Betrayal in Bali is one of my two or three favorite romance novels and every time I read it I am in awe of the author’s skill with strong emotions. Here Sally Wentworth converts betrayal to love and makes us believe it.

Characters and Plot Synopsis

Gael Markham’s brother in law skids on ice driving her home and hits an oncoming car, killing the two people in the other car. Gael takes the blame for the accident to protect her brother in law from losing his job.

A few weeks later Leo Kane meets Gael at the gallery where she works. He works for an international construction company and is home for a 3 month leave. He takes her to lunch, they date, she falls in love. Leo is older, more experienced, doesn’t show much physical attraction to Gael, nor does he tell her he loves her, yet dates her steadily. One weekend they go sailing and Leo asks her to drive home but she refuses, citing the fact she lost her license after an accident. He presses her on the accident and Gael won’t talk about it, “It’s nothing.” (She still has nightmares about the crash.)

Leo goes on holiday for 5 weeks and Gael realizes she needs to get over him. Then he returns to London and proposes. He will be in Bali to supervise a huge hospital construction project and wants her with him. He says, “I said I would give you a ring” when I get back.

The marry three weeks later just before their flight to Indonesia. Leo acts a little odd, abstracted, lost in thought during dinner when they arrive on Bali. When he comes to her bedroom he viciously tells Gael he won’t consummate the marriage, that he hated having to kiss and touch her, married her only because she killed his fiancée with her drunk driving, that she owes him, that he must have a wife for this job and she can jolly well play the part.

This brutal rejection devastates Gael, she tries to assert her innocence, and demands Leo let her leave. Unfortunately he got a joint passport and she has no money and cannot leave without him. The next day she’s rude to local queen bee Norah, claims she will continue to be rude until Leo lets her go. Leo threatens Gael physically and emotionally in private then turns into Mr. Sweet when they go to Norah’s for dinner, calls her darling, holds her. Gael proposes a bargain with him when they get back home. She will act the company wife for 6 months and Leo will treat her with some basic consideration, let her leave afterwards, then get the marriage annulled. They agree.

Leo continues to treat her with contempt in private, affectionately in public and Gael is emotionally devastated, bored, lonely, barely able to function after parties where Leo pretends to care. She can’t bring herself to socialize with the other wives after Leo rejected her so thoroughly and there is nothing to do, nowhere to go. About a month later she discovers there are bikes on Bali; she asks the servants to sell her camera and buy a bike for her, which allows her freedom to leave the tiny yard and house. She sketches the local scenes and slowly heals from the emotional shock.

About 6 weeks after they arrive in Bali Gael discovers a secluded plantation house on its private beach just a mile from their bungalow and is delighted with the place. Dirk Vanderman, an Australian now returned to Bali, surprises her there and agrees to rent her a room in the house she can use for a studio to paint. They get along great for about 3 weeks, work separately all day, take swim breaks and eat picnic lunches together.

Gael slowly recovers her confidence and joy in life and Leo comments she is eating and looks better, Gael tells him that she has gotten over his betrayal, that he no longer has the power to hurt her. He asks her to accompany him to a country club dinner dance. Gael agrees to go, stating it is only to fulfill her bargain. Leo says it doesn’t have to be like that any more, that he hadn’t realized how much he would hurt her, indicates he’s ready to have a more normal relationship, to stop hating each other. Gael loved Leo intensely and now must either hate or love, she cannot be indifferent and she refuses to love.

Dirk sees her at the dance and the next day talks her into going with him to tour some artist enclaves on Bali. Gael sees Nora, who has never forgiven Gael for snubbing her, and tries to leave unseen instead of greeting her. Of course Norah sees them together and tells Leo. Leo confronts Gael and accuses her of having an affair. He forcibly kisses her and tries to make her admit she hopped into bed with Dirk. Gael denies it, tells him to believe what he wants, she doesn’t really care as she vowed never to let a man touch her after Leo lied and cheated.

