THE BUTLER'S DAUGHTER

The Collingwood Heirs - Book One

Joyce Sullivan

Harlequin Intrigue #722

ISBN: 0-373-22722-1

August 2003

Romantic Suspense

The Collingwood's first child, a daughter, was stolen from the hospital soon after her birth and because of this, drastic steps were taken to ensure that a second pregnancy was concealed from the world. Juliana Goodhew put her life and career on hold to care for the Collingwood Heir even going so far as to assume the roll of single parent. Finally after months of service, it looked as if her life was going to resume it's previous course until an explosion at the secret rendezvous claimed the lives of the baby boy's parents and gravely injured her own father, who has been the Collingwood's trusted butler since before Juliana's birth. Now the baby's godfather, the enigmatic guardian, Hunter Sinclair, is at her door proposing a grand scheme to protect the child's identity, a plan that calls for Juliana to wed this handsome stranger. Together, can they hope to uncover the killer's identity and protect the Collingwood Heir so that he may escape his sister's fate?

For the first chapter and part of the second, I felt as if I was being kept at arm's length because of the setting (the elite world of the super wealthy) and the intensity of events that take place so early on in the story. The anxiety this produced parallels the heroine's feelings well but nevertheless some readers may initially find it difficult to fully connect with the characters. However, I was quickly won over by the author's intricately woven intrigue and passionate romance of two people seemingly so different, but united in the cause to ensure the safety of the Collingwood Heir. Even though my earliest suspicion regarding the killer's identity proved true, the narrative contained an extensive amount of detail and suspense demonstrating Ms. Sullivan's talent and keeping my attention focused until the end.

Despite a rocky start, I enjoyed THE BUTLER'S DAUGHTER and would not hesitate to pick up any of Ms. Sullivan's titles. I am also greatly looking forward to the next Collingwood Heirs title, OPERATION BASSINET that will be released in September 2003.