I sped through another Betty Neels novel. This time, I read Winter of Change, which was originally published in 1973.
Protagonists:
Heroine: Mary Jane Pettigrew, a plain looking 22 year-old nurse who inherits her grandfather's estate, which includes a house and a substantial amount of money. However, her grandfather has also arranged for her to have a guardian who would oversee her finances, along with vetting any prospective candidates who wish to marry Mary Jane.
Hero: Fabian van der Blocq, a handsome Dutch surgeon who gets the lucky task of being Mary Jane's guardian.
Plot:
Mary Jane doesn't want to have a guardian because she thinks that she is mature enough to take control of her inheritance. Negativity flies between Fabian and Mary Jane whenever they meet to discuss matters arising from their situation. Fabian tries to carry out his duty as Mary Jane's guardian, but meets with resistance from her every step of the way throughout their relationship. Our protagonists are supposed to fall in love, but will it happen?
Antagonist of note:
Mervyn Pettigrew: Mary Jane's gold-digging, scam-artist of a cousin who appears on her doorstep and sweet talks himself into her life. I am seriously chagrined to know that he is a Canadian, because I'm Canadian. I like to think of us as being Nice People, but Mervyn is a snake.
Stuff that this novel has:
Fabian speaks silkily three times: two times to Mary Jane while they are duking things out verbally, and once to Mervyn when he's calling Mervyn out on scam-like behaviour. I usually get annoyed when I see the hero say something silkily, but Fabian dressed Mervyn down very nicely and put him in his place.
So, did I like this novel?
Ummm...not really.
The chemistry between this couple is rather toxic. BN heroes tend to be overbearing, bossy, and non-communicative, but Mary Jane is so antagonistic towards Fabian, it's a wonder they get around to falling in love. As Mary Jane succinctly summarizes their relationship while talking to Fabian, "What a pity we don't get on."
The prickly behaviour and negativity drags on for most of the book, and in my opinion, most of this is Mary Jane's fault. I'm not going to bother including examples of her behaviour to back this up. I don't feel like hunting them down, but there is a lot to pick from. Fabian bitterly tells Mary Jane midway through the book, "You are not only a tiresome girl, you are also a very ungrateful one." When she says that she doesn't remember being tiresome, and asks what particular occasion that she behaved as such, Fabian tells her wearily, " You are tiresome all the time."
I agree with him. Being Mary Jane's guardian is a thankless task. I almost included Mary Jane, herself, under the, "Antagonist of Note," section.
The backstory of the heroine in A Winter Love Story (also written by Betty Neels), which I reviewed on June 16th, 2021, is similar to that of the heroine in Winter of Change. Both heroines have elderly family members who die, and the heroes are brought into their lives because of their connection through these elderly relatives. However, I enjoyed reading A Winter Love Story more than Winter of Change. The heroine of A Winter Love Story had some snarky moments with the hero in the beginning of that book, but their relationship was more amicable, and they developed a genuine friendship. Winter of Change follows a trope of enemies to lovers, but the overall negativity was definitely "tiresome" for me.
If Fabian were my friend, I'd be tempted to tell him to consider another girl with less shrewish tendencies.
