Midnight Rose, Patricia Hagan, Harper Collins, 1991, Sanjulian cover art
3 Stars
Patricia Hagan’s Midnight Rose is a rather entertaining romance novel. Featuring a strong-willed heroine named Erin, she has an evil slave owner for a step-father and a mother who hides a secret that could destroy them all. Her mother is biracial: half-black, half-white. That fact must be concealed from society, as it could lead to ruination for Erin and her family.
Hero Ryan pursues Erin with a passionate intensity. He does not want her to be his wife but his mistress, as he already has a respectable woman lined up for marriage. Through Erin’s mother’s machinations, it results that Ryan and Erin must get married, and from there on the drama really ramps up.
There are wicked relatives on both sides, making life difficult. When Ryan finds out about Erin’s secret, he does his best to protect her from the bad guys. Good plotting, although it was a tad abrupt at the end, which left me wanting more.