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Reluctant Relative
In his eyes, she was just a gold digger. . .
Alandra's mother's dying wish was that Alandra visit the home of her only remaining relatives, the wealthy Todds, who disowned her father many years ago.
Alandra arrived at stately, elegant Roseacres prepared to dislike these heartless strangers, particularly her dour grandfather. But she slowly discovered that beneath his gruff exterior was a kind old gentleman who was shattered at the loss of his son.
It was Matt Carstairs, now the head of the firm of Carstairs and Todd, whom she loathed, and the feeling was very mutual. . . .
Alandra's mother's dying wish was that Alandra visit the home of her only remaining relatives, the wealthy Todds, who disowned her father many years ago.
Alandra arrived at stately, elegant Roseacres prepared to dislike these heartless strangers, particularly her dour grandfather. But she slowly discovered that beneath his gruff exterior was a kind old gentleman who was shattered at the loss of his son.
It was Matt Carstairs, now the head of the firm of Carstairs and Todd, whom she loathed, and the feeling was very mutual. . . .
189 pages, Paperback
First published December 15, 1983
About the author
Jessica Steele
346 books113 followersJessica Steele was born on May 9, 1933 in the elegant Warwickshire town of Royal Leamington Spa. She has two super brothers, Colin and George, and a lovely sister, Elizabeth. She was a delicate child and missed a lot of school. In fact, she left school at aged 14, when she was diagnosed as having tuberculosis. At 16, she started work as a junior clerk. In 1967, Jessica married with her husband, Peter and within a very short space of time they had moved from her hometown to the lovely area where they now live. Their house is built into the side of a hill, and has beautiful views over more hills and valleys. Her brothers and her sister are very close and she has plenty of nephews and nieces to make up for the fact that she and her husband have no children of their own. Both she and her husband are more than a little dog-oriented, and their current dog is a Staffordshire bull terrier named Florence. Florence is gorgeous. She loves everybody but, since she is 40 pounds of dynamite and would hurl her boisterous self at everyone she meets - given half a chance - she has to be restrained (as much as possible). She is fun.
Her husband spurred Jessica on to her writing career, giving her every support while she did what she considers her five-year apprenticeship (the rejection years) while learning how to write. She published her first books in 1979. Jessica has tried using a typewriter, but it just doesn't work for her. She is much happier writing in longhand, and in actual fact has a dozen or so fountain pens filled and ready to go at the start of any one session. A friend has a secretarial agency and, after deciphering Jessica's writing, returns an immaculately typed manuscript. To gain authentic background for her books, she has travelled and researched in Greece, Russia, Egypt, Mexico, Peru, Chile, Hong Kong, China and Japan.
Her husband spurred Jessica on to her writing career, giving her every support while she did what she considers her five-year apprenticeship (the rejection years) while learning how to write. She published her first books in 1979. Jessica has tried using a typewriter, but it just doesn't work for her. She is much happier writing in longhand, and in actual fact has a dozen or so fountain pens filled and ready to go at the start of any one session. A friend has a secretarial agency and, after deciphering Jessica's writing, returns an immaculately typed manuscript. To gain authentic background for her books, she has travelled and researched in Greece, Russia, Egypt, Mexico, Peru, Chile, Hong Kong, China and Japan.
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
July 21, 2020
Heroine is the reluctant relative who fulfills a deathbed promise to her mother to visit her estranged grandfather. Heroine holds a colossal grudge against the old man (he’s 69 – soon to be 70) because when informed of his son’s death, he told the heroine’s mother not to expect any money from him. Since heroine’s parents had lived in poverty since eloping, heroine took umbrage at the letter.
Her plan is to dash in and out – but unfortunately there is no train back to London that night or the rest of the weekend. Heroine meets her two snobby cousins, her grumpy grandpa, and the suspicious hero – who now owns the family business and estate due to everyone’s indifference.
She delivers lots of put-downs and makes enough witty remarks to intrigue her grandfather and the hero at their first family dinner. Heroine ends up staying a couple of months. Granddad feels guilt over the letter he sent in anger and is eager to make up with the heroine. Hero is eager to have her around for his own brand of courtship – golddigging comments, punishing kisses, and bit of slut shaming after said kisses.
Heroine retaliates with every cliched “bad girl” behavior she can think of. It’s pretty funny, since her lies sound like something out of the OW handbook.
I thoroughly enjoyed her antics.
H/h finally get together after the heroine returns to her old life. Hero then realizes he loves her and vice-versa. They will announce their engagement at granddad’s 70th birthday.
There’s another subplot with the shy male cousin that goes nowhere, but the reconciliation with her grandfather is interesting and in-character.
Her plan is to dash in and out – but unfortunately there is no train back to London that night or the rest of the weekend. Heroine meets her two snobby cousins, her grumpy grandpa, and the suspicious hero – who now owns the family business and estate due to everyone’s indifference.
She delivers lots of put-downs and makes enough witty remarks to intrigue her grandfather and the hero at their first family dinner. Heroine ends up staying a couple of months. Granddad feels guilt over the letter he sent in anger and is eager to make up with the heroine. Hero is eager to have her around for his own brand of courtship – golddigging comments, punishing kisses, and bit of slut shaming after said kisses.
Heroine retaliates with every cliched “bad girl” behavior she can think of. It’s pretty funny, since her lies sound like something out of the OW handbook.
I thoroughly enjoyed her antics.
H/h finally get together after the heroine returns to her old life. Hero then realizes he loves her and vice-versa. They will announce their engagement at granddad’s 70th birthday.
There’s another subplot with the shy male cousin that goes nowhere, but the reconciliation with her grandfather is interesting and in-character.
