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 comes from Candace, who is looking for this adventurous romance:
It was written in the 1960s (think Breakfast At Tiffany’s, not Woodstock).
An art student returns from Paris back to NYC, where she studies at Cooper Union. She’s broke, so decides to stow away on a cruise ship & “mingle” her way across the Atlantic, maybe finding someone to relieve her of her pesky virginity, too.
She has a red wig, a trench coat, and “chukka boots”. There’s a Don Juan-type former bullfighter.
There are also Russians & blinis & vodka. A nerdy guy with glasses is her HEA.
I’m unsure if it was written during the 1960s or takes place in the 1960s. Keep that in mind! Also, very curious where the Russians come in.
Maiden Voyage
by Jeannie Sakol
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This sounds great!
I’m the requester… just want to add that the madcap zaniness of “stowing away in plain sight” almost overshadows the sweet romance part.
The Russians: these flirty blond quadruplet hunks are part of the wild supporting cast – the heroine discovers that they’re newbie KGB, but she plies them with stateroom-made blinis & vodka so they end up defecting rather than silencing her.
I don’t know the novel, but I wonder if it was inspired by some real-life adventures of Paulette Cooper, a woman whose life deserves to be made into a movie. She even has a HEA story.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paulette_Cooper
http://oceanliner.org/stow_away.htm
Mari, thanks for the tip on Paulette, I will research!
-Candace
I want to know !
That article about stowaway Paulete Cooper was amazing!
Thank you @Mari Donne. What a wild read
<tangent>
real-life adventures of Paulette Cooper
I do hope I was not the only person to be tickled by Paulette’s professed moral qualms about pretending to be pregnant because … drumroll … she isn’t married …
… even while she is brazenly committing grand larceny.
</tangent>
I can’t believe I know this!!! I bought it when I was a teenager and still have it. It’s called Maiden Voyage, bu Jeannie Sakol. Very cute and fun.
Persephone nailed it, I found the cover & I know 100% this is it! (https://images.app.goo.gl/u8XhJHkTtY2qHf8x9)
Thank you all so much!!
The Amazon reviews are bizarre, because they seem to be referring to a totally different book, by a different author! But I’m sure it’s actually Candace’s book, there’s an ocean liner on the cover.
The Goodreads description is better: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6219693-maiden-voyage