Dear Reader,
Harlequin is celebrating its sixtieth anniversary in 2009 with an entire yearâs worth of special programs showcasing the talent and variety that have made us the worldâs leading romance publisher.
With this collection of vintage novels, we are thrilled to be able to journey with you to the roots of our success: six books that hark back to the very earliest days of our history, when the fare was decidedly adventurous, often mysterious and full of passionâ1950s-style!
It is such fun to be able to present these works with their original text and cover art, which we hope both current readers and collectors of popular fiction will find entertaining.
Thank you for helping us to achieve and celebrate this milestone!
Warmly,
Donna Hayes,
Publisher and CEO
To millions of readers around the world, Harlequin and romance fiction are synonymous. With a publishing record of 120 titles a month in 29 languages in 107 international markets on 6 continents, there is no question of Harlequinâs success.
But like all good stories, Harlequinâs has had some twists and turns.
In 1949, Harlequin was founded in Winnipeg, Canada. In the beginning, the company published a wide range of booksâincluding the likes of Agatha Christie, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, James Hadley Chase and Somerset Maughamâall for the low price of twenty-five cents.
By the mid 1950s, Richard Bonnycastle was in complete control of the company, and at the urging of his wifeâand chief editorâbegan publishing the romances of British firm Mills & Boon. The books sold so well that Harlequin eventually bought Mills & Boon outright in 1971.
In 1970, Harlequin expanded its distribution into the U.S. and contracted its first American author so that it could offer the first truly American romances. By 1980, that concept became a full-fledged series called Harlequin Superromance, the first romance line to originate outside the U.K.
The 1980s saw continued growth into global markets as well as the purchase of American publisher, Silhouette Books. By 1992, Harlequin dominated the genre, and ten years later was publishing more than half of all romances released in North America.
Now in our sixtieth anniversary year, Harlequin remains true to its history of being the romance publisher, while constantly creating innovative ways to deliver variety in what women want to read. And as we forge ahead into other types of fiction and nonfiction, we are always mindful of the hallmark of our success over the past six decadesâguaranteed entertainment!
Emmy>® Award-winning director Alan Handley had a celebrated career on stage and in television that spanned thirty years. He started off as a stage actor in the 1930s before moving into directing and producing shows such as The Dinah Shore Show. He won an Emmy>® for directing a Julie Andrews special in 1965. He passed away in January 1990 at the age of 77.
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CHAPTER TWENTY
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
I WAS IN BEDâWHICH IS WHERE I usually am at ten oâclock in the morningâwhen the phone rang.
âWhatâs with you? This is Nellie.â As though it was necessary to tell me who it was with that croak for a voice, even if she did wake me up. I lit a cigarette because she liked to talk for a long time and so do I and she was paying for the call and I didnât have anything else to do.
âIâm still in bed.â
âWell, do you think you could get that long lean brownness the hell out of that bed for a job?â
âHow much? Itâs a nice bed.â
âTwenty-five a day for maybe three days or more. Of course, if youâre not interested, I got a book full of youth and beauty right here at my elbow.â
âIf itâs more of those smoker pictures, the answer is no.â
âNow, Timmy, darling, you know that wasnât my fault. They told me that short was only for advertising purposes. Besides, the money was good.â
âWell, I donât need that kind of advertising yet. Whatâs the gag this time?â
âCan you be in my office in an hour?â
âTell me now.â
âI tell you nothing till you sign Nellieâs little receipt book. Do you or donât you?â
âMake it an hour and a half?â
âWhoâs there with you?â
âNobody,â I said. âAnd besides, whatâs it to you?â
âIf thereâs nobody there, you can make it in an hour. Eleven sharp. Those are my last words.â And she banged up the receiver.
Twenty-five bucks a day for three daysâ¦that must be a pictureâ¦maybe I can get a close-upâ¦be nice to the cameraman and the assistant directorâ¦one good close-upâ¦who knows what might happen? Once more into the breach, dear friendsâ¦