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!
This HaBO is from a More Different Dorothy from the Dorothy of this morning, and this More Different Dorothy is looking for one heck of a contemporary romance:
I need help looking for an “old” contemporary (oh, sweet irony) Harlequin, released between the late 1980s and early 1990s.
The book was given to my mom by a college professor, in the hopes that she’d be inspired to read more English texts and increase her vocabulary. Instead, it sat in our living room for years, unread and unloved, until I found it shortly after my 10th birthday. By then, this literary gem had lost its front and back covers, as well as its first few pages. My sister and I always meant to find out what book this was because the hero’s one-liners were so damned funny.
But I digress. Here’s the plot:
A man with a thirst for vengeance (truly, which contemporary romance hero doesn’t have this?) kidnaps the pampered daughter of his business rival. They hide out in a secluded cabin, battling their growing desire and a fever (no joke, the hero developed a fever after getting nicked by a rusty nail). In a confusing mix of lust and Stockholm syndrome, the virginal violet-eyed heroine cared for him rather than flee.
In the book’s most memorable scene, the heroine tries to cop a feel while helping the hero change his shirt. He mockingly offers her sex, which of course, offends (and intrigues) the virginal heroine (yep, this was published while the virgin trope was popular in contemporary romance). To which he said something like, “What’s the big deal? Sex is nothing more than a lot of heavy breathing and unrestrained passion.”
20 years later and those words still make me giggle.
After this scene, I can remember just a few details of the book. The heroine’s father was a bonafide villain; he had no qualms with killing to succeed in business. Yet most disturbing was how he treated his daughter. Based on what he yelled when he discovered the pair in their love nest, it was clear that in his mind, his daughter had become his deceased wife. The father’s overprotectiveness/possessiveness led him to chase away all of her potential suitors, while making her afraid of physical contact with strange men.
With the hero’s support, the heroine reconciled with her father in the end, but on the condition that he turn himself in.
I remember seeing the Harlequin logo on the top pages, indicating this was one of the short novels Harlequin released every month. I think the hero was named Justin and that the title was “Wild Justice”. Yet recent searches directed me to a Harlequin historical, which is not the “Wild Justice” that I’m looking for.
Can you HABO and help me find one of my favorite romance novels? Thanks!
Somewhere, RedHeadedGirl is making grabby motions with her hands and doesn’t know why. Do you recognize this book? Help a Bitch Out!
Couldn’t find anything that matched all the details, but here are some
“Landslide Victory” by Barbara Boswell
“Firefly in the Night” by Ginger Chambers
“Unwilling Heat” by Emma Richmond
“The Captive Love” by Anne N. Reisser
but there is a “Wild Justice” that isn’t a historical
“Wild Justice” by Joanna Mansell and the hero’s name starts with a “J”, Jared
http://www.paperbackswap.com/Wild-Justice-Harlequin-Joanna-Mansell/book/0373112181/
It’s not “Captive love.” That’s all I do know.
I think Olivia got it with the Joanna Mansell “Wild Justice” HP.
I have no idea what this book is, but it seems to me that both h/h are TSTL if after the hero developed a fever after getting nicked by a rusty nail, neither of them is considering the possibility of tetanus.
If the heroine has violet eyes, I’m guessing it’s a Harlequin Presents.
Out of curiosity, other than Elizabeth Taylor, has anyone here ever seen violet eyes on a woman? Or met a man with green eyes?
Gloriamarie, I used to work with a man with green eyes in California (and he was a computer programmer so not a case of vanity/colored contacts). But I think he’s the only one in my very many years on earth. They were very attractive eyes. No violet eyes, though.
The eyes I don’t like seeing in romance novels are gray eyes (well, it’s okay if they’re silver in a paranormal) because the only two people I know of with gray eyes totally creep me out when I see them in a movie (obviously, they’re both actors, one of each sex), even if they’re playing good people.
Were they bright green eyes or more hazel? As for grey eyes, I’ve always thought that meant a pale blue because I am almost 100% certain that is not a normal human color for eyes. I have seen people with pale blue eyes.
