You did it! We figured this one out! It is a truth universally acknowledged (by me for certain) that the Bitchery pretty much knows everything, and really, it's true. Scroll down to see the solution for this HaBO - and many thanks!
Rebecca has a few memories of a book, and she's hoping they will ring a bell for someone who remembers this book.
I have so little to go on for this HaBo, but for some reason, I cannot
forget this book entirely, so I must re-read it to figure out why. Here is
what I remember:
It is a historical set in England. Not sure what period, but it is
post-Renaissance. The heroine is plump – not just a little thick, but round
and bouncy. I think she's blonde and has curls, but I'm not certain. She has
an issue with the hero involving her father's (or late husband's) estate.
Either he holds title to the land or works for/with the bank that does. She
is not a woman of means, so the land is the only thing that she'd have to
keep herself afloat.
When the hero finds the heroine attempting to steal something – ledger?
deed? – he ties her to a chair to interrogate her, but finds that the whole
situation turns him on, which disturbs him. I'm pretty sure it's not the
only time light bondage happens in this book. I'm entirely sure she enjoys
it, and he does, too.
I want to say that the word “Tie” is in the title, possibly some form of
tied up, but I'm not entirely certain. I also want to say there is a striped
corset or bodice/gown involved, though why that sticks in my mind I don't
know. For all I know, it could be the infamous chair that is striped. I read
it in paperback, so it's not an only in e-book thing.
This is hardly enough information, but I'm hoping that someone remembers
this and can give me a real title.
So, striped bodices and bouncy heroines? Anyone recall this romance?
I’d love to know this one too; how often do you see heroines who are on the large side in romance novels anyway? I could add this one to my “unique romances” collection. Hope someone has an answer!
It sounds like Untie My Heart by Judith Ivory – I distinctly remember him tying her to a chair afterwhich things get…interesting.
It’s been several years since I read Untie My Heart but I don’t remember her being big?
I do however remember her con artist ways, which is still one of the few historical romances that have a female con artist that isn’t just a blackmailer who desperately wants a man to notice her, harrumph! (pet peeve, sorry)
Casting another vote for Untie My Heart. She used to run cons with her now-deceased husband. She forges the hero’s signature on a check, after he refuses to reimburse her for killing one of her sheep. Since he has money problems of his own (he was out of the country when his father died, and returned to find that his uncle had looted his estate), he thinks she can help.
This was my first Ivory. I loved it, and went on to add the rest to my TBR pile. Which wasn’t easy at time, as they were only available in paper and mostly OOP.
Another vote for Untie My Heart- there is an important scene at the bank where she wears a striped blouse, which is also very tight and serves to “highlight her voluptuous curves”.
I also think this may be “Untie My Heart.” The bondage scene Rebecca describes takes place in a hotel, after the hero or heroine visits the bank, the best I remember, which may be why there is confusion about the hero being a bank clerk. Also, the heroine is described repeatedly as being curvy or voluptuous or something of the sort.
Thank you all! I was trying to tell a friend about this book, and now that you’ve reminded me of the real details, I can pass this on to her. And find another copy. I picked this up in the lunchroom at work, and returned it there, but now it’s gone. Hooray for HaBo!
You’re welcome. I’m just happy that I actually knew a HaBo for once!
I read a book about a girl pirate that starts that way sorta… She’s on a Tabacco plantation tho…
Oh man, I don’t know why this took so long to show up on my reader! I was going to suggest The Courtship by Catherine Coulter. Helen, “a statuesque blue-eyed, blond Aphrodite” who knows the art of discipline is the heroine of this book.
This is the first one that seemed worth finding. Sounds like such fun. Let us know what it is.
If you are looking for historicals with plus-size heroines, Michele Ann Young has written a couple of them.
Oh wow, how much do I love HaBO. “Untie My Heart” sounds delightful, and it’s only $1.99 for Kindle. Yes, please.