Sara Craven uses “pagan” in Pagan Adversary to describe hero Alex, a ruthless Greek businessman who intends to take his dead brother’s child away from his English aunt, Harriet. Harriet’s sister Becca had died along with her husband, Kostas, in a car crash, leaving little Nicky to his aunt. Pagan Adversary adds family hatred, fear, an Other Woman, a possible Other Man, rich and poor plus a big helping of sexual attraction to make a compelling read.
Plot Synopsis – Click to Avoid Spoilers
Alex’s family essentially disowned Kostas when he married Becca and no one came to their funeral. Harriet coped alone on her typist’s small salary, selling the family house, moving herself and Nicky to a London bedsitter and finding Manda to care for Nicky during the work day. Things were going along, difficult but manageable, when Alex’s demands Harriet hand over Nicky. Oh, and by the way, Alex will compensate Harriet financially for him.
Naturally Harriet is furious that Alex thinks he can buy Nicky, furious that he wants to remove Nicky and allow no further contact, plus she is heartbroken on Kostas’s and Becca’s behalf that Alex and his entire family had zero contact with them, did not even acknowledge Nicky’s birth. Alex uses a proxy to meet with Harriet while he observes behind a one-way mirror, and Alex is not impressed. Harriet is much too emotional and unrestrained to have anything to do with his highfaluting family!
Eventually Alex threatens to take Harriet to court. It is not clear whether Kostas and Becca left wills or instructions naming Harriet guardian, even if they had Harriet knows Alex can afford to sue, appeal and appeal and make her life miserable. Plus Alex tells her about his mother who is grieving and wants to see Nicky grow up with his Greek family, oh, and by the way Alex is loaded and Nicky can have a much better life.
Now a word to the wise. If you are on the outs with your family and have a child make SURE you leave clear instructions and formal guardianship for any children. Make it clear in your will that you do NOT want your child to go to your estranged family. Just think about all the HP families who would end up gnashing their teeth in vain as they find other schemes to get the kid (and the girl) if the parents had been smart.
Alex has Nicky visit him overnight and realizes how much Nicky depends on Harriet, gets her to come stay in his hotel room to care for him for several nights. Alex takes advantage of proximity and makes several passes at Harriet which she resists despite being attracted to him.
Eventually Harriet agrees to let Alex take Nicky and she will accompany him and stay for a few months until Nicky is settled. Alex hints that he might allow future contact too. (This is one of the things that makes me see red myself reading books with this trope. How dare one side think they should exclude the people who have loved and care for the child!)
Nicky and Harriet arrive at Alex’s family home in Greece. Alex’s mother Madam Marcos is cold and barely civil to Harriet, slightly warmer to Nicky. Alex’s aunt Tia Zoe is not even civil. Alex is not there. The servants follow Madam Marcos’s lead except for Nicky’s nanny Yannina who is loving and warm.
Harriet is given a tiny airless room near Nicky with one tiny window and no A/C, clearly a closet not a bedroom. She cannot sleep and goes outside for fresh air and runs into Alex who is swimming nude. Of course Alex, knowing he is Mr. Irresistible, assumes she is there for sex and doesn’t want to believe she came out for air or that the A/C isn’t working in her room. He insists on going to her room to show her how to turn it on. Surprise! Harriet is in a closet! Alex is angry, takes her to another room to sleep which turns out to be his.
Things proceed. Madam Marcos’s rich godchild Maria comes to visit and is thoroughly nasty and dismissive to Harriet, treats her as a servant not a fellow guest. Tia Zoe’s son Spiro shows up too and is friendly and fun for Harriet, makes the situation bearable. Spiro tells her that Maria is the girl whom Kostas was supposed to marry and that now Alex is slotted for that dubious honor. (No one except Madam Marcos can stand Maria.)
Alex comes too and is obviously jealous of Spiro’s friendship with Harriet although Harriet does not realize it is jealousy. Madam Marcos still ignores Harriet as much as possible and is stiff and cold with Nicky; once Alex comes he makes sure to play with Nicky and include his mother. Alex and Harriet enjoy each other’s company but it’s complicated by strong sexual attraction and distrust.
Harriet knows the family is cold to her because of Kostas and her sister. She wants to know why the whole family hated her sister without ever meeting her, why they disowned Kostas, why they are so unfriendly towards Nicky. Finally Spiro informs her that Kostas had a big argument with his mother about not marrying Maria, about marrying Becca and demanded the ruby ring that his mother held for Kostas’s wife. Supposedly when Madam Marcos refused the ring Kostas took it; he took several documents of his own from the safe where the ring was stored and it was missing afterwards.