December 2, 2012
Jessica Steele is on auto buy for me, even though she only writes Harlequin Romances and some Hqn Presents. She is now about 80 years old, sad to say.
Steele is one of the worst writers, in terms of syntax, grammar, etc. Her sentence construction is ... unusual. But IMO, she is among the best at Hqn in terms of storytelling and sexual tension.
Her heroines are virgins, and the wanting drives the heroes nuts. But usually, the hero starts off on the wrong foot, thinking the gal did something terrible (embezzle, sleep around, etc), so they are cold and ruthless. Steele's heroes always endure internal conflict, because they are falling in love with a woman without honor, a shady character! So they blow hot and cold and generally mess it all up. Later, when they realize how wrong they've been, they sweat it out! Sometimes they grovel - I like a good grovel. :-)
Steele is one of the worst writers, in terms of syntax, grammar, etc. Her sentence construction is ... unusual. But IMO, she is among the best at Hqn in terms of storytelling and sexual tension.
Her heroines are virgins, and the wanting drives the heroes nuts. But usually, the hero starts off on the wrong foot, thinking the gal did something terrible (embezzle, sleep around, etc), so they are cold and ruthless. Steele's heroes always endure internal conflict, because they are falling in love with a woman without honor, a shady character! So they blow hot and cold and generally mess it all up. Later, when they realize how wrong they've been, they sweat it out! Sometimes they grovel - I like a good grovel. :-)
January 13, 2019
"Reluctant Relative" is the story of Alandra and Matt.
An engaging old school romance, this one has an avenging h going to meet her estranged grandfather in order to honor her mother's last wish.
Alain Todd had disowned his son when he left the Todd family business to marry an orphan, so much so that he refused to even acknowledge his own son's death! Hence, it's a shock to Alandra when her frail mother asks her to go to Roseacres, Alain's estate, as her dying wish.
After reaching there, she is surprised to find a brooding, suspicious man, who later turns out to be Matt Carstairs, now the head of the firm of Carstairs and Todd. She also meets her aging grandfather, who is now destitute; and a pair of meddling cousins.
While her grandfather is baffled by her audacity, her cousins are suspicious, and Matt thinks of her as a gold digger. Our h soon has a verbal spar with almost everyone, and is about to go back to London when the H offers a proposition. She needs to stay in Roseacres for three months, and he'd pay her a 1000 pounds! The reason- she livens up her grandpa, and Matt would do anything for Alain.
Thus begins a battle of wills between a mistrusting hero and a mischievous heroine. There's a LOT of OW/OM drama, witty banter, bruising kisses, almost non con sex (WARNING: the h repeatedly says no but the H continues to fondle her forcefully. Her inner musings say that she "moaned" No, but overall the scene is very discomforting to read) all culminating in a devious HEA.
If you like heroines with backbone, and heroes who go nuts in fits of jealousy, you would enjoy this.
Safe
3.25/5
PS. Love the cover with the roses!
An engaging old school romance, this one has an avenging h going to meet her estranged grandfather in order to honor her mother's last wish.
Alain Todd had disowned his son when he left the Todd family business to marry an orphan, so much so that he refused to even acknowledge his own son's death! Hence, it's a shock to Alandra when her frail mother asks her to go to Roseacres, Alain's estate, as her dying wish.
After reaching there, she is surprised to find a brooding, suspicious man, who later turns out to be Matt Carstairs, now the head of the firm of Carstairs and Todd. She also meets her aging grandfather, who is now destitute; and a pair of meddling cousins.
While her grandfather is baffled by her audacity, her cousins are suspicious, and Matt thinks of her as a gold digger. Our h soon has a verbal spar with almost everyone, and is about to go back to London when the H offers a proposition. She needs to stay in Roseacres for three months, and he'd pay her a 1000 pounds! The reason- she livens up her grandpa, and Matt would do anything for Alain.
Thus begins a battle of wills between a mistrusting hero and a mischievous heroine. There's a LOT of OW/OM drama, witty banter, bruising kisses, almost non con sex (WARNING: the h repeatedly says no but the H continues to fondle her forcefully. Her inner musings say that she "moaned" No, but overall the scene is very discomforting to read) all culminating in a devious HEA.
If you like heroines with backbone, and heroes who go nuts in fits of jealousy, you would enjoy this.
Safe
3.25/5
PS. Love the cover with the roses!
November 28, 2025
Was in the mood for some old school pride and prejudice with added slutshaming and Matt and Alandra (🙄) fit the bill. Traditional and very pleasurable read.
August 6, 2022
Rating:**2.5 stars**
This should be named the provoking relative because that was all the book was about.
First 20 mins into the book I found the FL so fresh and appealing but that opinion nosedived in no time. Our FL is a poor relation who goes to visit her grandfather on the request of her dying mother and is unwelcome by her cousins and the ML initially thinking she has come to claim her inheritance. The grandfather and eventually the cousins warm up to her with the exception of the ML and there was no reason contributing to it other than the FL herself being a featherbrained whiny and highly irritating woman.
There was no reasonable explanation for the FL constantly proving herself as a gold digger in front of the ML every opportunity she got and when her image worsened in his eyes or he glared or accused her she in turn made him out to be a stuck up rude man??? Made zero sense to the point that even she pondered why she kept riling him up. FL kept goading and the ML glaring and accusing, the same rinse and repeat for the whole 192 pages.
Besides she led her cousin on and when he fell for her she got annoyed with him??? This can't be even termed a circus cause it was such a tiring and annoying read. I still can't understand why the ML fell for her, I just feel really sorry for him.
