Электронная книга: Robyn Donald «The Mirror Bride»
THE MARRIAGE MAKER"A mirror marriage, picture perfect but insubstantial, a mere reflection of the real thing." In marrying Drake Arundell, Olivia Nicholls will secure Simon's future… and condemn her own!Though she yearns for a «real» marriage with Drake, too many secrets, too many lies stand between them and the love, the passion, the substance she longs for in their relationship – but then, perhaps she has a guardian angel on her side!THE MARRIAGE MAKER – Can a picture from the past bring love to the present? Издательство: "HarperCollins"
ISBN: 9781408984543 электронная книга Купить за 365.57 руб и скачать на Litres |
Другие книги автора:
Книга | Описание | Год | Цена | Тип книги |
---|---|---|---|---|
Ohtlik kokkulepe | Kullaotsijast abielulõhkuja ei ole just Curt McIntoshi ideaalnaine. Aga tundub, et just sellise inimese ta Peta Grey näol eest leiab. Curti jaoks on ainult üks võimalus naist peatada…… — Eesti digiraamatute keskus OU, электронная книга Подробнее... | электронная книга | ||
One Night in the Orient | — HarperCollins, электронная книга Подробнее... | электронная книга | ||
The Rich Man's Blackmailed Mistress | Purchased for his pleasure! Kain Gerrard– mesmerising, sexy and filthy rich – can have any woman he wants! So taming Sable Martin shouldn’t be a problem. The scandalous gold-digger has used her… — HarperCollins, электронная книга Подробнее... | электронная книга | ||
Powerful Greek, Housekeeper Wife | Sizzling affair…With the body of a Greek god, a tycoon’s wealth, and all the emotion of cold, hard marble, Luke Michelakis is an enigma. Intimidated and out of her depth in his glamorous world… — HarperCollins, электронная книга Подробнее... | электронная книга | ||
The Nanny Affair | NANNY WANTEDTo my heir, Beau Prescott, I leave my Sydney estate and place into his good care my dedicated staff: housekeeper, gardener and nanny. Nanny? Beau Prescott was highly suspicious of this… — HarperCollins, электронная книга Подробнее... | электронная книга | ||
Forgotten Sins | Aline was in bed with a handsome stranger! He claimed she'd made love to him. Her mind couldn't remember a thing, but her body was on fire.Jake accused Aline of conveniently faking her amnesia, of… — HarperCollins, электронная книга Подробнее... | электронная книга | ||
Tiger, Tiger | Not only opposites attract! When Lecia first spotted Keane Paget, his presence burned like a shining beacon. He was handsome, certainly, and profoundly male, but the face that stared back at her was… — HarperCollins, электронная книга Подробнее... | электронная книга | ||
A Forbidden Desire | A scorching seduction?Jacinta knew as soon as Paul McAlpine opened his front door that she shouldn't stay. Gerard had warned her not to fall for Paul, his cousin, during her visit to Waitapu, New… — HarperCollins, электронная книга Подробнее... | электронная книга | ||
A Reluctant Mistress | Clay Beauchamp would have to learn, Natalia was not for sale! He was handsome, protective, even generous, but nothing would lure Natalia into his bed…until the night her livelihood was destroyed… — HarperCollins, электронная книга Подробнее... | электронная книга | ||
A Ruthless Passion | — HarperCollins, электронная книга Подробнее... | электронная книга | ||
The Colour Of Midnight | — HarperCollins, электронная книга Подробнее... | электронная книга | ||
The Virgin and His Majesty | Married for royal revengePrince Gerd Crysander-Gillan has long held a torch for beautiful Rosie Matthews. But three years ago that need turned to rage when he discovered that Rosie’s affections… — HarperCollins, электронная книга Подробнее... | электронная книга | ||
Brooding Billionaire, Impoverished Princess | — HarperCollins, электронная книга Подробнее... | электронная книга | ||
Meant To Marry | THE MARRIAGE MAKERMeant to marry– divided by scandal Anet Carruthers had always kept her past firmly where it belonged, until she met Lucas Tremaine! Lucas Tremaine, a writer of considerable… — HarperCollins, электронная книга Подробнее... | электронная книга | ||
Element Of Risk | I thought I was rid of you– why the hell did you have to come back?It was eleven years – two lifetimes ago – since Perdita Gladstone and Luke Dennison had met last. Now the legacy of their… — HarperCollins, электронная книга Подробнее... | электронная книга |
Robyn Donald
Infobox Writer
name = Robyn Donald
imagesize =
caption =
pseudonym = Robyn Donald
birth_date = 1940
birth_place =
death_date =
death_place =
occupation =
nationality =
period = 1977-Present
genre =
subject =
movement =
debut_works = "Bride at Whangatapu"
influences =
influenced =
website = http://www.RobynDonald.com
footnotes =
Robyn Donald (b. 1940 in
She writes for the English
Her first romance titled 'Bride at Whangatapu' was published under the exegesis of Mills and Boon in 1977. In the 1978 publication under Harlequin, the publishing house noted that the readers would recognize a bright new talent in the absorbing story and lively, memorable characters that Robyn Donald created.
