Customer Reviews

Valentino's Love-Child (Harlequin Presents)

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Once again, I'm just not sure why Lucy Monroe's Harlequin romances affect me so much...but they do. "Valentino's Love-Child" (and yes I'm shuddering even as I write that) made me laugh and cry and sometimes that's just exactly what I want and exactly what Monroe can deliver for me.

Faith's past has taught her not to hope for a family of her own. Instead, she's learned to be content with her life in Sicily, her art, and her work with children. Her sizzling affair with Valentino was unexpected and she certainly never dreamed it would last almost a year! Over that year though, her feelings have grown and she knows that soon she'll have to back away to save her heart. But then--a miracle. She's pregnant with a child she never dreamed she could carry. Maybe she's greedy, but she can't help but dream of another miracle--a life with Tino.

Valentino made a promise at his young wife's grave. He would never allow another to take her place in his heart. So he's kept his affairs and mistresses separate from his family life with his young son. But he's having difficulty keeping thoughts of his latest lover, Faith, from intruding into his 'other' life. He's infatuated with her but still determined to remain heart whole. Until Faith begins acting strange...and dares to terminate their affair!

Yes, the plot is one I've read many times. Yes, I know what the ending will be. But it just doesn't seem to matter. For the time I'm reading Lucy Monroe's story, I'm totally immersed in it. The characters become real to me and their joy and pain is almost visceral. As an added bonus, the sex is hot and the stories are relatively short. She's an author whose books I'll reread when I need a good emotional jolt. If that sounds good to you, try her latest and let me know what you think. (Since I refuse to type that title again!)

Valentino's Love Child by Lucy Monroe is an emotional journey of love past and present.

American artist Faith Williams has enjoyed the life she has built in Sicily. She loves working on her art and teaching at the local elementary school. But a top on Faith's list is her lover for almost a year Valentino Grisaft. Tino for the most part treats her like a Queen. But Faith wants more then a willing bed partner lately.

Valentino Grisaft really can't pinpoint what his true feelings are for his American Lover. She has come to mean more to him then any other woman since the death of his beloved wife. Tino has vowed to only remarry a Sicilian and this causes problems when Faith wants more from their relationship.

When Faith realizes she is pregnant she breaks it off with Tino. She wants love from him not an obligation. Once Tino realizes the depth of his true feelings for Faith, nothing will stop him from making her his wife.

Valentino's Love Chile has all the passion and emotion one comes to expect from a novel from Lucy Monroe. Her books have characters that their emotions touch your heart. Tino and Faith are no exception to characters that will stay with me for a long time. You can't go wrong in picking up any book by Lucy Monroe.

Can Lucy Monroe write a bad Harlequin Presents story? I don't think so. Valentino's Love-Child was great! It was a very tender, sensual and passionate story. Tino Grisafi is an Italian widowed vintner with a son and the heroine, Faith Williams is a young widowed artist living in Italy from American. She came there after her husband and the baby that she was carrying died in an accident. Faith and Tino have been lovers for almost a year, and Tino has no plans to ever marry again. He made a promise to his first wife at her graveside that he wouldn't do love again. And even if he married again, he wants it to be a Sicilian woman.

Faith has been okay with their arrangement until she finds out that she is pregnant with Tino's child. Faith knows how Tino feels about getting married again so she does what she feels is best, and ends their relationship. She has finally healed from the pain of losing her husband and child, and she didn't think that she could ever conceive again. But Tino has changed his mind, he wants Faith and their baby. But he still doesn't know about being able to love again. This is a very heartfelt story about loving again after losing the one you love. 5 stars!

I found this book under a thread for Harlequin Presents books people like and I was interesting. I'm ashamed having read this book and completely flabbergasted that the Ms. Monroe ACTUALLY wrote this story and thought it was good and that some idiot editor let it get published.

Valentino or Tino is without a doubt one of the worst heroes you will ever read. Now I know I'm picky and have no qualms admitting so but this book is ridiculous to the extreme and offensive. There is NO love story here. There's boring sex and lots of ethnic supremacy racism.

Tino lives in Sicily, a widower father raising his 8 year old son with the help of his mother and father. He meets Faith Williams, an American artist living in Sicily and the two of them start a sexual relationship. They aren't lovers because lovers implies wining and dining and conversations of substance before screwing. These two just screw. And screw in some rather lackluster sex scenes at that.

Tino absolutely refuses to remarry having promised his dead wife at her grave that he won't ever allow someone else to take her place in his heart. He feels something for Faith because gosh darn it she screws so well he doesn't have to use his hand anymore. They've been screwing for a year and oops Faith of course gets pregnant. Faith, having a sad past didn't think she'd ever get pregnant again. She feels Tino out on marriage and he PLAINLY says he WON'T marry her. But then he says IF he thought marriage was best for his son having a second mother he'd ONLY marry a Sicilian mother cuz pale white, redheaded Faith isn't the right ethnicity for his son's mother. He actually says he's no ethnic supremacist but he completely acts like one. It's this guy SUCH an amazing hero? Don't you just want to love him?

Faith wants to marry him because in the year she's been in love with him and because she's carrying his baby. She's friends with his mother who loves her artwork and she teaches elementary art classes as a volunteer and Tino's son is in one of her classes and she loves the little boy and he loves his teacher as a teacher and as a person. Faith is exactly the type of mother Giosue dreams of but too bad she's white cuz his father would NEVER allow anyone non-Sicilian to have his last name. This glossed over racism is applauding and disgusting. Faith is good enough to screw but not good enough to marry.