This should be named the provoking relative because that was all the book was about.
First 20 mins into the book I found the FL so fresh and appealing but that opinion nosedived in no time. Our FL is a poor relation who goes to visit her grandfather on the request of her dying mother and is unwelcome by her cousins and the ML initially thinking she has come to claim her inheritance. The grandfather and eventually the cousins warm up to her with the exception of the ML and there was no reason contributing to it other than the FL herself being a featherbrained whiny and highly irritating woman.
There was no reasonable explanation for the FL constantly proving herself as a gold digger in front of the ML every opportunity she got and when her image worsened in his eyes or he glared or accused her she in turn made him out to be a stuck up rude man??? Made zero sense to the point that even she pondered why she kept riling him up. FL kept goading and the ML glaring and accusing, the same rinse and repeat for the whole 192 pages.
Besides she led her cousin on and when he fell for her she got annoyed with him??? This can't be even termed a circus cause it was such a tiring and annoying read. I still can't understand why the ML fell for her, I just feel really sorry for him.
June 20, 2013
A good solid 3 stars from Jessica Steele. Heroine is left destitute when her mother dies. She grants her mother's dying wish by going to see her estranged grandfather. When she arrives, she is all set on hating him only to find that there is a strong connection between them. The rest of her family, views her only as a gold digger. Wanting to get even with them, she decides to stay on. As is typical in JS's older books, the hero isn't very likable, yet alone lovable. So I can't buy into their HEA.
Though, there was a nice grovel towards the end, I was still very lukewarm on the hero.
Though, there was a nice grovel towards the end, I was still very lukewarm on the hero.
July 20, 2020
IN HIS EYES, SHE WAS JUST A GOLD DIGGER — Alandra's mother's dying wish was that Alandra visit the home of her only remaining relatives, the wealthy Todds, who disowned her father many years ago. Alandra arrived at stately, elegant Roseacres prepared to dislike these heartless strangers, particularly her dour grandfather. But she slowly discovered that beneath his gruff exterior was a kind old gentleman who was shattered at the loss of his son. It was Matt Carstairs, now the head of the firm of Carstairs and Todd, whom she loathed, and the feeling was very mutual.
June 27, 2024
Written in 1984 it is an old school Harlequin romance. (Boy meets girl, they dislike each other, fight to hide their growing feelings, admit to love and have their HEA). It is a cute romance that brings you back (in my case) my teens and my early love of reading .
This will be a re-read for sure
This will be a re-read for sure
October 21, 2017
I'm struggling through this one...
I'm going to put it down for now and maybe sometime in the near future I'll can get through it. I'm just not warming up to the heroine. I certainly wouldn't call her witty, she just lacks tact. I really wanted to enjoy this one because of the cover art which just looks absolutely romantic.
I'm going to put it down for now and maybe sometime in the near future I'll can get through it. I'm just not warming up to the heroine. I certainly wouldn't call her witty, she just lacks tact. I really wanted to enjoy this one because of the cover art which just looks absolutely romantic.
August 8, 2026
4.5 stars
I really enjoyed Reluctant Relative. I didn't skim once: the pacing held my attention throughout, the tropes were very much to my taste, and the romance developed naturally within a lovely forced-proximity, slice-of-life setup. My only real reservation is that, while all the right emotional ingredients were present, the intensity remained at perhaps 85% rather than reaching the kind of 110% emotional punch some romances can achieve.
Alandra is the daughter of two loving but now deceased parents. Her father came from a wealthy family but was disowned for marrying her mother, a sickly village girl, and never reconciled with them. Alandra therefore grew up knowing nothing of her paternal relatives beyond the fact that they were estranged.
Her childhood was financially insecure because her mother's poor health often forced her father to give up work to care for her, but their home was full of love. When he died suddenly when Alandra was 14, she took over nursing her mother.
Alandra attended secretarial college in the evenings and eventually found an unusually understanding employer who allowed her time off when necessary and gave her a flat above the office so she could check on her mother during the working day. A few months before the book begins, her mother suffered a heart attack and was given only months to live, so Alandra left her job to nurse her until her death.
About a month later, Alandra discovers a six-year-old letter among her mother's belongings. After her husband's death, her mother had written to his estranged father simply to tell him that his son had died. Her father-in-law replied with a vicious letter accusing her of contacting him for money and ordering her never to write again.
Alandra is furious. Her mother had just lost her beloved husband, yet this spiteful old man had added that cruelty to her grief.
Unfortunately, Alandra also made her mother a deathbed promise that she would finally visit her father's family.
She reluctantly packs for a weekend and travels to the rural village where her grandfather lives in a grand old house. She doesn't warn anyone because she intends to stay at an inn, gather her courage and visit him later.
The village is so small that there isn't a room available.
With no alternative, Alandra goes straight to the house, only to find the family out. The first person to return is the hero, Matt.
Matt isn't related to her but lives in the big mansion. Generations earlier, Alandra's grandfather and Matt's father were best friends and business partners who jointly ran an engineering company. Their wives persuaded them to buy the house together because the men worked constantly and this allowed the families to see more of the men. Matt has inherited his father's side of that arrangement.
He is a large, handsome man who demands to know who Alandra is and reacts to her arrival with suspicion. Nobody even knew her grandfather's estranged son had a child because his wife was thought too sickly to have children. Matt demands proof of her identity and plainly assumes she has appeared looking for an inheritance.
The politely raised Alandra is so offended that she deliberately plays into his assumptions.
