Jayne Ann Krentz - Whirlwind Courtship

A stand alone novel, published in 1980, by Jayne Ann Krentz writing as Jayne Taylor. And from what I see, this might very well be her first book.
Genre: contemporary romance
Cover: blah.



When Phoebe Hampton arrived at the doorstep of Harlan Garland’s mountain cabin, he was less than pleased. Convinced that she was another marriage minded female sent by his matchmaking aunt, Harlan would have gladly thrown her out. But a whirlwind weekend with the feisty beauty convinced him that this was the woman he wanted in his bed, and his heart. Now the consummate bachelor would have to try an honest-to-goodness courtship, the old-fashioned way, if he ever hoped to make Phoebe his own.

After breaking up with her fiancé, Phoebe wants a quiet weekend on her own, and sets out for a trip to the beach. But when her rented car breaks down in the mountains, she is almost raped by some hunters who offered her a lift, and surviving the night in the cold after narrowly escaping that faith, she does not have much patience left.
So when she comes upon a mountain cabin, with a grumbly man and a lovely dog, she does not allow him to send her packing. Instead, she cooks him breakfast, and bargains for him letting her stay in exchange for her helping with the cooking and cleaning.

Harlan doesn’t believe her outrageous story for a minute, she probably has her car stashed a few miles away, and his aunt must have told her everything about him already. After all, he is very rich and owns and manages an international shipping business. So he will let her stay for the weekend, he has no intention of bringing her back to town and break up his own weekend get away, but he will not make it easy on her. Still, there is something about her that is very refreshing, and she certainly does not look like the helpless blondes his aunt keeps sicking on him.

And when one of the hunters comes looking for Phoebe, he has no choice but to finally believe her story …


I liked Phoebe, even though she does some stupid things, like accepting a lift from strangers instead of staying in her car. But Harlan, he is the typical overbearing 80’s hero I just can’t stand any more. He is so high handed and controlling, making decisions she has to obey, like she can’t say no to them having sex, and getting married in a few weeks time without even really asking her. Phoebe was so strong, but she did not even try to stand up to him. And all because she had fallen in love with him? I just don’t buy it.

So I am happy I read this story, as it is a JAK story, and I do love lots of things about it. It is just the hero who aggravates me. A lot. So I won’t be re-reading this one. And if you are a modern woman like I am, who doesn’t like too macho overbearing men either, don’t read it. If you do like your 80’s romances, go for it. Because it certainly has lots of fun parts.

I love Harlan’s aunt, and Phoebe’s pet parrot. And there is a bit of suspense in it, with the hunters who are after Phoebe.

6 stars.





I don’t think it is available in print anymore, although there are many reprints. So you will have to find this one second hand.

© 2015 Reviews by Aurian