The next scene is the emotional turning point. Gael decides she cannot keep going to Dirk’s house to paint any more, even though she knows she will hurt even worse if she quits, bikes over, packs up her painting materials at the plantation house and is nearly ready to leave when Dirk comes and suggests they go swimming one last time. Leo comes as she gets her bikini off the balcony, sees her in her underwear and is enraged, dashes up the stairs. Terrified Gael shouts for Dirk and runs out, still in her underwear and Dirk holds her a second. Leo yells at him to take his hands off his wife. They hit each other and Gael tries to break it up but Leo can’t pull his punch and hits her in the face. She falls down the steps unconscious.

At the hospital Gael is still terrified and refuses to see Leo. Dirk hops through the window to see her and asks her to leave Leo and come to him, that he’s in love with her; Gael replies he’s a wonderful friend, but only a friend and that she can’t leave Leo yet. Leo forces his way to see her, tells her that all his bitterness and anger left when he saw her fall down the stairs, that he wants to try again, to start over as they were in London. Gael says bully for him, but she still lives in her hell and all she wants is to leave.

To us readers it starts looking as though Leo begins to care for Gael. Two weeks earlier he indicated he was no longer fiercely angry with her, that he could begin again, and now, after putting her in the hospital, reiterates this. Gael does not believe him whatsoever. When she leaves hospital Leo takes her out, they spend time together, explore the island, act as a couple. Gael doesn’t trust this and tries to pick fights but Leo works hard to control his temper and reactions, treats her as a wife, forces togetherness. Leo offers Gael the job of to design and select the art display for the new hospital. It’s a dream job that she is reluctant to accept.

They attend an evening coming of age ceremony for their servants’ son. Afterwards Leo says he’s fallen in love with Gael. She’s indignant, accuses him of saying that only because people suspect he beat her up, doesn’t believe him. She can’t resist the job though and is happy doing what she loves.

A few evenings later a close lightening strike startles Gael and Leo comes in her room and tries to make love to her. She responds momentarily then shoves him away, stumbles across the room to get away. He says he’ll leave her alone that night, but that they will make love soon because she wants it too.

The entire island is as tense as Gael and Leo. The rains are late, people are nervous about the political situation and unrest and unemployment. There is a small riot that blows up the propane storage at the hospital construction site that frightens Gael. She’s getting ready to ride her bike over to see what’s going on when their servant Kartini asks her to help to get medical attention for their son, shot in the riot. Gael gets a driver and car from the hospital and goes with Kartini to pick up the boy. During all this the monsoons start and everyone and everything, including the car’s spark plugs, are drenched and muddy. She gets out several times on the short drive to move big sticks, stands in the mud to push the car and finally manages to get to Kartini’s home, pick up the boy, get the car to start up again (remember, 1980 cars weren’t as robust as today’s), and gets halfway back when they almost plow into a big tree that blocks the road. She and Kartini’s husband get out to chop off branches so they can remove the tree. They hear a car and go hide in the jungle.

Leo is driving the car, looking for Gael. He and she meet and he takes Kartini’s family to the hospital then takes Gael home and into the shower and into bed. Gael tells him then that she was not the driver in the accident that killed his fiancée, and he apologizes again. We leave as they begin to make love.

Why Betrayal In Bali Works

Gael is neither pushy nor a pushover. She recognizes how devastated Leo is from losing his fiancée and she even understand why he wants to punish her for it and force her to stay with him so he can keep his job. She might have agreed to stay as recompense had she truly caused Julia’s death but as it was she vehemently denied Leo had any right to lie and cheat and was adamant that she would learn to stop feeling hurt.

Gael is blunt, says what she means and states how she feels. When Leo courts her in London Gael is completely open about her feelings. After being gone 5 weeks Leo tells her he will leave for 3 years in Bali in just a few weeks. Gael doesn’t – can’t – hide how she feels. In Bali she tells Leo he hurt her.