Her grandfather, Alan, eventually arrives. He is surprisingly hale and youthful for his age but equally cold and suspicious. Alandra immediately dislikes him, gets him alone, gives him a piece of her mind about the letter he sent her grieving mother, and intends to leave. Alan is shocked at her existence, and also contrite about his horrovle letter, grudgingly explaining he was grief stricken when he wrote it.
When she tries to walk out, Alan smugly informs her that there are no more trains to London that Saturday.
Alandra decides she'll stay with anyone at the village instead. Alan tells her that even her father wouldn't have publicly embarrassed him by making it look as though he'd thrown a young female relative out of his house, so she reluctantly stays overnight.
At dinner she meets her cousins. Robert is shy, socially awkward and visibly intimidated by his grandfather. Josephine is hostile from the start and extremely possessive of Matt, whom she clearly regards as her property.
Alandra quickly realises that Matt seems to regard Josephine almost as a younger pseudo-cousin he grew up with, while Josephine has a huge crush on him. Alandra finds this mildly amusing.
Everyone remains cold towards her, so she responds by exaggerating the role they've already assigned her: the cynical Londoner who has arrived to squeeze her grandfather for everything she can get.
Alan knows why she really came and knows she was forced to stay, so he seems quietly amused by her performance and occasionally plays along. I liked that touch of humour between Alandra and her acerbic, curmudgeonly grandfather, who gradually proves to have a heart beneath his difficult exterior.
The following morning Alandra again plans to leave, only to discover there are no Sunday trains either. She is therefore stuck for another day with a family who still hasn't warmed to her.
When she is finally due to leave, Matt takes her aside and makes a proposition. Alan has been depressed, and Matt hasn't seen him this lively or interested in anything for a long time. Since Alandra has mentioned being between jobs, Matt offers to pay her to remain in the house for three months for her grandfather's sake.
Alandra is furious that he thinks she can be bought and intends to refuse.
Then she sees a vulnerable side to Alan the following morning and changes her mind. She'll stay for her grandfather, but fully intends to throw Matt's money back in his face when the arrangement ends.
That sets up most of the book: Alandra living in the mansion with Matt and her newly discovered family, maintaining her hardened façade with almost everyone while gradually discovering that Alan, Robert and even Josephine have softer sides.
I loved the setup because it keeps Matt and Alandra constantly in each other's orbit. They share the same house, meals and family life, so their awareness of each other builds naturally rather than the romance disappearing behind an external plot.
SPOILERS
Robert unfortunately develops a crush on Alandra and becomes increasingly difficult to discourage. While she tries to fend him off, Matt interprets her behaviour through the worst possible lens. Because Alandra continues pretending to be a cynical, hard-bitten woman who uses men to get what she wants, Matt becomes convinced she is deliberately encouraging Robert.
His anger increasingly looks like jealousy.
Meanwhile, Josephine continues mooning over Matt, while Matt is apparently a ladies' man who regularly dates women elsewhere. This gives Alandra some jealousy of her own.
The growing attraction between Matt and Alandra is handled nicely. He hides his feelings quite well, but his control begins slipping in small ways.
A letter arrives for Alandra in a man's handwriting and Matt immediately becomes snappish, demanding to know whether it is from a lover. Male callers provoke similar reactions. At a community ball, watching her dance with other men makes him standoffish and irritable.
Alandra, meanwhile, is bothered by seeing him with a beautiful older woman nearer his own age.
I particularly enjoyed the sense that Matt was slowly losing his grip on himself while still trying to justify his behaviour as anything except jealousy.
There are also several angry kisses, which worked perfectly for this dynamic. Matt almost seems to need an excuse to kiss Alandra, so he turns his attraction into punishment whenever he thinks she has encouraged Robert.
One particularly effective confrontation comes after Alandra tries to discourage Robert by letting him believe that she's in love with somebody else.
Matt hears this and clearly cannot tolerate the idea.
He refuses to believe her and effectively sets out to prove that she couldn't possibly love another man by seducing her himself. Alandra is already aware of her feelings for Matt and has very little defence against him.
He doesn't take things all the way, but goes far enough that she is left exposed and humiliated when he abruptly withdraws and coldly announces that it was merely a test. If she genuinely loved another man, he argues, she wouldn't have responded to Matt.
I loved that taunting, dominant dynamic. It gave the romance the passion and emotional ups and downs I wanted without making either character feel unreal.
Alandra was also a heroine I found easy to like. She has suffered considerably, worked hard and spent much of her youth caring for her mother, yet remains strong and warm-hearted. Her cynical persona is largely defensive, and we can see how difficult it becomes for her to keep playing that role as her feelings for Matt deepen.
Matt is equally appealing once we understand more about him.
After his father died, the family business fell into serious financial trouble. Alan had lost his enthusiasm after losing his partner and allowed things to deteriorate while Matt was still away at university.
Once Matt graduated and discovered how close everything was to collapse, he took responsibility and dragged the company back from ruin. Alan had accumulated too many debts and no longer wanted involvement, so Matt eventually bought him out. In practical terms, Matt now owns both the business and the house.
Yet he still treats Alandra's relatives as family. They aren't his blood relations, but he supports them, provides for them and quietly takes responsibility for their welfare.
That gave him the admirable competence and underlying generosity I like in a hero. He's capable both professionally and privately, with a large sense of responsibility concealed beneath his more abrasive traits.
I also really enjoyed the ending because it uses one of my favourite developments: the heroine finally reaching the point where she cannot take any more and leaving.
Alandra returns to London and pines for Matt, while unknown to her, Matt is doing much the same.
Eventually, she calls the house for Alan's 70th birthday and Matt answers. He tells her that she is badly needed at home.
