Sarah's Child

I dare anyone to read "Sarah's Child" and not fall in love with Linda Howard. I have read thousands of romance authors from every genre and none manage to combine the realistic emotions with realistic sexuality the way Linda Howard does. Her male characters are very masculine, intelligent, a little jaded, and each one is distinctive. Her female characters warm your heart with their real-life dilemmas. They have a feminine strength of mind and endure heart-wrenching traumas. Traumas that are original (originality is hard to come across in romance books). Her books are not filled with beautiful scenery and sexual euphemisms. The unforgettable couple, their earthy encounters, and their heart-wrenching emotions are all I remember. Rome is hard-edged and powerful with strong sexual needs. He thinks Sarah is a cool blond. She is his wife's best friend even though they are opposites in every way. Sarah's coolness actually is a shield to hide her shyness and insecurity. She met Rome at work and it was love at first sight. She takes her best friend, Diane, to the company picnic and Rome and Diane fall in love. They marry and proceed to have two adorable, rambuncous boys who Sarah loves as well. Diane and the boys are involved in a fatal accident. Their deaths leave Rome emotionally scarred. He'll never allow himself to love again and cannot bear to be around children. All Sarah ever wanted was a secure home life with a husband and kids. When Rome married Diane she resigned herself to becoming a career woman. Before meeting Rome, the outgoing and confident Diane always swore to have a grand career and never marry. The reversal of their dreams when they meet Rome is ironic. Rome has always found Sarah's coolness to him intriguing, even during his marraige. He always wants to find out what is underneath the cool, calm surface of her personality. A year after his family's death, he finally decides to pack up their belongings and asks Sarah if she wants to come by and see what she would like to keep before he gives it all away. He and Sarah have a sexually explosive encounter that makes him realize he'd like to have a real relationship again instead of the one-night-stands he has been punishing himself with. He's frank with Sarah and tells her he'll never love again but he'll be faithful. He also tells her he'll never father another child, so if she wants children to tell him and he'll get out of her life. She accepts the small part of himself he gives her and quietly sets about the business of loving him. How Sarah, with her calm serenity changes his heart, along with the help of a little bundle he refuses to acknowledge, is a story that rips your heart out and returns it with soul-shattering intensity. Be aware that all of her heros are super sexy hunks and alpha males who usually need to meet just the right woman (for them) to turn them into truly loving men. Other reviewers must want the same heroine in every novel to be "strong

I read this book solely based on a recommendation on a mailing list that it was a tear jerker. I wasn't disappointed. This book left me in tears and wishing I had read it years ago.The story of Sarah and Rome was written in 1985 so it's not your standard hero and heroine. If you're looking for a hero that would save the world and the heroine that stands by his side, this book isn't for you. If you're looking for a great story that could possibly be happening to the neighbor down the street, this is it. Instead of being whisked away to a fantasy world where everything is perfect Linda Howard brings us into a world that closely mirrors our own. It was love at first sight for Sarah. The fact that her best friend met and married Rome changed the course of Sarah's life. As any good friend would do she kept her love secret and avoided Rome at all costs. After a tragic accident, Sarah is there wanting to help him. It's not so unbelievable after all. Sarah and Rome marry, he out of guilt, she because she loves him. Sarah has a lot more strength than she's given credit for. It's as simple and as complicated as that.

This book was first published in 1985, and at times it will seem a bit dated. Even though there are exceptions, the idea of the career oriented secretary starting an affair with the hard driving executive has sort of faded out in these times of sexual harrassment and hostile work environments. Nevertheless, if you consider it a bit of a period piece, you'll find this a delightful read. Rome is a sexy, aggressive business man who tragically lost his wife and two young sons in a car crash. A couple of years later he is still deeply grieving, but circumstances force him to spend some time with Sarah, his wife's former best friend and a beautiful co-worker that he has always found attractive. Sarah has long carried a secret torch for Rome, and despite her reservations she is privately thrilled when Rome starts pursing her. Rome obviously has some deep emotional issues to address, and Sarah's patient understanding and loving support allow him to work out those issues. At the same time, Rome's forceful personality help push her out of her cool reserve. The biggest hurdle facing them is that Sarah would love to have Rome's baby, but he is unable to tolerate the thought of another child. There's not much plot here, but the relationship is very intense and manages to carry the book quite nicely on its own. A very satisfying book that you can read again and again.

Sarah Harper never expected that her covert love for her best friend's husband, Rome Matthews could materialize into reality after the demise of Diana along with the fateful deaths of their children Justin and Shane. When Rome is tired of wallowing in his grief, he is ready to embrace romance and attraction again - in the form of Sarah. Rome can never imagine that Sarah's nonchalant facade conceals a vulnerable frame and even more surprisingly a passionate soul to gratify his strong primal urges. They strike a marriage of convenience, with a promise that no child can be conceived out of the union, for with the depth of Rome's grief, he could not cope with the pain. However, destiny has it that Sarah bears him a child and it is up to Rome and Sarah to create a miracle together - to apprehend his regrets and forget his self-deprecating pain.... SARAH'S CHILD is one of the early works crafted by Ms. Howard reissued again - yet it is no less riveting and compelling in churning out powerful emotions. Her deft characterization and emotional writing is as sensitive as a gossamer's thread especially in handling Rome's grief. Sarah Harper, where many have the impression of her as submissive, is deemed to me as resilient for her courage in transforming Rome with healing powers of love. True - the resentment for Rome as the hero is especially potent when he neglects Sarah during her gestation period, yet we can never underestimate the corrosive powers of grief and guilt towards his children. As such, the moment when he realized his folly - it is with such passion we forget his mistakes and relish in the triumph of love. As a Harlequin romance, SARAH'S CHILD pushes the envelope to scrape raw emotions - it is definitive of what romance should be - poignant yet romantic. SARAH'S CHILD is laudable for Ms. Howard's sincerity in her writing and it shows - from the surrogate grief channeled to Rome in the story as in her personalized experience of losing her grandmother. The unexpected maturity and nuanced writing - is definitely no child's play.

I've read almost all of Linda howard's books and this one is definitely among the top ones in my collection. Although Sara is a very delicate and gentle woman, her inner strength is revealed in the way that she could love a man for a major part of her life knowing that he is unavailable. Even greater obstacles are put in her way throughout the book, but she never wavers from her undying love for him because she understands that he needs understanding more than anything (due to tragedies in his life). This book definitely is a MUST read for all Linda Howard fans. It shows how a woman can be shy, gentle, delicate at the same time, showing an inner strength that's admirable and coveted. I've reread this book atleast three times since i got it. I can't wait to read its sequel, "Almost Forever."