A Word About the Author
Robyn Donald cannot remember ever being unable to read. She learned the skill at a very early age; and today she claims reading remains one of her greatest pleasures "if not a vice."
Robyn, her husband and their two children make their home in a small country village in the historic Bay of Islands in the far north of New Zealand. Both the climate and the people are friendly, and her family enjoys sailing in particular and the outdoor life in general.
Her other interests include cooking, music, and astronomy. And she finds history and archaeology especially fascinating because "they are about the sum total of human experience."
When she writes, Robyn visualizes scenes that she knows and loves. The actual germ of a story arrives "ready-made from some recess of my brain, but," she adds, "it takes quite a while to work out the details."
She grew up in her father's dairy farm at
After the birth of a son, the family moved to Auckland. A little lonely and housebound as she waited the birth her daughter, Robyn began the first tentative steps that set her on a path to writing. Her first attempt was, she said, "appallingly bad." But she was determined to keeping at it. Another move took the family to the far north of New Zealand. Robyn returned to teaching but she still found time to write; with her husband's encouragement she submitted a manuscript entitled Bride at Whangatapu. It was accepted and became Harlequin #232 in 1978.
For reference, Robyn keeps a file of clippings, jotting of ideas, and a diary, which she laughingly says, "is useful in my work as well as for settling family arguments."
She lives today with her husband and one Corgi dog. Resigned from her teaching position when she found that she enjoyed writing romances more, she now spends her spare time reading, gardening, travelling, and writing letters to keep up with her two adult children and her friends.
Book Notes
Location
In "Bride at Whangatapu" (1977), Fiona comes to Logan's sheep station in the
A four hour flight of convert|1200|mi|km over
The sprawling metropolis of Auckland is the jumping off point for the Northland Peninsula jutting out to the
The love affair in "Iceberg" (1981) takes off in the historical
In "Shadow of the Past" (1979), Thorpe's younger brother Graham moves to the
Her second novel, "Dilemma in Paradise" (1978), takes place in the South Pacific island of
To all New Zealanders, they are simply known as 'the Islands' - islands of enchantment and tropical magic, near enough to fly to for a forthnight's holiday, yet a different world.
The group of islands that comprise the country of Fiji becomes home to Meredith in "Interloper" (1980).
The location of all her stories, except for "Wife in Exchange" (1979), are thus divided into North Island and the South Pacific. It establishes Robyn Donald as the quintessential writer of these particular locales after another such author
"Late Loving" (1988) is yet another testament to her faithfulness to New Zealand. Here she introduces the readers to her version of the
The
Like the
Flora and Fauna
In her writings, Robyn Donald extensively uses the
The enormous
A
And a
There are the bellbirds and the native pigeon; the carillon of endangered
Everywhere there is perfume of
The
The leafless
There are the lovely pink and white orchid flowers of the
It might be the depths of winter, but here, there are always flowers - the golds and reds of the day lilies, daisy bushes in the finery of yellow, pink and white, their scent freshly sweet. Earliest daffodils nod in the thin pale rays of the sun.