I met a woman once with eyes two different colors: one blue, one brown and like an idiot I exclaimed “Your eyes are different colors” as if (1) she hadn’t already noticed and (2) everyone she met didn’t say that to her. I was ashamed of myself because I get furious when people think it is so cute to respond to hearing my last name with “that’s a mouthful.” But I dare anyone to meet someone with eyes of different colors and manage to keep their mouths shut on the subject.
There are actors with grey eyes? Which ones? I’ve never noticed.
I think “Wild Justice” by Joanna Mansell is the book that I’ve been looking for. Thanks, Olivia!
I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone in person with naturally true green eyes, but I have seen eyes that I’d have called hazel with hints of green. I’m not sure about gray–again, I’d probably have called them hazel or light blue. (I just googled gray eyes and got a bunch of images of celebrities who I’d have said had blue eyes.) Meg Foster has pale eyes that look gray/silver, but I think they’re also technically blue. Of course, anything’s possible in Romancelandia.
I dated a man for 2 years who had green eyes and blond hair. When we dated it was bright blond- it had darkened from the platinum it had been when he was a toddler. He was also beautifully tanned for the better part of the year due to some Native American ancestry, but was mostly Czech. It’s been more than 20 years and I can no longer recall the rest. But yeah, beautiful green eyes. And tall, broad-shouldered, lean, tight butt…it was damn shame we didn’t have more in common.
Ye of little faith, they do exist! My sister and I have both got grey eyes! For me, it just means that they are really pale blue but a ‘flat’ blue rather than a bright blue, whereas my sister (whose eye colour is beautiful) has very dark blue, again a flat blue, but with lots of funny white squiggles running through them. Her eyes are amazing! However, I’d say they are far less intense/piercing/drop-your-pants-sexy in real life than in romancelandia. Alas. Mostly mine look very washed out…
But, Narelle, from your very own fingertips you are admitting that grey eyes really are a shade a of blue, as I posited above! Thank you.
my eyes are grey but tend to reflect colours around them. So if I am wearing blue they are bluish if I am wearing green they appear green-many of my clothes are green for this reason. reds browns blacks tend to look different shades of brown. I have tried but cant make them look violet purple tends to go blue or brow depending on the shade
My sister has green eyes, but they probably edge closer to the hazel because there’s a bit of brown around the pupil. My mom, on the other hand… she has the most gorgeous aqua eyes. I’ve never seen anything like them, and I so wish I had inherited them! I sometimes tease her and say she has romance novel eyes, but this does not seem to impress her.
On the original subject, I have no idea what the book might be – sorry!
Aqua eyes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I’d love to see them!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Sorry for the delay in answering but I only get to check this in the evenings.
The computer programmer had really nice green eyes (my niece has hazel eyes and they’re not nearly as attractive) that I’ve always remembered because he is the only green-eyed person I’ve ever met. Technically, I agree that grey eyes are probably a pale blue but I just don’t like them. Neal McDonough is the actor and his IMDB page says he’s known for light blue eyes (only a couple of the accompanying pictures look that light to me, however). Meg Foster is the actress as mentioned by another commenter and, again, her IMDB bio makes notes of her eye color.
No worries, Karen H. It’s too funny. Neither of the names of the actors rang a bell but when I put their names into google, a suggested search came up with their names followed by “eyes.” So I guess they are famous for their eyes. As they should be because, of course, as soon as I saw their pictures I recognized them. Meg Foster in particular as I remember her from a wonderful version of “The Scarlet Letter” which I saw on WGBH (PBS) when I lived in the Boston area ago.
My three-year-old boy has gray eyes. I don’t know what other color to call them. They’re definitely not light blue, nor are they green. They can have a greenish cast if he’s wearing green, but they really are gray. His grandfather has the same eye color – it’s pretty unique, though.
My husband has grey eyes as well, so they definitely exist. His don’t have a hint of blue in them. They’re like a lighter version of a grey Crayola crayon (which may be the most unromantic simile I have ever invented).
I think grey eyes are quite striking and swoon-worthy, but I may be biased!
On the other hand I’ve never seen eyes I would call violet in my life; they (including Liz Taylor’s) always look dark blue to me.
I have green eyes. Really, truly green, the colour of tall grass in summer.
My husband also has green eyes. His are a slightly more olive shade of green.
I’ve never met anyone with either aqua eyes or violet eyes.