Linda Howard Book Junkies discussion

Greek billionaire playboy Nikolas Constantinos intended to conclude the business deal with Jessica Stanton, a.k.a. The Black Widow, as quickly as possible. Love hadn't been part of his plan. A hot affair or a one-night stand was all he'd allow. Because love would lead to marriage. And marriage to Jessica, a woman with a scandalous past, could ruin him. But love was the one thing he couldn't control.

Sorry gang I haven't been on. Been really sick since right after Christmas, and really haven't been thinking about going on line. Still not well and was suppose to get my grandkids for 3 days, but obviously that is out.

This one was a rage read for me. The so-called "hero" defines alphole for me. Jessica is a doormat. I won't be rereading this one.

I've never read it and am glad going in to know this was one of Linda's alphole hero books. I've got the audio book and hope to start soon. Is anyone else ready to start this one?

I have to finish the book I'm reading now and then I will start it. According to the LH booklist that I have, this was the first book that she had published in 1982.

I have to finish Hour of Need by Melinda Leigh, then I plan to start with AtG. This story has low avg rating 3.11 but it will be interesting to see how LH's work has evolved. And alphole heroes can sometimes be interesting ;)

If this book has one redeeming quality, it's that All That Glitters is fairly short.

I so agree. Someone (preferably Jessica) should have hit him in the head with a brick-several times. And I've read a fair amount of Diana Palmer, so I can tolerate an alphole "hero." He makes Rome look like the height of caring and sensitivity.

I just started the book. Nicklos is a jerk who expects everyone to bow and scrape to him. Jessica married and lost a man old enough to be her grandfather and can't understand why everyone thinks she is a gold digger. I'm not that far into the book (view spoiler)[at the place where Jessica's dog has her puppies and Nick is there with her (hide spoiler)], but Jessica is holding her own. I can see already that Jessica has a tender heart and that Nick is just gonna stomp it.

Bad, just really, really bad. I knew going in that it wasn't one of Linda Howard's best works, but I never expected it to be quite so terrible.

Anita wrote: "Bad, just really, really bad. I knew going in that it wasn't one of Linda Howard's best works, but I never expected it to be quite so terrible."

Well, this is a LH book I hadn't read but now I think I'll skip it. Thanx Anita for the review. I always trust your judgement :)

There is absolutely no redeeming reason to read this book, other than to make it a baseline for what a 1-Star book is. I didn't think a writer of Linda Howard's stature could write such a bad book. I guess even the best, Sandra Brown and Nora Roberts included, have a least one like this.

Yep, ur right, even the best authors have some duds :)

If I'm really honest I cannot believe some publisher thought this book was good enough to be published, especially since this was her first book. I'm not too impressed with the publisher. Perhaps if she had already proved herself with other books, but this book is REALLY horrible.

Dee wrote: "If I'm really honest I cannot believe some publisher thought this book was good enough to be published, especially since this was her first book. I'm not too impressed with the publisher. Perhaps i..."

She started out in 1982 with Silhouette Publishers then Harlequin bought Silhouette. I guess since she had already been published by S that H figured they would publish this. Simon And Schuster publish her later books.

Bad or not bad, I'm glad some publisher decided to publish this book. What if Linda Howard had cowered out and decided not to write anything else because no one wanted to publish her story? Wouldn't that have been a shame if we had lost author like Linda Howard?
And lets face it - in the 80s heroes seemed to be mostly ruthless and inconsiderate about anyone else's feelings but their own. Whereas the heroines were mild, forgiving, spineless doormats who suffered everything in silence **sigh**
I'm so glad that in these days Linda Howard's heroines are brave, stronger, and with steel rod spine :)

All I can figure was that was a "style" that was popular in the romance genre with publishers during the early 80's. Sandra Brown wrote in a very similar style during that time. So glad the publishers quit publishing that garbage. I had young children in the early 80's and when I read, I think I read Historical-Romance. That decade is kinda a blur.

Anita wrote: "All I can figure was that was a "style" that was popular in the romance genre with publishers during the early 80's. Sandra Brown wrote in a very similar style during that time. So glad the publish..."