As readers, we understand that Matt means he needs her. Alandra assumes something must be seriously wrong with her grandfather and panics, immediately returning to the country house.
Once she arrives, Matt essentially refuses to let her leave again.
He finally admits that he has been going out of his mind without her and that he's in love with her.
I found the reconciliation very satisfying because Jessica Steele gives the ending enough space for Matt to explain himself. We get his apologies, acknowledgement of what he did wrong and the emotional context behind behaviour we'd been watching throughout the story.
It becomes clear that Matt began falling for Alandra almost immediately without recognising it.
He told himself Alan needed her when he offered to pay her to stay, but really Matt didn't want her to leave either. His jealousy then grew as Robert became interested in her. Even the idea of Robert giving Alandra driving lessons drove Matt so mad that he forbade the arrangement and organised professional lessons himself.
His reactions to her letters, male callers, dates and supposed lover in London all fit neatly once he finally admits how possessive and obsessed he had gradually become.
That is what made the declaration work for me. It wasn't an out-of-nowhere confession that required the reader simply to accept that the hero had secretly loved her all along. We had watched his control fraying throughout the book, even when Alandra couldn't interpret it correctly.
And I loved hearing him finally admit that he simply couldn't live without her.
The ending therefore did proper justice to the romance. The heroine leaves, the hero feels the loss, and his confession gives us the emotional explanations and catharsis the earlier conflict had been building towards.
My only reservation is one of degree rather than structure. The book had almost everything I wanted—forced proximity, a hero who initially thinks badly of the heroine, a sympathetic and hardworking heroine, gradual romantic awareness, jealousy on both sides, angry kisses, a dominant hero fighting his feelings, some pining, a runaway heroine and a satisfying confession—but the emotional intensity remained slightly restrained.
Another book could probably take these exact ingredients and wring considerably more anguish and passion from them. Here the emotional impact felt perhaps 85% rather than 110%.
Still, I'm giving Reluctant Relative 4.5 stars. I enjoyed it throughout, would reread it as I enjoyed the characters and the slice of life homely setup.
I really enjoyed Reluctant Relative. I didn't skim once: the pacing held my attention throughout, the tropes were very much to my taste, and the romance developed naturally within a lovely forced-proximity, slice-of-life setup. My only real reservation is that, while all the right emotional ingredients were present, the intensity remained at perhaps 85% rather than reaching the kind of 110% emotional punch some romances can achieve.
Alandra is the daughter of two loving but now deceased parents. Her father came from a wealthy family but was disowned for marrying her mother, a sickly village girl, and never reconciled with them. Alandra therefore grew up knowing nothing of her paternal relatives beyond the fact that they were estranged.
Her childhood was financially insecure because her mother's poor health often forced her father to give up work to care for her, but their home was full of love. When he died suddenly when Alandra was 14, she took over nursing her mother.
Alandra attended secretarial college in the evenings and eventually found an unusually understanding employer who allowed her time off when necessary and gave her a flat above the office so she could check on her mother during the working day. A few months before the book begins, her mother suffered a heart attack and was given only months to live, so Alandra left her job to nurse her until her death.
About a month later, Alandra discovers a six-year-old letter among her mother's belongings. After her husband's death, her mother had written to his estranged father simply to tell him that his son had died. Her father-in-law replied with a vicious letter accusing her of contacting him for money and ordering her never to write again.
Alandra is furious. Her mother had just lost her beloved husband, yet this spiteful old man had added that cruelty to her grief.
Unfortunately, Alandra also made her mother a deathbed promise that she would finally visit her father's family.
She reluctantly packs for a weekend and travels to the rural village where her grandfather lives in a grand old house. She doesn't warn anyone because she intends to stay at an inn, gather her courage and visit him later.
The village is so small that there isn't a room available.
With no alternative, Alandra goes straight to the house, only to find the family out. The first person to return is the hero, Matt.
Matt isn't related to her but lives in the big mansion. Generations earlier, Alandra's grandfather and Matt's father were best friends and business partners who jointly ran an engineering company. Their wives persuaded them to buy the house together because the men worked constantly and this allowed the families to see more of the men. Matt has inherited his father's side of that arrangement.
He is a large, handsome man who demands to know who Alandra is and reacts to her arrival with suspicion. Nobody even knew her grandfather's estranged son had a child because his wife was thought too sickly to have children. Matt demands proof of her identity and plainly assumes she has appeared looking for an inheritance.
The politely raised Alandra is so offended that she deliberately plays into his assumptions.
Her grandfather, Alan, eventually arrives. He is surprisingly hale and youthful for his age but equally cold and suspicious. Alandra immediately dislikes him, gets him alone, gives him a piece of her mind about the letter he sent her grieving mother, and intends to leave. Alan is shocked at her existence, and also contrite about his horrovle letter, grudgingly explaining he was grief stricken when he wrote it.
When she tries to walk out, Alan smugly informs her that there are no more trains to London that Saturday.
Alandra decides she'll stay with anyone at the village instead. Alan tells her that even her father wouldn't have publicly embarrassed him by making it look as though he'd thrown a young female relative out of his house, so she reluctantly stays overnight.
At dinner she meets her cousins. Robert is shy, socially awkward and visibly intimidated by his grandfather. Josephine is hostile from the start and extremely possessive of Matt, whom she clearly regards as her property.
Alandra quickly realises that Matt seems to regard Josephine almost as a younger pseudo-cousin he grew up with, while Josephine has a huge crush on him. Alandra finds this mildly amusing.
Everyone remains cold towards her, so she responds by exaggerating the role they've already assigned her: the cynical Londoner who has arrived to squeeze her grandfather for everything she can get.