Harriet is horrified. She knew Kostas well and knew he would never have done that. Nor would Becca have demanded the family ring nor accepted it if Kostas had given it to her if she knew he took it. Of course no one believes that.
Meanwhile Harriet sees the undercurrents. Tia Zoe seems to want Spiro to pay attention to her yet is also pushing Spiro and Maria together and Harriet sees there is something off about her. Spiro doesn’t like Maria, in fact he tells Harriet that if he were doomed to marry her as is Alex, that he too would spend no time at home. Alex and Harriet have several more kissing encounters; Harriet tries to avoid him although she’s falling in love with him.
Finally Alex finds Spiro and Harriet on the beach; Spiro grabs Harriet’s bikini top while she has it undone to sunbathe and Alex has a fit. Alex sends Spiro back to Athens to work and takes Harriet out in his place. Alex alludes to his upcoming marriage, never saying whom he intends to marry. Harriet tells him that she cannot accept that Kostas would have stolen the ring, that Becca would not have accepted it, that there was no ring anywhere in their home or safe deposit, that she despised Alex for condemning his own brother. Alex furiously claims he condemned Kostas only because of overwhelming evidence, that it was the hardest thing he ever did.
Then he pulls the car over and necks with her, stops when a huge thunderclap hits and she pulls away. Harriet claims she’s afraid of the storm and Alex mocks her.
When they get back Nicky is nowhere in the house. Harriet knows Nicky doesn’t like thunder and wouldn’t have gone outside but she’s got a feeling there’s something very wrong. He had been almost asleep in his own room, he is too short to open the door himself yet he is gone.
Harriet tells Alex Nicky is gone, and when Alex disputes that he would be outside, tells him bluntly that it was not raining when “he was taken out.” Alex is outraged that Harriet suspects someone in his home; Harriet says (he was taken out) “Probably because he’s his father’s son. Or hasn’t it ever occurred to you that someone got rid of Kostas too?”
She finds Nicky unconscious by the path to the beach, soaked and cold and injured from a blow to the head. Alex and others help her and Nicky back to find pandemonium in the house. Everyone is there, Madam Marcos is nearly incoherent, and someone is wailing distraught. The someone is Tia Zoe.
Later that night Harriet wakes up to find Alex holding her on the bed. Tia Zoe wanted her son Spiro to inherit from Alex and had the ruby ring all along in her sewing bag and fostered Madam Marcos’s intransigence against her own son and her son’s wife. Alex again alludes to his marriage plans, then takes Harriet in his arms, kisses and undresses her. “Tonight you will wear only my kisses.”
Alex seduces Harriet carefully, knowing she is a virgin, and they make love several times. The next morning Alex says they must talk but he must leave her room now to avoid the servants. This frightens Harriet because Alex said nothing of love, he implied he intended to marry someone, and maybe a short affair is all he wants.
Madam Marcos has Harriet escorted “almost like being in custody” to see her where she puts a knife in Harriet’s heart and hope. Of course Harriet knew that her presence was temporary, correct? And that now she was Alex’s mistress she was “hardly an appropriate companion for Nicky”.
Further “Clearly you have been cherishing some illusions about Alex’s intentions towards you. Perhaps you even hoped to emulate your sister and contract a marriage within our family. If so you made a grave mistake. Alex will marry Maria in the new year.” Lastly, of course, Alex would normally be generous to his discarded mistresses, which Harriet now is, thus Madam Marcos an expensive bracelet to give her as a good-bye gift. “A piece of jewelry, Harriet thought, the ultimate insult.” Madam Marcos has reserved a plane seat for Harriet and don’t let the door hit you on the way out. Harriet sticks up for herself, sliding the unopened box back, “Keep it for the next lady. Alex isn’t likely to stay celibate until the new year.”
Harriet goes home to no job, no bedsitter, no money. She stays with Nicky’s old babysitter for a couple weeks scrounging for work during a bad recession when she gets a call from Alex’s man of business to come see him about Nicky. Of course Harriet is frightened and dashes over there.
It is Alex. He thinks Harriet left because she had a fiancé in London, offers her the diamond and sapphire bracelet to “compensate your fiancé for the loss of his – virgin bride.” Harriet can hardly believe him. She admits she made up a story to Spiro to deflect him, Alex says Spiro would not have made love to her because “he knew I wanted you for myself.” Harriet is hurt, furious, goes to leave.
Alex won’t allow her to leave, takes her to his hotel where he explains that his mother wanted him to marry Maria, that he told his mother he intended to marry Harriet, that he knows Harriet loves him. He “bought your bracelet, not as a farewell, but to fasten round your wrist when I asked you to marry me, you little fool.”