A
A small wind from the sea set the branches of the
There are the pine forests of
In the ocean, the
The impatient 'pink-pink' of some small bird wakes up Linnet in Iceberg (1981).
In Interloper (1980), the only noise Meredith hears upon waking is the liquid trilling of some small bird.
In the beautiful South Seas paradise native orchids bloom cream and pale, lilac and gold, their delicate flowers emitting a sweet, slightly lemony scent.
There is the riotous exuberance of growth from the rough trunks of the
And the flowers! Hibiscuses from all shades of red and yellow, the trailing
The lush foliage is replete with mass of flowers and wide leaved plants.
In Storm Over Paradise (1992), Fenella is made wise about
If in her evocation of a formal garden Robyn Donald rouses a 'surge of emotion' in Bride at Whangatapu (1977), she does so again in the 'piercing of emotion' evoked by the bushy crowns of the massive, elemental
The Winterless North
The North Island has nice, temperate climate. There is no snow, no great heat, not much difference between summer and winter. It sounds like California weather except that there is plenty of humidity, Northland being notorious for its sticky days and nights.
And more than enough rain as spring is pretty wet. Blade calls it lousy spring weather in Golden Mask (1992). The chances of unseasonably wet and wild weather increases if tropical storms chase down from the Pacific as far afield as Fiji. In Northland if there is more than four inches (102 mm) of rain a day, the hills start to slip away. Stranded by a flash flood, an exhausted Oriel finds refuge with Blaize in Summer Storm (1991).
Summer is the time when holiday makers make the most use of the Northland Peninsula. This is how Lorena meets Bourne in Bay of Stars (1981). However, turning a sleepy seaside into a modern holiday resort puts Guy and Mike in a collision course in Island Enchantment (1994).
The warm sunshine of the far north is welcomed for a sick boy from colder Wellington in Bride at Whangatapu (1977). Country of the Heart's (1988) exquisite Finley sleeps off the after effects of a bout of pneumonia under the silver and green canopy of a Puhutukawa tree. Back in Auckland, she can already feel the evenings cooler than they were in the island.
But the warm temperatures can soar to unprecedented heights. Then it becomes too hot to eat, almost too hot to sleep.
Autumn is one weather that not only Northland but also all of New Zealand does really well.
Summer in the tropical South Seas share in the occasional jolts of rain and storm. Reigned inside by treacherous weather, Tamsyn can't escape but face off Grant in Dilemma in Paradise (1978).
But the eye of another storm, a deadly
People
“Summer people, summer people, busy, busy summer people. Sailing, swimming, biking, golfing, having parties all the time. Island people, island people, busy, busy island people. Cooking, cleaning, mowing, running, making summer people fine.” This is a description that made
Morag remembers her old life in Wharuaroa in Shadow of the Past (1979) with wistful nostalgia. They are days spent on the sea - skin diving or water skiing, followed by barbecue on a convenient beach and singing around a bonfire, the long summer evenings when it is hot until eight, tramping across the coastal hills or canoeing down the small rivers, sailing - the list is endless and the long easy days follow each other like a pearl on a string.
It's not only Auckland that is proud to be called the city of sails because most major bays and harbours in the Northland Peninsula are covered in boats and yachts of all types. When an ocean going yacht makes anchor at Awakopu, its owner and occupant Theo steals the heart of innocent Janey in Summer at Awakopu (1979).
Being a New Zealander means that Theo doesn't despise physical labor. He takes to haymaking in Summer at Awakopu (1979); a hot and dry and hard work; but still he enjoys using a few muscles. In Country of the Heart (1988), Blake, too, gets down to mending a fence post, his shirt becoming wringing wet in five minutes.
