحيح لكني احتاج الى عقد زواج،فهو قانوني،
شهقت نيكول عندما سمعته ومع ذلك فقد وافقت على الزواج من رجل تحول قلبه الى حجر ونسيت شفتاه الأبتسام،
فقد كان البديل لها هو الجوع والتشرد مع ابن شقيقتها اليتيم ظنت نيكول ان كل ماهو مطلوب منها في هذا الزواج هو العناية بأبنته وتدبير منزله لكنها كانت مخطئة.
فاذا كان مارك رجلا خاليا من المشاعر فهذا لايعني انه يملك افكار اخرى،،،
مـــــــــــــــــغــــــــــــرور(22)
الملخص
وانت لاتريد زوجة..بل عبدة.!
-صحيح لكني احتاج الى عقد زواج،فهو قانوني،
شهقت نيكول عندما سمعته ومع ذلك فقد وافقت على الزواج من رجل تحول قلبه الى حجر ونسيت شفتاه الأبتسام،
فقد كان البديل لها هو الجوع والتشرد مع ابن شقيقتها اليتيم ظنت نيكول ان كل ماهو مطلوب منها في هذا الزواج هو العناية بأبنته وتدبير منزله لكنها كانت مخطئة.
فاذا كان مارك رجلا خاليا من المشاعر فهذا لايعني انه يملك افكار اخرى،،،
June 1, 2017
3.5 stars
I like the angst in this book. But I was disappointed by the ending as it was too abrupt. I thought the hero should be the one grovelling, not the heroine, for he was really mean to her. Though, in fairness to him, I really felt he had feelings for her.
I like the angst in this book. But I was disappointed by the ending as it was too abrupt. I thought the hero should be the one grovelling, not the heroine, for he was really mean to her. Though, in fairness to him, I really felt he had feelings for her.
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April 29, 2022Fiesta San Antonio, Book 3 of the Cord & Stacy series, was about Colter Langston, a widower and sole owner of the Langston Ranch, and Natalie Crane, a young woman who was down on her luck trying to raise her nephew.
Informed by his Aunt Flo that she would no longer allow him to foist the responsibility of his daughter onto her and that she would be moving into the cottage his father had willed to her in a month's time, Colter realized that he would have to provide the girl with a mother even though he did not want to marry. He also realized that his current lover only tolerated his daughter and would not make for a good mother. Colter, who was a cold, unfeeling man who couldn't even remember his own daughter's age (was she 10 or 11?), did not want to remarry but felt the pressure to do so for his daughter's sake.
Natalie, who had lost her brother and his wife three years earlier when she was just 18 years old, had become sole guardian to her nephew, who was 3 years old when both of his parents had died. The struggle to raise her nephew didn't get any easier as the years passed, and she was growing weary by the time he had turned six.
While attending the Fiesta parade in San Antonio, Ricky got separated from Natalie, only to turn up next to where Colter was standing with his daughter, Missy (short for Melissa), which is where Natalie found him. Colter wasn't pleasant to see her, although his daughter was. After the parade, she was carrying a sleeping Ricky on the walk home when Colter offered her a ride...at the behest of Missy.
After only two short interactions, he showed up at her home and offered her a deal...marry him and become Missy's stepmother and his housekeeper in exchange for a home for her and Ricky. She had no choice but to say yes, for she was without a permanent job and with little means to take care of the two of them. She was under the impression that it would be a marriage in name only. How wrong she was!
To say Colter was a vicious a$$h*le would have put it lightly. He was a cold-hearted S.O.B., which also was putting it mildly. First, he all but raped her the second night of their marriage, knowing she was repeatedly saying no. Then the way he treated not only Natalie but Ricky and Missy too was atrocious. He was always cold, mocking, and hateful. He also had no problem flaunting his mistress in front of Natalie, kissing the woman on their first day of being married, and even to the point of allowing the b*tch to come and go from his house whenever she wanted to, all the while the wh*re would denigrate Natalie at every opportunity. Both Colter and Dierdre loved to constantly humiliate Natalie to the point that they would literally laugh in her face.
