Polly

This is one of my favorites. Our hero and heroine get off to a rough start as they often do in Betty Neels novels, but after all the ups and downs, they both find love. I like Polly and Sam very much; Polly is one of the youngest at 20 of Ms. Neels' main characters, but she has spunk, and Sam is a darling except when he isn't. All the sisters are very kind for a change. There is the required horrible girlfriend to overcome, but what makes these novels so comforting is the knowledge that the good will come out on top. Highly recommended.

Polly Talbot isn't quite sure what she wants to do with her life so she agrees to help Sir Ronald Wise type a book he is writing. She enjoys her work except for one thing - Sir Ronald's friend Sam Gervis. Sam unnerves her for some reason and she decides she needs to get away from him and decides to start a new career as a nurse. But Sam isn't that easy to get rid of and he turns up again in her life. Polly is falling in love with Sam, but there's a big obstacle in her way - he's engaged to the lovely Deirdre. I've read almost all of Betty Neels's romance novels and "Polly" is now one of my favorites. It is very old fashioned - written in 1984, Polly uses a typewriter and carbon paper to type Sir Ronald's book. "Polly" has one of Neels' standard plot lines - a plain, poor English girl from a loving family falls in love with a rich handsome doctor (although, for a change he's not Dutch) even if she doesn't realize at first that she's in love with him. Neels also throws in a fiancée for the doctor who of course is all wrong for him and one of her favorite plot devices - a moment when Polly is in danger and the doctor must rescue her. None of this is new for Neels (it never is) but she had a way of telling the same story over and over again that is enjoyable and keeps me buying and reading her books. Polly is a feisty heroine - intelligent, realistic about her looks, a hard worker who loves Sam enough to let him go. Sam is a good hero, in love with Polly early on, but willing to wait until Polly realizes she is in love with him. None of this is particularly believable, but makes for a nice escape from the real world. Neels's romances fall in the "sweet" category, meaning some stolen kisses, but nothing heavy and no sex. "Polly" is one of Betty Neels's best romances.

I originally bought a copy of Polly as a gift for someone who collects Betty Neels; however, being a Neel's fan and a bookworm, I couldn't resist reading it before I gave it to her. Once I'd read it, I knew I had to have it for myself. Definitely one of my favorite Betty Neels so far.

Cover: Working for Professor Sam Gervis was difficult enough, even if you hadn't fallen in love with him. But Polly had. Luckily she was realistic. Sam was engaged to the lovely Deirdre, and besides, he would never look twice at anyone as quiet and mousy as her. So Polly sensibly decided to get away and take up a new career nursing children. But she soon discovered that Sam wasn't a man to be escaped from easily......This is another wonderful Neels story about the plain sister snatching the wonderful hero doctor. Of course, he doesn't believe in love at first sight right away, and gives a cold shoulder to our warm, hard working heroine. He figures it out finally and makes sure to hang on with both hands. The story is an underdog "tail" at its best ! :) You have the requisite wicked fiancee, the nice sister, and the family dogs. The heroine never expects someone to fall in love with her and goes about creating a lonely but satisfying life giving to others. By the time all the misunderstandings are solved in the end of the story you are cheering out loud. A lovely story that you will want to keep and read over again.