In Bride at Whangatapu (1977), the whole set up is foreign to Fiona's conception of how New Zealanders live. And all of the people she meets there take it for granted. These people have grown up in conditions of luxury and it shows in the sophisticated way they talk and act. At times Fiona feels like a foreigner. Fiona's own parents lived a fairly retired lives. She had a stay at home mum and her school teacher dad loved his job and the area where they lived, so he never tried for promotion. Growing up, she didn't know that there were people who lived like this.
The antidote to Fiona's feelings of inferiority comes from none other than Jinny, the feisty housekeeper loyal to the Sutherlands. Not a bit put out by her role as a housekeeper, Jinny instead sincerely counsels Fiona that they are all human and they all have usual needs and desires and failings. By thinking of them like that Fiona wouldn't be quite so self conscious.
It is a shock for Finley, too, in Country of the Heart (1988), to realize that there were people in New Zealand who live in such beauty and opulence. She thought that such wealth only existed overseas! Feeling out of her depth, she didn't belong on this enchanted island, a little kingdom touched by magic. For 'magic' read 'money', Finley's thought turns cynical. These people are larger than life. The women elegant even in their informal clothes, the men with the unstressed authority which came with total self confidence. They speak well, share in-jokes, know the ramifications of each other's families, and attended the same schools.
However, Alick of Some Kind of Madness (1991) vehemently denies that the rich of New Zealand can be anything but snobs. He doesn't care how much money someone has or hasn't. What he does take an issue with is a person's track record. Quinn in No Guarantees (1990) also explains that unlike livestock, people are not hinged upon breeding, where character and ubpringing wins out every time.
In Wharuaroa the Cunnighams are the big people, the station owners. Their children go to boarding schools. They holiday in the ski fields of the Southern Alps or overseas. Invitations to a function there indicates that you have arrived socially in their district. Despite the glamorous details, however, Morag thinks tolerantly in Shadow of the Past (1979) that this is after all rural New Zealand and she doubts if Thorpe was a snob.
Robyn Donald shows New Zealanders of varied walks of life except for Maoris. Although she gives a lot of anecdotes from
This is in contrast to her delineation of the South Seas islands because here she always reserves an episode where the settlers comingle with the native islanders, their interaction formal yet friendly.
In the midst of a festivity thrown by the
In Paradise Lost (1993), Blair and Hugh get to her place of residence one afternoon to find a young Polynesian waiting for Blair with a request to draw a picture of his grandmother from a photograph. Blair accepts and in return receives from him freshly caught fish from the ocean.
The immense dignity proferred to the old men is referred to in Dilemma in Paradise (1978) and also in Storm Over Paradise (1992).
Fijians' love of their children, even the little hooligans, is clear in Interloper (1980).
The islanders light up their faces with big grins and the retainers for house hold work offer a casual but healthy respect to the owners.
However, the only kind of islanders walking around the homestead are the retainers. Although Grant and Tamsyn in Dilemma in Paradise (1978) and Dominic and Fenella in Storm Over Paradise (1993) participate in the festivities of the islanders, the same invitation is never extended to the islanders to attend a party at their respective homes.
Cooking, Music and Astromony
Robyn Donald's other interests include cooking, music and astronomy and all three find their ways into her stories.
In Return to Yesterday (1983) Catlin looks up at the clear sky to see the gauzy band of the
Dangerous Men and Adventurous Women
Robyn Donald creates self-sufficient men replete with rock solid confidence. The women show stamina and fighting spirit.
In establishing her
As women are reluctant to submit to physical needs, in occasions where that does happen as in "Guarded Heart" (1983) for instance, they accept it on sufferance. In "Gates of
Although no man outright shows preference for non-sexually experienced women over experiencd ones, the women by and large turn out to be inexperienced. This state of being enables men to decide if marriage is a viable option for them. The sexual uninhibitedness of Venetia In "Smoke in the Wind" (1988) leads Ryan to categorize her as
Separation is a key to a whole array of her stories. While some titles give this away as in "Long Journey Back" (1988), others are not so obvious. In Robyn's very first novel "Bride at
When the time of separation is a matter of years, it is preempted by women who harbor misgivings about their past intimacies that need resolutions. The interval benefits the young women so to gain much needed emotinal maturity, which they eventually need to re-evaluate their past sexual choices and to enter into new ones, a process that they otherwise would have found traumatic to deal with.
