AN ORDINARY GIRL is another strong entry from the somewhat restricted imagination of Betty Neels. Here we have a change of pace. No crazy Dutch names this time! It's Doctor James Forsyth falling for Philly Selby, with his fiancée, the spoiled but sleek Sybil, making every spiteful effort to keep his $$$$$ to herself. The heroine, who is NOT a nurse (the mind boggles): "PHILOMENA SELBY, the eldest of the Reverend Ambrose Selby’s five daughters, was hanging up sheets. It was a blustery March morning and since she was a small girl, nicely rounded but slight, she was having difficulty subduing their wild flapping." It's insta-lov, when James meets Philly, stopping his Bentley to ask her for directions: "There are crossroads at the end of the village. Go right, and after a mile you’ll see a lane signposted to Netherby House. Can you remember that?’ she asked anxiously. She looked at him then; he had a handsome, rather rugged face, close-cropped dark hair and blue eyes. They stared at each other for a moment, and she had the strange feeling that something had happened… ‘I shall remember,’ he told her, and smiled."Their eyes meet again a month later, when a spring snowstorm smothers the country roads. James (and Sybil) seek refuge at the vicarage overnight, along with several other stranded motorists: "With the prospect of the weather clearing, breakfast was a cheerful meal. The porridge was eaten with enthusiasm— although Sybil nibbled toast, declaring that she hadn’t slept a wink and had no appetite. But her complaining voice was lost in the hubbub of conversation, heard only by the doctor sitting next to her." (James, now 6.5 feet, learned long ago to eat all his porridge.) ‘If the snowplough gets through we will be able to leave later today,’ he told Sybil, and then, hearing Philly saying in a worried voice that the hens would be snowed in, he volunteered to shovel a path to their shed."We go from there. It's just lovely, and nothing new from Neels. Recommended for those who want a serene, predictable day in the English countryside.Quibbles: I don't normally like romances with a third party, especially where the hero is already engaged, but in this case, we get to hear James's thoughts enough to compensate.Ps. There are two stories in this book. A PERFECT PROPOSAL, by Liz Fielding, is on my to-read-someday list.
An Ordinary Girl-Not read yet.A Perfect Proposal by Liz FieldingThis is a novella length story originally written in 2001 for this duet and reissued for the 100th Birthday Collection in it's own cover. It has a sticker "Exclusive to WHSmith"This is the story of Mark Hilliard who lost his wife when their baby Shuli was a newborn. Not long after, Jane Carmichael came to be his perfect secretary. Shuli was in the office and Jane fell hard for both of them.Now Shuli is three and she wants a mother. Jane has a plan and it is almost too easy for Mark to decide that marriage to his ordinary but efficient secretary is just what his daughter needs.But of course it isn't as easy as that and Jane has to go through quite a bit of heartache while she hopes Mark will come to see her as more than a substitute nanny.This is a very emotional read. Liz Fielding has a wonderful way of speaking to the heart even in a short story like this. I loved the story and the ending was deeply satisfying.
