Reader Question – The historical romance book where she had an affair to get new Kilns or ovens for her husband…

Victoria is looking for this one! Oooh tons of AMAZING detail in this description below and it sounds right up our alley! I remember sneaking my mom’s old paperbacks when I was just little and loving them, too. Also, all the biographies she had (I learned a ton about important people I had never even heard of). AND ESPECIALLY her horror novels. Those were my favorite and YES… they kept me up at night (reading…but also with fear). LOL!!!

Ahhhhhh for so many of us, our intro into reading at such a young age started with a lot more than children’s books. 😉

She asks:

RE: Looking for a romance novel from 1970s/early 80s

Hi Maryse,

I am desperate. I went through all of my grandmother’s secret stash of romance novels as a kid and that was a *very* long time ago. I’m trying to find one that I remember reading but I only have a few vague details. I’m hoping you can help.

Here’s what I remember:

A woman is married to a potter or baker…leaning toward potter. He needs new ovens or kilns. The young wife regularly goes to town sq. to paint. A local aristocrat sees her and seduces/blackmails her into an affair — saying he’ll make sure her husband gets the new ovens/kilns if she sleeps with him.

Eventually she gets pregnant and the affairs stops (I don’t remember if the two are connected). Husband and in-laws have no idea the kid isn’t his until she’s born and her eyes settle into the exact color of the aristocrat’s eyes. It’s a rare color apparently.

The family calls her out on it, and she says at first she did it for the ovens to help the family and later for the “love.” things proceed until aristocrat comes back when kid is a little olde and she takes the toddler so he can see it (guy is on horseback, she just holds kid up and they have a brief chat). Husband flips and accuses her of cheating on him again.

That is ALL I remember. Do you have any idea what it might be? I think it’s the 70s but might have been early 80s. It was set in Europe. I don’t *think* England. In my memory it feels more like Germany or Czech Republic but I could be wrong.

help. please and thank you!

Anyone have a guess?