On the other hand, where the separation lasts only mere months as for example in "Gates of
In "Paradise Lost" (1993), intermittent separation is accepted as a fact in their relationship. While, in "Golden Mask" (1992), the separation is instigated by Blade on purpose so that Eden can gain a broader foundation in life to analyse her emotional needs.
Separation is carried on to its logical conclusion as in the finality of death, the prospect of which, is often thrown into the lives of the men and women so to face up to their actual potentialities in life. In "Return to Yesterday" (1983), for instance, a car accident that results in death for others makes Catlin realize that it could have easily been Conal lying there in the grip of death, and pangs of this final separation forces her to acknowledge the depth of her love for him and to accept with resignation a life without love, which she up until then fought against.
Robyn also portrays women from different looks and backgrounds who are experiencing a personal crisis that gives movement to their lives. For instance, Cressida in "Sweetest Trap" (1988) is shipwrecked and has nowhere else to go. In "Bitter Homecoming" (1989), Alexa is dogged by a scandal. In this tense background, Robyn re-enforces a stock characteristic, namely tenderness and protectiveness, in men's treatment of these women. By adhereing to this mode of behavior for all men, Robyn is inversely intimating to her readers not only what is to be expected from men but also what is it that women find fulfilling in them. Nevertheless, as pity can be mistanken for love, so can possesivness be mistaken for protectiveness. Cressida in "Sweetest Trap" (1988) sets out to make this distinction clear to her benefactor Luke. On the other hand when Ryan in Smoke in the Wind (1988) falls short of both these virtues, it results in grief for all parties concerned.
Children often play a role in the stories which allows the evolving love affair to assume a compassionate face at the same time barring it from becoming a caricature of self-centered emotions. In "Iceberg" (1981), Robyn contrasts the previous unhappiness of a child who is now comforted by her new playmate who would become her future mom. On the other hand, Denise in "Bride at
In the confessional stage of their relationship, men admit to
Bibliography
ingle Novels
*"Bride at Whangatapu" (1977)
*"Dilemma in Paradise" (1978)
*"Summer at Awakopu" (1978)
*"Shadow of the Past" (1979)
*"Wife in Exchange" (1979)
*"Iceberg" (1980)
*"Bay of Stars" (1980)
*"Interloper" (1981)
*"Dark Abyss" (1981)
*"Old Passion" (1982)
*"Mansion for My Love" (1982)
*"Gates of Rangitatau" (1983)
*"Return to Yesterday" (1983)
*"Guarded Heart" (1983)
*"Durable Fire" (1984)
*"Durable Line" (1984)
*"An Unbreakable Bond" (1986)
*"Willing Surrender" (1986)
*"Country of the Heart" (1987)
*"Late Loving" (1987)
*"Smoke in the Wind" (1987)
*"The Sweetest Trap" (1988)
*"A Matter of Will" (1989)
*"A Summer Storm" (1990)
*"No Guarantees" (1990)
*"The Darker Side of Paradise" (1990)
*"No Place Too Far" (1990)
*"The Stone Princess" (1991)
*"Some Kind of Madness" (1991)
*"Storm Over Paradise" (1991)
*"The Golden Mask" (1992)
*"Once Bitten, Twice Shy" (1992)
*"Island Enchantment" (1993)
*"Such Dark Magic" (1993)
*"The Colour of Midnight" (1994)
*"Dark Fire" (1994)
*"Element of Risk" (1994)
*"Indiscretions" (1995)
