This Time Love [Mass Market Paperback]

Elizabeth Lowell (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 28, 2003

Joy Anderson was young and trusting when she served as a guide for aspiring journalist Gabe Venture. Surrounded by the staggering natural beauty of New Mexico's Lost River Cave, Joy gave herself freely to the most extraordinary man she had ever known. But even the passion they shared could not hold him—and Gabe left Joy with a broken heart . . . and, nine months later, with a cherished, if painful, reminder of their lost love. Now Joy is a respected doctor with no room in her life for shattered dreams. And Gabe has returned at the pinnacle of his profession, longing to fill the inner emptiness that has rendered his achievements bittersweet. Joy, however, has nursed her wounds and moved on; he has arrived far too late to be welcomed back into her heart.

But while there is still magic beneath the rolling New Mexican desert—in the breathtaking world of mystery and wonder where the miracle was born—can it ever be too late for love?

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

A star-crossed couple gets a second chance at love, and Lowell's 1986 novel Sequel gets a second chance with readers in this new hardcover edition. The vintage romance by Lowell (Running Scared) opens with a reunion between scientist Joy Smith-Anderson and journalist Gabriel Venture. The two met seven years ago, when Joy was a romantic, naive 20-year-old and Gabe a cub reporter on assignment in her native New Mexico. She served as his guide through the little-known natural wonder called Lost River Cave and fell in love with him. The two shared one passionate night before he reluctantly moved on to his next assignment, leaving Joy furious and heartbroken. When she found out that she was pregnant with his child, Joy told him that she had an abortion. In fact, she gave birth to a daughter and in her spare time completed a Ph.D. She now spearheads a research project in the Lost River Cave, but her grant is about to run out. Gabe learns that the project is going to lose funding and decides to help out by writing about the cave again. His surprise visit shocks Joy, but not nearly as much as Joy's daughter shocks him. As the two rehash their relationship, they come to realize that beneath the anger and pain they still love each other. But is love enough to overcome the mistakes of their past? There are few surprises or climactic moments, but Lowell convincingly explores her characters' ambivalence and longing. Though this isn't her most memorable work, it hits the usual notes; fans who missed this novel the first time around will be satisfied.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

If you enjoy sexy, intelligent, and even challenging romances, you have to love Lowell (Moving Target). Her works may be formulaic, but they aren't easy, offering handsome, exciting, yet betrayed and hardened men and brilliant, unconventionally beautiful, yet damaged and psychically fragile women. Aside from the ravages of relationships and the nuances of nooky, Lowell's readers also learn about the ins and outs of various professions, from performance dressage to photography to speleology (the exploration and study of caves), as we have here. A "reimagining" of her 1986 Sequel, this work reintroduces Dr. Joyce (Joy) Anderson, foremost speleologist, and adventure writer Gabriel (Gabe) Venture to each other. In contrast to Lowell's other works, it is the lovers themselves who cause the disappointment and pain. As always, emotional breakthroughs follow some darn fine physical, uh, breakthroughs. Love and trust will prove the stuff of healing, with readers smiling all the way to the recovery room. Recommended for all romance collections.
Bette-Lee Fox, "Library Journal"
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Avon (October 28, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0380789949
• ISBN-13: 978-0380789948
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 4.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,235,495 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #33 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Romance > Authors, A-Z > ( L ) > Lowell, Elizabeth

More About the Author

NEW YORK TIMES Bestselling author Elizabeth Lowell has numerous historical and contemporary novels in print, including her four-book series of suspense novels featuring the unforgettable Donovan family--AMBER BEACH, JADE ISLAND, PEARL COVE and MIDNIGHT IN RUBY BAYOU. Ms. Lowell's current release, DEATH ECHO, is Book 5 in her St. Kilda Consulting series and features twin yachts, international gangsters, and plenty of romantic-suspense. There are more than thirty million Elizabeth Lowell books currently in print. Ms. Lowell lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Older Book... Timeless Love Story, December 31, 2002

By 

Deborah L. Correll (Conway, MO United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: This Time Love: A Classic Love Story (Lowell, Elizabeth) (Hardcover)

Couldn't quite pull the 5 Star rating for me, but I was intrigued - first by the fact that Elizabeth Lowell was the author, and second that this was a "reconditioned version" of the '86 book. Too bad it took seven years for the star-crossed lovers Joy & Gabe to get their act together, but I enjoyed seeing these two characters 'spark'. Fatefully, seven years ago Joy, as a very young woman met Gabe when he was a budding journalist working on a cave exploration site in New Mexico with her parents. After a brief, but tender love affair, Gabe leaves Joy to further his career, not knowing Joy was pregnant with his child. Joy soon loses her parents to a tragic accident, and couragiously raises her child, earns her doctorate, and continues to pursue her parents' dream studying the Lost River Cave. Enter Gabe, seven years later, unaware of Joy's presense, his child, and is HE in for a big surprise! Joy is no longer an innocent, clinging young woman - and he is in for the fight of his life. It's all about choices. Career and success vs. happiness and contentment. This story is a keeper.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing, April 9, 2003

By 

G. Greene - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: This Time Love: A Classic Love Story (Lowell, Elizabeth) (Hardcover)

It pains me to give this author so few stars, because by and large, her work is excellent. I personally enjoyed all the details about spelunking; one of Lowell's great strengths is the amount of research she draws on for her novels. But if you aren't interested in the subject, you will be bored by this book, because there is a huge amount of detail about it, to the point that all the caving descriptions are at the expense of plot and character development.

The hero didn't appeal to me; it's difficult to like, much less respect, a man who seduces a young woman and then disappears without ever following up with her personally to see if there were any consequences from their affair, and THEN has the nerve to be outraged when he thinks she had an abortion after he abandoned her. Immaturity and irresponsibility are just not characteristics I find attractive in a man. My sole response to the hero was that he needed grow up and get over himself. As for the heroine, she was just a little too much of a stoic victim to suit my tastes.

I wish Lowell had left this book in the past, where it belonged, and spent her time writing a good novel instead of rehashing one that was mediocre at best to begin with, and certainly NOT worth a hardcover edition.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars More "I know everything" main characters were never found..., February 14, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: This Time Love: A Classic Love Story (Lowell, Elizabeth) (Hardcover)

I like a good romance. This isn't one. Forget the fact that the author provided WAY to many details on caving. The fact that Joy and Gabe never talked really got to me. All they did was dwell silently on the past and what the other person MUST be thinking. Ask for heaven's sake! You aren't mind readers. I listened to the book on tape only to kill time while driving. I don't think I would have made it through by reading.