Heartbeat by Danielle Steel

Heartbeat by Danielle Steel
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - 3 days

Pages - 432

Publisher - Dell

Source - Mum bought me it

Blurb from Goodreads

Bill Thigpen, writer producer of the No.1 daytime TV drama was so busy watching his career soar that he never noticed his marriage collapse. Now, nine years later, living alone in Hollywood, even without his wife and kids, his life and success are still reasonably sweet. Top-of-the-chart ratings, good-natured casual affairs, and special vacations with his two young sons. His life is in perfect balance, he thinks.
Adrian Townshed thought she had everything: a job she liked as a TV production assistant and a handsome husband who was a rising star in his own field. In as enviable life they'd worked hard for--the American Dream. Until she got pregnant. Suddenly all she had was chaos. And Steven's ultimatum. Him or the baby. The question was: did he mean it? He did.
Bill Thigpen and Adrian Townshed collided in a supermarket. And the very sight of her suddenly makes him want more in his life.... a woman he really loves, a real family again. But does he need the heartache of another man's baby, another wife? Neither does. But they couldn't help it.
Danielle Steel touches the Heartbeat of two wonderful people as their friendship deepens into love, as they meet the obstacles that life presents with humor, humanity, and courage.



My Review

Bill Thigpen is the writer of a super popular tv show, his marriage ended due to his over commitment to the show but he still sees the kids, not as much as he would like and he is keeping commitment free so as not to get hurt. Adrian Townsend is beautiful, successful news reader & the perfect (for her) husband, Steven, although she is esentially estranged really from her family/friends because of Steven. Life with Stephen is great (according to them as the reader I can't say I agree) until Adrian falls pregnant and Stephen gives her the worst ultimatum, its him or the child.

I have to say I really struggled with Adrian's whole behaviour/attitude to Steven and I know a lot of it is being in that type of relationship. It just shows the long hold a person can have even when one escapes their clutches but I found it insanely frustrating. Bill is such a sweetie and so patient/understanding and rare to find someone like that.

There is a central theme when discussing Steven or when he appears for pressure/emotional blackmail, underhanded tactics to try and pressure Adrian to choose him over the pregnancy so I think a warning is needed here just because it can be a lot for someone to read depending on their background.

I went back and forth on Adrian and was invested in seeing where the story went, 3.5/5 for me.

View all my reviews

Review - Legacy by Danielle Steel

Legacy: A Novel by Danielle Steel

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


From the cover

A tale of love, courage and family, interweaving the lives of two extraordinary women - a writer working in the heart of modern academia, and a daring young Sioux of an unforgettable journey in the eighteenth century.

Someday is Brigitte Nicholson's watchword. Someday she and the man she loves, Ted, will clarify their relationship. Someday she'll have children. Someday she'll finish writing her book. Someday she'll stop playig it so safe...Then something happens that changes Brigette's life completely.

Struggling to plot a new course, Brigitte agrees to help her mother on a genealogy project - and makes a discovery that reaches back to the French aristrocracy. How did Brigitte's ancestor, Wachiwi, a Dakota Sioux, travel from the Great Plains to the French court of Marie Antoinette? How did she come to marry into Brigitte's family? Brigitte decides to travel to South Dakota and Paris to follow the path of this exceptional young woman who lived so long ago. And as she begins to solve the puzzle of Wachiwi's journey, her quiet life becomes an adventure of its own.

A chance meeting and a new opportunity put Brigitte back at the heart of her own story. And with family legacy coming to life around her, someday is no longer in the future. Instead, someday is now.

My Review

This is my 3rd book as part of the Transworld Book Group

For me Brigitte is quite an unlikeable character, to start with she just seems efficient and organised if maybe a tad boring. However as the story progresses she has two life changing events in as many days and her character becomes needy and pathetic. It was quite annoying to read and even offputting but I stuck with it and I am glad I did. We are introduced to her ancestor Wachiwi, who is everything Brigitte is not. Strong, courageous, brave, a fighter, she continues to fight for what she wants and loves and considering we are going back to the 1700s when woman had no place doing anything bar raising children and cooking it is a refreshing and amazing change of pace.

The story then goes practically chapter for chapter between the present with Brigitte and the past of Wachiwi's time. The difference between the two women and their lives is amazing and as Brigitte follows the traces to find out more about her ancestor as do we. I had hoped Brigitte would be more like her ancestor the more she discovered and if I am honest I only liked her character in the last chapter.

If the story had purely been about Brigitte it would have been a bore to read but with Wachiwi's tale it brought the rating from a 1 to a 3/5. If nothing else this book should be read for Wachiwi's story which I loved and would have liked to have seen as a stand alone book.



View all my reviews