Alan knows why she really came and knows she was forced to stay, so he seems quietly amused by her performance and occasionally plays along. I liked that touch of humour between Alandra and her acerbic, curmudgeonly grandfather, who gradually proves to have a heart beneath his difficult exterior.
The following morning Alandra again plans to leave, only to discover there are no Sunday trains either. She is therefore stuck for another day with a family who still hasn't warmed to her.
When she is finally due to leave, Matt takes her aside and makes a proposition. Alan has been depressed, and Matt hasn't seen him this lively or interested in anything for a long time. Since Alandra has mentioned being between jobs, Matt offers to pay her to remain in the house for three months for her grandfather's sake.
Alandra is furious that he thinks she can be bought and intends to refuse.
Then she sees a vulnerable side to Alan the following morning and changes her mind. She'll stay for her grandfather, but fully intends to throw Matt's money back in his face when the arrangement ends.
That sets up most of the book: Alandra living in the mansion with Matt and her newly discovered family, maintaining her hardened façade with almost everyone while gradually discovering that Alan, Robert and even Josephine have softer sides.
I loved the setup because it keeps Matt and Alandra constantly in each other's orbit. They share the same house, meals and family life, so their awareness of each other builds naturally rather than the romance disappearing behind an external plot.
SPOILERS
Robert unfortunately develops a crush on Alandra and becomes increasingly difficult to discourage. While she tries to fend him off, Matt interprets her behaviour through the worst possible lens. Because Alandra continues pretending to be a cynical, hard-bitten woman who uses men to get what she wants, Matt becomes convinced she is deliberately encouraging Robert.
His anger increasingly looks like jealousy.
Meanwhile, Josephine continues mooning over Matt, while Matt is apparently a ladies' man who regularly dates women elsewhere. This gives Alandra some jealousy of her own.
The growing attraction between Matt and Alandra is handled nicely. He hides his feelings quite well, but his control begins slipping in small ways.
A letter arrives for Alandra in a man's handwriting and Matt immediately becomes snappish, demanding to know whether it is from a lover. Male callers provoke similar reactions. At a community ball, watching her dance with other men makes him standoffish and irritable.
Alandra, meanwhile, is bothered by seeing him with a beautiful older woman nearer his own age.
I particularly enjoyed the sense that Matt was slowly losing his grip on himself while still trying to justify his behaviour as anything except jealousy.
There are also several angry kisses, which worked perfectly for this dynamic. Matt almost seems to need an excuse to kiss Alandra, so he turns his attraction into punishment whenever he thinks she has encouraged Robert.
One particularly effective confrontation comes after Alandra tries to discourage Robert by letting him believe that she's in love with somebody else.
Matt hears this and clearly cannot tolerate the idea.
He refuses to believe her and effectively sets out to prove that she couldn't possibly love another man by seducing her himself. Alandra is already aware of her feelings for Matt and has very little defence against him.
He doesn't take things all the way, but goes far enough that she is left exposed and humiliated when he abruptly withdraws and coldly announces that it was merely a test. If she genuinely loved another man, he argues, she wouldn't have responded to Matt.
I loved that taunting, dominant dynamic. It gave the romance the passion and emotional ups and downs I wanted without making either character feel unreal.
Alandra was also a heroine I found easy to like. She has suffered considerably, worked hard and spent much of her youth caring for her mother, yet remains strong and warm-hearted. Her cynical persona is largely defensive, and we can see how difficult it becomes for her to keep playing that role as her feelings for Matt deepen.
Matt is equally appealing once we understand more about him.
After his father died, the family business fell into serious financial trouble. Alan had lost his enthusiasm after losing his partner and allowed things to deteriorate while Matt was still away at university.
Once Matt graduated and discovered how close everything was to collapse, he took responsibility and dragged the company back from ruin. Alan had accumulated too many debts and no longer wanted involvement, so Matt eventually bought him out. In practical terms, Matt now owns both the business and the house.
Yet he still treats Alandra's relatives as family. They aren't his blood relations, but he supports them, provides for them and quietly takes responsibility for their welfare.
That gave him the admirable competence and underlying generosity I like in a hero. He's capable both professionally and privately, with a large sense of responsibility concealed beneath his more abrasive traits.
I also really enjoyed the ending because it uses one of my favourite developments: the heroine finally reaching the point where she cannot take any more and leaving.
Alandra returns to London and pines for Matt, while unknown to her, Matt is doing much the same.
Eventually, she calls the house for Alan's 70th birthday and Matt answers. He tells her that she is badly needed at home.
As readers, we understand that Matt means he needs her. Alandra assumes something must be seriously wrong with her grandfather and panics, immediately returning to the country house.
Once she arrives, Matt essentially refuses to let her leave again.
He finally admits that he has been going out of his mind without her and that he's in love with her.
I found the reconciliation very satisfying because Jessica Steele gives the ending enough space for Matt to explain himself. We get his apologies, acknowledgement of what he did wrong and the emotional context behind behaviour we'd been watching throughout the story.
It becomes clear that Matt began falling for Alandra almost immediately without recognising it.
He told himself Alan needed her when he offered to pay her to stay, but really Matt didn't want her to leave either. His jealousy then grew as Robert became interested in her. Even the idea of Robert giving Alandra driving lessons drove Matt so mad that he forbade the arrangement and organised professional lessons himself.
His reactions to her letters, male callers, dates and supposed lover in London all fit neatly once he finally admits how possessive and obsessed he had gradually become.