There was one thing Colter got right, “After the way I’ve treated you, I have no right to your love,” he muttered in self-disgust. “At this moment you should be hating me.” He didn't deserve her love...and she should have hated him.
This was a horrible book. While there was too much angst and drama, there was by far too much viciousness directed at a woman who had never done the man any harm. There really wasn't any chemistry between Colter and Natalie, so I don't understand how they could have fallen in love. With him repeatedly forcing her to have sex during which she would fight him to stop...for it most certainly couldn't be called "making love"...there really wasn't a romantic relationship between these two. The only time they were together, Colter was always cruel to her, and she could only ever respond with vitriol back at him, for what other choice did she have?
Natalie was a very strong character, one who had to grow up faster than she should have had to, had to be a mother to her nephew, then three years later a mother to Missy and a wife to one of the cruelest and vile men any author could create. This definitely did not deserve a five-star rating...and did not receive such from this reader.
Informed by his Aunt Flo that she would no longer allow him to foist the responsibility of his daughter onto her and that she would be moving into the cottage his father had willed to her in a month's time, Colter realized that he would have to provide the girl with a mother even though he did not want to marry. He also realized that his current lover only tolerated his daughter and would not make for a good mother. Colter, who was a cold, unfeeling man who couldn't even remember his own daughter's age (was she 10 or 11?), did not want to remarry but felt the pressure to do so for his daughter's sake.
Natalie, who had lost her brother and his wife three years earlier when she was just 18 years old, had become sole guardian to her nephew, who was 3 years old when both of his parents had died. The struggle to raise her nephew didn't get any easier as the years passed, and she was growing weary by the time he had turned six.
While attending the Fiesta parade in San Antonio, Ricky got separated from Natalie, only to turn up next to where Colter was standing with his daughter, Missy (short for Melissa), which is where Natalie found him. Colter wasn't pleasant to see her, although his daughter was. After the parade, she was carrying a sleeping Ricky on the walk home when Colter offered her a ride...at the behest of Missy.
After only two short interactions, he showed up at her home and offered her a deal...marry him and become Missy's stepmother and his housekeeper in exchange for a home for her and Ricky. She had no choice but to say yes, for she was without a permanent job and with little means to take care of the two of them. She was under the impression that it would be a marriage in name only. How wrong she was!
To say Colter was a vicious a$$h*le would have put it lightly. He was a cold-hearted S.O.B., which also was putting it mildly. First, he all but raped her the second night of their marriage, knowing she was repeatedly saying no. Then the way he treated not only Natalie but Ricky and Missy too was atrocious. He was always cold, mocking, and hateful. He also had no problem flaunting his mistress in front of Natalie, kissing the woman on their first day of being married, and even to the point of allowing the b*tch to come and go from his house whenever she wanted to, all the while the wh*re would denigrate Natalie at every opportunity. Both Colter and Dierdre loved to constantly humiliate Natalie to the point that they would literally laugh in her face.
There was one thing Colter got right, “After the way I’ve treated you, I have no right to your love,” he muttered in self-disgust. “At this moment you should be hating me.” He didn't deserve her love...and she should have hated him.
This was a horrible book. While there was too much angst and drama, there was by far too much viciousness directed at a woman who had never done the man any harm. There really wasn't any chemistry between Colter and Natalie, so I don't understand how they could have fallen in love. With him repeatedly forcing her to have sex during which she would fight him to stop...for it most certainly couldn't be called "making love"...there really wasn't a romantic relationship between these two. The only time they were together, Colter was always cruel to her, and she could only ever respond with vitriol back at him, for what other choice did she have?
Natalie was a very strong character, one who had to grow up faster than she should have had to, had to be a mother to her nephew, then three years later a mother to Missy and a wife to one of the cruelest and vile men any author could create. This definitely did not deserve a five-star rating...and did not receive such from this reader.