He claims he wants to marry her not solely for Nicky’s sake but to give his child a name. Harriet jumps up, tells him she’s not pregnant and tries to leave. Alex picks her up and takes her to bed. “Now tell me you don’t want me.” Harriet says “Wanting isn’t love, Alex, and it takes love to make a marriage.” Alex thinks she means she does not love him, tells her he can teach her to love him, to need him, to trust him. Harriet realizes Alex loves her and tells him she loves him too. Happy Ever After.
The plot uses the Betty Neels’s favorite and very annoying approach: Alex talks about getting married but never tells Harriet he intends to marry her, never gives her any hint he sees her as anything other than a nice fling, never suggests he has any more feelings for her than desire. I hated this in Neels’s romances and hate it here too. None of Betty’s heroines nor Harriet ever ask “Who are you marrying?” They assume it’s the Other Woman. That hits my grr button and leans on it!
Characters and Setting
Alex is described as “impatient” throughout the book, also shows himself arrogant towards Harriet and towards Spiro, caring towards his mother and Nicky. He’s desperate to get Harriet in his bed and makes no bones about wanting her and that he know she wants him. He quickly realizes she would never have sold Nicky to him, that she’s honest and caring.
Alex is cruel, openly states he intends to separate Nicky from Harriet permanently and never corrects this even after he gets to know Harriet. He manipulates Harriet’s love and care for Nicky to get her to Greece, then to stay in his home and eventually to see him in London.
He’s not a particularly endearing character. Extremely attractive, forceful, sometimes caring, sometimes pleasant, I doubt Harriet truly loves him until near the end. I think she is so attracted to him she confuses sex for love at first, but then she finds immense emotional connection to him when they make love and she certainly is in love with him.
Harriet finds Alex cruel and nearly despotic when he’s not being wonderful and has very mixed feelings about him. His family except Spiro and the house staff treat her with disdain and near rudeness, make it clear she is simply not worth their time. Yet they want Nicky. As Harriet’s friend Manda says, Harriet reminds Madam Marcos of things that shouldn’t have happened so they did not want her around, but Nicky would also be a reminder and they kept him.
She struggles with choosing to let Nicky go to Alex’s family; she knows he would be better off materially but worries about Madam Marcos and Tia Zoe being cold and distant. She’s far more confident that Alex loves and cares for Nicky, especially when he says he intends to keep Nicky with him and his wife when he travels.
She struggles even more with her feelings for Alex. Harriet is smart enough to know that they have no future together – Kostas, her sister, his mother will always come between them – and Alex is super rich and supposed to marry Maria. She knows this but she enjoys his company and his compelling physical appeal.
I kept wanting to redo Harriet’s conversations with Alex in London after his mother kicked her out. Here is my personal preference for dialogue:
Alex: “I want to talk to you. You left so precipitately we didn’t have time.”
Harriet: “Why? Didn’t your mother say everything? Or did you find she missed an insult or two? Or did you just want to put the boot in yourself?”
See? Shortcut the chaff and rigmarole and get right to the point. “You had me kicked out. You had me insulted. You slept with me and never said anything about marriage or anything permanent. I was stupid enough to think there was something between us.” Put Alex on the spot and make him declare himself. True, he did get there – eventually – but Harriet did not tell him how much his mother’s (and supposedly his) insults hurt her. While it isn’t necessary to rehash every insult or every misunderstanding in a marriage one should not allow something this major to slide.
Sara Craven’s heroines always have spines but they are also jelly toast when the hero puts the moves on and Harriet is no exception. Her heroines tend to think they are in love, rely on their feelings, confuse “in love” with “loving” which are very different.
The minor characters clearly show their personalities, Madam Marcos, Spiro, even Tia Zoe and a couple servants. Nicky is more a plot moppet than a person. One reason I enjoy Craven’s romances is she creates vivid, well-characterized minor characters who are far more than spear carriers.
Craven sets this romance in London hotel rooms and Harriet’s austere bedsitter and the Marcos corporation headquarters, plus Alex’s gorgeous Greek island villa. She makes us feel the warm sunshine on the beach and contrasts that with Harriet’s constrained life alone in London.
Overall
I enjoyed reading Pagan Adversary for the tension between the characters and seeing Harriet struggle with her feelings. She did not want to fall in love with Alex but she did. She did not trust him and she did not want to give Nicky up to him nor giver herself. But she did. We don’t see Alex’s thoughts well enough to believe his love either, although Alex has enough experience he should recognize the difference between attraction and love.
Overall 4 Stars. I can’t rate this higher despite the good writing simply because I’m skeptical the happy ever after will last. Nonetheless the story is compelling.
I got my copy of Pagan Adversary from Thriftbooks. Amazon, eBay and most online used book sites will have it too. As of this writing Pagan Adversary is not available online in E format nor on Archive.org.
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