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 Jesi, who wants to track down a paperback they read:
The book was a random paperback but it was amazing and I re-read it so many times.
This is what I remember:
– Heroine’s name is Hazel and she is American. At the start of the book she’s on holiday in Europe where she meets…
– The hero, whose name is Marcus. He’s rich and handsome (of course) and I think is Italian.
– I remember something about maple syrup and baseball.
– Hazel goes home to America and she has a brother but I can’t remember anything about her parents.
– It’s a slow burn maybe because of the class difference as Hazel is poor and Marcus is rich.
There’s something familiar about this because it’s tickling the back of my brain.
Googling produced:
Dreams Of Paradise by Laura Simon
https://www.amazon.com/Dreams-Paradise-Laura-Simon/dp/0425126773/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1IVFX4SXDKIT6&keywords=Dreams+of+Paradise+laura&qid=1684268393&sprefix=dreams+of+paradise+laura%2Caps%2C113&sr=8-1
Simon’s accomplished tale is notable for its vividly detailed settings and a heroine with depth of character who grows in stature and ability as a result of her experiences. In 1892, Hazel Merriwether, the refined 23-year-old daughter of an affluent Boston family, vacations with friends in Italy, where a gregarious Italian with the surprising name of Marco MacGregor appoints himself their tour guide. The following summer, when Hazel accompanies her father, a wool mill owner, to Britain, she finds herself in the home of a Scottish baron and his son, none other than the irrepressible Marco. Impatient with Hazel’s starchy notions of propriety (including the idea that women needn’t understand the source of the money they spend), he teaches her the rudiments of wool-making from sheep to loom–as well as the delights of lovemaking. Returning home, Hazel tries to retreat into innocence and gentility, but her world turns upside down when her father’s business fails, leaving her to learn how fragile security can be and the degree of strength necessary for a woman’s survival.
PS: Google Books excerpt:
“And I didn’t notice any baseball diamonds in the Highlands.”
“True enough,” Marco cheerfully confessed, scooping several more peanuts out of the bag. “Baseball is distinctly American. Like maple syrup.”
I am in awe of your google skills, HAT!
This sounds like a really great story. I’m very intrigued by all of this.