Paul Ashfield, a 24 year old, spoiled but often ignored man, was the son of the very rich Lord, Sir Phillip Ashfield and a drunken mother…or so he thought. After accidentally finding out his real mother’s name was Allison, he confronted his father and demanded that he tell him about his background. When his father refused, he took a business trip to Australia (where is mother was from) and intended to locate her while attending to business. Paul was a playboy extraordinaire, who had mothers and daughters lining up to “make a match” with this little rich boy.

After hitting a searching snag, he met a beautiful working class girl who was a nurse. Daphne Clark was the most beautiful woman he had ever met, but she did not fit in with his spoiled lifestyle. After struggling with the conflicts their relationship entailed, they both realized that, hard as it was to work things out between them, they were in love. Daphne took him home with her for Christmas. There the problems escalated and he never did talk to her dad about marrying her. He disappeared and, of course, broke her heart.

Forbidden Love hints at some of the myriad of problems this couple would face. Ms. Tanner has an incredible way of telling this poignant story. She weaves a love of family (Daphne’s) and a lack of family love (Paul’s) with the vast difference between the working class and the blue blood population. She shows that these diversities can be overcome if two people are committed to each other.

I was amazed at the way Ms. Tanner dealt with the war and all those ugly issues without overpowering the extraordinary love story. There’s an incredible conclusion. I truly feel honored to have reviewed this book.

Overall rating:
Sensuality rating: Mildly sensual

Reviewer: Brenda Talley
January 11, 2007