Right Anita, Sandra Brown wrote mostly sappy romance novels then. I for one am also glad these authors changed up and got to be the top rated authors as we know them to be. Growing up I always read the "Bodice Rippers" as I called them. The paperbacks with the Fabio guy dipping the buxom woman on the front cover. I can't even read those now that I have discovered romantic suspense and Lori Foster :)

Thinking back, it seems that a good many of those bodice ripper authors like Rosemary Rogers wrote victim heroines too.

I finished All That Glitters last night and while it wasn't the best book I've ever read, it wasn't the worst book either. I thought the basic premise of the story was good and very indicative of the category romances that were published in the 80's. What made me shake my head was some of the things that Nikolas and Jessica said and did. I like for my characters to be likeable and believable. For the most part, Jessica was a strong, intelligent and independent woman, but she did some things that were out of character for someone with those qualities. Nikolas was a male chauvinist in the truest sense of the word, but he most definitely was a product of his culture and upbringing. His mother said that he was just like his father. While that doesn't excuse his behavior, it helps to explain it.

All That Glitters was first published in 1982 by Silhouette and since then it has been republished at least six times by five different publishers including Mira Books, Thorndike Press, Severn House Publishers and Harlequin. The edition that I read was a reprint by Harlequin from 2014 when it was combined with An Independent Wife in a book called Shattered: All That Glitters\An Independent Wife. Everyone has to start somewhere and if this was where Linda Howard had to start, then I applaud her, because she is a wonderful author.

Judy wrote: "I finished All That Glitters last night and while it wasn't the best book I've ever read, it wasn't the worst book either. I thought the basic premise of the story was good and very i..."
I agree Judy. I have said the same that they all had to start somewhere. Actually, several of those publishers are part of Simon and Schuster. These big publishing companies all have smaller ones within them. I learned that when I had to order all the books at the store I worked it. I was amazed.

well I am starting this reread tonight.

A lot of authors who eventually ended up as good Romantic-Suspense authors started their careers in Bodice Ripper Historical-Romance, or Alphole hero - Victim heroine Romance, or Romance Lite (romance with humor). They all wrote what the publisher told them would sell. The really good ones stuck it out and eventually got to write what they wanted to.

Actually, they wrote what the publisher told them to write. It was standard practice. Still being done by some.

I recall LH saying somewhere there was one book she was told what to write and she didn’t like it the book. She wouldn’t say which one it was.

I think that being told what to write or not..like no more Battle Ridge series (like Running Wild) is why so many authors are now self publishing or changing publishers when their contracts run out.

As I started to read ATGs it occurred to me why didn't she tell Nikolas that she was a virgin.

I don’t think he wouldn’t have believed her. He was set in what he wanted and wanted to believe. I agree she should have tried, but she should have done a lot of things differently with this a$$.

As the book neared the end, she did try to tell him several times, but he kept saying that he didn't want to hear it and just blew her off.

Anita wrote: "A lot of authors who eventually ended up as good Romantic-Suspense authors started their careers in Bodice Ripper Historical-Romance, or Alphole hero - Victim heroine Romance, or Romance Lite (roma..."

And we are all glad that they did stick it out!

I agree with Jane - he wouldn't have believed her if he had managed to tell him. He had convinced himself that she was a gold digging whore and even if he couldn't reconcile what he saw and felt personally with her, he still believed she was.

Depends on how earnestly she wanted him to know. It is possible to get a doctors opinion. I grant you that would be very humiliating but frankly the way they consummated their marriage was IMO very humiliating, and frankly it had to hurt terribly

I think ATG was that book Linda Howard did not like!
She has written more books with jerk heroes but I think Nikolas tops them all. Having the heroine who married 76-year-old man when she was 18 didn't help either (no matter about the reasons behind the marriage and not having sex with him, this kind of age difference is still total turn-off and no young woman should even consider something so disgusting)!

I dislike guys who see something they like, assume they can take it, use it and then walk away without backward glance. Nikolas was so pompous, egotistical, overbearing, and conceited. And when Nikolas could have discovered her bride's purity and he should have done some crawling and ask for forgiveness...he was too drunk and frustrated to even notice it! WTF????
I could not see any reason - sans his good looks and money, - why someone would fall in love with him. He would be impossible to live together with! Not that Jessica was any better. She was a whimp, unstable, immature and doormat.

He’d be in the company of all the men who are now in the spotlight for their sexual unwanted activities with multiple women. I can’t imagine what her life will be like with this arrogant nut.

