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rumor has it kalan

Category Romance Review: Rumor Has It by Celia Scott

rumor has it
Rumor Has It by Celia Scott
Rating: five-stars
Published: 1990
Illustrator: Frank Kalan
Imprint or Line: Harlequin Romance #3040
Published by: Harlequin, Mills & Boon
Genres: Category Romance, Contemporary Romance
Pages: 192
Format: Paperback
Buy on: AmazonAbeBooks
Reviewed by: Introvert Reader


Category Romance Review: Rumor Has It by Celia Scott

MILD SPOILERS 😉

The Book

Celia Scott‘s Rumor Has It is a modern-day Cinderella story where the fairy godmother is not an actual person, but a false rumor that transforms a frumpy heroine into a glamorous new woman who finds her prince.

Well, a British guy, anyway. That’s close enough.

The Plot

Part One

Lucinda is a sweet and slightly overweight librarian. Really she’s a voluptuous gal with curvy thighs, big boobs, and full hips. If this book was written today, she’d be described as thicc. Lucinda is clumsy, nearsighted, and plagued by insecurity.

She lives with her father, stepmother, and model-slim stepsisters. Poor Luce is constantly berated by her family members. In their eyes, she’s a hopeless mess.

Enter Leo, a dashing Englishman who has business with her father. The family conspires to set up Leo with Lucinda’s more glamorous, slim stepsister. However, Leo’s mind is just on work.

Circumstances lead to Leo and Lucinda being forced to share a one-bed motel during a storm, a typical sitcom/rom-com situation. Except for a brief glimpse at Leo’s butt cheeks, their night is wholly innocent.

Part Two

Soon after, Leo heads back to England. Gossip travels fast in Lucinda’s small hometown when Lucinda’s family learns the two spent a night together.

Of course, it was purely platonic (Thi but the townfolks’ shocked reaction makes Lucinda let people think what they want. They all wonder what did a hunk like Leo see in a frump like Lucinda?

Lucinda is now viewed by the townspeople in a different light as she blossoms with confidence. She gets a new hairdo. Instead of losing weight, she learns to dress appropriately for her shapely figure instead of what’s dictated as “fashionable.” (Just like Clinton and Stacy on What Not to Wear recommended! Remember that show?)

Leo returns to the States. He is shocked that everyone, including Lucinda’s angry father, thinks they had an affair.

He then turns the tables on Lucinda and “blackmails” her into pretending they’re a couple. But as they spend more time together, is it really pretending?

Final Analysis of Rumor Has It

Celia Scott’s Rumor Has It was a sweet, funny, and very adorable romance. There’s humor, a delicious hero, and a heroine who learns to love herself before love finds her.

It’s an old favorite. Arguably my most-favorite Harlequin Romance.

Rating Report Card
Plot
5
Characters
5
Writing
5
Chemistry
4
Fun Factor
5
Cover
4.5
Overall: 4.8

Synopsis

It wasn’t a lie, exactly

The rumors about the night Lucinda spent stranded on Marshall’s Island with the dashing Englishman, Leo Grosvenor, simply got out of hand.

Denials of an affair only brought knowing smiles, and Lucinda began to enjoy having people believe someone as glamorous as Leo found her desirable. As the rumors flourished, so did Lucinda.

Besides, she reasoned, Leo was safely home in England. She certainly never expected he would return to South Port and force her to live the lie.

Rumor Has It by Celia Scott
CATEGORIES: , , , , , , ,

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knight to the rescue

Category Romance Review: Knight to the Rescue by Miranda Lee

Knight to the Rescue, Miranda Lee, Harlequin, 1994, cover artist unknown

Harlequin Presents #1702

From the Back of the Book:

Damsel in distress…Audrey needed someone on her side for once, and Elliot Knight appointed himself. But playing gallant rescuer was harder than it looked, especially for someone as vulnerable as Audrey – fresh on the rebound and tempting as sin…Audrey knew she was deliberately playing on Elliot’s capacity for compassion, but she couldn’t let him walk out of her life, good deed done. The oh-so-brief feel of his lips on hers had been heaven. Somehow she had to convince her enigmatic hero that this was no fairy tale – but the real thing.

4 Stars

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Knight to the Rescue is a cute, enjoyable Miranda Lee romance about a stranger who comes to mousy young Audrey’s aid when her boyfriend cruelly informs her he’s cheating because she’s no good in bed.

The handsome stranger’s name is aptly enough, Elliot Knight, and like a knight in shining armor, he comes to her rescue. Elliot and Audrey become fast friends. Could they be more than friends?

Insecure about herself after hearing what her ex had to say, Audrey has a makeover. Elliot always thought Audrey was lovely, but now, she’s a stunner. It’s not long before he proves to her that her boyfriend was very, very WRONG!

The star of this show is Elliot, a great hero. What made him so amazing? He was always popping up to save the day for Audrey whenever something went awry. He was the perfect gentleman.

Audrey, despite her attraction to him, is hesitant about falling in love again. Could Elliot be hiding something mysterious about his past? Can her hero be too good to be true?

Of course not!

This a typical sexy Miranda Lee book, with a hero who claims he’s a not-so-nice guy, yet actually is. This is a sexy little read. It lags a bit in the middle but heats up towards the end to very exciting results!