Gael loves Leo. She truly loves him, not just in London or before he betrays her. She loves him despite how he treats her and that’s why she channels all her heart into hating him. She can’t help respond when he tries to kiss her the night he accuses her of sleeping with Dirk or during the storm or in London or at the ending. She must love or hate Leo, nothing between.

Leo is emotionally complex. Does he love Gael at all before she falls down the stairs? I think so. In London he seems torn between keeping emotional and physical distance and caring. He obviously finds her attractive and the fact she’s in love with him adds to her appeal. Yet he doesn’t want to feel anything for her beyond getting her to Bali helping him. When you think about it, it makes sense he would want her to come act the wife since he must be married for his job and she’s readily available. Yet marrying someone for revenge is incredibly stupid. Buddy, you will be married. Stuck with someone you dislike. Stuck in the same house, stuck living together.

He said he didn’t much care how he got Gael to come with him to Bali. If he had explained the situation would she have come? Maybe. Then we’d have had the typical marriage of convenience novel instead of this one full of emotional passion from betrayal.

Leo says he searched his conscience when he realized how much he hurt Gael. That tells me he’s normally a decent man, and now he has to feel guilty. Does guilt turn into love? Not usually. Guilt might make him treat her better, to try and make something of their marriage, but he has to have some will to love her or some emotional connection to stay the course.

Dirk Vanderman is more than a possible Other Man, he’s a true character in his own right. He is kind to Gael and fun, they get along great without any emotional or physical demands yet he expects Gael to do her best. Gael swims better and further to meet Dirk’s challenge.

Norah is a typical obnoxious Queen Bee. Norah doesn’t like that Gael technically outranks her in the closed European company community because Gael is married to the boss and Norah is not. Norah loves to cut Gael down and make spiteful remarks. Gael simply dislikes Norah. She doesn’t like her snobbishness, her condescending attitudes to the natives, she doesn’t like being patronized or treated as a dope. We’ve probably all known Norah types and they aren’t much fun.

Sally Wentworth makes Bali as a setting come alive. This is not a travelogue Harlequin Presents. Wentworth describes the flowers and the beach and the heat and the tiny homes in small villages and the children without making the place as important as the characters. She keeps Bali as the setting, important to the story since we must understand how constrained Gael feels when trapped in her home and yard. There was a lot of political unrest in Indonesia around 1980 when she published Betrayal in Bali, and Wentworth explains enough to make the riot believable.

Emotional connections are strong. Even without knowing Leo’s feelings we see Gael’s heart and Wentworth masterfully shows how one person connects to another and forms an emotional bond between her characters and us readers. I’m not sure how she does it. I’ve read several books by her that have this bond and I can’t quite see why some books connect so strongly with me and some do not. The common denominator seems to be that I can empathize with Gael in Betrayal in Bali and Genista in Rightful Possession, but not so much with Lyn in The Judas Kiss or Casey in Ultimatum. Those ladies seem more vindictive or controlling, not people I can relate to.

I’m in awe how Sally Wentworth creates characters and stories that convert events that should have and did cause immense emotional devastation into growth and emotional healing and finally into love. She converts betrayal into love in Betrayal in Bali and rape into love with Rightful Possession, and both are believable. Which is incredible when you consider the agony the heroines must feel.

Rating

5 Stars. Betrayal in Bali is one of the best Harlequin Presents novels I have read, believable, emotionally fulfilling, delightful characters, enjoyable.

I read Betrayal in Bali back when it was published – I used to borrow some Harlequin romances from our library. There were six that stuck in my mind for years, although I remembered only snippets. It’s funny that I recalled that Leo blames Gael for the car crash because she took the blame although innocent because I had forgotten the entire rest of the novel, even that it was set in Bali. Sally Wentworth wrote three of those six books I remember 40 years later. Which I think says a lot for the depth of her characterization.

I got my copy from Thriftbooks and you can find used paperback copies on Amazon and many other used book sites or eBay.

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