Let's discuss Jessica's first marriage. She was 18 and a destitute orphan. Just how did she hook up with her English sugar daddy to begin with? There were a multitude of ways for him to provide for her, besides marriage. Adoption, leaving her a really generous bequest are just two. I think he really wanted everyone to think he has the fire to bed an 18 year old, even if he didn't.

18-year-old with 40-year-old is too much age difference for my tase but 18-year-old with 76-year-old....this is beyond repulsive!
I didn't see any valid reasons as to why Jessica had to get married to a man who was so old that he could have been easily her great grandfather. I guess it was good to her first husband's ego to show to everyone that he could get himself 18-year-old woman but its so disgusting when looked from both sides!

Yep....TROPHY WIFE / arm candy and ego booster for an old man.

Jessica claimed that wasn't the case, but his stated motive of wanting to take care of her could have been handled a lot of other ways. His friends and society probably would have still thought he was an old goat anyway. I really can't blame Nikolas for thinking she had sold her body to an old man, but he was not willing to move beyond that.

I was married to a man that was 17 years older than me. I was in my 40's when we got together so it was not the case, and yes it was love. But the older we got the more of a care taker I became. I cannot imagine being married to a 76 year old man and being only 18, unless you are doing it for the money, and even that would be like selling my soul. When Nikolas started bad mouthing Jessica before he even asked her to marry him I would have told him to go fly a kite he knew NOTHING of our relationship and it was none of his business. I don't know if I would have forgiven him after his attitude changes when he found her near the ocean and almost dead . I have to say this is one of my top 5 most disliked books.

Agreed, Dee. It raises my blood pressure just to read it. 😛

LH’s later books are SO much better that I chalk this up to perhaps a young writer who wrote what a publisher may have demanded.

If this is her first book why would a publisher demand she write something like this drivel.

What I do like of this book is that it has brought a lot of good conversation about it. I guess that is one positive about really BAD books

Agreed! We have had a very spirited discussion this month, for sure.

Hhuhhh, I finally got to re-read ATG again.
Quite truthfully Jessica's first husband left me now better opinion than Nikolas. Nikolas was way too quick to jump to conclusions and judge without knowing the backround [made me wonder if he also acted so hastily in his business dealings?] whereas Robert, Jess's first husband seemed like a kind, lonely and caring elderly man.
Not too many men would take on an orphan and love her like she were his own flesh and blood, and without making any demands on her. Their relationship was purely platonic, like that of a father & daughter or a grandfather & granddaughter. Jessica and Robert had been just two people who were alone in the world. Jessica was an orphan who had grown up with a shortage of love; he was an old man whose first wife had died years ago and who now found himself without family in his last years. Robert took in the wary young girl and he gave her comfort, security, even marrying her in an effort to make certain she never wanted for anything again.
Jessica, in turn, felt a love for the gentle, elderly man who gave her so much and asked for so little in return. And he had loved her for bringing her youth and beauty and bright laughter into the fading years of his life, and had guided her maturity and her quick mind with all the loving indulgence of a father.

Quote from the book:
The material things he had bestowed on her were small in comparison to his other gifts: love, security, self-respect, self-confidence. He had encouraged her development as a woman of high intelligence; he had taught her of his world of stocks and bonds, to trust her own instinct when she was in doubt.
Dear, wise Robert! Yet, for his marriage to her he had been laughed at and mocked, and she had been scorned. When a gentleman of seventy-six marries a gorgeous young girl of eighteen, gossips can credit it to only two things: greed on her part, and an effort to revive faded appetites on his.
...
Before their marriage Robert had even speculated on the advantages of adopting her, but in the end he'd decided that there would be fewer legal difficulties if he married her. He wanted her to have the security she'd always lacked, having grown up in an orphanage and been forced into hiding herself behind a prickly wall of sullen passivity. Robert was determined that never again would she have to fight for food or privacy or clothing; she would have the best, and the best way to secure that way of life for her was to take her as his wife.
...
The scandal their marriage had caused had rocked London society; vicious items concerning her had appeared in the gossip columns

Eve....Yes, I think you’re 100% right about Robert and Jessica.

Nicholas bought all the gossip and rumors from people who k ew nothing of the private life of Jessica. Nicholas, in my mind, is a huge ..uh...jerk is too mild a word...for his words and actions. I don’t know what life with him would be like...except untrusting.