February 16, 2025
The story is that the h is parenting her young nephew after the death of his parents. She is struggling hard to make ends meet and keep a roof over their heads. She meets the H at Fiesta San Antonio, a city street celebration. Before she knows it, they are entering a marriage of convenience. She will be his housekeeper, cook and care for his young daughter. In return, she'll have a home for her nephew and the security of knowing where their next meal is coming from. But the H is an extremely cold and unfeeling man and he's got plans for their marriage that she discovers too late.
Fiesta San Antonio is a weird book and a highly unsettling one. It is more of a horror novel than a romance. I read it for the first time a few years ago. It was published in 1977 or thereabouts and I think if I had read it as a teenager, as I did many other questionable HP titles, I might have had a different reaction to it. What I mean is, I might have decided the H learned how to love and that's how it is supposed to be. But while the author goes to some lengths to make the reader think this is exactly what happens- the H has been locked down tight emotionally and learns to love- well, I'm not so sure. I felt extremely uncomfortable reading this book. He admits he has zero feelings for his daughter, or any other emotions for that matter. He rapes the h. He has no remorse for anything during most of the book. To be honest, he is a genuinely scary dude and (as written) a dangerous one. Going by how he is written, I have to wonder, does he learn to love or at least learn to unlock the capacity to love? Or does he just learn how to fake those emotions? The author is describing a psychopath, not a man whose upbringing made him become disconnected from humanity.
Fiesta San Antonio is a weird book and a highly unsettling one. It is more of a horror novel than a romance. I read it for the first time a few years ago. It was published in 1977 or thereabouts and I think if I had read it as a teenager, as I did many other questionable HP titles, I might have had a different reaction to it. What I mean is, I might have decided the H learned how to love and that's how it is supposed to be. But while the author goes to some lengths to make the reader think this is exactly what happens- the H has been locked down tight emotionally and learns to love- well, I'm not so sure. I felt extremely uncomfortable reading this book. He admits he has zero feelings for his daughter, or any other emotions for that matter. He rapes the h. He has no remorse for anything during most of the book. To be honest, he is a genuinely scary dude and (as written) a dangerous one. Going by how he is written, I have to wonder, does he learn to love or at least learn to unlock the capacity to love? Or does he just learn how to fake those emotions? The author is describing a psychopath, not a man whose upbringing made him become disconnected from humanity.
August 9, 2025
Yes, another book that I love to hate. This book has always caused me a lot of mixed feelings. He is difficult, he enters a MOC because she is financially exhausted, unable to find a new job (there is an economic crisis in the country) and with her nephew to raise (she was very afraid that he would go to a shelter). H, who borders on sociopathy, was one of the guys in my entire history as a HP reader who gave me the most emotions, from hatred to pity (for me, JD created him based on some cognitive deficiency, not just "cruelty"). And I believed in the end, in H's tortured love. H was never a doormat, but she was extremely correct, believing that she should pay for everything with her domestic work. A difficult book, their wedding night was horrible, but she soon became enchanted by him, even though she wished for his death. But it's a classic, as is the story of Stacy and Cord. It's worth it, but be careful, there's a lot of anguish guaranteed. And like every JD story, everything is resolved in half a paragraph.
August 20, 2025
This was good, and it made me add the other three books in the series to my list, which I'll be reading ASAP!
I wish the author had gone into more detail about why the H was so remote and unemotional for most of the story, there had to be something more to it and you never get an explanation. I thought for sure his aunt would give the h some insight, but that didn't happen.
You also find out little about his first wife, other than that she died, the marriage wasn't happy and apparently, she cheated on the H, and he couldn't have cared less. (Hope his daughter really is his daughter!) I thought maybe she was the reason for his attitude, but I guess that wasn't the case.
It takes a near tragedy to make the H start to show his feelings, make the h admit to herself how much she loves him, and make their marriage of convenience something real.
