This HaBO comes from McKenzie, who’s hoping to find a book she “borrowed” from her mom:
I “borrowed” it from my mother in the early 2000s, but I don’t know when it was published.
I can remember that the heroine was the daughter of some sort of business baron (maybe trains?). Her father didn’t have a biological son, but he had a sharp-jawed designated heir to the family fortune who our heroine naturally hated. I remember a lot of mutual loathing, mostly from the heroine who thought this guy was an interloper/rival to her father’s affection. I want to say that her father had told her to marry this guy, but maybe she reached that conclusion on her own.
At some point, the roguish heir-presumptive is sent on a business trip somewhere and the daughter either tags along or is sent along with him, via train, to somewhere. Was there a train crash? A snow storm? I can’t quite recall, but I feel like there was some sort of forced truce due to extenuating circumstances, which of course turned to HEA.
I am sorry to be so vague! I kept this book in my soccer bag for months, reading when my mom was late to pick me up from practice. I wish I could remember the title so that I could revisit my romance roots!
I hope we can help her, but I also died at “sharp-jawed designated heir” because it does seem like all heroes have a jaw that could cut glass.
Description reminds me of Scandal in Spring by Lisa Kleypas, but I think that was published way later than 2000.
I also cackled at “sharp-jawed designated heir” – I definitely got a clear picture of our hero at that!
I don’t know this book (sorry!) but I’d like to express my love for the Enemies-due-to-jealousy-of-a-parent’s-regard trope. It’s such a real conflict; difficult to get over (unlike, say, the enemies-due-to-a-failure-to-communicate trope). One of my all time favourite novels, Dance by Judith Ivory, features this trope, and I’d love to read other books with a similar set-up.
This sounds similar to a HaBo I had a while back – that book was “A 5th Avenue Christmas” by Tracy Cozzens.
I have no idea what the book is, but it sounds like a fun read.
“I hope we can help her, but I also died at “sharp-jawed designated heir” because it does seem like all heroes have a jaw that could cut glass.”
Has there ever been a romance hero without such a jaw?
Was this an historical? US setting?
I really suck at these. Even when I’ve read the book in question, I can rarely put it all together. The Kleypas book also sprang to mind, but I don’t remember a train trip. As far as the trope goes, it also seems similar to a lot of JAK/Jayne Castle books, but I’m pretty sure it’s none of those. Maybe we need a Rec League post on heroines who feel their fathers/families are financially/emotionally supplanting them with an outsider.
There was one like that recently– I’m afraid I can’t recall details? The heroine worked for her father in some business connected with sports, and she thought she was his successor, but then he brought in a manager from elsewhere to be his successor. I was tearing my hair in sympathy for the heroine, even though she was written as a fairly immaturely self-important person. But her father was absolutely a dick; he made decisions that had a huge impact on her without consulting her, and in fact he basically didn’t talk to her at all. I believe I never finished reading this book because everyone was so unpleasant…
This could be Scandal in Spring by Lisa Kleypas – the last Wallflowers book. It was published in 2009 (according to Amazon). Not all the details fit but I still had that “I’m sure this is that Kleypas book” feeling reading the HaBo description.
Daisy is an American heiress in England – her father wants her to marry his protege / designated heir. The designated heir has been secretly in love with Daisy for ever but she hates him for reasons. There’s a lot of plot and I don’t remember all the details. There was a house party with a very competitive croquet game. I think that’s when she started falling for him. And then he has to go on the run for some reason and she stands by him and there’s a winter storm. And IDK – a lot happens.
I’m almost positive I’ve read this one… But then again, the plot is similar to a lot of others that I’ve read. *sigh* I hope the Bitchery can find it!
It sounds like Lisa Kleypas Scandal in Spring to me as well. Matthew (I think that’s his first name) Swift and Daisy Bowman’s story is book 4 in the Wallflower series. He is involved in a carriage accident towards the end of the story which leads to their HEA. Definitely can’t go wrong with the Wallflower book series even if it’s not the one you’re thinking of!