Her Secret, His Child (IM Extra) (Silhouette Intimate Moments No. 667) [Paperback]

Paula Detmer Riggs (Author)

Book Description

Series: Silhouette Intimate Moments | Publication Date: September 1, 1995

Her Secret, His Child (IM Extra) (Silhouette Intimate Moments No. 667) (Paperback) by Paula Detmer Riggs

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Silhouette; Silhouette Intimate Moments #667 edition (September 1, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0373076673
• ISBN-13: 978-0373076673
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,902,807 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Controversial and thought provoking story, July 8, 2002

By 

Susan Smith (A small rural village in the English Midlands) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Her Secret, His Child (IM Extra) (Silhouette Intimate Moments No. 667) (Paperback)

I love PDR and have read, over the years, most of her novels. However, this one, as far as I can determine, was never published in the UK. We met the hero, Mitch Scanlon, in Once Upon a Wedding briefly. I must confess I always wondered if he would have his own story. Years later, looking at some of the romance review websites I discovered that he did, indeed, have his own story. It was then a case of tracking the book down.

This book has attracted controversy in the past because it deals with date rape - a subject which is often in the news these days because of the concern over the legal fraternity in getting it treated fairly in our politically correct world. So, here is a subject to be handled carefully and, to be fair, PDR does so in the main. However, I did not really warm to her heroine. Frankly, Carly Anderson is not someone I would like for a friend. There is just a touch of hollering "no" at the point of no return and that is, of course, the problem with the whole topic of date rape. Also, for a very intelligent woman, she allows this one episode to cause her to make some questionable choices in her life; she is not a happy woman when we meet her and you really have to wonder why she has not been able to be more pragmatic about herself.

Her hero, Mitch, is made to suffer disproportionately, in my own view, for something which he did at a very young age. PDR makes this man a paraplegic at the height of a fantastically successful career as a professional athlete. He does, in the main, rebuild his life but he still suffers - there is no truly meaningful relationship in his life and his physical disabilities are horrendous although he does cope very well with them. He is a very charming man and desirable one.

There is a "hidden baby" in this book. And, sadly, this is where PDR lets herself down. Although Mitch meets and loves his daughter when finally he is allowed to know her, Carly and he (really Carly in my opinion) decide to keep her paternity a secret. This is where the plot becomes clouded and departs from what some may view as the reality of the modern world. Denying a child knowledge of its paternity is, I think, probably a worse "crime" than date rape especially when the father is loving, caring and willing to take full responsibility.

The issue of IVF for paraplegics is explored here as well which is interesting because it allows Carly and Mitch to start again. However, this child will know its parents but not its sister. This issue has provoked discussion elsewhere and is never resolved by the author.

I liked Mitch. He was gritty yet realistic in handling his disability. He suffers and is tortured about his actions and their outcomes but handles them better and more maturely, I think, than Carly. Carly is, I think, the character that is a little bit two dimensional.

A book which continues to cause discussion. If you like PDR then it is not to be missed. I have always wondered why it never got released, as far as I can tell, in the UK. It is PDR at her angst-ridden, tortured hero best. I loved Mitch but would not like to have lunch with Carly. Highly recommended for the issues raised here: date rape, retribution, suffering, disability and paternity.

3.0 out of 5 stars I liked this, September 17, 2006

By 

Lisa J "foreverromance" (Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Her Secret, His Child (IM Extra) (Silhouette Intimate Moments No. 667) (Paperback)

I'd really give this 3 1/2 stars. I know other reviewers have questioned the way she became pregnant and I'm in two minds about the whole thing. But if you take that out of the equation, I really liked Mitch. The way his paralysis was portrayed, as well as his daily struggle with his braces and crutches was very moving. He was a mature, thoughtful and sensitive hero. I found this difficult to reconcile with the insensitive 'jock' who forced the heroine to have sex with him.

0 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Golden Child, November 11, 2008

By 

Ellie "mittbooks" (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Her Secret, His Child (IM Extra) (Silhouette Intimate Moments No. 667) (Paperback)

Her daughter meant everything to Carly Alderson. Afterall, she'd gone through hell to have her. As an unwed teenager, no one had understood Carly's fiercely prtective bond to her fatherless child...not her parents, not the sometimes norrow-minded college town she called home. But Tracy was hers, and no one would ever take her away, especially the golden boy who'd made Carly a woman - and nearly destroyed her world - one all-too-memorable night....

The memory of Mitch Scanlon hadn't faded with the years. And now the man himself threatened to become a permanent fixture in her life - as well as a bittersweet reminder of her darkest secret. One that surely couldn't last once father and daughter were reunited.

This book was not an enjoyable read. Suffering for main characters can certainly be an excellent literary devise, but it seemed as though the characters were made to suffer without any true reason. Plus, I thought it a poor choice on the author's part to attempt to find a middle ground on date rape, so that her main characters could overcome that event.