That is what made the declaration work for me. It wasn't an out-of-nowhere confession that required the reader simply to accept that the hero had secretly loved her all along. We had watched his control fraying throughout the book, even when Alandra couldn't interpret it correctly.
And I loved hearing him finally admit that he simply couldn't live without her.
The ending therefore did proper justice to the romance. The heroine leaves, the hero feels the loss, and his confession gives us the emotional explanations and catharsis the earlier conflict had been building towards.
My only reservation is one of degree rather than structure. The book had almost everything I wanted—forced proximity, a hero who initially thinks badly of the heroine, a sympathetic and hardworking heroine, gradual romantic awareness, jealousy on both sides, angry kisses, a dominant hero fighting his feelings, some pining, a runaway heroine and a satisfying confession—but the emotional intensity remained slightly restrained.
Another book could probably take these exact ingredients and wring considerably more anguish and passion from them. Here the emotional impact felt perhaps 85% rather than 110%.
Still, I'm giving Reluctant Relative 4.5 stars. I enjoyed it throughout, would reread it as I enjoyed the characters and the slice of life homely setup.
February 7, 2013
Old school but really sweet. I enjoyed reading about the hero and heroine, they had passion and chemistry. I love old harlequins like these.
August 8, 2015
A sweet, easy and timeless read, without irritating time-specific trends. Perfect for those late-lazy- summer days.
September 7, 2022
Jessica Steele usually has a good story it sometimes ruins it by strange syntax that is hard to read and too much h introspection. This one has only a little of those problems. Enjoyable.
September 22, 2021
Heroine (Alandra) promised her dying mother that she would visit her father’s family. This is the same family that disowned her father because he married very frail woman from the village and had no intention of working for the family business. It is assumed that the frail woman would never have a child and would most likely die before the h’s father. When the father died 6 years earlier, the h’s mom informed the father’s dad of his death. He wrote back a very gruff letter, basically telling the mom not to come sniffing around for any handouts.
So here we are, the h is now 20, both parents are dead. She decides to seek out the grandfather that disowned her dad and has no knowledge of her existence. Her intention was to walk in, say a few words, and walk right back out.
She arrives at the house and no one is there. Finally, she is greeted by a very attractive man in his 30’s. The hero, Matt, sniffs out the heroine, and instantly decides she is a gold digger.
She lets him believe what he wants. The grandfather walks in all gruff and grit. He too is suspicious and surprised that his son had a child. She assures him she wants nothing and will be on the next train out of here. Only to find that the next train out of this small town is in 2 days. Now she is stuck here with the grandfather, less than friendly cousins, and the hero who has taken over the family business(his father was partners with the grandfather). They share the big mansion together. The H’s family had their own wing.
The family dinner is uncomfortable. Her female cousin has an obvious crush on the Hero.
At this point, our heroine just doesn’t care. She can’t wait to get out of there. Our heroine has a spine and she isn’t afraid to show it off. She also has no problems playing it up to her audience.
The H notices right away that the grandfather is starting show a little bit of spark .
So he asks the h to stay on for 3 months and at the end of 3 months he will pay her 1000 pounds. The h is in between jobs at the moment(has worked since she was 14) and decides to take the H up on his offer. The grandfather is secretly pleased. From here on out, you have a typical JS story.
The h falls in love with the hero.(he falls in love with her). There are moments of jealousy. The heroine ends up leaving(running away back to London) to avoid not having her feelings returned. She spends several weeks away calling the grandfather when she knows the H won’t be around. Then one day our obsessed H plays hooky from work because the grandfather let it slip that she would be calling for his birthday. He has to wait all day for her call. She finally calls, and the H informs her that she needs to get there right away. (She assumes the grandfather is sick).
She gets there, grandpa is fine. The H, however, is head over heels in love and declares himself to the h. They decide to marry and this will be grandpa’s best gift ever!
Ok, so I am super behind on my reviews. There are a lot more feels going on in this book then my rushed review can impart. I feel like this is one of JS’s better books. It has the whole enemies to lovers feel to it(although like most of JS’ s books there is no actual coming together before the quickie marriage).
So here we are, the h is now 20, both parents are dead. She decides to seek out the grandfather that disowned her dad and has no knowledge of her existence. Her intention was to walk in, say a few words, and walk right back out.
She arrives at the house and no one is there. Finally, she is greeted by a very attractive man in his 30’s. The hero, Matt, sniffs out the heroine, and instantly decides she is a gold digger.
She lets him believe what he wants. The grandfather walks in all gruff and grit. He too is suspicious and surprised that his son had a child. She assures him she wants nothing and will be on the next train out of here. Only to find that the next train out of this small town is in 2 days. Now she is stuck here with the grandfather, less than friendly cousins, and the hero who has taken over the family business(his father was partners with the grandfather). They share the big mansion together. The H’s family had their own wing.
The family dinner is uncomfortable. Her female cousin has an obvious crush on the Hero.
At this point, our heroine just doesn’t care. She can’t wait to get out of there. Our heroine has a spine and she isn’t afraid to show it off. She also has no problems playing it up to her audience.
The H notices right away that the grandfather is starting show a little bit of spark .
So he asks the h to stay on for 3 months and at the end of 3 months he will pay her 1000 pounds. The h is in between jobs at the moment(has worked since she was 14) and decides to take the H up on his offer. The grandfather is secretly pleased. From here on out, you have a typical JS story.
The h falls in love with the hero.(he falls in love with her). There are moments of jealousy. The heroine ends up leaving(running away back to London) to avoid not having her feelings returned. She spends several weeks away calling the grandfather when she knows the H won’t be around. Then one day our obsessed H plays hooky from work because the grandfather let it slip that she would be calling for his birthday. He has to wait all day for her call. She finally calls, and the H informs her that she needs to get there right away. (She assumes the grandfather is sick).