There's also the OM (who's going to have his own book, part of the series) and the OW, but the main focus is on how cold the H treats the h, leaving emotions out of everything, even sex and how hurt and angry the h is, the contrast between her emotions and his lack of them.
I do think it was a bit much for her to throw a cup of hot coffee at him, even though he was acting like a real jerk, but ironically, that's what led to the HEA.
Worth reading!
I wish the author had gone into more detail about why the H was so remote and unemotional for most of the story, there had to be something more to it and you never get an explanation. I thought for sure his aunt would give the h some insight, but that didn't happen.
You also find out little about his first wife, other than that she died, the marriage wasn't happy and apparently, she cheated on the H, and he couldn't have cared less. (Hope his daughter really is his daughter!) I thought maybe she was the reason for his attitude, but I guess that wasn't the case.
It takes a near tragedy to make the H start to show his feelings, make the h admit to herself how much she loves him, and make their marriage of convenience something real.
There's also the OM (who's going to have his own book, part of the series) and the OW, but the main focus is on how cold the H treats the h, leaving emotions out of everything, even sex and how hurt and angry the h is, the contrast between her emotions and his lack of them.
I do think it was a bit much for her to throw a cup of hot coffee at him, even though he was acting like a real jerk, but ironically, that's what led to the HEA.
Worth reading!
March 25, 2018
Natalie takes care of her brother's child, Ricky, and could hardly manage, so when conceited and heartless Colter Langson asks her to marry him to take care of both his house and his daughter, Missy, she couldn't dismiss the offer. She married him, but had to pay the price dearly because his derision and contempt for her were very obvious.
I honestly felt no feeling between heroine and hero her. His character hardly ever changes till the very end and it isn't convincing enough at that. He practically rapes her in their wedding night and keeps doing so for some other nights, too! What kind of love would drive a wife to fee in fear of her deal life? That's what happened in the end! The ending left so much to be explained and so failed miserably to convince me at all of any real sentiments between the main characters. Not recommanded for common sense!
I honestly felt no feeling between heroine and hero her. His character hardly ever changes till the very end and it isn't convincing enough at that. He practically rapes her in their wedding night and keeps doing so for some other nights, too! What kind of love would drive a wife to fee in fear of her deal life? That's what happened in the end! The ending left so much to be explained and so failed miserably to convince me at all of any real sentiments between the main characters. Not recommanded for common sense!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 6, 2025
A typical Harlequin romance. There is conflict and misunderstanding. Then they fall in love. There is more tragedy. They each believe the other does not love them. Finally they suddenly admit their love and they live happily ever after. I used to read these books constantly in my teens. I believed this was how you fell in love. Some stories were better than others. All the books followed the same formula as mentioned above. Wow, I was charmed in believing this was life.bIt was all a delusion. It seems ridiculous to read these simple books now. I'm glad I grew out of them.
February 15, 2024
This was my first book by Janet Dailey. The title says it's about Cord & Stacy, but Fiesta Antonio (at least the one I read) was based on Colton and Natalie.
It was a good beginning. My interest was peaked throughout the whole book which says something, but the H didn't have any redeeming characteristics and there was no groveling. There was a lot of push and pull and fighting except maybe the last 2 pages.
It was a good beginning. My interest was peaked throughout the whole book which says something, but the H didn't have any redeeming characteristics and there was no groveling. There was a lot of push and pull and fighting except maybe the last 2 pages.
May 29, 2024
Ooooh. Yummy. A brooding asshole with "cynic" as his middle name. Produced a lot of the angst. And yet, his staunch attitude is what helped his daughter get back on that horse! This had all the markings of a good ol fashioned, angst filled contract marriage. A keeper!
February 21, 2018
Janet Dailey is my go to author, I like all her books and this is no exception.
August 23, 2019
Angsty, vintage and MOC....passionate and almost violent How could I not love it!
August 29, 2019
Light read....nice love story.
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