Tino finds out about the pregnancy then all of a sudden he turns into caveman and give in wanting to marry white Faith just because of the baby but he refuses to love her and TELL HER THIS. I can't wrap my head around a guy repeatedly and explicitly tell her clear as glass "I can't and won't love you"

As a reader, we're suppose to like these two? Faith putting up with that kind of abuse and Valentino being that kind of an you-know-what hole???

Unreal. Do NOT get this book. Don't do it. Walk away, walk away, WALK AWAY. If I could give it zero stars I wouldn't. I'd even go a step further and give it a negative 0 stars

I have a love/hate relationship with Lucy Monroe books, this was a love.

It's the usual rich tycoon knocks up his mistress/lover HQN presents tale- except that it's so rich in characters that it's entirely unique and totally beloved by this reader. I normally avoid pregnancy/baby books... and I LOVED IT.

I don't want to say too much, as I don't want to give away plot points but let's just say that Faith is a wonderful heroine- strong and unwilling to go along with what her lover wants just because. Valentino is an arrogant man that had me rolling my eyes... except that he figures out what he wants and should go after by the end, thus making him dreamy.

If you're into this line and the basic premise appeals, DO go for it. I'm glad I did.

Lucy's characters are so vibrant. I know when I pick up her books I will be drawn into a living, breathing world of strong individuals and issues that grab my heart and squeeze. The curiosity is how will these characters resolve their differences? There are no trite, easy answers, and this particular story masterfully shared two completely different points of view, neither of which was wrong, simply different. There is also the pleasure of having plenty of time to savor the final outcome. A very satisfying read.

Valentino's Love-Child is explosive, passionate, intense and just plain wonderful and it's no surprise because the author of this fabulous book is Lucy Monroe.

Tino as he's affectionately called by his family and lover Faith is one sexy Sicilian, a successful business man, and is one extremely stubborn Italian. From the very beginning one can tell that Tino's appetite for Faith is one that at times he doesn't understand and for the time being he's happy being in the relationship. Why one might ask? Because everything is going his way....no strings, no promises and she is always available and never asks for more. He absolutely adores her but one will learn Tino really doesn't know much about her plus the fact that he hasn't admitted to her that when his wife died he made a grave side promise.

Faith is a talented artist and teacher and a very brave woman. She has secrets about her past. She also has another secret which she's kept from Tino. Before she met him, Faith met his mother and she's become a dear friend. Due to the friendship, it was suggested Faith teach art at his son's school. She's kept her relationship with his mother and son to herself. As Faith's story unfolds one will learn she's just not talented, she's also very brave.

Faith's struggle in the end when it's revealed she's carrying his child and her absolute and unconditional love for the baby she's carrying plus her relationship turmoil will have you crying. However, Faith is not the only one who struggles, Tino does as well because he can't let go of past memories.

Lucy Monroe couldn't have chosen her heroine's name any better because Faith, most definitely has faith as well as hope and in the end for this couple their love shines through in this magnificent romance one you definitely won't want to miss.

3.8 out of 5 stars!! I know it's an unusual scoring but this book was SOOOO much better then "Made the Grade" but not quite a "Feasted On." (You'll know what I mean if you check out my blog) =0) Anyway ... I really loved the twists and turns in this book from Faith's relationships with Tino's family that he wasn't aware of to how they decide to work out their situation.

It makes me all giddy just thinking about it!!

Review By: From Me to You ... Book Reviews
(read more of this review and a teaser on my blog)

Faith is Valentino's mistress and has been for about a year. They don't really know much about each other. He never knew that she was a widow, that she had a been pregnant a few times, that she was an orphan, that she was a pretty well known artist and even taught art at his son's school. He knows none of these things as they only seem to have a physical relationship. He won't even let her sleep through the night with him at his place. He usually wakes her up and kicks her out of bed. Things start coming to light when he finds out about her teaching his son when she comes to dinner one night. He thought that his son's teacher was coming and she thought that he knew it was her. Basically it was a blind date when he had promised Faith that he would only be with her. She finds out that he would never marry her, only a good Sicilian wife/mother for him and his son. She is an American! Basically she is good enough to bed but not wed. He continues to tell her that he won't marry her and finally she breaks up with him after he denies any type of relationship with her to his parents and tells her once again that she wouldn't be an appropriate wife.

Faith is pregnant but she doesn't tell Tino. She has decided that she will tell him when she is past the first trimester as she is afraid that she will lose the baby as she has before. Everyone she has ever loved has either died or left her. She has some issues here. Tino has a loving family and she loves him and wants to be a part of his family but she doesn't want him to marry her because of the baby.

Tino continues to try to get Faith back but she won't take him back. Then he finds out about the baby through his very nosy mother. He is so sweet when he finds out. Tino and Faith have a bit of a confrontation and she slaps him. He is not concerned about that but more concerned about whether or not she hurt her hand when she hit him.

Tino and Faith had both lost people that they loved. Faith lost her husband whom she admitted she loved but wasn't in love with; and Tino lost Maura his wife whom he admitted was the love of his youth but that Faith is the love of his life.
This was a really sweet story with some pretty sensual love scenes. The HEA was believable. Tino needed to let go of Maura in order to move on and Faith needed to trust and have faith that she wouldn't always lose everything that mattered to her.