"A wonderful, emotionally charged little book"

Lorna Farrell has steered clear of her mother who gave her up for adoption, and her mother's stepson, Mitch Ellery, ever since a chance meeting in which her mother and Mitch made it clear that they didn't believe that she was who she said she was, and that they would take legal action if she came near them again.

Five years later, when she befriends her half sister Kendra, without revealing her secret, she isn't looking for trouble, she just wants a sense of family connection, however brief. That special time is almost over, and her job in jeopardy because she will soon be forced to meet Mitch again, and when she does, she has no doubts that he will carry out his threats.

Mitch is determined to get rid of this imposter at any cost. He is very protective of his family and will not allow this woman to hurt them, no matter how much he is secretly attracted to her. When a pay-off scheme to keep her away from Kendra doesn't work, he gives Lorna an alternative solution to his taking legal action against her. Pretend a relationship between them and then let Kendra think Lorna broke Mitch's heart. That way Kendra will end her friendship with Lorna. Lorna doesn't want to go along with the plan, but she is alone in the world and knows she doesn't stand a chance if Mitch decides to prosecute her, utilizing all his wealth and connections.

Something about Lorna's circumstances in this book tugged at my heartstrings so much that I spent most of my reading time wiping the tears from my eyes. Mitch is one of my favorite kinds of heroes, tough, ruthless, but with a heart of gold and a soft spot for those he considers under his protection. Once he realizes he has wronged Lorna, and that he wants her, he transforms from a bullying tyrant to a bullying mother hen, determined to see that Lorna was taken care of, both physically and emotionally..... sigh.

There is no "make-believe engagement" or "forbidden marriage" here, as stated on the back cover of this book. Too bad whomever wrote the back cover copy and the title of HER FORBIDDEN BRIDEGROOM never actually read this book. If they had, they would have known what a wonderful, emotionally charged little book it really is, and might have conveyed that information to potential readers.

Reviewed by Janice Bennett
Posted September 18, 2002