She gets there, grandpa is fine. The H, however, is head over heels in love and declares himself to the h. They decide to marry and this will be grandpa’s best gift ever!
Ok, so I am super behind on my reviews. There are a lot more feels going on in this book then my rushed review can impart. I feel like this is one of JS’s better books. It has the whole enemies to lovers feel to it(although like most of JS’ s books there is no actual coming together before the quickie marriage).
July 30, 2026
Alandra was asked by her dying mother to go to the family home she hadn't ever known existed. She grew up poor and acted as her mother's nurse due to their poverty. When she showed up at the family manor, Matt thought she was a gold digger, which she happily enforced to rub it in his face. Lol moments. Some spice that can be skipped. A delightful story.
June 8, 2020
I loved this family and I wish I had a grandfather like Alain Todd.Nice secondary characters ,a strong and feisty heroine and an arrogant and pigheaded hero made this book a heartwarming story for me...
August 13, 2020
3.5 stars
February 1, 2016
Alandra Todd fulfills her mother's dying wish by visiting her father's family who had disowned him when he had run off and married Alandra's mother. Determined to hate her grandfather for a vicious letter he had once written her Mother, Alandra gradually forgives and begins to love him and her cousins. She is much less enamored with Matt Carstairs, who runs the family business and lives with her grandfather. Alandra is determined to let Matt think is the gold-digger he initially suspected her of being. As she spends more time in Matt's presence, however, she begins to fall in love with him and having too much pride to let me realize it returns to London. She eventually returns to the family estate under duress and it is only then that she learns what are Matt's real feelings toward her.
October 18, 2025
This one has a great heroine (20) who, bitter from his treatment of her parents, acts brazenly to her newly met grandfather and the family who live with him. The hero (35ish) heads up the firm and thinks she is a gold-dogger, so she enhances this reputation to annoy him. There's a lot of chemistry, and if it wasn't for the fact it took the hero forever to realise he was in love (long after she'd left the house) it would have been a 5 star. He even dates his ex-girlfriend to try to prove to himself that the heroine is nothing special. I also wish he'd been made to grovel at the end, instead of merely explaining and saying he was sure she loved him. Oh well.
4 stars for a feisty and fun heroine before she gets slapped down by the mopey love bug.
4 stars for a feisty and fun heroine before she gets slapped down by the mopey love bug.
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June 30, 2013ملاك للبيع:
وصلت مايفس باريت بقلب طافح بالمرارة إلى بيت جدها الذي لم تتوقع فيه استقبالا حافلا بالورود لكن جدار العدائية الذي واجهها من جدها وأقاربها المجهولين تجاوز توقعاتها ثم جاء تدخل دايفد ميرديت ليزيد الطين بلة فقد اعتبرها فتاة مرتزقة وعرض عليها مبلغا من المال.لتبقى !حسنا إذا كان دايفد يعتقد أنه قادر على شرائها فلن تكذب ظنونه وستمضي وقتا رائعا في الانتقام من هذا الرجل المتعجرف قبل أن تخبره في النهاية كم يساوي في رأيها !
وجودك أعاد لجدك الحياة
وصلت مايفس باريت بقلب طافح بالمرارة إلى بيت جدها الذي لم تتوقع فيه استقبالا حافلا بالورود لكن جدار العدائية الذي واجهها من جدها وأقاربها المجهولين تجاوز توقعاتها ثم جاء تدخل دايفد ميرديت ليزيد الطين بلة فقد اعتبرها فتاة مرتزقة وعرض عليها مبلغا من المال.لتبقى !حسنا إذا كان دايفد يعتقد أنه قادر على شرائها فلن تكذب ظنونه وستمضي وقتا رائعا في الانتقام من هذا الرجل المتعجرف قبل أن تخبره في النهاية كم يساوي في رأيها !
وجودك أعاد لجدك الحياة
December 23, 2017
147-ملاك للبيع:
وصلت مايفس باريت بقلب طافح بالمرارة إلى بيت جدها الذي لم تتوقع فيه استقبالا حافلا بالورود لكن جدار العدائية الذي واجهها من جدها وأقاربها المجهولين تجاوز توقعاتها ثم جاء تدخل دايفد ميرديت ليزيد الطين بلة فقد اعتبرها فتاة مرتزقة وعرض عليها مبلغا من المال.لتبقى !حسنا إذا كان دايفد يعتقد أنه قادر على شرائها فلن تكذب ظنونه وستمضي وقتا رائعا في الانتقام من هذا الرجل المتعجرف قبل أن تخبره في النهاية كم يساوي في رأيها !
وصلت مايفس باريت بقلب طافح بالمرارة إلى بيت جدها الذي لم تتوقع فيه استقبالا حافلا بالورود لكن جدار العدائية الذي واجهها من جدها وأقاربها المجهولين تجاوز توقعاتها ثم جاء تدخل دايفد ميرديت ليزيد الطين بلة فقد اعتبرها فتاة مرتزقة وعرض عليها مبلغا من المال.لتبقى !حسنا إذا كان دايفد يعتقد أنه قادر على شرائها فلن تكذب ظنونه وستمضي وقتا رائعا في الانتقام من هذا الرجل المتعجرف قبل أن تخبره في النهاية كم يساوي في رأيها !
May 26, 2020
مسلية كعادة روايات احلام
احببت شخصية مانفس وقوتها رغم ما مرت به
احببت شخصية مانفس وقوتها رغم ما مرت به
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