*"Prince of Lies" (1995)
*"Tiger, Tiger" (1997)
*"A Forbidden Desire" (1997)
*"The Nanny Affair" (1998)
*"Forbidden Pleasure" (1998)
*"The Paternity Affair" (1999)
*"A Reluctant Mistress" (1999)
*"Sanchia's Secret" (2000)
*"A Ruthless Passion" (2001)
*"The Devil's Bargain" (2001)
*"Forgotten Sins" (2001)
*"Wolfe's Temptress" (2002)
*"One Night at Parenga" (2002)
*"The Temptress of Tarika Bay" (2003)
*"The Millionaire's Virgin Mistress" (2003)
*"A Spanish Vengeance" (2003)
*"By Royal Command" (2004)
*"The Billionaire's Passion" (2004)
*"The Blackmail Bargain" (2005)
*"The Royal Baby Bargain" (2005)
*"The Rich Man's Royal Mistress" (2006)
*"The Prince's Convenient Bride" (2007)
*"Virgin Bought and Paid for" (2007)
Hollingworth Series
#"Long Journey Back" (1986)
#"Captives of the Past" (1986)
#"Love's Reward" (1989)
Love's Reward Series
#"A Bitter Homecoming" (1989)
#"Some Kind of Madness" (1991)
Pagan Surrender
#"Pagan Surrender" (1993)
#"Paradise Lost" (1993)
Tiger Eyes Series
#"Tiger Eyes" (1994)
#"Surrender to Seduction" (1998)
The Marriage Maker Series
#"The Mirror Bride" (1996)
#"Meant to Marry" (1996)
#"The Final Proposal" (1996)
Royal Weddings Series
#"The Prince's Pleasure" (2002)
#"His Pregnant Princess" (2004)
#"By Royal Demand" (2006)
Royal House Of Niroli Series Multi-Author
*"The Prince's Forbidden Virgin" (2007)
Collections
*"Best of Robyn Donald: Summer at Awakopu, Wife in Exchange" (1984)
*"Daddy's Home" (1997)
*"Mirror Bride / Meant to Marry" (2005)
Omnibus In Collaboration
*"Captive Hearts" (1998) (with
*"Pacific Passions" (2002) (with
*"His Secret Baby" (2004) (with
*"The Tycoon's Love Child" (2005) (with
*"Dark Seductions" (2005) (with
*"Royal Proposals" (2006) (with
Non fiction
*"Writing Romantic Fiction" (1999)
References and Resources
* [http://www.robyndonald.com/ Robyn Donald's Official Website]
* [http://www.eharlequin.com/author.html?authorid=433 Robyn Donald's Webpage] in Harlequin Enterprises Ltd
* [http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/d/robyn-donald/ Robyn Donald's Webpage] in Fantastic Fiction's Website
Источник: Robyn Donald
См. также в других словарях:
The Robber Bride — infobox Book | name = The Robber Bride title orig = translator = image caption = A British paperback edition of The Robber Bride . author = Margaret Atwood cover artist = Malcolm Tarlofsky (first edition, hardcover) country = Canada language =… … Wikipedia
The Other Side of the Mirror (anthology) — infobox Book | name = The Other Side of the Mirror title orig = translator = image caption = Cover of the first edition author = edited by Marion Zimmer Bradley illustrator = cover artist = Richard Hescox country = United States language =… … Wikipedia
Martha in the Mirror — Doctor Who book Martha in the Mirror Series New Series Adventures Release number … Wikipedia
King's Quest VII: The Princeless Bride — King’s Quest VII: The Princeless Bride Разработчик Sierra Entertainment Издатель Sierra Entertainment Часть серии King’s Quest Даты выпуска Ноябрь 1994 Жанр Квест … Википедия
Bride Has Massive Hair Wig Out — is the name of a viral video uploaded to YouTube in early 2007. Apparently shot by one of three bridesmaids, it shows a bride (Canadian actress Jodi Behan) so unhappy with her hairstyle on her wedding day that she starts cutting it off.It quickly … Wikipedia
The Mysterious Mr. Quin — … Wikipedia